Exodus 11, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Wrapped in Winter - October 1, 2021

Winters are a part of life—some personal, some global—but all are powerful. Try as we might to bundle up and lean into the wind, the heartiest among us can fall. Nights are too long, and the question is all too common: Will this winter ever pass?

God has a six-letter word of encouragement: E-S-T-H-E-R. The book of Esther was written to be read in wintertime for the person who feels outnumbered by foes, outmaneuvered by fate, and outdone by fear. It’s as if God, in his kind providence, heard all the prayers of all the souls who have ever been stuck in an arctic February. And to every person who has longed to see a green sprig on a barren branch, he says, “Follow me. I want you to see what I can do.”

Exodus 11

Strike Ten: Death

God said to Moses: “I’m going to hit Pharaoh and Egypt one final time, and then he’ll let you go. When he releases you, that will be the end of Egypt for you; he won’t be able to get rid of you fast enough.

2-3 “So here’s what you do. Tell the people to ask, each man from his neighbor and each woman from her neighbor, for things made of silver and gold.” God saw to it that the Egyptians liked the people. Also, Moses was greatly admired by the Egyptians, a respected public figure among both Pharaoh’s servants and the people at large.

4-7 Then Moses confronted Pharaoh: “God’s Message: ‘At midnight I will go through Egypt and every firstborn child in Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, to the firstborn of the slave girl working at her hand mill. Also the firstborn of animals. Widespread wailing will erupt all over the country, lament such as has never been and never will be again. But against the Israelites—man, woman, or animal—there won’t be so much as a dog’s bark, so that you’ll know that God makes a clear distinction between Egypt and Israel.’

8 “Then all these servants of yours will grovel before me, begging me to leave, ‘Leave! You and all the people who follow you!’ And I will most certainly leave.”

Moses, seething with anger, left Pharaoh.

9 God said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s not going to listen to a thing you say so that the signs of my presence and work are going to multiply in the land of Egypt.”

10 Moses and Aaron had performed all these signs in Pharaoh’s presence, but God turned Pharaoh more stubborn than ever—yet again he refused to release the Israelites from his land.

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Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Friday, October 01, 2021
Today's Scripture
Revelation 2:12–17
(NIV)

To the Church in Pergamum

12 “To the angel of the church in Pergamumq write:

These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword.r 13 I know where you live—where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me,s not even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness,t who was put to death in your city—where Satan lives.u

14 Nevertheless, I have a few things against you:v There are some among you who hold to the teaching of Balaam,w who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin so that they ate food sacrificed to idolsx and committed sexual immorality.y 15 Likewise, you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.z 16 Repenta therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.b

17 Whoever has ears, let them hearc what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious,d I will give some of the hidden manna.e I will also give that person a white stone with a new namef written on it, known only to the one who receives it.

Insight

The letter to the church at Pergamum (Revelation 2:12–17) is the third of seven that Jesus dictates to John. These letters serve as specific messages to individual churches that then introduce the more general message of the remainder of the book of Revelation. All these churches were located in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey) and were in an area heavily served by Paul during his missionary journeys. In most of the letters, each church is given a list of commendations for their faithfulness as well as a set of criticisms for their shortcomings. For Pergamum, the commendations are found in verse 13, where Jesus acknowledges their difficult environment (where Satan dwells) and their faithfulness—even in the face of a member of the assembly being martyred. They were criticized for their allowance of those who promoted false teaching, idolatry, and immorality. Because the possibility for divine discipline exists, Jesus lovingly calls them to repentance. By: Bill Crowder

What’s Your Name?

I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it.
Revelation 2:17

Someone said we go through life with three names: the name our parents gave us, the name others give us (our reputation), and the name we give ourselves (our character). The name others give us matters, as “a good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold” (Proverbs 22:1). But while reputation is important, character matters more.

There’s yet another name that’s even more important. Jesus told the Christians in Pergamum that though their reputation had suffered some well-deserved hits, He had a new name reserved in heaven for those who fight back and conquer temptation. “To the one who is victorious, I will give . . . a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it” (Revelation 2:17).

We aren’t sure why Jesus promised a white stone. Is it an award for winning? A token for admission to the messianic banquet? Perhaps it’s similar to what jurors once used to vote for acquittal. We simply don’t know. Whatever it is, God promises our new name will wipe away our shame (see Isaiah 62:1–5).

Our reputation may be tattered, and our character may be seemingly beyond repair. But neither name ultimately defines us. It’s not what others call you nor even what you call yourself that matters. You are who Jesus says you are. Live into your new name. By:  Mike Wittmer

Reflect & Pray

How does your reputation match up against your character? How well is your character reflecting who you are in Jesus?

Father, I believe I am who You say I am. Help me to live as Your child.

To better understand the book of Revelation.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, October 01, 2021

The Place of Exaltation

…Jesus took…them up on a high mountain apart by themselves… —Mark 9:2

We have all experienced times of exaltation on the mountain, when we have seen things from God’s perspective and have wanted to stay there. But God will never allow us to stay there. The true test of our spiritual life is in exhibiting the power to descend from the mountain. If we only have the power to go up, something is wrong. It is a wonderful thing to be on the mountain with God, but a person only gets there so that he may later go down and lift up the demon-possessed people in the valley (see Mark 9:14-18). We are not made for the mountains, for sunrises, or for the other beautiful attractions in life— those are simply intended to be moments of inspiration. We are made for the valley and the ordinary things of life, and that is where we have to prove our stamina and strength. Yet our spiritual selfishness always wants repeated moments on the mountain. We feel that we could talk and live like perfect angels, if we could only stay on the mountaintop. Those times of exaltation are exceptional and they have their meaning in our life with God, but we must beware to prevent our spiritual selfishness from wanting to make them the only time.

We are inclined to think that everything that happens is to be turned into useful teaching. In actual fact, it is to be turned into something even better than teaching, namely, character. The mountaintop is not meant to teach us anything, it is meant to make us something. There is a terrible trap in always asking, “What’s the use of this experience?” We can never measure spiritual matters in that way. The moments on the mountaintop are rare moments, and they are meant for something in God’s purpose.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

God created man to be master of the life in the earth and sea and sky, and the reason he is not is because he took the law into his own hands, and became master of himself, but of nothing else.  The Shadow of an Agony, 1163 L

Bible in a Year: Isaiah 11-13; Ephesians 4

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, October 01, 2021

The Store Is Yours! - #9060

A visit to a Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream Shop - that's one of life's simple pleasures. We used to have one near our house, and the kids always enjoyed going there as a treat. And we'd look at all those unusual flavors and then we'd have to make that stressful choice: which one shall I get? Well, several years ago I was in a city to speak, and the committee member who picked me up stopped by his store with me on the way back from the airport - his Baskin-Robbins store. It was closed, so he took me in, pointed to all the cases of ice cream with all those great flavors and said those mind-blowing words, "Take whatever you want!" Oh boy! Not just a single little scoop of one little flavor; it's all available to you, boy! Go for it!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Store Is Yours!"

It's pretty exciting when the person who owns it all throws open his store to you. That's exactly what God has in mind for us when we pray to Him. The One who owns it all opens up His resources and says, "They're yours for what you're facing right now." But so often we either neglect to go to the owner, or we go in asking for a single dip, and He wants to give us so much more.

God throws open the door in our word for today from the Word of God in Jeremiah 33:2-3. "This is what the Lord says, He who made the earth, the Lord who formed it and established it - the Lord is His name." OK, there's no doubt about it, the One who was about to make this promise is the one who owns it all, made it all, controls it all. And He says to you and me, "Call to Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you do not know."

So, when you're saying, "I don't know." God is saying, "Then, pray big." Your mission impossible, your staggering need, your emotional weakness, your physical weakness - those are the canvasses on which "He who made the earth" paints some of His most magnificent works. That's why Paul got to the place where he said he would "delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties." Why? He said, "For when I am weak, then I am strong." In other words, when you're the most desperate, when you're the most powerless, clueless, God shows up with His amazing powerful interventions.

When we forget the size of God we're praying to, we under-pray, and then we under-live. Right now there are some God-sized things you need to be trusting Him for; things so big only God can do them. You're in what I call the "God Alone Zone" - God alone can do this one! Prayer is God's access code to the unlimited resources of heaven - all the grace you need for what's going on, all the comfort you need, all the physical and emotional strength, and all the wisdom to know how to figure it out. So pray like it! Let prayer, not planning or politicking or scheming, let prayer be your primary method of getting things done!

At a conference I was at, the praise band led us in a chorus that repeated these words, "Touching heaven, changing earth, touching heaven, changing earth." God has thrown open His storehouse to His children. He's unlocked His infinite resources and He's promised that our prayer of faith would unleash those resources and aim them at the need we have, the situation we face, or the person we love. When you're praying, don't ever forget you really are touching heaven and changing earth.