Dear Friends,

A famous soft drink used to advertise itself as “the real thing” while its contents label said it contained artificial colors. It doesn’t matter much when it comes to soda, but it does matter when it comes to faith. Today’s devotional explains what “the real thing” is there. God bless you.

Because of Calvary,

John Janney

I John 2:4

“I once had another religion, mincing, lisping, bated breath, proper, hunting the Bible for hidden truths, but no obedience, no sacrifice. Then came the change. The real thing came before me. Soft speech became crude salt… Words became deeds. The commands of Christ became not merely Sunday recitations, but battle calls to be obeyed, unless one would lose one’s self-respect and manhood. Assent to creed was born again into decisive action of obedience. Orthodoxy became reality. Instead of saying, ‘Lord, Lord,’ in a most reverent voice many times and yet continuing deaf to the simplest commandments, I began to look upon God as really my Father and to trust Him as such…. In other words I dropped cant and ceremony and became a Christian. Reverence, I observe in the New Testament, is not apparent politeness and manifest disobedience, but filial or childlike obedience, trust and love.” [Norman P. Grubb, C. T. Studd: Athlete and Pioneer, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1933), p. 112-113]