Max Lucado Daily: DO NOT FEAR
In times like these, it is easy to let fear grip our hearts. Fear of sickness. Fear of lack. Fear of the unknown. But when fear and anxiety try to plague our every thought, we can remember this one important truth— God is with us. He his with us. He is for us. He loves us. And he invites us to enter into his rest.
We are not alone. When the storm rages, he offers us peace and refuge in the midst of it. He promises hope and strength to those who turn to him. What is God saying in this crisis?” Among the answers must be this promise: “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and I will surely help you” (Isaiah 41:10). Turn to Him today.
2 Chronicles 31
After the Passover celebration, they all took off for the cities of Judah and smashed the phallic stone monuments, chopped down the sacred Asherah groves, and demolished the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines and local god shops. They didn’t stop until they had been all through Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh. Then they all went back home and resumed their everyday lives.
2 Hezekiah organized the groups of priests and Levites for their respective tasks, handing out job descriptions for conducting the services of worship: making the various offerings, and making sure that thanks and praise took place wherever and whenever God was worshiped.
3 He also designated his personal contribution for the Whole-Burnt-Offerings for the morning and evening worship, for Sabbaths, for New Moon festivals, and for the special worship days set down in The Revelation of God.
4 In addition, he asked the people who lived in Jerusalem to be responsible for providing for the priests and Levites so they, without distraction or concern, could give themselves totally to The Revelation of God.
5-7 As soon as Hezekiah’s orders had gone out, the Israelites responded generously: firstfruits of the grain harvest, new wine, oil, honey—everything they grew. They didn’t hold back, turning over a tithe of everything. They also brought in a tithe of their cattle, sheep, and anything else they owned that had been dedicated to God. Everything was sorted and piled in mounds. They started doing this in the third month and didn’t finish until the seventh month.
8-9 When Hezekiah and his leaders came and saw the extent of the mounds of gifts, they praised God and commended God’s people Israel. Hezekiah then consulted the priests and Levites on how to handle the abundance of offerings.
10 Azariah, chief priest of the family of Zadok, answered, “From the moment of this huge outpouring of gifts to The Temple of God, there has been plenty to eat for everyone with food left over. God has blessed his people—just look at the evidence!”
11-18 Hezekiah then ordered storerooms to be prepared in The Temple of God. When they were ready, they brought in all the offerings of tithes and sacred gifts. They put Conaniah the Levite in charge with his brother Shimei as assistant. Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismakiah, Mahath, and Benaiah were project managers under the direction of Conaniah and Shimei, carrying out the orders of King Hezekiah and Azariah the chief priest of The Temple of God. Kore son of Imnah the Levite, security guard of the East Gate, was in charge of the Freewill-Offerings of God and responsible for distributing the offerings and sacred gifts. Faithful support out in the priestly cities was provided by Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah. They were even-handed in their distributions to their coworkers (all males thirty years and older) in each of their respective divisions as they entered The Temple of God each day to do their assigned work (their work was all organized by divisions). The divisions comprised officially registered priests by family and Levites twenty years and older by job description. The official family tree included everyone in the entire congregation—their small children, wives, sons, and daughters. The ardent dedication they showed in bringing themselves and their gifts to worship was total—no one was left out.
19 The Aaronites, the priests who lived out on the pastures that belonged to the priest-cities, had reputable men on hand to distribute regular rations to every priest—everyone listed in the official family tree of the Levites.
20-21 Hezekiah carried out this work and kept it up everywhere in Judah. He was the very best—good, right, and true before his God. Everything he took up, whether it had to do with worship in God’s Temple or the carrying out of God’s Law and Commandments, he did well in a spirit of prayerful worship. He was a great success.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, March 26, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Luke 3:1–6
John the Baptist Prepares the Way
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar—when Pontius Pilatei was governor of Judea, Herodj tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene—2 during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas,k the word of God came to Johnl son of Zechariahm in the wilderness. 3 He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.n 4 As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet:
“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.
5 Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill made low.
The crooked roads shall become straight,
the rough ways smooth.
6 And all people will see God’s salvation.’ ”
Insight
Luke, the writer of the third gospel, has an impressive resume. His credits include theologian, physician (Colossians 4:14), researcher, and historian. His attention to historical detail appears early in the book (see Luke 1:3–5; 2:1–2). This pattern continues in Luke 3:1–2 where he briefly notes the secular and religious ruling authorities during the ministry of John the Baptist. The Roman emperor Tiberius (ruled ad 14–37) was over the entire empire. Pontius Pilate (in office ad 26–36) was a provincial ruler who governed in Judea. Three men (Herod [Antipas], Philip, and Lysanias) are said to be tetrarchs. Literally the word tetrarch means “ruler of a fourth,” but it actually referred to a “ruler of lower rank.” These subordinate leaders were over particular territories. Religious leaders—Annas and Caiaphas—also come into view (v. 2). Though Caiaphas actually held the office of high priest, clearly Annas shared the power of that office with him.
Seeing Salvation
All people will see God’s salvation. Luke 3:6
At fifty-three, the last thing Sonia expected to do was abandon her business and her country to join a group of asylum seekers journeying to a new land. After gangs murdered her nephew and tried to force her seventeen-year-old son into their ranks, Sonia felt escape was her only option. “I pray to God. . . . I will do whatever is necessary,” Sonia explained. “I will do anything so [my son and I] don’t die of hunger. . . I prefer to see him suffer here than end up in a bag or canal.”
Does the Bible have anything to say to Sonia and her son—or to so many who have suffered injustice and devastation? When John the Baptist proclaimed the arrival of Jesus, he announced good news to Sonia, to us, to the world. “Prepare the way for the Lord,” John proclaimed (Luke 3:4). He insisted that when Jesus arrived, God would enact a powerful, comprehensive rescue. The biblical word for this rescue is salvation.
Salvation encompasses both the healing of our sinful hearts and—one day—the healing of all the world’s evils. God’s transforming work is for every story, every human system, and is available to everyone. “All people will see God’s salvation,” John said (v. 6).
Whatever evil we face, Christ’s cross and resurrection assure us we’ll see God’s salvation. One day we’ll experience His final liberation. By: Winn Collier
Reflect & Pray
Where do you need to see God’s salvation in your life? How has God called you to be part of His transforming work on earth?
God, You promise that all people will see Your salvation. I claim this promise. Show me Your rescue and healing.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, March 26, 2020
Spiritual Vision Through Personal Purity
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. —Matthew 5:8
Purity is not innocence— it is much more than that. Purity is the result of continued spiritual harmony with God. We have to grow in purity. Our life with God may be right and our inner purity unblemished, yet occasionally our outer life may become spotted and stained. God intentionally does not protect us from this possibility, because this is the way we recognize the necessity of maintaining our spiritual vision through personal purity. If the outer level of our spiritual life with God is impaired to the slightest degree, we must put everything else aside until we make it right. Remember that spiritual vision depends on our character— it is “the pure in heart” who “see God.”
God makes us pure by an act of His sovereign grace, but we still have something that we must carefully watch. It is through our bodily life coming in contact with other people and other points of view that we tend to become tarnished. Not only must our “inner sanctuary” be kept right with God, but also the “outer courts” must be brought into perfect harmony with the purity God gives us through His grace. Our spiritual vision and understanding is immediately blurred when our “outer court” is stained. If we want to maintain personal intimacy with the Lord Jesus Christ, it will mean refusing to do or even think certain things. And some things that are acceptable for others will become unacceptable for us.
A practical help in keeping your personal purity unblemished in your relations with other people is to begin to see them as God does. Say to yourself, “That man or that woman is perfect in Christ Jesus! That friend or that relative is perfect in Christ Jesus!”
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Beware of pronouncing any verdict on the life of faith if you are not living it. Not Knowing Whither, 900 R
Bible in a Year: Joshua 22-24; Luke 3
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, March 26, 2020
The Antidote for the Overwhelming - #8664
When my ministry teammate, Donna, showed me how it started, I wasn't very impressed. It began with a Mason jar lid and a little cloth circle she made with it. Great. A little cloth circle. O.K. Donna then sort of gathered that round piece of cloth into a puckered little circle called a "quilted yo-yo." Finally, she had that piece finished and looking like what she wanted. Great. A little piece of cloth that's now a little quilted yo-yo. But she kept making those pieces, and then she began putting them together in a pattern I didn't see. When she was finished, she had this large American flag creation, made from all those little pieces into something really impressive.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Antidote for the Overwhelming."
My friend showed me a quilt she made the same way - one little piece at a time. No single piece of her creations is all that impressive, I think. But when you see the whole tapestry, that's amazing. And assembled, not all at once, but one little piece at a time. She didn't work on a flag or a quilt. She worked on one piece at a time.
Which is exactly how God weaves the amazing tapestry of your life and mine. He sees the whole thing; He sees the finished product. We see the piece in front of us. It's this little 24-hour thing we call a day. God's modus operandi should be clear to us from the very day the world began, as recorded in our word for today from the Word of God.
Genesis 1:3-5 tells us, for example, "God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light...God called the light 'day,' and the darkness He called 'night.' And there was evening, and there was morning - the first day." From the very genesis of our world, God sets things up to be done as "days" - one small piece of the big tapestry at a time.
That way of doing life is reinforced over and over again in Scriptures. Lamentations 3:23 tells us to experience God by discovering that "His mercies are new every morning." The psalmist said that He "daily carries our burdens" (Psalm 68:19). Jesus told us His provision would come to us as "daily bread" (Matthew 6:11), His renewing of our soul would come "day by day" (2 Corinthians 4:16), and Jesus said the way to follow Him our whole life is to "take up your cross daily" (Luke 9:23). See, He does the big tapestry. Our job is to do this little piece called today.
Maybe you're overwhelmed right now by the size of what's in front of you. You're overwhelmed by the undone, by your responsibilities, by the expectations, by that massive challenge, that unsolvable problem, that unfixable situation. It's time you bowed before the Lord Jesus each new day and crown Him Lord of your undone, your undoable, or your unbearable. You've been trying to figure it out, to worry about the whole huge tapestry. That is His problem. He'll put together the big thing through you doing each day faithfully. He does the tapestry. You do today.
When folks casually tell you to "have a nice day," they probably have no idea they're reinforcing God's instructions for a life that doesn't overwhelm you. Your job is to do one day prayerfully, obediently, wholeheartedly, lovingly, joyfully. When you let the "mights" and the "coulds" and the "what ifs" of your tomorrow leak into your todays, you start to sink, because you're trying to do God's job instead of your job.
The big future is up to God. You just do the day. And when you reach the end of your day, you leave in His hands all you didn't get done, all you need to do, and all you can't possibly do.
You know what? That's a pretty liberating way to live. You do today's piece, God's doing the big tapestry. Then, on that day when you see Jesus, you can lay at His feet a whole life you lived for Him one faithful day at a time.
