Max Lucado Daily: LAY CLAIM TO THE NEARNESS OF GOD
God surrounds us like the Pacific surrounds an ocean floor pebble. He is everywhere: above, below, on all sides. We choose our response—rock or sponge? Resist or receive? Everything within you says Harden your heart. Run from God, resist God, blame God. But be careful – hard hearts never heal. Spongy ones do. Open every pore of your soul to God’s presence.
Here’s how: Lay claim to the nearness of God. He says in Hebrews 13:5, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Grip this promise like the parachute it is. Repeat it over and over until it trumps the voices of fear. The Lord God is with you, and He is mighty to save. Cling to His character. Quarry from your Bible a list of deep qualities of God and press them into your heart. He is sovereign. You will get through this.
Isaiah 40
Messages of Comfort
“Comfort, oh comfort my people,”
says your God.
“Speak softly and tenderly to Jerusalem,
but also make it very clear
That she has served her sentence,
that her sin is taken care of—forgiven!
She’s been punished enough and more than enough,
and now it’s over and done with.”
3-5 Thunder in the desert!
“Prepare for God’s arrival!
Make the road straight and smooth,
a highway fit for our God.
Fill in the valleys,
level off the hills,
Smooth out the ruts,
clear out the rocks.
Then God’s bright glory will shine
and everyone will see it.
Yes. Just as God has said.”
6-8 A voice says, “Shout!”
I said, “What shall I shout?”
“These people are nothing but grass,
their love fragile as wildflowers.
The grass withers, the wildflowers fade,
if God so much as puffs on them.
Aren’t these people just so much grass?
True, the grass withers and the wildflowers fade,
but our God’s Word stands firm and forever.”
9-11 Climb a high mountain, Zion.
You’re the preacher of good news.
Raise your voice. Make it good and loud, Jerusalem.
You’re the preacher of good news.
Speak loud and clear. Don’t be timid!
Tell the cities of Judah,
“Look! Your God!”
Look at him! God, the Master, comes in power,
ready to go into action.
He is going to pay back his enemies
and reward those who have loved him.
Like a shepherd, he will care for his flock,
gathering the lambs in his arms,
Hugging them as he carries them,
leading the nursing ewes to good pasture.
12-17 Who has scooped up the ocean
in his two hands,
or measured the sky between his thumb and little finger,
Who has put all the earth’s dirt in one of his baskets,
weighed each mountain and hill?
Who could ever have told God what to do
or taught him his business?
What expert would he have gone to for advice,
what school would he attend to learn justice?
What god do you suppose might have taught him what he knows,
showed him how things work?
Why, the nations are but a drop in a bucket,
a mere smudge on a window.
Watch him sweep up the islands
like so much dust off the floor!
There aren’t enough trees in Lebanon
nor enough animals in those vast forests
to furnish adequate fuel and offerings for his worship.
All the nations add up to simply nothing before him—
less than nothing is more like it. A minus.
18-20 So who even comes close to being like God?
To whom or what can you compare him?
Some no-god idol? Ridiculous!
It’s made in a workshop, cast in bronze,
Given a thin veneer of gold,
and draped with silver filigree.
Or, perhaps someone will select a fine wood—
olive wood, say—that won’t rot,
Then hire a woodcarver to make a no-god,
giving special care to its base so it won’t tip over!
21-24 Have you not been paying attention?
Have you not been listening?
Haven’t you heard these stories all your life?
Don’t you understand the foundation of all things?
God sits high above the round ball of earth.
The people look like mere ants.
He stretches out the skies like a canvas—
yes, like a tent canvas to live under.
He ignores what all the princes say and do.
The rulers of the earth count for nothing.
Princes and rulers don’t amount to much.
Like seeds barely rooted, just sprouted,
They shrivel when God blows on them.
Like flecks of chaff, they’re gone with the wind.
25-26 “So—who is like me?
Who holds a candle to me?” says The Holy.
Look at the night skies:
Who do you think made all this?
Who marches this army of stars out each night,
counts them off, calls each by name
—so magnificent! so powerful!—
and never overlooks a single one?
27-31 Why would you ever complain, O Jacob,
or, whine, Israel, saying,
“God has lost track of me.
He doesn’t care what happens to me”?
Don’t you know anything? Haven’t you been listening?
God doesn’t come and go. God lasts.
He’s Creator of all you can see or imagine.
He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath.
And he knows everything, inside and out.
He energizes those who get tired,
gives fresh strength to dropouts.
For even young people tire and drop out,
young folk in their prime stumble and fall.
But those who wait upon God get fresh strength.
They spread their wings and soar like eagles,
They run and don’t get tired,
they walk and don’t lag behind.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, May 14, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Hebrews 10:11–18
1 Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. 14 For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
15 The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:
16 “This is the covenant I will make with them
after that time, says the Lord.
I will put my laws in their hearts,
and I will write them on their minds.”[a]
17 Then he adds:
“Their sins and lawless acts
I will remember no more.”[b]
18 And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.
Footnotes:
Hebrews 10:16 Jer. 31:33
Hebrews 10:17 Jer. 31:34
Insight
Because of severe persecution, Jewish believers in Jesus felt pressured to abandon their faith and revert to Judaism (Hebrews 10:32–36). The unnamed writer of the book of Hebrews encourages them to persevere, and affirms the absolute supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus as Savior. He’s superior to the angels (chs. 1–2), to Moses (chs. 3–4), and to the Aaronic priesthood (chs. 5–7).
Chapters 8–10 describe Him as the perfect High Priest. The backdrop for this is the annual blood sacrifices offered by the high priest on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16). The writer compares the old covenant initiated by Moses requiring animal sacrifices (Hebrews 9:1–23) with the new covenant initiated by Jesus (v. 15; 9:24–10:18). As the perfect High Priest, Jesus offered the perfect sacrifice for sin—Himself (9:12–14; 10:11–12). “For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy” (10:14).
Under Construction
For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. Hebrews 10:14
They just repaved this road, I thought to myself as the traffic slowed. Now they’re tearing it up again! Then I wondered, Why is road construction never done? I mean, I’ve never seen a sign proclaiming, “The paving company is finished. Please enjoy this perfect road.”
But something similar is true in my spiritual life. Early in my faith, I imagined reaching a moment of maturity when I’d have it all figured out, when I’d be “smoothly paved.” Thirty years later, I confess I’m still “under construction.” Just like the perpetually potholed roads I drive, I never seem to be “finished” either. Sometimes that can feel equally frustrating.
But Hebrews 10 contains an amazing promise. Verse 14 says, “For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” Jesus’ work on the cross has already saved us. Completely. Perfectly. In God’s eyes, we are whole and finished. But paradoxically, that process isn’t done yet while we’re still on earth. We’re still being shaped into His likeness, still “being made holy.”
One day, we’ll see Him face-to-face, and we shall be like him (1 John 3:2). But until then, we’re still “under construction,” people who anxiously await the glorious day when the work in us is truly complete. By: Adam R. Holz
Reflect & Pray
Do you ever get frustrated that spiritual progress seems slower than you expected? How does this passage from Hebrews encourage you to think about your spiritual growth?
Faithful God, sometimes I get frustrated that my spiritual progress seems slow. Help me to remember that You’re still at work in my life, shaping me and helping me to become more and more like You.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, May 14, 2020
The Habit of Enjoying Adversity
…that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. —2 Corinthians 4:10
We have to develop godly habits to express what God’s grace has done in us. It is not just a question of being saved from hell, but of being saved so that “the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.” And it is adversity that makes us exhibit His life in our mortal flesh. Is my life exhibiting the essence of the sweetness of the Son of God, or just the basic irritation of “myself” that I would have apart from Him? The only thing that will enable me to enjoy adversity is the acute sense of eagerness of allowing the life of the Son of God to evidence itself in me. No matter how difficult something may be, I must say, “Lord, I am delighted to obey You in this.” Instantly, the Son of God will move to the forefront of my life, and will manifest in my body that which glorifies Him.
You must not debate. The moment you obey the light of God, His Son shines through you in that very adversity; but if you debate with God, you grieve His Spirit (see Ephesians 4:30). You must keep yourself in the proper condition to allow the life of the Son of God to be manifested in you, and you cannot keep yourself fit if you give way to self-pity. Our circumstances are the means God uses to exhibit just how wonderfully perfect and extraordinarily pure His Son is. Discovering a new way of manifesting the Son of God should make our heart beat with renewed excitement. It is one thing to choose adversity, and quite another to enter into adversity through the orchestrating of our circumstances by God’s sovereignty. And if God puts you into adversity, He is adequately sufficient to “supply all your need” (Philippians 4:19).
Keep your soul properly conditioned to manifest the life of the Son of God. Never live on your memories of past experiences, but let the Word of God always be living and active in you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We are not to preach the doing of good things; good deeds are not to be preached, they are to be performed. So Send I You, 1330 L
Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 19-21; John 4:1-30
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, May 14, 2020
They call them the chain gang. They wear stripes, but they're not prison inmates. They're football officials, and they carry this chain that measures whether or not a team has made a first down. Now not everyone is a football fan, so let me explain this. A team has four tries to move the ball ten yards. If they succeed, they get a "first down" and they get four more plays. If they fail, they have to turn the ball over to the other team at that point on the field. Many times it's impossible to tell with the naked eye if the ball has made it those ten yards, because it's very close. So they call out the chain gang. They come trotting out, they extend the chain to its full length, and then they set it down. If it extends beyond the ball, the team falls short. If it falls short, the team has succeeded. And as many who have played or watched football know, winning or losing a game can, like in moments like these, literally be a matter of inches no matter how far you've brought the ball.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Difference is Inches."
Some of us were talking recently about a friend of ours who died suddenly and how what seemed to be a passive faith in Christ had become a very active faith in Christ in his last months. I said, "You know, maybe he discovered the '18-inch' difference." As you might expect, I got some quizzical expressions. I said, "You know, 18 inches - that's about how far it is from your head to your heart." Those inches can be the difference between winning spiritually or losing it all. Between knowing all about Jesus and really knowing Jesus!
In Mark 12, beginning with verse 28, Jesus has a conversation that may help you see exactly where you stand in relation to Him. It's our word for today from the Word of God. An honest seeker asks Jesus, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" Jesus responds by saying that loving God with everything you've got is the first commandment and loving your neighbor as yourself is the second commandment.
This man totally agrees with Jesus like a lot of church folks do today. The man said, "You are right in saying God is one and there is no other but Him. To love Him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." See, this guy had so much right. He agreed with Jesus' teachings. Maybe you do, too. He understood that the issue wasn't religion or rituals but your personal relationship with God. Hopefully, you understand that, too.
But then comes the startling bottom line: "When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, 'You are not far from the kingdom of God.'" He's not far, but he's not in. Maybe that's you, too. You've got Jesus in your head, but somehow you've missed having Him in your heart. And as Romans 10:10 says, "It is with your heart that you believe and are justified." Eighteen inches! That could be, for you, the difference between going to heaven and going to hell.
You know Jesus died to pay for your sins, that He rose from the dead, that a person needs to turn from their sin and put all their trust in Jesus to be spiritually rescued. You know it, but maybe you've never done it. Every day you wait, your heart gets a little harder and your last day on earth gets a little closer. Please, if you don't know you've consciously given yourself to Jesus, do that today while the Holy Spirit's drawing you to do it. Open your heart and tell Him, "Jesus, I don't want to just know about You. I finally want to know You for real. Take me, I'm Yours."
I would love to help you be sure you belong to him and to get this settled. And there are some practical steps you can find at our website, which I think will help you get this settled once and for all. Our website's ANewStory.com. I hope for you it will be a place of new beginning.
It could be that Jesus is saying to you right now, "You're not far, but you're not in." You can change that right here and right now. Jesus in your head won't get you where you want to go. Jesus in your heart will get you to heaven.