Confirming One’s Calling and Election

2 Peter 1:5-7 5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Friday, October 20, 2017

Matthew 7, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: THE PERFECT STORM

When mariners describe a tempest no sailor can escape, they call it a perfect storm. Not perfect in the sense of ideal. But perfect in the sense of combining contributing factors. You don’t need to be a fisherman to experience a perfect storm. All you need is a layoff plus a recession. A disease plus a breakup. We can handle one challenge—but two or three at a time? It’s enough to make you wonder, will I survive?

Paul’s answer to that question is profound and concise. “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). This is not a peace from God. Our Father gives us the very peace of God. We should be upset, but we aren’t. The peace of God transcends all logic. This kind of peace is not a human achievement. It is a gift from above. A perfect gift for the perfect storm!

Read more Anxious for Nothing


Matthew 7
Judging Others

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

6 “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Ask, Seek, Knock
7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

9 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

The Narrow and Wide Gates
13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

True and False Prophets
15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

True and False Disciples
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

The Wise and Foolish Builders
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29 because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   
Friday, October 20, 2017

Read: Psalm 27:1–4

A David Psalm

Light, space, zest—
    that’s God!
So, with him on my side I’m fearless,
    afraid of no one and nothing.
2     When vandal hordes ride down
    ready to eat me alive,
Those bullies and toughs
    fall flat on their faces.
3 When besieged,
    I’m calm as a baby.
When all hell breaks loose,
    I’m collected and cool.
4 I’m asking God for one thing,
    only one thing:
To live with him in his house
    my whole life long.
I’ll contemplate his beauty;
    I’ll study at his feet.

INSIGHT

God is worthy of our faith, hope, and confidence; His power and presence are the foundation of many of the Old Testament stories. But sometimes life makes us question what we know. It's hard to see these truths about God when life is hard. That's when we need to view our experience through the lens of Scripture.

David does just that in Psalm 27. Despite having been anointed king by Samuel, he is living as a vagrant and fugitive. Even though he is on the run and enemy armies are pursuing him (vv. 2–3), he is confident in the Lord (v. 3). It is just then—when David’s immediate experience suggests hopelessness—that he rests in the power and protection of the Lord. Turning his eyes away from his circumstances and toward the Lord bolstered David’s confidence. His one desire was not to be vindicated in front of his enemies, but to be in the presence of the Lord (v. 4). Turning to the Lord is what gave him confidence in the day of trouble (v. 5).

Where does your experience need to be understood through the lens of Scripture? What truth about God do you need to be reminded of today? - J.R. Hudberg

When Beauty Never Ends
By James Banks

Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. Psalm 63:3

I love looking at the Grand Canyon. Whenever I stand at the canyon rim I see new brushstrokes of God’s handiwork that take my breath away.

Even though it’s just a (very large) “hole” in the ground, the Grand Canyon causes me to reflect on heaven. A very honest twelve-year-old asked me once, “Won’t heaven be boring? Don’t you think we’ll get tired of praising God all the time?” But if a “hole in the ground” can be so overwhelmingly beautiful we can’t stop looking at it, we can only imagine the joy of one day seeing the very Source of beauty—our loving Creator—in all of the pristine wonder of the new creation.

We were created to enjoy God forever.
David expressed this longing when he wrote, “One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord” (Ps. 27:4). There’s nothing more beautiful than the presence of God, which draws near to us on this earth as we seek Him by faith, looking forward to seeing Him face to face.

On that day we’ll never tire of praising our amazing Lord, because we will never come to an end of fresh, new discoveries of His exquisite goodness and the wonders of the works of His hands. Every moment in His presence will bring a breathtaking revelation of His beauty and His love.

Beautiful Savior, please help me to seek You every day and to live even now in Your presence and Your love.

We were created to enjoy God forever.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, October 20, 2017

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.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

We are in danger of being stern where God is tender, and of being tender where God is stern.  The Love of God—The Message of Invincible Consolation, 673 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, October 20, 2017

How Immunization Can Cost You Your Life - #8030

Today's children have barely even heard of the disease, but when I was a kid, it was every parent's greatest fear for their child - that crippling, sometimes deadly disease called polio. I can distinctly remember how my mother didn't even want me to be in big crowds because of how polio seemed to spread so quickly. But then along came the vaccine. We all got our shots and we were immune to polio. Since then, there are a lot more shots like that for everything from smallpox, to tetanus, to the flu. And they all work basically on the same principle; in essence, you get a little of the virus injected into your system so that your body will build up an immunity to what could otherwise cripple you or kill you. That kind of immunization can save your life. But, on the other hand, immunization can be really dangerous spiritually…even deadly.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How Immunization Can Cost You Your Life."

Yep, we are talking spiritual immunization - the kind where you get injected with just enough Christianity to immunize you to your personal need for Jesus Christ. Literally, all you know about Jesus can spiritually kill you, if it numbs you and keeps you from acting on what Jesus did on the cross for you.

That's why we have this warning in Hebrews 4:7, our word for today from the Word of God. It says, "Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts." Let's say you've been around the message of Jesus a lot. You know - you agree - that all of us have a sin problem. We're in trouble with God; we're away from God because we have run our own lives instead of God running them. You know, and you agree that Jesus Christ, God's Son, loved us so much that He gave His life to pay our death penalty. You know and you agree that people need to put their trust in Jesus to make Him their personal Rescuer from their personal sin and its penalty.

And you have, as the verse says, "heard His voice." You have felt the tug of Jesus, urging you to give yourself to Him. But even though you know all about belonging to Jesus, you don't belong to Him. You agree with Him, but you've never really reached out to Him in the way that a drowning person grabs the lifeguard whose come to save them.

And every time you've heard about Jesus and you've done nothing, you've been unknowingly "hardening your heart" a little more. You've become almost immune to the prompting of the Holy Spirit when He says, "Hey, this is for you." You watch others come to Christ, but you never have. When someone asks people to come to Christ, you subconsciously are thinking, "Oh, that's for somebody else." Maybe not. Maybe today the call to come to Christ is finally for you.

Hear the words of God again, "Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your heart." In John 12, the Bible describes some people who it says "would not believe in Him" (John 12:37). Then it says ultimately "they could not believe" (John 12:39). You never know how close you are to the point of no return. So if you've never actually begun your personal relationship with Jesus Christ, why don't you do it right now? Do it right where you are.

This is the only opportunity you could be sure of. Do not harden your heart. The tug you feel is Jesus knocking on the door of your heart. Tell Him, "Jesus, I don't want to just agree with You or know about You. I want to know you. I want to belong to you.

Our website is a great place for you to go right now. It's a place to find exactly the information you need biblically to confirm that you actually have this relationship with Jesus. That is the key to being in heaven with Him some day. Would you go to ANewStory.com?

Immunity to Jesus can cost you your life - your eternal life in heaven. Before it's forever too late, please give yourself to this Savior that you've known about for so long.

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