Max Lucado Daily: More Dinghy than Cruise Ship?
Are you more dinghy. . .than cruise ship? Or in my case, more blue jeans than blue blood? Well congratulations, God changes the world with folks like you!
The next time you say, “I don’t think God could use me!”—stop right there! Satan’s going to try to tell you that God has an IQ requirement. That he employs only experts and high-powered personalities. When you hear Satan whispering that lie—hit him with this: God stampeded the first-century society with swaybacks, not thoroughbreds. Before Jesus came along, the disciples were loading trucks, coaching soccer, and selling Slurpee drinks at the convenience store!
But what they had going for them was a willingness to take a step when Jesus said, “Follow me.”
So what do you think? More plumber than executive? More stand-in than movie star? Yeah—congratulations! God uses people like you…and me.
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. Matthew 16:24?
From Max on Life
Numbers 9
The Passover
The Lord spoke to Moses in the Desert of Sinai in the first month of the second year after they came out of Egypt. He said, 2 “Have the Israelites celebrate the Passover at the appointed time. 3 Celebrate it at the appointed time, at twilight on the fourteenth day of this month, in accordance with all its rules and regulations.”
4 So Moses told the Israelites to celebrate the Passover, 5 and they did so in the Desert of Sinai at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. The Israelites did everything just as the Lord commanded Moses.
6 But some of them could not celebrate the Passover on that day because they were ceremonially unclean on account of a dead body. So they came to Moses and Aaron that same day 7 and said to Moses, “We have become unclean because of a dead body, but why should we be kept from presenting the Lord’s offering with the other Israelites at the appointed time?”
8 Moses answered them, “Wait until I find out what the Lord commands concerning you.”
9 Then the Lord said to Moses, 10 “Tell the Israelites: ‘When any of you or your descendants are unclean because of a dead body or are away on a journey, they are still to celebrate the Lord’s Passover, 11 but they are to do it on the fourteenth day of the second month at twilight. They are to eat the lamb, together with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12 They must not leave any of it till morning or break any of its bones. When they celebrate the Passover, they must follow all the regulations. 13 But if anyone who is ceremonially clean and not on a journey fails to celebrate the Passover, they must be cut off from their people for not presenting the Lord’s offering at the appointed time. They will bear the consequences of their sin.
14 “‘A foreigner residing among you is also to celebrate the Lord’s Passover in accordance with its rules and regulations. You must have the same regulations for both the foreigner and the native-born.’”
The Cloud Above the Tabernacle
15 On the day the tabernacle, the tent of the covenant law, was set up, the cloud covered it. From evening till morning the cloud above the tabernacle looked like fire. 16 That is how it continued to be; the cloud covered it, and at night it looked like fire. 17 Whenever the cloud lifted from above the tent, the Israelites set out; wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped. 18 At the Lord’s command the Israelites set out, and at his command they encamped. As long as the cloud stayed over the tabernacle, they remained in camp. 19 When the cloud remained over the tabernacle a long time, the Israelites obeyed the Lord’s order and did not set out. 20 Sometimes the cloud was over the tabernacle only a few days; at the Lord’s command they would encamp, and then at his command they would set out. 21 Sometimes the cloud stayed only from evening till morning, and when it lifted in the morning, they set out. Whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud lifted, they set out. 22 Whether the cloud stayed over the tabernacle for two days or a month or a year, the Israelites would remain in camp and not set out; but when it lifted, they would set out. 23 At the Lord’s command they encamped, and at the Lord’s command they set out. They obeyed the Lord’s order, in accordance with his command through Moses.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, November 08, 2014
Read: Hebrews 5:5-14
That is why Christ did not honor himself by assuming he could become High Priest. No, he was chosen by God, who said to him,
“You are my Son.
Today I have become your Father.[a]”
6 And in another passage God said to him,
“You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.”[b]
7 While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence for God. 8 Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. 9 In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him. 10 And God designated him to be a High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.
A Call to Spiritual Growth
11 There is much more we would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since you are spiritually dull and don’t seem to listen. 12 You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word.[c] You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. 13 For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. 14 Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.
Footnotes:
5:5 Or Today I reveal you as my Son. Ps 2:7.
5:6 Ps 110:4.
5:12 Or about the oracles of God.
Insight
Today’s passage encourages readers toward maturity in Christ. Far from urging detailed knowledge of difficult Bible passages or in-depth understanding of doctrine, the writer says that “full age” is characterized by something straightforward and practical. It is being able “to discern both good and evil” (v.14).
Oranges Or Milk?
By Jennifer Benson Schuldt
Solid food belongs to those who are of full age. —Hebrews 5:14
When I told my young daughter that a 3-month-old baby boy was coming to our house for a visit, she was delighted. With a child’s sense of hospitality, she suggested that we share some of our food with the baby; she thought he might enjoy a juicy orange from the bowl on our kitchen counter. I explained that the baby could drink only milk, but that he might like oranges when he was older.
The Bible uses a similar concept to describe a believer’s need for spiritual food. The basic truths of Scripture are like milk—they help new Christians thrive and grow (1 Peter 2:2-3). In contrast, “Solid food belongs to those who are of full age” (Heb. 5:14). Believers who have had time to digest and understand the basics can move on to investigate other biblical concepts and begin to teach others these truths. The rewards of spiritual maturity are discernment (v.14), godly wisdom (1 Cor. 2:6), and the ability to communicate God’s truth to others (Heb. 5:12).
Like a loving parent, God wants us to grow spiritually. He knows that feeding only on spiritual milk is not in our best interest. He wants us to move on so we can enjoy the taste of solid food.
Dear Lord, please deepen my understanding
of Your Word. Let Your Holy Spirit guide
me and enlighten my heart as I pursue Your
truth so that I might walk in Your ways.
Spiritual growth occurs when faith is cultivated.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Saturday, November 08, 2014
The Unrivaled Power of Prayer
We do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. —Romans 8:26
We realize that we are energized by the Holy Spirit for prayer; and we know what it is to pray in accordance with the Spirit; but we don’t often realize that the Holy Spirit Himself prays prayers in us which we cannot utter ourselves. When we are born again of God and are indwelt by the Spirit of God, He expresses for us the unutterable.
“He,” the Holy Spirit in you, “makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:27). And God searches your heart, not to know what your conscious prayers are, but to find out what the prayer of the Holy Spirit is.
The Spirit of God uses the nature of the believer as a temple in which to offer His prayers of intercession. “…your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit…” (1 Corinthians 6:19). When Jesus Christ cleansed the temple, “…He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple” (Mark 11:16). The Spirit of God will not allow you to use your body for your own convenience. Jesus ruthlessly cast out everyone who bought and sold in the temple, and said, “My house shall be called a house of prayer…. But you have made it a ‘den of thieves’ ” (Mark 11:17).
Have we come to realize that our “body is the temple of the Holy Spirit”? If so, we must be careful to keep it undefiled for Him. We have to remember that our conscious life, even though only a small part of our total person, is to be regarded by us as a “temple of the Holy Spirit.” He will be responsible for the unconscious part which we don’t know, but we must pay careful attention to and guard the conscious part for which we are responsible.
Friday, November 7, 2014
Mark 13:21-37 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Your Suffering is Your Sermon
Sickness and sin still stalk our planet. But here’s the difference: neither sin nor sickness will have dominion over God’s people. He is in charge! So if you are sick, cry out to Jesus! Talk to him about your stomach, your skin, your headaches. After all, he owns you. Scripture says your body was “bought at a price.”
Do the same with your emotions. Did someone molest you? Did you abort a baby or abandon a child? If so, you likely need inner healing. He will heal you—instantly or gradually. Our highest hope, however, is in our ultimate healing. 1 John 3:2 promises that “when He is revealed, we shall be like him.”
In the meantime, before amen—comes the power of a simple prayer! Your suffering is your sermon.
From Before Amen
Mark 13:21-37
At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. 22 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 23 So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time.
24 “But in those days, following that distress,
“‘the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
25 the stars will fall from the sky,
and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’[a]
26 “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.
28 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it[b] is near, right at the door. 30 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
The Day and Hour Unknown
32 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard! Be alert[c]! You do not know when that time will come. 34 It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.
35 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”
Footnotes:
Mark 13:25 Isaiah 13:10; 34:4
Mark 13:29 Or he
Mark 13:33 Some manuscripts alert and pray
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, November 07, 2014
Read: Revelation 22:1-5
hen the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit,[a] with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.
3 No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. 4 And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. 5 And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.
Footnotes:
22:2 Or twelve kinds of fruit.
Insight
In some translations of the Bible, the book of Revelation is entitled “The Revelation of St. John,” giving attention to the human author John, one of the disciples of Jesus. This title, however, is inaccurate. In Revelation 1:1, we read, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John.” This is significant because the word revelation means “a revealing or unveiling.” The primary purpose of the book is to give us an unveiling of Christ Himself. Interestingly, that unveiling reveals Jesus to be the Lamb of God, and the word lamb appears in Revelation more than 25 times.
Multiply It
By Anne Cetas
There shall be no more curse. —Revelation 22:3
Amy had battled cancer for 5 years. Then the doctor told her that the treatments were failing and she had just a few weeks to live. Wanting some understanding and assurance about eternity, Amy asked her pastor, “What will heaven be like?”
He asked her what she liked most about her life on earth. She talked about walks and rainbows and caring friends and the laughter of children. “So, then, are you saying I will have all of that there?” she asked longingly.
Amy’s pastor replied, “I believe that your life there will be far more beautiful and amazing than anything you ever loved or experienced here. Think about what’s best here for you and multiply it over and over and over. That’s what I think heaven will be.”
The Bible doesn’t describe in detail what life in eternity will be like, but it does tell us that being with Christ in heaven is “far better” than our present circumstance (Phil. 1:23). “There shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him” (Rev. 22:3).
Best of all, we will see the Lord Jesus face to face. Our deepest yearnings will be fully satisfied in Him.
We’re thankful, Lord, for Your presence now
in our lives. But what an amazing day it will be
when we meet You face to face!
Life with You in heaven will be greater by far.
To be with Jesus forever is the sum of all happiness.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, November 07, 2014
The Undetected Sacredness of Circumstances
We know that all things work together for good to those who love God… —Romans 8:28
The circumstances of a saint’s life are ordained of God. In the life of a saint there is no such thing as chance. God by His providence brings you into circumstances that you can’t understand at all, but the Spirit of God understands. God brings you to places, among people, and into certain conditions to accomplish a definite purpose through the intercession of the Spirit in you. Never put yourself in front of your circumstances and say, “I’m going to be my own providence here; I will watch this closely, or protect myself from that.” All your circumstances are in the hand of God, and therefore you don’t ever have to think they are unnatural or unique. Your part in intercessory prayer is not to agonize over how to intercede, but to use the everyday circumstances and people God puts around you by His providence to bring them before His throne, and to allow the Spirit in you the opportunity to intercede for them. In this way God is going to touch the whole world with His saints.
Am I making the Holy Spirit’s work difficult by being vague and unsure, or by trying to do His work for Him? I must do the human side of intercession— utilizing the circumstances in which I find myself and the people who surround me. I must keep my conscious life as a sacred place for the Holy Spirit. Then as I lift different ones to God through prayer, the Holy Spirit intercedes for them.
Your intercessions can never be mine, and my intercessions can never be yours, “…but the Spirit Himself makes intercession” in each of our lives (Romans 8:26). And without that intercession, the lives of others would be left in poverty and in ruin.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, November 07, 2014
CRUEL COMPASSION - #7260
When our daughter was just a baby we had a pretty small house where you could look in all the rooms from the kitchen. During the summer we had this big old exhaust fan on the floor in the kitchen, which was really the only way to suck some air through the house. Well, our daughter thought this fan was kind of intriguing, she thought it would be neat to explore. I had no idea how attracted she was going to be to it. I walked into the kitchen one day and here she is toddling toward that fan with her hand fully extended. She wanted to put her fingers in the fan! Guess what I didn't say – "oh go ahead honey, I love you. No I said, "No!" She tried again a few minutes later. She really wanted to do this. So I kind of spatted her on the bottom and said, "No, no! Don't do that." Now if I tried to explain it to this little toddler, she wouldn't have understood it at all. But I had to stop her. I knew what would happen if she went ahead with it. Can't you imagine what she would've said, if she could've said, "Haven't you heard of love? If you love me, you'll let me do what I really want to do." No, not in this case. Today I think she's very glad I didn't think that was love.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Cruel Compassion."
Our word for today from the Word of God, we're in the book of Lamentations. And what's being lamented is the fall of God's people and the fall of God's city, Jerusalem. Here's a couple things that Jeremiah says. He's talking about Jerusalem, "She was once queen among the provinces and is now become a slave, all because of their sin and God's resulting judgment." He goes on to say that, "She herself groans and turns away."
It's just a time of sadness and shame for God's people. It's a broken time. Well, as this book identifies where the blame ultimately lay, it gets to our word for today from the Word of God. And in many ways it identifies some of the mess that we're in in our world today as well. It says in Lamentations 2:14, "The visions of your prophets were false and worthless. They did not expose your sin to ward off your captivity. The oracles they gave you were false and misleading."
There's a lot of power in those words because it's saying that the people who knew you were sinning didn't do anything to expose the wrongness, the sinfulness of it. And as a result, they didn't tell you the consequences of staying on that road. So they didn't ward off their captivity. Those people back then didn't do any favor to those people by not telling them where God says those actions would take them. In other words, you wanted to stick your fingers in the fan and they didn't stop you. Now, they maybe didn't want to judge anybody. They wanted to be tolerant and loving, and not condemning. That's nice. But then they let them walk right into the blades of God's judgment. See, it's not loving to not let people see where their sin will take them.
To be non-condemning and loving doesn't mean that we don't tell them what God says the consequences will be. To live and let live when it comes to sin is not really compassion. I was told by a couple of men who used to live in a homosexual lifestyle and felt that Christ had given them the power to change and move on from that, they were commenting on people who say, "you know, I think we should just accept them and let them be themselves." And they said "Ron, that's not compassion." They said "We call that cruel compassion." It's letting them march right into captivity.
Well listen, whether it's sexual sin, or divorce, or dishonesty, or anger, or "justifiable bitterness," if we leave it unconfronted, unchallenged, without telling them the consequences and what God says he must judge, it's not compassion. It's letting a person take a drink you know is laced with poison.
Sin makes people slaves. It destroys families, it destroys friendships. It promises to make you feel better about yourself and leaves you feeling worthless, sometimes even suicidal. Sin cuts people off from each other, cuts them off from God. Compassion is doing everything you can to warn them of the wages of sin. We've got to love people enough to kindly, gently, lovingly tell them the truth.
Love will always stand in the way of someone who is about to stick their fingers in the fan.
Sickness and sin still stalk our planet. But here’s the difference: neither sin nor sickness will have dominion over God’s people. He is in charge! So if you are sick, cry out to Jesus! Talk to him about your stomach, your skin, your headaches. After all, he owns you. Scripture says your body was “bought at a price.”
Do the same with your emotions. Did someone molest you? Did you abort a baby or abandon a child? If so, you likely need inner healing. He will heal you—instantly or gradually. Our highest hope, however, is in our ultimate healing. 1 John 3:2 promises that “when He is revealed, we shall be like him.”
In the meantime, before amen—comes the power of a simple prayer! Your suffering is your sermon.
From Before Amen
Mark 13:21-37
At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. 22 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 23 So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time.
24 “But in those days, following that distress,
“‘the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
25 the stars will fall from the sky,
and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’[a]
26 “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.
28 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it[b] is near, right at the door. 30 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
The Day and Hour Unknown
32 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard! Be alert[c]! You do not know when that time will come. 34 It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.
35 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”
Footnotes:
Mark 13:25 Isaiah 13:10; 34:4
Mark 13:29 Or he
Mark 13:33 Some manuscripts alert and pray
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, November 07, 2014
Read: Revelation 22:1-5
hen the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit,[a] with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.
3 No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. 4 And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. 5 And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.
Footnotes:
22:2 Or twelve kinds of fruit.
Insight
In some translations of the Bible, the book of Revelation is entitled “The Revelation of St. John,” giving attention to the human author John, one of the disciples of Jesus. This title, however, is inaccurate. In Revelation 1:1, we read, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John.” This is significant because the word revelation means “a revealing or unveiling.” The primary purpose of the book is to give us an unveiling of Christ Himself. Interestingly, that unveiling reveals Jesus to be the Lamb of God, and the word lamb appears in Revelation more than 25 times.
Multiply It
By Anne Cetas
There shall be no more curse. —Revelation 22:3
Amy had battled cancer for 5 years. Then the doctor told her that the treatments were failing and she had just a few weeks to live. Wanting some understanding and assurance about eternity, Amy asked her pastor, “What will heaven be like?”
He asked her what she liked most about her life on earth. She talked about walks and rainbows and caring friends and the laughter of children. “So, then, are you saying I will have all of that there?” she asked longingly.
Amy’s pastor replied, “I believe that your life there will be far more beautiful and amazing than anything you ever loved or experienced here. Think about what’s best here for you and multiply it over and over and over. That’s what I think heaven will be.”
The Bible doesn’t describe in detail what life in eternity will be like, but it does tell us that being with Christ in heaven is “far better” than our present circumstance (Phil. 1:23). “There shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him” (Rev. 22:3).
Best of all, we will see the Lord Jesus face to face. Our deepest yearnings will be fully satisfied in Him.
We’re thankful, Lord, for Your presence now
in our lives. But what an amazing day it will be
when we meet You face to face!
Life with You in heaven will be greater by far.
To be with Jesus forever is the sum of all happiness.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, November 07, 2014
The Undetected Sacredness of Circumstances
We know that all things work together for good to those who love God… —Romans 8:28
The circumstances of a saint’s life are ordained of God. In the life of a saint there is no such thing as chance. God by His providence brings you into circumstances that you can’t understand at all, but the Spirit of God understands. God brings you to places, among people, and into certain conditions to accomplish a definite purpose through the intercession of the Spirit in you. Never put yourself in front of your circumstances and say, “I’m going to be my own providence here; I will watch this closely, or protect myself from that.” All your circumstances are in the hand of God, and therefore you don’t ever have to think they are unnatural or unique. Your part in intercessory prayer is not to agonize over how to intercede, but to use the everyday circumstances and people God puts around you by His providence to bring them before His throne, and to allow the Spirit in you the opportunity to intercede for them. In this way God is going to touch the whole world with His saints.
Am I making the Holy Spirit’s work difficult by being vague and unsure, or by trying to do His work for Him? I must do the human side of intercession— utilizing the circumstances in which I find myself and the people who surround me. I must keep my conscious life as a sacred place for the Holy Spirit. Then as I lift different ones to God through prayer, the Holy Spirit intercedes for them.
Your intercessions can never be mine, and my intercessions can never be yours, “…but the Spirit Himself makes intercession” in each of our lives (Romans 8:26). And without that intercession, the lives of others would be left in poverty and in ruin.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, November 07, 2014
CRUEL COMPASSION - #7260
When our daughter was just a baby we had a pretty small house where you could look in all the rooms from the kitchen. During the summer we had this big old exhaust fan on the floor in the kitchen, which was really the only way to suck some air through the house. Well, our daughter thought this fan was kind of intriguing, she thought it would be neat to explore. I had no idea how attracted she was going to be to it. I walked into the kitchen one day and here she is toddling toward that fan with her hand fully extended. She wanted to put her fingers in the fan! Guess what I didn't say – "oh go ahead honey, I love you. No I said, "No!" She tried again a few minutes later. She really wanted to do this. So I kind of spatted her on the bottom and said, "No, no! Don't do that." Now if I tried to explain it to this little toddler, she wouldn't have understood it at all. But I had to stop her. I knew what would happen if she went ahead with it. Can't you imagine what she would've said, if she could've said, "Haven't you heard of love? If you love me, you'll let me do what I really want to do." No, not in this case. Today I think she's very glad I didn't think that was love.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Cruel Compassion."
Our word for today from the Word of God, we're in the book of Lamentations. And what's being lamented is the fall of God's people and the fall of God's city, Jerusalem. Here's a couple things that Jeremiah says. He's talking about Jerusalem, "She was once queen among the provinces and is now become a slave, all because of their sin and God's resulting judgment." He goes on to say that, "She herself groans and turns away."
It's just a time of sadness and shame for God's people. It's a broken time. Well, as this book identifies where the blame ultimately lay, it gets to our word for today from the Word of God. And in many ways it identifies some of the mess that we're in in our world today as well. It says in Lamentations 2:14, "The visions of your prophets were false and worthless. They did not expose your sin to ward off your captivity. The oracles they gave you were false and misleading."
There's a lot of power in those words because it's saying that the people who knew you were sinning didn't do anything to expose the wrongness, the sinfulness of it. And as a result, they didn't tell you the consequences of staying on that road. So they didn't ward off their captivity. Those people back then didn't do any favor to those people by not telling them where God says those actions would take them. In other words, you wanted to stick your fingers in the fan and they didn't stop you. Now, they maybe didn't want to judge anybody. They wanted to be tolerant and loving, and not condemning. That's nice. But then they let them walk right into the blades of God's judgment. See, it's not loving to not let people see where their sin will take them.
To be non-condemning and loving doesn't mean that we don't tell them what God says the consequences will be. To live and let live when it comes to sin is not really compassion. I was told by a couple of men who used to live in a homosexual lifestyle and felt that Christ had given them the power to change and move on from that, they were commenting on people who say, "you know, I think we should just accept them and let them be themselves." And they said "Ron, that's not compassion." They said "We call that cruel compassion." It's letting them march right into captivity.
Well listen, whether it's sexual sin, or divorce, or dishonesty, or anger, or "justifiable bitterness," if we leave it unconfronted, unchallenged, without telling them the consequences and what God says he must judge, it's not compassion. It's letting a person take a drink you know is laced with poison.
Sin makes people slaves. It destroys families, it destroys friendships. It promises to make you feel better about yourself and leaves you feeling worthless, sometimes even suicidal. Sin cuts people off from each other, cuts them off from God. Compassion is doing everything you can to warn them of the wages of sin. We've got to love people enough to kindly, gently, lovingly tell them the truth.
Love will always stand in the way of someone who is about to stick their fingers in the fan.
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