Most of us eat every day, some of us too much, because yesterday's
food is not enough to supply energy for today's needs. Why then, do
some of us expect yesterday's portion of heavenly manna the word of God to keep
us through today's challenges. On this program, we are going to change all
of that. Let's experience God's words today and receive the power we need to
live healthy, vibrant lives. Welcome to your Daily Portion with your host,
author speaker L. David Harris. Good morning, Good morning, Good morning.
It is Thursday, August seventeen, twenty twenty three. Hello, my
name is L. David Harris. I am your host, and this is
your Daily Portion where we give you God's word every single day, and today
is no exception. We are continuing in our Lesson study series through the Book
of Ephesians, and our caption for today is kindness not bitterness. Kindness not
bitterness. We'll get into that in just a moment, but first I'd like
to say welcome to everyone joining us, especially those joining us for the very
first time. Please go over to your Daily Portion dot com, join our
online community, and there we can build faith and fellowship. I want you
also to pick up the Your Daily Portion book and let me know where you
are in the world at your Daily Portion dot com. Let's go ahead and
pray and then we will get underway. Father in heaven, thank you for
this opportunity to come together and to pray and to seek your face and to
learn how to be kind, how to be kind. Father, Please draw
us into your presence today in Jesus name, I pray, Amen and Amen
again. Yes, so kindness is a rare commodity these days. Yes,
we understand that there are social graces. Yes, there are opportunities for us
to say yes, please and thank you. But genuine kindness is a rare
commodity these days. And generally it's because of sin. We know that,
right, but because of isms. There are isms. There's racism, there
is classism, and so many sexisms, so many isms that cause us to
forget the second and great commandment. Right. The first and great commandment is,
and you know what it is right to love God with everything that we
have and everything that we are right, and that is a miracle. We
don't have the capacity innately. I know that there are a lot of coaches
and other people like I'm a coach. I invest most of my time in
developing people right people development. But there are a lot of people like me
who come and try to tell you that everything is within you already, and
it's like, well, pause, it's I get what some people are saying.
But really and truly, we were born in sin, shaping in iniquity.
So whatever it is that God would have put in us has been defective,
right and deformed based on sin. And so in order to activate,
just like with Paul activating laying hands on Timothy and activating, or the gift,
the gift that God would have would have would have put in him,
right, we need the Holy Spirit. So we cannot just say it's in
you. Like God through the Holy Spirit, activates those things in our lives
that please Him. I wish I had the time. So kindness to this
degree is one of those things. Okay. I want to read from the
Book of Ephesians, chapter four. Ephesians Chapter four, beginning at verse thirty.
Right, we already spoke about verse thirty itself. Now let's add more,
okay, and grieve not the Holy Spirit of God. Now we're talking
about God the Holy Spirit, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
And so in order for us to be holy, in order for us
to be like Christ, when Jesus comes, he's looking to see if there's
any faith in the earth. Right. He's coming for a bride who is
without spot and without wrinkle, right, And in order for that to be
possible, the Holy Spirit has to seal us in his love. Seal us
in whatsoever Jesus Christ would have commanded us. Seal us into the truth.
The Word is truth. Jesus is truth, and his ten commandments are truth
right until the day of Redemption Verse thirty one. Let all bitterness, oh
my, all of it. All wrath, that's all of it. And
anger, all of it. That's what the Bible says, and clamor all
of it, and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice.
So we read a couple of days ago that we are to be angry and
sin not. And people give ourselves permission to say it's no problem being angry,
and they put a wholesale stamp on that, right, And it's like,
well, pause, there are two things. Let me say it in
a way that makes sense. Right, If there are some things to do,
anger and sin are the ones not to do. Be angry, that's
one thing. Sinning the other thing. That's why God says, to what
put away? Put away? Do not allow the sun to go down on
your wrath? Why? Because you have to put it away. It says
very clearly in the same chapter to put away wrath, put away anger.
And you're like, okay, Dave, but why does it say be angry
and sin night I just explained it. God is saying, here is what
I want you not to do. I don't want you to be angry in
an ungodly way. I'll come back to godly anger or what you want to
call holy indignation, and I want you not to sin. Here are some
things I don't want you to do. I don't want you to be ungodly
angry, and I don't want you to sin. That means put it away.
Can you see it in verse thirty one. Can you see it in
verse thirty one. I'm coming back to thirty two in a moment now,
you would say, but David, the Bible says that that Jesus looked round
about upon them with anger. Okay, you can see where Jesus was angry.
It always had to do with the honor of God. It was never
because somebody did something personally to him, because somebody gossip, because somebody called
him a name, right, because somebody said that he was a fatherless child
like. He did not entertain those kinds of anger. In fact, in
Matthew chapter five, the Bible says, you read, you have heard it
said of them of old time, thou shalt not commit adultery. But I
say unto you. If a man has lust for a woman, or looks
upon a woman to lust after her, he has committed adultery with her already.
And it's like, what what are you talking about? That has nothing
to do with anger. Oh, But then the Bible teaches us some more
spirituality, and he said, you have heard it said of them of old
time, thou shalt not murder. Hmm, thou shalt not murder. That's
what the tech says in Matthew chapter five. But if you have anger with
your brother without a cause, you shall be in danger of the judgment.
So God is making a correlation to unholy anger and murder. And those individuals
who don't put away wrath do not put away unholy anger. Those individuals jewels
are guilty of murder. I wish I had the time. So in Matthew
five we see the spirituality of the law, not the letter. Okay,
verse thirty two, and be ye kind one to another. He wants us
to be kind, he said, put away those other things? Now what
does he want you to do? See? Christianity or living a believer's lifestyle
is not about simply abstaining. It's not an abstemious lifestyle. It is not
a diet right. It is what do we do as God gives us strength?
What do we do? Be kind one to another, be tenderhearted?
And what else? How does that? How is the what is the manifestation
of this kind of tenderhearted love and kindness? Forgiving one another? How?
In what way do we forgive? What is the manner of our forgiveness?
Oh, even as God for christ sake hath forgiven you put away anger,
become tender hearted and kind? Yes, in what way? How does it
manifest itself? Also? It manifests itself majorly in forgiveness? Yes? And
how is that also manifest like? What is it connected to? Oh,
God forgave you, God forgave me so if and since God forgave you for
Christ's sake. Then, by all means, be forgiving and tender hearted,
and put away wrath and bitterness, and embrace kindness because God did that for
Christ's sake. In you a wonderful day, Peace, Thanks for joining us
listening. Friends. Always remember we cannot live by bread alone, but by
every word that comes from the mouth of God. This has been your daily
portion with L. David Harris. Make it a great day.