Read 1 Corinthians 4:1-13. If you read the Bible regularly, you’ll notice something about God’s ways: They run counter to the ways of the world. You see, in the Kingdom of God, we conquer by yielding; we find rest under a yoke; we reign by serving; and we are made great by becoming nothing. We become wise by being fools for Jesus’ sake; we are made free by becoming slaves to Christ; and we possess all things by giving up everything. We triumph through defeat; we have victory and glory in our infirmity; and we live by dying. That’s why a true servant of Jesus will always be an enigma and a paradox to this fallen world. In 1 Corinthians 4, Paul explained this principle, using himself and the other apostles as examples: “This, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ . . .” (v. 1). What is the first concern for the servant of the Lord? Not: How can I be happy? But: How can I please the Master? Paul did not say the servant of Jesus must be eloquent or clever or an extraordinary communicator. No, the servant of Jesus must humble himself under Jesus. So Paul doesn’t want to be known as a tremendous leader or an expert church planter or a brilliant theologian. He wants the Corinthians to think of him simply as a servant of Jesus Christ. This is true humility: being obedient to our Lord above all else. Humility has everything to do with the submission of one’s thoughts, one’s opinions, one’s ideas, to the Truth of God’s Word. It’s a greatness the world simply cannot understand. Prayer: Lord, Your ways are not my ways. You call me to a life that confounds the world, but it is the best life. Make me more like You, humble and loving. You alone are worthy of my worship. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Six hundred years after Abraham, Joshua came to the same place where Abraham had built an altar to the Lord in response to His gracious promises (see Genesis 12:6-7). So at Shechem, Joshua reviews the blessings of God—His incredible works on behalf of Israel—and then challenges God’s people to respond. God doesn’t want our half-hearted worship. Joshua told the people, “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). We should not just worship God half-heartedly or serve Him out of feelings of obligation. God does not want us to just go through the motions while our hearts are focused on worldly things. God wants us to serve Him alone, regardless of what others are doing or what people will think of us. Have you been suffering from “spiritual amnesia”? Have you forgotten God’s past mercies as if you had never received them? Have you allowed your present troubles to blot out all memory of God’s past faithfulness and interventions? Have you neglected to praise Him for His past provision and blessings? Don’t allow your forgetfulness to distract you from God’s present work for you. If you are holding back from sharing about Christ because of spiritual complacency, then seek God’s forgiveness. If you have forgotten how God has given you past victories and are fearful of stepping out in faith, then repent of that today. Prayer: God, help me to serve and worship You wholeheartedly, regardless of what others think of me. You are worthy of all praise and adoration, in all seasons and circumstances. Thank You for all that You have done and are doing in my life. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

We must teach our children the art of spiritual warfare because the devil is fighting for their souls. We must allow them to watch how we do spiritual warfare. Don’t just give them a good education and a whole lot of money and pat them on the back. Equip them with the authority of the Word of God. Prepare them for the battle. Don’t just settle for them to succeed in business and in the world; teach them how to battle the enemy of God. Cry out to God on their behalf. Be a role model so they can watch you and know how to stand in the battle. Read Joshua 23. When Joshua grew old and knew his time on earth was coming to a close, he gathered the leaders together—the next generation—to exhort them to trust in the Lord. He essentially said, “If you obey the Lord your God, He’s going to fight your battles for you.” Each subsequent generation must learn from the previous generation without becoming dependent on the past; each generation must experience the Lord themselves. If we do not teach the next generation the art of spiritual warfare, they will develop spiritual amnesia—they will forget the wondrous acts the Lord has worked on our behalf. And when spiritual amnesia sets in, compromise will most surely follow. Mature believers must pass a living testimony of the grace of God to the next generation. From cover to cover in Scripture, we’re told that it is the parents’ primary responsibility to train their children in spiritual warfare. When Joshua’s generation failed to train their children in the battle, the next generation lost the battle. But the good news is if we cry out to God, He will extend grace yet again—not just to us but also to the next generation. Prayer: Father, help me to be faithful to pass on to the next generation the things You have taught me. Help me to do my part in equipping them for the battle and modeling the art of spiritual warfare. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The person who is faithful with small territories will be faithful with larger ones. And that is why we see Caleb honored by God in Joshua 14. Forty-five years earlier, when the Israelites were still in the wilderness, Moses sent twelve spies into the Promised Land—one from each of the twelve tribes (see Numbers 13). When the group found giants in the land, only two of the spies—Joshua and Caleb—were undaunted. The other ten spies were ready to give up out of fear. Yet Caleb reported, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it” (Numbers 13:30). God loves to see risk-taking faith and optimism in His children. Caleb had that kind of faith. The other ten spies saw obstacles and danger, but Caleb saw victory. Caleb kept his eyes on the God of promise, the God who controls the future. Instead of fearing what he saw with his eyes, Caleb trusted in the God of all hope. Caleb received his promised inheritance “because he followed the Lord, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly” (Joshua 14:14). But Caleb wasn’t ready to retire from God’s work. Even though the hill country was still inhabited by the Anakites, Caleb said, “Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. . . . I will drive them out just as he said” (Joshua 14:12). Even at 85 years of age, he was ready to take on the giants. He was ready to take on the tough assignment because he trusted in the power of God. There are plenty of unoccupied territories around us today. Will you say with Caleb, “Give me this hill country”? Prayer: God, help me to serve You wholeheartedly, like Caleb did. Give me strength to face the giants, trust in Your power, and keep my eyes fixed on You. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

QUESTION: “Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God?” ANSWER: Islam and Christianity present vastly different pictures of who God is and how humanity should approach Him. In Islam, Allah is distant and unknowable. He does not reveal himself. Muslims have only what their prophet thought his will is. His mercy is contingent on his mood. He is capricious, meaning changeable and unreliable, and cunning, which is one of the reasons why Islam offers no assurance of salvation. The god of Islam is vengeful, and there is an emphasis on his all-powerful nature. The God of the Bible, on the other hand, has made Himself known. He is personal; we can call Him Father. And He has revealed Himself perfectly through the incarnation of Jesus Christ, through whom He expresses unfathomable love in His sacrificial acts of grace—His incarnation, life, death, and resurrection for us. He is the faithful God, “who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17). He is Truth. He is love (see 1 John 4:8). He holds mercy and justice together; His power is balanced by love. Islam and Christianity offer two radically different prescriptions for living. For the Muslim, good works are motivated by fear of punishment that may be inflicted by a remote and impersonal god. The Muslim hopes to be acceptable to Allah because of his deeds—but he can never be sure he has done enough. But the Christian Gospel offers a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. In Christianity, we have the absolute assurance that we stand cleansed and spotless before God because of the shed blood of Jesus. Indeed, our God is one whom we delight to know and worship because He is good.

Only constant and focused prayer will keep us alert to subtle deception, flattering words, and the schemes of the ungodly. If we try to live as ambassadors for Christ but don’t lean on God’s wisdom through prayer, then we set ourselves up for failure. “Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you” (Proverbs 4:6). Read Joshua 9. Had Joshua and the leadership of Israel sought the counsel and wisdom of God, the Lord would have given them discernment. He would have shown them that the Gibeonites were wolves in sheep’s clothing. We must always be wary of those who use spiritual language to seduce us and lead us away from the Truth. This is what happened to Joshua. The deceptive people who came to Joshua did not oppose or argue with him. They knew the Bible and misused it, leading Joshua astray. How did Joshua handle his failure in being deceived by the Gibeonites? He may have been tempted to break the covenant with the Gibeonites because it was made in deception, but he kept his integrity. He knew that his testimony was more important than revenge. He knew that becoming bitter would not honor God. Have you allowed yourself to be misled or dissuaded from witnessing for Christ? Have you experienced a failure because you neglected to seek God’s wisdom and discernment? When we ask for God’s forgiveness and persevere in His work, He can bring triumph out of our failure. Scripture tells us: “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, . . . Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him” (James 1:5-6, 12). Prayer: God, when I face failure, help me to respond in a way that honors You. I pray that You would give me wisdom to handle the challenges of living in this world. You alone give me the strength to persevere. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.