Max Lucado Daily: A REUNION IS COMING
The word good-bye. This word may be the challenge of your life. How does a person get through raging loneliness, strength-draining grief? The rest of the world has moved on and you ache to do the same. Take heart. God has served notice. All farewells are on the clock.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 begins, “The Master himself will give the command. Archangel thunder! God’s trumpet blast! He will come down from heaven and the dead in Christ will rise. Then the rest of us who are still alive at the time will be caught up with them into the clouds to meet the Master. Oh, we’ll be walking on air. And there will be one huge family reunion with the Master. Reassure one another with these words!” (MSG).
Revelation 21:4 promises He will wipe every tear from our eyes. Isn’t this our hope? God has promised a restoration of all things. All things—and that includes yours.
From You’ll Get Through This
Zechariah 12
Home Again in Jerusalem
1-2 War Bulletin:
God’s Message concerning Israel, God’s Decree—the very God who threw the skies into space, set earth on a firm foundation, and breathed his own life into men and women: “Watch for this: I’m about to turn Jerusalem into a cup of strong drink that will have the people who have set siege to Judah and Jerusalem staggering in a drunken stupor.
3 “On the Big Day, I’ll turn Jerusalem into a huge stone blocking the way for everyone. All who try to lift it will rupture themselves. All the pagan nations will come together and try to get rid of it.
4-5 “On the Big Day”—this is God speaking—“I’ll throw all the war horses into a crazed panic, and their riders along with them. But I’ll keep my eye on Judah, watching out for her at the same time that I make the enemy horses go blind. The families of Judah will then realize, ‘Why, our leaders are strong and able through God-of-the-Angel-Armies, their personal God.’
6 “On the Big Day, I’ll turn the families of Judah into something like a burning match in a tinder-dry forest, like a fiercely flaming torch in a barn full of hay. They’ll burn up everything and everyone in sight—people to the right, people to the left—while Jerusalem fills up with people moving in and making themselves at home—home again in Jerusalem.
7-8 “I, God, will begin by restoring the common households of Judah so that the glory of David’s family and the leaders in Jerusalem won’t overshadow the ordinary people in Judah. On the Big Day, I’ll look after everyone who lives in Jerusalem so that the lowliest, weakest person will be as glorious as David and the family of David itself will be godlike, like the Angel of God leading the people.
9 “On the Big Day, I’ll make a clean sweep of all the godless nations that fought against Jerusalem.
10-14 “Next I’ll deal with the family of David and those who live in Jerusalem. I’ll pour a spirit of grace and prayer over them. They’ll then be able to recognize me as the One they so grievously wounded—that piercing spear-thrust! And they’ll weep—oh, how they’ll weep! Deep mourning as of a parent grieving the loss of the firstborn child. The lamentation in Jerusalem that day will be massive, as famous as the lamentation over Hadad-Rimmon on the fields of Megiddo:
Everyone will weep and grieve,
the land and everyone in it:
The family of David off by itself
and their women off by themselves;
The family of Nathan off by itself
and their women off by themselves;
The family of Levi off by itself
and their women off by themselves;
The family of Shimei off by itself
and their women off by themselves;
And all the rest of the families off by themselves
and their women off by themselves.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Read: James 4:6–10
You’re cheating on God. If all you want is your own way, flirting with the world every chance you get, you end up enemies of God and his way. And do you suppose God doesn’t care? The proverb has it that “he’s a fiercely jealous lover.” And what he gives in love is far better than anything else you’ll find. It’s common knowledge that “God goes against the willful proud; God gives grace to the willing humble.”
7-10 So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet.
INSIGHT:
James’s emphasis on resisting temptation fits within his broader teaching regarding the behavior of believers. For James, being “doers of the word, and not hearers only” (1:22 nkjv) is central to being a believer, which echoes Jesus’s words that true faith is confirmed by obedience (Luke 6:49; 11:28).
In today’s text, James helps believers understand one way how to live with integrity—through humility. James 4:6, a reference to Proverbs 3:34, fits within many Jewish wisdom texts emphasizing the relationship between humility and godly living. Humility allows us to submit naturally to God and His plan (v. 8). Submitting to God means we are “friends” with Him, instead of the world (v. 4). When we are friends with God, we naturally live according to His kingdom and values, not the world’s (3:15, 17). As we live and walk humbly with our God (see Micah 6:8), He lifts us up (James 4:10), draws near to us (v. 8), and makes the devil powerless.
Does it surprise you to think of humility and fellowship with God as essential for resisting temptation? How can we learn to make these virtues part of our Christian lives? Monica Brands
Giving in to Jesus
By James Banks
In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Romans 6:11
They call it “The Devil’s Footprint.” It’s a foot-shaped impression in the granite on a hill beside a church in Ipswich, Massachusetts. According to local legend the “footprint” happened one fall day in 1740, when the evangelist George Whitefield preached so powerfully that the devil leaped from the church steeple, landing on the rock on his way out of town.
Though it’s only a legend, the story calls to mind an encouraging truth from God’s Word. James 4:7 reminds us, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
The prayer of the feeblest saint . . . is a terror to Satan. —Oswald Chambers
God has given us the strength we need to stand against our adversary and the temptations in our lives. The Bible tells us that “sin shall no longer be your master” (Rom. 6:14) because of God’s loving grace to us through Jesus Christ. As we run to Jesus when temptation comes, He enables us to stand in His strength. Nothing we face in this life can overcome Him, because He has “overcome the world” (John 16:33).
As we submit ourselves to our Savior, yielding our wills to Him in the moment and walking in obedience to God’s Word, He is helping us. When we give in to Him instead of giving in to temptation, He is able to fight our battles. In Him we can overcome.
Lord Jesus, I give my will to You today. Help me to stay close to You in every moment, and to love You by obeying You.
The prayer of the feeblest saint . . . is a terror to Satan. Oswald Chambers
For more insight from Oswald Chambers, visit utmost.org.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
The Spiritually Vigorous Saint
…that I may know Him… —Philippians 3:10
A saint is not to take the initiative toward self-realization, but toward knowing Jesus Christ. A spiritually vigorous saint never believes that his circumstances simply happen at random, nor does he ever think of his life as being divided into the secular and the sacred. He sees every situation in which he finds himself as the means of obtaining a greater knowledge of Jesus Christ, and he has an attitude of unrestrained abandon and total surrender about him. The Holy Spirit is determined that we will have the realization of Jesus Christ in every area of our lives, and He will bring us back to the same point over and over again until we do. Self-realization only leads to the glorification of good works, whereas a saint of God glorifies Jesus Christ through his good works. Whatever we may be doing— even eating, drinking, or washing disciples’ feet— we have to take the initiative of realizing and recognizing Jesus Christ in it. Every phase of our life has its counterpart in the life of Jesus. Our Lord realized His relationship to the Father even in the most menial task. “Jesus, knowing…that He had come from God and was going to God,…took a towel…and began to wash the disciples’ feet…” (John 13:3-5).
The aim of a spiritually vigorous saint is “that I may know Him…” Do I know Him where I am today? If not, I am failing Him. I am not here for self-realization, but to know Jesus Christ. In Christian work our initiative and motivation are too often simply the result of realizing that there is work to be done and that we must do it. Yet that is never the attitude of a spiritually vigorous saint. His aim is to achieve the realization of Jesus Christ in every set of circumstances.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Jesus Christ is always unyielding to my claim to my right to myself. The one essential element in all our Lord’s teaching about discipleship is abandon, no calculation, no trace of self-interest.
Disciples Indeed
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Leaving Your Dirt At The Door - #7957
We have some wonderful Native American friends in the Northwest, and during one of our reservation outreaches, they honored us by inviting us to stay in their home. We had a great stay, but I did have to learn a custom that was new to me. When you walk in their front door, you are greeted with a pile of shoes. Now, in many Native American homes in that area, it's expected that your shoes won't make it past the door. Which makes you think about what socks you're going to wear that day for sure; probably not the ones that look like Swiss cheese. Actually, to come into the house with your shoes on is to really dishonor your hosts. And anyone who has had to sweep or vacuum the trail left behind by dirty shoes knows it's not just about honor. It really makes sense to not track dirt into a clean house!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Leaving Your Dirt At The Door".
The idea of taking off your shoes before you come in actually has a long history. Take Joshua, for example, on the eve of leading the Jewish people against Jericho. Our word for today from the Word of God begins in Joshua 5:13. "Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand.
Joshua went up to him and asked, 'Are you for us or for our enemies?' 'Neither,' he replied, but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.' Then Joshua fell face down to the ground in reverence and asked him, 'What message does my Lord have for His servant?' The commander of the Lord's army replied, 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.' And Joshua did so."
Now, Joshua is at a critical moment here. There are some major battles and obstacles ahead of him, as well as some major victories. And the Lord has important information to give him...but first, the shoes. After Joshua shucks his sandals, God gives him the battle plan he needs for the challenge he's facing. But first...the shoes.
Remember, Moses had that same experience at the burning bush. Before he could get the Lord's message for him, he had to take off his shoes. Now our friends in the Northwest don't want dirt brought into their house...so they expect people to remove the things that carry the dirt. And that seems to be God's message to Joshua, to Moses, to you and to me. Before you can hear from His heart; before you can get His word for the challenge you're facing, you've got to remove your shoes. You've got to get rid of the dirty stuff at the door of His Throne Room.
And that may be why your answer hasn't come-you've dishonored the Lord by entering His Throne Room, still hanging onto that dirty stuff. David learned, as he recorded in Psalm 66:18, "If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened." Now there are many reasons why God delays His answers to His children's prayers: it just isn't His time yet, He knows it wouldn't be good for you right now, or He's building faith and patience in you. But sometimes the reason God doesn't answer is the dirt.
Remember, God's the One the angels call, "Holy, holy, holy." And the thrice-holy God cannot bless you while you are hanging onto some sin that killed His Son. You can't work hard enough, you can't pray hard enough, you can't cry hard enough to move the hand of God if you haven't repented of the dirty stuff. Maybe it's a habit or a wrong attitude, a wrong relationship, a compromise, some self-centeredness or deceitfulness. But like our friends in the Northwest, God is saying, "Don't come in here with that." So before we say "please" and "help me", we need to come with a prayer that says, "I'm sorry. I want to be clean."
You don't walk into God's presence, tracking in with you something dirty He cannot tolerate. You honor your Lord when you take off your spiritual shoes before you enter His presence. You honor Him when you leave your dirt at the door.