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Just like you can’t unscramble an egg that’s been broken, we all have a dark side we can’t quite shake. We have a root problem with sin, which sounds pretty hopeless until we remember God, in His mercy, doesn’t leave us there. Through His Son He provided a way out of our brokenness and despair.

Tune in to hear Pastor Chuck Swindoll discuss what the church is all about. Learn how to respect your leaders, live in peace, encourage the fainthearted, and more.

From the Series: Contagious Christianity

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Allison and her daughter and two friends were out for a trail ride in a remote area. They were to rendezvous later, actually, in the afternoon with other family members at their overnight campsite. When it came time to head back, they were somewhere on the side of a mountain, picking their way through very rocky ground. No matter which way they went, they couldn't find the main trail that would take them back down the mountain. They could see where they needed to be, but the terrain was too rugged to get down any other way. The hours wore on, dark began to fall, and Allison's two friends finally made an attempt to get to a cabin they could see. Well after dark, Allison and her daughter finally saw flashlights moving up the mountain. Her friends returned with the man from that cabin. He helped them pick their way to a point where they could actually get right back on the trail. Much to their surprise, while they had been lost, they had been very close to the trail all along!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Close to the Trail, But Lost."

It's possible to be close to the trail and still be lost in the great outdoors or in your search for God. And without a rescuer, you will never make it home - to God, to heaven.

Jesus met a man who was, like many of us, almost where he needed to be, but still lost. What He said to that man gives all of us religious folks something to think about. This man, who came to Jesus as an honest spiritual seeker, indicated that he really seemed to understand and agree with Jesus' teachings. Then in Mark 12:34, our word for today from the Word of God, "Jesus said to him, 'You are not far from the kingdom of God." My friend was "not far" from the trail home, but she was still lost. This man was "not far" from belonging to Jesus, but he was "not in."

That's what Jesus might say to a whole lot of us church folks, us Christianity veterans. We agree with Jesus. We go to His meetings. We like Him a lot. We look like we belong to Him. But see, you can have all that and still be lost because there's never been that moment when you fully committed yourself to Jesus as your personal Rescuer from your personal sins. You've never actually grabbed Him like a drowning person would grab a rescuer and you've said, "Jesus, you're my only hope! Save me!" It's His death for your sins on the cross that really is your only hope of having your sins forgiven...of having a relationship with your Creator...of going to His heaven when you die.

But the Rescuer has come to you right where you are - close to the trail, but still lost. He's come looking for you today. We'd never find Him. He'd have to come looking for us. The sheep never finds a shepherd. The shepherd always comes and finds the lost sheep.

He's come to where you are today to bring you home to Him. Maybe these words right now are His way of reaching out to you. He's ready to bring you home to the relationship you were made for; the relationship you've been missing your whole life. Let this be the day that you finally actually belong to the One you've been around for so long. Tell Him, "As of today, Jesus, I am Yours."

You know, our website is a destination for people who want to be sure they belong to Jesus Christ and their eternity is settled and their sins are forgiven. I want to urge you to get there as soon as you can today. It is ANewStory.com.

You may be very close, but you're not in. Could there be a greater tragedy than for you to get to the gates of heaven one day and hear Jesus say, "You were so close, but you're not in." That can change this very day. You can go to sleep tonight knowing that you belong to Jesus!

Read: John 3:16; Colossians 1:13-14

As Jana sat at the dining room table doing her homework, she looked out the window and saw a beautiful butterfly. It was flying from flower to flower, getting nectar. Jana loved how gracefully the butterfly floated through the air and then landed on a flower for some nectar.

“How’s your homework coming?” Mom called from the kitchen.

“It’s coming!” Jana replied. She looked away from the window long enough to get another math problem done. When she looked back up—“Oh no!” Jana ran out the door. “Try to be nice and still, butterfly. I’m going to try to get you out of this spiderweb.”

Mom dashed into the dining room when she heard the commotion. She smiled as she watched Jana gently rescue the butterfly and set it carefully on a flower in their garden.

“Now you’re safe. I saved you from that spider,” Jana said softly. She stood back and observed the butterfly as it began to flutter around again. She was thankful she’d been able to rescue it in time.

“I saw that. I’m sure the butterfly is really happy to be out of that web.” Mom smiled. “It reminds me of how happy I am to have been rescued too.”

“You were rescued?” Jana looked at her mom in surprise. “How?”

Mom took a Bible from the shelf and flipped through its pages, then began reading. “‘For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.’” She looked at Jana. “Jesus rescues us from sin when we trust Him as our Savior. He paid the price for our sins on the cross and then rose again so we could be given a new life and spend eternity with Him.”

Jana looked out the window and watched the butterfly again for a long moment. “Mom, I think I’m ready to ask Jesus to be my Savior.”

Mom held Jana’s hands, and they prayed together. “Thanks for praying with me, Mom,” Jana said. “Now I’ve been rescued too!”

–Lisa Fuller

How about you? Have you trusted Jesus as your Savior? The Bible says that our sin—our selfish desires and the wrong things we do—is like a web that we can’t break free of ourselves. We need to be rescued, and God loves us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to save us. When you trust in Him, He will rescue you and give you a new life of freedom with Him that will never end! (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today's Key Verse: For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins. Colossians 1:13-14 (NLT)

Today's Key Thought: Jesus rescues us from sin

When misery consumes your life, what do you do?

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Hudson Taylor was troubled. He’d left England to share the gospel about Christ in China, and ministry—though challenging—had gone well. But in 1865, as he considered sending more people to minister to a more dangerous part of the country, without protection, he felt “intense conflict.” Later, after wrestling with God in prayer, he wrote: “The Lord conquered my unbelief, and I surrendered myself to God . . . [recognizing] that all responsibility . . . and consequences must rest with him.”

Moses received a call from God that likely left him troubled. As he was leading the Israelites out of Egypt, God said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea” (Exodus 14:2). This meant they were trapped between Pharaoh and a vast body of water! The Israelites trembled as “Pharaoh approached”(v. 10). Panic-stricken, they told Moses, “It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” (v. 12). But Moses replied, “Do not be afraid” (v. 13). And he was right. God provided rescue and victory for His people as they rested in Him (vv. 15-31).

At times, we won’t understand what God’s doing in our lives because we don’t have His view. It was during such a moment that Hudson Taylor wrote, “As his servant it was [my responsibility] to obey and to follow him.” We too can rest in God’s view and plans.

You can’t serve God and money (Matthew 6:24), but you can serve God with money. Most of us don’t wake up with the intent to serve money—but it’s easy for financial pressure and financial goals to quietly shape our lives. On the next Faith & Finance Live, Rob West explains how, through Scripture, we are freed to see money, not as something to chase, but as a tool God gives us to accomplish His purposes. Then, it’s on to calls. That’s Faith & Finance Live, biblical wisdom for your financial decisions. That’s weekdays at 4pm Eastern/3pm Central on Moody Radio.

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Segment 1

• Guest hosts: Justin Peters, Jim Osman & Gabe Hughes

• The church must not copy business models or government structures.

• Churches chasing worldliness to attract the world lose their distinctiveness.

Segment 2

• Baptism and communion aren’t rituals—they’re visible reminders of the gospel

• Worship that entertains people often stops honoring God

• Some churches draw crowds—but they’re feeding goats, not sheep

Segment 3

• Most churches avoid church discipline—even though Jesus commands it

• Matthew 18 isn’t optional—it’s how the church deals with sin

• When discipline is ignored, sin spreads—but when it’s practiced, the church is purified

Segment 4

• Church discipline: loving restoration or something most churches are too afraid to practice?

• What happens when someone refuses to repent—and why that changes everything

• If your church never confronts sin, is it protecting people… or failing them?

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