IN TOUCH DEVOTIONAL 28TH MARCH 2024 BY DR. CHARLES STANLEY, THURSDAY MESSAGE
In Touch Devotional 28th March 2024 TOPIC: Resurrected for the Present Work
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 2:1-6
1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,
2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.
3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved ),
6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus
TODAY’S MESSAGE
Romans 6:23 tells us that “the wages of sin is death.” In today’s passage, however, Paul tells the Ephesians (and us) that those wages are fully paid.
“You were dead in your offenses and sins,” the apostle writes (v. 1). We might not have realized it, but in reality, we were dead people walking. Thankfully, like the prodigal son’s father (whom we discussed a few days ago), God doesn’t let us remain that way.
Notice how Ephesians 2:4 begins: The two words “But God” should ring joyously in our ears. Our Father, full of mercy and love, “made us alive together with Christ” (v. 5). He raises people today just as He raised Jesus—only we rise from the walking death of sin to new and eternal life.
That reality shines a bright light on all we’ve experienced. In that light we see differently, finally realizing that sin always leads to death, not freedom. We can also act differently. When Jesus said the kingdom of God was at hand, He wasn’t offering information about our future but transformation for our present life. By grace through faith, we become God’s workmanship, walking not in death but in the life of good works He’s prepared for us.
Bible in One Year: 1 Samuel 15-16
Dr. Charles Stanley was the founder of In Touch Ministries and a New York Times best-selling author. Throughout his ministry, he demonstrated a keen awareness of people’s needs and provided Christ-centered biblically based principles for everyday life.