A Time for Tough Love
by David Cross
These very challenging days are certainly an opportunity for bringing Christian comfort to the world, in the midst of international anxiety concerning life and death. We can be an encouragement to our neighbours, demonstrating the reality of a loving and compassionate God. But it`s also a time for an honest gospel message, in regard to people`s eternal well-being.
Someone recently expressed that message to me in this way: those who have chosen to deny Jesus as Lord may fulfill their life`s ambitions, but at the end they will pass through a door marked exit. Those who have chosen to follow Him have opportunity to walk in God`s destiny for their lives, and at the end will pass through a door marked entry.
Now is a time not just for loving our neighbours through practical care, but also a time for expressing some tough love, by telling them that only through a belief in Jesus can they have the certainty of an eternal and peaceful conclusion to this earthly existence.
Jesus was the perfect expression of truth and grace as He walked with humanity. We, His Body now on earth, have the mandate to continue bringing His message to a very anxious world, and doing it with endless grace but also with uncompromising truth, all by the power of His Spirit.
Prayer: Father God, please enable us to bring a wholly honest message of hope to those around us that don`t yet know You, especially during this time when the entire world is reflecting on the frailty of human life. Amen.
David Cross David is part of the Executive Leadership of Ellel Ministries, with particular responsibility for the Ellel centres in Western Europe. He is married to Denise and they have three grown up children and eight grandchildren. David has been a civil engineer and ski-touring instructor in the Highlands of Scotland. He is passionate about the teaching and practice of the healing and deliverance ministry of Jesus and has written several books: Soul Ties, Trapped by Control, God’s Covering, The Dangers of Alternative Ways to Healing(co-authored with John Berry), an A to Z Guide to the Healing Ministry, What`s Wrong with Human Rights? and, most recently, God`s Way out of Depression. You can follow a daily thought from David on Twitter: @dmcross62
Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship. Provided full acknowledgement is made to Seeds of the Kingdom as the source, you are also welcome to use it in a non-commercial way and reproduce it in magazines or other Christian websites. The copyright for any commercial use of the material remains with Ellel Ministries International.
