Max Lucado Daily: Declare His Glory · November 29
Look around. People thrash about in seas of guilt, anger, despair. Life isn’t working. We’re drowning fast. But God can rescue us. And only one message matters. His! We need to see God’s glory.
Make no mistake. God has no ego problem. He doesn’t reveal His glory for His good. We need to witness it for ours. We need a strong hand to pull us into a safe boat. And once aboard, what becomes our priority?
Simple. Promote God. We declare, “Hey, strong boat over here! Able pilot! He can pull you out!”
1 Chronicles 16:24 says, “Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous deeds among all peoples.” If we boast at all, we boast in the Lord!
Psalm 115:1 says, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your name give glory because of Your lovingkindness, because of Your truth.”
Declare His glory!
From When God Whispers Your Name
Ezekiel 44
The Priesthood Restored
44 Then the man brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, the one facing east, and it was shut. 2 The Lord said to me, “This gate is to remain shut. It must not be opened; no one may enter through it. It is to remain shut because the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it. 3 The prince himself is the only one who may sit inside the gateway to eat in the presence of the Lord. He is to enter by way of the portico of the gateway and go out the same way.”
4 Then the man brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple. I looked and saw the glory of the Lord filling the temple of the Lord, and I fell facedown.
5 The Lord said to me, “Son of man, look carefully, listen closely and give attention to everything I tell you concerning all the regulations and instructions regarding the temple of the Lord. Give attention to the entrance to the temple and all the exits of the sanctuary. 6 Say to rebellious Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Enough of your detestable practices, people of Israel! 7 In addition to all your other detestable practices, you brought foreigners uncircumcised in heart and flesh into my sanctuary, desecrating my temple while you offered me food, fat and blood, and you broke my covenant. 8 Instead of carrying out your duty in regard to my holy things, you put others in charge of my sanctuary. 9 This is what the Sovereign Lord says: No foreigner uncircumcised in heart and flesh is to enter my sanctuary, not even the foreigners who live among the Israelites.
10 “‘The Levites who went far from me when Israel went astray and who wandered from me after their idols must bear the consequences of their sin. 11 They may serve in my sanctuary, having charge of the gates of the temple and serving in it; they may slaughter the burnt offerings and sacrifices for the people and stand before the people and serve them. 12 But because they served them in the presence of their idols and made the people of Israel fall into sin, therefore I have sworn with uplifted hand that they must bear the consequences of their sin, declares the Sovereign Lord. 13 They are not to come near to serve me as priests or come near any of my holy things or my most holy offerings; they must bear the shame of their detestable practices. 14 And I will appoint them to guard the temple for all the work that is to be done in it.
15 “‘But the Levitical priests, who are descendants of Zadok and who guarded my sanctuary when the Israelites went astray from me, are to come near to minister before me; they are to stand before me to offer sacrifices of fat and blood, declares the Sovereign Lord. 16 They alone are to enter my sanctuary; they alone are to come near my table to minister before me and serve me as guards.
17 “‘When they enter the gates of the inner court, they are to wear linen clothes; they must not wear any woolen garment while ministering at the gates of the inner court or inside the temple. 18 They are to wear linen turbans on their heads and linen undergarments around their waists. They must not wear anything that makes them perspire. 19 When they go out into the outer court where the people are, they are to take off the clothes they have been ministering in and are to leave them in the sacred rooms, and put on other clothes, so that the people are not consecrated through contact with their garments.
20 “‘They must not shave their heads or let their hair grow long, but they are to keep the hair of their heads trimmed. 21 No priest is to drink wine when he enters the inner court. 22 They must not marry widows or divorced women; they may marry only virgins of Israelite descent or widows of priests. 23 They are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean.
24 “‘In any dispute, the priests are to serve as judges and decide it according to my ordinances. They are to keep my laws and my decrees for all my appointed festivals, and they are to keep my Sabbaths holy.
25 “‘A priest must not defile himself by going near a dead person; however, if the dead person was his father or mother, son or daughter, brother or unmarried sister, then he may defile himself. 26 After he is cleansed, he must wait seven days. 27 On the day he goes into the inner court of the sanctuary to minister in the sanctuary, he is to offer a sin offering[v] for himself, declares the Sovereign Lord.
28 “‘I am to be the only inheritance the priests have. You are to give them no possession in Israel; I will be their possession. 29 They will eat the grain offerings, the sin offerings and the guilt offerings; and everything in Israel devoted[w] to the Lord will belong to them. 30 The best of all the firstfruits and of all your special gifts will belong to the priests. You are to give them the first portion of your ground meal so that a blessing may rest on your household. 31 The priests must not eat anything, whether bird or animal, found dead or torn by wild animals.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Samuel 16:1-7
Samuel Anoints David
16 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”
2 But Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.”
The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate.”
4 Samuel did what the Lord said. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town trembled when they met him. They asked, “Do you come in peace?”
5 Samuel replied, “Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Consecrate yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me.” Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.”
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
First Impressions
November 29, 2013 — by Dennis Fisher
For man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. —1 Samuel 16:7
As I shopped for groceries one day, I was perceived as a thief by one person and a hero by another.
As I exited the supermarket, an employee said, “Excuse me, Sir. There are too many unbagged items in your cart.” This is evidently a strategy used by shoplifters. When he saw that they were products too big to be bagged, he apologized and sent me on my way.
In the parking lot, a woman glanced at my gold embroidered sportsman’s cap. Mistaking it for a military hat, she said, “Thank you for defending our country!” Then she walked away.
The supermarket employee and the woman in the parking lot had each formed hasty conclusions about me. It’s easy to form opinions of others based on first impressions.
When Samuel was to select the next king of Israel from the sons of Jesse, he too made a judgment based on first impressions. However, God’s chosen was not any of the older sons. The Spirit told Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature” (1 Sam. 16:7). God chose David, the youngest, who looked least like a king.
God can help us view people through His eyes, for “the Lord does not see as man sees; . . . the Lord looks at the heart” (v.7).
If we could view through eyes of faith
The people we meet each day
We’d quickly see God’s gracious hand
In all who come our way. —D. DeHaan
First impressions can often lead to wrong conclusions.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 29, 2013
The Supremacy of Jesus Christ
He will glorify Me . . . —John 16:14
The holiness movements of today have none of the rugged reality of the New Testament about them. There is nothing about them that needs the death of Jesus Christ. All that is required is a pious atmosphere, prayer, and devotion. This type of experience is not supernatural nor miraculous. It did not cost the sufferings of God, nor is it stained with “the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 12:11). It is not marked or sealed by the Holy Spirit as being genuine, and it has no visual sign that causes people to exclaim with awe and wonder, “That is the work of God Almighty!” Yet the New Testament is about the work of God and nothing else.
The New Testament example of the Christian experience is that of a personal, passionate devotion to the Person of Jesus Christ. Every other kind of so-called Christian experience is detached from the Person of Jesus. There is no regeneration— no being born again into the kingdom in which Christ lives and reigns supreme. There is only the idea that He is our pattern. In the New Testament Jesus Christ is the Savior long before He is the pattern. Today He is being portrayed as the figurehead of a religion— a mere example. He is that, but He is infinitely more. He is salvation itself; He is the gospel of God!
Jesus said, “. . . when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, . . . He will glorify Me . . .” (John 16:13-14). When I commit myself to the revealed truth of the New Testament, I receive from God the gift of the Holy Spirit, who then begins interpreting to me what Jesus did. The Spirit of God does in me internally all that Jesus Christ did for me externally.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Money Pit - #7015
Friday, November 29, 2013
Don't ever get behind me in a grocery store checkout line. I told a man that just the other day. You see, this time, once again, the line stopped moving as soon as I got in it. Something usually goes wrong in a line I'm in. It's just a part of my lot in life. I don't know what I've done to deserve this, but when I get in a line, all of a sudden the shift changes, or the toll booth light suddenly goes from green to red, or an argument breaks out in front of me, or people are having trouble paying, or something like that.
Now this time, the computer at the grocery store couldn't figure out how much the bananas cost. The lady in front of me wanted to buy them. There was only one person in the express lane! Well, that express line got derailed for about five or ten minutes, and everything piled up behind me. It always happens that way...poor me. Somehow when people follow me into a line, well, it's just often disastrous. You do have to be careful in choosing whom or what you will follow. There's a Pied Piper out there that has led many of us down paths that we live to regret.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Money Pit."
I want to read you some words that will be very familiar to you; some of the most misquoted verses or words in the Bible. Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Timothy 6:10 . It says, "The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil." Now, that's often misquoted. People say, "Money is the root of all evil." No, "The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil." It goes on to say, "Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." See where this line leads? When you get in this line, you end up with many griefs. This is the wrong line. The money line is the wrong line to be in.
Without realizing it, I think even we Bible people succumb to a very insidious values system that's called "follow the money." We decide who will be the leaders in our church. You know how? We follow the money. When deciding about whether or not mom should be with the kids or working, you know how we decide? Follow the money. When God asks us to take a position that might pay less but mean more in His Kingdom, how do we decide? We follow the money. As an individual, a church, a Christian organization, we often make our choices based on what will give us the money we need.
But see, a child of God is not for sale. I know of nowhere in the Bible where God led His children by saying, "Here's where the money is. Here is where the material resources are." I don't think He ever led that way. In fact, He says in Matthew 6:33 , "You seek first the kingdom of God and all the material things I'll take care of." He's basically saying, "Follow what's right. Follow what puts Me first. Follow what puts other people first. Follow what will accomplish something eternal and the money will follow you; don't you follow the money. That's no way to decide."
What is most profitable, what is most comfortable, what is most financially sensible may not be the will of God. That's why Paul says in this same passage, "You man of God, flee from all this and pursue righteousness, and godliness, and faith, and love, and endurance, and gentleness."
Following the money may lead to some short-term relief, and then to many griefs. You see, the money path? Well, it often leads to the money pit.
