Max Lucado Daily: On Target
Jesus had no money, no computers, no jets, no administrative assistants or staff; yet Jesus did what many of us fail to do. He kept his life on course. He could have been a political revolutionary. He could have been content with being a teacher or a physician and heal bodies. But in the end he chose to be a Savior and save souls. Luke 19:10 says, "The Son of Man came to find lost people and save them." "He did not come to be served, but to give his life as a ransom for many people." (Mark 10:45)
The heart of Christ was relentlessly focused on one task-the cross of Calvary. He was so focused that his final words were, "It is finished!" Wouldn't you love to look back on your life and know you had done what you were called to do?
From Just Like Jesus
Psalm 132
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 Lord, remember David
and all that he suffered.
2 He made a solemn promise to the Lord.
He vowed to the Mighty One of Israel,[a]
3 “I will not go home;
I will not let myself rest.
4 I will not let my eyes sleep
nor close my eyelids in slumber
5 until I find a place to build a house for the Lord,
a sanctuary for the Mighty One of Israel.”
6 We heard that the Ark was in Ephrathah;
then we found it in the distant countryside of Jaar.
7 Let us go to the sanctuary of the Lord;
let us worship at the footstool of his throne.
8 Arise, O Lord, and enter your resting place,
along with the Ark, the symbol of your power.
9 May your priests be clothed in godliness;
may your loyal servants sing for joy.
10 For the sake of your servant David,
do not reject the king you have anointed.
11 The Lord swore an oath to David
with a promise he will never take back:
“I will place one of your descendants
on your throne.
12 If your descendants obey the terms of my covenant
and the laws that I teach them,
then your royal line
will continue forever and ever.”
13 For the Lord has chosen Jerusalem[b];
he has desired it for his home.
14 “This is my resting place forever,” he said.
“I will live here, for this is the home I desired.
15 I will bless this city and make it prosperous;
I will satisfy its poor with food.
16 I will clothe its priests with godliness;
its faithful servants will sing for joy.
17 Here I will increase the power of David;
my anointed one will be a light for my people.
18 I will clothe his enemies with shame,
but he will be a glorious king.”
Footnotes:
132:2 Hebrew of Jacob; also in 132:5. See note on 44:4.
132:13 Hebrew Zion.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, April 24, 2016
Read: 2 Thessalonians 1:3-12
Encouragement during Persecution
3 Dear brothers and sisters,[a] we can’t help but thank God for you, because your faith is flourishing and your love for one another is growing. 4 We proudly tell God’s other churches about your endurance and faithfulness in all the persecutions and hardships you are suffering. 5 And God will use this persecution to show his justice and to make you worthy of his Kingdom, for which you are suffering. 6 In his justice he will pay back those who persecute you.
7 And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with his mighty angels, 8 in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power. 10 When he comes on that day, he will receive glory from his holy people—praise from all who believe. And this includes you, for you believed what we told you about him.
11 So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to enable you to live a life worthy of his call. May he give you the power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do. 12 Then the name of our Lord Jesus will be honored because of the way you live, and you will be honored along with him. This is all made possible because of the grace of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ.[b]
Footnotes:
1:3 Greek Brothers.
1:12 Or of our God and our Lord Jesus Christ.
INSIGHT:
Having commended the Thessalonian church as a model church in his previous letter (1 Thess. 1:7), Paul now commends them for their spiritual growth despite experiencing severe persecution (2 Thess. 1:3–4). Assuring the church that God, who knows their suffering, will vindicate them, he challenges them to continue to remain steadfast and strong (vv. 5–12). Sim Kay Tee
Relief for the Troubled
By Jennifer Benson Schuldt
[God will] give relief to you who are troubled. 2 Thessalonians 1:7
One of my favorite scenes in literature occurs when a feisty aunt confronts an evil stepfather over the abuse of her nephew, David Copperfield. This scene takes place in Charles Dickens’ novel named after the main character.
When David Copperfield shows up at his aunt’s house, his stepfather is not far behind. Aunt Betsy Trotwood is not pleased to see the malicious Mr. Murdstone. She recounts a list of offenses and does not let him slither out of his responsibility for each act of cruelty. Her charges are so forceful and truthful that Mr. Murdstone—a normally aggressive person—finally leaves without a word. Through the strength and goodness of Aunt Betsy’s character, David finally receives justice.
Jesus wants us to stand firm and have courage.
There is Someone else who is strong and good, and who will one day right the wrongs in our world. When Jesus returns, He will come down from heaven with a group of powerful angels. He will “give relief to you who are troubled,” and He will not ignore those who have created problems for His children (2 Thess. 1:6-7). Until that day, Jesus wants us to stand firm and have courage. No matter what we endure on earth, we are safe for eternity.
Dear God, please protect us and give us wisdom through Your Holy Spirit. Help us to be just and fair in everything we do so that we are good representatives for You.
For more on waiting for God's justice, read It’s Not Fair from Discovery Series.
One day God will right every wrong.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, April 24, 2016
The Warning Against Desiring Spiritual Success
Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you… —Luke 10:20
Worldliness is not the trap that most endangers us as Christian workers; nor is it sin. The trap we fall into is extravagantly desiring spiritual success; that is, success measured by, and patterned after, the form set by this religious age in which we now live. Never seek after anything other than the approval of God, and always be willing to go “outside the camp, bearing His reproach” (Hebrews 13:13). In Luke 10:20, Jesus told the disciples not to rejoice in successful service, and yet this seems to be the one thing in which most of us do rejoice. We have a commercialized view— we count how many souls have been saved and sanctified, we thank God, and then we think everything is all right. Yet our work only begins where God’s grace has laid the foundation. Our work is not to save souls, but to disciple them. Salvation and sanctification are the work of God’s sovereign grace, and our work as His disciples is to disciple others’ lives until they are totally yielded to God. One life totally devoted to God is of more value to Him than one hundred lives which have been simply awakened by His Spirit. As workers for God, we must reproduce our own kind spiritually, and those lives will be God’s testimony to us as His workers. God brings us up to a standard of life through His grace, and we are responsible for reproducing that same standard in others.
Unless the worker lives a life that “is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3), he is apt to become an irritating dictator to others, instead of an active, living disciple. Many of us are dictators, dictating our desires to individuals and to groups. But Jesus never dictates to us in that way. Whenever our Lord talked about discipleship, He always prefaced His words with an “if,” never with the forceful or dogmatic statement— “You must.” Discipleship carries with it an option.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
I have no right to say I believe in God unless I order my life as under His all-seeing Eye. Disciples Indeed, 385 L