Max Lucado Daily: Our God Is a Just God - November 17, 2021
Belshazzar became king of Babylon in 539 BC. In a fateful feast, he ordered the holy implements taken from the temple in Jerusalem be used as wine goblets. Why? The king wanted to blaspheme the God of Israel. His irreverence did not go unnoticed.
Out of the sleeve of the night, a mysterious hand came into view. The finger of the hand carved a message into the plaster. Belshazzar trembled so much he collapsed. His astrologers and diviners could not interpret the message, so Daniel was summoned.
At the precise moment he was explaining the prophecy of the end of the king’s reign, the Medo-Persian armies were preparing to take the city. The takeover was fast. The mighty nation of Babylon collapsed; Belshazzar was killed. Our God is a just God.
Leviticus 2
Grain-Offering
“When you present a Grain-Offering to God, use fine flour. Pour oil on it, put incense on it, and bring it to Aaron’s sons, the priests. One of them will take a handful of the fine flour and oil, with all the incense, and burn it on the Altar for a memorial: a Fire-Gift, a pleasing fragrance to God. The rest of the Grain-Offering is for Aaron and his sons—a most holy part of the Fire-Gifts to God.
4 “When you present a Grain-Offering of oven-baked loaves, use fine flour, mixed with oil but no yeast. Or present wafers made without yeast and spread with oil.
5-6 “If you bring a Grain-Offering cooked on a griddle, use fine flour mixed with oil but without yeast. Crumble it and pour oil on it—it’s a Grain-Offering.
7 “If you bring a Grain-Offering deep-fried in a pan, make it of fine flour with oil.
8-10 “Bring the Grain-Offering you make from these ingredients and present it to the priest. He will bring it to the Altar, break off a memorial piece from the Grain-Offering, and burn it on the Altar: a Fire-Gift, a pleasing fragrance to God. The rest of the Grain-Offering is for Aaron and his sons—a most holy part of the gifts to God.
11-13 “All the Grain-Offerings that you present to God must be made without yeast; you must never burn any yeast or honey as a Fire-Gift to God. You may offer them to God as an offering of firstfruits but not on the Altar as a pleasing fragrance. Season every presentation of your Grain-Offering with salt. Don’t leave the salt of the covenant with your God out of your Grain-Offerings. Present all your offerings with salt.
14-16 “If you present a Grain-Offering of firstfruits to God, bring crushed heads of the new grain roasted. Put oil and incense on it—it’s a Grain-Offering. The priest will burn some of the mixed grain and oil with all the incense as a memorial—a Fire-Gift to God.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, November 17, 2021
Today's Scripture
Isaiah 43:1–4
(NIV)
Israel’s Only Savior
43 But now, this is what the Lord says—
he who createdv you, Jacob,
he who formedw you, Israel:x
“Do not fear, for I have redeemedy you;
I have summoned you by name;z you are mine.a
2 When you pass through the waters,b
I will be with you;c
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,d
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.e
3 For I am the Lord your God,f
the Holy Oneg of Israel, your Savior;h
I give Egypti for your ransom,
Cusha j and Sebak in your stead.l
4 Since you are precious and honoredm in my sight,
and because I loven you,
I will give people in exchange for you,
nations in exchange for your life.
Insight
Against the backdrop of an imminent Assyrian invasion (Isaiah 7:18–25; 10:5–6) and the future Babylonian destruction and exile (39:6–7), God reminded the people of Judah that as His chosen people, they had a special relationship with Him (43:1). He also assured them of His love and protection through a self-revelation of who He is (vv. 1–7). Because they’re greatly loved by God, their Creator and Redeemer (v. 1), Protector (v. 2), and Savior (v. 3), they need not fear the invading Assyrians or the Babylonians (vv. 4–5). In calling God “the Holy One of Israel” (v. 3), Isaiah’s common designation for God (see 1:4; 10:20; 12:6; 30:12; 60:14), Isaiah extolled God’s complete holiness (see 6:3). Though God’s people remained unfaithful and unrepentant (43:22–24), God in His mercy had purposed to forgive them their sins (v. 25). Although they’d be forgiven, they’d still be disciplined through the Babylonian exile (v. 28). By: K. T. Sim
Accepted and Approved
You are precious and honored in my sight . . . . I love you.
Isaiah 43:4
As a child, Tenny felt insecure. He sought approval from his father, but he never received it. It seemed that whatever he did, whether in school or at home, it was never good enough. Even when he entered adulthood, the insecurity remained. He continually wondered, Am I good enough?
Only when Tenny received Jesus as his Savior did he find the security and approval he’d long yearned for. He learned that God—having created him—loved and cherished him as His son. Tenny finally could live with the confidence that he was truly valued and appreciated.
In Isaiah 43:1–4, God told His chosen people that, having formed them, He would use His power and love to redeem them. “You are precious and honored in my sight,” He proclaimed. He would act on their behalf because He loved them (v. 4).
The value God places on those He loves doesn’t come from anything we do, but from the simple and powerful truth that He’s chosen us to be His own.
These words in Isaiah 43 not only gave Tenny great security, but also empowered him with the confidence to do his best for God in whatever task he was called to do. Today he’s a pastor who does all he can to encourage others with this life-giving truth: we’re accepted and approved in Jesus. May we confidently live out this truth today. By: Leslie Koh
Reflect & Pray
How do you think God sees you? What does John 1:12 tell you about your relationship with Him? What comfort do you find in that knowledge?
Heavenly Father, I know You love me, accept me, and cherish me. Thank You for adopting me as Your child and loving me without conditions.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, November 17, 2021
The Eternal Goal
By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing…I will bless you… —Genesis 22:16-17
Abraham, at this point, has reached where he is in touch with the very nature of God. He now understands the reality of God.
My goal is God Himself…
At any cost, dear Lord, by any road.
“At any cost…by any road” means submitting to God’s way of bringing us to the goal.
There is no possibility of questioning God when He speaks, if He speaks to His own nature in me. Prompt obedience is the only result. When Jesus says, “Come,” I simply come; when He says, “Let go,” I let go; when He says, “Trust God in this matter,” I trust. This work of obedience is the evidence that the nature of God is in me.
God’s revelation of Himself to me is influenced by my character, not by God’s character.
’Tis because I am ordinary,
Thy ways so often look ordinary to me.
It is through the discipline of obedience that I get to the place where Abraham was and I see who God is. God will never be real to me until I come face to face with Him in Jesus Christ. Then I will know and can boldly proclaim, “In all the world, my God, there is none but Thee, there is none but Thee.”
The promises of God are of no value to us until, through obedience, we come to understand the nature of God. We may read some things in the Bible every day for a year and they may mean nothing to us. Then, because we have been obedient to God in some small detail, we suddenly see what God means and His nature is instantly opened up to us. “All the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen…” (2 Corinthians 1:20). Our “Yes” must be born of obedience; when by obedience we ratify a promise of God by saying, “Amen,” or, “So be it.” That promise becomes ours.
Wisdom From Oswald Chambers
The great word of Jesus to His disciples is Abandon. When God has brought us into the relationship of disciples, we have to venture on His word; trust entirely to Him and watch that when He brings us to the venture, we take it.
Bible in a Year: Ezekiel 5-7; Hebrews 12
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, November 17, 2021
Every once in a while another turf fight breaks out in places like New York City, and it's not between rival youth gangs. Let's say, the police department and the fire department. There's kind of a competitiveness there. They'll clash over whose job is whose.
A while back there was a commuter helicopter that crashed in the East River. I've never forgotten this incident, it was haunting. The passengers were trapped in that helicopter underwater. And here's what the news reported, "Some police divers arrived on the scene first, and they went right to work. Minutes later, nine divers arrived from the fire department all suited up ready to go, and the police supervisor said, 'We got it covered. It's our territory; don't worry about it.'" You know what? Fve passengers were rescued that day, but one man died. He was strapped under water for an hour and a half while nine possible rescuers stood on the dock and watched, apparently because of a battle over turf.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Losing Over Turf."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Corinthians 1. The Apostle Paul says, "I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that all of you agree with one another, so that there may be no division among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, 'I follow Paul.' Another, 'I follow Apollos.' Another, 'I follow Cephas.' Still another, 'I follow Christ.'"
Sound like turf? The church was divided into turf and well, I'm afraid nothing has changed. Today our turf is denomination, or our organization, or my church versus your church. "We're charismatic." "We're not. We're against that." Or even a personal empire that someone is building in Jesus' name. Or, "Who will get the credit?" "Is my name next to that in the bulletin?" "Are you going to announce who did this?"
Paul brings them back to the real issue in verses 17 and 18, "Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the Gospel. Not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. But to those who are being saved, it is the power of God." Paul says, "Guys, people are dying because they don't understand what happened on the cross. How can you waste time arguing with yourselves?"
A man died there in New York on the East River that day while the rescuers argued over territory. But don't we do that? We're so concerned about losing our members, or our contributions, or our credit. And all that really matters is that we're losing the people around us to a Christ-less eternity. Two factors that really matter: number one, the lostness of our neighbors, and number two, the message of the cross. Those two essentials are bigger than any of our differences, any of our labels, any of our empires, or any of our egos.
Maybe you and I have cared too much about our group and our glory. And while we're building our little kingdoms and our walls, people are dying spiritually. We need to get together if we're going to make a greater difference. Are we standing on the dock arguing? Or are we all in the river together, rescuing every person we can find? Time's running out!
Turf is for now; lost is forever. Dear Lord, may we never let the people around us be lost over turf.
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.