Max Lucado Daily: Hucksters and Faith Peddlers
When religion is used for profit and prestige, people are exploited and God is infuriated! When Jesus entered Jerusalem the first day of Passover week, Matthew 21:12-13 says, "He went into the temple and threw out all the people who were buying and selling there. He turned over the tables of those who were exchanging different kinds of money, and he upset the benches of those who were selling doves. Jesus said to all the people there, 'It is written in the Scriptures, My temple will be called a house for prayer. But you are changing it into a hideout for robbers!'"
Hucksters. Faith peddlers. People making a franchise out of the faith. This was not a temper tantrum. It was an intentional message from Jesus. Cash in on my people and you've got me to answer to. God will never hold guiltless those who exploit the privilege of worship.
From And the Angels Were Silent
Ezra 8
List of the Family Heads Returning With Ezra
8 These are the family heads and those registered with them who came up with me from Babylon during the reign of King Artaxerxes:
2 of the descendants of Phinehas, Gershom;
of the descendants of Ithamar, Daniel;
of the descendants of David, Hattush 3 of the descendants of Shekaniah;
of the descendants of Parosh, Zechariah, and with him were registered 150 men;
4 of the descendants of Pahath-Moab, Eliehoenai son of Zerahiah, and with him 200 men;
5 of the descendants of Zattu,[a] Shekaniah son of Jahaziel, and with him 300 men;
6 of the descendants of Adin, Ebed son of Jonathan, and with him 50 men;
7 of the descendants of Elam, Jeshaiah son of Athaliah, and with him 70 men;
8 of the descendants of Shephatiah, Zebadiah son of Michael, and with him 80 men;
9 of the descendants of Joab, Obadiah son of Jehiel, and with him 218 men;
10 of the descendants of Bani,[b] Shelomith son of Josiphiah, and with him 160 men;
11 of the descendants of Bebai, Zechariah son of Bebai, and with him 28 men;
12 of the descendants of Azgad, Johanan son of Hakkatan, and with him 110 men;
13 of the descendants of Adonikam, the last ones, whose names were Eliphelet, Jeuel and Shemaiah, and with them 60 men;
14 of the descendants of Bigvai, Uthai and Zakkur, and with them 70 men.
The Return to Jerusalem
15 I assembled them at the canal that flows toward Ahava, and we camped there three days. When I checked among the people and the priests, I found no Levites there. 16 So I summoned Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah and Meshullam, who were leaders, and Joiarib and Elnathan, who were men of learning, 17 and I ordered them to go to Iddo, the leader in Kasiphia. I told them what to say to Iddo and his fellow Levites, the temple servants in Kasiphia, so that they might bring attendants to us for the house of our God. 18 Because the gracious hand of our God was on us, they brought us Sherebiah, a capable man, from the descendants of Mahli son of Levi, the son of Israel, and Sherebiah’s sons and brothers, 18 in all; 19 and Hashabiah, together with Jeshaiah from the descendants of Merari, and his brothers and nephews, 20 in all. 20 They also brought 220 of the temple servants—a body that David and the officials had established to assist the Levites. All were registered by name.
21 There, by the Ahava Canal, I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions. 22 I was ashamed to ask the king for soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies on the road, because we had told the king, “The gracious hand of our God is on everyone who looks to him, but his great anger is against all who forsake him.” 23 So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer.
24 Then I set apart twelve of the leading priests, namely, Sherebiah, Hashabiah and ten of their brothers, 25 and I weighed out to them the offering of silver and gold and the articles that the king, his advisers, his officials and all Israel present there had donated for the house of our God. 26 I weighed out to them 650 talents[c] of silver, silver articles weighing 100 talents,[d] 100 talents[e] of gold, 27 20 bowls of gold valued at 1,000 darics,[f] and two fine articles of polished bronze, as precious as gold.
28 I said to them, “You as well as these articles are consecrated to the Lord. The silver and gold are a freewill offering to the Lord, the God of your ancestors. 29 Guard them carefully until you weigh them out in the chambers of the house of the Lord in Jerusalem before the leading priests and the Levites and the family heads of Israel.” 30 Then the priests and Levites received the silver and gold and sacred articles that had been weighed out to be taken to the house of our God in Jerusalem.
31 On the twelfth day of the first month we set out from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he protected us from enemies and bandits along the way. 32 So we arrived in Jerusalem, where we rested three days.
33 On the fourth day, in the house of our God, we weighed out the silver and gold and the sacred articles into the hands of Meremoth son of Uriah, the priest. Eleazar son of Phinehas was with him, and so were the Levites Jozabad son of Jeshua and Noadiah son of Binnui. 34 Everything was accounted for by number and weight, and the entire weight was recorded at that time.
35 Then the exiles who had returned from captivity sacrificed burnt offerings to the God of Israel: twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven male lambs and, as a sin offering,[g] twelve male goats. All this was a burnt offering to the Lord. 36 They also delivered the king’s orders to the royal satraps and to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, who then gave assistance to the people and to the house of God.
Ezra 8:5 Some Septuagint manuscripts (also 1 Esdras 8:32); Hebrew does not have Zattu.
Ezra 8:10 Some Septuagint manuscripts (also 1 Esdras 8:36); Hebrew does not have Bani.
Ezra 8:26 That is, about 24 tons or about 22 metric tons
Ezra 8:26 That is, about 3 3/4 tons or about 3.4 metric tons
Ezra 8:26 That is, about 3 3/4 tons or about 3.4 metric tons
Ezra 8:27 That is, about 19 pounds or about 8.4 kilograms
Ezra 8:35 Or purification offering
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Romans 8:28-30
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
Footnotes:
Romans 8:28 Or that all things work together for good to those who love God, who; or that in all things God works together with those who love him to bring about what is good—with those who
Insight
Today’s Scripture reading has sometimes been misused by well-intentioned Christians. When a believer has been devastated by the loss of a loved one, another believer may glibly quote: “All things work together for good” (v.28). But for someone feeling the hurt and loss of grief, this statement usually provides little consolation. A more careful examination of the biblical text offers an important insight. The broader context shows that the blessings and bruises believers experience must be understood as part of the process of being conformed to the image of Christ. We may not understand why a person was taken from us in this life, but by faith we can have the assurance that all life experiences work together to make us more like Jesus Christ.
Hyperseeing
February 12, 2014 — by David H. Roper
When He is revealed, we shall be like Him. —1 John 3:2
Sculptors have a term for the artist’s ability to look at a rough piece of stone and see it in its final, perfected form. It is called “hyperseeing.”
Gutzon Borglum (1867–1941) is the sculptor who created many well-known public works of art. Probably the most famous is Mt. Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota. Borglum’s housekeeper captured the concept of hyperseeing when she gazed up at the massive faces of the four US presidents on Mt. Rushmore for the first time. “Mr. Borglum,” she gasped, “how did you know Mr. Lincoln was in that rock?”
Hyperseeing is also a good description of our all-seeing God. He sees all that we are and more. He sees what we shall be when He has completed His work and we stand before Him, holy and without blemish: the exact likeness, the very image of Jesus. The God who started this great work in you will keep at it until He completes it on the very day Jesus Christ appears (see Phil. 1:6).
God will not be denied! He has such a longing for our perfection that nothing can or will remain an obstacle until He has finished the work He began so long ago.
If only . . . if only we will put ourselves in the Master Sculptor’s hands.
Doubt whispers, “Thou art such a blot;
He cannot love poor thee.”
If what I am He lovest not,
He loves what I shall be. —MacDonald
God works in us to grow us into what He wants us to be.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Are You Listening to God?
They said to Moses, ’You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die’ `—Exodus 20:19
We don’t consciously and deliberately disobey God— we simply don’t listen to Him. God has given His commands to us, but we pay no attention to them— not because of willful disobedience, but because we do not truly love and respect Him. “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15). Once we realize we have constantly been showing disrespect to God, we will be filled with shame and humiliation for ignoring Him.
“You speak with us, . . . but let not God speak with us . . . .” We show how little love we have for God by preferring to listen to His servants rather than to Him. We like to listen to personal testimonies, but we don’t want God Himself to speak to us. Why are we so terrified for God to speak to us? It is because we know that when God speaks we must either do what He asks or tell Him we will not obey. But if it is simply one of God’s servants speaking to us, we feel obedience is optional, not imperative. We respond by saying, “Well, that’s only your own idea, even though I don’t deny that what you said is probably God’s truth.”
Am I constantly humiliating God by ignoring Him, while He lovingly continues to treat me as His child? Once I finally do hear Him, the humiliation I have heaped on Him returns to me. My response then becomes, “Lord, why was I so insensitive and obstinate?” This is always the result once we hear God. But our real delight in finally hearing Him is tempered with the shame we feel for having taken so long to do so.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
One Roof - #7068
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Norway is 35 times smaller than Russia, but they went head-to-head with Russia for the most medals won in the 1994 Winter Olympics. One of Norway's speed skaters won the gold medal in Lillehammer. A Norwegian skier stole America's spot at mogul skiing. And one after another, Norway dominated cross-country events. Little Norway was a big winner in those Olympics.
It wasn't always like that. In the late 1980s Norway finally decided they were going to set out to build a team of champions. There were several reasons they succeeded. But one had to be that top sports center in Oslo, Norway. It's a huge sports center where athletes from many sports train together in a single location. They can trade tips, they can encourage one another, and they can learn from each other's strengths. Apparently Norway was an Olympic winner because they did it together.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "One Roof."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Philippians chapter 1, beginning at verse 27, "Stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the Gospel." By the way, this word contending is an athletic word. And then he says, "Without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you." This talks about how the Gospel can get to the lost people who desperately need to hear it. And it talks about how believers can shed their inferiority complex and start acting like winners. The secret just happen to be the same as that of Norway's Olympians that year; work together under one roof - at least spiritually speaking.
You know what? Usually we don't. We have our little denominational organizations, and our methodological cliques, and we're fighting each other over the distinctives of each group. This is no way to win! And we aren't. Jesus suggested why the enemy is so strong in our world. When He was accused of casting out demons in Satan's power, He said, "Come on! A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand." He was implying that Satan's kingdom of evil is united.
Christ, on the other hand, allows us to choose, and so we fragment over this 10% we don't agree on instead of coming together on the 90% that we do agree on and this urgent mission every believer has to rescue the dying whatever it takes. Instead, Christians end up building a hundred little kingdoms instead of Jesus' one big kingdom.
We end up shooting at each other instead of at our real enemy. We could learn something from those Norwegian champions. Let's work under one spiritual roof! Let's learn from each other's strengths. Let's find a cause larger than our own performance, our own events; things that will pull us together. That cause is defined in this verse, "contending for the faith of the Gospel"; reaching the lost with the good news about Jesus.
I think there are two things that most of the believers in your community would agree on. There might not be a whole lot, but these are two you can get them to agree on. Number one, the people in your community are lost. Number two, Jesus Christ is their only hope. Is that not enough of an agenda to bring us together to do something about those lost people? We could only be divided if we have lost sight of the lost people that surround us, because there are so many more of them. Our only hope is to go into the rescue together. Does it matter - do we care - who gets the credit, who gets the glory as long as they're in heaven with us?
In the 1994 Winter Olympics the world got to see the secret of winning; coming together under one roof to prepare to fight for a cause greater than any one participant. We have a town to win; a community to reach. We have dying people to rescue. It's time we begin to pray together and plan together under one roof for the cause of the Gospel of Christ; the greatest cause on this planet. On the roof it says The Kingdom of God.
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