Paul’s final chapter in 2 Timothy is both sobering and stirring. Aware of his imminent departure from this life, Paul solemnly charges Timothy to preach the Word with courage and consistency, regardless of the cost. This is not just a command—it is a commissioning grounded in the gravity of the coming judgment and the appearing of Christ. Timothy is not to adjust the gospel to fit cultural tastes but to deliver it with integrity, knowing that many will prefer comforting myths over convicting truth. Yet Timothy is called to remain steadfast—to endure hardship, fulfill his ministry, and live with the same eternal perspective that shaped Paul’s own race.

Acts 16 traces a series of Spirit-led movements and divine appointments that highlight God’s sovereign orchestration of the gospel’s advance into Europe. Paul’s missionary team grows as Timothy joins—circumcised not for salvation, but for the sake of Jewish hearers. The Spirit redirects them from their own plans, leading instead to Macedonia through a vision. Lydia, a prosperous merchant, becomes the first recorded convert in Europe, opening her home to support the mission. A demon-possessed girl disrupts the ministry until Paul casts out the spirit, triggering unjust retaliation and imprisonment. Yet even in jail, God moves. An earthquake leads not to escape, but to the jailer’s salvation.

Today’s devotional presented by Nick Harrison offers a blazing contrast between the hollow sparks of worldly pleasure and the abiding joy that is ours in Christ. Whitefield’s voice, though urgent and bold, carries the warmth of someone who has tasted the ache of sin and the sweetness of salvation. He testifies that true joy isn’t found in the fleeting thrills of indulgence, but in the settled peace of knowing Christ lives in us and we are reconciled to God.

Today’s reading from In Christ draws us beyond the positional truth of being “in Christ” and into the transformational reality of becoming “like Christ.” It anchors this transition in 2 Corinthians 3:18, where we behold Christ’s glory and are changed—from the inside out—into His likeness, by the Spirit of the Lord. This isn’t a goal we achieve through spiritual ambition or religious effort. It’s the natural outcome of abiding in Christ and allowing the Spirit to do what He has been sent to do—conform us into the image of the Son.

T. Austin-Sparks invites us to look through a window—a glimpse into the vastness of the Life of Christ. This life is not meant to be dissected intellectually, nor systematized like a curriculum. It is to be lived. The believer does not “figure out” God’s purpose by mapping out their roles and analyzing their gifts in the abstract. Instead, the believer enters the flow of divine life by walking in the Spirit—and the rest unfolds in order, just as the human body naturally breathes and lives without constant mental effort.

Many of us grew up imagining the will of God as a cosmic map—an itinerary we had to decode: where to live, whom to marry, what job to take. But Ray Stedman brings us back to something richer and far more relational: knowing God’s will begins not with finding out what to do, but with learning who we are.

There’s something intimate and transformative about leaning—not just emotionally, but spiritually—on the One who loves us beyond measure. Today’s devotional from A.B. Simpson reflects on the vivid imagery from Song of Solomon 8:5, a soul emerging from the wilderness with her full weight resting on her beloved. It reminds us that Jesus doesn't merely tolerate our dependence; He welcomes it as the evidence of our love.

Discipline from Jesus isn’t a one-size-fits-all rule—it’s deeply personal. The call to cut off your right hand, if it causes you to stumble, is not about external mutilation but internal submission. The hand represents something valuable, perhaps even virtuous to the world, but if it compromises your communion with Christ, it must go.

God never calls us to face spiritual battles in our own strength—He pledges His very presence and power to go before us and fight on our behalf. As He stood with Moses and Joshua in the thick of Israel’s warfare, He now stands with us in ours. These Old Testament assurances aren’t just historical footnotes; they reveal the consistent nature of a God who does not change. What He was to them, He is to us—unchanging, unfailing, ever-near.

Today’s reflection from Miles Stanford calls us to soberly consider how we carry the riches we’ve been given in Christ. Just as the newly rich may fumble under the weight of wealth they don't know how to handle, so can believers mishandle the spiritual riches we possess in Christ—drawing from ministry about Him rather than from Him Himself.

Pentecost wasn’t just a sudden spiritual event—it was the culmination of a divine timeline woven through the feasts of Israel. Fifty days after Christ’s resurrection, the feast of Pentecost fulfilled the typology laid out in Leviticus: from the offering of the first sheaf to the full harvest. Christ, raised from the dead, ascended secretly on the morning of His resurrection—not the visible ascension seen later by His disciples, but a private offering of Himself to the Father as the firstfruit of the harvest. That intimate moment, hidden from human eyes, satisfied the heart of God.

There’s a sobering line Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “We are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s Word…” In E. Stanley Jones’s reflection for today, this phrase slices through the veneer of ministry motives. He contrasts those who peddle God's Word for attention, ego, or livelihood with those who speak in Christ—from a place of sincerity, sentness, and accountability before God.

Jesus doesn’t merely give peace—He gives His peace. Not a substitute, not an approximation. What He enjoyed in perfect union with the Father is now ours in Him. This peace isn’t circumstantial, conditional, or fragile. It’s blood-secured, heaven-ordained, and Spirit-guarded. It unites all things in Him—Jew and Gentile, earth and heaven, sinner and holy God. He Himself is our peace, and in Him we’re not just recipients of calm—we are dwellers in the very realm of peace.

T. Austin-Sparks offers a powerful reminder that life in the Spirit is never passive. If Christ lives in us, then His presence cannot go unnoticed. The Holy Spirit doesn’t simply make us nicer people; He makes us living vessels through which Jesus registers His presence upon the world. Sparks’ bold assertion—that there should be “nothing neutral about any Christian”—is not a call to strive, but a call to yield.

Paul writes that he never stopped praying for the Colossians—even though he'd never met most of them. Chained to a Roman guard, managing visitors, and writing letters, he still managed a life of unceasing prayer. How? Because prayer, in its truest form, is not an event on a schedule—it’s a life breathed moment by moment in quiet communion with God. Paul’s example reminds us that continual prayer isn’t about closing our eyes and folding our hands, but about living with an open heart and upward gaze in every situation.

What does it really mean to love Jesus? According to today’s reflection from A.B. Simpson, it means to lean. Not just a polite tilt or cautious dependence—but a full resting of all that we are on all that He is. The quote from the missionary encounter cuts deep: “If you love me, lean hard.” There’s something intimate, even vulnerable, in trusting someone enough to let your weight fall onto them. This is exactly what Jesus invites: a love that proves itself through restful surrender, not nervous reserve.

God’s covenant heart is never passive toward those He loves. Today’s passage walks us through a rich sequence of divine declarations, reminding us that His promises are never vague or delayed without purpose. From a bush aflame with holy fire, God speaks clarity and certainty to Moses: “I will send… I will be with you… I will bring you up… I will stretch out My hand…” Each statement flows like a current of deliverance—one that begins in bondage but rushes toward bounty.

Salvation isn’t just a cleanup of the old—it’s a complete replacement of the source. What God has done in Christ is far more than forgiveness and cleansing; He has given us new life by placing us into the Last Adam, not mending the old, but grafting us into a new root entirely (2 Corinthians 5:17). J.N. Darby reminds us: cultivating the crucified old man may dress up its appearance, but it can never change its nature. The old tree can never bear the fruit of the new life.

The cross was not a tragic twist in a noble story, nor a sudden solution to human failure. From eternity past, the Triune God held a counsel—a loving, divine decision—where it was determined that Christ would come, take on flesh, and be slain as the spotless Lamb. Acts 2:23 and 1 Peter 1:19–20 reveal that His crucifixion was foreknown, foreordained, and freely chosen in love.

Some victories are thunderous. Others come quietly, like fragrance on a breeze—undeniable, yet impossible to grasp or resist. E. Stanley Jones invites us to see that the triumph of Christ in us is not merely inward. It radiates. When we yield to His indwelling life, the aroma of His character spreads through us in the most ordinary places—without striving, without force.