Max Lucado Daily: A Spiritual MRI
We can't live with foreign objects buried in our bodies or our souls. What would an X-ray of your interior reveal? Remorse over a poor choice? Shame about the marriage that didn't work, the temptation you couldn't resist? Guilt lies hidden beneath the surface, festering, irritating. Sometimes so deeply embedded you don't know the cause.
And you can be touchy, you know. Understandable, since you have a shank of shame lodged in your soul. Would you like an extraction? Here's what you do. Confess! Ask God to help you. Psalm 139:23-24 says, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
Confession. You see, confessors find a freedom that deniers don't. If we confess our sins, he will forgive our sins! He will cleanse us. Not might, could, would, or should. He WILL!
From Grace
Matthew 4
New International Version (NIV)
Jesus Is Tested in the Wilderness
4 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted[a] by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’[b]”
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:
“‘He will command his angels concerning you,
and they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’[c]”
7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’[d]”
8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”
10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’[e]”
11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
Jesus Begins to Preach
12 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— 14 to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:
15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles—
16 the people living in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned.”[f]
17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Jesus Calls His First Disciples
18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 20 At once they left their nets and followed him.
21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Jesus Heals the Sick
23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. 24 News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them. 25 Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis,[g] Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him.
Footnotes:
Matthew 4:1 The Greek for tempted can also mean tested.
Matthew 4:4 Deut. 8:3
Matthew 4:6 Psalm 91:11,12
Matthew 4:7 Deut. 6:16
Matthew 4:10 Deut. 6:13
Matthew 4:16 Isaiah 9:1,2
Matthew 4:25 That is, the Ten Cities
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Psalm 130
A song of ascents.
Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord;
2 Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive
to my cry for mercy.
3 If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,
Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is forgiveness,
so that we can, with reverence, serve you.
5 I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
and in his word I put my hope.
6 I wait for the Lord
more than watchmen wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.
7 Israel, put your hope in the Lord,
for with the Lord is unfailing love
and with him is full redemption.
8 He himself will redeem Israel
from all their sins.
Insight
Psalm 130 is one of the pilgrim songs (Pss. 120–134) the people of Israel sang as they made their way to the temple to celebrate the three national festivals (Deut. 16:16). In this psalm, the writer was deeply distressed by his own sinfulness and earnestly cried out for God’s mercy (130:1-2). Yet, he was able to confidently affirm, “But there is forgiveness with You” (v.4). Finding hope in God’s Word (v.5) and being assured that “with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption” (v.7), he patiently waited for God’s pardon and removal of his guilt (vv.6,8). In response, he invited the congregation to fear God (v.4) and to celebrate His unmerited and undeserved grace (v.8).
Waiting . . .
By Anne Cetas
Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer. —Romans 12:12
Day after day for years Harry shared with the Lord his concern for his son-in-law John who had turned away from God. But then Harry died. A few months later, John turned back to God. When his mother-in-law Marsha told him that Harry had been praying for him every day, John replied, “I waited too long.” But Marsha joyfully shared: “The Lord is still answering the prayers Harry prayed during his earthly life.”
Harry’s story is an encouragement to us who pray and wait. He continued “steadfastly in prayer” and waited patiently (Rom. 12:12).
The author of Psalm 130 experienced waiting in prayer. He said, “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits” (v.5). He found hope in God because he knew that “with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption” (v.7).
Author Samuel Enyia wrote about God’s timing: “God does not depend on our time. Our time is chronological and linear but God . . . is timeless. He will act at the fullness of His time. Our prayer . . . may not necessarily rush God into action, but . . . places us before Him in fellowship.”
What a privilege we have to fellowship with God in prayer and to wait for the answer in the fullness of His time.
Pray on! Pray on! Cease not to pray,
And should the answer tarry, wait;
Thy God will come, will surely come,
And He can never come too late. —Chisholm
God may delay our request, but He will never disappoint our trust.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, March 28, 2014
Isn’t There Some Misunderstanding?
’Let us go to Judea again.’ The disciples said to Him, ’. . . are You going there again?’ —John 11:7-8
Just because I don’t understand what Jesus Christ says, I have no right to determine that He must be mistaken in what He says. That is a dangerous view, and it is never right to think that my obedience to God’s directive will bring dishonor to Jesus. The only thing that will bring dishonor is not obeying Him. To put my view of His honor ahead of what He is plainly guiding me to do is never right, even though it may come from a real desire to prevent Him from being put to an open shame. I know when the instructions have come from God because of their quiet persistence. But when I begin to weigh the pros and cons, and doubt and debate enter into my mind, I am bringing in an element that is not of God. This will only result in my concluding that His instructions to me were not right. Many of us are faithful to our ideas about Jesus Christ, but how many of us are faithful to Jesus Himself? Faithfulness to Jesus means that I must step out even when and where I can’t see anything (see Matthew 14:29). But faithfulness to my own ideas means that I first clear the way mentally. Faith, however, is not intellectual understanding; faith is a deliberate commitment to the Person of Jesus Christ, even when I can’t see the way ahead.
Are you debating whether you should take a step of faith in Jesus, or whether you should wait until you can clearly see how to do what He has asked? Simply obey Him with unrestrained joy. When He tells you something and you begin to debate, it is because you have a misunderstanding of what honors Him and what doesn’t. Are you faithful to Jesus, or faithful to your ideas about Him? Are you faithful to what He says, or are you trying to compromise His words with thoughts that never came from Him? “Whatever He says to you, do it ” (John 2:5).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Walking Without Support - #7100
Friday, March 28, 2014
I'll bet that you didn't know that our family has attended a movie premier together! Yep! It was actually in our living room, and I don't think it will ever win an Oscar. But it was the premier of the Hutchcraft family movies transferred to DVD! What a breakthrough! Now we can watch them with the benefit of modern technology. We watched this one movie of our oldest son learning to walk; it was a long time ago. He started out by holding onto things; coffee table, you know. Then he'd move from there and reach over so he could hold onto this couch. And the next thing you see, he's holding his sister's hand. Here's this little guy toddling around with his big sister trying to help him. Now he was walking!
It was cute to see him walk like that then. It wouldn't be cute today if he couldn't walk unless he was holding onto something. How did he learn to really walk by himself? Well, Dad was off camera encouraging him. Yep! You can't see me or hear me in the movie, but I'm over there saying, "Come on, son! Come on! Come to Daddy!" And he's looking at me, and he finally lets go of all his props, and in this victorious moment walks across the floor. It was worth the film just to have that shot! I mean, that's an important milestone in growing up. Guess what? He's been walking ever since.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Walking Without Support."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Matthew chapter 14 beginning in verse 25. The disciples are being thrown around by this terrible storm on the Sea of Galilee. And it says, "Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw Him walking on the lake, they were terrified. 'It's a ghost,' they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.' 'Lord, if it is You,' Peter replied, 'tell me to come to You on the water.' 'Come,' He said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, 'Lord, save me!' Immediately Jesus reached out His hand and caught him."
This is Peter walking where there's apparently no support like our son did as a baby. Let go of the table, let go of the couch, and walk with no other support. It looks scary, but it's a giant step forward in the things you could do with your life. Most of us insist on staying in the boat like eleven disciples did that day. Only one thought it was safe to get out, and he could only go so far with Jesus safely without taking a risk. The really powerful stuff in your life begins to happen when you step out and really live.
Right now, your Lord might be asking you to take a miracle walk with no visible means of support. He's calling you to step away from the people and the places, maybe the security you've always held on to. There are four essentials if you're going to go into a miracle walk and they're in this passage. Number one, you check with Jesus. Peter said, "Lord, if it's You." Make sure the Lord is asking you to step out of the boat. You can confirm that in prayer, through His Word, and through counsel. It doesn't matter how hard the wind is blowing if He's asking you to do it. It doesn't matter if there is no means of support. It doesn't matter if no one's ever done it before. If Jesus is asking you to do it, go for it.
Second, abandon safety. You've got to get out of the boat. You've got to get out of that safe, comfy spot you've been in. If you insist on staying in your comfort zone, you'll probably miss the beautiful will of God. Thirdly, you walk on water. Start stepping out into that new ground (or water) where you've never stepped before. And finally, focus on Jesus. Not the situation, not the wind, not the storm, not the things you fear. Do what Peter failed to do when he was halfway to Jesus. Keep dwelling on the One who called you out of the boat in the first place.
When our son finally took that risk and walked where there was no support, that was a major milestone in his growth. Now, if Jesus is asking you to do that, you're on the edge of a quantum leap in your life with Him. You are about to abandon the natural and step into the supernatural.
