Nearer Than You Think
By Max Lucado
“Whoever is wise will . . . think about the love of the Lord.” Psalm 107:43
Aging? A necessary process to pass on to a better world.
Death? Merely a brief passage, a tunnel . . .
The next time you find yourself alone in a dark alley facing the undeniables of life, don’t cover them with a blanket, or ignore them with a nervous grin. Don’t turn up the TV and pretend they aren’t there. Instead, stand still, whisper God’s name, and listen. He is nearer than you think.
Job 35
1 Then Elihu said:
2 “Do you think this is just?
You say, ‘I am in the right, not God.’
3 Yet you ask him, ‘What profit is it to me,[b]
and what do I gain by not sinning?’
4 “I would like to reply to you
and to your friends with you.
5 Look up at the heavens and see;
gaze at the clouds so high above you.
6 If you sin, how does that affect him?
If your sins are many, what does that do to him?
7 If you are righteous, what do you give to him,
or what does he receive from your hand?
8 Your wickedness only affects humans like yourself,
and your righteousness only other people.
9 “People cry out under a load of oppression;
they plead for relief from the arm of the powerful.
10 But no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker,
who gives songs in the night,
11 who teaches us more than he teaches[c] the beasts of the earth
and makes us wiser than[d] the birds in the sky?’
12 He does not answer when people cry out
because of the arrogance of the wicked.
13 Indeed, God does not listen to their empty plea;
the Almighty pays no attention to it.
14 How much less, then, will he listen
when you say that you do not see him,
that your case is before him
and you must wait for him,
15 and further, that his anger never punishes
and he does not take the least notice of wickedness.[e]
16 So Job opens his mouth with empty talk;
without knowledge he multiplies words.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Matthew 5:13-20
13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.
14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
The Fulfillment of the Law
17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.
19 Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
A Lasting Imprint
November 5, 2010 — by Bill Crowder
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. —Matthew 5:16
Caerleon is a Welsh village with deep historical roots. It was one of three sites in the United Kingdom where Roman legions were posted during Rome’s occupation of Britain. While the military presence ended some 1,500 years ago, the imprint of that occupation can still be seen today. People come from all over the world to visit the military fort, the barracks, and the amphitheatre that are reminders of the days when Rome ruled the world and occupied Wales.
It amazes me that 15 centuries later, the evidence of Rome’s presence can still so clearly be seen in that small community.
I wonder, though, about another kind of imprint—the imprint of Christ on our lives. Do we allow His presence to be clearly seen by others? Is it possible for people who interact with us to know that Jesus occupies our lives?
Jesus calls us to make known His presence in our lives to the glory of God the Father. He says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:16). Through the light of our testimony and the impact of our deeds of service, people should be able to see evidence of the presence of God in our lives. Is it true? Can they see His imprint?
The Christ of God to glorify,
His grace in us to magnify;
His Word of life to all make known—
Be this our work, and this alone. —Whittle
Let your testimony be written in large enough letters so the world can always read it.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 5th, 2010
Partakers of His Suffering
. . . but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings . . . —1 Peter 4:13
If you are going to be used by God, He will take you through a number of experiences that are not meant for you personally at all. They are designed to make you useful in His hands, and to enable you to understand what takes place in the lives of others. Because of this process, you will never be surprised by what comes your way. You say, “Oh, I can’t deal with that person.” Why can’t you? God gave you sufficient opportunities to learn from Him about that problem; but you turned away, not heeding the lesson, because it seemed foolish to spend your time that way.
The sufferings of Christ were not those of ordinary people. He suffered “according to the will of God” (1 Peter 4:19), having a different point of view of suffering from ours. It is only through our relationship with Jesus Christ that we can understand what God is after in His dealings with us. When it comes to suffering, it is part of our Christian culture to want to know God’s purpose beforehand. In the history of the Christian church, the tendency has been to avoid being identified with the sufferings of Jesus Christ. People have sought to carry out God’s orders through a shortcut of their own. God’s way is always the way of suffering— the way of the “long road home.”
Are we partakers of Christ’s sufferings? Are we prepared for God to stamp out our personal ambitions? Are we prepared for God to destroy our individual decisions by supernaturally transforming them? It will mean not knowing why God is taking us that way, because knowing would make us spiritually proud. We never realize at the time what God is putting us through— we go through it more or less without understanding. Then suddenly we come to a place of enlightenment, and realize— “God has strengthened me and I didn’t even know it!”
Undervalued - #6215
Friday, November 5, 2010
I guess it might be nice to own a copy of the Declaration of Independence. It's not on my top ten list of things I'd like to have, but if it's cheap, why not? That's what one man thought when he bought a copy of the Declaration in a thrift store. He spent a whopping $2.48. Such a deal! It turns out what he bought for $2.48 is one of 200 copies John Quincy Adams had made in 1823. It's going on sale soon. It's expected to sell for a quarter of a million dollars!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Undervalued."
Somebody looked at that old copy of a document and made a serious mistake. They undervalued it, big-time! Of course, we make that mistake too, with people. It's happened to someone who's listening right now. You've been undervalued many times, perhaps by a lot of people. It's to the point where you've come to believe yourself that you're not really worth that much. How could you be after the names you've been called, the rejection you've experienced, the failed relationships, and the ways you've been treated?
I've got news for you. None of those people have any idea what you're really worth, anymore than some merchant knew what a rare Declaration of Independence was worth. But somebody knows, and they will pay a lot for it.
Somebody knows what you're really worth. You can tell. He paid a lot for you. He is no one less than the Son of God. Here's how the Bible puts it: "You are not your own; you were bought at a price" (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ). The price that Jesus paid for you is spelled out graphically in our word for today from the Word of God in Revelation 5:9 . The inhabitants of heaven are saying, "You were slain, and with your blood You purchased men for God." Jesus thought you were worth the shedding of His blood; the blood of the one and only Son of God. Think about that cross where Jesus hung with nails in His hands and feet, a crown of thorns jammed on His head, a spear driven into His side, and say these two words, "For me."
That's how bad your sin was. It took that to pay for it. And that's how big God's love is for you. He did that so He wouldn't lose you. See, sin is really serious business. It's living the way you want to live instead of the way your Creator made you to live. It's the spiritual hijacking of your life from the One who gave it to you in the first place. And hijacking is punishable by a death penalty. I deserved that penalty. Jesus stepped in and said, "Take me instead." In the words of the Bible, "He loved me and gave Himself for me" (Galatians 2:20 ). He really, really loves you. He's the One who gave you your worth when He made you His one-of-a-kind original. He wants to restore the worth that sin has taken from you.
But you have to choose Him. He won't force His way into your life. You have to invite Him. That invitation involves a lifetime choice to turn from running your own life to putting your life in His hands, where it's belonged all along. It's a step of total trust in Jesus as being your only hope of having your sins forgiven, of going to heaven, of experiencing the love you were made for. He's waiting for you to tell Him with all your heart, "Jesus, I am Yours." After all He's paid for you, is there any reason not to trust Him?
On our website, I've laid out a simple explanation of just how you can be sure you belong to Him. I would encourage you to go there right away today and check it out for yourself. Just go to yoursforlife.net. Or I'd be happy to send you my little booklet Yours For Life if you'll let us know you want it. You can just call us toll-free at 877-741-1200.
His love will show you how very much you're worth, because honestly, nobody loves you like Jesus.
