Max Lucado Daily: Consequences
Today's MP3
Are there any consequences for a godless pursuit of pleasure? Is there a price for living for today? The hedonist says, "Who cares? I may be bad, but so what? What I do is my business." He is more concerned about satisfying his passions than in knowing the Father. His life is so desperate for pleasure that he has no time or room for God. He believes there is no truth beyond this room. No divine factor. Is he right? Is it okay to spend our days thumbing our noses at God and living it up? Paul says, "Absolutely not!"
According to Romans 1, we lose more than stained-glass windows when we dismiss God. We lose our standard, our purpose, and our worship. The apostle says "their thinking became useless. Their foolish minds were filled with darkness. They said they were wise, but they become fools."
From In the Grip of Grace
Exodus 34
The New Stone Tablets
The Lord said to Moses, “Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones, and I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. 2 Be ready in the morning, and then come up on Mount Sinai. Present yourself to me there on top of the mountain. 3 No one is to come with you or be seen anywhere on the mountain; not even the flocks and herds may graze in front of the mountain.”
4 So Moses chiseled out two stone tablets like the first ones and went up Mount Sinai early in the morning, as the Lord had commanded him; and he carried the two stone tablets in his hands. 5 Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. 6 And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 7 maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”
8 Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped. 9 “Lord,” he said, “if I have found favor in your eyes, then let the Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked people, forgive our wickedness and our sin, and take us as your inheritance.”
10 Then the Lord said: “I am making a covenant with you. Before all your people I will do wonders never before done in any nation in all the world. The people you live among will see how awesome is the work that I, the Lord, will do for you. 11 Obey what I command you today. I will drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 12 Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land where you are going, or they will be a snare among you. 13 Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles.[a] 14 Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
15 “Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices. 16 And when you choose some of their daughters as wives for your sons and those daughters prostitute themselves to their gods, they will lead your sons to do the same.
17 “Do not make any idols.
18 “Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread. For seven days eat bread made without yeast, as I commanded you. Do this at the appointed time in the month of Aviv, for in that month you came out of Egypt.
19 “The first offspring of every womb belongs to me, including all the firstborn males of your livestock, whether from herd or flock. 20 Redeem the firstborn donkey with a lamb, but if you do not redeem it, break its neck. Redeem all your firstborn sons.
“No one is to appear before me empty-handed.
21 “Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest.
22 “Celebrate the Festival of Weeks with the firstfruits of the wheat harvest, and the Festival of Ingathering at the turn of the year.[b] 23 Three times a year all your men are to appear before the Sovereign Lord, the God of Israel. 24 I will drive out nations before you and enlarge your territory, and no one will covet your land when you go up three times each year to appear before the Lord your God.
25 “Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice to me along with anything containing yeast, and do not let any of the sacrifice from the Passover Festival remain until morning.
26 “Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the Lord your God.
“Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.”
27 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.” 28 Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant—the Ten Commandments.
The Radiant Face of Moses
29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. 30 When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. 32 Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai.
33 When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. 34 But whenever he entered the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, 35 they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, September 04, 2014
Read: Proverbs 22:1-5
A good name is more desirable than great riches;
to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.
2 Rich and poor have this in common:
The Lord is the Maker of them all.
3 The prudent see danger and take refuge,
but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.
4 Humility is the fear of the Lord;
its wages are riches and honor and life.
5 In the paths of the wicked are snares and pitfalls,
but those who would preserve their life stay far from them.
Insight
The book of Proverbs is made up of several collections of wise sayings, with the majority coming from the pen of wise King Solomon. Solomon’s proverbs of wisdom are contained in 1:8–22:16, which are then followed by the sayings of other wise men in 22:17–24:34. More of Solomon’s wisdom, written down by Hezekiah’s men, is found in chapters 25–29. The book of wisdom closes with Agur’s wise sayings in chapter 30 and Lemuel’s words in chapter 31. All of this combines to make the book of Proverbs a comprehensive collection of the wisdom of ancient Israel.
The Barking Lion
By Poh Fang Chia
A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches. —Proverbs 22:1
Visitors to a zoo were outraged when the “African lion” started barking instead of roaring. Zoo staff said they had disguised a Tibetan mastiff—a very large dog—as a lion because they could not afford the real thing. Needless to say, the zoo’s reputation was sullied and people will think twice before visiting it.
Reputation is fragile; once it’s damaged, it’s hard to restore. It is not uncommon to sacrifice a good reputation on the altar of power, prestige, or profit. This too could be our story. Scripture encourages us: “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches” (Prov. 22:1). God is telling us that true value must be placed not in what we have but in who we are.
Ancient Greek philosopher Socrates said, “The way to gain a good reputation is to endeavor to be what you desire to appear.” As followers of Jesus, we bear His name. Because of His love for us, we strive to walk worthy of Him, reflecting His likeness in our words and deeds.
When we fail, He picks us up again by His love. By our example, others around us will be led to praise the God who has redeemed and transformed us (Matt. 5:16)—for the name of the Lord is worthy of glory, honor, and all praise.
Lord, I do want to walk worthy of Your name
because You have made me Your own. I know
I can’t live perfectly, but I want to reflect to others
a little of who You are. Please show Yourself through me.
The purest treasure mortal times afford is a spotless reputation. —Shakespeare
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, September 04, 2014
His!
They were Yours, You gave them to Me . . . —John 17:6
A missionary is someone in whom the Holy Spirit has brought about this realization: “You are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19). To say, “I am not my own,” is to have reached a high point in my spiritual stature. The true nature of that life in actual everyday confusion is evidenced by the deliberate giving up of myself to another Person through a sovereign decision, and that Person is Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit interprets and explains the nature of Jesus to me to make me one with my Lord, not that I might simply become a trophy for His showcase. Our Lord never sent any of His disciples out on the basis of what He had done for them. It was not until after the resurrection, when the disciples had perceived through the power of the Holy Spirit who Jesus really was, that He said, “Go” (Matthew 28:19; also see Luke 24:49 and Acts 1:8).
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26). He was not saying that this person cannot be good and upright, but that he cannot be someone over whom Jesus can write the word Mine. Any one of the relationships our Lord mentions in this verse can compete with our relationship with Him. I may prefer to belong to my mother, or to my wife, or to myself, but if that is the case, then, Jesus said, “[You] cannot be My disciple.” This does not mean that I will not be saved, but it does mean that I cannot be entirely His.
Our Lord makes His disciple His very own possession, becoming responsible for him. “. . . you shall be witnesses to Me . . .” (Acts 1:8). The desire that comes into a disciple is not one of doing anything for Jesus, but of being a perfect delight to Him. The missionary’s secret is truly being able to say, “I am His, and He is accomplishing His work and His purposes through me.”
Be entirely His!
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, September 04, 2014
Only When the Wind is With You - #7214
I've been a New York Giants fan for quite a while, and that's been a loyalty that has taken me from the depths of a season with only three wins to the pinnacle of winning the Super Bowl and a lot of seasons in-between there. But I'm a happy camper any time they make the playoffs at the end of a season like any fan would be.
There was one playoff game I remember that had an element that added a little extra excitement; a third opponent - the wind. The Giants were playing the Minnesota Vikings and there was a 26mph wind. That kind of resistance makes it pretty tough to throw the ball or kick the ball if your team's going that direction. Well, it's a good thing both teams get two quarters going against the wind. Oh, by the way, the Giants won. I had to tell you that. Now, the commentators were evaluating this unique weather factor at halftime. One of them summed it up pretty well. He said, "You can only score when the wind is with you."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Only When the Wind is With You."
We're in our word for today from the Word of God from Psalm 127:1-2, "Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late toiling for food to eat." The Bible makes it very clear here and many other places that the deciding factor in success or failure is not the hours you spend, or the sweat you expend, or the number of people involved, not how early you start, not how late you work, not how well you plan. No, the deciding factor is the blessing factor.
This verse talks about two arenas that we work pretty hard on; something or someone that we want to build and something we want to protect. And it says all your efforts are a waste of time if you don't have the Lord on your side building and guarding. The Lord is the wind who decides the outcome. Jesus even described the Holy Spirit as being like a wind in John 3. You can be playing very hard, trying to make progress, but if you're going against the wind and you don't have God's blessing, you're going to get tired and you're going to get frustrated. But if you have the wind; if you have God's blessing, those very same efforts by the very same people will succeed.
Bob Pierce, the Founder of World Vision used to pray this way. I love it, "Lord, we ask not that You bless what we do, but that we do what You bless." That's going with the wind of God. So the single most important thing you can do to win is to make sure you are doing everything God's way.
Hudson Taylor, the Founder of the China Inland Mission said, "God's work done in God's way will never lack God's supply." So we need to be asking questions like these: Have we spent enough time in prayer and God's Word to know that this endeavor is His idea? Are we telling the truth in everything we do? Are we going the extra mile to ensure that everything is done with the highest possible integrity? Am I neglecting my family for this? Am I neglecting my time with Jesus for this? Am I neglecting the work of God for this? Are people treated right or am I putting schedules and projects ahead of people?
You can probably think of some other questions, but you get the point: You have to be doing things with the values of Christ to have the blessing of Christ. And if you don't have His blessing, you can turn off the alarm clock, knock off early and cancel the program. Before you set a goal, or make a plan, or get some help, or look for money, be sure the Lord is in it; that it's His time and you're doing it His way.
Remember, success depends on the wind of God. You can only score when the wind is with you.