Max Lucado Daily: IN PURSUIT OF THE SPIRITUALLY BLIND
Jesus still finds blind people and restores their sight. Did you know he promised that through his ministry “the blind shall see” (Luke 4:18)? Christ came to give light and sight. Consider what he is doing in the Muslim world. According to Tom Doyle, “More Muslims have become Christians in the last couple of decades than in the previous fourteen hundred years since Muhammad,” and “about one out of every three Muslim-background believers has had a dream or vision prior to their salvation experience.”*
Jesus is in hot pursuit of the spiritually blind. And he finds them, he touches them. He may use a vision, or he may use the kindness of a friend, or the message of a sermon, or the splendor of creation. But believe this: he came to bring sight to the blind. Remember friend, you are never alone.
*Tom Doyle, Dreams and Visions: Is Jesus Awakening the Muslim World? (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2012)
Daniel 5
King Belshazzar held a great feast for his one thousand nobles. The wine flowed freely. Belshazzar, heady with the wine, ordered that the gold and silver chalices his father Nebuchadnezzar had stolen from God’s Temple of Jerusalem be brought in so that he and his nobles, his wives and concubines, could drink from them. When the gold and silver chalices were brought in, the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines, drank wine from them. They drank the wine and drunkenly praised their gods made of gold and silver, bronze and iron, wood and stone.
5-7 At that very moment, the fingers of a human hand appeared and began writing on the lamp-illumined, whitewashed wall of the palace. When the king saw the disembodied hand writing away, he went white as a ghost, scared out of his wits. His legs went limp and his knees knocked. He yelled out for the enchanters, the fortunetellers, and the diviners to come. He told these Babylonian magi, “Anyone who can read this writing on the wall and tell me what it means will be famous and rich—purple robe, the great gold chain—and be third-in-command in the kingdom.”
8-9 One after the other they tried, but could make no sense of it. They could neither read what was written nor interpret it to the king. So now the king was really frightened. All the blood drained from his face. The nobles were in a panic.
10-12 The queen heard of the hysteria among the king and his nobles and came to the banquet hall. She said, “Long live the king! Don’t be upset. Don’t sit around looking like ghosts. There is a man in your kingdom who is full of the divine Holy Spirit. During your father’s time he was well known for his intellectual brilliance and spiritual wisdom. He was so good that your father, King Nebuchadnezzar, made him the head of all the magicians, enchanters, fortunetellers, and diviners. There was no one quite like him. He could do anything—interpret dreams, solve mysteries, explain puzzles. His name is Daniel, but he was renamed Belteshazzar by the king. Have Daniel called in. He’ll tell you what is going on here.”
13-16 So Daniel was called in. The king asked him, “Are you the Daniel who was one of the Jewish exiles my father brought here from Judah? I’ve heard about you—that you’re full of the Holy Spirit, that you’ve got a brilliant mind, that you are incredibly wise. The wise men and enchanters were brought in here to read this writing on the wall and interpret it for me. They couldn’t figure it out—not a word, not a syllable. But I’ve heard that you interpret dreams and solve mysteries. So—if you can read the writing and interpret it for me, you’ll be rich and famous—a purple robe, the great gold chain around your neck—and third-in-command in the kingdom.”
17 Daniel answered the king, “You can keep your gifts, or give them to someone else. But I will read the writing for the king and tell him what it means.
18-21 “Listen, O king! The High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar a great kingdom and a glorious reputation. Because God made him so famous, people from everywhere, whatever their race, color, and creed, were totally intimidated by him. He killed or spared people on whim. He promoted or humiliated people capriciously. He developed a big head and a hard spirit. Then God knocked him off his high horse and stripped him of his fame. He was thrown out of human company, lost his mind, and lived like a wild animal. He ate grass like an ox and was soaked by heaven’s dew until he learned his lesson: that the High God rules human kingdoms and puts anyone he wants in charge.
22-23 “You are his son and have known all this, yet you’re as arrogant as he ever was. Look at you, setting yourself up in competition against the Master of heaven! You had the sacred chalices from his Temple brought into your drunken party so that you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines, could drink from them. You used the sacred chalices to toast your gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone—blind, deaf, and imbecile gods. But you treat with contempt the living God who holds your entire life from birth to death in his hand.
24-26 “God sent the hand that wrote on the wall, and this is what is written: mene, teqel, and peres. This is what the words mean:
“Mene: God has numbered the days of your rule and they don’t add up.
27 “Teqel: You have been weighed on the scales and you don’t weigh much.
28 “Peres: Your kingdom has been divided up and handed over to the Medes and Persians.”
29 Belshazzar did what he had promised. He robed Daniel in purple, draped the great gold chain around his neck, and promoted him to third-in-charge in the kingdom.
30-31 That same night the Babylonian king Belshazzar was murdered. Darius the Mede was sixty-two years old when he succeeded him as king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, October 30, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Titus 2:1–8
Doing Good for the Sake of the Gospel
You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine. 2 Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance.
3 Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. 4 Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.
6 Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. 7 In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness 8 and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.
Insight
The word self-controlled used in today’s passage (Titus 2:1–8) is a translation of the Greek word s?phron, which means “to be sound in mind.” Self-mastery—mature judgment, proper restraint—is what’s in view. Paul uses a form of this word five times in Titus. Those charged with the spiritual oversight of God’s people were to be “self-controlled” (1:8). And in a culture where people were known to be “liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons” (v. 12), believing men and women (2:2, 5–6) were to be examples of those who by the grace of God were choosing “to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions” and to instead “live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives” (v. 12).
Everyone Needs a Mentor
To Titus, my true son in our common faith. Titus 1:4
As I walked into my new supervisor’s office, I was feeling wary and emotionally raw. My old supervisor had run our department with harshness and condescension, often leaving me (and others) in tears. Now I wondered, What would my new boss be like? Soon after I stepped into my new boss’ office, I felt my fears dissipate as he welcomed me warmly and asked me to share about myself and my frustrations. He listened intently, and I knew by his kind expression and gentle words that he truly cared. A believer in Jesus, he became my work mentor, encourager, and friend.
The apostle Paul was a spiritual mentor to Titus, his “true son in our common faith” (Titus 1:4). In his letter to Titus, Paul offered him helpful instructions and guidelines for his role in the church. He not only taught but modeled how to “teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine” (2:1), set “an example by doing what is good,” and “show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech” (vv. 7–8). As a result, Titus became his partner, brother, and coworker (2 Corinthians 2:13; 8:23)—and a mentor of others.
Many of us have benefited from a mentor—a teacher, coach, grandparent, youth leader, or pastor—who guided us with their knowledge, wisdom, encouragement, and faith in God. Who could benefit from the spiritual lessons you’ve learned in your journey with Jesus? By: Alyson Kieda
Reflect & Pray
Who’s been a spiritual mentor to you? For whom have you been a mentor? And whom might you mentor?
Father, I’m thankful for all those who mentored me when I needed them most. Guide me to someone who might need my encouragement today.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, October 30, 2020
Faith
Without faith it is impossible to please Him… —Hebrews 11:6
Faith in active opposition to common sense is mistaken enthusiasm and narrow-mindedness, and common sense in opposition to faith demonstrates a mistaken reliance on reason as the basis for truth. The life of faith brings the two of these into the proper relationship. Common sense and faith are as different from each other as the natural life is from the spiritual, and as impulsiveness is from inspiration. Nothing that Jesus Christ ever said is common sense, but is revelation sense, and is complete, whereas common sense falls short. Yet faith must be tested and tried before it becomes real in your life. “We know that all things work together for good…” (Romans 8:28) so that no matter what happens, the transforming power of God’s providence transforms perfect faith into reality. Faith always works in a personal way, because the purpose of God is to see that perfect faith is made real in His children.
For every detail of common sense in life, there is a truth God has revealed by which we can prove in our practical experience what we believe God to be. Faith is a tremendously active principle that always puts Jesus Christ first. The life of faith says, “Lord, You have said it, it appears to be irrational, but I’m going to step out boldly, trusting in Your Word” (for example, see Matthew 6:33). Turning intellectual faith into our personal possession is always a fight, not just sometimes. God brings us into particular circumstances to educate our faith, because the nature of faith is to make the object of our faith very real to us. Until we know Jesus, God is merely a concept, and we can’t have faith in Him. But once we hear Jesus say, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9) we immediately have something that is real, and our faith is limitless. Faith is the entire person in the right relationship with God through the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
It is an easy thing to argue from precedent because it makes everything simple, but it is a risky thing to do. Give God “elbow room”; let Him come into His universe as He pleases. If we confine God in His working to religious people or to certain ways, we place ourselves on an equality with God. Baffled to Fight Better, 51 L
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 20-21; 2 Timothy 4
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, October 30, 2020
The Wreckage of a Runaway Mouth - #8820
"Made you look!" That's a classic line from when we were kids. As we're driving through some of this continent's steep mountain ranges, we've seen a sign that's guaranteed to make me look. You usually see it on a long drive down a steep mountain. The sign says, "Runaway truck ramp ahead." Of course I immediately look in my rear view mirror for some reason. If some big old semi with failed brakes is barreling down the mountain, about to run me over, I would like to be the first to know! I'm not sure what I'd do about it, but at least I'd like a moment for my whole life to flash before me. Those ramps are long emergency ramps, usually covered with something like sand that will help a truck grind to a halt. Now, if you've ever smelled the hot rubber of overworked brakes on a mountain, and you probably have (I have), you know that providing a way to stop runaway trucks is really a good idea. And they must be needed. I hate to say this, but I often see fresh truck tracks in that sand!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Wreckage of a Runaway Mouth."
Highway engineers know that you have to find a way to stop a runaway truck. A truck with no brakes can do a lot of damage. So can a mouth with no brakes - something's that's a lot more common than runaway trucks. Now, many of us know all too personally the damage that can be inflicted by a runaway mouth. We still carry the memories, the scars, the negative effects of the names we've been called, the verbal cruelty, intended or unintended. Sadly, though, we're not just the victims of someone else's runaway mouth. No, we're also the victimizers. We've done the hurting, too.
The Bible is brutally frank about what we do with our words. It says: "Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark." "The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell...It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison" (James 3:6-8). Wow! Man! Raging fire - deadly poison!
When we know so painfully how reckless and angry words have hurt us, why do we keep on spewing them ourselves, often hurting the people we love the most? There is incredible wisdom in David's cry to God in Psalm 141:3: "Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips."
Jesus said our words aren't really the problem actually; they're the symptom of a much deeper problem. In Matthew 12:34, our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus says: "Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." He went on to say that "men will have to give account on the Day of Judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned." Our runaway mouths are serious business. And Jesus said the heart of the problem is our heart. Our words are symptoms of our deadly heart disease. The disease, well it's sin - the hijacking of our life from the God who gave it to us. We're out of control because we're away from God.
Thankfully, there's hope. God's provided a place where a life hurtling toward the cliffs of eternity can stop its deadly downward race. It's not a ramp. It's a cross. The cross where Jesus died to absorb all that our sin could do to us: its shame, its guilt, its power, its eternal punishment. All so He could do this miracle described in His Word: "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you...I will put My Spirit in you...I will save you from all your uncleanness" (Ezekiel 36:26-28). A new heart - a heart with the desire and power to do it God's way. When your heart's full of God's love, it starts to change what comes out of your mouth.
Jesus has done this new heart miracle for countless people over 2,000 years. He's waiting to do it for you when you say, "Jesus, I am Yours starting today." I'd love to help you do that. That's exactly why our website is there and how it can help. It's ANewStory.com. Your new story could start there today.
The day you give yourself to this awesome Savior, a new you is born. Let it begin today.
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.