Max Lucado Daily: God's Translator
When he walked this earth, Jesus was so in sync with the Father that he could say in John 14:11, "I am in the Father and the Father is in me." It was if he heard a voice that was missing.
Remember when everyone was distraught about Lazarus's illness? Jesus wasn't. Rather than hurry to his friend's bedside, he said, "This sickness will not end in death. It is for the glory of God." Jesus had unbroken communion with his Father. It was as if Jesus could hear what no one else could. How could a relationship be more intimate?
Do you suppose the Father desires the same for us? Absolutely! God desires the same abiding intimacy with you that he had with his Son. Paul says in Romans 8:29 that we have been "predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son."
From Just Like Jesus
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, April 20, 2015
1 Samuel 12
Samuel’s Farewell Speech
Samuel said to all Israel, “I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you. 2 Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. 3 Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the Lord and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these things, I will make it right.”
4 “You have not cheated or oppressed us,” they replied. “You have not taken anything from anyone’s hand.”
5 Samuel said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.”
“He is witness,” they said.
6 Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your ancestors up out of Egypt. 7 Now then, stand here, because I am going to confront you with evidence before the Lord as to all the righteous acts performed by the Lord for you and your ancestors.
8 “After Jacob entered Egypt, they cried to the Lord for help, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place.
9 “But they forgot the Lord their God; so he sold them into the hand of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines and the king of Moab, who fought against them. 10 They cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned; we have forsaken the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.’ 11 Then the Lord sent Jerub-Baal,[c] Barak,[d] Jephthah and Samuel,[e] and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies all around you, so that you lived in safety.
12 “But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we want a king to rule over us’—even though the Lord your God was your king. 13 Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the Lord has set a king over you. 14 If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God—good! 15 But if you do not obey the Lord, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your ancestors.
16 “Now then, stand still and see this great thing the Lord is about to do before your eyes! 17 Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call on the Lord to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the Lord when you asked for a king.”
18 Then Samuel called on the Lord, and that same day the Lord sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the Lord and of Samuel.
19 The people all said to Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king.”
20 “Do not be afraid,” Samuel replied. “You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. 21 Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. 22 For the sake of his great name the Lord will not reject his people, because the Lord was pleased to make you his own. 23 As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. 24 But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. 25 Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will perish.”
1 Samuel 12:11 Also called Gideon
1 Samuel 12:11 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac; Hebrew Bedan
1 Samuel 12:11 Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac Samson
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, April 20, 2015
Read: Luke 15:11-24
Parable of the Lost Son
To illustrate the point further, Jesus told them this story: “A man had two sons. 12 The younger son told his father, ‘I want my share of your estate now before you die.’ So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons.
13 “A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. 14 About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. 15 He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. 16 The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything.
17 “When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, 19 and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.”’
20 “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. 21 His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.[a]’
22 “But his father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. 23 And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, 24 for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began.
Footnotes:
15:21 Some manuscripts add Please take me on as a hired servant.
INSIGHT: The parables of Luke 15 deal with recovering what was lost. In verses 3-7 the search is for a lost sheep; in verses 8-10, a lost coin; in verses 11-24, a lost son. Each time the emphasis is on the sense of urgency of the one who is searching.
A Father Who Runs
By Poh Fang Chia
The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. —Luke 19:10
Every day a father craned his neck to look toward the distant road, waiting for his son’s return. And every night he went to bed disappointed. But one day, a speck appeared. A lonesome silhouette stood against the crimson sky. Could that be my son? the father wondered. Then he caught sight of the familiar saunter. Yes, that has to be my son!
And so while the son was “still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him” (Luke 15:20). It is remarkable that the family patriarch did something that was considered undignified in Middle Eastern culture—he ran to meet his son. The father was full of unbridled joy at his son’s return.
The son didn’t deserve such a reception. When he had asked his father for his share of the inheritance and left home, it was as if he had wished his father dead. But despite all that the son had done to his father, he was still his son (v.24).
This parable reminds me that I’m accepted by God because of His grace, not because of my merits. It assures me that I’ll never sink so deep that God’s grace can’t reach me. Our heavenly Father is waiting to run to us with open arms.
Father, I’m so grateful for all Your Son did for me at the cross. I’m thankful for grace. I offer You a heart that desires to be like Jesus—merciful and gracious.
We deserve punishment and get forgiveness; we deserve God’s wrath and get God’s love. —Philip Yancey
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, April 20, 2015
Can a Saint Falsely Accuse God?
All the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen… —2 Corinthians 1:20
Jesus’ parable of the talents recorded in Matthew 25:14-30 was a warning that it is possible for us to misjudge our capacities. This parable has nothing to do with natural gifts and abilities, but relates to the gift of the Holy Spirit as He was first given at Pentecost. We must never measure our spiritual capacity on the basis of our education or our intellect; our capacity in spiritual things is measured on the basis of the promises of God. If we get less than God wants us to have, we will falsely accuse Him as the servant falsely accused his master when he said, “You expect more of me than you gave me the power to do. You demand too much of me, and I cannot stand true to you here where you have placed me.” When it is a question of God’s Almighty Spirit, never say, “I can’t.” Never allow the limitation of your own natural ability to enter into the matter. If we have received the Holy Spirit, God expects the work of the Holy Spirit to be exhibited in us.
The servant justified himself, while condemning his lord on every point, as if to say, “Your demand on me is way out of proportion to what you gave to me.” Have we been falsely accusing God by daring to worry after He has said, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you”? (Matthew 6:33). Worrying means exactly what this servant implied— “I know your intent is to leave me unprotected and vulnerable.” A person who is lazy in the natural realm is always critical, saying, “I haven’t had a decent chance,” and someone who is lazy in the spiritual realm is critical of God. Lazy people always strike out at others in an independent way.
Never forget that our capacity and capability in spiritual matters is measured by, and based on, the promises of God. Is God able to fulfill His promises? Our answer depends on whether or not we have received the Holy Spirit.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, April 20, 2015
Last-Minute Miracles - #7376
My friend, Jerry, was a pilot who's gone home to be with the Lord that he loved. At his memorial service, his son told some of the stories of Jerry's very adventurous life. He was pretty unflappable. I mean, that's a pretty good characteristic for a pilot, right?
There was the time he was flying a twin-engine plane over our area. Both engines went out on him! He quickly surveyed the ground to find the safest place to make an emergency landing. His choice was the local golf course. There weren't any golfers out there, and that was a good thing. He started to bring the plane down for a landing, but as he neared the ground, he saw the one obstacle between him and a safe landing. It was just a huge oak tree coming right at him, and he had no power to help him miss it. So Jerry quickly talked to God about it. He just said, "Lord, it will take a miracle. Please do one." And at that moment, one engine leaped to life for just a moment; just long enough to give Jerry the lift he needed to clear that tree.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Last-Minute Miracles."
My friend was rescued by a last-minute miracle. Do you know how many times God works that way in the lives of His children? That may be what God has in mind for your situation right now. Except all you can see is the tree coming at you!
Here's some encouragement. Our word for today from the Word of God in Isaiah 43:16-19, "This is what the Lord says - He who made a way through the sea (or over the tree), a path through the mighty waters, who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick." Now He's talking about the mightiest army on earth of its time - the Egyptian Army. It looked like they were going to crush these helpless Jews who were standing trapped by the Red Sea. But it says God blew them out like we blow out a candle.
You know those people had to be looking at the water in front of them and the approaching army behind them and saying, "No way." Kind of like Jerry's situation, it looked like there was no way to do anything but crash. But then God says, "Way." And our Lord, who is the great Way Maker, removes an obstacle that looks absolutely impossible to remove, or He lifts us over it as in my friend's case.
He says, "Do not dwell on the past. (This is Isaiah 43:18-19.) See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up. Do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." God is saying here, "I want you to trust Me for a bold new thing I'm going to do in your life." We say, "Yeah, but what about the sea? What about the tree?" He says, "Remember all the miracles of the past? I'm the same God who did those. I'll make a way where there is no way. I'll provide resources where there seems to be no resources - in the desert - in the wasteland.
And when will He do this? Probably at the same time He did it for the Jews by the Red Sea. The same time He did it for Jerry who was about to crash into a tree - the last minute. That way, you are going to learn the most faith and trust and God will get the most glory. So, go to this awesome Lord and say, "Lord, a miracle is my only hope. And only You can do the miracle. Please, if it is your will, do what only You can do." And as that tree is getting closer and closer, trust the God of the last-minute lift!
