Max Lucado Daily:
God Rescued Us
“Happy are they whose sins are forgiven, whose wrongs are pardoned.” Romans 4:7
To qualify for bankruptcy, you have to admit you are broke . . .
And to go to heaven, you have to admit you are hellbound.
That’s a tough one . . . Not easy for a decent guy to admit he’s a sinner. Hard for a pretty good girl to confess spiritual destitution . . . If we are saved it is because God rescued us and not because we learned to swim.
Job 7
1 "Does not man have hard service on earth?
Are not his days like those of a hired man?
2 Like a slave longing for the evening shadows,
or a hired man waiting eagerly for his wages,
3 so I have been allotted months of futility,
and nights of misery have been assigned to me.
4 When I lie down I think, 'How long before I get up?'
The night drags on, and I toss till dawn.
5 My body is clothed with worms and scabs,
my skin is broken and festering.
6 "My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle,
and they come to an end without hope.
7 Remember, O God, that my life is but a breath;
my eyes will never see happiness again.
8 The eye that now sees me will see me no longer;
you will look for me, but I will be no more.
9 As a cloud vanishes and is gone,
so he who goes down to the grave [d] does not return.
10 He will never come to his house again;
his place will know him no more.
11 "Therefore I will not keep silent;
I will speak out in the anguish of my spirit,
I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12 Am I the sea, or the monster of the deep,
that you put me under guard?
13 When I think my bed will comfort me
and my couch will ease my complaint,
14 even then you frighten me with dreams
and terrify me with visions,
15 so that I prefer strangling and death,
rather than this body of mine.
16 I despise my life; I would not live forever.
Let me alone; my days have no meaning.
17 "What is man that you make so much of him,
that you give him so much attention,
18 that you examine him every morning
and test him every moment?
19 Will you never look away from me,
or let me alone even for an instant?
20 If I have sinned, what have I done to you,
O watcher of men?
Why have you made me your target?
Have I become a burden to you? [e]
21 Why do you not pardon my offenses
and forgive my sins?
For I will soon lie down in the dust;
you will search for me, but I will be no more."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Romans 12:3-13
3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.
4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function,
5 so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.
7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;
8 if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
Love
9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.
11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.
12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
13 Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
Pursuing Hospitality
September 27, 2010 — by David C. McCasland
Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. —1 Peter 4:9
In the New Testament, hospitality is a hallmark of Christian living. It is listed as a characteristic of church leaders (1 Tim. 3:2; Titus 1:8) and is commanded for every follower of Jesus as an expression of love (Rom. 12:13; 1 Peter 4:9). But its meaning goes deeper than being a gracious host or opening our homes to guests.
The Greek word translated “hospitality” means “love of strangers.” When Paul speaks of being “given to hospitality” (Rom. 12:13), he is calling us to pursue relationships with people who are in need. It is not an easy task.
Writer Henri Nouwen likens it to reaching out to those we meet on our way through life—people who may be estranged from their culture, country, friends, family, or even from God. Nouwen writes: “Hospitality, therefore, means primarily the creation of a free space where the stranger can enter and become a friend instead of an enemy. Hospitality is not to change people, but to offer them space where change can take place.”
Whether we inhabit a home, a college dorm, a prison cell, or a military barracks, we can welcome others as a way of showing our love for them and for Christ. Hospitality is making room for people in need.
Reaching out to needy people,
Showin*g them our love and care,
Is one way that God can use us
To bring hope to their despair. —Sper
Hospitality can fill the emptiness of a lonely heart.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 27th, 2010
The "Go" of Renunciation
. . . someone said to Him, ’Lord, I will follow You wherever You go’ —Luke 9:57
Our Lord’s attitude toward this man was one of severe discouragement, “for He knew what was in man” (John 2:25). We would have said, “I can’t imagine why He lost the opportunity of winning that man! Imagine being so cold to him and turning him away so discouraged!” Never apologize for your Lord. The words of the Lord hurt and offend until there is nothing left to be hurt or offended. Jesus Christ had no tenderness whatsoever toward anything that was ultimately going to ruin a person in his service to God. Our Lord’s answers were not based on some whim or impulsive thought, but on the knowledge of “what was in man.” If the Spirit of God brings to your mind a word of the Lord that hurts you, you can be sure that there is something in you that He wants to hurt to the point of its death.
Luke 9:58 . These words destroy the argument of serving Jesus Christ because it is a pleasant thing to do. And the strictness of the rejection that He demands of me allows for nothing to remain in my life but my Lord, myself, and a sense of desperate hope. He says that I must let everyone else come or go, and that I must be guided solely by my relationship to Him. And He says, “. . . the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”
Luke 9:59 . This man did not want to disappoint Jesus, nor did he want to show a lack of respect for his father. We put our sense of loyalty to our relatives ahead of our loyalty to Jesus Christ, forcing Him to take last place. When your loyalties conflict, always obey Jesus Christ whatever the cost.
Luke 9:61 . The person who says, “Lord, I will follow You, but . . .,” is the person who is intensely ready to go, but never goes. This man had reservations about going. The exacting call of Jesus has no room for good-byes; good-byes, as we often use them, are pagan, not Christian, because they divert us from the call. Once the call of God comes to you, start going and never stop.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Expensive Peace - #6186
Monday, September 27, 2010
It's an amazing true story from the history of the Cree Indians of western Canada. Through many courageous exploits, a young man named Maskepatoon became known as the bravest warrior in the tribe. One day a man came to Maskepatoon's camp talking about peace - something his tribe had never known because of that relentless blood shed between his Cree tribe and their longtime enemies, the Blackfoot. But this man with a black book called the Bible introduced this warrior to the Creator of all. The missionary told him of how the Creator God's Son defeated the Evil Manitou, the Enemy of all. He climbed to the top of a hill and gave His life on a cross as a peace offering. That meant peace could be restored between the Creator of all and the people He had made.
Maskepatoon knew that the ancient symbol of peace among the Plains Cree had always been two crossed sticks. And it was two crossed sticks that the Creator God's Son had died on. Maskepatoon decided he wanted to be like Jesus, the bravest warrior of all. In the past, when one tribe had wanted to make peace with another, they would send their bravest warrior to meet the enemy with a special offering tied onto two crossed sticks. But that seemed impossible now when there was killing every time a Blackfoot warrior saw a Cree warrior. But in spite of the danger, Maskepatoon went into Blackfoot country on just such a mission. The camp they came to first happened to be the camp of Many Swans, a violent chief who was seeking revenge for the sons that he had lost to Cree warriors.
Maskepatoon climbed to the top of a nearby hill, raised a flag and waited for the Blackfoot band to see them. With them, they brought a beautiful pair of beaded moccasins, tied onto two crossed sticks and a Bible that told of the peace the Creator had made with all men. Pretending to want peace, Many Swans tricked the Cree peacemakers into laying down their weapons, after which he and his warriors killed them all. But the chief's wife was furious with her husband. She was tired of all the killing. Ultimately, the Blackfoot people agreed. But none of them was brave enough to risk going to talk peace with the Cree, especially after what they had done to Maskepatoon.
So the chief's wife went, carrying with her the ancient symbol of peace - a frame of crossed sticks with a specially beaded pair of moccasins tied to its center. The Cree chief, who had himself made peace with the Creator through Jesus' death, welcomed her. Under his leadership, the Cree met together with the Blackfoot on a high hill, where a peace treaty was signed. And their long war was finally over.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Expensive Peace."
In so many ways, this is my story. This is your story. It's the story of peace made possible by the death of the greatest Warrior of them all - on two crossed beams - for you. Because of our sin, the Bible says we are "alienated from God" and "enemies" (Colossians 1:21 ). We are hopelessly cut off from the God who made us; the God we will meet on Judgment Day. And, in the Bible's words, "there is no peace" (Isaiah 57:21 ) when you're away from God. The turmoil in your soul is living proof of that.
But here comes the hope. It's in Colossians 1:20 , our word for today from the Word of God. God says His Son came to reconcile our broken relationship with Him "by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross." He climbed to the top of a hill called Skull Hill and died as the sacrifice for your sin. The Bible puts it this way: "The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him" (Isaiah 53:5 ).
And that blood-bought peace can be yours today. Finally, peace with God. Finally, peace in your heart. If you will lay down all the other things you've counted on to make it with God and put your total trust in Jesus, who died and rose again for you. That's a step that that I would love to help you take this very day. There's some very helpful information about getting started with Jesus on our website. I encourage you to visit us there just as soon as you can today. Would you go to yoursforlife.net. That's yoursforlife.net. Or, if you prefer, I'll send you my little booklet called "Yours For Life." Just call and ask for it at 877-741-1200.
See, the war can end. Peace can begin. Peace that costs you nothing. Peace that cost Jesus everything.
