Max Lucado Daily: The Spirit Led Life - September 22, 2021
You don’t have to hurry or scurry. The Spirit-led life does not panic; it trusts. In Ephesians 1:19 and 20 the apostle Paul reminds us that, “God’s power is very great for us who believe. That power is the same as the great strength God used to raise Christ from the dead and put him at his right side in the heavenly world.”
The same hand that pushed the rock from the tomb can shove away your doubt. The same power that stirred the still heart of Christ can stir your flagging faith. The same strength that put Satan on his heels can, and will, defeat Satan in your life. Just keep the power supply open. Who knows, you may soon hear people asking, “What’s gotten into you?” You see, as God’s story becomes our story, his power becomes our power.
Exodus 4
Moses objected, “They won’t trust me. They won’t listen to a word I say. They’re going to say, ‘God? Appear to him? Hardly!’”
2 So God said, “What’s that in your hand?”
“A staff.”
3 “Throw it on the ground.” He threw it. It became a snake; Moses jumped back—fast!
4-5 God said to Moses, “Reach out and grab it by the tail.” He reached out and grabbed it—and he was holding his staff again. “That’s so they will trust that God appeared to you, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.”
6 God then said, “Put your hand inside your shirt.” He slipped his hand under his shirt, then took it out. His hand had turned leprous, like snow.
7 He said, “Put your hand back under your shirt.” He did it, then took it back out—as healthy as before.
8-9 “So if they don’t trust you and aren’t convinced by the first sign, the second sign should do it. But if it doesn’t, if even after these two signs they don’t trust you and listen to your message, take some water out of the Nile and pour it out on the dry land; the Nile water that you pour out will turn to blood when it hits the ground.”
10 Moses raised another objection to God: “Master, please, I don’t talk well. I’ve never been good with words, neither before nor after you spoke to me. I stutter and stammer.”
11-12 God said, “And who do you think made the human mouth? And who makes some mute, some deaf, some sighted, some blind? Isn’t it I, God? So, get going. I’ll be right there with you—with your mouth! I’ll be right there to teach you what to say.”
13 He said, “Oh, Master, please! Send somebody else!”
14-17 God got angry with Moses: “Don’t you have a brother, Aaron the Levite? He’s good with words, I know he is. He speaks very well. In fact, at this very moment he’s on his way to meet you. When he sees you he’s going to be glad. You’ll speak to him and tell him what to say. I’ll be right there with you as you speak and with him as he speaks, teaching you step by step. He will speak to the people for you. He’ll act as your mouth, but you’ll decide what comes out of it. Now take this staff in your hand; you’ll use it to do the signs.”
* * *
18 Moses went back to Jethro his father-in-law and said, “I need to return to my relatives who are in Egypt. I want to see if they’re still alive.”
Jethro said, “Go. And peace be with you.”
19 God said to Moses in Midian: “Go. Return to Egypt. All the men who wanted to kill you are dead.”
20 So Moses took his wife and sons and put them on a donkey for the return trip to Egypt. He had a firm grip on the staff of God.
21-23 God said to Moses, “When you get back to Egypt, be prepared: All the wonders that I will do through you, you’ll do before Pharaoh. But I will make him stubborn so that he will refuse to let the people go. Then you are to tell Pharaoh, ‘God’s Message: Israel is my son, my firstborn! I told you, “Free my son so that he can serve me.” But you refused to free him. So now I’m going to kill your son, your firstborn.’”
* * *
24-26 On the journey back, as they camped for the night, God met Moses and would have killed him but Zipporah took a flint knife and cut off her son’s foreskin, and touched Moses’ member with it. She said, “Oh! You’re a bridegroom of blood to me!” Then God let him go. She used the phrase “bridegroom of blood” because of the circumcision.
* * *
27-28 God spoke to Aaron, “Go and meet Moses in the wilderness.” He went and met him at the mountain of God and kissed him. Moses told Aaron the message that God had sent him to speak and the wonders he had commanded him to do.
29-31 So Moses and Aaron proceeded to round up all the leaders of Israel. Aaron told them everything that God had told Moses and demonstrated the wonders before the people. And the people trusted and listened believingly that God was concerned with what was going on with the Israelites and knew all about their affliction. They bowed low and they worshiped.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, September 22, 2021
Today's Scripture
Romans 8:26–30
(NIV)
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spiritf himself intercedes for usg through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our heartsh knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedesi for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
28 And we know that in all things God works for the goodj of those who love him, whoi have been calledk according to his purpose.l 29 For those God foreknewm he also predestinedn to be conformed to the image of his Son,o that he might be the firstbornp among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined,q he also called;r those he called, he also justified;s those he justified, he also glorified
Insight
The book of Romans was written by the apostle Paul to the believers in Christ in Rome most likely during his third missionary journey (around ad 57). He wrote this letter while in Corinth for a short while before heading to Jerusalem to deliver the offerings gathered by the churches of Asia to help the needy church in Jerusalem. Paul hadn’t planted the church in Rome, nor had he ever met its members, but he’d heard of their faith, which was “being reported all over the world” (Romans 1:8). Therefore, Paul longed to visit to encourage and help make them strong in their faith (v. 11). Thus we have this wonderful explanation of the gospel: “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile” (v. 16). By: Alyson Kieda
No Misunderstanding
We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him.
Romans 8:28
Alexa, Siri, and other voice assistants embedded in smart devices in our homes occasionally misunderstand what we’re saying. A six-year-old talked to her family’s new device about cookies and a dollhouse. Later her mom received an email saying that an order of seven pounds of cookies and a $170 dollhouse were on their way to her home. Even a talking parrot in London, whose owner had never bought anything online, somehow ordered a package of golden gift boxes without her knowledge. One person asked their device to “turn on the living room lights,” and it replied, “There is no pudding room.”
There’s no such misunderstanding on God’s part when we talk with Him. He’s never confused, because He knows our hearts better than we do. The Spirit both searches our hearts and understands God’s will. The apostle Paul told the churches in Rome that God promises He’ll accomplish His good purpose of maturing us and making us more like His Son (Romans 8:28–29). Even when because of “our weakness” we don’t know what we need in order to grow, the Spirit prays according to God’s will for us (vv. 26–27).
Troubled about how to express yourself to God? Not understanding what or how to pray? Say what you can from the heart. The Spirit will understand and accomplish God’s purpose. By: Anne Cetas
Reflect & Pray
What’s on your mind right now that you should share with God? How are you encouraged by the truth that He knows and understands what you’re facing?
Thank You, God, that You know my heart. I love You for that and many other reasons. Help me to express my thoughts to You and to trust You to understand.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, September 22, 2021
The Missionary’s Master and Teacher
You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am ….I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master… —John 13:13, 16
To have a master and teacher is not the same thing as being mastered and taught. Having a master and teacher means that there is someone who knows me better than I know myself, who is closer than a friend, and who understands the remotest depths of my heart and is able to satisfy them fully. It means having someone who has made me secure in the knowledge that he has met and solved all the doubts, uncertainties, and problems in my mind. To have a master and teacher is this and nothing less— “…for One is your Teacher, the Christ…” (Matthew 23:8).
Our Lord never takes measures to make me do what He wants. Sometimes I wish God would master and control me to make me do what He wants, but He will not. And at other times I wish He would leave me alone, and He does not.
“You call Me Teacher and Lord…”— but is He? Teacher, Master, and Lord have little place in our vocabulary. We prefer the words Savior, Sanctifier, and Healer. The only word that truly describes the experience of being mastered is love, and we know little about love as God reveals it in His Word. The way we use the word obey is proof of this. In the Bible, obedience is based on a relationship between equals; for example, that of a son with his father. Our Lord was not simply God’s servant— He was His Son. “…though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience…” (Hebrews 5:8). If we are consciously aware that we are being mastered, that idea itself is proof that we have no master. If that is our attitude toward Jesus, we are far away from having the relationship He wants with us. He wants us in a relationship where He is so easily our Master and Teacher that we have no conscious awareness of it— a relationship where all we know is that we are His to obey.
sdom From Oswald Chambers
It is perilously possible to make our conceptions of God like molten lead poured into a specially designed mould, and when it is cold and hard we fling it at the heads of the religious people who don’t agree with us. Disciples Indeed, 388 R
Bible in a Year: Ecclesiastes 10-12; Galatians 1
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, September 22, 2021
Royal Treatment - #9053
"When I was young..." Kids hate those words. If you're a parent, I'll bet your kids; they probably do. But here I go. I'm going to do it anyway. When I was young, there was this woman named Emily Post, and she was the expert on etiquette. And so, we would often ask, "Well, what does Emily Post say we're supposed to do in this situation?"
From Emily we learned that we, men, were supposed to open doors for women. We're supposed to walk on the outside when you're walking with a woman in sort of this protective role. You should be saying "please" and "thank you" regularly. Now, today, Emily Post is right next to the dinosaurs in the National History Museum. Maybe she's been confined there. Then along came a replacement named Miss Manners. Unfortunately, Miss Manners would have an uphill struggle in our culture today, because we live in a world of fast food, fast track, and me first. Who's got time for courtesy any more? The King's kids do.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Royal Treatment."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Corinthians 10. Before we take a look at it, let's take a look at the generation we're living in. You know, we live in a world where courtesy seems to be kind of burdensome and trivial, and not happening, even unknown to a lot of people. People think that's a lot of unnecessary, picky little rules. And you say, "Well, who says I'm supposed to do this at dinner? Who says I'm supposed to treat a girl this way? Who says I'm supposed to say that?"
Well, let's take a look at the lifestyle of a King's kid; someone who knows the King of kings personally through Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 10:23-24. "Everything is permissible..." Paul says, "...but not everything is beneficial." In other words, he comments here on the attitude that says, "Hey, listen! I can do what I feel like. Who needs rules? Who needs boundaries?" He says, "Everything is permissible, but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good but the good of others."
Verse 33: "Even as I try to please everybody in every way..." He's saying, "I want to be a pleasing person. I'm not seeking my own good, but the good of many so they may be saved." Verse 31, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God." Now, he's not talking here about some little rules you have to follow because some Emily Post or Miss Manners or rule book say you have to. It's just having an attitude of doing the things that like put the other person first, that's considerate, that's sensitive to how they're going to respond, how it's going to make them feel. That's what courtesy is...even reaching to how I eat and drink. It's like I care about your feelings.
But see, I have a higher reason to learn courtesy than satisfying some etiquette book. As a follower of Jesus Christ, I want you to feel comfortable. I want you to feel safe. I want to make you feel special, relaxed. I want to make you feel like royalty. We're living in a world where people are treated roughly and shabbily. They're treated cheaply. They feel cheap, and they act cheap.
But as a follower of Jesus, I above all others ought to let the other guy go ahead of me. I should be the one who treats a woman like a queen, even if it's just the lady checking out my groceries at the store. If I'm going to put other people first, I'm going to say "thank you." I'm going to write a note that says "thank you" to them and not just act like I'm entitled to what they gave me. I'll say, "excuse me." I'll eat with grace, so that some of them may even be saved because they've been treated and put first.
You're going to be a standout if you are a courteous person. You will have, honestly, a refreshing edge on a lot of other people. You don't have to fall into the barnyard manners of our "selfie" society. Because, say, you're a King's kid! So give people royal treatment.
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.