Max Lucado Daily: Never More Human
Never More Human
Posted: 20 Mar 2011 11:01 PM PDT
“He poured out His soul unto death.” Isaiah 53:12 NKJV
The scene is very simple; you’ll recognize it quickly. A grove of twisted olive trees. Ground cluttered with large rocks. A low stone fence. A dark, dark night . . .
See that solitary figure? . . . Flat on the ground. Face stained with dirt and tears. Fists pounding the hard earth . . .
That’s Jesus . . . God was never more human than at this hour. God was never nearer to us than when he hurt.
Leviticus 18
Unlawful Sexual Relations
1 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘I am the LORD your God. 3 You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices. 4 You must obey my laws and be careful to follow my decrees. I am the LORD your God. 5 Keep my decrees and laws, for the person who obeys them will live by them. I am the LORD.
6 “‘No one is to approach any close relative to have sexual relations. I am the LORD.
7 “‘Do not dishonor your father by having sexual relations with your mother. She is your mother; do not have relations with her.
8 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your father’s wife; that would dishonor your father.
9 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your sister, either your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether she was born in the same home or elsewhere.
10 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter; that would dishonor you.
11 “‘Do not have sexual relations with the daughter of your father’s wife, born to your father; she is your sister.
12 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your father’s sister; she is your father’s close relative.
13 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your mother’s sister, because she is your mother’s close relative.
14 “‘Do not dishonor your father’s brother by approaching his wife to have sexual relations; she is your aunt.
15 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your daughter-in-law. She is your son’s wife; do not have relations with her.
16 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your brother’s wife; that would dishonor your brother.
17 “‘Do not have sexual relations with both a woman and her daughter. Do not have sexual relations with either her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter; they are her close relatives. That is wickedness.
18 “‘Do not take your wife’s sister as a rival wife and have sexual relations with her while your wife is living.
19 “‘Do not approach a woman to have sexual relations during the uncleanness of her monthly period.
20 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your neighbor’s wife and defile yourself with her.
21 “‘Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molek, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.
22 “‘Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable.
23 “‘Do not have sexual relations with an animal and defile yourself with it. A woman must not present herself to an animal to have sexual relations with it; that is a perversion.
24 “‘Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, because this is how the nations that I am going to drive out before you became defiled. 25 Even the land was defiled; so I punished it for its sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants. 26 But you must keep my decrees and my laws. The native-born and the foreigners residing among you must not do any of these detestable things, 27 for all these things were done by the people who lived in the land before you, and the land became defiled. 28 And if you defile the land, it will vomit you out as it vomited out the nations that were before you.
29 “‘Everyone who does any of these detestable things—such persons must be cut off from their people. 30 Keep my requirements and do not follow any of the detestable customs that were practiced before you came and do not defile yourselves with them. I am the LORD your God.’”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Proverbs 16:20-30
Proverbs 16:20-30 (New International Version, ©2011)
20 Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers,[a]
and blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD.
21 The wise in heart are called discerning,
and gracious words promote instruction.[b]
22 Prudence is a fountain of life to the prudent,
but folly brings punishment to fools.
23 The hearts of the wise make their mouths prudent,
and their lips promote instruction.[c]
24 Gracious words are a honeycomb,
sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.
25 There is a way that appears to be right,
but in the end it leads to death.
26 The appetite of laborers works for them;
their hunger drives them on.
27 A scoundrel plots evil,
and on their lips it is like a scorching fire.
28 A perverse person stirs up conflict,
and a gossip separates close friends.
29 A violent person entices their neighbor
and leads them down a path that is not good.
30 Whoever winks with their eye is plotting perversity;
whoever purses their lips is bent on evil.
Free Compliments
March 21, 2011 — by David C. McCasland
Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones. —Proverbs 16:24
During a time of economic crisis and depressing news, two students at Purdue University decided to lift the spirits of people on campus with some encouraging words. For two hours every Wednesday afternoon, Cameron Brown and Brett Westcott stood along a busy walkway holding a large “Free Compliments” sign and saying nice things to everyone who passed by. “I like your red coat.” “Cool snow boots.” “Very nice smile.” Some students said they deliberately walked past “the compliment guys” every Wednesday just to hear a kind word.
I was struck by these two young men who looked at people with the goal of commending them, rather than finding fault or being critical. Is that how I, as a follower of Christ, view others each day?
Instead of being like the person who is focused on evil and whose speech is “like a burning fire” (Prov. 16:27), we can take a different approach, knowing that what we say begins deep inside us. “The heart of the wise teaches his mouth, and adds learning to his lips. Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones” (vv.23-24).
Kind words may be free, but they give a priceless lift of spirit. Why not encourage someone today?
The power in words can build up or tear down—
Create a big smile or produce a sad frown;
So in all your contacts with people each day,
Be sure to encourage in all that you say. —Fitzhugh
A gentle word of compliment falls lightly
but it carries great weight.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
March 21th, 2011
Identified or Simply Interested?
I have been crucified with Christ . . . —Galatians 2:20
The inescapable spiritual need each of us has is the need to sign the death certificate of our sin nature. I must take my emotional opinions and intellectual beliefs and be willing to turn them into a moral verdict against the nature of sin; that is, against any claim I have to my right to myself. Paul said, “I have been crucified with Christ . . . .” He did not say, “I have made a determination to imitate Jesus Christ,” or, “I will really make an effort to follow Him”-but-”I have been identified with Him in His death.” Once I reach this moral decision and act on it, all that Christ accomplished for me on the Cross is accomplished in me. My unrestrained commitment of myself to God gives the Holy Spirit the opportunity to grant to me the holiness of Jesus Christ.
“. . . it is no longer I who live . . . .” My individuality remains, but my primary motivation for living and the nature that rules me are radically changed. I have the same human body, but the old satanic right to myself has been destroyed.
“. . . and the life which I now live in the flesh,” not the life which I long to live or even pray that I live, but the life I now live in my mortal flesh-the life which others can see, “I live by faith in the Son of God . . . .” This faith was not Paul’s own faith in Jesus Christ, but the faith the Son God had given to him (see Ephesians 2:8). It is no longer a faith in faith, but a faith that transcends all imaginable limits-a faith that comes only from the Son of God.
Waiting for the Temperature to Change - #6311
Monday, March 21, 2011
The key to environmental comfort at our house is a little dial on the wall in the hall. It's most often visited when someone is cold at our house. They will announce, "I'm cold!" And then they'll head for the thermostat. Of course they turn it up. So, if it's say 65 degrees in the house, maybe they push it up to 70 - what happens? Well, actually nothing for a while. But 45 minutes later, the adjustment starts to take effect, and the temperature starts moving toward 70. Now, you could just get impatient waiting and say, "Hey! I turned it up and nothing's happening." So, you could push it up to 75, 85, 90 degrees. It won't make it any warmer any sooner. You just have to set it like you want it and wait patiently.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Waiting for the Temperature to Change."
Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Timothy chapter 4. Paul is instructing Timothy in how to change the temperature in people's lives; how to warm up people who are cold, how to cool off people who are hot. How to bring people to the spiritual temperature they need to be. There's probably someone in your life right now that maybe you're concerned about in that regard.
Well, listen to what he says. Our word for today from the Word of God, 2 Timothy 4:2 , "Preach the Word. Be prepared in season and out of season, correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience and careful instruction." Now you notice here that Paul says there are three ways to bring about change in people's lives. Sometimes they need correction - just that gentle bringing back into line when they've stepped off onto a detour. Sometimes it's a rebuke, which is a very, very strong warning. Or it may be an encouragement. Sometimes a person needs to be complimented that they've done something right, even if they've only done one out of ten things right, you complement the one, hoping that the one will become two, and three, and four.
But you notice how you do it? He says, "Do it with great patience." If you're expecting an immediate result, you're gonna be disappointed. You see, you sow truth seed in a person's life, and then you back off and you let it germinate. But we're impatient people; we get no response, so we start to push harder. We push that old thermostat up saying, "Hey! Nothing's happening." You know what we do? We push people away.
Part of the equation for parenting, for discipling, for changing people's minds goes like this. Truth plus space equals life change. Give them some space. Give them the truth, give them some space, and a life will change. Give them time to choose the Truth themselves. Remember, Truth plus space equals life change.
Here's the other side of the equation. Truth plus pressure equals life closed. I think it's hardest in parenting. You know you correct, or rebuke, or you encourage your child - nothing happens. They don't seem to be getting it. And out of fear we start to push, and nag, and attack. Like a good farmer, pray for patience and allow the truth seed time to win. It's amazing what a little space can do. Give them the dignity of deciding on their own and you'll find strangely, weeks later; maybe months later, they'll announce a choice that sounds very much like what you said. But you allowed them the dignity of choosing the truth for themselves instead of the indignity of losing to you.
The Bible says, "God is long suffering toward us because He doesn't want us to perish." Are you long suffering? Our mission in people's lives is to sow seed and reap harvests; not to force it to grow. Truth plus space equals life change.
When you speak the truth in love, you're setting the thermostat where it needs to be in someone's life.
Now, don't keep turning up the heat. Wait for the temperature to change.
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