Max Lucado Daily: Prayers Aren’t Graded
Jesus downplayed the importance of words in prayers. We tend to do the opposite. The more words the better! We emphasize the appropriate prayer language, the latest prayer trend, the holiest prayer terminology. Against all this emphasis on syllables and rituals, Jesus says in Matthew 6:7: “Don’t ramble like heathens who talk a lot.” There’s no panel of angelic judges with numbered cards.
“Wow, Lucado, that prayer was a ten. God will certainly hear you!”
“Oh, Lucado, you scored a two this morning. Go home and practice.”
Prayers aren’t graded according to style. If prayer depends on how I pray, I’m sunk. But if the power of prayer depends on the One who hears the prayer, then I have hope.
Before Amen
Leviticus 24
Olive Oil and Bread Set Before the Lord
The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Command the Israelites to bring you clear oil of pressed olives for the light so that the lamps may be kept burning continually. 3 Outside the curtain that shields the ark of the covenant law in the tent of meeting, Aaron is to tend the lamps before the Lord from evening till morning, continually. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. 4 The lamps on the pure gold lampstand before the Lord must be tended continually.
5 “Take the finest flour and bake twelve loaves of bread, using two-tenths of an ephah[f] for each loaf. 6 Arrange them in two stacks, six in each stack, on the table of pure gold before the Lord. 7 By each stack put some pure incense as a memorial[g] portion to represent the bread and to be a food offering presented to the Lord. 8 This bread is to be set out before the Lord regularly, Sabbath after Sabbath, on behalf of the Israelites, as a lasting covenant. 9 It belongs to Aaron and his sons, who are to eat it in the sanctuary area, because it is a most holy part of their perpetual share of the food offerings presented to the Lord.”
A Blasphemer Put to Death
10 Now the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite. 11 The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse; so they brought him to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri the Danite.) 12 They put him in custody until the will of the Lord should be made clear to them.
13 Then the Lord said to Moses: 14 “Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him. 15 Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who curses their God will be held responsible; 16 anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death. The entire assembly must stone them. Whether foreigner or native-born, when they blaspheme the Name they are to be put to death.
17 “‘Anyone who takes the life of a human being is to be put to death. 18 Anyone who takes the life of someone’s animal must make restitution—life for life. 19 Anyone who injures their neighbor is to be injured in the same manner: 20 fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. The one who has inflicted the injury must suffer the same injury. 21 Whoever kills an animal must make restitution, but whoever kills a human being is to be put to death. 22 You are to have the same law for the foreigner and the native-born. I am the Lord your God.’”
23 Then Moses spoke to the Israelites, and they took the blasphemer outside the camp and stoned him. The Israelites did as the Lord commanded Moses.
Leviticus 24:5 That is, probably about 7 pounds or about 3.2 kilograms
Leviticus 24:7 Or representative
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, October 20, 2014
Read: Proverbs 15:1-23
A gentle answer deflects anger,
but harsh words make tempers flare.
2 The tongue of the wise makes knowledge appealing,
but the mouth of a fool belches out foolishness.
3 The Lord is watching everywhere,
keeping his eye on both the evil and the good.
4 Gentle words are a tree of life;
a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.
5 Only a fool despises a parent’s[a] discipline;
whoever learns from correction is wise.
6 There is treasure in the house of the godly,
but the earnings of the wicked bring trouble.
7 The lips of the wise give good advice;
the heart of a fool has none to give.
8 The Lord detests the sacrifice of the wicked,
but he delights in the prayers of the upright.
9 The Lord detests the way of the wicked,
but he loves those who pursue godliness.
10 Whoever abandons the right path will be severely disciplined;
whoever hates correction will die.
11 Even Death and Destruction[b] hold no secrets from the Lord.
How much more does he know the human heart!
12 Mockers hate to be corrected,
so they stay away from the wise.
13 A glad heart makes a happy face;
a broken heart crushes the spirit.
14 A wise person is hungry for knowledge,
while the fool feeds on trash.
15 For the despondent, every day brings trouble;
for the happy heart, life is a continual feast.
16 Better to have little, with fear for the Lord,
than to have great treasure and inner turmoil.
17 A bowl of vegetables with someone you love
is better than steak with someone you hate.
18 A hot-tempered person starts fights;
a cool-tempered person stops them.
19 A lazy person’s way is blocked with briers,
but the path of the upright is an open highway.
20 Sensible children bring joy to their father;
foolish children despise their mother.
21 Foolishness brings joy to those with no sense;
a sensible person stays on the right path.
22 Plans go wrong for lack of advice;
many advisers bring success.
23 Everyone enjoys a fitting reply;
it is wonderful to say the right thing at the right time!
Footnotes:
15:5 Hebrew father’s.
15:11 Hebrew Sheol and Abaddon.
Insight
A major theme in Proverbs concerns the use of our tongues (10:19-21; 12:18, 13:3; 17:27-28; 18:6-8; 25:11; 26:18-22). Proverbs 15 warns of the consequences of using wrong words and the benefits of using right words. A wise person is carefully restrained and judicious when speaking (vv.2,7,28).
A War Of Words
By David C. McCasland
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. —Proverbs 15:1
On July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia in response to the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie. Within 90 days, other European countries had taken sides to honor their military alliances and pursue their own ambitions. A single event escalated into World War I, one of the most destructive military conflicts of modern time.
The tragedy of war is staggering, yet our relationships and families can begin to fracture with only a few hateful words. James wrote, “See how great a forest a little fire kindles!” (James 3:5). A key to avoiding verbal conflict is found in Proverbs: “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (15:1).
A small comment can start a large fight. When we, by God’s grace, choose not to retaliate with our words, we honor Jesus our Savior. When He was abused and insulted, He fulfilled the prophetic words of Isaiah, “He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth” (Isa. 53:7).
Proverbs urges us to speak the truth and seek peace through our words. “A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, . . . and a word spoken in due season, how good it is!” (15:4,23).
A careless word may kindle strife,
A cruel word may wreck a life;
A timely word may lessen stress,
A loving word may heal and bless. —Anon.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, October 20, 2014
Is God’s Will My Will?
This is the will of God, your sanctification . . . —1 Thessalonians 4:3
Sanctification is not a question of whether God is willing to sanctify me— is it my will? Am I willing to let God do in me everything that has been made possible through the atonement of the Cross of Christ? Am I willing to let Jesus become sanctification to me, and to let His life be exhibited in my human flesh? (see 1 Corinthians 1:30). Beware of saying, “Oh, I am longing to be sanctified.” No, you are not. Recognize your need, but stop longing and make it a matter of action. Receive Jesus Christ to become sanctification for you by absolute, unquestioning faith, and the great miracle of the atonement of Jesus will become real in you.
All that Jesus made possible becomes mine through the free and loving gift of God on the basis of what Christ accomplished on the cross. And my attitude as a saved and sanctified soul is that of profound, humble holiness (there is no such thing as proud holiness). It is a holiness based on agonizing repentance, a sense of inexpressible shame and degradation, and also on the amazing realization that the love of God demonstrated itself to me while I cared nothing about Him (see Romans 5:8). He completed everything for my salvation and sanctification. No wonder Paul said that nothing “shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).
Sanctification makes me one with Jesus Christ, and in Him one with God, and it is accomplished only through the magnificent atonement of Christ. Never confuse the effect with the cause. The effect in me is obedience, service, and prayer, and is the outcome of inexpressible thanks and adoration for the miraculous sanctification that has been brought about in me because of the atonement through the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, October 20, 2014
Where Are the Bullets? - #7246
There are certain times of the year when the lawn grows like the set of a Tarzan movie. I remember a time when we had been gone for two or three weeks. We came home and saw the lawn taking over the neighborhood. Now, my youngest son had been very, very busy that summer. But finally he was available on this day when it was desperately needed. So he said, "OK, the lawn's high." He and the mower are outside ready to go. And then I was waiting for the beautiful music of that mower running-nothing. Why? My son came in and said, "Dad, I tried everything. That mower isn't working." Oh, man, it was frustrating. There was the need, here's the worker. Where's the tool?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Where Are the Bullets?"
In a moment, we'll look at our word for today from the Word of God which is in chapter 1 of the Old Testament book of Haggai. But first, let me just tell you, there are some disturbing trends that a lot of us have seen. Career missionaries are taking longer each year to raise their support. They can't find enough people to give. Denominations have missionary candidates ready to go, but no funds to send them. Increasingly, churches are decreasing their missionary budgets to spend more right here at home. You can offer a class in missions or sharing Christ, and often it will be very sparsely attended.
It's like my son with the lawn mower. There's the need, there's the worker, but no tool to do it with. The money's not there. Now, this has got to be heartbreaking to a God who sacrificed His one and only Son for this world. We're even looking at a time where increasingly mission budgets are being cut back and less and less is being spent on a lost world and more and more on us right here.
All right, here's our word for today from the Word of God that will tell you what's happening. It was happening back then; it's happening now. Haggai 1:5. "This is what the Lord Almighty says, 'Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much but harvested little. You reap but never have enough. You drink but you never have your fill. You put on clothes but you're not warm. You earn wages only to put them in a purse with holes in it."
He's talking about people who are successful but they're restless. And in verse 7, "This is what the Lord Almighty says, 'Give careful thought to your ways.'" Now, he's talking here about the need and His command to rebuild His temple. He says, "'Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build a house so I may have pleasure in it and be honored. You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home I blew away. Why?' declares the Lord. 'Because of My house (get this) which remains in ruins while each of you is busy with his own house.'" Wow! Those are the words that nail me, "Busy with your own house."
Could it be we've been putting our best into our kingdom and leaving Him with the leftovers? Our friend who was giving a substantial gift to the Lord's work said, "Ron, I have to give this. What would happen if God had a soldier at the front line and there's the enemy. And the soldier's got his gun, he's trained, he's ready to fight, and suddenly he says, "Wait a minute! Where's the bullets? They didn't give me any bullets."
You know, that's what is happening to the work of God in this country and around the world. It's like the day we needed something to mow the lawn. We had a need; we had a worker, but no equipment to do the job. In many places today the work of God is standing paralyzed and limited because somebody isn't sending the bullets.
We could be in the final battle for people's lives before Christ comes back. And you've been trusted with some of God's ammunition. That's not for you to sit on, to build your own house. This is no time for men and women on the front lines to be without bullets.
Make this your battle. God's battles then become your battles as well. Commit to seeing that the front line soldiers have the ammunition they need.
