Max Lucado Daily: In Transit
In Transit
Posted: 30 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“Our homeland is in heaven, and we are waiting for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, to come from heaven.” Philippians 3:20
You’ve seen people treat this world like it was a permanent home. It’s not. You seen people pour time and energy into life like it will last forever. It won’t. You’ve seen people so proud of what they have done, that they hope they will never have to leave—they will.
We all will. We are in transit.
2 Peter 1
1-2I, Simon Peter, am a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ. I write this to you whose experience with God is as life-changing as ours, all due to our God's straight dealing and the intervention of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Grace and peace to you many times over as you deepen in your experience with God and Jesus, our Master.
Don't Put It Off
3-4Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received! We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you—your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust.
5-9So don't lose a minute in building on what you've been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus. Without these qualities you can't see what's right before you, oblivious that your old sinful life has been wiped off the books.
10-11So, friends, confirm God's invitation to you, his choice of you. Don't put it off; do it now. Do this, and you'll have your life on a firm footing, the streets paved and the way wide open into the eternal kingdom of our Master and Savior, Jesus Christ.
The One Light in a Dark Time
12-15Because the stakes are so high, even though you're up-to-date on all this truth and practice it inside and out, I'm not going to let up for a minute in calling you to attention before it. This is the post to which I've been assigned—keeping you alert with frequent reminders—and I'm sticking to it as long as I live. I know that I'm to die soon; the Master has made that quite clear to me. And so I am especially eager that you have all this down in black and white so that after I die, you'll have it for ready reference.
16-18We weren't, you know, just wishing on a star when we laid the facts out before you regarding the powerful return of our Master, Jesus Christ. We were there for the preview! We saw it with our own eyes: Jesus resplendent with light from God the Father as the voice of Majestic Glory spoke: "This is my Son, marked by my love, focus of all my delight." We were there on the holy mountain with him. We heard the voice out of heaven with our very own ears.
19-21We couldn't be more sure of what we saw and heard—God's glory, God's voice. The prophetic Word was confirmed to us. You'll do well to keep focusing on it. It's the one light you have in a dark time as you wait for daybreak and the rising of the Morning Star in your hearts. The main thing to keep in mind here is that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of private opinion. And why? Because it's not something concocted in the human heart. Prophecy resulted when the Holy Spirit prompted men and women to speak God's Word.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: John 20:19-29
19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!"
20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21 Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you."
22 And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.
23 If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."
Jesus Appears to Thomas
24 Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came.
25 So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it."
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!"
27 Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."
28 Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
29 Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
My Lord
July 31, 2010 — by David C. Egner
Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” —John 20:28
On the day of His resurrection, Jesus appeared to His disciples and showed them His hands and feet. We are told that at first they could not believe for joy—it appeared too wonderful to be true (Luke 24:40-41). Thomas was not with the disciples, but he also had trouble believing until he saw for himself. When Jesus appeared to Thomas and told him to put his fingers in the nail holes and his hand in His side, Thomas cried, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).
Later, as Paul told the Philippians of his own suffering, he also declared Jesus as Lord. He testified that he had come to the place where he considered all his experiences as loss “for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord” (Phil. 3:8).
You and I have never seen Jesus calm a storm or raise someone from the dead. We haven’t sat at His feet on a Galilean hillside and heard Him teach. But through eyes of faith we have been spiritually healed by His death on our behalf. Thus we can join Thomas and Paul and countless others in acknowledging Jesus as our Lord.
Jesus said, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29). When we believe, we too can call Jesus, “My Lord and my God!”
See, from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down;
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown? —Watts
Though we cannot see Him with our eyes, we can believe with our heart—He is Lord!
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 31st , 2010
Becoming Entirely His
Let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing —James 1:4
Many of us appear to be all right in general, but there are still some areas in which we are careless and lazy; it is not a matter of sin, but the remnants of our carnal life that tend to make us careless. Carelessness is an insult to the Holy Spirit. We should have no carelessness about us either in the way we worship God, or even in the way we eat and drink.
Not only must our relationship to God be right, but the outward expression of that relationship must also be right. Ultimately, God will allow nothing to escape; every detail of our lives is under His scrutiny. God will bring us back in countless ways to the same point over and over again. And He never tires of bringing us back to that one point until we learn the lesson, because His purpose is to produce the finished product. It may be a problem arising from our impulsive nature, but again and again, with the most persistent patience, God has brought us back to that one particular point. Or the problem may be our idle and wandering thinking, or our independent nature and self-interest. Through this process, God is trying to impress upon us the one thing that is not entirely right in our lives.
We have been having a wonderful time in our studies over the revealed truth of God’s redemption, and our hearts are perfect toward Him. And His wonderful work in us makes us know that overall we are right with Him. “Let patience have its perfect work . . . .” The Holy Spirit speaking through James said, “Now let your patience become a finished product.” Beware of becoming careless over the small details of life and saying, “Oh, that will have to do for now.” Whatever it may be, God will point it out with persistence until we become entirely His.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
Jude 1, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily:The Empty Tomb
“Come, see where his body was lying.” Matthew 28:6 NLT
Take a look at the vacated tomb. Did you know the opponents of Jesus never challenged it’s vacancy? No Pharisee or Roman soldier ever led a contingent back to the burial site and declared, “The angel was wrong. The body is here. It was all a rumor . . .”
Helps explain the Jerusalem revival. When the apostles argued for the empty tomb, the people looked to the Pharisees for a rebuttal. But they had none to give.
Jude 1
1-2I, Jude, am a slave to Jesus Christ and brother to James, writing to those loved by God the Father, called and kept safe by Jesus Christ. Relax, everything's going to be all right; rest, everything's coming together; open your hearts, love is on the way!
Fight with All You Have in You
3-4Dear friends, I've dropped everything to write you about this life of salvation that we have in common. I have to write insisting—begging!—that you fight with everything you have in you for this faith entrusted to us as a gift to guard and cherish. What has happened is that some people have infiltrated our ranks (our Scriptures warned us this would happen), who beneath their pious skin are shameless scoundrels. Their design is to replace the sheer grace of our God with sheer license—which means doing away with Jesus Christ, our one and only Master.
Lost Stars in Outer Space
5-7I'm laying this out as clearly as I can, even though you once knew all this well enough and shouldn't need reminding. Here it is in brief: The Master saved a people out of the land of Egypt. Later he destroyed those who defected. And you know the story of the angels who didn't stick to their post, abandoning it for other, darker missions. But they are now chained and jailed in a black hole until the great Judgment Day. Sodom and Gomorrah, which went to sexual rack and ruin along with the surrounding cities that acted just like them, are another example. Burning and burning and never burning up, they serve still as a stock warning.
8This is exactly the same program of these latest infiltrators: dirty sex, rule and rulers thrown out, glory dragged in the mud.
9-11The Archangel Michael, who went to the mat with the Devil as they fought over the body of Moses, wouldn't have dared level him with a blasphemous curse, but said simply, "No you don't. God will take care of you!" But these people sneer at anything they can't understand, and by doing whatever they feel like doing—living by animal instinct only—they participate in their own destruction. I'm fed up with them! They've gone down Cain's road; they've been sucked into Balaam's error by greed; they're canceled out in Korah's rebellion.
12-13These people are warts on your love feasts as you worship and eat together. They're giving you a black eye—carousing shamelessly, grabbing anything that isn't nailed down. They're—
Puffs of smoke pushed by gusts of wind;
late autumn trees stripped clean of leaf and fruit,
Doubly dead, pulled up by the roots;
wild ocean waves leaving nothing on the beach
but the foam of their shame;
Lost stars in outer space
on their way to the black hole.
14-16Enoch, the seventh after Adam, prophesied of them: "Look! The Master comes with thousands of holy angels to bring judgment against them all, convicting each person of every defiling act of shameless sacrilege, of every dirty word they have spewed of their pious filth." These are the "grumpers," the bellyachers, grabbing for the biggest piece of the pie, talking big, saying anything they think will get them ahead.
17-19But remember, dear friends, that the apostles of our Master, Jesus Christ, told us this would happen: "In the last days there will be people who don't take these things seriously anymore. They'll treat them like a joke, and make a religion of their own whims and lusts." These are the ones who split churches, thinking only of themselves. There's nothing to them, no sign of the Spirit!
20-21But you, dear friends, carefully build yourselves up in this most holy faith by praying in the Holy Spirit, staying right at the center of God's love, keeping your arms open and outstretched, ready for the mercy of our Master, Jesus Christ. This is the unending life, the real life!
22-23Go easy on those who hesitate in the faith. Go after those who take the wrong way. Be tender with sinners, but not soft on sin. The sin itself stinks to high heaven.
24-25And now to him who can keep you on your feet, standing tall in his bright presence, fresh and celebrating—to our one God, our only Savior, through Jesus Christ, our Master, be glory, majesty, strength, and rule before all time, and now, and to the end of all time. Yes.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Genesis 1:20-28; 2:15
20 And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky."
21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
22 God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth."
23 And there was evening, and there was morning--the fifth day.
24 And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so.
25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
Garbage Island
July 30, 2010 — by Dennis Fisher
The waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good. —Genesis 1:10
The other day I ran across a troubling report about people who think it is acceptable to use the ocean as a giant garbage dump. Here is an excerpt: “If you should see this amazing floating pile of plastic in the Pacific Ocean, it’s called ‘The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.’ It features three million tons of plastic debris floating in an area larger than Texas. An eye-popping 46,000 pieces of plastic float on every square mile of ocean!” Other sources estimate the amount of garbage is even bigger. Plastic is especially bad because it does not dissolve.
During our sojourn on earth, we have been charged, like Adam, with taking care of the earth and its creatures that God has given us. Genesis 2:15 says, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.” God delights in what He has made and this extends to the sea and all that live in it (1:10,20-21).
This world should remind us of the greatness of our Creator and serve as a springboard of praise to Him. Indifferently using it as a garbage dump mars its beauty and threatens the creatures that live here. Showing respect and caring for the land, the ocean, and the air is our duty as believers in Christ.
For Further Study
To learn about our responsibility to care for the world God has created, read Celebrating The Wonders Of Creation online at www.discoveryseries.org/q1108
Caring for God’s creation is the believer’s duty.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 30th , 2010
The Teaching of Disillusionment
Jesus did not commit Himself to them . . . , for He knew what was in man —John 2:24-25
Disillusionment means having no more misconceptions, false impressions, and false judgments in life; it means being free from these deceptions. However, though no longer deceived, our experience of disillusionment may actually leave us cynical and overly critical in our judgment of others. But the disillusionment that comes from God brings us to the point where we see people as they really are, yet without any cynicism or any stinging and bitter criticism. Many of the things in life that inflict the greatest injury, grief, or pain, stem from the fact that we suffer from illusions. We are not true to one another as facts, seeing each other as we really are; we are only true to our misconceived ideas of one another. According to our thinking, everything is either delightful and good, or it is evil, malicious, and cowardly.
Refusing to be disillusioned is the cause of much of the suffering of human life. And this is how that suffering happens— if we love someone, but do not love God, we demand total perfection and righteousness from that person, and when we do not get it we become cruel and vindictive; yet we are demanding of a human being something which he or she cannot possibly give. There is only one Being who can completely satisfy to the absolute depth of the hurting human heart, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord is so obviously uncompromising with regard to every human relationship because He knows that every relationship that is not based on faithfulness to Himself will end in disaster. Our Lord trusted no one, and never placed His faith in people, yet He was never suspicious or bitter. Our Lord’s confidence in God, and in what God’s grace could do for anyone, was so perfect that He never despaired, never giving up hope for any person. If our trust is placed in human beings, we will end up despairing of everyone.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Discovering Your Global Positioning - #6145
Friday, July 30, 2010
He's not the youngest motorcycle rider in the pack, but he's got to be one of the most devoted. Take that away from him and you'd be taking away one of the great joys of his life. Problem: he's been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. And as that condition progresses, he can expect to begin to experience some disorientation, among other things. That's not a good thing for a fellow running around on his motorcycle. So he has installed a global positioning system on his bike which will always show him where he is and where home is. That way, if one day he's out on his bike and forgets his way home, he'll be able to find his way home no matter where he goes.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Discovering Your Global Positioning."
Being able to get home is one of the strongest drives and deepest needs in every human heart. For most people, you can only be away from home for so long before your deep longing for home kicks in. Occasionally, we'll hear about a child or even an older person with failing mental faculties who has wandered away from home and can't find their way back. We have a word for that. They're "lost."
I find it interesting that "lost" is the word that God frequently uses in the Bible to describe us humans. For example, Jesus Christ announced His personal mission on earth this way: "The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost" (Luke 19:10 ). Spiritually, we're away from home and we don't know how to find home. "Lost" is the name of a hit TV show that tells the stories of plane crash survivors stranded on a strange island with no way to get home. In a way, they're a picture of all of us. "Lost" could be the title of a series based on the lives of any of us.
The exciting revelation in the Bible is that we don't have to stay lost. We weren't put here to be lost; unable to find home. Home is a personal relationship with the God who created you. Having been made, in the Bible's words, "by Him and for Him" (Colossians 1:16 ), God is clearly the reason for our existence, the meaning for our life. But we've thought we could run our lives ourselves and we've ended up acting in so many ways that have separated us from God; that have left us away from home - unable to find our way back.
Maybe you know this feeling of being lost on this planet, even if life is good. No real direction, no great purpose...wandering. Jesus has great news for you in our word for today from the Word of God. He wants us to be His sheep and He wants to be our Shepherd. In John 10 , beginning with verse 3, He says: "He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out...He goes on ahead of them and His sheep follow Him...My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish." Talk about security! Belonging to the God of the universe now and forever. And talk about meaning! Being led by the One who put you here!
But it cost the Shepherd everything for you to find home. He had to leave home and come to this earth where He died on a cross to pay the penalty for all our sinning. Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep" (John 10:11 ). That's how precious you are to Him. That's how much He loves you. He died so you could live this life with Him in your heart and so you could be with Him forever in heaven.
There is a plan. There's a destiny for your life; something so much bigger than just the scattered pieces of the puzzle of your life. God has the top of the box that shows you how to put the pieces together. And Jesus is the only way you can have the God of heaven be your God. And you will belong to Him from the moment you tell Him, "Lord, I'm lost because I've done my life my way instead of Your way. I want that to change. I want my sins forgiven so I can belong to You, and I'm pinning all my hopes on Jesus because He died to bring me home."
If you'd like more information on just how to begin this love relationship with God, I hope you'll visit our website. It's YoursForLife.net. Or call us for my booklet, Yours For Life at 877-741-1200.
You couldn't find home. Home has come looking for you. His name is Jesus. And because of Him, you don't ever have to be "lost" again.
“Come, see where his body was lying.” Matthew 28:6 NLT
Take a look at the vacated tomb. Did you know the opponents of Jesus never challenged it’s vacancy? No Pharisee or Roman soldier ever led a contingent back to the burial site and declared, “The angel was wrong. The body is here. It was all a rumor . . .”
Helps explain the Jerusalem revival. When the apostles argued for the empty tomb, the people looked to the Pharisees for a rebuttal. But they had none to give.
Jude 1
1-2I, Jude, am a slave to Jesus Christ and brother to James, writing to those loved by God the Father, called and kept safe by Jesus Christ. Relax, everything's going to be all right; rest, everything's coming together; open your hearts, love is on the way!
Fight with All You Have in You
3-4Dear friends, I've dropped everything to write you about this life of salvation that we have in common. I have to write insisting—begging!—that you fight with everything you have in you for this faith entrusted to us as a gift to guard and cherish. What has happened is that some people have infiltrated our ranks (our Scriptures warned us this would happen), who beneath their pious skin are shameless scoundrels. Their design is to replace the sheer grace of our God with sheer license—which means doing away with Jesus Christ, our one and only Master.
Lost Stars in Outer Space
5-7I'm laying this out as clearly as I can, even though you once knew all this well enough and shouldn't need reminding. Here it is in brief: The Master saved a people out of the land of Egypt. Later he destroyed those who defected. And you know the story of the angels who didn't stick to their post, abandoning it for other, darker missions. But they are now chained and jailed in a black hole until the great Judgment Day. Sodom and Gomorrah, which went to sexual rack and ruin along with the surrounding cities that acted just like them, are another example. Burning and burning and never burning up, they serve still as a stock warning.
8This is exactly the same program of these latest infiltrators: dirty sex, rule and rulers thrown out, glory dragged in the mud.
9-11The Archangel Michael, who went to the mat with the Devil as they fought over the body of Moses, wouldn't have dared level him with a blasphemous curse, but said simply, "No you don't. God will take care of you!" But these people sneer at anything they can't understand, and by doing whatever they feel like doing—living by animal instinct only—they participate in their own destruction. I'm fed up with them! They've gone down Cain's road; they've been sucked into Balaam's error by greed; they're canceled out in Korah's rebellion.
12-13These people are warts on your love feasts as you worship and eat together. They're giving you a black eye—carousing shamelessly, grabbing anything that isn't nailed down. They're—
Puffs of smoke pushed by gusts of wind;
late autumn trees stripped clean of leaf and fruit,
Doubly dead, pulled up by the roots;
wild ocean waves leaving nothing on the beach
but the foam of their shame;
Lost stars in outer space
on their way to the black hole.
14-16Enoch, the seventh after Adam, prophesied of them: "Look! The Master comes with thousands of holy angels to bring judgment against them all, convicting each person of every defiling act of shameless sacrilege, of every dirty word they have spewed of their pious filth." These are the "grumpers," the bellyachers, grabbing for the biggest piece of the pie, talking big, saying anything they think will get them ahead.
17-19But remember, dear friends, that the apostles of our Master, Jesus Christ, told us this would happen: "In the last days there will be people who don't take these things seriously anymore. They'll treat them like a joke, and make a religion of their own whims and lusts." These are the ones who split churches, thinking only of themselves. There's nothing to them, no sign of the Spirit!
20-21But you, dear friends, carefully build yourselves up in this most holy faith by praying in the Holy Spirit, staying right at the center of God's love, keeping your arms open and outstretched, ready for the mercy of our Master, Jesus Christ. This is the unending life, the real life!
22-23Go easy on those who hesitate in the faith. Go after those who take the wrong way. Be tender with sinners, but not soft on sin. The sin itself stinks to high heaven.
24-25And now to him who can keep you on your feet, standing tall in his bright presence, fresh and celebrating—to our one God, our only Savior, through Jesus Christ, our Master, be glory, majesty, strength, and rule before all time, and now, and to the end of all time. Yes.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Genesis 1:20-28; 2:15
20 And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky."
21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
22 God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth."
23 And there was evening, and there was morning--the fifth day.
24 And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so.
25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
Garbage Island
July 30, 2010 — by Dennis Fisher
The waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good. —Genesis 1:10
The other day I ran across a troubling report about people who think it is acceptable to use the ocean as a giant garbage dump. Here is an excerpt: “If you should see this amazing floating pile of plastic in the Pacific Ocean, it’s called ‘The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.’ It features three million tons of plastic debris floating in an area larger than Texas. An eye-popping 46,000 pieces of plastic float on every square mile of ocean!” Other sources estimate the amount of garbage is even bigger. Plastic is especially bad because it does not dissolve.
During our sojourn on earth, we have been charged, like Adam, with taking care of the earth and its creatures that God has given us. Genesis 2:15 says, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.” God delights in what He has made and this extends to the sea and all that live in it (1:10,20-21).
This world should remind us of the greatness of our Creator and serve as a springboard of praise to Him. Indifferently using it as a garbage dump mars its beauty and threatens the creatures that live here. Showing respect and caring for the land, the ocean, and the air is our duty as believers in Christ.
For Further Study
To learn about our responsibility to care for the world God has created, read Celebrating The Wonders Of Creation online at www.discoveryseries.org/q1108
Caring for God’s creation is the believer’s duty.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 30th , 2010
The Teaching of Disillusionment
Jesus did not commit Himself to them . . . , for He knew what was in man —John 2:24-25
Disillusionment means having no more misconceptions, false impressions, and false judgments in life; it means being free from these deceptions. However, though no longer deceived, our experience of disillusionment may actually leave us cynical and overly critical in our judgment of others. But the disillusionment that comes from God brings us to the point where we see people as they really are, yet without any cynicism or any stinging and bitter criticism. Many of the things in life that inflict the greatest injury, grief, or pain, stem from the fact that we suffer from illusions. We are not true to one another as facts, seeing each other as we really are; we are only true to our misconceived ideas of one another. According to our thinking, everything is either delightful and good, or it is evil, malicious, and cowardly.
Refusing to be disillusioned is the cause of much of the suffering of human life. And this is how that suffering happens— if we love someone, but do not love God, we demand total perfection and righteousness from that person, and when we do not get it we become cruel and vindictive; yet we are demanding of a human being something which he or she cannot possibly give. There is only one Being who can completely satisfy to the absolute depth of the hurting human heart, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord is so obviously uncompromising with regard to every human relationship because He knows that every relationship that is not based on faithfulness to Himself will end in disaster. Our Lord trusted no one, and never placed His faith in people, yet He was never suspicious or bitter. Our Lord’s confidence in God, and in what God’s grace could do for anyone, was so perfect that He never despaired, never giving up hope for any person. If our trust is placed in human beings, we will end up despairing of everyone.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Discovering Your Global Positioning - #6145
Friday, July 30, 2010
He's not the youngest motorcycle rider in the pack, but he's got to be one of the most devoted. Take that away from him and you'd be taking away one of the great joys of his life. Problem: he's been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. And as that condition progresses, he can expect to begin to experience some disorientation, among other things. That's not a good thing for a fellow running around on his motorcycle. So he has installed a global positioning system on his bike which will always show him where he is and where home is. That way, if one day he's out on his bike and forgets his way home, he'll be able to find his way home no matter where he goes.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Discovering Your Global Positioning."
Being able to get home is one of the strongest drives and deepest needs in every human heart. For most people, you can only be away from home for so long before your deep longing for home kicks in. Occasionally, we'll hear about a child or even an older person with failing mental faculties who has wandered away from home and can't find their way back. We have a word for that. They're "lost."
I find it interesting that "lost" is the word that God frequently uses in the Bible to describe us humans. For example, Jesus Christ announced His personal mission on earth this way: "The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost" (Luke 19:10 ). Spiritually, we're away from home and we don't know how to find home. "Lost" is the name of a hit TV show that tells the stories of plane crash survivors stranded on a strange island with no way to get home. In a way, they're a picture of all of us. "Lost" could be the title of a series based on the lives of any of us.
The exciting revelation in the Bible is that we don't have to stay lost. We weren't put here to be lost; unable to find home. Home is a personal relationship with the God who created you. Having been made, in the Bible's words, "by Him and for Him" (Colossians 1:16 ), God is clearly the reason for our existence, the meaning for our life. But we've thought we could run our lives ourselves and we've ended up acting in so many ways that have separated us from God; that have left us away from home - unable to find our way back.
Maybe you know this feeling of being lost on this planet, even if life is good. No real direction, no great purpose...wandering. Jesus has great news for you in our word for today from the Word of God. He wants us to be His sheep and He wants to be our Shepherd. In John 10 , beginning with verse 3, He says: "He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out...He goes on ahead of them and His sheep follow Him...My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish." Talk about security! Belonging to the God of the universe now and forever. And talk about meaning! Being led by the One who put you here!
But it cost the Shepherd everything for you to find home. He had to leave home and come to this earth where He died on a cross to pay the penalty for all our sinning. Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep" (John 10:11 ). That's how precious you are to Him. That's how much He loves you. He died so you could live this life with Him in your heart and so you could be with Him forever in heaven.
There is a plan. There's a destiny for your life; something so much bigger than just the scattered pieces of the puzzle of your life. God has the top of the box that shows you how to put the pieces together. And Jesus is the only way you can have the God of heaven be your God. And you will belong to Him from the moment you tell Him, "Lord, I'm lost because I've done my life my way instead of Your way. I want that to change. I want my sins forgiven so I can belong to You, and I'm pinning all my hopes on Jesus because He died to bring me home."
If you'd like more information on just how to begin this love relationship with God, I hope you'll visit our website. It's YoursForLife.net. Or call us for my booklet, Yours For Life at 877-741-1200.
You couldn't find home. Home has come looking for you. His name is Jesus. And because of Him, you don't ever have to be "lost" again.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Titus 2, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily: Seeing the Source
Seeing the Source
Posted: 28 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” John 14:9 NIV
Only in seeing his Maker does a man truly become man. For in seeing his Creator man catches a glimpse of what he was intended to be. He who would see God would then see the reason for death and the purpose of time. Destiny? Tomorrow? Truth? All are questions within the reach of the man who knows his source. It is in seeing Jesus that man sees his Source.
Titus 2
A God-Filled Life
1-6Your job is to speak out on the things that make for solid doctrine. Guide older men into lives of temperance, dignity, and wisdom, into healthy faith, love, and endurance. Guide older women into lives of reverence so they end up as neither gossips nor drunks, but models of goodness. By looking at them, the younger women will know how to love their husbands and children, be virtuous and pure, keep a good house, be good wives. We don't want anyone looking down on God's Message because of their behavior. Also, guide the young men to live disciplined lives.
7-8But mostly, show them all this by doing it yourself, incorruptible in your teaching, your words solid and sane. Then anyone who is dead set against us, when he finds nothing weird or misguided, might eventually come around.
9-10Guide slaves into being loyal workers, a bonus to their masters—no back talk, no petty thievery. Then their good character will shine through their actions, adding luster to the teaching of our Savior God.
11-14God's readiness to give and forgive is now public. Salvation's available for everyone! We're being shown how to turn our backs on a godless, indulgent life, and how to take on a God-filled, God-honoring life. This new life is starting right now, and is whetting our appetites for the glorious day when our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, appears. He offered himself as a sacrifice to free us from a dark, rebellious life into this good, pure life, making us a people he can be proud of, energetic in goodness.
15Tell them all this. Build up their courage, and discipline them if they get out of line. You're in charge. Don't let anyone put you down.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Romans 1:8-16
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.
9 God, whom I serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you
10 in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God's will the way may be opened for me to come to you.
11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong--
12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith.
13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.
14 I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish.
15 That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.
16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.
Show Your Colors
July 29, 2010 — by Anne Cetas
I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes. —Romans 1:16
I was excited about going to the baseball park to watch the Detroit Tigers play the Chicago White Sox. I proudly put on my Tigers T-shirt that morning before going to the opposing team’s stadium. But I had to wear a sweatshirt over my team’s shirt because it was cool outside. So I was disappointed that no one at U.S. Cellular Field could see which team I was there to cheer for. No one knew I was a Tigers’ fan. After a 3-hour rain delay, the game finally started and I could cheer for my team and get my loyalty out in the open.
The apostle Paul had a loyalty that was most definitely out in the open—a loyalty to Jesus Christ. He wrote to the believers in Rome, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ” (Rom. 1:16). He knew that the gospel was “the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes” because Jesus had dramatically changed his life and its direction. In his preaching and witnessing, he proclaimed Jesus, the One to whom he had given his whole life (Acts 9).
The believers in Rome were also known for their allegiance to Christ. Paul said of them: “Your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world” (Rom. 1:8).
Is your loyalty to Jesus out in the open?
God put us in this darkened world
To shine as sons of light,
So, let us always teach the truth
And keep our colors bright. —D. De Haan
Our loyalty to Jesus should be seen and heard in our lives.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 29th , 2010
Do You See Jesus in Your Clouds?
Behold, He is coming with clouds . . . —Revelation 1:7
In the Bible clouds are always associated with God. Clouds are the sorrows, sufferings, or providential circumstances, within or without our personal lives, which actually seem to contradict the sovereignty of God. Yet it is through these very clouds that the Spirit of God is teaching us how to walk by faith. If there were never any clouds in our lives, we would have no faith. “The clouds are the dust of His feet” ( Nahum 1:3 ). They are a sign that God is there. What a revelation it is to know that sorrow, bereavement, and suffering are actually the clouds that come along with God! God cannot come near us without clouds— He does not come in clear-shining brightness.
It is not true to say that God wants to teach us something in our trials. Through every cloud He brings our way, He wants us to unlearn something. His purpose in using the cloud is to simplify our beliefs until our relationship with Him is exactly like that of a child— a relationship simply between God and our own souls, and where other people are but shadows. Until other people become shadows to us, clouds and darkness will be ours every once in a while. Is our relationship with God becoming more simple than it has ever been?
There is a connection between the strange providential circumstances allowed by God and what we know of Him, and we have to learn to interpret the mysteries of life in the light of our knowledge of God. Until we can come face to face with the deepest, darkest fact of life without damaging our view of God’s character, we do not yet know Him.
“. . . they were fearful as they entered the cloud” (Luke 9:34). Is there anyone except Jesus in your cloud? If so, it will only get darker until you get to the place where there is “no one anymore, but only Jesus . . .” (Mark 9:8 ; also see Mark 2-7 ).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Choosing Your Battles - #6116
Many Civil War scholars would consider the Battle of Gettysburg as the turning point - or certainly one of the turning points - of that bloody war. And Civil War buffs have discussed for decades what factors actually decided the outcome of the battle that may have decided the outcome of the war. One key factor happened before the real battle actually began those three days in July of 1863. Soldiers from both North and South were on the move as Lee's troops launched an invasion of Union territory. Union General Buford unintentionally encountered some of the advance Confederate forces. Well, he sized up the terrain around Gettysburg, and he decided that the ground called Cemetery Ridge would be decisive high ground when the forces of Blue and Gray finally came to blows. He determined to keep the advance Southern troops from having that ground, and he succeeded. In so doing, he secured for the North, ground that would indeed help decide the outcome of the Battle of Gettysburg.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Choosing Your Battles."
Throughout military history, victories have been won because someone knew which battle was worth fighting and which battleground was best to fight on. It might be an important part of whether or not you'll win in some of the battles you're fighting in right now as a parent, in your work, in keeping people together, or in your church.
King David was a veteran warrior, and he understood that it was important to be sure that you're fighting the right battles. In 2 Samuel 5, beginning with verse 18, our word for today from the Word of God, the Bible says: "Now the Philistines had come and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim; so David inquired of the Lord, 'Shall I go and attack the Philistines?'... The Lord answered him, 'Go, for I will surely hand the Philistines over to you.' So David went...and he defeated them."
Later, the Philistines invaded again. "So David inquired of the Lord, and He answered, 'Do not go straight up...'" Now, notice here, David did not undertake a battle until he had checked with God to see if this was a battle he should fight. That's a powerful model for you and me.
Some of us as parents - as leaders - tend to make everything a battle. We just can't keep our mouth shut, we can't let anything pass. And even if you're fighting good battles, if you're always fighting, people become immune to you. And when you've got a really important issue to fight for, they'll just say, "Here he goes again." That's not good. Some of us parents so want our kids to do the right thing that we're all over them all of the time. And they eventually just turn us off. Same with any of us who are always fighting.
So don't make every issue a battleground. Don't make everything a battle. Fight for the real issues, not over every incident. Don't try to settle issues based on an incident that's got everybody all inflamed right now. Deal with it at a time when there's not an incident. Save your ammunition for the battles that really matter. Above all, always check with God to see if this is His battle; one that He thinks is worth fighting. So that you can say with David against Goliath, "The battle is the Lord's." Choosing your battles, choosing your battlegrounds, and sometimes holding your fire. Those are keys to winning the battles that decide the war.
Seeing the Source
Posted: 28 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” John 14:9 NIV
Only in seeing his Maker does a man truly become man. For in seeing his Creator man catches a glimpse of what he was intended to be. He who would see God would then see the reason for death and the purpose of time. Destiny? Tomorrow? Truth? All are questions within the reach of the man who knows his source. It is in seeing Jesus that man sees his Source.
Titus 2
A God-Filled Life
1-6Your job is to speak out on the things that make for solid doctrine. Guide older men into lives of temperance, dignity, and wisdom, into healthy faith, love, and endurance. Guide older women into lives of reverence so they end up as neither gossips nor drunks, but models of goodness. By looking at them, the younger women will know how to love their husbands and children, be virtuous and pure, keep a good house, be good wives. We don't want anyone looking down on God's Message because of their behavior. Also, guide the young men to live disciplined lives.
7-8But mostly, show them all this by doing it yourself, incorruptible in your teaching, your words solid and sane. Then anyone who is dead set against us, when he finds nothing weird or misguided, might eventually come around.
9-10Guide slaves into being loyal workers, a bonus to their masters—no back talk, no petty thievery. Then their good character will shine through their actions, adding luster to the teaching of our Savior God.
11-14God's readiness to give and forgive is now public. Salvation's available for everyone! We're being shown how to turn our backs on a godless, indulgent life, and how to take on a God-filled, God-honoring life. This new life is starting right now, and is whetting our appetites for the glorious day when our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, appears. He offered himself as a sacrifice to free us from a dark, rebellious life into this good, pure life, making us a people he can be proud of, energetic in goodness.
15Tell them all this. Build up their courage, and discipline them if they get out of line. You're in charge. Don't let anyone put you down.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Romans 1:8-16
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.
9 God, whom I serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you
10 in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God's will the way may be opened for me to come to you.
11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong--
12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith.
13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.
14 I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish.
15 That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.
16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.
Show Your Colors
July 29, 2010 — by Anne Cetas
I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes. —Romans 1:16
I was excited about going to the baseball park to watch the Detroit Tigers play the Chicago White Sox. I proudly put on my Tigers T-shirt that morning before going to the opposing team’s stadium. But I had to wear a sweatshirt over my team’s shirt because it was cool outside. So I was disappointed that no one at U.S. Cellular Field could see which team I was there to cheer for. No one knew I was a Tigers’ fan. After a 3-hour rain delay, the game finally started and I could cheer for my team and get my loyalty out in the open.
The apostle Paul had a loyalty that was most definitely out in the open—a loyalty to Jesus Christ. He wrote to the believers in Rome, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ” (Rom. 1:16). He knew that the gospel was “the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes” because Jesus had dramatically changed his life and its direction. In his preaching and witnessing, he proclaimed Jesus, the One to whom he had given his whole life (Acts 9).
The believers in Rome were also known for their allegiance to Christ. Paul said of them: “Your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world” (Rom. 1:8).
Is your loyalty to Jesus out in the open?
God put us in this darkened world
To shine as sons of light,
So, let us always teach the truth
And keep our colors bright. —D. De Haan
Our loyalty to Jesus should be seen and heard in our lives.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 29th , 2010
Do You See Jesus in Your Clouds?
Behold, He is coming with clouds . . . —Revelation 1:7
In the Bible clouds are always associated with God. Clouds are the sorrows, sufferings, or providential circumstances, within or without our personal lives, which actually seem to contradict the sovereignty of God. Yet it is through these very clouds that the Spirit of God is teaching us how to walk by faith. If there were never any clouds in our lives, we would have no faith. “The clouds are the dust of His feet” ( Nahum 1:3 ). They are a sign that God is there. What a revelation it is to know that sorrow, bereavement, and suffering are actually the clouds that come along with God! God cannot come near us without clouds— He does not come in clear-shining brightness.
It is not true to say that God wants to teach us something in our trials. Through every cloud He brings our way, He wants us to unlearn something. His purpose in using the cloud is to simplify our beliefs until our relationship with Him is exactly like that of a child— a relationship simply between God and our own souls, and where other people are but shadows. Until other people become shadows to us, clouds and darkness will be ours every once in a while. Is our relationship with God becoming more simple than it has ever been?
There is a connection between the strange providential circumstances allowed by God and what we know of Him, and we have to learn to interpret the mysteries of life in the light of our knowledge of God. Until we can come face to face with the deepest, darkest fact of life without damaging our view of God’s character, we do not yet know Him.
“. . . they were fearful as they entered the cloud” (Luke 9:34). Is there anyone except Jesus in your cloud? If so, it will only get darker until you get to the place where there is “no one anymore, but only Jesus . . .” (Mark 9:8 ; also see Mark 2-7 ).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Choosing Your Battles - #6116
Many Civil War scholars would consider the Battle of Gettysburg as the turning point - or certainly one of the turning points - of that bloody war. And Civil War buffs have discussed for decades what factors actually decided the outcome of the battle that may have decided the outcome of the war. One key factor happened before the real battle actually began those three days in July of 1863. Soldiers from both North and South were on the move as Lee's troops launched an invasion of Union territory. Union General Buford unintentionally encountered some of the advance Confederate forces. Well, he sized up the terrain around Gettysburg, and he decided that the ground called Cemetery Ridge would be decisive high ground when the forces of Blue and Gray finally came to blows. He determined to keep the advance Southern troops from having that ground, and he succeeded. In so doing, he secured for the North, ground that would indeed help decide the outcome of the Battle of Gettysburg.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Choosing Your Battles."
Throughout military history, victories have been won because someone knew which battle was worth fighting and which battleground was best to fight on. It might be an important part of whether or not you'll win in some of the battles you're fighting in right now as a parent, in your work, in keeping people together, or in your church.
King David was a veteran warrior, and he understood that it was important to be sure that you're fighting the right battles. In 2 Samuel 5, beginning with verse 18, our word for today from the Word of God, the Bible says: "Now the Philistines had come and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim; so David inquired of the Lord, 'Shall I go and attack the Philistines?'... The Lord answered him, 'Go, for I will surely hand the Philistines over to you.' So David went...and he defeated them."
Later, the Philistines invaded again. "So David inquired of the Lord, and He answered, 'Do not go straight up...'" Now, notice here, David did not undertake a battle until he had checked with God to see if this was a battle he should fight. That's a powerful model for you and me.
Some of us as parents - as leaders - tend to make everything a battle. We just can't keep our mouth shut, we can't let anything pass. And even if you're fighting good battles, if you're always fighting, people become immune to you. And when you've got a really important issue to fight for, they'll just say, "Here he goes again." That's not good. Some of us parents so want our kids to do the right thing that we're all over them all of the time. And they eventually just turn us off. Same with any of us who are always fighting.
So don't make every issue a battleground. Don't make everything a battle. Fight for the real issues, not over every incident. Don't try to settle issues based on an incident that's got everybody all inflamed right now. Deal with it at a time when there's not an incident. Save your ammunition for the battles that really matter. Above all, always check with God to see if this is His battle; one that He thinks is worth fighting. So that you can say with David against Goliath, "The battle is the Lord's." Choosing your battles, choosing your battlegrounds, and sometimes holding your fire. Those are keys to winning the battles that decide the war.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
1 Timothy 3, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily: What Faith Sees
What Faith Sees
Posted: 27 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:11 NIV
Faith is trusting what the eye can’t see.
Eyes see the prowling lion. Faith sees Daniel’s angel.
Eyes see storms. Faith sees Noah’s rainbow.
Your eyes see your faults. Your faith sees your Savior.
Your eyes see your guilt. Your faith sees his blood.
1 Timothy 3
Leadership in the Church
1-7If anyone wants to provide leadership in the church, good! But there are preconditions: A leader must be well-thought-of, committed to his wife, cool and collected, accessible, and hospitable. He must know what he's talking about, not be overfond of wine, not pushy but gentle, not thin-skinned, not money-hungry. He must handle his own affairs well, attentive to his own children and having their respect. For if someone is unable to handle his own affairs, how can he take care of God's church? He must not be a new believer, lest the position go to his head and the Devil trip him up. Outsiders must think well of him, or else the Devil will figure out a way to lure him into his trap.
8-13The same goes for those who want to be servants in the church: serious, not deceitful, not too free with the bottle, not in it for what they can get out of it. They must be reverent before the mystery of the faith, not using their position to try to run things. Let them prove themselves first. If they show they can do it, take them on. No exceptions are to be made for women—same qualifications: serious, dependable, not sharp-tongued, not overfond of wine. Servants in the church are to be committed to their spouses, attentive to their own children, and diligent in looking after their own affairs. Those who do this servant work will come to be highly respected, a real credit to this Jesus-faith.
14-16I hope to visit you soon, but just in case I'm delayed, I'm writing this letter so you'll know how things ought to go in God's household, this God-alive church, bastion of truth. This Christian life is a great mystery, far exceeding our understanding, but some things are clear enough:
He appeared in a human body,
was proved right by the invisible Spirit,
was seen by angels.
He was proclaimed among all kinds of peoples,
believed in all over the world,
taken up into heavenly glory.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Jeremiah 6:14-20
14 They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. 'Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace.
15 Are they ashamed of their loathsome conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when I punish them," says the Lord.
16 This is what the Lord says:
"Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, 'We will not walk in it.'
17 I appointed watchmen over you and said, 'Listen to the sound of the trumpet!' But you said, 'We will not listen.'
18 Therefore hear, O nations; observe, O witnesses, what will happen to them.
19 Hear, O earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words and have rejected my law.
20 What do I care about incense from Sheba or sweet calamus from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please me."
Expert Repair
July 28, 2010 — by David C. McCasland
Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls. —Jeremiah 6:16
If you’ve ever tried to fix something and failed, you’ll appreciate the sign I saw outside an automotive repair shop: We Will Fix What Your Husband Fixed. Whether the problem is the car, the plumbing, or an appliance, it’s usually better off in the hands of someone who is skilled and trustworthy.
So it is with the sin and the struggles within us that resist our efforts to mend them.
Jeremiah denounced the greedy prophets and priests of his day who “healed the hurt of [God’s] people slightly, saying ‘Peace, peace!’ when there is no peace” (Jer. 6:14). They could neither change themselves nor lead the people to spiritual transformation. So the Lord called the people to follow His way: “Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls” (v.16).
Centuries later, Jesus, the Son of God, said: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28).
The parts of our lives that we have tried and failed to repair can be restored by the hand of God. Through faith in Christ, we can be made whole.
Life’s fractures can be mended
By faith in Christ the Lord—
At first the pain but then the gain
And usefulness restored. —Hess
When God forgives, He removes the sin and restores the soul.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 28th , 2010
God’s Purpose or Mine?
He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side . . . —Mark 6:45
We tend to think that if Jesus Christ compels us to do something and we are obedient to Him, He will lead us to great success. We should never have the thought that our dreams of success are God’s purpose for us. In fact, His purpose may be exactly the opposite. We have the idea that God is leading us toward a particular end or a desired goal, but He is not. The question of whether or not we arrive at a particular goal is of little importance, and reaching it becomes merely an episode along the way. What we see as only the process of reaching a particular end, God sees as the goal itself.
What is my vision of God’s purpose for me? Whatever it may be, His purpose is for me to depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay calm, faithful, and unconfused while in the middle of the turmoil of life, the goal of the purpose of God is being accomplished in me. God is not working toward a particular finish— His purpose is the process itself. What He desires for me is that I see “Him walking on the sea” with no shore, no success, nor goal in sight, but simply having the absolute certainty that everything is all right because I see “Him walking on the sea” ( Mark 6:49 ). It is the process, not the outcome, that is glorifying to God.
God’s training is for now, not later. His purpose is for this very minute, not for sometime in the future. We have nothing to do with what will follow our obedience, and we are wrong to concern ourselves with it. What people call preparation, God sees as the goal itself.
God’s purpose is to enable me to see that He can walk on the storms of my life right now. If we have a further goal in mind, we are not paying enough attention to the present time. However, if we realize that moment-by-moment obedience is the goal, then each moment as it comes is precious.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Most Tragic Choice - #6143
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Four boys in a house on fire; that's what happened to my friend's nephews. Thankfully, the Fire Department got the call early and they were there in minutes. It was clear there was no way they could go into that blaze to bring the boys out. But all four of them were huddled around a second floor window, which meant they could be saved. The firefighters quickly prepared to catch the boys. Then they yelled to them to jump into the waiting net below. The oldest boy jumped; he was safe. A second, then a third brother jumped to their rescue below. Their ten-year-old brother was the last one left at that upstairs window. He hesitated. The firefighters begged him to jump again and again. And every time, he refused. And sadly, it cost him his life.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Most Tragic Choice."
That is a heartbreaking story. It's a tragedy when someone dies because there was no one there to rescue them. It's an even greater tragedy when someone dies because they refused the rescuer who could have saved them.
It's a tragedy that has been repeated countless times to people that Jesus came to rescue from an eternity without Him. People who had a chance (maybe many chances) to jump into the saving arms of Jesus, but they never did. Actually, God bringing us together today is another opportunity for you to choose life. When will it be too late to do that? Only God knows.
In some ways, the more religious you are, the more times you've heard about what Jesus did on the cross for you, the greater danger you're in. Because you may not even realize that you're in a burning house. Good people, religious people tend to live in the false security that they're okay because they know a lot about Jesus. They're trying to do things Jesus likes. But that ignores what it is that keeps a person out of heaven forever - their sin. All the wrong things you've ever done in your life. They are, in God's courtroom, a capital crime, punishable by eternal death. No one with sin can possibly live in the presence of a sinless God, and sin must be paid for.
And that fire of God's judgment on our self-willed, self-run life burns closer and closer every day we live. But God loves us so much that He acted dramatically to save us from the punishment we deserve. He sent His only Son to bear that punishment in our place. When Jesus was butchered and cut off from God on that awful cross, it was all the sins of my life He was paying for, and all of yours. Your only hope of rescue is to jump into the strong and waiting arms of Jesus and pinning all your hopes on Him. When have you done that? If you don't know you did, you probably didn't.
So God asks this sobering question in Hebrews 2:3, our word for today from the Word of God, "How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?" That's how most people miss heaven. They don't out-and-out reject what Jesus did. They just ignore His rescue; either not caring or mistakenly thinking that they'll make it out somehow. They won't. Only Jesus can save you.
And He's calling to you today...right now in your heart. He's saying, "When I went to that cross, I did all that for you to rescue you from your sin. So now, while there's time, jump into My arms." He's never dropped; He's never lost anyone who trusted Him to save them. But you have to make your move.
Thankfully, a lot of people have found our website a place where they can make sure they're safely in Jesus' arms. We've set it up to guide you through putting your trust in Heaven's Rescuer. I encourage you to visit us and let us help you on what could be a life-changing day for you. The website is yoursforlife.net. Or if you'd like to receive the same information in my little booklet, "Yours For Life," just call us for it at 877-741-1200.
Jesus, your Rescuer, is waiting right now with open arms. He's not only your best hope. He's your only hope. Let Him save you while there's time.
What Faith Sees
Posted: 27 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:11 NIV
Faith is trusting what the eye can’t see.
Eyes see the prowling lion. Faith sees Daniel’s angel.
Eyes see storms. Faith sees Noah’s rainbow.
Your eyes see your faults. Your faith sees your Savior.
Your eyes see your guilt. Your faith sees his blood.
1 Timothy 3
Leadership in the Church
1-7If anyone wants to provide leadership in the church, good! But there are preconditions: A leader must be well-thought-of, committed to his wife, cool and collected, accessible, and hospitable. He must know what he's talking about, not be overfond of wine, not pushy but gentle, not thin-skinned, not money-hungry. He must handle his own affairs well, attentive to his own children and having their respect. For if someone is unable to handle his own affairs, how can he take care of God's church? He must not be a new believer, lest the position go to his head and the Devil trip him up. Outsiders must think well of him, or else the Devil will figure out a way to lure him into his trap.
8-13The same goes for those who want to be servants in the church: serious, not deceitful, not too free with the bottle, not in it for what they can get out of it. They must be reverent before the mystery of the faith, not using their position to try to run things. Let them prove themselves first. If they show they can do it, take them on. No exceptions are to be made for women—same qualifications: serious, dependable, not sharp-tongued, not overfond of wine. Servants in the church are to be committed to their spouses, attentive to their own children, and diligent in looking after their own affairs. Those who do this servant work will come to be highly respected, a real credit to this Jesus-faith.
14-16I hope to visit you soon, but just in case I'm delayed, I'm writing this letter so you'll know how things ought to go in God's household, this God-alive church, bastion of truth. This Christian life is a great mystery, far exceeding our understanding, but some things are clear enough:
He appeared in a human body,
was proved right by the invisible Spirit,
was seen by angels.
He was proclaimed among all kinds of peoples,
believed in all over the world,
taken up into heavenly glory.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Jeremiah 6:14-20
14 They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. 'Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace.
15 Are they ashamed of their loathsome conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when I punish them," says the Lord.
16 This is what the Lord says:
"Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, 'We will not walk in it.'
17 I appointed watchmen over you and said, 'Listen to the sound of the trumpet!' But you said, 'We will not listen.'
18 Therefore hear, O nations; observe, O witnesses, what will happen to them.
19 Hear, O earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words and have rejected my law.
20 What do I care about incense from Sheba or sweet calamus from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please me."
Expert Repair
July 28, 2010 — by David C. McCasland
Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls. —Jeremiah 6:16
If you’ve ever tried to fix something and failed, you’ll appreciate the sign I saw outside an automotive repair shop: We Will Fix What Your Husband Fixed. Whether the problem is the car, the plumbing, or an appliance, it’s usually better off in the hands of someone who is skilled and trustworthy.
So it is with the sin and the struggles within us that resist our efforts to mend them.
Jeremiah denounced the greedy prophets and priests of his day who “healed the hurt of [God’s] people slightly, saying ‘Peace, peace!’ when there is no peace” (Jer. 6:14). They could neither change themselves nor lead the people to spiritual transformation. So the Lord called the people to follow His way: “Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls” (v.16).
Centuries later, Jesus, the Son of God, said: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28).
The parts of our lives that we have tried and failed to repair can be restored by the hand of God. Through faith in Christ, we can be made whole.
Life’s fractures can be mended
By faith in Christ the Lord—
At first the pain but then the gain
And usefulness restored. —Hess
When God forgives, He removes the sin and restores the soul.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 28th , 2010
God’s Purpose or Mine?
He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side . . . —Mark 6:45
We tend to think that if Jesus Christ compels us to do something and we are obedient to Him, He will lead us to great success. We should never have the thought that our dreams of success are God’s purpose for us. In fact, His purpose may be exactly the opposite. We have the idea that God is leading us toward a particular end or a desired goal, but He is not. The question of whether or not we arrive at a particular goal is of little importance, and reaching it becomes merely an episode along the way. What we see as only the process of reaching a particular end, God sees as the goal itself.
What is my vision of God’s purpose for me? Whatever it may be, His purpose is for me to depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay calm, faithful, and unconfused while in the middle of the turmoil of life, the goal of the purpose of God is being accomplished in me. God is not working toward a particular finish— His purpose is the process itself. What He desires for me is that I see “Him walking on the sea” with no shore, no success, nor goal in sight, but simply having the absolute certainty that everything is all right because I see “Him walking on the sea” ( Mark 6:49 ). It is the process, not the outcome, that is glorifying to God.
God’s training is for now, not later. His purpose is for this very minute, not for sometime in the future. We have nothing to do with what will follow our obedience, and we are wrong to concern ourselves with it. What people call preparation, God sees as the goal itself.
God’s purpose is to enable me to see that He can walk on the storms of my life right now. If we have a further goal in mind, we are not paying enough attention to the present time. However, if we realize that moment-by-moment obedience is the goal, then each moment as it comes is precious.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Most Tragic Choice - #6143
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Four boys in a house on fire; that's what happened to my friend's nephews. Thankfully, the Fire Department got the call early and they were there in minutes. It was clear there was no way they could go into that blaze to bring the boys out. But all four of them were huddled around a second floor window, which meant they could be saved. The firefighters quickly prepared to catch the boys. Then they yelled to them to jump into the waiting net below. The oldest boy jumped; he was safe. A second, then a third brother jumped to their rescue below. Their ten-year-old brother was the last one left at that upstairs window. He hesitated. The firefighters begged him to jump again and again. And every time, he refused. And sadly, it cost him his life.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Most Tragic Choice."
That is a heartbreaking story. It's a tragedy when someone dies because there was no one there to rescue them. It's an even greater tragedy when someone dies because they refused the rescuer who could have saved them.
It's a tragedy that has been repeated countless times to people that Jesus came to rescue from an eternity without Him. People who had a chance (maybe many chances) to jump into the saving arms of Jesus, but they never did. Actually, God bringing us together today is another opportunity for you to choose life. When will it be too late to do that? Only God knows.
In some ways, the more religious you are, the more times you've heard about what Jesus did on the cross for you, the greater danger you're in. Because you may not even realize that you're in a burning house. Good people, religious people tend to live in the false security that they're okay because they know a lot about Jesus. They're trying to do things Jesus likes. But that ignores what it is that keeps a person out of heaven forever - their sin. All the wrong things you've ever done in your life. They are, in God's courtroom, a capital crime, punishable by eternal death. No one with sin can possibly live in the presence of a sinless God, and sin must be paid for.
And that fire of God's judgment on our self-willed, self-run life burns closer and closer every day we live. But God loves us so much that He acted dramatically to save us from the punishment we deserve. He sent His only Son to bear that punishment in our place. When Jesus was butchered and cut off from God on that awful cross, it was all the sins of my life He was paying for, and all of yours. Your only hope of rescue is to jump into the strong and waiting arms of Jesus and pinning all your hopes on Him. When have you done that? If you don't know you did, you probably didn't.
So God asks this sobering question in Hebrews 2:3, our word for today from the Word of God, "How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?" That's how most people miss heaven. They don't out-and-out reject what Jesus did. They just ignore His rescue; either not caring or mistakenly thinking that they'll make it out somehow. They won't. Only Jesus can save you.
And He's calling to you today...right now in your heart. He's saying, "When I went to that cross, I did all that for you to rescue you from your sin. So now, while there's time, jump into My arms." He's never dropped; He's never lost anyone who trusted Him to save them. But you have to make your move.
Thankfully, a lot of people have found our website a place where they can make sure they're safely in Jesus' arms. We've set it up to guide you through putting your trust in Heaven's Rescuer. I encourage you to visit us and let us help you on what could be a life-changing day for you. The website is yoursforlife.net. Or if you'd like to receive the same information in my little booklet, "Yours For Life," just call us for it at 877-741-1200.
Jesus, your Rescuer, is waiting right now with open arms. He's not only your best hope. He's your only hope. Let Him save you while there's time.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
1 Timothy 2, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily: I Am Who I Am
I Am Who I Am
Posted: 26 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” Matthew 14:27 NASB
Waves slapping his waist and rain stinging his face, Jesus speaks to [the disciples] at once. “Courage! I am! Don’t be afraid!”
Speaking from a burning bush to a knee-knocking Moses, God announced, “I AM WHO I AM” (Exodus 3:14 NASB).
God gets into things! Red Seas, Judean wildernesses, weddings, funerals, and Galilean tempests. Look and you’ll find what everyone from Moses to Martha discovered. God is in the middle of our storms.
1 Timothy 2
Simple Faith and Plain Truth
1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live.
4-7He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we've learned: that there's one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us—Jesus, who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free. Eventually the news is going to get out. This and this only has been my appointed work: getting this news to those who have never heard of God, and explaining how it works by simple faith and plain truth.
8-10Since prayer is at the bottom of all this, what I want mostly is for men to pray—not shaking angry fists at enemies but raising holy hands to God. And I want women to get in there with the men in humility before God, not primping before a mirror or chasing the latest fashions but doing something beautiful for God and becoming beautiful doing it.
11-15I don't let women take over and tell the men what to do. They should study to be quiet and obedient along with everyone else. Adam was made first, then Eve; woman was deceived first—our pioneer in sin!—with Adam right on her heels. On the other hand, her childbearing brought about salvation, reversing Eve. But this salvation only comes to those who continue in faith, love, and holiness, gathering it all into maturity. You can depend on this.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 John 2:1-11
1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.
2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
3 We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands.
4 The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him:
6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.
7 Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard.
8 Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.
9 Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness.
10 Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.
11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.
Lessons Of Obedience
July 27, 2010 — by Cindy Hess Kasper
This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. —1 John 5:3
When young Kofi came home after Sunday school, his mother asked him what he had learned that morning. His quick reply spoke volumes: “Obedience . . . again!”
Although I’m many years older than Kofi, I agree that obedience to God is a lesson that we must, sometimes reluctantly, learn over and over again.
Oswald Chambers wrote: “The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear. If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says . . . . If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.”
When we are obedient, we show God that we love Him and have more faith in Him than we do in ourselves. Arthur W. Pink said that love is “a principle of action, and it expresses itself . . . by deeds which please the object loved.” To obey God means to relinquish what we want and to choose to do what He asks.
God requires the obedience of His followers, and Jesus placed great importance on it. He asked, “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). And He issued this challenge: “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15).
To say we follow Jesus Christ
Without attempting to obey
Reveals our lack of faith that He
Will lead us right in every way. —Sper
Obedience to God is an expression of our love for God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 27th , 2010
The Way to Knowledge
If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine . . . —John 7:17
The golden rule to follow to obtain spiritual understanding is not one of intellectual pursuit, but one of obedience. If a person wants scientific knowledge, then intellectual curiosity must be his guide. But if he desires knowledge and insight into the teachings of Jesus Christ, he can only obtain it through obedience. If spiritual things seem dark and hidden to me, then I can be sure that there is a point of disobedience somewhere in my life. Intellectual darkness is the result of ignorance, but spiritual darkness is the result of something that I do not intend to obey.
No one ever receives a word from God without instantly being put to the test regarding it. We disobey and then wonder why we are not growing spiritually. Jesus said, “If you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift” ( Matthew 5:23-24 ). He is saying, in essence, “Don’t say another word to me; first be obedient by making things right.” The teachings of Jesus hit us where we live. We cannot stand as impostors before Him for even one second. He instructs us down to the very last detail. The Spirit of God uncovers our spirit of self-vindication and makes us sensitive to things that we have never even thought of before.
When Jesus drives something home to you through His Word, don’t try to evade it. If you do, you will become a religious impostor. Examine the things you tend simply to shrug your shoulders about, and where you have refused to be obedient, and you will know why you are not growing spiritually. As Jesus said, “First . . . go . . ..” Even at the risk of being thought of as fanatical, you must obey what God tells you.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Never Forgetting the Cost - #6142
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
In the movie Saving Private Ryan, Tom Hanks portrays an Army captain whose unit is assigned to find a private named Ryan in the dangerous aftermath of the D-Day Invasion. Ryan's brothers have both been killed in combat, and, unbeknownst to him, he is his mother's only surviving son. The mission involves the captain's unit in brutal battles with the Germans. But Private Ryan is located and his life is saved by his captain who dies in the process. As Private Ryan attends to his mortally wounded rescuer, the captain speaks his last words in a hoarse whisper - "Earn this." The camera merges from the young private's face to the face of an old man, standing by a white cross in the cemetery at Normandy. It is Ryan many years later, near the end of his life. He kneels by his captain's grave and says: "Every day of my life, I've thought about what you said to me that day on the bridge. I've done my best. I hope at least in your eyes that I've lived up to all you gave for me."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Never Forgetting the Cost."
There's a man who tried to live his life here in light of what was sacrificed for him. I understand that. I hope you do. You and I were paid for with the blood of God's one and only Son when He died on the cross for every wrong thing we've done. Like the chorus says, "He paid a debt He did not owe, I owed a debt I could not pay - I needed someone to wash my sins away. And now I sing a brand new song, 'Amazing Grace'; Christ Jesus paid a debt that I could never pay."
Now Jesus will never say of His death for us, "Earn this." We couldn't. That's why He died. There is nothing we could ever do that could pay our sin-bill with God. He did it all. But the Bible does talk about living a life that's worthy of our Savior. In our word for today from the Word of God, for example. Colossians 1, beginning with verse 10, it says, "We pray...that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way, bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God." Can you say your life is bearing spiritual fruit or pretty much all about earth-stuff? Are you really growing in your knowledge of God - or are you pretty much where you've been for quite a while?
Verse 13 reminds us of the rescue mission Jesus came here on - "He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves." If you're still messing around with the dark stuff, you're embracing the very junk Jesus died to liberate you from.
You can never earn what Jesus' sacrificed for you. But you can live each day of our life in light of it. Which means you live to please only the One who gave His life for you. It means not limiting God to a little God-box you build, but blowing the walls of your love and surrender to Him. No cross should be too heavy for you to bear for Him. No demand He makes could possibly be too much. No sacrifice you make for Him can be too great. Not after what He sacrificed for you.
Your life wasn't paid for at a discount price. Jesus deserves better from you than a discount discipleship. You don't have to visit a grave to remember what you owe Him - He's not there anyway. But each new day, in your heart, visit that cross where the Son of God loved you and gave Himself for you. And then, with a heart full of love and gratitude, live that day for Him.
I Am Who I Am
Posted: 26 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” Matthew 14:27 NASB
Waves slapping his waist and rain stinging his face, Jesus speaks to [the disciples] at once. “Courage! I am! Don’t be afraid!”
Speaking from a burning bush to a knee-knocking Moses, God announced, “I AM WHO I AM” (Exodus 3:14 NASB).
God gets into things! Red Seas, Judean wildernesses, weddings, funerals, and Galilean tempests. Look and you’ll find what everyone from Moses to Martha discovered. God is in the middle of our storms.
1 Timothy 2
Simple Faith and Plain Truth
1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live.
4-7He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we've learned: that there's one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us—Jesus, who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free. Eventually the news is going to get out. This and this only has been my appointed work: getting this news to those who have never heard of God, and explaining how it works by simple faith and plain truth.
8-10Since prayer is at the bottom of all this, what I want mostly is for men to pray—not shaking angry fists at enemies but raising holy hands to God. And I want women to get in there with the men in humility before God, not primping before a mirror or chasing the latest fashions but doing something beautiful for God and becoming beautiful doing it.
11-15I don't let women take over and tell the men what to do. They should study to be quiet and obedient along with everyone else. Adam was made first, then Eve; woman was deceived first—our pioneer in sin!—with Adam right on her heels. On the other hand, her childbearing brought about salvation, reversing Eve. But this salvation only comes to those who continue in faith, love, and holiness, gathering it all into maturity. You can depend on this.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 John 2:1-11
1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.
2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
3 We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands.
4 The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him:
6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.
7 Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard.
8 Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.
9 Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness.
10 Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.
11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.
Lessons Of Obedience
July 27, 2010 — by Cindy Hess Kasper
This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. —1 John 5:3
When young Kofi came home after Sunday school, his mother asked him what he had learned that morning. His quick reply spoke volumes: “Obedience . . . again!”
Although I’m many years older than Kofi, I agree that obedience to God is a lesson that we must, sometimes reluctantly, learn over and over again.
Oswald Chambers wrote: “The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear. If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says . . . . If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.”
When we are obedient, we show God that we love Him and have more faith in Him than we do in ourselves. Arthur W. Pink said that love is “a principle of action, and it expresses itself . . . by deeds which please the object loved.” To obey God means to relinquish what we want and to choose to do what He asks.
God requires the obedience of His followers, and Jesus placed great importance on it. He asked, “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). And He issued this challenge: “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15).
To say we follow Jesus Christ
Without attempting to obey
Reveals our lack of faith that He
Will lead us right in every way. —Sper
Obedience to God is an expression of our love for God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 27th , 2010
The Way to Knowledge
If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine . . . —John 7:17
The golden rule to follow to obtain spiritual understanding is not one of intellectual pursuit, but one of obedience. If a person wants scientific knowledge, then intellectual curiosity must be his guide. But if he desires knowledge and insight into the teachings of Jesus Christ, he can only obtain it through obedience. If spiritual things seem dark and hidden to me, then I can be sure that there is a point of disobedience somewhere in my life. Intellectual darkness is the result of ignorance, but spiritual darkness is the result of something that I do not intend to obey.
No one ever receives a word from God without instantly being put to the test regarding it. We disobey and then wonder why we are not growing spiritually. Jesus said, “If you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift” ( Matthew 5:23-24 ). He is saying, in essence, “Don’t say another word to me; first be obedient by making things right.” The teachings of Jesus hit us where we live. We cannot stand as impostors before Him for even one second. He instructs us down to the very last detail. The Spirit of God uncovers our spirit of self-vindication and makes us sensitive to things that we have never even thought of before.
When Jesus drives something home to you through His Word, don’t try to evade it. If you do, you will become a religious impostor. Examine the things you tend simply to shrug your shoulders about, and where you have refused to be obedient, and you will know why you are not growing spiritually. As Jesus said, “First . . . go . . ..” Even at the risk of being thought of as fanatical, you must obey what God tells you.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Never Forgetting the Cost - #6142
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
In the movie Saving Private Ryan, Tom Hanks portrays an Army captain whose unit is assigned to find a private named Ryan in the dangerous aftermath of the D-Day Invasion. Ryan's brothers have both been killed in combat, and, unbeknownst to him, he is his mother's only surviving son. The mission involves the captain's unit in brutal battles with the Germans. But Private Ryan is located and his life is saved by his captain who dies in the process. As Private Ryan attends to his mortally wounded rescuer, the captain speaks his last words in a hoarse whisper - "Earn this." The camera merges from the young private's face to the face of an old man, standing by a white cross in the cemetery at Normandy. It is Ryan many years later, near the end of his life. He kneels by his captain's grave and says: "Every day of my life, I've thought about what you said to me that day on the bridge. I've done my best. I hope at least in your eyes that I've lived up to all you gave for me."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Never Forgetting the Cost."
There's a man who tried to live his life here in light of what was sacrificed for him. I understand that. I hope you do. You and I were paid for with the blood of God's one and only Son when He died on the cross for every wrong thing we've done. Like the chorus says, "He paid a debt He did not owe, I owed a debt I could not pay - I needed someone to wash my sins away. And now I sing a brand new song, 'Amazing Grace'; Christ Jesus paid a debt that I could never pay."
Now Jesus will never say of His death for us, "Earn this." We couldn't. That's why He died. There is nothing we could ever do that could pay our sin-bill with God. He did it all. But the Bible does talk about living a life that's worthy of our Savior. In our word for today from the Word of God, for example. Colossians 1, beginning with verse 10, it says, "We pray...that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way, bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God." Can you say your life is bearing spiritual fruit or pretty much all about earth-stuff? Are you really growing in your knowledge of God - or are you pretty much where you've been for quite a while?
Verse 13 reminds us of the rescue mission Jesus came here on - "He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves." If you're still messing around with the dark stuff, you're embracing the very junk Jesus died to liberate you from.
You can never earn what Jesus' sacrificed for you. But you can live each day of our life in light of it. Which means you live to please only the One who gave His life for you. It means not limiting God to a little God-box you build, but blowing the walls of your love and surrender to Him. No cross should be too heavy for you to bear for Him. No demand He makes could possibly be too much. No sacrifice you make for Him can be too great. Not after what He sacrificed for you.
Your life wasn't paid for at a discount price. Jesus deserves better from you than a discount discipleship. You don't have to visit a grave to remember what you owe Him - He's not there anyway. But each new day, in your heart, visit that cross where the Son of God loved you and gave Himself for you. And then, with a heart full of love and gratitude, live that day for Him.
Monday, July 26, 2010
1 Timothy 1, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily: Only Through the Cross
Only Through the Cross
Posted: 25 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“We have freedom now, because Christ made us free.” Galatians 5:1
Some teach that we earn God’s favor by what we know (intellectualism). Others insist we are saved by what we do (moralism). Still others that salvation is determined by what we feel (emotionalism).
However you package it, Paul contests, . . . salvation comes only through the cross—no additions, no alterations.
1 Timothy 1
1-2I, Paul, am an apostle on special assignment for Christ, our living hope. Under God our Savior's command, I'm writing this to you, Timothy, my son in the faith. All the best from our God and Christ be yours!
Self-Appointed Experts on Life
3-4On my way to the province of Macedonia, I advised you to stay in Ephesus. Well, I haven't changed my mind. Stay right there on top of things so that the teaching stays on track. Apparently some people have been introducing fantasy stories and fanciful family trees that digress into silliness instead of pulling the people back into the center, deepening faith and obedience.
5-7The whole point of what we're urging is simply love—love uncontaminated by self-interest and counterfeit faith, a life open to God. Those who fail to keep to this point soon wander off into cul-de-sacs of gossip. They set themselves up as experts on religious issues, but haven't the remotest idea of what they're holding forth with such imposing eloquence.
8-11It's true that moral guidance and counsel need to be given, but the way you say it and to whom you say it are as important as what you say. It's obvious, isn't it, that the law code isn't primarily for people who live responsibly, but for the irresponsible, who defy all authority, riding roughshod over God, life, sex, truth, whatever! They are contemptuous of this great Message I've been put in charge of by this great God.
12-14I'm so grateful to Christ Jesus for making me adequate to do this work. He went out on a limb, you know, in trusting me with this ministry. The only credentials I brought to it were invective and witch hunts and arrogance. But I was treated mercifully because I didn't know what I was doing—didn't know Who I was doing it against! Grace mixed with faith and love poured over me and into me. And all because of Jesus.
15-19Here's a word you can take to heart and depend on: Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. I'm proof—Public Sinner Number One—of someone who could never have made it apart from sheer mercy. And now he shows me off—evidence of his endless patience—to those who are right on the edge of trusting him forever.
Deep honor and bright glory
to the King of All Time—
One God, Immortal, Invisible,
ever and always. Oh, yes!
I'm passing this work on to you, my son Timothy. The prophetic word that was directed to you prepared us for this. All those prayers are coming together now so you will do this well, fearless in your struggle, keeping a firm grip on your faith and on yourself. After all, this is a fight we're in.
19-20There are some, you know, who by relaxing their grip and thinking anything goes have made a thorough mess of their faith. Hymenaeus and Alexander are two of them. I let them wander off to Satan to be taught a lesson or two about not blaspheming.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Cor. 12:21-25
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!"
22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,
23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty,
24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it,
25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.
Learning From Erin
July 26, 2010 — by Dave Branon
The Lord is gracious and full of compassion. —Psalm 145:8
Erin’s life was so different from that of most 8-year-olds. While other kids were running and playing and eating ice cream, Erin was lying in a bed being fed through a tube—able to see only the brightest lights and hear only the loudest sounds. Her life consisted of needles and nurses and hospital visits as she battled ongoing illnesses and profound disabilities.
Surrounded by a remarkable family who cared for her with compassion and filled her life with love, Erin died before reaching her ninth birthday.
What can be learned from a precious child like Erin—one who never spoke a word or colored a picture or sang a song? A friend of Erin’s family put it best: “We are all better for having had Erin in our lives. She taught us compassion, unconditional love, and appreciation for the little things.”
Children such as Erin also remind us that this world is not reserved for the perfect, the wealthy, or the athletic. Each person, no matter their physical, mental, or emotional condition, is created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27) and is of equal value and significance. Our Lord has compassion for the weak, the broken, and all He has made (Ps. 145:8-9), and we should mirror that concern (Eph. 5:1-2). Is there an “Erin” in your life you can learn from?
People in whom the world sees no value,
But only as burdens to bear,
Teach us great lessons of God’s sovereign power—
He loves them as treasures so rare. —Carbaugh
Never underestimate the value of one soul.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 26th , 2010
The Way to Purity
Those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart . . . . For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man . . . —Matthew 15:18-20
Initially we trust in our ignorance, calling it innocence, and next we trust our innocence, calling it purity. Then when we hear these strong statements from our Lord, we shrink back, saying, “But I never felt any of those awful things in my heart.” We resent what He reveals. Either Jesus Christ is the supreme authority on the human heart, or He is not worth paying any attention to. Am I prepared to trust the penetration of His Word into my heart, or would I prefer to trust my own “innocent ignorance”? If I will take an honest look at myself, becoming fully aware of my so-called innocence and putting it to the test, I am very likely to have a rude awakening that what Jesus Christ said is true, and I will be appalled at the possibilities of the evil and the wrong within me. But as long as I remain under the false security of my own “innocence,” I am living in a fool’s paradise. If I have never been an openly rude and abusive person, the only reason is my own cowardice coupled with the sense of protection I receive from living a civilized life. But when I am open and completely exposed before God, I find that Jesus Christ is right in His diagnosis of me.
The only thing that truly provides protection is the redemption of Jesus Christ. If I will simply hand myself over to Him, I will never have to experience the terrible possibilities that lie within my heart. Purity is something far too deep for me to arrive at naturally. But when the Holy Spirit comes into me, He brings into the center of my personal life the very Spirit that was exhibited in the life of Jesus Christ, namely, the Holy Spirit, which is absolute unblemished purity.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Faith Launching - #6141
Monday, July 26, 2010
The Blob. Yep! That's what they call this huge inflated pillow-like thing they have at a camp we use in our ministry. The Blob is in the water at the camp beach, sitting there, daring someone to jump off the platform above onto its bouncy launch pad. It's - well, shall we say - a leap of faith. One person jumps onto the Blob and then they clumsily scoot out to the end that extends into the lake. Then a second person makes the jump. When they hit the Blob, the force of their landing literally launches the person on the end into the air and ultimately into the lake with a loud splash. For the launch to work, there can't be more than 30 pounds difference in the weights of the two Blobbers. Well, since our son is a pretty big hunk of a guy, he went most of the week without getting Blob-launched...until the campers convinced Frank, our other generous-sized leader, to try it with our son. Every person in the camp was at the beach at two o'clock to see this one, and we weren't disappointed. Our son made the jump and crawled to the end of the Blob. Then his counterweight friend made the jump. The camp erupted in cheers and gales of laughter as the force of Frank's landing sent our son into the air like a Cape Canaveral rocket!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Faith Launching."
You see, Frank took a leap of faith and it launched someone else. You know, that shouldn't be unusual with brothers and sisters in Christ. If you belong to Jesus, there are people around you who could use some faith right now for what they're facing - but they may need the "jumper cable" of your faith to inspire them to trust God in a big way.
In our word for today from the Word of God, Romans 1:11-12, Paul told the believers at Rome, "I long to see you that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong - that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith." There it is - contagious faith, stirring up greater faith in the person they infect.
There's a great example of that in the Book of Joshua as the Jews are standing on the edge of flooded Jordan River, facing the giants and walled cities of Canaan on the other side. God launched General Joshua's faith when He says, "Be strong and courageous because you will lead these people to inherit the land" (Joshua 1:6). Joshua then launches the faith of his officers by telling them to get the people ready because they are going to cross the Jordan and take possession of the land God is giving them. Before long, the people are telling Joshua to "...be strong and courageous!" (Joshua 1:18). Mutually encouraging each other to believe God for something only God can do.
I wonder what your effect is on the people in your personal world. Do you inspire them to trust God for big things, or do you spread anxiety, apathy, pessimism, or negative thinking? Leave behind your trail of faith! Use critical moments to show your family how to totally trust God rather than worry. Pray boldly with people who share a need with you. Verbalize what you're trusting God for as a declaration of your faith. Challenge people you serve with to get out of the box of doing what's always been done, taking no risks, and seeing no miracles.
Faith isn't just taught - it's caught. And you should be modeling and encouraging bold trust in an all-powerful God. This isn't about your great faith. It's about your great God - a God who deserves nothing less than faith for "great and mighty things we don't know" (Jeremiah 33:3). As John Newton said, "Thou art coming to a King, great petitions with thee bring; for His grace and power are such, none can ever ask too much." When people are around you and your faith, they should be launched higher than they've ever gone before!
Only Through the Cross
Posted: 25 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“We have freedom now, because Christ made us free.” Galatians 5:1
Some teach that we earn God’s favor by what we know (intellectualism). Others insist we are saved by what we do (moralism). Still others that salvation is determined by what we feel (emotionalism).
However you package it, Paul contests, . . . salvation comes only through the cross—no additions, no alterations.
1 Timothy 1
1-2I, Paul, am an apostle on special assignment for Christ, our living hope. Under God our Savior's command, I'm writing this to you, Timothy, my son in the faith. All the best from our God and Christ be yours!
Self-Appointed Experts on Life
3-4On my way to the province of Macedonia, I advised you to stay in Ephesus. Well, I haven't changed my mind. Stay right there on top of things so that the teaching stays on track. Apparently some people have been introducing fantasy stories and fanciful family trees that digress into silliness instead of pulling the people back into the center, deepening faith and obedience.
5-7The whole point of what we're urging is simply love—love uncontaminated by self-interest and counterfeit faith, a life open to God. Those who fail to keep to this point soon wander off into cul-de-sacs of gossip. They set themselves up as experts on religious issues, but haven't the remotest idea of what they're holding forth with such imposing eloquence.
8-11It's true that moral guidance and counsel need to be given, but the way you say it and to whom you say it are as important as what you say. It's obvious, isn't it, that the law code isn't primarily for people who live responsibly, but for the irresponsible, who defy all authority, riding roughshod over God, life, sex, truth, whatever! They are contemptuous of this great Message I've been put in charge of by this great God.
12-14I'm so grateful to Christ Jesus for making me adequate to do this work. He went out on a limb, you know, in trusting me with this ministry. The only credentials I brought to it were invective and witch hunts and arrogance. But I was treated mercifully because I didn't know what I was doing—didn't know Who I was doing it against! Grace mixed with faith and love poured over me and into me. And all because of Jesus.
15-19Here's a word you can take to heart and depend on: Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. I'm proof—Public Sinner Number One—of someone who could never have made it apart from sheer mercy. And now he shows me off—evidence of his endless patience—to those who are right on the edge of trusting him forever.
Deep honor and bright glory
to the King of All Time—
One God, Immortal, Invisible,
ever and always. Oh, yes!
I'm passing this work on to you, my son Timothy. The prophetic word that was directed to you prepared us for this. All those prayers are coming together now so you will do this well, fearless in your struggle, keeping a firm grip on your faith and on yourself. After all, this is a fight we're in.
19-20There are some, you know, who by relaxing their grip and thinking anything goes have made a thorough mess of their faith. Hymenaeus and Alexander are two of them. I let them wander off to Satan to be taught a lesson or two about not blaspheming.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Cor. 12:21-25
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!"
22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,
23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty,
24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it,
25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.
Learning From Erin
July 26, 2010 — by Dave Branon
The Lord is gracious and full of compassion. —Psalm 145:8
Erin’s life was so different from that of most 8-year-olds. While other kids were running and playing and eating ice cream, Erin was lying in a bed being fed through a tube—able to see only the brightest lights and hear only the loudest sounds. Her life consisted of needles and nurses and hospital visits as she battled ongoing illnesses and profound disabilities.
Surrounded by a remarkable family who cared for her with compassion and filled her life with love, Erin died before reaching her ninth birthday.
What can be learned from a precious child like Erin—one who never spoke a word or colored a picture or sang a song? A friend of Erin’s family put it best: “We are all better for having had Erin in our lives. She taught us compassion, unconditional love, and appreciation for the little things.”
Children such as Erin also remind us that this world is not reserved for the perfect, the wealthy, or the athletic. Each person, no matter their physical, mental, or emotional condition, is created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27) and is of equal value and significance. Our Lord has compassion for the weak, the broken, and all He has made (Ps. 145:8-9), and we should mirror that concern (Eph. 5:1-2). Is there an “Erin” in your life you can learn from?
People in whom the world sees no value,
But only as burdens to bear,
Teach us great lessons of God’s sovereign power—
He loves them as treasures so rare. —Carbaugh
Never underestimate the value of one soul.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 26th , 2010
The Way to Purity
Those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart . . . . For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man . . . —Matthew 15:18-20
Initially we trust in our ignorance, calling it innocence, and next we trust our innocence, calling it purity. Then when we hear these strong statements from our Lord, we shrink back, saying, “But I never felt any of those awful things in my heart.” We resent what He reveals. Either Jesus Christ is the supreme authority on the human heart, or He is not worth paying any attention to. Am I prepared to trust the penetration of His Word into my heart, or would I prefer to trust my own “innocent ignorance”? If I will take an honest look at myself, becoming fully aware of my so-called innocence and putting it to the test, I am very likely to have a rude awakening that what Jesus Christ said is true, and I will be appalled at the possibilities of the evil and the wrong within me. But as long as I remain under the false security of my own “innocence,” I am living in a fool’s paradise. If I have never been an openly rude and abusive person, the only reason is my own cowardice coupled with the sense of protection I receive from living a civilized life. But when I am open and completely exposed before God, I find that Jesus Christ is right in His diagnosis of me.
The only thing that truly provides protection is the redemption of Jesus Christ. If I will simply hand myself over to Him, I will never have to experience the terrible possibilities that lie within my heart. Purity is something far too deep for me to arrive at naturally. But when the Holy Spirit comes into me, He brings into the center of my personal life the very Spirit that was exhibited in the life of Jesus Christ, namely, the Holy Spirit, which is absolute unblemished purity.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Faith Launching - #6141
Monday, July 26, 2010
The Blob. Yep! That's what they call this huge inflated pillow-like thing they have at a camp we use in our ministry. The Blob is in the water at the camp beach, sitting there, daring someone to jump off the platform above onto its bouncy launch pad. It's - well, shall we say - a leap of faith. One person jumps onto the Blob and then they clumsily scoot out to the end that extends into the lake. Then a second person makes the jump. When they hit the Blob, the force of their landing literally launches the person on the end into the air and ultimately into the lake with a loud splash. For the launch to work, there can't be more than 30 pounds difference in the weights of the two Blobbers. Well, since our son is a pretty big hunk of a guy, he went most of the week without getting Blob-launched...until the campers convinced Frank, our other generous-sized leader, to try it with our son. Every person in the camp was at the beach at two o'clock to see this one, and we weren't disappointed. Our son made the jump and crawled to the end of the Blob. Then his counterweight friend made the jump. The camp erupted in cheers and gales of laughter as the force of Frank's landing sent our son into the air like a Cape Canaveral rocket!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Faith Launching."
You see, Frank took a leap of faith and it launched someone else. You know, that shouldn't be unusual with brothers and sisters in Christ. If you belong to Jesus, there are people around you who could use some faith right now for what they're facing - but they may need the "jumper cable" of your faith to inspire them to trust God in a big way.
In our word for today from the Word of God, Romans 1:11-12, Paul told the believers at Rome, "I long to see you that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong - that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith." There it is - contagious faith, stirring up greater faith in the person they infect.
There's a great example of that in the Book of Joshua as the Jews are standing on the edge of flooded Jordan River, facing the giants and walled cities of Canaan on the other side. God launched General Joshua's faith when He says, "Be strong and courageous because you will lead these people to inherit the land" (Joshua 1:6). Joshua then launches the faith of his officers by telling them to get the people ready because they are going to cross the Jordan and take possession of the land God is giving them. Before long, the people are telling Joshua to "...be strong and courageous!" (Joshua 1:18). Mutually encouraging each other to believe God for something only God can do.
I wonder what your effect is on the people in your personal world. Do you inspire them to trust God for big things, or do you spread anxiety, apathy, pessimism, or negative thinking? Leave behind your trail of faith! Use critical moments to show your family how to totally trust God rather than worry. Pray boldly with people who share a need with you. Verbalize what you're trusting God for as a declaration of your faith. Challenge people you serve with to get out of the box of doing what's always been done, taking no risks, and seeing no miracles.
Faith isn't just taught - it's caught. And you should be modeling and encouraging bold trust in an all-powerful God. This isn't about your great faith. It's about your great God - a God who deserves nothing less than faith for "great and mighty things we don't know" (Jeremiah 33:3). As John Newton said, "Thou art coming to a King, great petitions with thee bring; for His grace and power are such, none can ever ask too much." When people are around you and your faith, they should be launched higher than they've ever gone before!
Sunday, July 25, 2010
1 Peter 5, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily: He Sings Over You
He Sings Over You
Posted: 24 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“The Lord God is like a sun and shield; the Lord gives us kindness and honor.” Psalm 84:11
Rejections are like speed bumps on the road. They come with the journey . . . You can’t keep people from rejecting you. But you can keep rejections from enraging you. How? By letting God’s acceptance compensate for their rejection.
When others reject you, let God accept you. He is not frowning. He is not mad. He sings over you. Take a long drink from His limitless love.
1 Peter 5
He'll Promote You at the Right Time
1-3 I have a special concern for you church leaders. I know what it's like to be a leader, in on Christ's sufferings as well as the coming glory. Here's my concern: that you care for God's flock with all the diligence of a shepherd. Not because you have to, but because you want to please God. Not calculating what you can get out of it, but acting spontaneously. Not bossily telling others what to do, but tenderly showing them the way.
4-5When God, who is the best shepherd of all, comes out in the open with his rule, he'll see that you've done it right and commend you lavishly. And you who are younger must follow your leaders. But all of you, leaders and followers alike, are to be down to earth with each other, for—
God has had it with the proud,
But takes delight in just plain people.
6-7So be content with who you are, and don't put on airs. God's strong hand is on you; he'll promote you at the right time. Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you.
He Gets the Last Word
8-11Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You're not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It's the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.
12I'm sending this brief letter to you by Silas, a most dependable brother. I have the highest regard for him.
I've written as urgently and accurately as I know how. This is God's generous truth; embrace it with both arms!
13-14The church in exile here with me—but not for a moment forgotten by God—wants to be remembered to you. Mark, who is like a son to me, says hello. Give holy embraces all around! Peace to you—to all who walk in Christ's ways.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Luke 4:1-13
1 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert,
2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.
3 The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread."
4 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone.'"
5 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.
6 And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to.
7 So if you worship me, it will all be yours."
8 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.'"
9 The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down from here.
10 For it is written:
"'He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully;
11 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'"
12 Jesus answered, "It says: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'"
13 When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.
Fix Your Eyes
July 25, 2010 — by Julie Ackerman Link
Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. —Hebrews 12:1-2
Over and over again, my driver’s education instructor said these two words: “Drive ahead.” This was his way of telling me to focus on the horizon, not just on my immediate surroundings. Drivers who continually look to the right or to the left may well go into the ditch.
Satan is good at causing “roadside distractions” that tempt us to look at him rather than at Jesus. If he can get our attention, he may be able to get us off track and delay our spiritual progress. He even tried this with Jesus Himself!
After Jesus was baptized, Satan tried to deter Him by suggesting “better” ways to accomplish His work. Satan told Jesus that He could prove He was the Son of God by throwing Himself from the temple (Luke 4:9-11). But Jesus knew that proving He was God’s Son would come by submitting Himself to the cross, not by flinging Himself from a high building. He responded, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God” (v.12). Jesus had His eyes on our redemption, and He knew He couldn’t accomplish it by taking a detour around the cross.
The way to stay out of spiritual ditches is to fix our eyes on Jesus (Heb. 12:2) and refuse to even glance at Satan’s distractions.
The only way to overcome
Temptations that we face,
Is to be focused on the Lord,
Who strengthens by His grace. —Sper
Satan ought not be in our line of vision, but behind us. —Leonard Sweet
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 25th , 2010
Am I Blessed Like This?
Blessed are . . . —Matthew 5:3-11
When we first read the statements of Jesus, they seem wonderfully simple and unstartling, and they sink unnoticed into our subconscious minds. For instance, the Beatitudes initially seem to be merely soothing and beautiful precepts for overly spiritual and seemingly useless people, but of very little practical use in the rigid, fast-paced workdays of the world in which we live. We soon find, however, that the Beatitudes contain the “dynamite” of the Holy Spirit. And they “explode” when the circumstances of our lives cause them to do so. When the Holy Spirit brings to our remembrance one of the Beatitudes, we say, “What a startling statement that is!” Then we must decide whether or not we will accept the tremendous spiritual upheaval that will be produced in our circumstances if we obey His words. That is the way the Spirit of God works. We do not need to be born again to apply the Sermon on the Mount literally. The literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount is as easy as child’s play. But the interpretation by the Spirit of God as He applies our Lord’s statements to our circumstances is the strict and difficult work of a saint.
The teachings of Jesus are all out of proportion when compared to our natural way of looking at things, and they come to us initially with astonishing discomfort. We gradually have to conform our walk and conversation to the precepts of Jesus Christ as the Holy Spirit applies them to our circumstances. The Sermon on the Mount is not a set of rules and regulations— it is a picture of the life we will live when the Holy Spirit is having His unhindered way with us.
He Sings Over You
Posted: 24 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“The Lord God is like a sun and shield; the Lord gives us kindness and honor.” Psalm 84:11
Rejections are like speed bumps on the road. They come with the journey . . . You can’t keep people from rejecting you. But you can keep rejections from enraging you. How? By letting God’s acceptance compensate for their rejection.
When others reject you, let God accept you. He is not frowning. He is not mad. He sings over you. Take a long drink from His limitless love.
1 Peter 5
He'll Promote You at the Right Time
1-3 I have a special concern for you church leaders. I know what it's like to be a leader, in on Christ's sufferings as well as the coming glory. Here's my concern: that you care for God's flock with all the diligence of a shepherd. Not because you have to, but because you want to please God. Not calculating what you can get out of it, but acting spontaneously. Not bossily telling others what to do, but tenderly showing them the way.
4-5When God, who is the best shepherd of all, comes out in the open with his rule, he'll see that you've done it right and commend you lavishly. And you who are younger must follow your leaders. But all of you, leaders and followers alike, are to be down to earth with each other, for—
God has had it with the proud,
But takes delight in just plain people.
6-7So be content with who you are, and don't put on airs. God's strong hand is on you; he'll promote you at the right time. Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you.
He Gets the Last Word
8-11Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You're not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It's the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.
12I'm sending this brief letter to you by Silas, a most dependable brother. I have the highest regard for him.
I've written as urgently and accurately as I know how. This is God's generous truth; embrace it with both arms!
13-14The church in exile here with me—but not for a moment forgotten by God—wants to be remembered to you. Mark, who is like a son to me, says hello. Give holy embraces all around! Peace to you—to all who walk in Christ's ways.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Luke 4:1-13
1 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert,
2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.
3 The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread."
4 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone.'"
5 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.
6 And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to.
7 So if you worship me, it will all be yours."
8 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.'"
9 The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down from here.
10 For it is written:
"'He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully;
11 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'"
12 Jesus answered, "It says: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'"
13 When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.
Fix Your Eyes
July 25, 2010 — by Julie Ackerman Link
Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. —Hebrews 12:1-2
Over and over again, my driver’s education instructor said these two words: “Drive ahead.” This was his way of telling me to focus on the horizon, not just on my immediate surroundings. Drivers who continually look to the right or to the left may well go into the ditch.
Satan is good at causing “roadside distractions” that tempt us to look at him rather than at Jesus. If he can get our attention, he may be able to get us off track and delay our spiritual progress. He even tried this with Jesus Himself!
After Jesus was baptized, Satan tried to deter Him by suggesting “better” ways to accomplish His work. Satan told Jesus that He could prove He was the Son of God by throwing Himself from the temple (Luke 4:9-11). But Jesus knew that proving He was God’s Son would come by submitting Himself to the cross, not by flinging Himself from a high building. He responded, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God” (v.12). Jesus had His eyes on our redemption, and He knew He couldn’t accomplish it by taking a detour around the cross.
The way to stay out of spiritual ditches is to fix our eyes on Jesus (Heb. 12:2) and refuse to even glance at Satan’s distractions.
The only way to overcome
Temptations that we face,
Is to be focused on the Lord,
Who strengthens by His grace. —Sper
Satan ought not be in our line of vision, but behind us. —Leonard Sweet
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 25th , 2010
Am I Blessed Like This?
Blessed are . . . —Matthew 5:3-11
When we first read the statements of Jesus, they seem wonderfully simple and unstartling, and they sink unnoticed into our subconscious minds. For instance, the Beatitudes initially seem to be merely soothing and beautiful precepts for overly spiritual and seemingly useless people, but of very little practical use in the rigid, fast-paced workdays of the world in which we live. We soon find, however, that the Beatitudes contain the “dynamite” of the Holy Spirit. And they “explode” when the circumstances of our lives cause them to do so. When the Holy Spirit brings to our remembrance one of the Beatitudes, we say, “What a startling statement that is!” Then we must decide whether or not we will accept the tremendous spiritual upheaval that will be produced in our circumstances if we obey His words. That is the way the Spirit of God works. We do not need to be born again to apply the Sermon on the Mount literally. The literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount is as easy as child’s play. But the interpretation by the Spirit of God as He applies our Lord’s statements to our circumstances is the strict and difficult work of a saint.
The teachings of Jesus are all out of proportion when compared to our natural way of looking at things, and they come to us initially with astonishing discomfort. We gradually have to conform our walk and conversation to the precepts of Jesus Christ as the Holy Spirit applies them to our circumstances. The Sermon on the Mount is not a set of rules and regulations— it is a picture of the life we will live when the Holy Spirit is having His unhindered way with us.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
1 Peter 4, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily: Second Birth
Second Birth
Posted: 23 Jul 2010 11:00 PM PDT
“God is being patient with you . . . He wants all people to change their hearts and lives.” 2 Peter 3:9
In many ways your new birth is like your first: In your new birth God provides what you need; someone else feels the pain, and someone else does the work. And just as parents are patient with their newborn, so God is patient with you. But there is one difference. The first time you had no choice about being born; this time you do. The power is God’s. The effort is God’s. The pain is God’s. But the choice is yours.
1 Peter 4
Learn to Think Like Him
1-2Since Jesus went through everything you're going through and more, learn to think like him. Think of your sufferings as a weaning from that old sinful habit of always expecting to get your own way. Then you'll be able to live out your days free to pursue what God wants instead of being tyrannized by what you want.
3-5You've already put in your time in that God-ignorant way of life, partying night after night, a drunken and profligate life. Now it's time to be done with it for good. Of course, your old friends don't understand why you don't join in with the old gang anymore. But you don't have to give an account to them. They're the ones who will be called on the carpet—and before God himself.
6Listen to the Message. It was preached to those believers who are now dead, and yet even though they died (just as all people must), they will still get in on the life that God has given in Jesus.
7-11Everything in the world is about to be wrapped up, so take nothing for granted. Stay wide-awake in prayer. Most of all, love each other as if your life depended on it. Love makes up for practically anything. Be quick to give a meal to the hungry, a bed to the homeless—cheerfully. Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it: if words, let it be God's words; if help, let it be God's hearty help. That way, God's bright presence will be evident in everything through Jesus, and he'll get all the credit as the One mighty in everything—encores to the end of time. Oh, yes!
Glory Just Around the Corner
12-13Friends, when life gets really difficult, don't jump to the conclusion that God isn't on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.
14-16If you're abused because of Christ, count yourself fortunate. It's the Spirit of God and his glory in you that brought you to the notice of others. If they're on you because you broke the law or disturbed the peace, that's a different matter. But if it's because you're a Christian, don't give it a second thought. Be proud of the distinguished status reflected in that name!
17-19It's judgment time for God's own family. We're first in line. If it starts with us, think what it's going to be like for those who refuse God's Message!
If good people barely make it,
What's in store for the bad?
So if you find life difficult because you're doing what God said, take it in stride. Trust him. He knows what he's doing, and he'll keep on doing it.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Acts 25:1-12
1 Three days after arriving in the province, Festus went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem,
2 where the chief priests and Jewish leaders appeared before him and presented the charges against Paul.
3 They urgently requested Festus, as a favor to them, to have Paul transferred to Jerusalem, for they were preparing an ambush to kill him along the way.
4 Festus answered, "Paul is being held at Caesarea, and I myself am going there soon.
5 Let some of your leaders come with me and press charges against the man there, if he has done anything wrong."
6 After spending eight or ten days with them, he went down to Caesarea, and the next day he convened the court and ordered that Paul be brought before him.
7 When Paul appeared, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many serious charges against him, which they could not prove.
8 Then Paul made his defense: "I have done nothing wrong against the law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar."
9 Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, "Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me there on these charges?"
10 Paul answered: "I am now standing before Caesar's court, where I ought to be tried. I have not done any wrong to the Jews, as you yourself know very well.
11 If, however, I am guilty of doing anything deserving death, I do not refuse to die. But if the charges brought against me by these Jews are not true, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!"
12 After Festus had conferred with his council, he declared: "You have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar you will go!"
Sphere Of Influence
July 24, 2010 — by Dennis Fisher
He is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before . . . kings. —Acts 9:15
The book The Preacher and the Presidents chronicles the ministry of evangelist Billy Graham. Spanning presidents from Harry S. Truman to George W. Bush, Graham often had an open door to the White House. Yet despite his unusual sphere of influence, Graham repeatedly credited the grace of God working through him for his influence—not any personal talent he might possess.
The apostle Paul was another believer who was called to witness to people in high authority. Christ said of Paul, “He is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15).
In Acts, we read that Paul’s sphere of influence included rulers such as Felix, Festus, Herod Agrippa, and perhaps Caesar himself (Acts 24–26). But as Billy Graham would do centuries later, Paul pointed to the grace of God working through him: “Not I, but the grace of God which was with me” (1 Cor. 15:10).
You may not be called to proclaim the gospel to heads of state, but God has placed people in your life with whom He wants you to share His message of hope. Why not pray for opportunities for God’s grace to flow through you as a witness to someone in your sphere of influence?
Lord, help me make my witness clear,
And labor faithfully,
So friends and neighbors turn to Christ
Through what they hear from me. —Anon.
The best place to witness is where God has placed you.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 24th , 2010
His Nature and Our Motives
. . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven —Matthew 5:20
The characteristic of a disciple is not that he does good things, but that he is good in his motives, having been made good by the supernatural grace of God. The only thing that exceeds right-doing is right-being. Jesus Christ came to place within anyone who would let Him a new heredity that would have a righteousness exceeding that of the scribes and Pharisees. Jesus is saying, “If you are My disciple, you must be right not only in your actions, but also in your motives, your aspirations, and in the deep recesses of the thoughts of your mind.” Your motives must be so pure that God Almighty can see nothing to rebuke. Who can stand in the eternal light of God and have nothing for Him to rebuke? Only the Son of God, and Jesus Christ claims that through His redemption He can place within anyone His own nature and make that person as pure and as simple as a child. The purity that God demands is impossible unless I can be remade within, and that is exactly what Jesus has undertaken to do through His redemption.
No one can make himself pure by obeying laws. Jesus Christ does not give us rules and regulations— He gives us His teachings which are truths that can only be interpreted by His nature which He places within us. The great wonder of Jesus Christ’s salvation is that He changes our heredity. He does not change human nature— He changes its source, and thereby its motives as well.
Second Birth
Posted: 23 Jul 2010 11:00 PM PDT
“God is being patient with you . . . He wants all people to change their hearts and lives.” 2 Peter 3:9
In many ways your new birth is like your first: In your new birth God provides what you need; someone else feels the pain, and someone else does the work. And just as parents are patient with their newborn, so God is patient with you. But there is one difference. The first time you had no choice about being born; this time you do. The power is God’s. The effort is God’s. The pain is God’s. But the choice is yours.
1 Peter 4
Learn to Think Like Him
1-2Since Jesus went through everything you're going through and more, learn to think like him. Think of your sufferings as a weaning from that old sinful habit of always expecting to get your own way. Then you'll be able to live out your days free to pursue what God wants instead of being tyrannized by what you want.
3-5You've already put in your time in that God-ignorant way of life, partying night after night, a drunken and profligate life. Now it's time to be done with it for good. Of course, your old friends don't understand why you don't join in with the old gang anymore. But you don't have to give an account to them. They're the ones who will be called on the carpet—and before God himself.
6Listen to the Message. It was preached to those believers who are now dead, and yet even though they died (just as all people must), they will still get in on the life that God has given in Jesus.
7-11Everything in the world is about to be wrapped up, so take nothing for granted. Stay wide-awake in prayer. Most of all, love each other as if your life depended on it. Love makes up for practically anything. Be quick to give a meal to the hungry, a bed to the homeless—cheerfully. Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it: if words, let it be God's words; if help, let it be God's hearty help. That way, God's bright presence will be evident in everything through Jesus, and he'll get all the credit as the One mighty in everything—encores to the end of time. Oh, yes!
Glory Just Around the Corner
12-13Friends, when life gets really difficult, don't jump to the conclusion that God isn't on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.
14-16If you're abused because of Christ, count yourself fortunate. It's the Spirit of God and his glory in you that brought you to the notice of others. If they're on you because you broke the law or disturbed the peace, that's a different matter. But if it's because you're a Christian, don't give it a second thought. Be proud of the distinguished status reflected in that name!
17-19It's judgment time for God's own family. We're first in line. If it starts with us, think what it's going to be like for those who refuse God's Message!
If good people barely make it,
What's in store for the bad?
So if you find life difficult because you're doing what God said, take it in stride. Trust him. He knows what he's doing, and he'll keep on doing it.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Acts 25:1-12
1 Three days after arriving in the province, Festus went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem,
2 where the chief priests and Jewish leaders appeared before him and presented the charges against Paul.
3 They urgently requested Festus, as a favor to them, to have Paul transferred to Jerusalem, for they were preparing an ambush to kill him along the way.
4 Festus answered, "Paul is being held at Caesarea, and I myself am going there soon.
5 Let some of your leaders come with me and press charges against the man there, if he has done anything wrong."
6 After spending eight or ten days with them, he went down to Caesarea, and the next day he convened the court and ordered that Paul be brought before him.
7 When Paul appeared, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many serious charges against him, which they could not prove.
8 Then Paul made his defense: "I have done nothing wrong against the law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar."
9 Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, "Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me there on these charges?"
10 Paul answered: "I am now standing before Caesar's court, where I ought to be tried. I have not done any wrong to the Jews, as you yourself know very well.
11 If, however, I am guilty of doing anything deserving death, I do not refuse to die. But if the charges brought against me by these Jews are not true, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!"
12 After Festus had conferred with his council, he declared: "You have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar you will go!"
Sphere Of Influence
July 24, 2010 — by Dennis Fisher
He is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before . . . kings. —Acts 9:15
The book The Preacher and the Presidents chronicles the ministry of evangelist Billy Graham. Spanning presidents from Harry S. Truman to George W. Bush, Graham often had an open door to the White House. Yet despite his unusual sphere of influence, Graham repeatedly credited the grace of God working through him for his influence—not any personal talent he might possess.
The apostle Paul was another believer who was called to witness to people in high authority. Christ said of Paul, “He is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15).
In Acts, we read that Paul’s sphere of influence included rulers such as Felix, Festus, Herod Agrippa, and perhaps Caesar himself (Acts 24–26). But as Billy Graham would do centuries later, Paul pointed to the grace of God working through him: “Not I, but the grace of God which was with me” (1 Cor. 15:10).
You may not be called to proclaim the gospel to heads of state, but God has placed people in your life with whom He wants you to share His message of hope. Why not pray for opportunities for God’s grace to flow through you as a witness to someone in your sphere of influence?
Lord, help me make my witness clear,
And labor faithfully,
So friends and neighbors turn to Christ
Through what they hear from me. —Anon.
The best place to witness is where God has placed you.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 24th , 2010
His Nature and Our Motives
. . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven —Matthew 5:20
The characteristic of a disciple is not that he does good things, but that he is good in his motives, having been made good by the supernatural grace of God. The only thing that exceeds right-doing is right-being. Jesus Christ came to place within anyone who would let Him a new heredity that would have a righteousness exceeding that of the scribes and Pharisees. Jesus is saying, “If you are My disciple, you must be right not only in your actions, but also in your motives, your aspirations, and in the deep recesses of the thoughts of your mind.” Your motives must be so pure that God Almighty can see nothing to rebuke. Who can stand in the eternal light of God and have nothing for Him to rebuke? Only the Son of God, and Jesus Christ claims that through His redemption He can place within anyone His own nature and make that person as pure and as simple as a child. The purity that God demands is impossible unless I can be remade within, and that is exactly what Jesus has undertaken to do through His redemption.
No one can make himself pure by obeying laws. Jesus Christ does not give us rules and regulations— He gives us His teachings which are truths that can only be interpreted by His nature which He places within us. The great wonder of Jesus Christ’s salvation is that He changes our heredity. He does not change human nature— He changes its source, and thereby its motives as well.
Friday, July 23, 2010
1 Peter 1, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily: Love for the Least
Love for the Least
Posted: 22 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“Anything you did even for the least of my people here, you did also for me.” Matthew 25:40
What is the sign of the saved? Their scholarship? Their willingness to go to foreign lands? Their ability to amass an audience and preach? Their skillful pens and hope-filled volumes? . . . No.
The sign of the saved is their love for the least . . .
No fanfare. No hoopla. No media coverage. Just good people doing good things. For when we do good things to others we do good things to God.
1 Peter 1
1-2I, Peter, am an apostle on assignment by Jesus, the Messiah, writing to exiles scattered to the four winds. Not one is missing, not one forgotten. God the Father has his eye on each of you, and has determined by the work of the Spirit to keep you obedient through the sacrifice of Jesus. May everything good from God be yours!
A New Life
3-5What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we've been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven—and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you'll have it all—life healed and whole.
6-7I know how great this makes you feel, even though you have to put up with every kind of aggravation in the meantime. Pure gold put in the fire comes out of it proved pure; genuine faith put through this suffering comes out proved genuine. When Jesus wraps this all up, it's your faith, not your gold, that God will have on display as evidence of his victory.
8-9You never saw him, yet you love him. You still don't see him, yet you trust him—with laughter and singing. Because you kept on believing, you'll get what you're looking forward to: total salvation.
10-12The prophets who told us this was coming asked a lot of questions about this gift of life God was preparing. The Messiah's Spirit let them in on some of it—that the Messiah would experience suffering, followed by glory. They clamored to know who and when. All they were told was that they were serving you, you who by orders from heaven have now heard for yourselves—through the Holy Spirit—the Message of those prophecies fulfilled. Do you realize how fortunate you are? Angels would have given anything to be in on this!
A Future in God
13-16So roll up your sleeves, put your mind in gear, be totally ready to receive the gift that's coming when Jesus arrives. Don't lazily slip back into those old grooves of evil, doing just what you feel like doing. You didn't know any better then; you do now. As obedient children, let yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God's life, a life energetic and blazing with holiness. God said, "I am holy; you be holy."
17You call out to God for help and he helps—he's a good Father that way. But don't forget, he's also a responsible Father, and won't let you get by with sloppy living.
18-21Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God. It cost God plenty to get you out of that dead-end, empty-headed life you grew up in. He paid with Christ's sacred blood, you know. He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb. And this was no afterthought. Even though it has only lately—at the end of the ages—become public knowledge, God always knew he was going to do this for you. It's because of this sacrificed Messiah, whom God then raised from the dead and glorified, that you trust God, that you know you have a future in God.
22-25Now that you've cleaned up your lives by following the truth, love one another as if your lives depended on it. Your new life is not like your old life. Your old birth came from mortal sperm; your new birth comes from God's living Word. Just think: a life conceived by God himself! That's why the prophet said,
The old life is a grass life,
its beauty as short-lived as wildflowers;
Grass dries up, flowers droop,
God's Word goes on and on forever.
This is the Word that conceived the new life in you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Corinthians 10:1-12
1 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea.
2 They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.
3 They all ate the same spiritual food
4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.
5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.
6 Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.
7 Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: "The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry."
8 We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did--and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died.
9 We should not test the Lord, as some of them did--and were killed by snakes.
10 And do not grumble, as some of them did--and were killed by the destroying angel.
11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!
Confidence In What?
July 23, 2010 — by Bill Crowder
Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. —1 Corinthians 10:12
While walking through a home-improvement store, I saw a man wearing a bright red T-shirt bearing this melancholy message: “Confidence: The feeling you have just before you understand the situation.”
I laughed at this humorous concept, but I also realized that the shirt carried a sane and sound warning. It’s a reminder to all of us who try to get things done through confidence in our own ability or credentials but without consciously trusting in the strength of God. If we think we can accomplish life’s tasks in our own strength, that false confidence will inevitably become our undoing—and we’ll collapse under the weight of our own failings.
Paul wrote to the Corinthians about this by recalling ancient Israel’s penchant for self-confidence and self-sufficiency. He described everything the Israelites thought they had going for them; then he told how they had turned those benefits into a license to sin and an almost arrogant confidence that would prove to be their undoing.
Paul said their self-confidence should warn us. His conclusion? “Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12). Psalm 118:8 shows us the best way: “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man,” or in ourselves. Where is your confidence?
Let all who think that they can stand
Take heed lest they should fall;
These words remind us of the truth
That God is Lord of all. —Branon
Confidence in Christ is the right kind of confidence.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 23rd , 2010
Sanctification (2)
But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us . . . sanctification . . . —1 Corinthians 1:30
The Life Side. The mystery of sanctification is that the perfect qualities of Jesus Christ are imparted as a gift to me, not gradually, but instantly once I enter by faith into the realization that He “became for [me] . . . sanctification . . . .” Sanctification means nothing less than the holiness of Jesus becoming mine and being exhibited in my life.
The most wonderful secret of living a holy life does not lie in imitating Jesus, but in letting the perfect qualities of Jesus exhibit themselves in my human flesh. Sanctification is “Christ in you . . .” ( Colossians 1:27 ). It is His wonderful life that is imparted to me in sanctification— imparted by faith as a sovereign gift of God’s grace. Am I willing for God to make sanctification as real in me as it is in His Word?
Sanctification means the impartation of the holy qualities of Jesus Christ to me. It is the gift of His patience, love, holiness, faith, purity, and godliness that is exhibited in and through every sanctified soul. Sanctification is not drawing from Jesus the power to be holy— it is drawing from Jesus the very holiness that was exhibited in Him, and that He now exhibits in me. Sanctification is an impartation, not an imitation. Imitation is something altogether different. The perfection of everything is in Jesus Christ, and the mystery of sanctification is that all the perfect qualities of Jesus are at my disposal. Consequently, I slowly but surely begin to live a life of inexpressible order, soundness, and holiness— “. . . kept by the power of God . . .” ( 1 Peter 1:5 ).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Waves You're Making - #6140
Friday, July 23, 2010
I had the joy of participating in the baptism of some young people not long ago - in the waters of a beautiful lake. It was a sacred moment for all of us - in spite of the speedboat. You see, at one point, it went blazing across the lake behind us. It was there and gone in a flash. But its wake wasn't. For some time after the boat had disappeared, the waves it had created kept rolling in on us. And, for a time, it actually interrupted the proceedings. Mr. BoatGuy probably never thought about the wake he was leaving - long after he left. He was just passing through.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Waves You're Making."
If you've ever spent much time by a lake, it's something you've experienced for yourself. Long after the boat has passed, the waves it created are still making an impact. Our lives are like that. Long after we've passed on, the waves our choices have made are still impacting many other lives. In our "now is all that matters" culture, it's easy to forget how much our choices matter and how long their effects last. It's about so much more than this moment.
God gives us a powerful values-clarifier in our word for today from the Word of God in Psalm 102:18 . He says, "Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord." Man, that hits me hard! God focuses our eyes on the big picture reason for doing the right thing, because what you do now will affect lives that have not even been born yet - generations you will never see! Think about it. You and I are continuing to benefit from the choices previous generations have made, and to pay for choices previous generations have made. They've passed by, but not the waves they created. They are still rocking our lives.
The psalm goes one to point out the long-lasting effects of making God's choices your choices: "The children of Your servants will live in Your presence; their descendants will be established before You." Again, multiple generations whose destiny will be shaped by what we do now. Pretty sobering, isn't it?
So that compromise you're making or about to make - is it worth it - in light of its long-range consequences? Is that taste of sin really worth the road it may take you down and the legacy that may leave? Is that fling really worth what it may do to you, to people you love, to generations you may never see? How about that divorce? It will leave a mark for a long, long time. Maybe you're tempted to return to the old you, but stop and think about generations that could feel the impact of that choice. Who you're dating, who you sleep with, who you marry, even who your friends are - don't think those are just decisions that affect only you or only a few years of your life. Again, we are all still feeling the affects of those same choices made by people who went before us - when we were "the people not created" yet.
There's so much more at stake in the choices we make and the way we live than we could ever imagine. Things are being passed from us to others, especially our children, who will in turn pass it on to those they influence and who will in turn just keep it alive across the generations.
Before you go speeding into what you may be considering, would you think about it and consider the waves that your life is making? Make the choices that will cause those who follow you to bless your memory and the God that you helped them find across those years.
Love for the Least
Posted: 22 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“Anything you did even for the least of my people here, you did also for me.” Matthew 25:40
What is the sign of the saved? Their scholarship? Their willingness to go to foreign lands? Their ability to amass an audience and preach? Their skillful pens and hope-filled volumes? . . . No.
The sign of the saved is their love for the least . . .
No fanfare. No hoopla. No media coverage. Just good people doing good things. For when we do good things to others we do good things to God.
1 Peter 1
1-2I, Peter, am an apostle on assignment by Jesus, the Messiah, writing to exiles scattered to the four winds. Not one is missing, not one forgotten. God the Father has his eye on each of you, and has determined by the work of the Spirit to keep you obedient through the sacrifice of Jesus. May everything good from God be yours!
A New Life
3-5What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we've been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven—and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you'll have it all—life healed and whole.
6-7I know how great this makes you feel, even though you have to put up with every kind of aggravation in the meantime. Pure gold put in the fire comes out of it proved pure; genuine faith put through this suffering comes out proved genuine. When Jesus wraps this all up, it's your faith, not your gold, that God will have on display as evidence of his victory.
8-9You never saw him, yet you love him. You still don't see him, yet you trust him—with laughter and singing. Because you kept on believing, you'll get what you're looking forward to: total salvation.
10-12The prophets who told us this was coming asked a lot of questions about this gift of life God was preparing. The Messiah's Spirit let them in on some of it—that the Messiah would experience suffering, followed by glory. They clamored to know who and when. All they were told was that they were serving you, you who by orders from heaven have now heard for yourselves—through the Holy Spirit—the Message of those prophecies fulfilled. Do you realize how fortunate you are? Angels would have given anything to be in on this!
A Future in God
13-16So roll up your sleeves, put your mind in gear, be totally ready to receive the gift that's coming when Jesus arrives. Don't lazily slip back into those old grooves of evil, doing just what you feel like doing. You didn't know any better then; you do now. As obedient children, let yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God's life, a life energetic and blazing with holiness. God said, "I am holy; you be holy."
17You call out to God for help and he helps—he's a good Father that way. But don't forget, he's also a responsible Father, and won't let you get by with sloppy living.
18-21Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God. It cost God plenty to get you out of that dead-end, empty-headed life you grew up in. He paid with Christ's sacred blood, you know. He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb. And this was no afterthought. Even though it has only lately—at the end of the ages—become public knowledge, God always knew he was going to do this for you. It's because of this sacrificed Messiah, whom God then raised from the dead and glorified, that you trust God, that you know you have a future in God.
22-25Now that you've cleaned up your lives by following the truth, love one another as if your lives depended on it. Your new life is not like your old life. Your old birth came from mortal sperm; your new birth comes from God's living Word. Just think: a life conceived by God himself! That's why the prophet said,
The old life is a grass life,
its beauty as short-lived as wildflowers;
Grass dries up, flowers droop,
God's Word goes on and on forever.
This is the Word that conceived the new life in you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Corinthians 10:1-12
1 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea.
2 They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.
3 They all ate the same spiritual food
4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.
5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.
6 Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.
7 Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: "The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry."
8 We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did--and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died.
9 We should not test the Lord, as some of them did--and were killed by snakes.
10 And do not grumble, as some of them did--and were killed by the destroying angel.
11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!
Confidence In What?
July 23, 2010 — by Bill Crowder
Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. —1 Corinthians 10:12
While walking through a home-improvement store, I saw a man wearing a bright red T-shirt bearing this melancholy message: “Confidence: The feeling you have just before you understand the situation.”
I laughed at this humorous concept, but I also realized that the shirt carried a sane and sound warning. It’s a reminder to all of us who try to get things done through confidence in our own ability or credentials but without consciously trusting in the strength of God. If we think we can accomplish life’s tasks in our own strength, that false confidence will inevitably become our undoing—and we’ll collapse under the weight of our own failings.
Paul wrote to the Corinthians about this by recalling ancient Israel’s penchant for self-confidence and self-sufficiency. He described everything the Israelites thought they had going for them; then he told how they had turned those benefits into a license to sin and an almost arrogant confidence that would prove to be their undoing.
Paul said their self-confidence should warn us. His conclusion? “Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12). Psalm 118:8 shows us the best way: “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man,” or in ourselves. Where is your confidence?
Let all who think that they can stand
Take heed lest they should fall;
These words remind us of the truth
That God is Lord of all. —Branon
Confidence in Christ is the right kind of confidence.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 23rd , 2010
Sanctification (2)
But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us . . . sanctification . . . —1 Corinthians 1:30
The Life Side. The mystery of sanctification is that the perfect qualities of Jesus Christ are imparted as a gift to me, not gradually, but instantly once I enter by faith into the realization that He “became for [me] . . . sanctification . . . .” Sanctification means nothing less than the holiness of Jesus becoming mine and being exhibited in my life.
The most wonderful secret of living a holy life does not lie in imitating Jesus, but in letting the perfect qualities of Jesus exhibit themselves in my human flesh. Sanctification is “Christ in you . . .” ( Colossians 1:27 ). It is His wonderful life that is imparted to me in sanctification— imparted by faith as a sovereign gift of God’s grace. Am I willing for God to make sanctification as real in me as it is in His Word?
Sanctification means the impartation of the holy qualities of Jesus Christ to me. It is the gift of His patience, love, holiness, faith, purity, and godliness that is exhibited in and through every sanctified soul. Sanctification is not drawing from Jesus the power to be holy— it is drawing from Jesus the very holiness that was exhibited in Him, and that He now exhibits in me. Sanctification is an impartation, not an imitation. Imitation is something altogether different. The perfection of everything is in Jesus Christ, and the mystery of sanctification is that all the perfect qualities of Jesus are at my disposal. Consequently, I slowly but surely begin to live a life of inexpressible order, soundness, and holiness— “. . . kept by the power of God . . .” ( 1 Peter 1:5 ).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Waves You're Making - #6140
Friday, July 23, 2010
I had the joy of participating in the baptism of some young people not long ago - in the waters of a beautiful lake. It was a sacred moment for all of us - in spite of the speedboat. You see, at one point, it went blazing across the lake behind us. It was there and gone in a flash. But its wake wasn't. For some time after the boat had disappeared, the waves it had created kept rolling in on us. And, for a time, it actually interrupted the proceedings. Mr. BoatGuy probably never thought about the wake he was leaving - long after he left. He was just passing through.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Waves You're Making."
If you've ever spent much time by a lake, it's something you've experienced for yourself. Long after the boat has passed, the waves it created are still making an impact. Our lives are like that. Long after we've passed on, the waves our choices have made are still impacting many other lives. In our "now is all that matters" culture, it's easy to forget how much our choices matter and how long their effects last. It's about so much more than this moment.
God gives us a powerful values-clarifier in our word for today from the Word of God in Psalm 102:18 . He says, "Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord." Man, that hits me hard! God focuses our eyes on the big picture reason for doing the right thing, because what you do now will affect lives that have not even been born yet - generations you will never see! Think about it. You and I are continuing to benefit from the choices previous generations have made, and to pay for choices previous generations have made. They've passed by, but not the waves they created. They are still rocking our lives.
The psalm goes one to point out the long-lasting effects of making God's choices your choices: "The children of Your servants will live in Your presence; their descendants will be established before You." Again, multiple generations whose destiny will be shaped by what we do now. Pretty sobering, isn't it?
So that compromise you're making or about to make - is it worth it - in light of its long-range consequences? Is that taste of sin really worth the road it may take you down and the legacy that may leave? Is that fling really worth what it may do to you, to people you love, to generations you may never see? How about that divorce? It will leave a mark for a long, long time. Maybe you're tempted to return to the old you, but stop and think about generations that could feel the impact of that choice. Who you're dating, who you sleep with, who you marry, even who your friends are - don't think those are just decisions that affect only you or only a few years of your life. Again, we are all still feeling the affects of those same choices made by people who went before us - when we were "the people not created" yet.
There's so much more at stake in the choices we make and the way we live than we could ever imagine. Things are being passed from us to others, especially our children, who will in turn pass it on to those they influence and who will in turn just keep it alive across the generations.
Before you go speeding into what you may be considering, would you think about it and consider the waves that your life is making? Make the choices that will cause those who follow you to bless your memory and the God that you helped them find across those years.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Philippians 4, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily: Our Next Door Savior
Our Next Door Savior
Posted: 21 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“We have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” 1 John 2:1 NASB
Even in heaven, Christ remains our next door Savior . . . The King of the universe commands comets with a human tongue and directs celestial traffic with a human hand. Still human. Still divine. Living forever through his two natures . . .
The hands that blessed the bread of the boy now bless the prayers of the millions . . . You know what that means? The greatest force in the cosmos understands and intercedes for you.
Philippians 4
1 My dear, dear friends! I love you so much. I do want the very best for you. You make me feel such joy, fill me with such pride. Don't waver. Stay on track, steady in God.
Pray About Everything
2I urge Euodia and Syntyche to iron out their differences and make up. God doesn't want his children holding grudges.
3And, oh, yes, Syzygus, since you're right there to help them work things out, do your best with them. These women worked for the Message hand in hand with Clement and me, and with the other veterans—worked as hard as any of us. Remember, their names are also in the Book of Life.
4-5Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!
6-7Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
8-9Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.
Content Whatever the Circumstances
10-14I'm glad in God, far happier than you would ever guess—happy that you're again showing such strong concern for me. Not that you ever quit praying and thinking about me. You just had no chance to show it. Actually, I don't have a sense of needing anything personally. I've learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I'm just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I've found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. I don't mean that your help didn't mean a lot to me—it did. It was a beautiful thing that you came alongside me in my troubles.
15-17You Philippians well know, and you can be sure I'll never forget it, that when I first left Macedonia province, venturing out with the Message, not one church helped out in the give-and-take of this work except you. You were the only one. Even while I was in Thessalonica, you helped out—and not only once, but twice. Not that I'm looking for handouts, but I do want you to experience the blessing that issues from generosity.
18-20And now I have it all—and keep getting more! The gifts you sent with Epaphroditus were more than enough, like a sweet-smelling sacrifice roasting on the altar, filling the air with fragrance, pleasing God no end. You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, his generosity exceeding even yours in the glory that pours from Jesus. Our God and Father abounds in glory that just pours out into eternity. Yes.
21-22Give our regards to every follower of Jesus you meet. Our friends here say hello. All the Christians here, especially the believers who work in the palace of Caesar, want to be remembered to you.
23Receive and experience the amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, deep, deep within yourselves.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Numbers 8:23-26
23 The Lord said to Moses,
24 "This applies to the Levites: Men twenty-five years old or more shall come to take part in the work at the Tent of Meeting,
25 but at the age of fifty, they must retire from their regular service and work no longer.
26 They may assist their brothers in performing their duties at the Tent of Meeting, but they themselves must not do the work. This, then, is how you are to assign the responsibilities of the Levites."
Don’t Just Retire
July 22, 2010 — by C. P. Hia
They may minister with their brethren . . . to attend to needs. —Numbers 8:26
The first people to climb Mt. Everest, the world’s highest mountain, were Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953. Hillary was just 33 years old. His feat afforded him fame, wealth, and the realization that he had already lived a remarkable life.
So, what did Hillary do for the next 55 years? Did he retire and rest on his laurels? Absolutely not.
Although Hillary had no higher mountains to climb, that didn’t stop him. He achieved other notable goals, including a concerted effort to improve the welfare of the Nepalese people living near Mt. Everest—a task he carried on until his death in 2008.
Did you know that God told the Levites to retire from their regular duties at age 50? (Num. 8:24-25). But He did not want them to stop helping others. He said that they should “minister with their brethren . . . to attend to needs” (v.26). We cannot take this incident as a complete teaching on retirement, but we can see a godly implication that continuing to serve others after our working days are over is a good idea.
Many people find that when they retire they have nothing meaningful to do with their time. But as the Levites and Sir Edmund Hillary did, we can refocus when we retire—giving of our time to help others.
The Lord will give you help and strength
For work He bids you do;
Serve others from a heart of love
Is what He asks of you. —Fasick
Life takes on new meaning when we invest ourselves in others.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 22nd , 2010
Sanctification (1)
This is the will of God, your sanctification. . . —1 Thessalonians 4:3
The Death Side. In sanctification God has to deal with us on the death side as well as on the life side. Sanctification requires our coming to the place of death, but many of us spend so much time there that we become morbid. There is always a tremendous battle before sanctification is realized— something within us pushing with resentment against the demands of Christ. When the Holy Spirit begins to show us what sanctification means, the struggle starts immediately. Jesus said, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate . . . his own life . . . he cannot be My disciple” ( Luke 14:26 ).
In the process of sanctification, the Spirit of God will strip me down until there is nothing left but myself, and that is the place of death. Am I willing to be myself and nothing more? Am I willing to have no friends, no father, no brother, and no self-interest— simply to be ready for death? That is the condition required for sanctification. No wonder Jesus said, “I did not come to bring peace but a sword” ( Matthew 10:34 ). This is where the battle comes, and where so many of us falter. We refuse to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ on this point. We say, “But this is so strict. Surely He does not require that of me.” Our Lord is strict, and He does require that of us.
Am I willing to reduce myself down to simply “me”? Am I determined enough to strip myself of all that my friends think of me, and all that I think of myself? Am I willing and determined to hand over my simple naked self to God? Once I am, He will immediately sanctify me completely, and my life will be free from being determined and persistent toward anything except God (see 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 ).
When I pray, “Lord, show me what sanctification means for me,” He will show me. It means being made one with Jesus. Sanctification is not something Jesus puts in me— it is Himself in me (see 1 Corinthians 1:30 ).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Realizing You Were Made For More - #6139
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Our grandson's been on a very limited diet - just mother's milk or baby formula for his first six months. But something's been happening in the last couple of weeks. He has suddenly become fascinated with what the rest of us are eating. Fascinated, you know, as in staring at the food on our plate, the fork going down to get that food, the fork coming up to put that food in our mouth, and our mouth as it's chewing that food. Then repeat the exercise as the fork goes down for another bite. You can tell by the longing look in his eyes, he's not content with that milk or formula anymore. He wants some of that good stuff. If he could talk, I think he might be saying, "Hey! I've been made for more than what I've been getting!"
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Realizing You Were Made For More."
Our grandson's growing dissatisfaction with his liquid diet is actually setting the stage for moving to something much better. In fact, many all grown-up people have some of those same feelings, "I've been made for more than what I've experienced so far." The good news is that, in many lives, restlessness like that has immediately preceded the greatest life upgrade those people have ever experienced.
Many of us know the feeling of a life that is full but not fulfilling. For all the things we've done to get some love, there's never been enough. We're still lonely. For everything we've tried to give more meaning to our life, nothing has ever really satisfied our soul. We're still wondering what the point of it all is. For all we've thought would give us some lasting peace inside, the unrest in our soul just won't go away. Even if you seem to have everything going your way, your heart may still be saying, "I'm made for more than this."
And your heart's right. It's just that the "something more" has always been elusive. It may be within your reach today, if you reach the right direction. Who could have more love, more meaning, more peace to give than the God who gave us our life in the first place? Here's what He says in Isaiah 55, beginning with verse 1; it's our word for today from the Word of God. "Come, all you who are thirsty (or "all you who are restless for more."), come to the waters...come buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen to Me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare...hear Me, that your soul may live."
God says, "Don't waste any more time or energy on things that can never satisfy your soul. I've got what you're looking for." And where can you find it? It's not in a church. It's not in a religion. It's in a person. Here's what the Bible says about God's Son, Jesus: "All things were created by Him and for Him (that includes you) ... in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form" (Colossians 1:16, 2:9). It goes on to say, "You are complete in Him" (Colossians 2:10, KJV). Complete, fulfilled, at peace, because you've found the One you were made by and made for.
Sadly, we haven't lived our life for the One we were made for. We've made it all about me instead of all about Him. So we're away from the One who has the "something more" that we were made for. But in the greatest act of love in human history, Jesus paid the price to give us a chance at knowing God. This same book of the Bible says that He reconciled us to God "by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross" (Colossians 1:20). We can have life now and life forever because He gave up His life for us. But, thank God, He didn't stay dead. He rose from the dead; so He's alive right now and inviting you to turn to Him for what only He can give.
This life-changing relationship with Jesus begins the moment you say, "Lord, I give up running my life. It's Yours to run from now on. I'm putting myself completely in the hands of Jesus, the Man who died and rose again for me." It's exciting to think that this day could be the day that your long search finally ends. A lot of people have found help getting started with Jesus at our website. I want to invite you to check it out. It's simply yoursforlife.net. Or you can call to get this information in my "Yours For Life" booklet. It's 877-741-1200 that you can call and get it.
Jesus is the "something more" you were made for, and He's within your reach today. I am praying that you won't miss Him.
Our Next Door Savior
Posted: 21 Jul 2010 11:01 PM PDT
“We have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” 1 John 2:1 NASB
Even in heaven, Christ remains our next door Savior . . . The King of the universe commands comets with a human tongue and directs celestial traffic with a human hand. Still human. Still divine. Living forever through his two natures . . .
The hands that blessed the bread of the boy now bless the prayers of the millions . . . You know what that means? The greatest force in the cosmos understands and intercedes for you.
Philippians 4
1 My dear, dear friends! I love you so much. I do want the very best for you. You make me feel such joy, fill me with such pride. Don't waver. Stay on track, steady in God.
Pray About Everything
2I urge Euodia and Syntyche to iron out their differences and make up. God doesn't want his children holding grudges.
3And, oh, yes, Syzygus, since you're right there to help them work things out, do your best with them. These women worked for the Message hand in hand with Clement and me, and with the other veterans—worked as hard as any of us. Remember, their names are also in the Book of Life.
4-5Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!
6-7Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
8-9Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.
Content Whatever the Circumstances
10-14I'm glad in God, far happier than you would ever guess—happy that you're again showing such strong concern for me. Not that you ever quit praying and thinking about me. You just had no chance to show it. Actually, I don't have a sense of needing anything personally. I've learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I'm just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I've found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. I don't mean that your help didn't mean a lot to me—it did. It was a beautiful thing that you came alongside me in my troubles.
15-17You Philippians well know, and you can be sure I'll never forget it, that when I first left Macedonia province, venturing out with the Message, not one church helped out in the give-and-take of this work except you. You were the only one. Even while I was in Thessalonica, you helped out—and not only once, but twice. Not that I'm looking for handouts, but I do want you to experience the blessing that issues from generosity.
18-20And now I have it all—and keep getting more! The gifts you sent with Epaphroditus were more than enough, like a sweet-smelling sacrifice roasting on the altar, filling the air with fragrance, pleasing God no end. You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, his generosity exceeding even yours in the glory that pours from Jesus. Our God and Father abounds in glory that just pours out into eternity. Yes.
21-22Give our regards to every follower of Jesus you meet. Our friends here say hello. All the Christians here, especially the believers who work in the palace of Caesar, want to be remembered to you.
23Receive and experience the amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, deep, deep within yourselves.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Numbers 8:23-26
23 The Lord said to Moses,
24 "This applies to the Levites: Men twenty-five years old or more shall come to take part in the work at the Tent of Meeting,
25 but at the age of fifty, they must retire from their regular service and work no longer.
26 They may assist their brothers in performing their duties at the Tent of Meeting, but they themselves must not do the work. This, then, is how you are to assign the responsibilities of the Levites."
Don’t Just Retire
July 22, 2010 — by C. P. Hia
They may minister with their brethren . . . to attend to needs. —Numbers 8:26
The first people to climb Mt. Everest, the world’s highest mountain, were Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953. Hillary was just 33 years old. His feat afforded him fame, wealth, and the realization that he had already lived a remarkable life.
So, what did Hillary do for the next 55 years? Did he retire and rest on his laurels? Absolutely not.
Although Hillary had no higher mountains to climb, that didn’t stop him. He achieved other notable goals, including a concerted effort to improve the welfare of the Nepalese people living near Mt. Everest—a task he carried on until his death in 2008.
Did you know that God told the Levites to retire from their regular duties at age 50? (Num. 8:24-25). But He did not want them to stop helping others. He said that they should “minister with their brethren . . . to attend to needs” (v.26). We cannot take this incident as a complete teaching on retirement, but we can see a godly implication that continuing to serve others after our working days are over is a good idea.
Many people find that when they retire they have nothing meaningful to do with their time. But as the Levites and Sir Edmund Hillary did, we can refocus when we retire—giving of our time to help others.
The Lord will give you help and strength
For work He bids you do;
Serve others from a heart of love
Is what He asks of you. —Fasick
Life takes on new meaning when we invest ourselves in others.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 22nd , 2010
Sanctification (1)
This is the will of God, your sanctification. . . —1 Thessalonians 4:3
The Death Side. In sanctification God has to deal with us on the death side as well as on the life side. Sanctification requires our coming to the place of death, but many of us spend so much time there that we become morbid. There is always a tremendous battle before sanctification is realized— something within us pushing with resentment against the demands of Christ. When the Holy Spirit begins to show us what sanctification means, the struggle starts immediately. Jesus said, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate . . . his own life . . . he cannot be My disciple” ( Luke 14:26 ).
In the process of sanctification, the Spirit of God will strip me down until there is nothing left but myself, and that is the place of death. Am I willing to be myself and nothing more? Am I willing to have no friends, no father, no brother, and no self-interest— simply to be ready for death? That is the condition required for sanctification. No wonder Jesus said, “I did not come to bring peace but a sword” ( Matthew 10:34 ). This is where the battle comes, and where so many of us falter. We refuse to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ on this point. We say, “But this is so strict. Surely He does not require that of me.” Our Lord is strict, and He does require that of us.
Am I willing to reduce myself down to simply “me”? Am I determined enough to strip myself of all that my friends think of me, and all that I think of myself? Am I willing and determined to hand over my simple naked self to God? Once I am, He will immediately sanctify me completely, and my life will be free from being determined and persistent toward anything except God (see 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 ).
When I pray, “Lord, show me what sanctification means for me,” He will show me. It means being made one with Jesus. Sanctification is not something Jesus puts in me— it is Himself in me (see 1 Corinthians 1:30 ).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Realizing You Were Made For More - #6139
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Our grandson's been on a very limited diet - just mother's milk or baby formula for his first six months. But something's been happening in the last couple of weeks. He has suddenly become fascinated with what the rest of us are eating. Fascinated, you know, as in staring at the food on our plate, the fork going down to get that food, the fork coming up to put that food in our mouth, and our mouth as it's chewing that food. Then repeat the exercise as the fork goes down for another bite. You can tell by the longing look in his eyes, he's not content with that milk or formula anymore. He wants some of that good stuff. If he could talk, I think he might be saying, "Hey! I've been made for more than what I've been getting!"
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Realizing You Were Made For More."
Our grandson's growing dissatisfaction with his liquid diet is actually setting the stage for moving to something much better. In fact, many all grown-up people have some of those same feelings, "I've been made for more than what I've experienced so far." The good news is that, in many lives, restlessness like that has immediately preceded the greatest life upgrade those people have ever experienced.
Many of us know the feeling of a life that is full but not fulfilling. For all the things we've done to get some love, there's never been enough. We're still lonely. For everything we've tried to give more meaning to our life, nothing has ever really satisfied our soul. We're still wondering what the point of it all is. For all we've thought would give us some lasting peace inside, the unrest in our soul just won't go away. Even if you seem to have everything going your way, your heart may still be saying, "I'm made for more than this."
And your heart's right. It's just that the "something more" has always been elusive. It may be within your reach today, if you reach the right direction. Who could have more love, more meaning, more peace to give than the God who gave us our life in the first place? Here's what He says in Isaiah 55, beginning with verse 1; it's our word for today from the Word of God. "Come, all you who are thirsty (or "all you who are restless for more."), come to the waters...come buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen to Me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare...hear Me, that your soul may live."
God says, "Don't waste any more time or energy on things that can never satisfy your soul. I've got what you're looking for." And where can you find it? It's not in a church. It's not in a religion. It's in a person. Here's what the Bible says about God's Son, Jesus: "All things were created by Him and for Him (that includes you) ... in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form" (Colossians 1:16, 2:9). It goes on to say, "You are complete in Him" (Colossians 2:10, KJV). Complete, fulfilled, at peace, because you've found the One you were made by and made for.
Sadly, we haven't lived our life for the One we were made for. We've made it all about me instead of all about Him. So we're away from the One who has the "something more" that we were made for. But in the greatest act of love in human history, Jesus paid the price to give us a chance at knowing God. This same book of the Bible says that He reconciled us to God "by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross" (Colossians 1:20). We can have life now and life forever because He gave up His life for us. But, thank God, He didn't stay dead. He rose from the dead; so He's alive right now and inviting you to turn to Him for what only He can give.
This life-changing relationship with Jesus begins the moment you say, "Lord, I give up running my life. It's Yours to run from now on. I'm putting myself completely in the hands of Jesus, the Man who died and rose again for me." It's exciting to think that this day could be the day that your long search finally ends. A lot of people have found help getting started with Jesus at our website. I want to invite you to check it out. It's simply yoursforlife.net. Or you can call to get this information in my "Yours For Life" booklet. It's 877-741-1200 that you can call and get it.
Jesus is the "something more" you were made for, and He's within your reach today. I am praying that you won't miss Him.
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