Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
August 18
A Little Light Please
Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. . . . And they cried out in fear.
Matthew 14:25-26 (NKJV)
Every so often a storm will come, and I'll look up into the blackening sky and say, "God, a little light please?"
The light came for the disciples. A figure came to them walking on the water. It wasn't what they expected. Perhaps they were looking for angels to descend or heaven to open....We don't know what they were looking for. But one thing is for sure, they weren't looking for Jesus to come walking on the water....
And since Jesus came in a way they didn't expect, they almost missed seeing the answer to their prayers.
And unless we look and listen closely, we risk making the same mistake. God's lights in our dark nights are as numerous as the stars, if only we'll look for them.
1 Timothy 1
1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope,
2To Timothy my true son in the faith:
Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Warning Against False Teachers of the Law
3As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer 4nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God's work—which is by faith. 5The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 6Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk. 7They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.
8We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. 9We also know that law[a] is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine 11that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.
The Lord's Grace to Paul
12I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service. 13Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. 14The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
15Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. 16But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life. 17Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
18Timothy, my son, I give you this instruction in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by following them you may fight the good fight, 19holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith. 20Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Philemon 1:8-19
Paul's Plea for Onesimus
8Therefore, although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do, 9yet I appeal to you on the basis of love. I then, as Paul—an old man and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus— 10I appeal to you for my son Onesimus,[a] who became my son while I was in chains. 11Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me.
12I am sending him—who is my very heart—back to you. 13I would have liked to keep him with me so that he could take your place in helping me while I am in chains for the gospel. 14But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that any favor you do will be spontaneous and not forced. 15Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back for good— 16no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a man and as a brother in the Lord.
17So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. 18If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me. 19I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand. I will pay it back—not to mention that you owe me your very self.
August 18, 2008
Another Chance
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READ: Philemon 1:8-19
[You] have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him. —Colossians 3:10
For almost 100 years, a huge piece of flawed Carrara marble lay in the courtyard of a cathedral in Florence, Italy. Then, in 1501, a young sculptor was asked to do something with it. He measured the block and noted its imperfections. In his mind, he envisioned a young shepherd boy.
For 3 years, he chiseled and shaped the marble skillfully. Finally, when the 18-foot towering figure of David was unveiled, his student exclaimed to Michelangelo, “Master, it lacks only one thing—speech!”
Onesimus was like that flawed marble. He was an unfaithful servant when he fled from his master Philemon. But while on the run he came to know the Master Sculptor. As a changed man, he served God faithfully and was invaluable to Paul’s ministry. When Paul sent him back to Philemon, he commended him as one “who once was unprofitable to you, but now is profitable to you and to me” (1:11). He asked Philemon to receive Onesimus back as a brother (v.16).
Paul knew what it meant to be given another chance after past wrongs (Acts 9:26-28). He knew personally the transformation God can accomplish. Now he saw it in the life of Onesimus. The Lord can chisel His image on our flawed lives and make us beautiful and useful too. — Albert Lee
Christ takes each sin, each pain, each loss,
And by the power of His cross
Transforms our brokenness and shame
So that our lives exalt His name. —D. De Haan
Our rough edges must be chipped away to bring out the image of Christ.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 18, 2008
Have You Ever Been Speechless with Sorrow?
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READ:
When he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich —Luke 18:23
The rich young ruler went away from Jesus speechless with sorrow, having nothing to say in response to Jesus’ words. He had no doubt about what Jesus had said or what it meant, and it produced in him a sorrow with no words with which to respond. Have you ever been there? Has God’s Word ever come to you, pointing out an area of your life, requiring you to yield it to Him? Maybe He has pointed out certain personal qualities, desires, and interests, or possibly relationships of your heart and mind. If so, then you have often been speechless with sorrow. The Lord will not go after you, and He will not plead with you. But every time He meets you at the place where He has pointed, He will simply repeat His words, saying, "If you really mean what you say, these are the conditions."
"Sell all that you have . . ." ( Luke 18:22 ). In other words, rid yourself before God of everything that might be considered a possession until you are a mere conscious human being standing before Him, and then give God that. That is where the battle is truly fought— in the realm of your will before God. Are you more devoted to your idea of what Jesus wants than to Jesus Himself? If so, you are likely to hear one of His harsh and unyielding statements that will produce sorrow in you. What Jesus says is difficult— it is only easy when it is heard by those who have His nature in them. Beware of allowing anything to soften the hard words of Jesus Christ.
I can be so rich in my own poverty, or in the awareness of the fact that I am nobody, that I will never be a disciple of Jesus. Or I can be so rich in the awareness that I am somebody that I will never be a disciple. Am I willing to be destitute and poor even in my sense of awareness of my destitution and poverty? If not, that is why I become discouraged. Discouragement is disillusioned self-love, and self-love may be love for my devotion to Jesus— not love for Jesus Himself.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Unexplainable Changes - #5636 - August 18, 2008
Category: Your Hard Times
Monday, August 18, 2008
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I was in the room when my friend Bob went up to the speaker for the day and made a fairly startling statement. He took his three young children with him, pointed to them, and said to this speaker, "If it weren't for you, these children wouldn't be here." Needless to say, the gentleman looked at him pretty curiously. But that was not an overstatement. And it attested to a dramatic miracle that my friend had experienced.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Unexplainable Changes."
Bob went on to explain what had happened the night this speaker spoke at a men's rally that he had attended. The speaker had presented the difference that Jesus Christ can make when he comes into a person's life, and that night Bob decided to commit his life to this Jesus.
Well, Bob and his wife would tell you - they had been headed for a divorce. There was really little hope that their marriage would have a future. But something miraculous began that night of Bob's spiritual commitment. His wife got a new husband! Oh, he looked a lot like the old one, but he acted like a new man. He started becoming the selfless husband he had never been able to be before and their love was reborn. And speaking of born, three children come along after that - born from a love that had been on the verge of dying. If you ask Bob how his marriage was saved and transformed, he'd probably give you a simple, one-word answer - Jesus.
This Jesus is the same Person who can bring into your life a miraculous change; a change that only He can make. The story of a blind man Jesus healed is the story of millions of people across the centuries. It's my story. It's a story of many people I know.
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from John 9:25 where this now healed blind man is being interrogated by religious leaders who hate Jesus and are trying to smear Him for healing on the Sabbath. As they press the healed man for his opinion of Jesus, he answers with these compelling words, "One thing I know. I was blind but now I see!" Like my friend Bob, this man said, "I can't answer all your questions about Jesus. All I can tell you is that there are changes in my life that unexplainable - except for Jesus!"
I know so many people who would tell you the same thing. My friends whose addictions and appetite for what once addicted them were gone overnight, the people who were victims of serious hurt who don't see themselves as victims anymore - they're healers of other wounded people, those who were once sexually irresponsible who are living pure today, the volcanic tempers that Jesus has tamed, the sins of previous generations that have been miraculously stopped in this generation by Jesus.
Maybe it's finally time for you to experience the miraculous, life-changing power of Jesus Christ. You're missing so much when you're missing Jesus. You belong to Him when you acknowledge to Him that you've run you own life long enough, when you put all your trust in Jesus and His death for your sins on the cross. At that moment, Jesus comes into your life and He changes what no one else could ever change.
Are you ready to begin this relationship with Jesus? Would you tell Him that? Say, "Jesus, I am Yours. I believe You died for me. I believe You walked out of Your grave under your own power to give me eternal life, and I want to be your man (your woman) beginning today."
A lot of people have found a lot of encouragement at the moment of beginning a relationship with Jesus at our website. I'd invite you to go where they went. It's a place you can go today I hope - YoursForLife.net really how to begin life's most important relationship. Or I'd be glad to send you my little booklet Yours For Life if you just call us at a toll free number. It's 877-741-1200.
You've probably heard that old hymn, Amazing Grace, "I once was lost but now am found - was blind but now I see." That could be you - today.
