Max Lucado Daily: We’ve Figured It Out
I look at your heavens,
which you made with your fingers.…
But why are people important to you?
Psalm 8:3–4
Ironic isn’t it? The more we know, the less we believe! Strange, don’t you think?
We understand how storms are created. We map solar systems and transplant hearts. We measure the depths of the oceans and send signals to distant planets. We’re learning how it all works!
And, for some, the loss of mystery has led to the loss of majesty. The more we know, the less we believe. But knowledge of the workings shouldn’t negate wonder. It should stir wonder! Who has more reason to worship than the astronomer who has seen the stars?
Why then should we worship less? We are more impressed with our discovery of the light switch than with the one who invented electricity. And rather than worship the Creator, we worship the creation.
No wonder there is no wonder! We’ve figured it all out!
2 Samuel 17
1 Ahithophel said to Absalom, “I would[a] choose twelve thousand men and set out tonight in pursuit of David. 2 I would attack him while he is weary and weak. I would strike him with terror, and then all the people with him will flee. I would strike down only the king 3 and bring all the people back to you. The death of the man you seek will mean the return of all; all the people will be unharmed.” 4 This plan seemed good to Absalom and to all the elders of Israel.
5 But Absalom said, “Summon also Hushai the Arkite, so we can hear what he has to say as well.” 6 When Hushai came to him, Absalom said, “Ahithophel has given this advice. Should we do what he says? If not, give us your opinion.”
7 Hushai replied to Absalom, “The advice Ahithophel has given is not good this time. 8 You know your father and his men; they are fighters, and as fierce as a wild bear robbed of her cubs. Besides, your father is an experienced fighter; he will not spend the night with the troops. 9 Even now, he is hidden in a cave or some other place. If he should attack your troops first,[b] whoever hears about it will say, ‘There has been a slaughter among the troops who follow Absalom.’ 10 Then even the bravest soldier, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will melt with fear, for all Israel knows that your father is a fighter and that those with him are brave.
11 “So I advise you: Let all Israel, from Dan to Beersheba—as numerous as the sand on the seashore—be gathered to you, with you yourself leading them into battle. 12 Then we will attack him wherever he may be found, and we will fall on him as dew settles on the ground. Neither he nor any of his men will be left alive. 13 If he withdraws into a city, then all Israel will bring ropes to that city, and we will drag it down to the valley until not so much as a pebble is left.”
14 Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Arkite is better than that of Ahithophel.” For the LORD had determined to frustrate the good advice of Ahithophel in order to bring disaster on Absalom.
15 Hushai told Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, “Ahithophel has advised Absalom and the elders of Israel to do such and such, but I have advised them to do so and so. 16 Now send a message at once and tell David, ‘Do not spend the night at the fords in the wilderness; cross over without fail, or the king and all the people with him will be swallowed up.’”
17 Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En Rogel. A female servant was to go and inform them, and they were to go and tell King David, for they could not risk being seen entering the city. 18 But a young man saw them and told Absalom. So the two of them left at once and went to the house of a man in Bahurim. He had a well in his courtyard, and they climbed down into it. 19 His wife took a covering and spread it out over the opening of the well and scattered grain over it. No one knew anything about it.
20 When Absalom’s men came to the woman at the house, they asked, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?”
The woman answered them, “They crossed over the brook.”[c] The men searched but found no one, so they returned to Jerusalem.
21 After they had gone, the two climbed out of the well and went to inform King David. They said to him, “Set out and cross the river at once; Ahithophel has advised such and such against you.” 22 So David and all the people with him set out and crossed the Jordan. By daybreak, no one was left who had not crossed the Jordan.
23 When Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and set out for his house in his hometown. He put his house in order and then hanged himself. So he died and was buried in his father’s tomb.
Absalom’s Death
24 David went to Mahanaim, and Absalom crossed the Jordan with all the men of Israel. 25 Absalom had appointed Amasa over the army in place of Joab. Amasa was the son of Jether,[d] an Ishmaelite[e] who had married Abigail,[f] the daughter of Nahash and sister of Zeruiah the mother of Joab. 26 The Israelites and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead.
27 When David came to Mahanaim, Shobi son of Nahash from Rabbah of the Ammonites, and Makir son of Ammiel from Lo Debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim 28 brought bedding and bowls and articles of pottery. They also brought wheat and barley, flour and roasted grain, beans and lentils,[g] 29 honey and curds, sheep, and cheese from cows’ milk for David and his people to eat. For they said, “The people have become exhausted and hungry and thirsty in the wilderness.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Kings 3:1-9
Solomon Asks for Wisdom
1 Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt and married his daughter. He brought her to the City of David until he finished building his palace and the temple of the LORD, and the wall around Jerusalem. 2 The people, however, were still sacrificing at the high places, because a temple had not yet been built for the Name of the LORD. 3 Solomon showed his love for the LORD by walking according to the instructions given him by his father David, except that he offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places.
4 The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for that was the most important high place, and Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5 At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”
6 Solomon answered, “You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.
7 “Now, LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. 8 Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. 9 So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”
What Shall I Give You?
December 9, 2011 — by David H. Roper
God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?” —1 Kings 3:5
I’ve been told that “three-wish stories” occur in almost every culture, all following a similar theme: A benefactor appears and offers to grant three wishes to an unsuspecting beneficiary. The fact that the stories so often occur suggests we all want something we cannot get on our own.
There’s even a “wish story” in the Bible. It happened one night when the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream and said to him, “Ask! What shall I give you?” (1 Kings 3:5). Solomon could have asked for anything—riches, honor, fame, or power. But he asked for none of these things. He requested “an understanding heart” (v.9), or a “hearing heart,” a humble heart to listen and learn from God’s Word. The young, inexperienced king, weighed down with the responsibilities of ruling a vast nation, needed the Lord’s wisdom to govern well.
Am I that wise? If God spoke to me directly and asked what He could do for me, what would I ask for? Would I ask for health, wealth, youth, power, or prestige? Or would I ask for wisdom, holiness, and love? Would I be wise or foolish?
Suppose God asked you what He could give to you. What would you ask for?
True wisdom is in leaning
On Jesus Christ, our Lord;
True wisdom is in trusting
His own life-giving Word. —Anon.
God’s wisdom is given to those who humbly ask Him for it.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, December 09, 2011
The Opposition of the Natural
Those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires —Galatians 5:24
The natural life itself is not sinful. But we must abandon sin, having nothing to do with it in any way whatsoever. Sin belongs to hell and to the devil. I, as a child of God, belong to heaven and to God. It is not a question of giving up sin, but of giving up my right to myself, my natural independence, and my self-will. This is where the battle has to be fought. The things that are right, noble, and good from the natural standpoint are the very things that keep us from being God’s best. Once we come to understand that natural moral excellence opposes or counteracts surrender to God, we bring our soul into the center of its greatest battle. Very few of us would debate over what is filthy, evil, and wrong, but we do debate over what is good. It is the good that opposes the best. The higher up the scale of moral excellence a person goes, the more intense the opposition to Jesus Christ. “Those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh . . . .” The cost to your natural life is not just one or two things, but everything. Jesus said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself. . .” (Matthew 16:24). That is, he must deny his right to himself, and he must realize who Jesus Christ is before he will bring himself to do it. Beware of refusing to go to the funeral of your own independence.
The natural life is not spiritual, and it can be made spiritual only through sacrifice. If we do not purposely sacrifice the natural, the supernatural can never become natural to us. There is no high or easy road. Each of us has the means to accomplish it entirely in his own hands. It is not a question of praying, but of sacrificing, and thereby performing His will.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Christmas Surprises Under the Rockefeller Center Tree - #6500
Friday, December 9, 2011
It's about that time! Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting. When I watched it last year, oh, you know, I was, as always heartwarming to watch those lights come on in the middle of the city where I spent so much ministry time.
And actually there was some good news coming from that big Christmas tree. Oh, we had the obligatory "bubble gum" songs about Santa and snow and toys. But I was impressed with the fact that Jesus was there, too, in beautiful presentations of "Silent Night" and "Away in a Manger" and "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen." There actually were a few relatively holy moments in the midst of all the New York glitz.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You about "Christmas Surprises Under the Rockefeller Center Tree."
It was a reminder to me of how special this season really is. This Savior of ours who is largely ignored and marginalized the rest of the year is suddenly and inescapably on the radar come December. Oh yeah, there's a glut of commercialism. But I'll tell you this, there's more Christ than at any other time of the year.
And that provides for all of us Jesus-lovers an unparalleled opportunity to move people we love to Jesus. To help them be in heaven with us some day. If any season comes under the Biblical heading of "making the most of every opportunity," Ephesians 5:16, the Christmas season does.
It's a good time to remember what God was saying when His angel told Joseph to "give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins" (Matthew 1:18). Jesus means "God rescues." Christmas means that God has come from heaven as the Rescuer from the hell and the bondage of our sin. And there's no better time than Christmas to join Jesus in that rescue mission. We can pray for opportunities, we can look for opportunities, and we can plan for opportunities to introduce Him to hearts that are opened by the Christmas season.
The problem is that we are so robotically busy from now until Christmas that this season of rescue comes and goes without us even trying to rescue anybody! I can already feel that myself. You get carried away by the inertia of just doing Christmas, American style. The rescuing will not happen if we don't make it a non-negotiable of our plans for the next let's say three weeks.
Our word for today from the Word of God in John 9:4 tells us that, "We must work while it is day, for the night is coming." That means making a promise to God that we will be intentional about bringing Jesus into the lives of our lost friends and neighbors and loved ones - intentional. We do that by praying for them by name every day during this season, by asking God to open up natural opportunities for us to talk about our relationship with Jesus.
You know the three-open prayer I've talked about before perhaps. "Lord, open a door." Give me that natural opportunity to bring up my relationship with You. "Lord, open their heart." Get them ready. "Lord, open my mouth." Give me the words and the courage and the approach to use. How about planning to take them to dinner and then to a special Christmas event where the Gospel will be presented, or take them to the event and then have them over for dessert so you can talk about it.
Then include your own personal Hope Story with your Christmas card. I know some friends who do that, and they put it in an attractive form and include the hope story of how this Jesus, who's birthday it is, changed their life forever and took it from B.C. to A.D. (before Christ and after). There's all kinds of ways God will answer your prayer for opportunities. Just start praying for them and keeping your eyes open for them.
'Tis the season! After all, this is His birthday. And there is no gift He wants more than the heart of someone He died for. Someone you know who doesn't know your Jesus. And there's just no better time.
