Max Lucado Daily: REMIND GOD OF HIS PROMISES
I remember sitting in high school Algebra class staring at my textbook as if it were written in Mandarin Chinese. Fortunately I had a patient teacher. He issued the invitation and stuck to it: “If you cannot solve a problem, come to me and I will help you.” I wore a trail between his desk and mine. I would remind him, “Remember how you promised you would help?” I still had the problem, mind you, but I entrusted the problem to one who knew how to solve it.
The Old Testament prophet Isaiah said, “Put the Lord in remembrance of His promises, keep not silence” (Isaiah 62:6). God invites you—yes, commands you—to remind him of his promises. Find a promise that fits your problem, and build your prayer around it! These prayers of faith touch the heart of God and miracles are set in motion!
Isaiah 30
“Doom, rebel children!”
God’s Decree.
“You make plans, but not mine.
You make deals, but not in my Spirit.
You pile sin on sin,
one sin on top of another,
Going off to Egypt
without so much as asking me,
Running off to Pharaoh for protection,
expecting to hide out in Egypt.
Well, some protection Pharaoh will be!
Some hideout, Egypt!
They look big and important, true,
with officials strategically established in
Zoan in the north and Hanes in the south,
but there’s nothing to them.
Anyone stupid enough to trust them
will end up looking stupid—
All show, no substance,
an embarrassing farce.”
6-7 And this note on the animals of the Negev
encountered on the road to Egypt:
A most dangerous, treacherous route,
menaced by lions and deadly snakes.
And you’re going to lug all your stuff down there,
your donkeys and camels loaded down with bribes,
Thinking you can buy protection
from that hollow farce of a nation?
Egypt is all show, no substance.
My name for her is Toothless Dragon.
8-11 So, go now and write all this down.
Put it in a book
So that the record will be there
to instruct the coming generations,
Because this is a rebel generation,
a people who lie,
A people unwilling to listen
to anything God tells them.
They tell their spiritual leaders,
“Don’t bother us with irrelevancies.”
They tell their preachers,
“Don’t waste our time on impracticalities.
Tell us what makes us feel better.
Don’t bore us with obsolete religion.
That stuff means nothing to us.
Quit hounding us with The Holy of Israel.”
12-14 Therefore, The Holy of Israel says this:
“Because you scorn this Message,
Preferring to live by injustice
and shape your lives on lies,
This perverse way of life
will be like a towering, badly built wall
That slowly, slowly tilts and shifts,
and then one day, without warning, collapses—
Smashed to bits like a piece of pottery,
smashed beyond recognition or repair,
Useless, a pile of debris
to be swept up and thrown in the trash.”
15-17 God, the Master, The Holy of Israel,
has this solemn counsel:
“Your salvation requires you to turn back to me
and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.
Your strength will come from settling down
in complete dependence on me—
The very thing
you’ve been unwilling to do.
You’ve said, ‘Nothing doing! We’ll rush off on horseback!’
You’ll rush off, all right! Just not far enough!
You’ve said, ‘We’ll ride off on fast horses!’
Do you think your pursuers ride old nags?
Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker.
Before a mere five you’ll all run off.
There’ll be nothing left of you—
a flagpole on a hill with no flag,
a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.”
18 But God’s not finished. He’s waiting around to be gracious to you.
He’s gathering strength to show mercy to you.
God takes the time to do everything right—everything.
Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
19-22 Oh yes, people of Zion, citizens of Jerusalem, your time of tears is over. Cry for help and you’ll find it’s grace and more grace. The moment he hears, he’ll answer. Just as the Master kept you alive during the hard times, he’ll keep your teacher alive and present among you. Your teacher will be right there, local and on the job, urging you on whenever you wander left or right: “This is the right road. Walk down this road.” You’ll scrap your expensive and fashionable god-images. You’ll throw them in the trash as so much garbage, saying, “Good riddance!”
23-26 God will provide rain for the seeds you sow. The grain that grows will be abundant. Your cattle will range far and wide. Oblivious to war and earthquake, the oxen and donkeys you use for hauling and plowing will be fed well near running brooks that flow freely from mountains and hills. Better yet, on the Day God heals his people of the wounds and bruises from the time of punishment, moonlight will flare into sunlight, and sunlight, like a whole week of sunshine at once, will flood the land.
27-28 Look, God’s on his way,
and from a long way off!
Smoking with anger,
immense as he comes into view,
Words steaming from his mouth,
searing, indicting words!
A torrent of words, a flash flood of words
sweeping everyone into the vortex of his words.
He’ll shake down the nations in a sieve of destruction,
herd them into a dead end.
29-33 But you will sing,
sing through an all-night holy feast!
Your hearts will burst with song,
make music like the sound of flutes on parade,
En route to the mountain of God,
on the way to the Rock of Israel.
God will sound out in grandiose thunder,
display his hammering arm,
Furiously angry, showering sparks—
cloudburst, storm, hail!
Oh yes, at God’s thunder
Assyria will cower under the clubbing.
Every blow God lands on them with his club
is in time to the music of drums and pipes,
God in all-out, two-fisted battle,
fighting against them.
Topheth’s fierce fires are well prepared,
ready for the Assyrian king.
The Topheth furnace is deep and wide,
well stoked with hot-burning wood.
God’s breath, like a river of burning pitch,
starts the fire.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
John 8:31–36
Dispute Over Whose Children Jesus’ Opponents Are
31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching,b you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”c
33 They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendantsd and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?”
34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.e 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.f 36 So if the Son sets you free,g you will be free indeed.
Insight
The debate that started in John 7:25–27 over Jesus’ identity and whether He was the Messiah intensified in chapter 8. The people asked Him, “Who are you?” (v. 25). John tells us that “many believed in him” (v. 30). Then Jesus clarified the identity of His true disciples: those who not only know Jesus, but also obey Him (v. 31). Jesus also cautioned the Jews that their privileged status as God’s chosen people and their heritage standing as descendants of Abraham had blinded them. They refused to see that they too were slaves to sin (vv. 31–36). Only when they accepted and believed the truth that Jesus is their Messiah—that He’s “the way and the truth and the life” (14:6)—would they be truly set free. “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (8:36).
Free Indeed
If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. John 8:36
The film Amistad tells the story of West African slaves in 1839 taking over the boat that was transporting them and killing the captain and some of the crew. Eventually they were recaptured, imprisoned, and taken to trial. An unforgettable courtroom scene features Cinqué, leader of the slaves, passionately pleading for freedom. Three simple words—repeated with increasing force by a shackled man with broken English—eventually silenced the courtroom, “Give us free!” Justice was served and the men were freed.
Most people today aren’t in danger of being physically bound, yet true liberation from the spiritual bondage of sin remains elusive. The words of Jesus in John 8:36 offer sweet relief: “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” Jesus pointed to Himself as the source of true emancipation because He offers forgiveness to anyone who believes in Him. Though some in Christ’s audience claimed freedom (v. 33), their words, attitudes, and actions regarding Jesus betrayed their claim.
Jesus longs to hear those who would echo Cinqué’s plea and say, “Give me freedom!” With compassion He awaits the cries of those who are shackled by unbelief or fear or failure. Freedom is a matter of the heart. Such liberty is reserved for those who believe that Jesus is God’s Son who was sent into the world to break the power of sin’s hold on us through His death and resurrection. By: Arthur Jackson
Reflect & Pray
How has Jesus set you free? What can you share with others about God’s liberating power?
Jesus, help me to believe that You can set me free.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Spontaneous Love
Love suffers long and is kind… —1 Corinthians 13:4
Love is not premeditated– it is spontaneous; that is, it bursts forth in extraordinary ways. There is nothing of precise certainty in Paul’s description of love. We cannot predetermine our thoughts and actions by saying, “Now I will never think any evil thoughts, and I will believe everything that Jesus would have me to believe.” No, the characteristic of love is spontaneity. We don’t deliberately set the statements of Jesus before us as our standard, but when His Spirit is having His way with us, we live according to His standard without even realizing it. And when we look back, we are amazed at how unconcerned we have been over our emotions, which is the very evidence that real spontaneous love was there. The nature of everything involved in the life of God in us is only discerned when we have been through it and it is in our past.
The fountains from which love flows are in God, not in us. It is absurd to think that the love of God is naturally in our hearts, as a result of our own nature. His love is there only because it “has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit…” (Romans 5:5).
If we try to prove to God how much we love Him, it is a sure sign that we really don’t love Him. The evidence of our love for Him is the absolute spontaneity of our love, which flows naturally from His nature within us. And when we look back, we will not be able to determine why we did certain things, but we can know that we did them according to the spontaneous nature of His love in us. The life of God exhibits itself in this spontaneous way because the fountains of His love are in the Holy Spirit.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Awe is the condition of a man’s spirit realizing Who God is and what He has done for him personally. Our Lord emphasizes the attitude of a child; no attitude can express such solemn awe and familiarity as that of a child. Not Knowing Whither, 882 L
Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 8-9; Luke 21:1-19
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Bridges to Nowhere - #8689
A few summers ago, I went on a river trip with some young people. It was a river that had not been nearly so friendly just three months before. The spring rains had been record breakers and the resulting floods had even redirected parts of the river. Our guide took us down a whole new channel of the river that hadn't even been there three months earlier, and he pointed out this palatial home that was built near the river by a multi-millionaire. The flood had suddenly made his home very vulnerable. It was saved only by a hastily-constructed brick wall. A lot of the landscaping around that home couldn't be saved, like the bridges for example. See, since this had just been a little stream before the flood, the homeowner built some charming wooden bridges across it at several points. Now the bridges weren't really destroyed, they were just, like, relocated. As we moved downstream, we saw this charming wooden bridge sitting in the middle of an island of mud in the middle of the river. Later we saw another bridge, pretty intact, just sitting on the riverbank. Oh, they were nice bridges all right, they just didn't go anywhere.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Bridges to Nowhere."
One of the most defining, most bottom-lining statements in all of the Bible is our word for today from the Word of God. It's Acts 4:12 - the disciples of Jesus have just been talking about the name of Jesus Christ. Listen to this. "Salvation is found in no one else. For there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." Wow! Let me tell you, in our age of pluralism and tolerance and eclectic spirituality, those are pretty loaded words about Jesus.
Salvation is in no one else. We have to be saved by His name. How can this be? Mankind seems to know instinctively that we need some kind of bridge to get to God. We feel the distance between us and the one who made us, and maybe you do. We're trying to discover what will get us to Him. So, we have the Protestant bridge to God with good works that are supposed to take us to God, and the Catholic bridge with good Catholic things to do, and the Jewish bridge, and the Muslim bridge, and the Buddhist bridge, the Hindu bridge, the bridge of New Age spirituality, etc.
Our human nature wants to believe that all those bridges end up the same place with God. But Jesus defied our preferences when He made this incredible claim. He said, "I am the way, the truth, the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." In other words, even though all those religious bridges are beautiful, they're bridges to nowhere.
Why? Because of what it is that stands between us and the God that we're desperately trying to get to. In simple words, it's a death penalty. The Bible says, "The wages of our sin is death." All of us have missed the way we were created to live with God running things. We've hijacked our lives from our Creator, we've run our lives our own way, and the penalty is death. You can't pay a death penalty by any amount of doing good. There's only one way. Somebody has to die, and someone did. But not the one who deserved to die for my sin. I should have, but the Bible says, "Christ died for our sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might bring us to God." Out of His amazing love, Jesus, God's Son, did all the dying for all the sinning we've ever done. And while there are many religions, there's only one Savior, and only He can take me across that gap between me and my Creator.
So, everything depends on what you do with Jesus. Maybe you've been on a spiritual bridge trying to find a relationship with God but it's been a bridge to nowhere. But right now, God, who loves you so very much, is pointing you to the bridge He built to bring you to Him. It's the cross where His one and only Son paid for you. The bridge God has provided cost Him what mattered most to Him. It cost Him His Son.
That Jesus came out of his grave. He was resurrected, and today he's ready to walk into your life. He is your bridge to God and to heaven. Tell him today, "Jesus, I'm yours." I hope you can get to our website. We've tried there to tell you the way across that bridge and know you belong to Him. That website is ANewStory.com.
Don't depend on any other bridge, because every other bridge is a bridge to nowhere.
From my daily reading of the bible, Our Daily Bread Devotionals, My Utmost for His Highest and Ron Hutchcraft "A Word with You" and occasionally others.
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Romans 1, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: CAST YOUR ANXIETY ON GOD
On my good days I begin my morning with a cup of coffee and a conversation with God. I look ahead into the day and make my requests. I am meeting with so-and-so at 10:00AM. Would you give me wisdom? This afternoon I need to finish my sermon. Would you please go ahead of me?
Then if a sense of stress surfaces during the day, I remind myself, Oh, I gave this challenge to God earlier today. He has already taken responsibility for the situation. I can be grateful, not fretful.
The Bible says, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:7). Casting is an intentional act to relocate an object. As you sense anxiety welling up inside you, cast it in the direction of Christ. He is moved by the sincere request. After all, is he not our Father?
Romans 1
I, Paul, am a devoted slave of Jesus Christ on assignment, authorized as an apostle to proclaim God’s words and acts. I write this letter to all the believers in Rome, God’s friends.
2-7 The sacred writings contain preliminary reports by the prophets on God’s Son. His descent from David roots him in history; his unique identity as Son of God was shown by the Spirit when Jesus was raised from the dead, setting him apart as the Messiah, our Master. Through him we received both the generous gift of his life and the urgent task of passing it on to others who receive it by entering into obedient trust in Jesus. You are who you are through this gift and call of Jesus Christ! And I greet you now with all the generosity of God our Father and our Master Jesus, the Messiah.
8-12 I thank God through Jesus for every one of you. That’s first. People everywhere keep telling me about your lives of faith, and every time I hear them, I thank him. And God, whom I so love to worship and serve by spreading the good news of his Son—the Message!—knows that every time I think of you in my prayers, which is practically all the time, I ask him to clear the way for me to come and see you. The longer this waiting goes on, the deeper the ache. I so want to be there to deliver God’s gift in person and watch you grow stronger right before my eyes! But don’t think I’m not expecting to get something out of this, too! You have as much to give me as I do to you.
13-15 Please don’t misinterpret my failure to visit you, friends. You have no idea how many times I’ve made plans for Rome. I’ve been determined to get some personal enjoyment out of God’s work among you, as I have in so many other non-Jewish towns and communities. But something has always come up and prevented it. Everyone I meet—it matters little whether they’re mannered or rude, smart or simple—deepens my sense of interdependence and obligation. And that’s why I can’t wait to get to you in Rome, preaching this wonderful good news of God.
16-17 It’s news I’m most proud to proclaim, this extraordinary Message of God’s powerful plan to rescue everyone who trusts him, starting with Jews and then right on to everyone else! God’s way of putting people right shows up in the acts of faith, confirming what Scripture has said all along: “The person in right standing before God by trusting him really lives.”
18-23 But God’s angry displeasure erupts as acts of human mistrust and wrongdoing and lying accumulate, as people try to put a shroud over truth. But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse. What happened was this: People knew God perfectly well, but when they didn’t treat him like God, refusing to worship him, they trivialized themselves into silliness and confusion so that there was neither sense nor direction left in their lives. They pretended to know it all, but were illiterate regarding life. They traded the glory of God who holds the whole world in his hands for cheap figurines you can buy at any roadside stand.
24-25 So God said, in effect, “If that’s what you want, that’s what you get.” It wasn’t long before they were living in a pigpen, smeared with filth, filthy inside and out. And all this because they traded the true God for a fake god, and worshiped the god they made instead of the God who made them—the God we bless, the God who blesses us. Oh, yes!
26-27 Worse followed. Refusing to know God, they soon didn’t know how to be human either—women didn’t know how to be women, men didn’t know how to be men. Sexually confused, they abused and defiled one another, women with women, men with men—all lust, no love. And then they paid for it, oh, how they paid for it—emptied of God and love, godless and loveless wretches.
28-32 Since they didn’t bother to acknowledge God, God quit bothering them and let them run loose. And then all hell broke loose: rampant evil, grabbing and grasping, vicious backstabbing. They made life hell on earth with their envy, wanton killing, bickering, and cheating. Look at them: mean-spirited, venomous, fork-tongued God-bashers. Bullies, swaggerers, insufferable windbags! They keep inventing new ways of wrecking lives. They ditch their parents when they get in the way. Stupid, slimy, cruel, cold-blooded. And it’s not as if they don’t know better. They know perfectly well they’re spitting in God’s face. And they don’t care—worse, they hand out prizes to those who do the worst things best!
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Deuteronomy 4:5–8
See, I have taughtv you decrees and lawsw as the Lord my God commandedx me, so that you may follow them in the land you are enteringy to take possession of it. 6 Observez them carefully, for this will show your wisdoma and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.”b 7 What other nation is so greatc as to have their gods neard them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him? 8 And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and lawse as this body of laws I am setting before you today?
Insight
Deuteronomy 4:5–8 comes just after Moses has recounted the greatest disappointment of his long life. God prevented Moses from entering the Promised Land because of how he mishandled his anger with the people (3:23–27; also Numbers 20:1–13). Despite his grief, Moses continued to serve God by advising His people even as he transitioned power to Joshua. Here Moses emphasizes the distinctiveness of Israel. “What other nation is so great?” he asks rhetorically (Deuteronomy 4:7–8). After all, God had chosen this nation to be His treasured possession (see Exodus 19:5; Deuteronomy 14:2; 26:18).
Those who follow Jesus are also treasured by God and set apart for Him. Peter reminds us, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession” (1 Peter 2:9).
Right Beside You
The Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him. Deuteronomy 4:7
Each day at a post office in Jerusalem, workers sort through piles of undeliverable letters in an attempt to guide each to its recipient. Many end up in a specially marked box labeled “Letters to God.”
About a thousand such letters reach Jerusalem each year, addressed simply to God or Jesus. Puzzled by what to do with them, one worker began taking the letters to Jerusalem’s Western Wall to have them placed between its stone blocks with other written prayers. Most of the letters ask for a job, a spouse, or good health. Some request forgiveness, others just offer thanks. One man asked God if his deceased wife could appear in his dreams because he longed to see her again. Each sender believed God would listen, if only He could be reached.
The Israelites learned much as they journeyed through the wilderness. One lesson was that their God wasn’t like the other gods known at the time—distant, deaf, geographically bound, reached only by lengthy pilgrimage or international mail. No, “the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him” (Deuteronomy 4:7). What other people could claim that? This was revolutionary news!
God doesn’t live in Jerusalem. He’s close by us, wherever we are. Some still need to discover this radical truth. If only each of those letters could be sent the reply: God is right beside you. Just talk to Him. By: Sheridan Voysey
Reflect & Pray
God’s accessibility to us is a profound gift. How can you avoid taking it for granted? Who in your life needs to know of God’s readiness to hear their prayer?
God, You are bigger than the universe yet closer than a breath. Thank You for being so interested in us, attending to every prayer.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Gracious Uncertainty
…it has not yet been revealed what we shall be… —1 John 3:2
Our natural inclination is to be so precise– trying always to forecast accurately what will happen next– that we look upon uncertainty as a bad thing. We think that we must reach some predetermined goal, but that is not the nature of the spiritual life. The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty. Consequently, we do not put down roots. Our common sense says, “Well, what if I were in that circumstance?” We cannot presume to see ourselves in any circumstance in which we have never been.
Certainty is the mark of the commonsense life– gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life. To be certain of God means that we are uncertain in all our ways, not knowing what tomorrow may bring. This is generally expressed with a sigh of sadness, but it should be an expression of breathless expectation. We are uncertain of the next step, but we are certain of God. As soon as we abandon ourselves to God and do the task He has placed closest to us, He begins to fill our lives with surprises. When we become simply a promoter or a defender of a particular belief, something within us dies. That is not believing God– it is only believing our belief about Him. Jesus said, “…unless you…become as little children…” (Matthew 18:3). The spiritual life is the life of a child. We are not uncertain of God, just uncertain of what He is going to do next. If our certainty is only in our beliefs, we develop a sense of self-righteousness, become overly critical, and are limited by the view that our beliefs are complete and settled. But when we have the right relationship with God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy. Jesus said, “…believe also in Me” (John 14:1), not, “Believe certain things about Me”. Leave everything to Him and it will be gloriously and graciously uncertain how He will come in– but you can be certain that He will come. Remain faithful to Him.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We never enter into the Kingdom of God by having our head questions answered, but only by commitment.
The Highest Good—Thy Great Redemption
Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 6-7; Luke 20:27-47
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, April 29, 2019
The Shadow that Scares Us - #8426
City Boy here is a lot of fun to watch when he's trying to be Farm Boy. My wife and I were helping out in someone else's barn a while back, and the large shadow of something flying came over our heads. I hadn't seen the creatures yet; all I could see was this massive shadow on the wall. I knew my responsibility as a man. That's right, run for help! There was actually no reason to run. When we looked up, we saw what was casting those huge, unsettling shadows: yeah, some little moths, flying around the little light overhead. The shadow was scary; the reality behind the shadow not scary at all.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Shadow that Scares Us."
There's a big shadow that has bothered all of us at one time or another. To be honest, it can be a pretty scary shadow. You see that shadow sometimes when you're in the doctor's office, or when you have a close call, or when you've been to the funeral of someone you know; especially someone who's like about your age. It is, of course, the shadow of death.
The great Jewish king, David, wrote about that shadow in what may be the best known psalm in the Bible, Psalm 23. In the fourth verse of that psalm, our word for today from the Word of God, he says: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me." The "You," of course, is the one David talks about at the beginning of his psalm "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not be in want." Now, when his loving shepherd leads him out of this life and into what he calls "the house of the Lord forever," he's going to have nothing to fear.
Many folks don't have that kind of peace and confidence about what happens on the other side of their last heartbeat. Maybe you don't. For you, the thought of death and what may be beyond it is more than just a shadow. It's an unsettling, even frightening, reality. Should we be fearful about death and what's beyond? Well, that all depends on where you stand with the God you'll meet on the other side.
In a sense, the only thing to fear about death is God. And we're scared of God. And maybe we should be scared of God, because of the wrong things we've done. He knows every person I've ever hurt, He knows every lie I've ever told, every sin I've ever committed, every promise I've ever broken, every selfish or immoral thought or deed, and every dark secret of my life. There's no way you and I can get into his heaven with our sin. It would ruin heaven.
But there is some awesome good news for us in Hebrews 2:14-15. God tells us that Jesus Christ died on a cross to "free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death." Wow! See, Jesus actually absorbed all the guilt, all the hell of your sin and mine when He died on the cross. Which means you can be forgiven for every sin of your life, erased from God's book forever.
The Bible says when you put your trust in Jesus to be your personal rescuer from your personal sin, your sins are indeed erased from God's book forever and your name is entered in His "Book of Life" - those who are going to heaven when they die.
So you don't have to wait till you die to know if you're going to heaven. You can know that today, because Jesus is offering to remove the only thing that will keep you out of heaven - your sins. But you do have to grab the nail-scarred hand of the Rescuer and He's reaching your direction today. Tell Him you're His from today on. Tell Him you want to belong to Him. Tell Him, "Jesus, thank you that when you died on that cross, some of those sins you were paying for were mine. I turn from them now to grab you with both hands to be my own Savior from my own sin."
If you're at that crossroads right now, I want to do everything I can to help you be sure that you've got Jesus before you hit the sack tonight. Would you go to our website? Because that's what it's for. It's called ANewStory.com. You'll find there what you need to know to get this settled.
If you don't belong to Jesus, death is a monster that should be feared. If you do belong to Him, then death becomes just a shadow because death is now your doorway to everything heaven offers.
On my good days I begin my morning with a cup of coffee and a conversation with God. I look ahead into the day and make my requests. I am meeting with so-and-so at 10:00AM. Would you give me wisdom? This afternoon I need to finish my sermon. Would you please go ahead of me?
Then if a sense of stress surfaces during the day, I remind myself, Oh, I gave this challenge to God earlier today. He has already taken responsibility for the situation. I can be grateful, not fretful.
The Bible says, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:7). Casting is an intentional act to relocate an object. As you sense anxiety welling up inside you, cast it in the direction of Christ. He is moved by the sincere request. After all, is he not our Father?
Romans 1
I, Paul, am a devoted slave of Jesus Christ on assignment, authorized as an apostle to proclaim God’s words and acts. I write this letter to all the believers in Rome, God’s friends.
2-7 The sacred writings contain preliminary reports by the prophets on God’s Son. His descent from David roots him in history; his unique identity as Son of God was shown by the Spirit when Jesus was raised from the dead, setting him apart as the Messiah, our Master. Through him we received both the generous gift of his life and the urgent task of passing it on to others who receive it by entering into obedient trust in Jesus. You are who you are through this gift and call of Jesus Christ! And I greet you now with all the generosity of God our Father and our Master Jesus, the Messiah.
8-12 I thank God through Jesus for every one of you. That’s first. People everywhere keep telling me about your lives of faith, and every time I hear them, I thank him. And God, whom I so love to worship and serve by spreading the good news of his Son—the Message!—knows that every time I think of you in my prayers, which is practically all the time, I ask him to clear the way for me to come and see you. The longer this waiting goes on, the deeper the ache. I so want to be there to deliver God’s gift in person and watch you grow stronger right before my eyes! But don’t think I’m not expecting to get something out of this, too! You have as much to give me as I do to you.
13-15 Please don’t misinterpret my failure to visit you, friends. You have no idea how many times I’ve made plans for Rome. I’ve been determined to get some personal enjoyment out of God’s work among you, as I have in so many other non-Jewish towns and communities. But something has always come up and prevented it. Everyone I meet—it matters little whether they’re mannered or rude, smart or simple—deepens my sense of interdependence and obligation. And that’s why I can’t wait to get to you in Rome, preaching this wonderful good news of God.
16-17 It’s news I’m most proud to proclaim, this extraordinary Message of God’s powerful plan to rescue everyone who trusts him, starting with Jews and then right on to everyone else! God’s way of putting people right shows up in the acts of faith, confirming what Scripture has said all along: “The person in right standing before God by trusting him really lives.”
18-23 But God’s angry displeasure erupts as acts of human mistrust and wrongdoing and lying accumulate, as people try to put a shroud over truth. But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse. What happened was this: People knew God perfectly well, but when they didn’t treat him like God, refusing to worship him, they trivialized themselves into silliness and confusion so that there was neither sense nor direction left in their lives. They pretended to know it all, but were illiterate regarding life. They traded the glory of God who holds the whole world in his hands for cheap figurines you can buy at any roadside stand.
24-25 So God said, in effect, “If that’s what you want, that’s what you get.” It wasn’t long before they were living in a pigpen, smeared with filth, filthy inside and out. And all this because they traded the true God for a fake god, and worshiped the god they made instead of the God who made them—the God we bless, the God who blesses us. Oh, yes!
26-27 Worse followed. Refusing to know God, they soon didn’t know how to be human either—women didn’t know how to be women, men didn’t know how to be men. Sexually confused, they abused and defiled one another, women with women, men with men—all lust, no love. And then they paid for it, oh, how they paid for it—emptied of God and love, godless and loveless wretches.
28-32 Since they didn’t bother to acknowledge God, God quit bothering them and let them run loose. And then all hell broke loose: rampant evil, grabbing and grasping, vicious backstabbing. They made life hell on earth with their envy, wanton killing, bickering, and cheating. Look at them: mean-spirited, venomous, fork-tongued God-bashers. Bullies, swaggerers, insufferable windbags! They keep inventing new ways of wrecking lives. They ditch their parents when they get in the way. Stupid, slimy, cruel, cold-blooded. And it’s not as if they don’t know better. They know perfectly well they’re spitting in God’s face. And they don’t care—worse, they hand out prizes to those who do the worst things best!
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Deuteronomy 4:5–8
See, I have taughtv you decrees and lawsw as the Lord my God commandedx me, so that you may follow them in the land you are enteringy to take possession of it. 6 Observez them carefully, for this will show your wisdoma and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.”b 7 What other nation is so greatc as to have their gods neard them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him? 8 And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and lawse as this body of laws I am setting before you today?
Insight
Deuteronomy 4:5–8 comes just after Moses has recounted the greatest disappointment of his long life. God prevented Moses from entering the Promised Land because of how he mishandled his anger with the people (3:23–27; also Numbers 20:1–13). Despite his grief, Moses continued to serve God by advising His people even as he transitioned power to Joshua. Here Moses emphasizes the distinctiveness of Israel. “What other nation is so great?” he asks rhetorically (Deuteronomy 4:7–8). After all, God had chosen this nation to be His treasured possession (see Exodus 19:5; Deuteronomy 14:2; 26:18).
Those who follow Jesus are also treasured by God and set apart for Him. Peter reminds us, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession” (1 Peter 2:9).
Right Beside You
The Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him. Deuteronomy 4:7
Each day at a post office in Jerusalem, workers sort through piles of undeliverable letters in an attempt to guide each to its recipient. Many end up in a specially marked box labeled “Letters to God.”
About a thousand such letters reach Jerusalem each year, addressed simply to God or Jesus. Puzzled by what to do with them, one worker began taking the letters to Jerusalem’s Western Wall to have them placed between its stone blocks with other written prayers. Most of the letters ask for a job, a spouse, or good health. Some request forgiveness, others just offer thanks. One man asked God if his deceased wife could appear in his dreams because he longed to see her again. Each sender believed God would listen, if only He could be reached.
The Israelites learned much as they journeyed through the wilderness. One lesson was that their God wasn’t like the other gods known at the time—distant, deaf, geographically bound, reached only by lengthy pilgrimage or international mail. No, “the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him” (Deuteronomy 4:7). What other people could claim that? This was revolutionary news!
God doesn’t live in Jerusalem. He’s close by us, wherever we are. Some still need to discover this radical truth. If only each of those letters could be sent the reply: God is right beside you. Just talk to Him. By: Sheridan Voysey
Reflect & Pray
God’s accessibility to us is a profound gift. How can you avoid taking it for granted? Who in your life needs to know of God’s readiness to hear their prayer?
God, You are bigger than the universe yet closer than a breath. Thank You for being so interested in us, attending to every prayer.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Gracious Uncertainty
…it has not yet been revealed what we shall be… —1 John 3:2
Our natural inclination is to be so precise– trying always to forecast accurately what will happen next– that we look upon uncertainty as a bad thing. We think that we must reach some predetermined goal, but that is not the nature of the spiritual life. The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty. Consequently, we do not put down roots. Our common sense says, “Well, what if I were in that circumstance?” We cannot presume to see ourselves in any circumstance in which we have never been.
Certainty is the mark of the commonsense life– gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life. To be certain of God means that we are uncertain in all our ways, not knowing what tomorrow may bring. This is generally expressed with a sigh of sadness, but it should be an expression of breathless expectation. We are uncertain of the next step, but we are certain of God. As soon as we abandon ourselves to God and do the task He has placed closest to us, He begins to fill our lives with surprises. When we become simply a promoter or a defender of a particular belief, something within us dies. That is not believing God– it is only believing our belief about Him. Jesus said, “…unless you…become as little children…” (Matthew 18:3). The spiritual life is the life of a child. We are not uncertain of God, just uncertain of what He is going to do next. If our certainty is only in our beliefs, we develop a sense of self-righteousness, become overly critical, and are limited by the view that our beliefs are complete and settled. But when we have the right relationship with God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy. Jesus said, “…believe also in Me” (John 14:1), not, “Believe certain things about Me”. Leave everything to Him and it will be gloriously and graciously uncertain how He will come in– but you can be certain that He will come. Remain faithful to Him.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We never enter into the Kingdom of God by having our head questions answered, but only by commitment.
The Highest Good—Thy Great Redemption
Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 6-7; Luke 20:27-47
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, April 29, 2019
The Shadow that Scares Us - #8426
City Boy here is a lot of fun to watch when he's trying to be Farm Boy. My wife and I were helping out in someone else's barn a while back, and the large shadow of something flying came over our heads. I hadn't seen the creatures yet; all I could see was this massive shadow on the wall. I knew my responsibility as a man. That's right, run for help! There was actually no reason to run. When we looked up, we saw what was casting those huge, unsettling shadows: yeah, some little moths, flying around the little light overhead. The shadow was scary; the reality behind the shadow not scary at all.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Shadow that Scares Us."
There's a big shadow that has bothered all of us at one time or another. To be honest, it can be a pretty scary shadow. You see that shadow sometimes when you're in the doctor's office, or when you have a close call, or when you've been to the funeral of someone you know; especially someone who's like about your age. It is, of course, the shadow of death.
The great Jewish king, David, wrote about that shadow in what may be the best known psalm in the Bible, Psalm 23. In the fourth verse of that psalm, our word for today from the Word of God, he says: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me." The "You," of course, is the one David talks about at the beginning of his psalm "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not be in want." Now, when his loving shepherd leads him out of this life and into what he calls "the house of the Lord forever," he's going to have nothing to fear.
Many folks don't have that kind of peace and confidence about what happens on the other side of their last heartbeat. Maybe you don't. For you, the thought of death and what may be beyond it is more than just a shadow. It's an unsettling, even frightening, reality. Should we be fearful about death and what's beyond? Well, that all depends on where you stand with the God you'll meet on the other side.
In a sense, the only thing to fear about death is God. And we're scared of God. And maybe we should be scared of God, because of the wrong things we've done. He knows every person I've ever hurt, He knows every lie I've ever told, every sin I've ever committed, every promise I've ever broken, every selfish or immoral thought or deed, and every dark secret of my life. There's no way you and I can get into his heaven with our sin. It would ruin heaven.
But there is some awesome good news for us in Hebrews 2:14-15. God tells us that Jesus Christ died on a cross to "free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death." Wow! See, Jesus actually absorbed all the guilt, all the hell of your sin and mine when He died on the cross. Which means you can be forgiven for every sin of your life, erased from God's book forever.
The Bible says when you put your trust in Jesus to be your personal rescuer from your personal sin, your sins are indeed erased from God's book forever and your name is entered in His "Book of Life" - those who are going to heaven when they die.
So you don't have to wait till you die to know if you're going to heaven. You can know that today, because Jesus is offering to remove the only thing that will keep you out of heaven - your sins. But you do have to grab the nail-scarred hand of the Rescuer and He's reaching your direction today. Tell Him you're His from today on. Tell Him you want to belong to Him. Tell Him, "Jesus, thank you that when you died on that cross, some of those sins you were paying for were mine. I turn from them now to grab you with both hands to be my own Savior from my own sin."
If you're at that crossroads right now, I want to do everything I can to help you be sure that you've got Jesus before you hit the sack tonight. Would you go to our website? Because that's what it's for. It's called ANewStory.com. You'll find there what you need to know to get this settled.
If you don't belong to Jesus, death is a monster that should be feared. If you do belong to Him, then death becomes just a shadow because death is now your doorway to everything heaven offers.
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Isaiah 29, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: YOUR PROBLEM IS A PRAYER-SIZED CHALLENGE
Praying specifically about a problem creates a lighter load. Many of our anxieties are threatening because they are ill-defined and vague. If we can distill the challenge into a phrase, we bring it down to size. It’s one thing to pray, “Lord, please bless my meeting tomorrow.”
It’s another thing to pray, “I have a conference with my supervisor at 2:00 PM tomorrow. She intimidates me. Would you please grant me a spirit of peace so I can sleep well tonight? Grant me wisdom so I can enter the meeting prepared. And would you soften her heart toward me and give her a generous spirit? Help us have a gracious conversation in which both of us benefit and your name is honored.”
There! You have reduced the problem into a prayer-sized challenge. As God’s children we honor him when we tell him exactly what we need.
Isaiah 29
Doom, Ariel, Ariel,
the city where David set camp!
Let the years add up,
let the festivals run their cycles,
But I’m not letting up on Jerusalem.
The moaning and groaning will continue.
Jerusalem to me is an Ariel.
Like David, I’ll set up camp against you.
I’ll set siege, build towers,
bring in siege engines, build siege ramps.
Driven into the ground, you’ll speak,
you’ll mumble words from the dirt—
Your voice from the ground, like the muttering of a ghost.
Your speech will whisper from the dust.
5-8 But it will be your enemies who are beaten to dust,
the mob of tyrants who will be blown away like chaff.
Because, surprise, as if out of nowhere,
a visit from God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
With thunderclaps, earthquakes, and earsplitting noise,
backed up by hurricanes, tornadoes, and lightning strikes,
And the mob of enemies at war with Ariel,
all who trouble and hassle and torment her,
will turn out to be a bad dream, a nightmare.
Like a hungry man dreaming he’s eating steak
and wakes up hungry as ever,
Like a thirsty woman dreaming she’s drinking iced tea
and wakes up thirsty as ever,
So that mob of nations at war against Mount Zion
will wake up and find they haven’t shot an arrow,
haven’t killed a single soul.
9-10 Drug yourselves so you feel nothing.
Blind yourselves so you see nothing.
Get drunk, but not on wine.
Black out, but not from whiskey.
For God has rocked you into a deep, deep sleep,
put the discerning prophets to sleep,
put the farsighted seers to sleep.
11-12 What you’ve been shown here is somewhat like a letter in a sealed envelope. If you give it to someone who can read and tell her, “Read this,” she’ll say, “I can’t. The envelope is sealed.” And if you give it to someone who can’t read and tell him, “Read this,” he’ll say, “I can’t read.”
13-14 The Master said:
“These people make a big show of saying the right thing,
but their hearts aren’t in it.
Because they act like they’re worshiping me
but don’t mean it,
I’m going to step in and shock them awake,
astonish them, stand them on their ears.
The wise ones who had it all figured out
will be exposed as fools.
The smart people who thought they knew everything
will turn out to know nothing.”
15-16 Doom to you! You pretend to have the inside track.
You shut God out and work behind the scenes,
Plotting the future as if you knew everything,
acting mysterious, never showing your hand.
You have everything backward!
You treat the potter as a lump of clay.
Does a book say to its author,
“He didn’t write a word of me”?
Does a meal say to the woman who cooked it,
“She had nothing to do with this”?
17-21 And then before you know it,
and without you having anything to do with it,
Wasted Lebanon will be transformed into lush gardens,
and Mount Carmel reforested.
At that time the deaf will hear
word-for-word what’s been written.
After a lifetime in the dark,
the blind will see.
The castoffs of society will be laughing and dancing in God,
the down-and-outs shouting praise to The Holy of Israel.
For there’ll be no more gangs on the street.
Cynical scoffers will be an extinct species.
Those who never missed a chance to hurt or demean
will never be heard of again:
Gone the people who corrupted the courts,
gone the people who cheated the poor,
gone the people who victimized the innocent.
22-24 And finally this, God’s Message for the family of Jacob,
the same God who redeemed Abraham:
“No longer will Jacob hang his head in shame,
no longer grow gaunt and pale with waiting.
For he’s going to see his children,
my personal gift to him—lots of children.
And these children will honor me
by living holy lives.
In holy worship they’ll honor the Holy One of Jacob
and stand in holy awe of the God of Israel.
Those who got off-track will get back on-track,
and complainers and whiners learn gratitude.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Psalm 67
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine on us—b e
2 so that your ways may be known on earth,
your salvationf among all nations.g
3 May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.h
4 May the nations be glad and sing for joy,i
for you rule the peoples with equityj
and guide the nations of the earth.k
5 May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.
6 The land yields its harvest;l
God, our God, blesses us.m
7 May God bless us still,
so that all the ends of the earthn will fear him.
Insight
Psalm 67 is a prayer that draws from God’s blessing to Abraham in Genesis 12:1–3 as well as the Aaronic blessing in Numbers 6:24–27 (“the Lord bless you and keep you . . .”). Because it emphasizes crops as a sign of God’s blessing (Psalm 67:6), this psalm might have been composed for use during harvest celebrations like the Festival of Tabernacles.
Typically, in the Old Testament the word translated “people” (Hebrew ‘am) refers primarily to the nation of Israel; however, Psalm 67 suggests that God’s blessing on “the people” extends beyond Israel to “the nations” (v. 4) and strongly emphasizes the universal scope of God’s goodness. Through God’s goodness to His people, He becomes known and revered throughout the earth (v. 2), just as God promised Abraham.
Let Us Praise!
May the nations be glad and sing for joy. Psalm 67:4
When the alarm on Shelley’s phone goes off every day at 3:16 in the afternoon, she takes a praise break. She thanks God and acknowledges His goodness. Although she communicates with God throughout the day, Shelley loves to take this break because it helps her celebrate her intimate relationship with Him.
Inspired by her joyful devotion, I decided to set a specific time each day to thank Christ for His sacrifice on the cross and to pray for those who have yet to be saved. I wonder what it would be like if all believers in Jesus stopped to praise Him in their own way and pray for others every day.
The image of a beautiful wave of worship rolling to the ends of the earth resounds in the words of Psalm 67. The psalmist pleads for God’s grace, proclaiming his desire to make His name great in all the nations (vv. 1–2). He sings, “May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you” (v. 3). He celebrates His sovereign rule and faithful guidance (v. 4). As a living testimony of God’s great love and abundant blessings, the psalmist leads God’s people into jubilant praise (vv. 5–6).
God’s continued faithfulness toward His beloved children inspires us to acknowledge Him. As we do, others can join us in trusting Him, revering Him, following Him, and acclaiming Him as Lord. By: Xochitl Dixon
Reflect & Pray
When can you take a few minutes today to praise God? What do you have to be thankful for?
God, You are worthy of all our praise!
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
What You Will Get
I will give your life to you as a prize in all places, wherever you go. —Jeremiah 45:5
This is the firm and immovable secret of the Lord to those who trust Him– “I will give your life to you….” What more does a man want than his life? It is the essential thing. “…your life…as a prize…” means that wherever you may go, even if it is into hell, you will come out with your life and nothing can harm it. So many of us are caught up in exhibiting things for others to see, not showing off property and possessions, but our blessings. All these things that we so proudly show have to go. But there is something greater that can never go– the life that “is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).
Are you prepared to let God take you into total oneness with Himself, paying no more attention to what you call the great things of life? Are you prepared to surrender totally and let go? The true test of abandonment or surrender is in refusing to say, “Well, what about this?” Beware of your own ideas and speculations. The moment you allow yourself to think, “What about this?” you show that you have not surrendered and that you do not really trust God. But once you do surrender, you will no longer think about what God is going to do. Abandonment means to refuse yourself the luxury of asking any questions. If you totally abandon yourself to God, He immediately says to you, “I will give your life to you as a prize….” The reason people are tired of life is that God has not given them anything— they have not been given their life “as a prize.” The way to get out of that condition is to abandon yourself to God. And once you do get to the point of total surrender to Him, you will be the most surprised and delighted person on earth. God will have you absolutely, without any limitations, and He will have given you your life. If you are not there, it is either because of disobedience in your life or your refusal to be simple enough.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Jesus Christ can afford to be misunderstood; we cannot. Our weakness lies in always wanting to vindicate ourselves.
The Place of Help
Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 3-5; Luke 20:1-26
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Shock Therapy - #8687
Hanna lives in coal country so she's been around miners a lot. Being in youth ministry for years I've been around minors a lot too. Oh wait, that's a different kind; it's spelled differently. But Hanna and a friend of mine were talking recently about the mines and the miners and a surprising fact came out. Hanna said the most common cause of death among those coal miners was electrocution. She said they live in a real remote area and the mining operation was pretty old and relatively primitive. So there were sometimes problems with the wiring in the mine, and miners actually getting electrocuted. What compounds the problem is that the nearest doctor is many miles away, which led Hanna to ask the doctor one time if there was anything the local folks could do to help while they're waiting for the doctor to arrive. She was surprised by the doctor's answer. "Well, there is one thing. Hug the injured miner." Well, obviously Hanna wanted to know why. He said, "When people are about to go into shock, there is something about a hug, about human touch - about human tenderness."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Shock Therapy."
Not all shocks are electrical are they? People around us are getting shocked every day by bad news they've just received, by bad treatment, by unexpected developments, by a death, by failure, by pain in a relationship. And not all hugs are two arms around a person - although that kind of hug is great. But a hug can be a word of encouragement, or an offer to help, a gift, a compliment, a place to rest and recover. It's practical love when someone has really been hit hard.
David never forgot the men who "hugged" him, so to speak, when he was battling shock. The king that David had served loyally turned on him out of jealousy and he wanted him dead. And so that king is in hot pursuit of David; he's ready to kill him when he finds him. This was way before electricity, but it must have been a shock to David.
Our word for today from the Word of God comes out of that incident: 1 Chronicles 11:16. It says this, "At that time David was in the stronghold and the Philistine garrison was at Bethlehem. David longed for water and said, 'Oh, that someone would get me a drink of water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem.'"
That's his hometown; he's nostalgic for it. He's hurting because of the pressure and the attack he's under. The Philistines, his enemy, they're in charge of things here. But the Bible says, "So the three broke through the Philistine lines, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem and carried it back to David." They knew his language of love at a time when he was really needing encouragement. It was behind enemy lines, but still they sacrificed and risked to bring David a gift that would let him know that he was cared about. Years later when David was king, these men are some of his main men. He never forgot that "hug" he got from them during his shock time.
Sometimes we're so preoccupied with our own business and our own burdens we don't even notice the shock victims around us. But your hug might be just the margin for someone who's been hit really hard. And it isn't that difficult, it usually involves a simple step like a note, or an email, or a card, or a text, or a good deed, or allowing someone to use your car, or your getaway spot. It can mean just an offer to babysit, or grocery shop, or maybe cook a meal. Years ago when my wife was bedridden with hepatitis for months, people from our church hugged our family over and over again with some home cooked dinners. You never forget things like that! Neither does Jesus.
In Matthew 10:42 He said, "If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, he will certainly not lose his reward." Look at this, Jesus notices when we stop to administer shock therapy. When we find a way to show practical love to someone, like even a drink of cold water, He'll turn those hugs, those cups of water, into eternal reward someday.
So open your eyes and open your heart to see the shock victim near you and find a way to hug them. And when you do, you'll be acting so very much like your Jesus.
Praying specifically about a problem creates a lighter load. Many of our anxieties are threatening because they are ill-defined and vague. If we can distill the challenge into a phrase, we bring it down to size. It’s one thing to pray, “Lord, please bless my meeting tomorrow.”
It’s another thing to pray, “I have a conference with my supervisor at 2:00 PM tomorrow. She intimidates me. Would you please grant me a spirit of peace so I can sleep well tonight? Grant me wisdom so I can enter the meeting prepared. And would you soften her heart toward me and give her a generous spirit? Help us have a gracious conversation in which both of us benefit and your name is honored.”
There! You have reduced the problem into a prayer-sized challenge. As God’s children we honor him when we tell him exactly what we need.
Isaiah 29
Doom, Ariel, Ariel,
the city where David set camp!
Let the years add up,
let the festivals run their cycles,
But I’m not letting up on Jerusalem.
The moaning and groaning will continue.
Jerusalem to me is an Ariel.
Like David, I’ll set up camp against you.
I’ll set siege, build towers,
bring in siege engines, build siege ramps.
Driven into the ground, you’ll speak,
you’ll mumble words from the dirt—
Your voice from the ground, like the muttering of a ghost.
Your speech will whisper from the dust.
5-8 But it will be your enemies who are beaten to dust,
the mob of tyrants who will be blown away like chaff.
Because, surprise, as if out of nowhere,
a visit from God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
With thunderclaps, earthquakes, and earsplitting noise,
backed up by hurricanes, tornadoes, and lightning strikes,
And the mob of enemies at war with Ariel,
all who trouble and hassle and torment her,
will turn out to be a bad dream, a nightmare.
Like a hungry man dreaming he’s eating steak
and wakes up hungry as ever,
Like a thirsty woman dreaming she’s drinking iced tea
and wakes up thirsty as ever,
So that mob of nations at war against Mount Zion
will wake up and find they haven’t shot an arrow,
haven’t killed a single soul.
9-10 Drug yourselves so you feel nothing.
Blind yourselves so you see nothing.
Get drunk, but not on wine.
Black out, but not from whiskey.
For God has rocked you into a deep, deep sleep,
put the discerning prophets to sleep,
put the farsighted seers to sleep.
11-12 What you’ve been shown here is somewhat like a letter in a sealed envelope. If you give it to someone who can read and tell her, “Read this,” she’ll say, “I can’t. The envelope is sealed.” And if you give it to someone who can’t read and tell him, “Read this,” he’ll say, “I can’t read.”
13-14 The Master said:
“These people make a big show of saying the right thing,
but their hearts aren’t in it.
Because they act like they’re worshiping me
but don’t mean it,
I’m going to step in and shock them awake,
astonish them, stand them on their ears.
The wise ones who had it all figured out
will be exposed as fools.
The smart people who thought they knew everything
will turn out to know nothing.”
15-16 Doom to you! You pretend to have the inside track.
You shut God out and work behind the scenes,
Plotting the future as if you knew everything,
acting mysterious, never showing your hand.
You have everything backward!
You treat the potter as a lump of clay.
Does a book say to its author,
“He didn’t write a word of me”?
Does a meal say to the woman who cooked it,
“She had nothing to do with this”?
17-21 And then before you know it,
and without you having anything to do with it,
Wasted Lebanon will be transformed into lush gardens,
and Mount Carmel reforested.
At that time the deaf will hear
word-for-word what’s been written.
After a lifetime in the dark,
the blind will see.
The castoffs of society will be laughing and dancing in God,
the down-and-outs shouting praise to The Holy of Israel.
For there’ll be no more gangs on the street.
Cynical scoffers will be an extinct species.
Those who never missed a chance to hurt or demean
will never be heard of again:
Gone the people who corrupted the courts,
gone the people who cheated the poor,
gone the people who victimized the innocent.
22-24 And finally this, God’s Message for the family of Jacob,
the same God who redeemed Abraham:
“No longer will Jacob hang his head in shame,
no longer grow gaunt and pale with waiting.
For he’s going to see his children,
my personal gift to him—lots of children.
And these children will honor me
by living holy lives.
In holy worship they’ll honor the Holy One of Jacob
and stand in holy awe of the God of Israel.
Those who got off-track will get back on-track,
and complainers and whiners learn gratitude.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Psalm 67
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine on us—b e
2 so that your ways may be known on earth,
your salvationf among all nations.g
3 May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.h
4 May the nations be glad and sing for joy,i
for you rule the peoples with equityj
and guide the nations of the earth.k
5 May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.
6 The land yields its harvest;l
God, our God, blesses us.m
7 May God bless us still,
so that all the ends of the earthn will fear him.
Insight
Psalm 67 is a prayer that draws from God’s blessing to Abraham in Genesis 12:1–3 as well as the Aaronic blessing in Numbers 6:24–27 (“the Lord bless you and keep you . . .”). Because it emphasizes crops as a sign of God’s blessing (Psalm 67:6), this psalm might have been composed for use during harvest celebrations like the Festival of Tabernacles.
Typically, in the Old Testament the word translated “people” (Hebrew ‘am) refers primarily to the nation of Israel; however, Psalm 67 suggests that God’s blessing on “the people” extends beyond Israel to “the nations” (v. 4) and strongly emphasizes the universal scope of God’s goodness. Through God’s goodness to His people, He becomes known and revered throughout the earth (v. 2), just as God promised Abraham.
Let Us Praise!
May the nations be glad and sing for joy. Psalm 67:4
When the alarm on Shelley’s phone goes off every day at 3:16 in the afternoon, she takes a praise break. She thanks God and acknowledges His goodness. Although she communicates with God throughout the day, Shelley loves to take this break because it helps her celebrate her intimate relationship with Him.
Inspired by her joyful devotion, I decided to set a specific time each day to thank Christ for His sacrifice on the cross and to pray for those who have yet to be saved. I wonder what it would be like if all believers in Jesus stopped to praise Him in their own way and pray for others every day.
The image of a beautiful wave of worship rolling to the ends of the earth resounds in the words of Psalm 67. The psalmist pleads for God’s grace, proclaiming his desire to make His name great in all the nations (vv. 1–2). He sings, “May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you” (v. 3). He celebrates His sovereign rule and faithful guidance (v. 4). As a living testimony of God’s great love and abundant blessings, the psalmist leads God’s people into jubilant praise (vv. 5–6).
God’s continued faithfulness toward His beloved children inspires us to acknowledge Him. As we do, others can join us in trusting Him, revering Him, following Him, and acclaiming Him as Lord. By: Xochitl Dixon
Reflect & Pray
When can you take a few minutes today to praise God? What do you have to be thankful for?
God, You are worthy of all our praise!
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
What You Will Get
I will give your life to you as a prize in all places, wherever you go. —Jeremiah 45:5
This is the firm and immovable secret of the Lord to those who trust Him– “I will give your life to you….” What more does a man want than his life? It is the essential thing. “…your life…as a prize…” means that wherever you may go, even if it is into hell, you will come out with your life and nothing can harm it. So many of us are caught up in exhibiting things for others to see, not showing off property and possessions, but our blessings. All these things that we so proudly show have to go. But there is something greater that can never go– the life that “is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).
Are you prepared to let God take you into total oneness with Himself, paying no more attention to what you call the great things of life? Are you prepared to surrender totally and let go? The true test of abandonment or surrender is in refusing to say, “Well, what about this?” Beware of your own ideas and speculations. The moment you allow yourself to think, “What about this?” you show that you have not surrendered and that you do not really trust God. But once you do surrender, you will no longer think about what God is going to do. Abandonment means to refuse yourself the luxury of asking any questions. If you totally abandon yourself to God, He immediately says to you, “I will give your life to you as a prize….” The reason people are tired of life is that God has not given them anything— they have not been given their life “as a prize.” The way to get out of that condition is to abandon yourself to God. And once you do get to the point of total surrender to Him, you will be the most surprised and delighted person on earth. God will have you absolutely, without any limitations, and He will have given you your life. If you are not there, it is either because of disobedience in your life or your refusal to be simple enough.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Jesus Christ can afford to be misunderstood; we cannot. Our weakness lies in always wanting to vindicate ourselves.
The Place of Help
Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 3-5; Luke 20:1-26
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Shock Therapy - #8687
Hanna lives in coal country so she's been around miners a lot. Being in youth ministry for years I've been around minors a lot too. Oh wait, that's a different kind; it's spelled differently. But Hanna and a friend of mine were talking recently about the mines and the miners and a surprising fact came out. Hanna said the most common cause of death among those coal miners was electrocution. She said they live in a real remote area and the mining operation was pretty old and relatively primitive. So there were sometimes problems with the wiring in the mine, and miners actually getting electrocuted. What compounds the problem is that the nearest doctor is many miles away, which led Hanna to ask the doctor one time if there was anything the local folks could do to help while they're waiting for the doctor to arrive. She was surprised by the doctor's answer. "Well, there is one thing. Hug the injured miner." Well, obviously Hanna wanted to know why. He said, "When people are about to go into shock, there is something about a hug, about human touch - about human tenderness."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Shock Therapy."
Not all shocks are electrical are they? People around us are getting shocked every day by bad news they've just received, by bad treatment, by unexpected developments, by a death, by failure, by pain in a relationship. And not all hugs are two arms around a person - although that kind of hug is great. But a hug can be a word of encouragement, or an offer to help, a gift, a compliment, a place to rest and recover. It's practical love when someone has really been hit hard.
David never forgot the men who "hugged" him, so to speak, when he was battling shock. The king that David had served loyally turned on him out of jealousy and he wanted him dead. And so that king is in hot pursuit of David; he's ready to kill him when he finds him. This was way before electricity, but it must have been a shock to David.
Our word for today from the Word of God comes out of that incident: 1 Chronicles 11:16. It says this, "At that time David was in the stronghold and the Philistine garrison was at Bethlehem. David longed for water and said, 'Oh, that someone would get me a drink of water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem.'"
That's his hometown; he's nostalgic for it. He's hurting because of the pressure and the attack he's under. The Philistines, his enemy, they're in charge of things here. But the Bible says, "So the three broke through the Philistine lines, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem and carried it back to David." They knew his language of love at a time when he was really needing encouragement. It was behind enemy lines, but still they sacrificed and risked to bring David a gift that would let him know that he was cared about. Years later when David was king, these men are some of his main men. He never forgot that "hug" he got from them during his shock time.
Sometimes we're so preoccupied with our own business and our own burdens we don't even notice the shock victims around us. But your hug might be just the margin for someone who's been hit really hard. And it isn't that difficult, it usually involves a simple step like a note, or an email, or a card, or a text, or a good deed, or allowing someone to use your car, or your getaway spot. It can mean just an offer to babysit, or grocery shop, or maybe cook a meal. Years ago when my wife was bedridden with hepatitis for months, people from our church hugged our family over and over again with some home cooked dinners. You never forget things like that! Neither does Jesus.
In Matthew 10:42 He said, "If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, he will certainly not lose his reward." Look at this, Jesus notices when we stop to administer shock therapy. When we find a way to show practical love to someone, like even a drink of cold water, He'll turn those hugs, those cups of water, into eternal reward someday.
So open your eyes and open your heart to see the shock victim near you and find a way to hug them. And when you do, you'll be acting so very much like your Jesus.
Monday, April 27, 2020
Isaiah 28, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: WHEN YOU SEE GOD AT WORK
When God responds to our specific prayer in specific ways, our faith grows. The book of Genesis relates the wonderful prayer of Abraham’s servant. He was sent to find a wife for Abraham’s son.
How does a servant select a wife for someone else? This servant prayed about it. “O Lord God of my master, Abraham.” I am standing here beside this spring, and the young women of the town are coming out to draw water. This is my request. I will ask one of them, ‘Please give me a drink from your jug of water.’ If she says, ‘Yes, have a drink…let her be the one you have selected…”
The servant envisioned an exact dialog, and then he stepped forth in faith. Scripture says, “Before he had finished speaking, Rebekah appeared (Genesis 24:15). The servant offered a specific prayer and had an answered prayer. Consequently, he saw God at work. May you and I do the same!
Isaiah 28
Doom to the pretentious drunks of Ephraim,
shabby and washed out and seedy—
Tipsy, sloppy-fat, beer-bellied parodies
of a proud and handsome past.
Watch closely: God has someone picked out,
someone tough and strong to flatten them.
Like a hailstorm, like a hurricane, like a flash flood,
one-handed he’ll throw them to the ground.
Samaria, the party hat on Israel’s head,
will be knocked off with one blow.
It will disappear quicker than
a piece of meat tossed to a dog.
5-6 At that time, God-of-the-Angel-Armies will be
the beautiful crown on the head of what’s left of his people:
Energy and insights of justice to those who guide and decide,
strength and prowess to those who guard and protect.
7-8 These also, the priest and prophet, stagger from drink,
weaving, falling-down drunks,
Besotted with wine and whiskey,
can’t see straight, can’t talk sense.
Every table is covered with vomit.
They live in vomit.
9-10 “Is that so? And who do you think you are to teach us?
Who are you to lord it over us?
We’re not babies in diapers
to be talked down to by such as you—
‘Da, da, da, da,
blah, blah, blah, blah.
That’s a good little girl,
that’s a good little boy.’”
11-12 But that’s exactly how you will be addressed.
God will speak to this people
In baby talk, one syllable at a time—
and he’ll do it through foreign oppressors.
He said before, “This is the time and place to rest,
to give rest to the weary.
This is the place to lay down your burden.”
But they won’t listen.
13 So God will start over with the simple basics
and address them in baby talk, one syllable at a time—
“Da, da, da, da,
blah, blah, blah, blah.
That’s a good little girl,
that’s a good little boy.”
And like toddlers, they will get up and fall down,
get bruised and confused and lost.
14-15 Now listen to God’s Message, you scoffers,
you who rule this people in Jerusalem.
You say, “We’ve taken out good life insurance.
We’ve hedged all our bets, covered all our bases.
No disaster can touch us. We’ve thought of everything.
We’re advised by the experts. We’re set.”
16-17 But the Master, God, has something to say to this:
“Watch closely. I’m laying a foundation in Zion,
a solid granite foundation, squared and true.
And this is the meaning of the stone:
a trusting life won’t topple.
I’ll make justice the measuring stick
and righteousness the plumb line for the building.
A hailstorm will knock down the shantytown of lies,
and a flash flood will wash out the rubble.
18-22 “Then you’ll see that your precious life insurance policy
wasn’t worth the paper it was written on.
Your careful precautions against death
were a pack of illusions and lies.
When the disaster happens,
you’ll be crushed by it.
Every time disaster comes, you’ll be in on it—
disaster in the morning, disaster at night.”
Every report of disaster
will send you cowering in terror.
There will be no place where you can rest,
nothing to hide under.
God will rise to full stature,
raging as he did long ago on Mount Perazim
And in the valley of Gibeon against the Philistines.
But this time it’s against you.
Hard to believe, but true.
Not what you’d expect, but it’s coming.
Sober up, friends, and don’t scoff.
Scoffing will just make it worse.
I’ve heard the orders issued for destruction, orders from
God-of-the-Angel-Armies—ending up in an international disaster.
23-26 Listen to me now.
Give me your closest attention.
Do farmers plow and plow and do nothing but plow?
Or harrow and harrow and do nothing but harrow?
After they’ve prepared the ground, don’t they plant?
Don’t they scatter dill and spread cumin,
Plant wheat and barley in the fields
and raspberries along the borders?
They know exactly what to do and when to do it.
Their God is their teacher.
27-29 And at the harvest, the delicate herbs and spices,
the dill and cumin, are treated delicately.
On the other hand, wheat is threshed and milled, but still not endlessly.
The farmer knows how to treat each kind of grain.
He’s learned it all from God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
who knows everything about when and how and where.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, April 27, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Isaiah 43:1–7
Israel’s Only Savior
43 But now, this is what the Lord says—
he who createdv you, Jacob,
he who formedw you, Israel:x
“Do not fear, for I have redeemedy you;
I have summoned you by name;z you are mine.a
2 When you pass through the waters,b
I will be with you;c
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,d
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.e
3 For I am the Lord your God,f
the Holy Oneg of Israel, your Savior;h
I give Egypti for your ransom,
Cusha j and Sebak in your stead.l
4 Since you are precious and honoredm in my sight,
and because I loven you,
I will give people in exchange for you,
nations in exchange for your life.
5 Do not be afraid,o for I am with you;p
I will bring your childrenq from the east
and gatherr you from the west.s
6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
and to the south,t ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring my sons from afar
and my daughtersu from the ends of the earthv—
7 everyone who is called by my name,w
whom I createdx for my glory,y
whom I formed and made.z”
Insight
Against the backdrop of the present Assyrian invasion (Isaiah 10:3–6) and the future Babylonian destruction and exile (39:6–7), God assured the people of Judah saying, “Do not fear!” (43:1). God reminded them that they were His chosen people and had a special personal relationship with Him: “I have summoned you by name; you are mine” (v. 1). God also gave them many assurances of His love and protection: He revealed Himself as their Creator, Redeemer, Owner, and Protector (vv. 1–4) and declared, “For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior” (v. 3). God’s people didn’t need to fear the Assyrians or the Babylonians because they were greatly loved by God (v. 4). But it’d be foolish for them to depend on anything other than God for deliverance (31:1). Isaiah called them to repent and to “turn to the Lord . . . for he will freely pardon” (55:7).
Through the Waters
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. Isaiah 43:2
The movie The Free State of Jones tells the US Civil War story of Newton Knight and some Confederate deserters and slaves who aided the Union Army and then resisted slaveholders after the war. Many herald Knight as the hero, but two slaves first saved his life after his desertion. They carried him deep into a secluded swampland and tended a leg wound he suffered while fleeing Confederate forces. If they’d abandoned him, he would have died.
The people of Judah were wounded and desperate, facing enemies and feeling helpless. Israel had been overtaken by Assyria, and Isaiah prophesied that one day they (Judah) would also be overcome by an enemy—Babylonia. Judah needed a God who would help, who would rescue and not forsake them. Imagine, then, the surging hope when the people heard God’s assurance: “Do not be afraid, for I am with you” (Isaiah 43:5). Whatever calamity they faced or trouble they would endure, He would be with them. He would “pass through the waters” with them, leading them to safety (v. 2). He would “walk through the fire” with them, helping them through the scorching flames (v. 2).
Throughout Scripture, God promises to be with His people, to care for us, guide us, and never abandon us—whether in life or death. Even when you find yourself in difficult places, God is with you. He’ll help you pass through the waters. By: Winn Collier
Reflect & Pray
What deep waters are you facing? How does God’s promise to pass through them with you strengthen your heart today?
God, the water is deep, and I don’t see how I’m going to make it through. Thank You for promising to be with me and to carry me through!
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, April 27, 2020
What Do You Want?
Do you seek great things for yourself? —Jeremiah 45:5
Are you seeking great things for yourself, instead of seeking to be a great person? God wants you to be in a much closer relationship with Himself than simply receiving His gifts— He wants you to get to know Him. Even some large thing we want is only incidental; it comes and it goes. But God never gives us anything incidental. There is nothing easier than getting into the right relationship with God, unless it is not God you seek, but only what He can give you.
If you have only come as far as asking God for things, you have never come to the point of understanding the least bit of what surrender really means. You have become a Christian based on your own terms. You protest, saying, “I asked God for the Holy Spirit, but He didn’t give me the rest and the peace I expected.” And instantly God puts His finger on the reason– you are not seeking the Lord at all; you are seeking something for yourself. Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you…” (Matthew 7:7). Ask God for what you want and do not be concerned about asking for the wrong thing, because as you draw ever closer to Him, you will cease asking for things altogether. “Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him” (Matthew 6:8). Then why should you ask? So that you may get to know Him.
Are you seeking great things for yourself? Have you said, “Oh, Lord, completely fill me with your Holy Spirit”? If God does not, it is because you are not totally surrendered to Him; there is something you still refuse to do. Are you prepared to ask yourself what it is you want from God and why you want it? God always ignores your present level of completeness in favor of your ultimate future completeness. He is not concerned about making you blessed and happy right now, but He’s continually working out His ultimate perfection for you— “…that they may be one just as We are one…” (John 17:22).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We all have the trick of saying—If only I were not where I am!—If only I had not got the kind of people I have to live with! If our faith or our religion does not help us in the conditions we are in, we have either a further struggle to go through, or we had better abandon that faith and religion. The Shadow of an Agony, 1178 L
Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 1-2; Luke 19:28-48
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, April 27, 2020
The Same Old Baggage - #868
When your airplane flight is over, it's not really over. See, there's that closing chapter of a trip that you get to spend at baggage claim. At my home airport they have these big carousels where suitcases are dumped out and where they circle until their owners claim them. Now, my bags seem to have a knack for waiting until almost all the other bags are out, for some reason. So I just keep watching those suitcases of all shapes and sizes and conditions appear, and waiting for one I like - no, no, no. I mean, one I recognize. But there always seem to be some phantom bags there. Have you noticed that? They just keep circling and circling and circling. And since the luggage carousel is all I really have to look at, the show gets pretty boring! Yep, there goes that baggage again!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Same Old Baggage."
Probably the most curious question Jesus ever asked is in our word for today from the Word of God. It's in John 5:3-9. There was a pool where people went out to get their diseases healed and it says, "Here there was a great number of people and they used to lie there, the blind, the lame, the paralyzed, and there was one who had been an invalid for 38 years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time he asked him, 'Do you want to get well?' 'Well sir,' the invalid replied, 'I have no one to help me to get into the pool when the water is stirred.'" That's when the healing time was. "While I'm trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.' Then Jesus said, 'Get up, pick up your mat and walk.' At once the man was cured, picked up his mat and he walked."
Now, this man has been a victim of paralysis for 38 years and Jesus says, "Do you want to get well?" Why? Well, let's stop for a moment and consider the condition that you're in, maybe. Something that fits the Biblical description that's given here, he had been "In this condition for a long time." Maybe it's the pain or the memory of some past hurt or abuse or past betrayal and it's haunted you; it's even held you back for a long time.
Or, it could be that you've carried feelings of worthlessness for a long time, and they've caused you to make some very hurtful choices. Maybe you've got this enslaving sin that's held you down for a long time, but like this man at the healing pool, you've been in some way emotionally, or spiritually, or relationally paralyzed for a long time.
And then along comes Jesus with this strange question - the one that comes before the healing, "Do you want to get well?" Or to put it in airport terms, "Are you tired of watching the same old baggage go by again and again?" In a way, those memories and those resentments, those no good feelings, those sins, they're the baggage in your life and they just keep replaying and replaying and causing more frustration and more damage.
Why does Jesus ask us if we want to get well? Because sometimes we're afraid to change. We've gotten used to playing the victim role, the loser role. We've settled into an identity that revolves around that same old baggage. Notice the man didn't just say "Yes." He responded with a nobody cares complaint. He's gotten used to being the guy with the problem. He was stuck in his victim identity, but Jesus acts miraculously and that man walks away carrying what had been carrying him for years.
Now, that's what He wants to do for you, and He's got the power to do it. He wants to help you put the pain and paralysis of the past once and for all behind you. To take away the victim card and replace it with one that says, "More than conquerors through Him who loved us." He wants to help you make today the day that you wrap up the past and put it in a book called Volume 1, and leave it on the shelf forever.
Today is the beginning of Volume 2, one in which you release the hurt through forgiving the hurter, you release the sin through aggressive repentance, and you release the worthless feelings by living like the masterpiece God created you to be. That all happens when you come to the cross where Jesus died for your sin and say, "Jesus, I'm Yours. You died to free me from all of this."
Look, our website is a place where many people have found what they needed to begin this relationship. I think you could too. It's ANewStory.com.
So, do you want to get well? Then the next thing is the miracle.
When God responds to our specific prayer in specific ways, our faith grows. The book of Genesis relates the wonderful prayer of Abraham’s servant. He was sent to find a wife for Abraham’s son.
How does a servant select a wife for someone else? This servant prayed about it. “O Lord God of my master, Abraham.” I am standing here beside this spring, and the young women of the town are coming out to draw water. This is my request. I will ask one of them, ‘Please give me a drink from your jug of water.’ If she says, ‘Yes, have a drink…let her be the one you have selected…”
The servant envisioned an exact dialog, and then he stepped forth in faith. Scripture says, “Before he had finished speaking, Rebekah appeared (Genesis 24:15). The servant offered a specific prayer and had an answered prayer. Consequently, he saw God at work. May you and I do the same!
Isaiah 28
Doom to the pretentious drunks of Ephraim,
shabby and washed out and seedy—
Tipsy, sloppy-fat, beer-bellied parodies
of a proud and handsome past.
Watch closely: God has someone picked out,
someone tough and strong to flatten them.
Like a hailstorm, like a hurricane, like a flash flood,
one-handed he’ll throw them to the ground.
Samaria, the party hat on Israel’s head,
will be knocked off with one blow.
It will disappear quicker than
a piece of meat tossed to a dog.
5-6 At that time, God-of-the-Angel-Armies will be
the beautiful crown on the head of what’s left of his people:
Energy and insights of justice to those who guide and decide,
strength and prowess to those who guard and protect.
7-8 These also, the priest and prophet, stagger from drink,
weaving, falling-down drunks,
Besotted with wine and whiskey,
can’t see straight, can’t talk sense.
Every table is covered with vomit.
They live in vomit.
9-10 “Is that so? And who do you think you are to teach us?
Who are you to lord it over us?
We’re not babies in diapers
to be talked down to by such as you—
‘Da, da, da, da,
blah, blah, blah, blah.
That’s a good little girl,
that’s a good little boy.’”
11-12 But that’s exactly how you will be addressed.
God will speak to this people
In baby talk, one syllable at a time—
and he’ll do it through foreign oppressors.
He said before, “This is the time and place to rest,
to give rest to the weary.
This is the place to lay down your burden.”
But they won’t listen.
13 So God will start over with the simple basics
and address them in baby talk, one syllable at a time—
“Da, da, da, da,
blah, blah, blah, blah.
That’s a good little girl,
that’s a good little boy.”
And like toddlers, they will get up and fall down,
get bruised and confused and lost.
14-15 Now listen to God’s Message, you scoffers,
you who rule this people in Jerusalem.
You say, “We’ve taken out good life insurance.
We’ve hedged all our bets, covered all our bases.
No disaster can touch us. We’ve thought of everything.
We’re advised by the experts. We’re set.”
16-17 But the Master, God, has something to say to this:
“Watch closely. I’m laying a foundation in Zion,
a solid granite foundation, squared and true.
And this is the meaning of the stone:
a trusting life won’t topple.
I’ll make justice the measuring stick
and righteousness the plumb line for the building.
A hailstorm will knock down the shantytown of lies,
and a flash flood will wash out the rubble.
18-22 “Then you’ll see that your precious life insurance policy
wasn’t worth the paper it was written on.
Your careful precautions against death
were a pack of illusions and lies.
When the disaster happens,
you’ll be crushed by it.
Every time disaster comes, you’ll be in on it—
disaster in the morning, disaster at night.”
Every report of disaster
will send you cowering in terror.
There will be no place where you can rest,
nothing to hide under.
God will rise to full stature,
raging as he did long ago on Mount Perazim
And in the valley of Gibeon against the Philistines.
But this time it’s against you.
Hard to believe, but true.
Not what you’d expect, but it’s coming.
Sober up, friends, and don’t scoff.
Scoffing will just make it worse.
I’ve heard the orders issued for destruction, orders from
God-of-the-Angel-Armies—ending up in an international disaster.
23-26 Listen to me now.
Give me your closest attention.
Do farmers plow and plow and do nothing but plow?
Or harrow and harrow and do nothing but harrow?
After they’ve prepared the ground, don’t they plant?
Don’t they scatter dill and spread cumin,
Plant wheat and barley in the fields
and raspberries along the borders?
They know exactly what to do and when to do it.
Their God is their teacher.
27-29 And at the harvest, the delicate herbs and spices,
the dill and cumin, are treated delicately.
On the other hand, wheat is threshed and milled, but still not endlessly.
The farmer knows how to treat each kind of grain.
He’s learned it all from God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
who knows everything about when and how and where.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, April 27, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Isaiah 43:1–7
Israel’s Only Savior
43 But now, this is what the Lord says—
he who createdv you, Jacob,
he who formedw you, Israel:x
“Do not fear, for I have redeemedy you;
I have summoned you by name;z you are mine.a
2 When you pass through the waters,b
I will be with you;c
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,d
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.e
3 For I am the Lord your God,f
the Holy Oneg of Israel, your Savior;h
I give Egypti for your ransom,
Cusha j and Sebak in your stead.l
4 Since you are precious and honoredm in my sight,
and because I loven you,
I will give people in exchange for you,
nations in exchange for your life.
5 Do not be afraid,o for I am with you;p
I will bring your childrenq from the east
and gatherr you from the west.s
6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
and to the south,t ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring my sons from afar
and my daughtersu from the ends of the earthv—
7 everyone who is called by my name,w
whom I createdx for my glory,y
whom I formed and made.z”
Insight
Against the backdrop of the present Assyrian invasion (Isaiah 10:3–6) and the future Babylonian destruction and exile (39:6–7), God assured the people of Judah saying, “Do not fear!” (43:1). God reminded them that they were His chosen people and had a special personal relationship with Him: “I have summoned you by name; you are mine” (v. 1). God also gave them many assurances of His love and protection: He revealed Himself as their Creator, Redeemer, Owner, and Protector (vv. 1–4) and declared, “For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior” (v. 3). God’s people didn’t need to fear the Assyrians or the Babylonians because they were greatly loved by God (v. 4). But it’d be foolish for them to depend on anything other than God for deliverance (31:1). Isaiah called them to repent and to “turn to the Lord . . . for he will freely pardon” (55:7).
Through the Waters
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. Isaiah 43:2
The movie The Free State of Jones tells the US Civil War story of Newton Knight and some Confederate deserters and slaves who aided the Union Army and then resisted slaveholders after the war. Many herald Knight as the hero, but two slaves first saved his life after his desertion. They carried him deep into a secluded swampland and tended a leg wound he suffered while fleeing Confederate forces. If they’d abandoned him, he would have died.
The people of Judah were wounded and desperate, facing enemies and feeling helpless. Israel had been overtaken by Assyria, and Isaiah prophesied that one day they (Judah) would also be overcome by an enemy—Babylonia. Judah needed a God who would help, who would rescue and not forsake them. Imagine, then, the surging hope when the people heard God’s assurance: “Do not be afraid, for I am with you” (Isaiah 43:5). Whatever calamity they faced or trouble they would endure, He would be with them. He would “pass through the waters” with them, leading them to safety (v. 2). He would “walk through the fire” with them, helping them through the scorching flames (v. 2).
Throughout Scripture, God promises to be with His people, to care for us, guide us, and never abandon us—whether in life or death. Even when you find yourself in difficult places, God is with you. He’ll help you pass through the waters. By: Winn Collier
Reflect & Pray
What deep waters are you facing? How does God’s promise to pass through them with you strengthen your heart today?
God, the water is deep, and I don’t see how I’m going to make it through. Thank You for promising to be with me and to carry me through!
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, April 27, 2020
What Do You Want?
Do you seek great things for yourself? —Jeremiah 45:5
Are you seeking great things for yourself, instead of seeking to be a great person? God wants you to be in a much closer relationship with Himself than simply receiving His gifts— He wants you to get to know Him. Even some large thing we want is only incidental; it comes and it goes. But God never gives us anything incidental. There is nothing easier than getting into the right relationship with God, unless it is not God you seek, but only what He can give you.
If you have only come as far as asking God for things, you have never come to the point of understanding the least bit of what surrender really means. You have become a Christian based on your own terms. You protest, saying, “I asked God for the Holy Spirit, but He didn’t give me the rest and the peace I expected.” And instantly God puts His finger on the reason– you are not seeking the Lord at all; you are seeking something for yourself. Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you…” (Matthew 7:7). Ask God for what you want and do not be concerned about asking for the wrong thing, because as you draw ever closer to Him, you will cease asking for things altogether. “Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him” (Matthew 6:8). Then why should you ask? So that you may get to know Him.
Are you seeking great things for yourself? Have you said, “Oh, Lord, completely fill me with your Holy Spirit”? If God does not, it is because you are not totally surrendered to Him; there is something you still refuse to do. Are you prepared to ask yourself what it is you want from God and why you want it? God always ignores your present level of completeness in favor of your ultimate future completeness. He is not concerned about making you blessed and happy right now, but He’s continually working out His ultimate perfection for you— “…that they may be one just as We are one…” (John 17:22).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We all have the trick of saying—If only I were not where I am!—If only I had not got the kind of people I have to live with! If our faith or our religion does not help us in the conditions we are in, we have either a further struggle to go through, or we had better abandon that faith and religion. The Shadow of an Agony, 1178 L
Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 1-2; Luke 19:28-48
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, April 27, 2020
The Same Old Baggage - #868
When your airplane flight is over, it's not really over. See, there's that closing chapter of a trip that you get to spend at baggage claim. At my home airport they have these big carousels where suitcases are dumped out and where they circle until their owners claim them. Now, my bags seem to have a knack for waiting until almost all the other bags are out, for some reason. So I just keep watching those suitcases of all shapes and sizes and conditions appear, and waiting for one I like - no, no, no. I mean, one I recognize. But there always seem to be some phantom bags there. Have you noticed that? They just keep circling and circling and circling. And since the luggage carousel is all I really have to look at, the show gets pretty boring! Yep, there goes that baggage again!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Same Old Baggage."
Probably the most curious question Jesus ever asked is in our word for today from the Word of God. It's in John 5:3-9. There was a pool where people went out to get their diseases healed and it says, "Here there was a great number of people and they used to lie there, the blind, the lame, the paralyzed, and there was one who had been an invalid for 38 years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time he asked him, 'Do you want to get well?' 'Well sir,' the invalid replied, 'I have no one to help me to get into the pool when the water is stirred.'" That's when the healing time was. "While I'm trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.' Then Jesus said, 'Get up, pick up your mat and walk.' At once the man was cured, picked up his mat and he walked."
Now, this man has been a victim of paralysis for 38 years and Jesus says, "Do you want to get well?" Why? Well, let's stop for a moment and consider the condition that you're in, maybe. Something that fits the Biblical description that's given here, he had been "In this condition for a long time." Maybe it's the pain or the memory of some past hurt or abuse or past betrayal and it's haunted you; it's even held you back for a long time.
Or, it could be that you've carried feelings of worthlessness for a long time, and they've caused you to make some very hurtful choices. Maybe you've got this enslaving sin that's held you down for a long time, but like this man at the healing pool, you've been in some way emotionally, or spiritually, or relationally paralyzed for a long time.
And then along comes Jesus with this strange question - the one that comes before the healing, "Do you want to get well?" Or to put it in airport terms, "Are you tired of watching the same old baggage go by again and again?" In a way, those memories and those resentments, those no good feelings, those sins, they're the baggage in your life and they just keep replaying and replaying and causing more frustration and more damage.
Why does Jesus ask us if we want to get well? Because sometimes we're afraid to change. We've gotten used to playing the victim role, the loser role. We've settled into an identity that revolves around that same old baggage. Notice the man didn't just say "Yes." He responded with a nobody cares complaint. He's gotten used to being the guy with the problem. He was stuck in his victim identity, but Jesus acts miraculously and that man walks away carrying what had been carrying him for years.
Now, that's what He wants to do for you, and He's got the power to do it. He wants to help you put the pain and paralysis of the past once and for all behind you. To take away the victim card and replace it with one that says, "More than conquerors through Him who loved us." He wants to help you make today the day that you wrap up the past and put it in a book called Volume 1, and leave it on the shelf forever.
Today is the beginning of Volume 2, one in which you release the hurt through forgiving the hurter, you release the sin through aggressive repentance, and you release the worthless feelings by living like the masterpiece God created you to be. That all happens when you come to the cross where Jesus died for your sin and say, "Jesus, I'm Yours. You died to free me from all of this."
Look, our website is a place where many people have found what they needed to begin this relationship. I think you could too. It's ANewStory.com.
So, do you want to get well? Then the next thing is the miracle.
Sunday, April 26, 2020
Ephesians 6, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: We Row
“He went into the hills to pray.” Mark 6:46
What does Jesus do while we are in the storm? You’ll love this. He prays for us . . .
So where does that leave us? While Jesus is praying and we are in the storm, what are we to do? Simple. We do what the disciples did. We row . . .
Much of life is spent rowing . . . Getting out of bed. Fixing lunches . . . More struggle than strut.
Ephesians 6
Children, do what your parents tell you. This is only right. “Honor your father and mother” is the first commandment that has a promise attached to it, namely, “so you will live well and have a long life.”
4 Fathers, don’t exasperate your children by coming down hard on them. Take them by the hand and lead them in the way of the Master.
5-8 Servants, respectfully obey your earthly masters but always with an eye to obeying the real master, Christ. Don’t just do what you have to do to get by, but work heartily, as Christ’s servants doing what God wants you to do. And work with a smile on your face, always keeping in mind that no matter who happens to be giving the orders, you’re really serving God. Good work will get you good pay from the Master, regardless of whether you are slave or free.
9 Masters, it’s the same with you. No abuse, please, and no threats. You and your servants are both under the same Master in heaven. He makes no distinction between you and them.
10-12 And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.
13-18 Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.
19-20 And don’t forget to pray for me. Pray that I’ll know what to say and have the courage to say it at the right time, telling the mystery to one and all, the Message that I, jailbird preacher that I am, am responsible for getting out.
21-22 Tychicus, my good friend here, will tell you what I’m doing and how things are going with me. He is certainly a dependable servant of the Master! I’ve sent him not only to tell you about us but to cheer you on in your faith.
23-24 Good-bye, friends. Love mixed with faith be yours from God the Father and from the Master, Jesus Christ. Pure grace and nothing but grace be with all who love our Master, Jesus Christ.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, April 26, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Zephaniah 3:14–20
Sing, Daughter Zion;j
shout aloud,k Israel!
Be glad and rejoicel with all your heart,
Daughter Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has taken away your punishment,
he has turned back your enemy.
The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you;m
never again will you fearn any harm.o
16 On that day
they will say to Jerusalem,
“Do not fear, Zion;
do not let your hands hang limp.p
17 The Lord your God is with you,
the Mighty Warrior who saves.q
He will take great delightr in you;
in his love he will no longer rebuke you,s
but will rejoice over you with singing.”t
18 “I will remove from you
all who mourn over the loss of your appointed festivals,
which is a burden and reproach for you.
19 At that time I will deal
with all who oppressedu you.
I will rescue the lame;
I will gather the exiles.v
I will give them praisew and honor
in every land where they have suffered shame.
20 At that time I will gather you;
at that time I will bringx you home.
I will give you honory and praisez
among all the peoples of the earth
when I restore your fortunese a
before your very eyes,”
says the Lord.
Insight
It’s not uncommon for Bible readers to scratch their heads when they encounter the brief but powerful prophecy of Zephaniah—the ninth among the twelve shorter prophetic writings (Minor Prophets) of the Old Testament. Zephaniah (whose name means “the Lord hides” or “he whom the Lord hides”) prophesied during the kingship of Josiah (640–609 bc; Zephaniah 1:1). The dominant theme is one of far-reaching judgment—judgment that included God’s people: “ ‘When I destroy all mankind on the face of the earth,’ declares the Lord, ‘I will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all who live in Jerusalem’ ” (1:3–4). The term “day of the Lord” (1:7)—a time of widespread divine reckoning against evil—is used seven times in the book, more than in any other Old Testament prophet. However, the book ends on a note of hope and rescue (3:14–20).
To gain an overview of the book of Zephaniah visit bit.ly/337DURd and scroll down to the video on Zephaniah.
Our Father Sings
He . . . will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17
Dandy loves encouraging people by singing to them. One day we were having lunch at his favorite restaurant, and he noticed the waitress was having a hard day. He asked her a few questions and then started quietly singing a catchy, upbeat song to cheer her up. “Well, kind sir, you just made my day. Thank you so much,” she said with a big smile, as she wrote down our food order.
When we open the book of Zephaniah, we find that God loves to sing. The prophet masterfully drew a picture with his words in which he described God as a musician who loves to sing for and with His children. He wrote that God “will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing” (3:17). God promised to be present forever with those who have been transformed by His mercy. But it doesn’t stop there! He invites and joins in with His people to “be glad and rejoice with all your heart” (v. 14).
We can only imagine the day when we’ll be together with God and with all those who’ve put their trust in Jesus as their Savior. How amazing it will be to hear our heavenly Father sing songs for and with us and experience His love, approval, and acceptance. By: Estera Pirosca Escobar
Reflect & Pray
How can you celebrate God’s love for you? What song is He singing over you and with you today?
Heavenly Father, we know that because of our allegiance to Jesus, You not only accept us but celebrate with us and delight in us as Your children. Thank You for Your love.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, April 26, 2020
The Supreme Climb
Take now your son…and offer him…as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you. —Genesis 22:2
A person’s character determines how he interprets God’s will (see Psalm 18:25-26). Abraham interpreted God’s command to mean that he had to kill his son, and he could only leave this traditional belief behind through the pain of a tremendous ordeal. God could purify his faith in no other way. If we obey what God says according to our sincere belief, God will break us from those traditional beliefs that misrepresent Him. There are many such beliefs which must be removed– for example, that God removes a child because his mother loves him too much. That is the devil’s lie and a travesty on the true nature of God! If the devil can hinder us from taking the supreme climb and getting rid of our wrong traditional beliefs about God, he will do so. But if we will stay true to God, God will take us through an ordeal that will serve to bring us into a better knowledge of Himself.
The great lesson to be learned from Abraham’s faith in God is that he was prepared to do anything for God. He was there to obey God, no matter what contrary belief of his might be violated by his obedience. Abraham was not devoted to his own convictions or else he would have slain Isaac and said that the voice of the angel was actually the voice of the devil. That is the attitude of a fanatic. If you will remain true to God, God will lead you directly through every barrier and right into the inner chamber of the knowledge of Himself. But you must always be willing to come to the point of giving up your own convictions and traditional beliefs. Don’t ask God to test you. Never declare as Peter did that you are willing to do anything, even “to go …both to prison and to death” (Luke 22:33). Abraham did not make any such statement— he simply remained true to God, and God purified his faith.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Christianity is not consistency to conscience or to convictions; Christianity is being true to Jesus Christ. Biblical Ethics, 111 L
Bible in a Year: 2 Samuel 23-24; Luke 19:1-27
“He went into the hills to pray.” Mark 6:46
What does Jesus do while we are in the storm? You’ll love this. He prays for us . . .
So where does that leave us? While Jesus is praying and we are in the storm, what are we to do? Simple. We do what the disciples did. We row . . .
Much of life is spent rowing . . . Getting out of bed. Fixing lunches . . . More struggle than strut.
Ephesians 6
Children, do what your parents tell you. This is only right. “Honor your father and mother” is the first commandment that has a promise attached to it, namely, “so you will live well and have a long life.”
4 Fathers, don’t exasperate your children by coming down hard on them. Take them by the hand and lead them in the way of the Master.
5-8 Servants, respectfully obey your earthly masters but always with an eye to obeying the real master, Christ. Don’t just do what you have to do to get by, but work heartily, as Christ’s servants doing what God wants you to do. And work with a smile on your face, always keeping in mind that no matter who happens to be giving the orders, you’re really serving God. Good work will get you good pay from the Master, regardless of whether you are slave or free.
9 Masters, it’s the same with you. No abuse, please, and no threats. You and your servants are both under the same Master in heaven. He makes no distinction between you and them.
10-12 And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.
13-18 Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.
19-20 And don’t forget to pray for me. Pray that I’ll know what to say and have the courage to say it at the right time, telling the mystery to one and all, the Message that I, jailbird preacher that I am, am responsible for getting out.
21-22 Tychicus, my good friend here, will tell you what I’m doing and how things are going with me. He is certainly a dependable servant of the Master! I’ve sent him not only to tell you about us but to cheer you on in your faith.
23-24 Good-bye, friends. Love mixed with faith be yours from God the Father and from the Master, Jesus Christ. Pure grace and nothing but grace be with all who love our Master, Jesus Christ.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, April 26, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Zephaniah 3:14–20
Sing, Daughter Zion;j
shout aloud,k Israel!
Be glad and rejoicel with all your heart,
Daughter Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has taken away your punishment,
he has turned back your enemy.
The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you;m
never again will you fearn any harm.o
16 On that day
they will say to Jerusalem,
“Do not fear, Zion;
do not let your hands hang limp.p
17 The Lord your God is with you,
the Mighty Warrior who saves.q
He will take great delightr in you;
in his love he will no longer rebuke you,s
but will rejoice over you with singing.”t
18 “I will remove from you
all who mourn over the loss of your appointed festivals,
which is a burden and reproach for you.
19 At that time I will deal
with all who oppressedu you.
I will rescue the lame;
I will gather the exiles.v
I will give them praisew and honor
in every land where they have suffered shame.
20 At that time I will gather you;
at that time I will bringx you home.
I will give you honory and praisez
among all the peoples of the earth
when I restore your fortunese a
before your very eyes,”
says the Lord.
Insight
It’s not uncommon for Bible readers to scratch their heads when they encounter the brief but powerful prophecy of Zephaniah—the ninth among the twelve shorter prophetic writings (Minor Prophets) of the Old Testament. Zephaniah (whose name means “the Lord hides” or “he whom the Lord hides”) prophesied during the kingship of Josiah (640–609 bc; Zephaniah 1:1). The dominant theme is one of far-reaching judgment—judgment that included God’s people: “ ‘When I destroy all mankind on the face of the earth,’ declares the Lord, ‘I will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all who live in Jerusalem’ ” (1:3–4). The term “day of the Lord” (1:7)—a time of widespread divine reckoning against evil—is used seven times in the book, more than in any other Old Testament prophet. However, the book ends on a note of hope and rescue (3:14–20).
To gain an overview of the book of Zephaniah visit bit.ly/337DURd and scroll down to the video on Zephaniah.
Our Father Sings
He . . . will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17
Dandy loves encouraging people by singing to them. One day we were having lunch at his favorite restaurant, and he noticed the waitress was having a hard day. He asked her a few questions and then started quietly singing a catchy, upbeat song to cheer her up. “Well, kind sir, you just made my day. Thank you so much,” she said with a big smile, as she wrote down our food order.
When we open the book of Zephaniah, we find that God loves to sing. The prophet masterfully drew a picture with his words in which he described God as a musician who loves to sing for and with His children. He wrote that God “will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing” (3:17). God promised to be present forever with those who have been transformed by His mercy. But it doesn’t stop there! He invites and joins in with His people to “be glad and rejoice with all your heart” (v. 14).
We can only imagine the day when we’ll be together with God and with all those who’ve put their trust in Jesus as their Savior. How amazing it will be to hear our heavenly Father sing songs for and with us and experience His love, approval, and acceptance. By: Estera Pirosca Escobar
Reflect & Pray
How can you celebrate God’s love for you? What song is He singing over you and with you today?
Heavenly Father, we know that because of our allegiance to Jesus, You not only accept us but celebrate with us and delight in us as Your children. Thank You for Your love.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, April 26, 2020
The Supreme Climb
Take now your son…and offer him…as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you. —Genesis 22:2
A person’s character determines how he interprets God’s will (see Psalm 18:25-26). Abraham interpreted God’s command to mean that he had to kill his son, and he could only leave this traditional belief behind through the pain of a tremendous ordeal. God could purify his faith in no other way. If we obey what God says according to our sincere belief, God will break us from those traditional beliefs that misrepresent Him. There are many such beliefs which must be removed– for example, that God removes a child because his mother loves him too much. That is the devil’s lie and a travesty on the true nature of God! If the devil can hinder us from taking the supreme climb and getting rid of our wrong traditional beliefs about God, he will do so. But if we will stay true to God, God will take us through an ordeal that will serve to bring us into a better knowledge of Himself.
The great lesson to be learned from Abraham’s faith in God is that he was prepared to do anything for God. He was there to obey God, no matter what contrary belief of his might be violated by his obedience. Abraham was not devoted to his own convictions or else he would have slain Isaac and said that the voice of the angel was actually the voice of the devil. That is the attitude of a fanatic. If you will remain true to God, God will lead you directly through every barrier and right into the inner chamber of the knowledge of Himself. But you must always be willing to come to the point of giving up your own convictions and traditional beliefs. Don’t ask God to test you. Never declare as Peter did that you are willing to do anything, even “to go …both to prison and to death” (Luke 22:33). Abraham did not make any such statement— he simply remained true to God, and God purified his faith.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Christianity is not consistency to conscience or to convictions; Christianity is being true to Jesus Christ. Biblical Ethics, 111 L
Bible in a Year: 2 Samuel 23-24; Luke 19:1-27
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Isaiah 27, Bible reading and Daily Devotions
Max Lucado Daily: Power of the Holy Spirit
Power of the Holy Spirit
“You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.” Acts 1:8, NKJV
Remember the followers’ fear at the crucifixion? They ran. Scared as cats in a dog pound . . .
But fast-forward forty days . . . Peter is preaching in the very precinct where Christ was arrested. Followers of Christ defy the enemies of Christ . . . As bold after the Resurrection as they were cowardly before it.
Explanation? A resurrected Christ and his Holy Spirit. The courage of these men and women was forged in the fire of the empty tomb.
Isaiah 27
At that time God will unsheathe his sword,
his merciless, massive, mighty sword.
He’ll punish the serpent Leviathan as it flees,
the serpent Leviathan thrashing in flight.
He’ll kill that old dragon
that lives in the sea.
2-5 “At that same time, a fine vineyard will appear.
There’s something to sing about!
I, God, tend it.
I keep it well-watered.
I keep careful watch over it
so that no one can damage it.
I’m not angry. I care.
Even if it gives me thistles and thornbushes,
I’ll just pull them out
and burn them up.
Let that vine cling to me for safety,
let it find a good and whole life with me,
let it hold on for a good and whole life.”
6 The days are coming when Jacob
shall put down roots,
Israel blossom and grow fresh branches,
and fill the world with its fruit.
7-11 Has God knocked them to the ground
as he knocked down those who hit them? Oh, no.
Were they killed
as their killers were killed? Again, no.
He was hard on them all right. The exile was a harsh sentence.
He blew them away on a fierce blast of wind.
But the good news is that through this experience
Jacob’s guilt was taken away.
The evidence that his sin is removed will be this:
He will tear down the alien altars,
take them apart stone by stone,
And then crush the stones into gravel
and clean out all the sex-and-religion shrines.
For there’s nothing left of that pretentious grandeur.
Nobody lives there anymore. It’s unlivable.
But animals do just fine,
browsing and bedding down.
And it’s not a bad place to get firewood.
Dry twigs and dead branches are plentiful.
It’s the leavings of a people with no sense of God.
So, the God who made them
Will have nothing to do with them.
He who formed them will turn his back on them.
12-13 At that time God will thresh
from the River Euphrates to the Brook of Egypt,
And you, people of Israel,
will be selected grain by grain.
At that same time a great trumpet will be blown,
calling home the exiles from Assyria,
Welcoming home the refugees from Egypt
to come and worship God on the holy mountain, Jerusalem.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
2 Kings 6:8–17
Elisha Traps Blinded Arameans
8 Now the king of Aram was at war with Israel. After conferring with his officers, he said, “I will set up my camp in such and such a place.”
9 The man of God sent word to the kingn of Israel: “Beware of passing that place, because the Arameans are going down there.” 10 So the king of Israel checked on the place indicated by the man of God. Time and again Elisha warnedo the king, so that he was on his guard in such places.
11 This enraged the king of Aram. He summoned his officers and demanded of them, “Tell me! Which of us is on the side of the king of Israel?”
12 “None of us, my lord the kingp,” said one of his officers, “but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the very words you speak in your bedroom.”
13 “Go, find out where he is,” the king ordered, “so I can send men and capture him.” The report came back: “He is in Dothan.”q 14 Then he sentr horses and chariots and a strong force there. They went by night and surrounded the city.
15 When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked.
16 “Don’t be afraid,”s the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are moret than those who are with them.”
17 And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariotsu of fire all around Elisha.
Insight
Today’s passage describes the fascinating reality of a world with both a visible physical dimension and an invisible (most of the time) spiritual dimension. The servant panicked because he couldn’t see the army that surrounded them—“horses and chariots of fire all around” (2 Kings 6:17). This contrasts to Elisha’s calm response as he asked God to open the servant’s eyes. The servant’s response to his new vision isn’t recorded. The author shows the reader, without telling us specifically, what can happen when we focus on only one part of reality. When we’re afraid, we need to remember that we don’t always see how God is helping and protecting us.
Run Toward Challenge
He looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 2 Kings 6:17
Tom chased the young men who were stealing his poor friend’s bike. He didn’t have a plan. He only knew he needed to get it back. To his surprise, the three thieves looked his way, dropped the bike and backed away. Tom was both relieved and impressed with himself as he picked up the bike and turned around. That’s when he saw Jeff, his muscular friend who had been trailing close behind.
Elisha’s servant panicked when he saw his town surrounded by an enemy army. He ran to Elisha, “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” Elisha told him to relax. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then God opened the servant’s eyes, and he “saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (vv. 15–17).
You may also find yourself in some dicey situations. You may have to risk your reputation, and perhaps even your security, because you’re determined to do what’s right. You may lose sleep wondering how it will all turn out. Remember, you’re not alone. You don’t have to be stronger or smarter than the challenge before you. Jesus is with you, and His power is greater than all rivals. Today, many believers are on the front lines in the battle against the Covid-19 virus. May we pray for them and others who are running toward the challenge. Ask yourself Paul’s question, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). Really, who? No one. Run toward your challenge, with God. By: Mike Wittmer
Reflect & Pray
What wakes you up at night? How can you give your worries to God?
Help me, Jesus, to truly see that You’re bigger than any problem facing me today. Thank You for Your everlasting presence!
For help, read Overcoming Worry at discoveryseries.org/q0711.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, April 25, 2020
“Ready in Season”
Be ready in season and out of season. —2 Timothy 4:2
Many of us suffer from the unbalanced tendency to “be ready” only “out of season.” The season does not refer to time; it refers to us. This verse says, “Preach the Word! Be ready in season and out of season.” In other words, we should “be ready” whether we feel like it or not. If we do only what we feel inclined to do, some of us would never do anything. There are some people who are totally unemployable in the spiritual realm. They are spiritually feeble and weak, and they refuse to do anything unless they are supernaturally inspired. The proof that our relationship is right with God is that we do our best whether we feel inspired or not.
One of the worst traps a Christian worker can fall into is to become obsessed with his own exceptional moments of inspiration. When the Spirit of God gives you a time of inspiration and insight, you tend to say, “Now that I’ve experienced this moment, I will always be like this for God.” No, you will not, and God will make sure of that. Those times are entirely the gift of God. You cannot give them to yourself when you choose. If you say you will only be at your best for God, as during those exceptional times, you actually become an intolerable burden on Him. You will never do anything unless God keeps you consciously aware of His inspiration to you at all times. If you make a god out of your best moments, you will find that God will fade out of your life, never to return until you are obedient in the work He has placed closest to you, and until you have learned not to be obsessed with those exceptional moments He has given you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Beware of isolation; beware of the idea that you have to develop a holy life alone. It is impossible to develop a holy life alone; you will develop into an oddity and a peculiarism, into something utterly unlike what God wants you to be. The only way to develop spiritually is to go into the society of God’s own children, and you will soon find how God alters your set. God does not contradict our social instincts; He alters them. Biblical Psychology, 189 L
Bible in a Year: 2 Samuel 21-22; Luke 18:24-43
Power of the Holy Spirit
“You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.” Acts 1:8, NKJV
Remember the followers’ fear at the crucifixion? They ran. Scared as cats in a dog pound . . .
But fast-forward forty days . . . Peter is preaching in the very precinct where Christ was arrested. Followers of Christ defy the enemies of Christ . . . As bold after the Resurrection as they were cowardly before it.
Explanation? A resurrected Christ and his Holy Spirit. The courage of these men and women was forged in the fire of the empty tomb.
Isaiah 27
At that time God will unsheathe his sword,
his merciless, massive, mighty sword.
He’ll punish the serpent Leviathan as it flees,
the serpent Leviathan thrashing in flight.
He’ll kill that old dragon
that lives in the sea.
2-5 “At that same time, a fine vineyard will appear.
There’s something to sing about!
I, God, tend it.
I keep it well-watered.
I keep careful watch over it
so that no one can damage it.
I’m not angry. I care.
Even if it gives me thistles and thornbushes,
I’ll just pull them out
and burn them up.
Let that vine cling to me for safety,
let it find a good and whole life with me,
let it hold on for a good and whole life.”
6 The days are coming when Jacob
shall put down roots,
Israel blossom and grow fresh branches,
and fill the world with its fruit.
7-11 Has God knocked them to the ground
as he knocked down those who hit them? Oh, no.
Were they killed
as their killers were killed? Again, no.
He was hard on them all right. The exile was a harsh sentence.
He blew them away on a fierce blast of wind.
But the good news is that through this experience
Jacob’s guilt was taken away.
The evidence that his sin is removed will be this:
He will tear down the alien altars,
take them apart stone by stone,
And then crush the stones into gravel
and clean out all the sex-and-religion shrines.
For there’s nothing left of that pretentious grandeur.
Nobody lives there anymore. It’s unlivable.
But animals do just fine,
browsing and bedding down.
And it’s not a bad place to get firewood.
Dry twigs and dead branches are plentiful.
It’s the leavings of a people with no sense of God.
So, the God who made them
Will have nothing to do with them.
He who formed them will turn his back on them.
12-13 At that time God will thresh
from the River Euphrates to the Brook of Egypt,
And you, people of Israel,
will be selected grain by grain.
At that same time a great trumpet will be blown,
calling home the exiles from Assyria,
Welcoming home the refugees from Egypt
to come and worship God on the holy mountain, Jerusalem.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
2 Kings 6:8–17
Elisha Traps Blinded Arameans
8 Now the king of Aram was at war with Israel. After conferring with his officers, he said, “I will set up my camp in such and such a place.”
9 The man of God sent word to the kingn of Israel: “Beware of passing that place, because the Arameans are going down there.” 10 So the king of Israel checked on the place indicated by the man of God. Time and again Elisha warnedo the king, so that he was on his guard in such places.
11 This enraged the king of Aram. He summoned his officers and demanded of them, “Tell me! Which of us is on the side of the king of Israel?”
12 “None of us, my lord the kingp,” said one of his officers, “but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the very words you speak in your bedroom.”
13 “Go, find out where he is,” the king ordered, “so I can send men and capture him.” The report came back: “He is in Dothan.”q 14 Then he sentr horses and chariots and a strong force there. They went by night and surrounded the city.
15 When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked.
16 “Don’t be afraid,”s the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are moret than those who are with them.”
17 And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariotsu of fire all around Elisha.
Insight
Today’s passage describes the fascinating reality of a world with both a visible physical dimension and an invisible (most of the time) spiritual dimension. The servant panicked because he couldn’t see the army that surrounded them—“horses and chariots of fire all around” (2 Kings 6:17). This contrasts to Elisha’s calm response as he asked God to open the servant’s eyes. The servant’s response to his new vision isn’t recorded. The author shows the reader, without telling us specifically, what can happen when we focus on only one part of reality. When we’re afraid, we need to remember that we don’t always see how God is helping and protecting us.
Run Toward Challenge
He looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 2 Kings 6:17
Tom chased the young men who were stealing his poor friend’s bike. He didn’t have a plan. He only knew he needed to get it back. To his surprise, the three thieves looked his way, dropped the bike and backed away. Tom was both relieved and impressed with himself as he picked up the bike and turned around. That’s when he saw Jeff, his muscular friend who had been trailing close behind.
Elisha’s servant panicked when he saw his town surrounded by an enemy army. He ran to Elisha, “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” Elisha told him to relax. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then God opened the servant’s eyes, and he “saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (vv. 15–17).
You may also find yourself in some dicey situations. You may have to risk your reputation, and perhaps even your security, because you’re determined to do what’s right. You may lose sleep wondering how it will all turn out. Remember, you’re not alone. You don’t have to be stronger or smarter than the challenge before you. Jesus is with you, and His power is greater than all rivals. Today, many believers are on the front lines in the battle against the Covid-19 virus. May we pray for them and others who are running toward the challenge. Ask yourself Paul’s question, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). Really, who? No one. Run toward your challenge, with God. By: Mike Wittmer
Reflect & Pray
What wakes you up at night? How can you give your worries to God?
Help me, Jesus, to truly see that You’re bigger than any problem facing me today. Thank You for Your everlasting presence!
For help, read Overcoming Worry at discoveryseries.org/q0711.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, April 25, 2020
“Ready in Season”
Be ready in season and out of season. —2 Timothy 4:2
Many of us suffer from the unbalanced tendency to “be ready” only “out of season.” The season does not refer to time; it refers to us. This verse says, “Preach the Word! Be ready in season and out of season.” In other words, we should “be ready” whether we feel like it or not. If we do only what we feel inclined to do, some of us would never do anything. There are some people who are totally unemployable in the spiritual realm. They are spiritually feeble and weak, and they refuse to do anything unless they are supernaturally inspired. The proof that our relationship is right with God is that we do our best whether we feel inspired or not.
One of the worst traps a Christian worker can fall into is to become obsessed with his own exceptional moments of inspiration. When the Spirit of God gives you a time of inspiration and insight, you tend to say, “Now that I’ve experienced this moment, I will always be like this for God.” No, you will not, and God will make sure of that. Those times are entirely the gift of God. You cannot give them to yourself when you choose. If you say you will only be at your best for God, as during those exceptional times, you actually become an intolerable burden on Him. You will never do anything unless God keeps you consciously aware of His inspiration to you at all times. If you make a god out of your best moments, you will find that God will fade out of your life, never to return until you are obedient in the work He has placed closest to you, and until you have learned not to be obsessed with those exceptional moments He has given you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Beware of isolation; beware of the idea that you have to develop a holy life alone. It is impossible to develop a holy life alone; you will develop into an oddity and a peculiarism, into something utterly unlike what God wants you to be. The only way to develop spiritually is to go into the society of God’s own children, and you will soon find how God alters your set. God does not contradict our social instincts; He alters them. Biblical Psychology, 189 L
Bible in a Year: 2 Samuel 21-22; Luke 18:24-43
Friday, April 24, 2020
Isaiah 26 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: PRAY SPECIFIC PRAYERS
A father was teaching his three-year-old daughter the Lord’s Prayer. She would repeat the lines after him. Finally she decided to go solo. She carefully enunciated each word, right up to the end of the prayer. “Lead us not into temptation,” she prayed, “but deliver us from e-mail.” (…not a bad prayer).
God calls us to pray about everything! We tell God exactly what we want. We pray the particulars. When the wedding ran low on wine, Mary wasn’t content to say, “Help us, Jesus.” She was specific: “They have no more wine” (John 2:3). A specific prayer is a serious prayer. If I say to you, “Do you mind if I come by your house sometime?” you may not take me seriously. But if I say, “Can I come over this Friday night? I really need your advice.” Then you know my petition is sincere. When we offer specific requests, God knows the same!
Isaiah 26
At that time, this song
will be sung in the country of Judah:
We have a strong city, Salvation City,
built and fortified with salvation.
Throw wide the gates
so good and true people can enter.
People with their minds set on you,
you keep completely whole,
Steady on their feet,
because they keep at it and don’t quit.
Depend on God and keep at it
because in the Lord God you have a sure thing.
Those who lived high and mighty
he knocked off their high horse.
He used the city built on the hill
as fill for the marshes.
All the exploited and outcast peoples
build their lives on the reclaimed land.
7-10 The path of right-living people is level.
The Leveler evens the road for the right-living.
We’re in no hurry, God. We’re content to linger
in the path sign-posted with your decisions.
Who you are and what you’ve done
are all we’ll ever want.
Through the night my soul longs for you.
Deep from within me my spirit reaches out to you.
When your decisions are on public display,
everyone learns how to live right.
If the wicked are shown grace,
they don’t seem to get it.
In the land of right living, they persist in wrong living,
blind to the splendor of God.
11-15 You hold your hand up high, God,
but they don’t see it.
Open their eyes to what you do,
to see your zealous love for your people.
Shame them. Light a fire under them.
Get the attention of these enemies of yours.
God, order a peaceful and whole life for us
because everything we’ve done, you’ve done for us.
O God, our God, we’ve had other masters rule us,
but you’re the only Master we’ve ever known.
The dead don’t talk,
ghosts don’t walk,
Because you’ve said, “Enough—that’s all for you,”
and wiped them off the books.
But the living you make larger than life.
The more life you give, the more glory you display,
and stretch the borders to accommodate more living!
16-18 O God, they begged you for help when they were in trouble,
when your discipline was so heavy
they could barely whisper a prayer.
Like a woman having a baby,
writhing in distress, screaming her pain
as the baby is being born,
That’s how we were because of you, O God.
We were pregnant full-term.
We writhed in labor but bore no baby.
We gave birth to wind.
Nothing came of our labor.
We produced nothing living.
We couldn’t save the world.
19 But friends, your dead will live,
your corpses will get to their feet.
All you dead and buried,
wake up! Sing!
Your dew is morning dew
catching the first rays of sun,
The earth bursting with life,
giving birth to the dead.
20-21 Come, my people, go home
and shut yourselves in.
Go into seclusion for a while
until the punishing wrath is past,
Because God is sure to come from his place
to punish the wrong of the people on earth.
Earth itself will point out the bloodstains;
it will show where the murdered have been hidden away.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, April 24, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Romans 11:33–36
Doxology
33 Oh, the depth of the richesy of the wisdom andi knowledge of God!z
How unsearchable his judgments,
and his paths beyond tracing out!a
34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor?”j b
35 “Who has ever given to God,
that God should repay them?”k c
36 For from him and through him and for him are all things.d
To him be the glory forever! Amen.
Insight
Paul wasn’t the first author in the Bible to speak of God’s inscrutability—that He’s beyond comprehension (Romans 11:33–36). Two thousand years earlier, Job (believed to have lived at about the time of Abraham) asked, “Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?” (Job 11:7). Isaiah also acknowledged that God is beyond human understanding (Isaiah 55:8–9). But God wanted us to know Him and said, “I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord” (Jeremiah 24:7). Years later, John the apostle told us how we know Him: “No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known” (John 1:18). To know Jesus is to know God. Jesus said, “If you knew me, you would know my Father also” (8:19; see also 17:3).
Divinely Aligned
Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Romans 11:33
I was deeply troubled and woke in the night to pace the floor and pray. Frankly, my attitude was not one of prayerful submission to God, but one of questioning and anger. Finding no release, I sat and stared out a large window at the night sky. I was unexpectedly drawn to focus on Orion’s Belt—those three perfectly arranged stars often visible on clear nights. I knew just enough about astronomy to understand that those three stars were hundreds of light years apart.
I realized the closer I could be to those stars, the less they would appear to be aligned. Yet from my distant perspective, they looked carefully configured in the heavens. At that moment, I realized I was too close to my life to see what God sees. In His big picture, everything is in perfect alignment.
The apostle Paul, as he completes a summary of the ultimate purposes of God, breaks into a hymn of praise (Romans 11:33–36). His words lift our gaze to our sovereign God, whose ways are beyond our limited ability to understand or trace (v. 33). Yet the One who holds all things together in the heavens and on earth is intimately and lovingly involved with every detail of our lives (Matthew 6:25–34; Colossians 1:16).
Even when things seem confusing, God’s divine plans are unfolding for our good and for God’s honor and glory. By: Evan Morgan
Reflect & Pray
What questions do you long for God to answer? How can you find rest and release through faith that His perspective of our lives is in perfect alignment with His ultimate purposes?
Dear God, remind me that Your purposes and plans for my life are beyond my understanding, and help me rest in You.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, April 24, 2020
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
To those who have had no agony Jesus says, “I have nothing for you; stand on your own feet, square your own shoulders. I have come for the man who knows he has a bigger handful than he can cope with, who knows there are forces he cannot touch; I will do everything for him if he will let Me. Only let a man grant he needs it, and I will do it for him.”
The Shadow of an Agony
Bible in a Year: 2 Samuel 19-20; Luke 18:1-23
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, April 24, 2020
One Man's Blood - #8685
I saw this news story about a highly successful New York surgeon who volunteers a month every year to donate his services in needy countries. This particular summer, he'd had set up a tent clinic in the jungles of Costa Rica. In the middle of operating on a five-year-old boy, it became apparent this boy desperately needed blood. Problem: only 2% of the human race has that boy's blood type. Suddenly the doctor excused himself, only to return a few minutes later with the needed blood. It turns out that doctor is one of the 2% with that type! There, in the middle of that jungle, that boy's life could only be saved by one man's blood. Just like me.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "One Man's Blood."
That's a fact. This boy talking with you right now could only be saved by one man's blood. But then, that's your life, too.
Almost every religion on this planet recognizes that we're in trouble with the One who put us here, because we haven't lived up to whatever He's expected of us. And something needs to be done to pay for what we've done against Him.
Enter religion, with a list of things we need to do to get right with our Creator. Ceremonies. Sacrifices. Rituals. Good deeds to make up for our bad deeds. If you're like most of the human race, you're probably counting on your religion and the good things you do to have a happy ending with God when this life is over.
But we'd better check with God first on how to have our sin atoned for and how to get to his heaven. And here's what He says in Hebrews 9:22, "Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness." Wow! No blood, no forgiveness. No forgiveness, I carry a lifetime of my sin right into my appointment with God after my last heartbeat. And there's no way I'm getting into His heaven with my sin. No matter what religion I've practiced. No matter how many good things I've done.
Because the Bible says, "The wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). That's spiritual death as in eternal separation from God. And there's only one way a death penalty can be paid. There's no good things you can do to pay a death penalty. No, someone has to die.
And someone did! Here's the greatest, most important news you will ever hear in your life. It's in 1 John 1:7, our word for today from the Word of God: "The blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin." This is what's so amazing: I did the sinning, Jesus did the dying to pay for it.
So my life could only be saved by the blood of one man. Your life can only be saved by the blood of one man--Jesus, God's sinless Son, who loved you too much to lose you. Who shed His blood on a cross to pay the price for you to have every sin of your life erased. To make it possible for you to have a personal relationship with the God of the galaxies, and for you to go to heaven when you take your last breath.
So, look, you have no more important decision to make in your life than whether or not you will pin all your hopes on Jesus or whether you will walk away from His cross unforgiven. I ask you, please, don't risk one more day without Jesus. We just don't know how much time we have to get this settled. He's alive. He walked out of His grave. He's waiting for you to tell Him you're pinning all your hopes on Him.
You ready to get this settled and know that you are right with God for now - forever? Listen, I would urge you to get to our website today and see there how to make sure you belong to Him. That site is ANewStory.com. Nothing for you to join, nothing for you to go to. It is just about you and Jesus.
This is the only chance you can be sure of. So, please, don't miss Him.
A father was teaching his three-year-old daughter the Lord’s Prayer. She would repeat the lines after him. Finally she decided to go solo. She carefully enunciated each word, right up to the end of the prayer. “Lead us not into temptation,” she prayed, “but deliver us from e-mail.” (…not a bad prayer).
God calls us to pray about everything! We tell God exactly what we want. We pray the particulars. When the wedding ran low on wine, Mary wasn’t content to say, “Help us, Jesus.” She was specific: “They have no more wine” (John 2:3). A specific prayer is a serious prayer. If I say to you, “Do you mind if I come by your house sometime?” you may not take me seriously. But if I say, “Can I come over this Friday night? I really need your advice.” Then you know my petition is sincere. When we offer specific requests, God knows the same!
Isaiah 26
At that time, this song
will be sung in the country of Judah:
We have a strong city, Salvation City,
built and fortified with salvation.
Throw wide the gates
so good and true people can enter.
People with their minds set on you,
you keep completely whole,
Steady on their feet,
because they keep at it and don’t quit.
Depend on God and keep at it
because in the Lord God you have a sure thing.
Those who lived high and mighty
he knocked off their high horse.
He used the city built on the hill
as fill for the marshes.
All the exploited and outcast peoples
build their lives on the reclaimed land.
7-10 The path of right-living people is level.
The Leveler evens the road for the right-living.
We’re in no hurry, God. We’re content to linger
in the path sign-posted with your decisions.
Who you are and what you’ve done
are all we’ll ever want.
Through the night my soul longs for you.
Deep from within me my spirit reaches out to you.
When your decisions are on public display,
everyone learns how to live right.
If the wicked are shown grace,
they don’t seem to get it.
In the land of right living, they persist in wrong living,
blind to the splendor of God.
11-15 You hold your hand up high, God,
but they don’t see it.
Open their eyes to what you do,
to see your zealous love for your people.
Shame them. Light a fire under them.
Get the attention of these enemies of yours.
God, order a peaceful and whole life for us
because everything we’ve done, you’ve done for us.
O God, our God, we’ve had other masters rule us,
but you’re the only Master we’ve ever known.
The dead don’t talk,
ghosts don’t walk,
Because you’ve said, “Enough—that’s all for you,”
and wiped them off the books.
But the living you make larger than life.
The more life you give, the more glory you display,
and stretch the borders to accommodate more living!
16-18 O God, they begged you for help when they were in trouble,
when your discipline was so heavy
they could barely whisper a prayer.
Like a woman having a baby,
writhing in distress, screaming her pain
as the baby is being born,
That’s how we were because of you, O God.
We were pregnant full-term.
We writhed in labor but bore no baby.
We gave birth to wind.
Nothing came of our labor.
We produced nothing living.
We couldn’t save the world.
19 But friends, your dead will live,
your corpses will get to their feet.
All you dead and buried,
wake up! Sing!
Your dew is morning dew
catching the first rays of sun,
The earth bursting with life,
giving birth to the dead.
20-21 Come, my people, go home
and shut yourselves in.
Go into seclusion for a while
until the punishing wrath is past,
Because God is sure to come from his place
to punish the wrong of the people on earth.
Earth itself will point out the bloodstains;
it will show where the murdered have been hidden away.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, April 24, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Romans 11:33–36
Doxology
33 Oh, the depth of the richesy of the wisdom andi knowledge of God!z
How unsearchable his judgments,
and his paths beyond tracing out!a
34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor?”j b
35 “Who has ever given to God,
that God should repay them?”k c
36 For from him and through him and for him are all things.d
To him be the glory forever! Amen.
Insight
Paul wasn’t the first author in the Bible to speak of God’s inscrutability—that He’s beyond comprehension (Romans 11:33–36). Two thousand years earlier, Job (believed to have lived at about the time of Abraham) asked, “Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?” (Job 11:7). Isaiah also acknowledged that God is beyond human understanding (Isaiah 55:8–9). But God wanted us to know Him and said, “I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord” (Jeremiah 24:7). Years later, John the apostle told us how we know Him: “No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known” (John 1:18). To know Jesus is to know God. Jesus said, “If you knew me, you would know my Father also” (8:19; see also 17:3).
Divinely Aligned
Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Romans 11:33
I was deeply troubled and woke in the night to pace the floor and pray. Frankly, my attitude was not one of prayerful submission to God, but one of questioning and anger. Finding no release, I sat and stared out a large window at the night sky. I was unexpectedly drawn to focus on Orion’s Belt—those three perfectly arranged stars often visible on clear nights. I knew just enough about astronomy to understand that those three stars were hundreds of light years apart.
I realized the closer I could be to those stars, the less they would appear to be aligned. Yet from my distant perspective, they looked carefully configured in the heavens. At that moment, I realized I was too close to my life to see what God sees. In His big picture, everything is in perfect alignment.
The apostle Paul, as he completes a summary of the ultimate purposes of God, breaks into a hymn of praise (Romans 11:33–36). His words lift our gaze to our sovereign God, whose ways are beyond our limited ability to understand or trace (v. 33). Yet the One who holds all things together in the heavens and on earth is intimately and lovingly involved with every detail of our lives (Matthew 6:25–34; Colossians 1:16).
Even when things seem confusing, God’s divine plans are unfolding for our good and for God’s honor and glory. By: Evan Morgan
Reflect & Pray
What questions do you long for God to answer? How can you find rest and release through faith that His perspective of our lives is in perfect alignment with His ultimate purposes?
Dear God, remind me that Your purposes and plans for my life are beyond my understanding, and help me rest in You.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, April 24, 2020
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
To those who have had no agony Jesus says, “I have nothing for you; stand on your own feet, square your own shoulders. I have come for the man who knows he has a bigger handful than he can cope with, who knows there are forces he cannot touch; I will do everything for him if he will let Me. Only let a man grant he needs it, and I will do it for him.”
The Shadow of an Agony
Bible in a Year: 2 Samuel 19-20; Luke 18:1-23
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, April 24, 2020
One Man's Blood - #8685
I saw this news story about a highly successful New York surgeon who volunteers a month every year to donate his services in needy countries. This particular summer, he'd had set up a tent clinic in the jungles of Costa Rica. In the middle of operating on a five-year-old boy, it became apparent this boy desperately needed blood. Problem: only 2% of the human race has that boy's blood type. Suddenly the doctor excused himself, only to return a few minutes later with the needed blood. It turns out that doctor is one of the 2% with that type! There, in the middle of that jungle, that boy's life could only be saved by one man's blood. Just like me.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "One Man's Blood."
That's a fact. This boy talking with you right now could only be saved by one man's blood. But then, that's your life, too.
Almost every religion on this planet recognizes that we're in trouble with the One who put us here, because we haven't lived up to whatever He's expected of us. And something needs to be done to pay for what we've done against Him.
Enter religion, with a list of things we need to do to get right with our Creator. Ceremonies. Sacrifices. Rituals. Good deeds to make up for our bad deeds. If you're like most of the human race, you're probably counting on your religion and the good things you do to have a happy ending with God when this life is over.
But we'd better check with God first on how to have our sin atoned for and how to get to his heaven. And here's what He says in Hebrews 9:22, "Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness." Wow! No blood, no forgiveness. No forgiveness, I carry a lifetime of my sin right into my appointment with God after my last heartbeat. And there's no way I'm getting into His heaven with my sin. No matter what religion I've practiced. No matter how many good things I've done.
Because the Bible says, "The wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). That's spiritual death as in eternal separation from God. And there's only one way a death penalty can be paid. There's no good things you can do to pay a death penalty. No, someone has to die.
And someone did! Here's the greatest, most important news you will ever hear in your life. It's in 1 John 1:7, our word for today from the Word of God: "The blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin." This is what's so amazing: I did the sinning, Jesus did the dying to pay for it.
So my life could only be saved by the blood of one man. Your life can only be saved by the blood of one man--Jesus, God's sinless Son, who loved you too much to lose you. Who shed His blood on a cross to pay the price for you to have every sin of your life erased. To make it possible for you to have a personal relationship with the God of the galaxies, and for you to go to heaven when you take your last breath.
So, look, you have no more important decision to make in your life than whether or not you will pin all your hopes on Jesus or whether you will walk away from His cross unforgiven. I ask you, please, don't risk one more day without Jesus. We just don't know how much time we have to get this settled. He's alive. He walked out of His grave. He's waiting for you to tell Him you're pinning all your hopes on Him.
You ready to get this settled and know that you are right with God for now - forever? Listen, I would urge you to get to our website today and see there how to make sure you belong to Him. That site is ANewStory.com. Nothing for you to join, nothing for you to go to. It is just about you and Jesus.
This is the only chance you can be sure of. So, please, don't miss Him.