Luke 1:1-20 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: All Things New - January 31, 2022

Envision this earth as it will be in the new kingdom: completely calm. Lions won’t snarl. Bears won’t maim. No one, nothing, will rebel. No more shame before God. No more death, no more curse. This is God’s promise. He will reclaim his creation.

He is a God of restoration, not destruction. He is a God of renewal, redemption, regeneration, resurrection. God loves to redo and restore. “I am making everything new!” he announced (Revelation 21:5). Gone with hospital waiting rooms, gone with tear-stained divorce papers. Gone with loneliness, foreclosure notices, and abuse. Gone with cancer. God will lay hold of every atom, emotion, insect, animal, and galaxy. He will reclaim every diseased body and afflicted mind. “I am making all things new.”

Luke 1:1-20

So many others have tried their hand at putting together a story of the wonderful harvest of Scripture and history that took place among us, using reports handed down by the original eyewitnesses who served this Word with their very lives. Since I have investigated all the reports in close detail, starting from the story’s beginning, I decided to write it all out for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can know beyond the shadow of a doubt the reliability of what you were taught.
A Childless Couple Conceives

5-7 During the rule of Herod, King of Judea, there was a priest assigned service in the regiment of Abijah. His name was Zachariah. His wife was descended from the daughters of Aaron. Her name was Elizabeth. Together they lived honorably before God, careful in keeping to the ways of the commandments and enjoying a clear conscience before God. But they were childless because Elizabeth could never conceive, and now they were quite old.

8-12 It so happened that as Zachariah was carrying out his priestly duties before God, working the shift assigned to his regiment, it came his one turn in life to enter the sanctuary of God and burn incense. The congregation was gathered and praying outside the Temple at the hour of the incense offering. Unannounced, an angel of God appeared just to the right of the altar of incense. Zachariah was paralyzed in fear.

13-15 But the angel reassured him, “Don’t fear, Zachariah. Your prayer has been heard. Elizabeth, your wife, will bear a son by you. You are to name him John. You’re going to leap like a gazelle for joy, and not only you—many will delight in his birth. He’ll achieve great stature with God.

15-17 “He’ll drink neither wine nor beer. He’ll be filled with the Holy Spirit from the moment he leaves his mother’s womb. He will turn many sons and daughters of Israel back to their God. He will herald God’s arrival in the style and strength of Elijah, soften the hearts of parents to children, and kindle devout understanding among hardened skeptics—he’ll get the people ready for God.”

18 Zachariah said to the angel, “Do you expect me to believe this? I’m an old man and my wife is an old woman.”

19-20 But the angel said, “I am Gabriel, the sentinel of God, sent especially to bring you this glad news. But because you won’t believe me, you’ll be unable to say a word until the day of your son’s birth. Every word I’ve spoken to you will come true on time—God’s time.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Monday, January 31, 2022
Today's Scripture
Luke 7:36–44
(NIV)

Anointing His Feet

36–39     One of the Pharisees asked him over for a meal. He went to the Pharisee’s house and sat down at the dinner table. Just then a woman of the village, the town harlot, having learned that Jesus was a guest in the home of the Pharisee, came with a bottle of very expensive perfume and stood at his feet, weeping, raining tears on his feet. Letting down her hair, she dried his feet, kissed them, and anointed them with the perfume. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man was the prophet I thought he was, he would have known what kind of woman this is who is falling all over him.”

40     Jesus said to him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”

“Oh? Tell me.”

41–42     “Two men were in debt to a banker. One owed five hundred silver pieces, the other fifty. Neither of them could pay up, and so the banker canceled both debts. Which of the two would be more grateful?”

43–47     Simon answered, “I suppose the one who was forgiven the most.”

“That’s right,” said Jesus. Then turning to the woman, but speaking to Simon, he said, “Do you see this woman? I came to your home; you provided no water for my feet, but she rained tears on my feet and dried them with her hair.

Insight

In first-century Galilee, teachers were often invited to meals where the public was invited to come and listen. In our text from Luke 7, what would’ve been shocking to onlookers is that the woman who anointed Jesus’ feet, given her poor reputation, would have the courage to directly interact with Him to express her love and gratitude. This story is one example of a prominent theme in the gospel of Luke: that of socially marginalized outsiders—those who were looked down on by the religious faithful—being the ones to testify most powerfully to the truth of the gospel. By: Monica La Rose

Unapologetic Tears

As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears.
Luke 7:38

“I’m sorry,” Karen said, apologizing for her flowing tears. After the death of her husband, she stretched herself to care for her teenage kids. When men from church provided a weekend camping excursion to entertain them and give her a break, Karen wept with gratitude, apologizing over and over for her tears.

Why do so many of us apologize for our tears? Simon, a Pharisee, invited Jesus to dinner. In the middle of the meal, as Jesus reclined at the table, a woman who had lived a sinful life brought an alabaster jar of perfume. “As she stood behind [Jesus] at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them” (Luke 7:38). Unapologetically, this woman freely expressed her love and then unwound her hair to dry Jesus’ feet. Overflowing with gratitude and love for Jesus, she topped off her tears with perfumed kisses—actions that contrasted with those of the proper but cold-hearted host.

Jesus’ response? He praised her exuberant expression of love and proclaimed her “forgiven” (vv. 44–48).

We may be tempted to squelch tears of gratitude when they threaten to overflow. But God made us emotional beings, and we can use our feelings to honor Him. Like the woman in Luke’s gospel, let’s unapologetically express our love for our good God who provides for our needs and freely receives our thankful response. By:  Elisa Morgan

Reflect & Pray

How can you freely express your gratitude to God through your emotions today? How might you make others feel comfortable about sharing their tears?

Loving God, thank You for Your grace in providing for my needs! I pour out my gratitude to You today.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, January 31, 2022
 Do You See Your Calling?

…separated to the gospel of God… —Romans 1:1

Our calling is not primarily to be holy men and women, but to be proclaimers of the gospel of God. The one all-important thing is that the gospel of God should be recognized as the abiding reality. Reality is not human goodness, or holiness, or heaven, or hell— it is redemption. The need to perceive this is the most vital need of the Christian worker today. As workers, we have to get used to the revelation that redemption is the only reality. Personal holiness is an effect of redemption, not the cause of it. If we place our faith in human goodness we will go under when testing comes.

Paul did not say that he separated himself, but “when it pleased God, who separated me…” (Galatians 1:15). Paul was not overly interested in his own character. And as long as our eyes are focused on our own personal holiness, we will never even get close to the full reality of redemption. Christian workers fail because they place their desire for their own holiness above their desire to know God. “Don’t ask me to be confronted with the strong reality of redemption on behalf of the filth of human life surrounding me today; what I want is anything God can do for me to make me more desirable in my own eyes.” To talk that way is a sign that the reality of the gospel of God has not begun to touch me. There is no reckless abandon to God in that. God cannot deliver me while my interest is merely in my own character. Paul was not conscious of himself. He was recklessly abandoned, totally surrendered, and separated by God for one purpose— to proclaim the gospel of God (see Romans 9:3).

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

Is He going to help Himself to your life, or are you taken up with your conception of what you are going to do? God is responsible for our lives, and the one great keynote is reckless reliance upon Him. Approved Unto God, 10 R

Bible in a Year: Exodus 25-26; Matthew 20:17-34

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, January 31, 2022
Heavy Lifting Without Injuries - #9146

I spoke at a conference where the director decided to take me backstage by means of a route worthy of the Secret Service. The meeting was at a hotel conference room, and the director guided me through a back hallway, into a kitchen area, through a series of twists and turns that are usually navigated only by their waiters I think. I don't usually expect to find great wisdom at times like this. This time I did. It was a sign on the wall, obviously designed to minimize employee injuries. Five little words that struck me as great advice for my everyday life: "Bend knees for heavy lifting."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Heavy Lifting Without Injuries."

As some people have learned the hard way, when you don't bend your knees for heavy lifting situations, you get unnecessary pain and strain, and even injury. It's the same with all of life's heavy loads.

That's why God tells us what to do with the things that are weighing us down in Psalm 55:22. It's our word for today from the Word of God. Here's what He says, "Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall." That's a great promise if you claim it. I guess the implication is that if you don't cast your burden on the Lord or bend your knees to pray to Him about it, God isn't obligated to sustain you. I mean, you're on your own with a heavy load by your own choice. I think that's what the hymn writer was talking about when he said, "O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear; All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer."

Sometimes the heavier the burden, the more we neglect or forget to unload it on the shoulders of our all-powerful Lord. We're so busy trying to fix it, carry it, solve it, that we neglect taking it to God. Sometimes when we're hurting or discouraged, we just don't feel like praying. Great! That's exactly when we need to pray the most.

Someone might say, "Well, I pray about my burdens, but I still feel under it." Okay, I might take my car to Dave the mechanic and tell him all the things that aren't working right. Then I drive away muttering to myself, "I told him what was wrong, and nothing happened!" Well, of course not! It's not enough to tell the mechanic what's not working; I've got to leave it with him for him to fix it.

It's not enough for you to stroll into God's Throne Room and just tell Him what's wrong. He already knows that. You have to leave it with Him. "Cast your cares on the Lord." That's the only way He can fix it. When you've really brought something to God, you walk into His Throne Room all bent over from the weight on your back, but you don't walk out the same way. No, you walk out of His Throne Room walking tall because you left it there!

So don't make prayer your last resort when all else fails. Make prayer your first resort! What's wrong with us when we say, "Well, I guess all we could do is pray"? Yeah, all we can do is enter the Throne Room from which billions of galaxies are governed and leave it with the One who rules it all!

Life will be much more powerful and much lighter if you'll determine that prayer is going to be your primary method of getting things done, not just something you do to help all your other plans and methods succeed.

You've carried your burdens by yourself long enough, haven't you? And the load may be causing pain and strain and even injury. It doesn't have to hurt like this. It doesn't have to crush you like this. Bend your knees for heavy lifting!

Numbers 27, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Better to be Quiet

When you sense the volume increasing and the heat rising, close your mouth. It’s better to be quiet and keep a brother than be loud and lose one. Romans 14:4 makes it clear… “they are God’s servants, not yours. They are responsible to him, not to you.  Let him tell them whether they are right or wrong.”

We judge others when we stop addressing the controversy and start attacking the character. Example? “You’d expect such an opinion out of a person who never studies the Bible!” If we disagree, let us disagree agreeably. Unity demands that we discuss the issues, not the person. Paul said, “Let us try to do what makes peace and helps one another” (Rom. 14:19).

1 Peter 4:8 says, “Love shall cover the multitude of sins.” So, if love covers a multitude of sins, can it not cover a multitude of opinions?

From Max on Life

Numbers 27

The Daughters of Zelophehad

The daughters of Zelophehad showed up. Their father was the son of Hepher son of Gilead son of Makir son of Manasseh, belonging to the clans of Manasseh son of Joseph. The daughters were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

2-4 They came to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. They stood before Moses and Eleazar the priest and before the leaders and the congregation and said, “Our father died in the wilderness. He wasn’t part of Korah’s rebel anti-God gang. He died for his own sins. And he left no sons. But why should our father’s name die out from his clan just because he had no sons? So give us an inheritance among our father’s relatives.”

5 Moses brought their case to God.

6-7 God ruled: “Zelophehad’s daughters are right. Give them land as an inheritance among their father’s relatives. Give them their father’s inheritance.

8-11 “Then tell the People of Israel, If a man dies and leaves no son, give his inheritance to his daughter. If he has no daughter, give it to his brothers. If he has no brothers, give it to his father’s brothers. If his father had no brothers, give it to the nearest relative so that the inheritance stays in the family. This is the standard procedure for the People of Israel, as commanded by God through Moses.”
Joshua

12-14 God said to Moses, “Climb up into the Abarim Mountains and look over at the land that I am giving to the People of Israel. When you’ve had a good look you’ll be joined to your ancestors in the grave—yes, you also along with Aaron your brother. This goes back to the day when the congregation quarreled in the Wilderness of Zin and you didn’t honor me in holy reverence before them in the matter of the waters, the Waters of Meribah (Quarreling) at Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin.”

15-17 Moses responded to God: “Let God, the God of the spirits of everyone living, set a man over this community to lead them, to show the way ahead and bring them back home so God’s community will not be like sheep without a shepherd.”

18-21 God said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun—the Spirit is in him!—and place your hand on him. Stand him before Eleazar the priest in front of the entire congregation and commission him with everyone watching. Pass your magisterial authority over to him so that the whole congregation of the People of Israel will listen obediently to him. He is to consult with Eleazar the priest who, using the oracle-Urim, will prayerfully advise him in the presence of God. He will command the People of Israel, the entire community, in all their comings and goings.”

22-23 Moses followed God’s orders. He took Joshua and stood him before Eleazar the priest in front of the entire community. He laid his hands on him and commissioned him, following the procedures God had given Moses.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   
Sunday, January 30, 2022
Today's Scripture
Psalm 6
(NIV)

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. According to sheminith.b A psalm of David.

1 Lord, do not rebuke me in your angeri

or discipline me in your wrath.

2 Have mercy on me,j Lord, for I am faint;k

heal me,l Lord, for my bones are in agony.m

3 My soul is in deep anguish.n

How long,o Lord, how long?

4 Turn,p Lord, and deliver me;

save me because of your unfailing love.q

5 Among the dead no one proclaims your name.

Who praises you from the grave?r

6 I am worn outs from my groaning.t

All night long I flood my bed with weepingu

and drench my couch with tears.v

7 My eyes grow weakw with sorrow;

they fail because of all my foes.

8 Away from me,x all you who do evil,y

for the Lord has heard my weeping.

9 The Lord has heard my cry for mercy;z

the Lord accepts my prayer.

10 All my enemies will be overwhelmed with shame and anguish;a

they will turn back and suddenly be put to shame.

Insight

The superscription of Psalm 6 identifies David as the author and instructs the psalm be sung “according to sheminith,” which the New Living Translation identifies as an eight-stringed instrument. This psalm is the first of seven penitential psalms (Pss. 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, 143) where the author confesses his sin and seeks God’s forgiveness and mercy. David wrote it at the time of a prolonged illness (6:2–3). He acknowledged that his sickness was a consequence of specific sins, and that God was disciplining him (v. 1). His plight had emboldened his enemies to launch a personal attack against him (vv. 7–8, 10). Exhausted by his sorrowing over his sins, David, in repentance and on the basis of God’s mercy (vv. 2, 4), asks for forgiveness, favor, and restoration. He concludes his prayer with the assurance that those who truly repent will receive God’s mercy (vv. 9–10). By: K. T. Sim

Unanswered Prayers

How long, Lord, how long?
Psalm 6:3

Are we there yet? Not yet. Are we there yet? Not yet. That was the back-and-forth game we played on the first (and definitely not the last) sixteen-hour trip back home to Arkansas from Colorado when our children were young. Our oldest two kept the game alive and well, and if I had a dollar for every time they asked, well, I’d have a stack of dollars. It was a question my children were obsessed with, but I (the driver) was equally obsessed wondering, Are we there yet? And the answer was, Not yet, but soon.

Truth be told, most adults are asking a variation on that question, although we may not voice it out loud. But we’re asking it for that same reason—we’re tired, and our eyes have grown “weak with sorrow” (Psalm 6:7). We’re “worn out from [our] groaning” (v. 6) about everything from the nightly news to daily frustrations at work to never-ending health problems to relational strains, and the list goes on. We cry out: “Are we there yet? How long, Lord, how long?”

The psalmist knew well that kind of weariness, and he honestly brought that key question to God. Like a caring parent, He heard David’s cries and in His great mercy accepted them (v. 9). There was no shame for asking. Likewise, you and I can boldly approach our Father in heaven with our honest cries of “How long?” and His answer might be, “Not yet, but soon. I’m good. Trust Me.”  By:  John Blase

Reflect & Pray

Why are you weary right now and wondering, How long, Lord? What is it about God that shows He’s trustworthy?

Father in heaven, the burdens of this world have me asking, “How long?” Thank You for welcoming such prayers, and please give me the strength to trust You in life’s journey.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, January 30, 2022
The Dilemma of Obedience

Samuel was afraid to tell Eli the vision. —1 Samuel 3:15

God never speaks to us in dramatic ways, but in ways that are easy to misunderstand. Then we say, “I wonder if that is God’s voice?” Isaiah said that the Lord spoke to him “with a strong hand,” that is, by the pressure of his circumstances (Isaiah 8:11). Without the sovereign hand of God Himself, nothing touches our lives. Do we discern His hand at work, or do we see things as mere occurrences?

Get into the habit of saying, “Speak, Lord,” and life will become a romance (1 Samuel 3:9). Every time circumstances press in on you, say, “Speak, Lord,” and make time to listen. Chastening is more than a means of discipline— it is meant to bring me to the point of saying, “Speak, Lord.” Think back to a time when God spoke to you. Do you remember what He said? Was it Luke 11:13, or was it 1 Thessalonians 5:23? As we listen, our ears become more sensitive, and like Jesus, we will hear God all the time.

Should I tell my “Eli” what God has shown to me? This is where the dilemma of obedience hits us. We disobey God by becoming amateur providences and thinking, “I must shield ‘Eli,’ ” who represents the best people we know. God did not tell Samuel to tell Eli— he had to decide that for himself. God’s message to you may hurt your “Eli,” but trying to prevent suffering in another’s life will prove to be an obstruction between your soul and God. It is at your own risk that you prevent someone’s right hand being cut off or right eye being plucked out (see Matthew 5:29-30).

Never ask another person’s advice about anything God makes you decide before Him. If you ask advice, you will almost always side with Satan. “…I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood…” (Galatians 1:16).

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

“When the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?” We all have faith in good principles, in good management, in good common sense, but who amongst us has faith in Jesus Christ? Physical courage is grand, moral courage is grander, but the man who trusts Jesus Christ in the face of the terrific problems of life is worth a whole crowd of heroes.  The Highest Good, 544 R

Bible in a Year: Exodus 23-24; Matthew 20:1-16

Numbers 26 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Be Careful

Be careful with the phrase, “God led me. . .” Don’t banter it about. People have been known to justify stupidity based on a feeling! God will not lead you to lie, cheat, or hurt.

When Luke justified the writing of his gospel to Theophilus, he said, “Since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus” (Lk. 1:3). Did you note his phrase, “it seemed good also to me”? These words reflect a person at the crossroads. Luke pondered his options and selected the path that “seemed good.”

God creates the ‘want to” within us. But He will never lead you to violate His Word. He will not contradict his teaching. But he will faithfully lead you through the words of his Scripture and the advice of his faithful.

From Max on Life

Numbers 26

Census on the Plains of Moab

After the plague God said to Moses and Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, “Number the entire community of Israel by families—count every person who is twenty years and older who is able to serve in the army of Israel.”

3-4 Obeying God’s command, Moses and Eleazar the priest addressed them on the Plains of Moab at Jordan-Jericho: “Count off from age twenty and older.”

4-7 The People of Israel who came out of the land of Egypt:

Reuben, Israel’s firstborn. The sons of Reuben were:

Hanoch and the Hanochite clan,

Pallu and the Palluite clan,

Hezron and the Hezronite clan,

Carmi and the Carmite clan.

These made up the Reubenite clans. They numbered 43,730.

8 The son of Pallu: Eliab.

9-11 The sons of Eliab: Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. (These were the same Dathan and Abiram, community leaders from Korah’s gang, who rebelled against Moses and Aaron in the Korah Rebellion against God. The Earth opened its jaws and swallowed them along with Korah’s gang who died when the fire ate them up, all 250 of them. After all these years, they’re still a warning sign. But the line of Korah did not die out.)

12-14 The sons of Simeon by clans:

Nemuel and the Nemuelite clan,

Jamin and the Jaminite clan,

Jakin and the Jakinite clan,

Zerah and the Zerahite clan,

Shaul and the Shaulite clan.

These were the clans of Simeon. They numbered 22,200 men.

15-18 The sons of Gad by clans:

Zephon and the Zephonite clan,

Haggi and the Haggite clan,

Shuni and the Shunite clan,

Ozni and the Oznite clan,

Eri and the Erite clan,

Arodi and the Arodite clan,

Areli and the Arelite clan.

These were the clans of Gad. They numbered 40,500 men.

19-22 Er and Onan were sons of Judah who died early on in Canaan. The sons of Judah by clans:

Shelah and the Shelanite clan,

Perez and the Perezite clan,

Zerah and the Zerahite clan.

The sons of Perez:

Hezron and the Hezronite clan,

Hamul and the Hamulite clan.

These were the clans of Judah. They numbered 76,500.

23-25 The sons of Issachar by clans:

Tola and the Tolaite clan,

Puah and the Puite clan,

Jashub and the Jashubite clan,

Shimron and the Shimronite clan.

These were the clans of Issachar. They numbered 64,300.

26-27 The sons of Zebulun by clans:

Sered and the Seredite clan,

Elon and the Elonite clan,

Jahleel and the Jahleelite clan.

These were the clans of Zebulun. They numbered 60,500.

28-34 The sons of Joseph by clans through Manasseh and Ephraim. Through Manasseh:

Makir and the Makirite clan

(now Makir was the father of Gilead),

Gilead and the Gileadite clan.

The sons of Gilead:

Iezer and the Iezerite clan,

Helek and the Helekite clan,

Asriel and the Asrielite clan,

Shechem and the Shechemite clan,

Shemida and the Shemidaite clan,

Hepher and the Hepherite clan.

Zelophehad son of Hepher had no sons, only daughters.

Their names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

These were the clans of Manasseh. They numbered 52,700.

35-37 The sons of Ephraim by clans:

Shuthelah and the Shuthelahite clan,

Beker and the Bekerite clan,

Tahan and the Tahanite clan.

The sons of Shuthelah:

Eran and the Eranite clan.

These were the clans of Ephraim. They numbered 32,500.

These are all the sons of Joseph by their clans.

38-41 The sons of Benjamin by clans:

Bela and the Belaite clan,

Ashbel and the Ashbelite clan,

Ahiram and the Ahiramite clan,

Shupham and the Shuphamite clan,

Hupham and the Huphamite clan.

The sons of Bela through Ard and Naaman:

Ard and the Ardite clan,

Naaman and the Naamite clan.

These were the clans of Benjamin. They numbered 45,600.

42-43 The sons of Dan by clan:

Shuham and the Shuhamite clan.

These are the clans of Dan, all Shuhamite clans. They numbered 64,400.

44-47 The sons of Asher by clan:

Imnah and the Imnite clan,

Ishvi and the Ishvite clan,

Beriah and the Beriite clan.

The sons of Beriah:

Heber and the Heberite clan,

Malkiel and the Malkielite clan.

Asher also had a daughter, Serah.

These were the clans of Asher. They numbered 53,400.

48-50 The sons of Naphtali by clans:

Jahzeel and the Jahzeelite clan,

Guni and the Gunite clan,

Jezer and the Jezerite clan,

Shillem and the Shillemite clan.

These were the clans of Naphtali. They numbered 45,400.

51 The total number of the People of Israel: 601,730.

* * *

52-54 God spoke to Moses: “Divide up the inheritance of the land based on population. A larger group gets a larger inheritance; a smaller group gets a smaller inheritance—each gets its inheritance based on the population count.

55-56 “Make sure that the land is assigned by lot.

“Each group’s inheritance is based on population, the number of names listed in its ancestral tribe, divided among the many and the few by lot.”

* * *

57-58 These are the numberings of the Levites by clan:

Gershon and the Gershonite clan,

Kohath and the Kohathite clan,

Merari and the Merarite clan.

The Levite clans also included:

the Libnite clan,

the Hebronite clan,

the Mahlite clan,

the Mushite clan,

the Korahite clan.

58-61 Kohath was the father of Amram. Amram’s wife was Jochebed, a descendant of Levi, born into the Levite family during the Egyptian years. Jochebed bore Aaron, Moses, and their sister Miriam to Amram. Aaron was the father of Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar; however, Nadab and Abihu died when they offered unauthorized sacrifice in the presence of God.

62 The numbering of Levite males one month and older came to 23,000. They hadn’t been counted in with the rest of the People of Israel because they didn’t inherit any land.

63-65 These are the ones numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, the People of Israel counted in the Plains of Moab at Jordan-Jericho. Not one of them had been among those counted by Moses and Aaron the priest in the census of the People of Israel taken in the Wilderness of Sinai. For God had said of them, “They’ll die, die in the wilderness—not one of them will be left except for Caleb son of Jephunneh, and Joshua son of Nun.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   
Saturday, January 29, 2022
Today's Scripture
Matthew 19:16–26
(NIV)

     Another day, a man stopped Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”

17     Jesus said, “Why do you question me about what’s good? God is the One who is good. If you want to enter the life of God, just do what he tells you.”

18–19     The man asked, “What in particular?”

Jesus said, “Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as you do yourself.”

20     The young man said, “I’ve done all that. What’s left?”

21     “If you want to give it all you’ve got,” Jesus replied, “go sell your possessions; give everything to the poor. All your wealth will then be in heaven. Then come follow me.”

22     That was the last thing the young man expected to hear. And so, crestfallen, he walked away. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and he couldn’t bear to let go.

23–24     As he watched him go, Jesus told his disciples, “Do you have any idea how difficult it is for the rich to enter God’s kingdom? Let me tell you, it’s easier to gallop a camel through a needle’s eye than for the rich to enter God’s kingdom.”

25     The disciples were staggered. “Then who has any chance at all?”

26     Jesus looked hard at them and said, “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off yourself. Every chance in the world if you trust God to do it.”

Insight

Luke 18:18 identifies the rich young man in Matthew 19:16–30 as a “ruler,” which can mean a synagogue leader, a Jewish elder, a leader of the Pharisees, or a member of the Sanhedrin. He asked Jesus what he needed to do to enter the Messianic kingdom (v. 16). On another occasion, “an expert in the law” asked Jesus the same question to test Him (Luke 10:25). In Matthew 19:24, Jesus used the ludicrous illustration of the camel going through the eye of a needle to highlight the impossibility of anyone being able to “do something” to save themselves, for it’s God alone who saves (v. 26). By: K. T. Sim

Perfect Like Christ

Be perfect . . . as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Matthew 5:48

“Perfectionism is one of the scariest words I know,” Kathleen Norris writes, thoughtfully contrasting modern-day perfectionism with the “perfection” described in the book of Matthew. Modern-day perfectionism she describes as “a serious psychological affliction that makes people too timid to take necessary risks.” But the word translated “perfect” in Matthew actually means mature, complete, or whole. Norris concludes, “To be perfect . . . is to make room for growth [and become] mature enough to give ourselves to others.”

Understanding perfection this way helps make sense of the profound story told in Matthew 19, where a man asked Jesus what good he could do to “get eternal life” (v. 16). Jesus responded, “Keep the commandments” (v. 17). The man thought he’d obeyed all of them, yet he knew something was missing. “What do I still lack?” (v. 20) he asked.

That’s when Jesus identified the man’s wealth as the vise-grip stifling his heart. He said that if he wanted “to be perfect”—whole, willing to give and receive from others in God’s kingdom—then he must be willing to let go of what was closing off his heart from others (v. 21).

Each of us has our own version of perfection—possessions or habits we cling to as a futile attempt to be in control. Today, hear Jesus’ gentle invitation to surrender—and find freedom in the wholeness that’s only possible in Him (v. 26). By:  Monica La Rose

Reflect & Pray

When have you mistaken personal goals for biblical “perfection”? How can surrendering control to God offer freedom from perfectionism?

Loving God, forgive me for so often mistaking my own self-improvement ambitions for growing in You! Help me to surrender control and embrace a life of freedom with You.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, January 29, 2022
How Could Someone Be So Ignorant!

Who are You, Lord? —Acts 26:15

“The Lord spoke thus to me with a strong hand…” (Isaiah 8:11). There is no escape when our Lord speaks. He always comes using His authority and taking hold of our understanding. Has the voice of God come to you directly? If it has, you cannot mistake the intimate insistence with which it has spoken to you. God speaks in the language you know best— not through your ears, but through your circumstances.

God has to destroy our determined confidence in our own convictions. We say, “I know that this is what I should do” — and suddenly the voice of God speaks in a way that overwhelms us by revealing the depths of our ignorance. We show our ignorance of Him in the very way we decide to serve Him. We serve Jesus in a spirit that is not His, and hurt Him by our defense of Him. We push His claims in the spirit of the devil; our words sound all right, but the spirit is that of an enemy. “He…rebuked them, and said, ‘You do not know what manner of spirit you are of’ ” (Luke 9:55). The spirit of our Lord in His followers is described in 1 Corinthians 13.

Have I been persecuting Jesus by an eager determination to serve Him in my own way? If I feel I have done my duty, yet have hurt Him in the process, I can be sure that this was not my duty. My way will not be to foster a meek and quiet spirit, only the spirit of self-satisfaction. We presume that whatever is unpleasant is our duty! Is that anything like the spirit of our Lord— “I delight to do Your will, O my God…” (Psalm 40:8).

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

We all have the trick of saying—If only I were not where I am!—If only I had not got the kind of people I have to live with! If our faith or our religion does not help us in the conditions we are in, we have either a further struggle to go through, or we had better abandon that faith and religion.  The Shadow of an Agony, 1178 L

Bible in a Year: Exodus 21-22; Matthew 19

Mark 16 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: You Are Heard in Heaven - January 28, 2022

“Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard” (Daniel 10:12). Those words were spoken by an angel to the prophet Daniel. The moment Daniel began praying, the answer was issued. Demonic forces blocked the pathway of the angel. The impasse lasted a full three weeks until the archangel Michael arrived on the scene with his superior authority. The standoff was ended, and the prayer was answered

Have your prayers been met with a silent sky? Have you prayed and heard nothing? Are you floundering in the land between an offered and an answered prayer? If so, I beg you, don’t give up. What the angel said to Daniel, God says to you. You have been heard in Heaven. Angelic armies have been dispatched. Reinforcements have been rallied. Do what Daniel did – remain before the Lord.

Mark 16

The Resurrection

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so they could embalm him. Very early on Sunday morning, as the sun rose, they went to the tomb. They worried out loud to each other, “Who will roll back the stone from the tomb for us?”

4-5 Then they looked up, saw that it had been rolled back—it was a huge stone—and walked right in. They saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed all in white. They were completely taken aback, astonished.

6-7 He said, “Don’t be afraid. I know you’re looking for Jesus the Nazarene, the One they nailed on the cross. He’s been raised up; he’s here no longer. You can see for yourselves that the place is empty. Now—on your way. Tell his disciples and Peter that he is going on ahead of you to Galilee. You’ll see him there, exactly as he said.”

8 They got out as fast as they could, beside themselves, their heads swimming. Stunned, they said nothing to anyone.

9-11 [After rising from the dead, Jesus appeared early on Sunday morning to Mary Magdalene, whom he had delivered from seven demons. She went to his former companions, now weeping and carrying on, and told them. When they heard her report that she had seen him alive and well, they didn’t believe her.

12-13 Later he appeared, but in a different form, to two of them out walking in the countryside. They went back and told the rest, but they weren’t believed either.

14-16 Still later, as the Eleven were eating supper, he appeared and took them to task most severely for their stubborn unbelief, refusing to believe those who had seen him raised up. Then he said, “Go into the world. Go everywhere and announce the Message of God’s good news to one and all. Whoever believes and is baptized is saved; whoever refuses to believe is damned.

17-18 “These are some of the signs that will accompany believers: They will throw out demons in my name, they will speak in new tongues, they will take snakes in their hands, they will drink poison and not be hurt, they will lay hands on the sick and make them well.”

19-20 Then the Master Jesus, after briefing them, was taken up to heaven, and he sat down beside God in the place of honor. And the disciples went everywhere preaching, the Master working right with them, validating the Message with indisputable evidence.]

Note: Mark 16:9-20 [the portion in brackets] is not found in the earliest handwritten copies.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Friday, January 28, 2022
Today's Scripture
Jeremiah 17:5–8
(NIV)

This is what the Lord says:

“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,t

who draws strength from mere flesh

and whose heart turns away from the Lord.u

6 That person will be like a bush in the wastelands;

they will not see prosperity when it comes.

They will dwell in the parched placesv of the desert,

in a saltw land where no one lives.

7 “But blessedx is the one who trustsy in the Lord,

whose confidence is in him.

8 They will be like a tree planted by the water

that sends out its roots by the stream.z

It does not fear when heat comes;

its leaves are always green.

It has no worries in a year of droughta

and never fails to bear fruit.”

Insight

In Jeremiah 17:6, the “bush in the wastelands” refers to the tamarisk, a dwarf juniper, which would “not see prosperity when it comes” because of its stunted roots that didn’t reach into the water levels beneath the surface. As commentator R. K. Harrison notes: “The implications of the allusion would not be lost on the [Israelites], who—had they lived in a faith-relationship with God—could have been flourishing like the green bay tree.” If they’d held fast to God, they’d have been “like a tree planted by the water” (v. 8). However, the people of Judah trusted in false gods and in military alliances with other nations instead of God, the only true source of strength. They’d face judgment (“be cursed”) if they didn’t repent, but He would restore and prosper (bless) them if they returned to Him (15:19; 17:5, 7, 13). By: Alyson Kieda

In God We Put Our Trust

Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.
Jeremiah 17:7

The baby wasn’t due for another six weeks, but the doctor had just diagnosed Whitney with cholestasis, a liver condition common in pregnancy. In a whirlwind of emotions, Whitney was taken to the hospital where she received treatment and was told her baby would be induced in twenty-four hours! In another part of the hospital, ventilators and other equipment needed for the onslaught of COVID-19 cases were being put into place. As a result, Whitney was sent home. She made the decision to trust God and His plans, and she delivered a healthy baby a few days later.

When Scripture takes root in us, it transforms the way we react in trying situations. Jeremiah lived in a time when most of society trusted in human alliances, and the worship of idols was prevalent. The prophet contrasts the person who “draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord” (Jeremiah 17:5) with the one who trusts in God. “Blessed is the one . . . whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that . . . does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green” (vv. 7–8).

As believers in Jesus, we’re called to live by faith as we look to Him for solutions. As He provides the strength, we can choose to fear or to trust Him. God says we’re blessed—fully satisfied—when we choose to place our trust in Him. By:  Regie Keller

Reflect & Pray

When have you felt worried or afraid and then were reminded of God’s promise to bless those who trust Him? How has the realization that you can trust God in all circumstances brought you relief?

Dear God, thank You that I can trust You in all situations and come to You in prayer. You’re right there in the midst of my struggles, and You give me strength.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, January 28, 2022
How Could Someone So Persecute Jesus!

Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? —Acts 26:14

Are you determined to have your own way in living for God? We will never be free from this trap until we are brought into the experience of the baptism of “the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11). Stubbornness and self-will will always stab Jesus Christ. It may hurt no one else, but it wounds His Spirit. Whenever we are obstinate and self-willed and set on our own ambitions, we are hurting Jesus. Every time we stand on our own rights and insist that this is what we intend to do, we are persecuting Him. Whenever we rely on self-respect, we systematically disturb and grieve His Spirit. And when we finally understand that it is Jesus we have been persecuting all this time, it is the most crushing revelation ever.

Is the Word of God tremendously penetrating and sharp in me as I hand it on to you, or does my life betray the things I profess to teach? I may teach sanctification and yet exhibit the spirit of Satan, the very spirit that persecutes Jesus Christ. The Spirit of Jesus is conscious of only one thing— a perfect oneness with the Father. And He tells us, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29). All I do should be based on a perfect oneness with Him, not on a self-willed determination to be godly. This will mean that others may use me, go around me, or completely ignore me, but if I will submit to it for His sake, I will prevent Jesus Christ from being persecuted.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

We have no right to judge where we should be put, or to have preconceived notions as to what God is fitting us for. God engineers everything; wherever He puts us, our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.” My Utmost for His Highest, April 23, 773 L

Bible in a Year: Exodus 19-20; Matthew 18:21-35

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, January 28, 2022
Seeing What Jesus Sees - #9145

When you're a kid, you're wet cement. Impressions, well, they get written on you so easily and so deeply. And then they harden into beliefs or un-beliefs, and that kid becomes an adult. You know, the late Steve Jobs was no exception.

Apple's communications genius and revolutionary, had been described as "intriguing, yet inscrutable." But as he battled cancer, he opened some windows into his mind and soul to the author who was writing his life story. According to that biography that bears his name, Steve Jobs studied Zen Buddhism for years. An article in USA Today said, "He never went back to church after he saw a photo of starving children on the cover of Life Magazine and asked his Sunday school pastor if God knew what would happen to them. He was 13 at the time."

Now, in a separate article, USA Today included this near-the-end spiritual observation from his biography: "The juice goes out of Christianity when it becomes too based on faith rather than on living like Jesus or seeing the world as Jesus saw it."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Seeing What Jesus Sees."

None of us knows exactly, of course, where anyone finally lands in their spiritual journey. But in his words about Jesus there was a glimmer of the bedrock truth that answers so many spiritual questions: It's all about Jesus.

Christianity, the religion, has never been the issue, although many have been unable or unwilling to separate Jesus from the religion that's about Him. But Jesus made it all about Him, and Him alone, in that simple two-word invitation He extended over and over again, "Follow Me." Jesus never said "follow My religion" or "follow My followers." He didn't say "follow My rules." He didn't say, "follow My leaders." The only reason to turn away from Jesus is if you've got a problem with Jesus.

And as for "seeing the world as Jesus saw it," He saw it broken because people walk past the wounded, all absorbed with themselves, like the story of that Good Samaritan. He saw the world as cold, and lonely, and twisted, because every man has chosen to ignore the Manufacturer's instructions and to become our own god for our own life. And that has brought us a world of bleeding families, greedy hoarding that produces global hunger, and an endless drama of people being used, abused, ignored, walked on.

And what about those starving children? Jesus said when we reach for them to help them, "whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me." And our word for today from the Word of God, Matthew 25:40, says, "whatever you did not do for the least of these, you did not do for Me." Jesus is so personally identified with the hurting people of our world that He takes our treatment of them as our treatment of Him, with eternal consequences.

This Jesus that it's all about came here, in the Bible's words, as "a man of sorrows, familiar with suffering ... pierced for our transgressions ... crushed for our iniquities" (Isaiah 53:3, 5). This is the God who leaves the throne to die on the cross. He's a God you can believe in. He's a God who stands alone above all the wannabe gods of earth's spiritual pantheon. And ultimately, we find in Jesus the only man of the billions who've lived who has come back from the grave and who promised eternal life to all those who would "follow Me."

And the question is, "On this side of eternity, while you can still decide, have you ever made this Jesus your Jesus? Can you imagine Him calling your name today, "follow Me"? He died for you. He's risen from the dead to prove He can give you eternal life. He's waiting for you to reach out and say, "Jesus, I'm Yours."

Our website is there to help you take that step. Please check it out - ANewStory.com. Behind all the fog of all those "sophisticated" spiritualities and the dueling religions of our world stands one real God, one real Savior. He's the God who hung on a cross.

Numbers 25 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

 Max Lucado Daily: God Uses the Humble - January 27, 2022

Some time ago I partnered with Michael W. Smith for a ministry weekend. The retreat was held at a beautiful facility in North Carolina owned by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Michael and I met to go over the weekend schedule, but he had just met with Billy Graham, and he was so moved that he hardly discussed the retreat. The ninety-four-year-old evangelist told Michael that he hoped his name would not be mentioned at his funeral. “What?” Michael asked. “I hope only that the name of the Lord Jesus be lifted up.”

Billy Graham preached to hundreds of millions of people. He advised every U.S. president from Truman to Obama. Yet he didn’t want to be mentioned at his own funeral. Proverbs 22:4 says, “Humility is the fear of the Lord; its wages are riches and honor and life.”

Numbers 25

The Orgy at Shittim

While Israel was camped at Shittim (Acacia Grove), the men began to have sex with the Moabite women. It started when the women invited the men to their sex-and-religion worship. They ate together and then worshiped their gods. Israel ended up joining in the worship of the Baal of Peor. God was furious, his anger blazing out against Israel.

4 God said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of Israel and kill them by hanging, leaving them publicly exposed in order to turn God’s anger away from Israel.”

5 Moses issued orders to the judges of Israel: “Each of you must execute the men under your jurisdiction who joined in the worship of Baal Peor.”

6-9 Just then, while everyone was weeping in penitence at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, an Israelite man, flaunting his behavior in front of Moses and the whole assembly, paraded a Midianite woman into his family tent. Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw what he was doing, grabbed his spear, and followed them into the tent. With one thrust he drove the spear through the two of them, the man of Israel and the woman, right through their midsections. That stopped the plague from continuing among the People of Israel. But 24,000 had already died.

10-13 God spoke to Moses: “Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has stopped my anger against the People of Israel. Because he was as zealous for my honor as I myself am, I didn’t kill all the People of Israel in my zeal. So tell him that I am making a Covenant-of-Peace with him. He and his descendants are joined in a covenant of eternal priesthood, because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the People of Israel.”

14-15 The name of the man of Israel who was killed with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, the head of the Simeonite family. And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi daughter of Zur, a tribal chief of a Midianite family.

16-18 God spoke to Moses: “From here on make the Midianites your enemies. Fight them tooth and nail. They turned out to be your enemies when they seduced you in the business of Peor and that woman Cozbi, daughter of a Midianite leader, the woman who was killed at the time of the plague in the matter of Peor.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Thursday, January 27, 2022
Today's Scripture
Romans 12:12–21
(NIV)

Be joyful in hope,a patient in affliction,b faithful in prayer.c 13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need.d Practice hospitality.e

14 Bless those who persecute you;f bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.g 16 Live in harmony with one another.h Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.c Do not be conceited.i

17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil.j Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone.k 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.l 19 Do not take revenge,m my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”d n says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;

if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.

In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”e o

21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Insight

In Romans 12, the apostle Paul encouraged believers in Jesus to act in ways contrary to our sinful nature. In verse 14, he wrote, “Bless those who persecute you” and added “bless and do not curse.” Not even the smallest bit of desire for divine vengeance was to interfere with our prayer that God bless our enemies. John Calvin wrote on this verse: “I have said that this is more difficult than to let go of revenge when anyone is injured; for though some restrain their hands and are not led away by the passion of doing harm, they yet wish that some calamity or loss would in some way happen to their enemies . . . . But God by his word not only restrains our hands from doing evil, but also subdues the bitter feelings within.” By: Alyson Kieda

Not Holding Grudges

Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.
Leviticus 19:18

During a promotional event in 2011, two seventy-three-year-old former Canadian Football League players got into a fistfight on stage. They had a “beef” (a grudge or feud) dating back to a controversial championship football game in 1963. After one man knocked the other off the stage, the crowd called out to him to “let it go!” They were telling him to “squash the beef.”

The Bible contains many examples of people “beefing.” Cain held a grudge against his brother Abel because God accepted Abel’s offering over his (Genesis 4:4–5). This grudge was so severe that it eventually led to murder as “Cain attacked his brother . . . and killed him” (v. 8). “Esau held a grudge against Jacob” because Jacob stole the birthright that was rightfully his (27:41). This grudge was so intense that it caused Jacob to run for his life in fear.

Not only does the Bible give us several examples of people who held grudges, but it also instructs us on how to “squash the beef”—how to seek forgiveness and reconciliation. God calls us to love others (Leviticus 19:18), pray for and forgive those who insult and injure us (Matthew 5:43–47), live peaceably with all people, leave revenge to God, and overcome evil with good (Romans 12:18–21). By His power, may we “squash the beef” today.

Reflect & Pray

Why is it vital for us to not hold grudges? How will you work to restore a broken or damaged relationship this week?

Jesus, thank You that I can forgive others because You’ve forgiven me.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, January 27, 2022
Look Again and Think

Do not worry about your life… —Matthew 6:25

A warning which needs to be repeated is that “the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches,” and the lust for other things, will choke out the life of God in us (Matthew 13:22). We are never free from the recurring waves of this invasion. If the frontline of attack is not about clothes and food, it may be about money or the lack of money; or friends or lack of friends; or the line may be drawn over difficult circumstances. It is one steady invasion, and these things will come in like a flood, unless we allow the Spirit of God to raise up the banner against it.

“I say to you, do not worry about your life….” Our Lord says to be careful only about one thing— our relationship to Him. But our common sense shouts loudly and says, “That is absurd, I must consider how I am going to live, and I must consider what I am going to eat and drink.” Jesus says you must not. Beware of allowing yourself to think that He says this while not understanding your circumstances. Jesus Christ knows our circumstances better than we do, and He says we must not think about these things to the point where they become the primary concern of our life. Whenever there are competing concerns in your life, be sure you always put your relationship to God first.

“Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:34). How much trouble has begun to threaten you today? What kind of mean little demons have been looking into your life and saying, “What are your plans for next month— or next summer?” Jesus tells us not to worry about any of these things. Look again and think. Keep your mind on the “much more” of your heavenly Father (Matthew 6:30).

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

There is no allowance whatever in the New Testament for the man who says he is saved by grace but who does not produce the graceful goods. Jesus Christ by His Redemption can make our actual life in keeping with our religious profession. Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, 1465 R

Bible in a Year: Exodus 16-18; Matthew 18:1-20

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, January 27, 2022
Loving by Anticipating - #9144

When you travel a lot, you eat in restaurants a lot. And so I've seen my share of waiters and waitresses - some who do a good job, some whose service leaves something to be desired, and a few who are outstanding at what they do. You try to say a special thank you with a special tip for that kind of server, right? One example of stellar service: those servers who check regularly to see if you need more water, without being asked for it; who automatically check to see if you want ketchup or steak sauce or more bread or more anything. It just feels good when someone cares enough to anticipate what you might need.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Loving by Anticipating."

If anticipating your needs means something in a restaurant, imagine how much it means in a marriage! Actually I saw some married friends in a local restaurant, friends who have been married a long time. Based on some things he had said, I made this observation, "These sound like the best years you guys have ever had together." He smiled broadly and said, "Yes, because after 40 years, I'm learning not just to meet her needs, but to anticipate her needs!"

That's husbanding in keeping with what Jesus called the second greatest commandment of all ... what James calls the "royal law" in James 2:8, our word for today from the Word of God. He writes, "If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, 'Love your neighbor as yourself,' you're doing right." We know how we love ourselves. We're really good at that. We think ahead about our needs and we make sure we have a plan for taking care of those needs. Jesus teaches us to think that way about other people.

In the great marriage passage of Ephesians 5, God applies this kind of selflessness directly to how a man treats the woman he's married to. He says, "Husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the Church" (Ephesians 5:28-29). Again, look after her needs as much as you would look after your own.

Some years ago, the Lord really spoke to me about coming home all full of my day, my concerns, my agenda, my needs. I learned to sort of, well I called it, 'close my briefcase' mentally on the way home so I could think through what was going on that day in the life of my wife, each of my kids. I did my best to try to anticipate what they might need from me when I got in the house. Not always, but more than I had. And to the extent that I did that, I found out that I was loving with anticipating love. I know the second Commandment is for wives, too. Of course we're each supposed to be anticipating the needs of the other.

Anticipate the times that they're going to need you physically to be there. Anticipate when your spouse will need help, or comfort, or intimacy, or reassurance, maybe extended debriefing time, or tenderness, when they need prayer together, or just some encouragement like praising small progress in an area where they've really been struggling. Usually, the love that really makes the other person feel loved means sacrifice on our part. But then, what did the cross teach us if it didn't teach that real love almost always involves sacrifice.

Love is really at its best when it's thinking about the other person; thinking about them enough to anticipate their need and to do all you can to meet that need. Actually, that's loving like Jesus loves.

Numbers 24 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Delivering Happiness - January 26, 2022

Albert is a mail carrier in Waco, Texas. He makes daily deliveries to the furniture store where my daughter Sara used to work. Being a start-up, the business had a constant level of chaos. That’s why they all loved Albert. Sara remembers, “He’d ask how each of us was doing. He looked us in the eyes and said, ‘God bless you.’”

Albert delivers more than mail. He delivers happiness. I’d like to challenge you to do the same. Set out to alter the joy level of a hundred people over the next forty days. Pray for people, serve more, practice patience, and bring out the best in people. Keep a journal to describe the encounters and what you learned. At the end of forty days, would your world be different? Would you be different? I took the challenge, and I certainly am.

Numbers 24

By now Balaam realized that God wanted to bless Israel. So he didn’t work in any sorcery as he had done earlier. He turned and looked out over the wilderness. As Balaam looked, he saw Israel camped tribe by tribe. The Spirit of God came on him, and he spoke his oracle-message:

3-9
Decree of Balaam son of Beor,
    yes, decree of a man with 20/20 vision;
Decree of a man who hears God speak,
    who sees what The Strong God shows him,
Who falls on his face in worship,
    who sees what’s really going on.

What beautiful tents, Jacob,
    oh, your homes, Israel!
Like valleys stretching out in the distance,
    like gardens planted by rivers,
Like sweet herbs planted by the gardener God,
    like red cedars by pools and springs,
Their buckets will brim with water,
    their seed will spread life everywhere.
Their king will tower over Agag and his ilk,
    their kingdom surpassingly majestic.
God brought them out of Egypt,
    rampaging like a wild ox,
Gulping enemies like morsels of meat,
    crushing their bones, snapping their arrows.
Israel crouches like a lion and naps,
    king-of-the-beasts—who dares disturb him?
Whoever blesses you is blessed,
    whoever curses you is cursed.

10-11 Balak lost his temper with Balaam. He shook his fist. He said to Balaam: “I got you in here to curse my enemies and what have you done? Blessed them! Blessed them three times! Get out of here! Go home! I told you I would pay you well, but you’re getting nothing. You can blame God.”

12-15 Balaam said to Balak, “Didn’t I tell you up front when you sent your emissaries, ‘Even if Balak gave me his palace stuffed with silver and gold, I couldn’t do anything on my own, whether good or bad, that went against God’s command’? I’m leaving for home and my people, but I warn you of what this people will do to your people in the days to come.” Then he spoke his oracle-message:

15-19
Decree of Balaam son of Beor,
    decree of the man with 20/20 vision,
Decree of the man who hears godly speech,
    who knows what’s going on with the High God,
Who sees what The Strong God reveals,
    who bows in worship and sees what’s real.
I see him, but not right now,
    I perceive him, but not right here;
A star rises from Jacob
    a scepter from Israel,
Crushing the heads of Moab,
    the skulls of all the noisy windbags;
I see Edom sold off at auction,
    enemy Seir marked down at the flea market,
    while Israel walks off with the trophies.
A ruler is coming from Jacob
    who’ll destroy what’s left in the city.

* * *

20 Then Balaam spotted Amalek and delivered an oracle-message. He said,

Amalek, you’re in first place among nations right now,
    but you’re going to come in last, ruined.

* * *

21-22 He saw the Kenites and delivered his oracle-message to them:

Your home is in a nice secure place,
    like a nest high on the face of a cliff.
Still, you Kenites will look stupid
    when Asshur takes you prisoner.

* * *

23-24 Balaam spoke his final oracle-message:

Doom! Who stands a chance
    when God starts in?
Sea-Peoples, raiders from across the sea,
    will harass Asshur and Eber,
But they’ll also come to nothing,
    just like all the rest.

25 Balaam got up and went home. Balak also went on his way.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   
Wednesday, January 26, 2022

Today's Scripture
Ecclesiastes 3:9–14
(NIV)

What do workers gain from their toil?k 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race.l 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time.m He has also set eternity in the human heart; yeta no one can fathomn what God has done from beginning to end.o 12 I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 13 That each of them may eat and drink,p and find satisfactionq in all their toil—this is the gift of God.r 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him.

Insight

Ecclesiastes 3 emphasizes humanity’s inability to discern the ways in which God’s plan and purposes are at work, suggesting that this is often experienced by people as a “burden” (v. 10). For although God has “set eternity in the human heart . . . no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end” (v. 11). The word translated “eternity” (Hebrew ‘olam) can be translated in a variety of ways. Here, some scholars argue it means “the age to come,” some say it refers primarily to the future, and others believe it refers to how all of time is connected. Whatever the meaning, the teacher in Ecclesiastes suggests that trying too hard to understand life’s whys or the ways in which God’s purposes will be realized will make it impossible to find satisfaction in the ups and downs of daily life (v. 12). By: Monica La Rose

True Happiness

I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live.
Ecclesiastes 3:12

In the tenth century, Abd al-Rahman III was the ruler of Cordoba, Spain. After fifty years of successful reign (“beloved by my subjects, dreaded by my enemies, and respected by my allies”), al-Rahman took a deeper look at his life. “Riches and honors, power and pleasure, have waited on my call,” he said of his privileges. But when he counted how many days of genuine happiness he’d had during that time, they amounted to just fourteen. How sobering.

The writer of Ecclesiastes was also a man of riches and honor (Ecclesiastes 2:7–9), power and pleasure (1:12; 2:1–3). And his own life evaluation was equally sobering. Riches, he realized, just led to a desire for more (5:10–11), while pleasures accomplished little (2:1–2), and success could be due to chance as much as ability (9:11). But his assessment didn’t end as bleakly as al-Rahman’s. Believing God was his ultimate source of happiness, he saw that eating, working, and doing good could all be enjoyed when done with Him (2:25; 3:12–13).

“O man!” al-Rahman concluded his reflections, “place not thy confidence in this present world!” The writer of Ecclesiastes would agree. Since we’ve been made for eternity (3:11), earthly pleasures and achievements won’t satisfy by themselves. But with Him in our lives, genuine happiness is possible in our eating, working, and living. By:  Sheridan Voysey

Reflect & Pray

What do you turn to most to find happiness? How can you eat, work, and do good with God today?

Heavenly Father, today I will do all things with You by my side.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, January 26, 2022
Look Again and Consecrate

If God so clothes the grass of the field…, will He not much more clothe you…? —Matthew 6:30

A simple statement of Jesus is always a puzzle to us because we will not be simple. How can we maintain the simplicity of Jesus so that we may understand Him? By receiving His Spirit, recognizing and relying on Him, and obeying Him as He brings us the truth of His Word, life will become amazingly simple. Jesus asks us to consider that “if God so clothes the grass of the field…” how “much more” will He clothe you, if you keep your relationship right with Him? Every time we lose ground in our fellowship with God, it is because we have disrespectfully thought that we knew better than Jesus Christ. We have allowed “the cares of this world” to enter in (Matthew 13:22), while forgetting the “much more” of our heavenly Father.

“Look at the birds of the air…” (Matthew 6:26). Their function is to obey the instincts God placed within them, and God watches over them. Jesus said that if you have the right relationship with Him and will obey His Spirit within you, then God will care for your “feathers” too.

“Consider the lilies of the field…” (Matthew 6:28). They grow where they are planted. Many of us refuse to grow where God plants us. Therefore, we don’t take root anywhere. Jesus said if we would obey the life of God within us, He would look after all other things. Did Jesus Christ lie to us? Are we experiencing the “much more” He promised? If we are not, it is because we are not obeying the life God has given us and have cluttered our minds with confusing thoughts and worries. How much time have we wasted asking God senseless questions while we should be absolutely free to concentrate on our service to Him? Consecration is the act of continually separating myself from everything except that which God has appointed me to do. It is not a one-time experience but an ongoing process. Am I continually separating myself and looking to God every day of my life?

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

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, January 26, 2022

Only a Reflection - #9143

You know, some of God's most impressive artwork is under the water or under the ground. I was reminded of God's extravagant beauty when our family toured some caverns. You know, there were a few touches from man there; walkways, lights. But all that did was help us see this rare beauty of soaring stalagmites and underground canyons and rock formations of every conceivable texture and shape.

For me the highlight was this little pond called Mirror Lake. It was only about six inches deep the guide said. That really fooled us because it looks like it's really deep. And as you look into the glass-like pond, you see a vast assortment of rock formations; big, small. And they appear to be under the water. Notice I said they appear to be. They're all, actually, on the ceiling of the cave above the lake. And that's hard to believe, because it sure looks like they're in the lake. Well, the beauty in that lake is really just a reflection of the beauty above it.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Only a Reflection."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Corinthians 3:18. By the way, it's about reflected beauty. "And we, who with unveiled faces, all reflect the Lord's glory; are being transformed into His likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit."

Now, this refers back, if you read the rest of this chapter, to the time when Moses came down from Mount Sinai after being in the personal presence of the Lord. And the Bible says, "His face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord." That's from Exodus 34. The glow was on Moses. It wasn't from Moses, but it sure was on him. He'd spent time with the Lord, and as a result he began to reflect the Lord's glory and he didn't even realize it.

Mirror Lake, in that little cavern, has little beauty of its own. It's just an underground puddle, really. But it reflects the beauty of what's above it, and that's what makes it come to life. That could be you if you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and if you're spending time with Him; time where you let Him, as this passage says, "transform you," making you more like Him.

It's possible for an ordinary human being like you or me to have an extraordinary impact on someone's life because you do a good job displaying Jesus to them. Here are some important reminders if you want to be one of God's mirrors. First of all, you've got to be with Jesus daily. And when you're with Him, you make the purpose of that time with Him to let Him change you. To say, "Lord, how can You make me a little more like You today?"

Secondly, be confident because of who you represent. You don't have to focus on your appearance, or your ability, your limitations, what kind of impression you're making if you focus on the incredible Savior you're trying to display. It's about Him. It's not about you.

Thirdly, be committed to leaving people focused on Jesus, not yourself. You want them thinking about you? Or do you want them thinking about your Jesus? You want them thinking about the puddle or the beauty that the puddle reflects?

And then, finally, be tough on any self-glorifying thoughts. If you find yourself saying, "Aren't I something" after something good happens, you're on the way down. You need to say, "Lord, aren't You something!" You're nothing, see. Neither am I. But He makes you and He makes me something as we reflect Him.

There's an old hymn that says, "May His beauty rest upon me as I seek the lost to win. And may they forget the channel, seeing only Him." So, Mirror Lake person, don't be too impressed with yourself. Don't promote yourself. Don't be too impressed with other people, or you'll be intimidated right out of showing them Jesus.

Just be impressed with the glory of Jesus above you and that He wants to show it to everyone else through you.

Numbers 23 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Who Do You Believe Jesus Is? - January 25, 2022

Jesus asked, “But who do you say that I am?” (Luke 9:20). Flip back the flaps of your soul, and you’ll see a series of beliefs that serve like poles to stabilize the tent of your life and faith. Your belief system is your answer to fundamental questions about life. Is anyone in control of the universe? Does life have a purpose? Is this life all there is?

Your belief system has nothing to do with your skin color, your appearance, your talents, or your age. It is the set of convictions—all of them unseen—upon which your life depends. If your belief system is strong, you will stand. If it is weak, the storm will prevail.

Belief always precedes behavior. To change the way a person responds to life, change what a person believes about life. So…who do you believe Jesus is?

Numbers 23

Balaam said, “Build me seven altars here, and then prepare seven bulls and seven rams.”

2 Balak did it. Then Balaam and Balak sacrificed a bull and a ram on each of the altars.

3 Balaam instructed Balak: “Stand watch here beside your Whole-Burnt-Offering while I go off by myself. Maybe God will come and meet with me. Whatever he shows or tells me, I’ll report to you.” Then he went off by himself.

4 God did meet with Balaam. Balaam said, “I’ve set up seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.”

5 Then God gave Balaam a message: “Return to Balak and give him this message.”

6-10 He went back and found him stationed beside his Whole-Burnt-Offering and with him all the nobles of Moab. Then Balaam spoke his message-oracle:

Balak led me here from Aram,
    the king of Moab all the way from the eastern mountains.
“Go, curse Jacob for me;
    go, damn Israel.”
How can I curse whom God has not cursed?
    How can I damn whom God has not damned?
From rock pinnacles I see them,
    from hilltops I survey them:
Look! a people camping off by themselves,
    thinking themselves outsiders among nations.
But who could ever count the dust of Jacob
    or take a census of cloud-of-dust Israel?
I want to die like these right-living people!
    I want an end just like theirs!

11 Balak said to Balaam, “What’s this? I brought you here to curse my enemies, and all you’ve done is bless them.”

12 Balaam answered, “Don’t I have to be careful to say what God gives me to say?”

* * *

13 Balak said to him, “Go with me to another place from which you can only see the outskirts of their camp—you won’t be able to see the whole camp. From there, curse them for my sake.”

14 So he took him to Watchmen’s Meadow at the top of Pisgah. He built seven altars there and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.

15 Balaam said to Balak, “Take up your station here beside your Whole-Burnt-Offering while I meet with him over there.”

16 God met with Balaam and gave him a message. He said, “Return to Balak and give him the message.”

17-24 Balaam returned and found him stationed beside his Whole-Burnt-Offering and the nobles of Moab with him. Balak said to him, “What did God say?” Then Balaam spoke his message-oracle:

On your feet, Balak. Listen,
    listen carefully son of Zippor:
God is not man, one given to lies,
    and not a son of man changing his mind.
Does he speak and not do what he says?
    Does he promise and not come through?
I was brought here to bless;
    and now he’s blessed—how can I change that?
He has no bone to pick with Jacob,
    he sees nothing wrong with Israel.
God is with them,
    and they’re with him, shouting praises to their King.
God brought them out of Egypt,
    rampaging like a wild ox.
No magic spells can bind Jacob,
    no incantations can hold back Israel.
People will look at Jacob and Israel and say,
    “What a great thing has God done!”
Look, a people rising to its feet, stretching like a lion,
    a king-of-the-beasts, aroused,
Unsleeping, unresting until its hunt is over
    and it’s eaten and drunk its fill.

25 Balak said to Balaam, “Well, if you can’t curse them, at least don’t bless them.”

26 Balaam replied to Balak, “Didn’t I tell you earlier: ‘All God speaks, and only what he speaks, I speak’?”

* * *

27-28 Balak said to Balaam, “Please, let me take you to another place; maybe we can find the right place in God’s eyes where you’ll be able to curse them for me.” So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, with a vista over the Jeshimon (Wasteland).

29 Balaam said to Balak, “Build seven altars for me here and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for sacrifice.”

30 Balak did it and presented an offering of a bull and a ram on each of the altars.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   
Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Today's Scripture
1 John 4:10–21
(NIV)

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved usn and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.o 11 Dear friends,p since God so loved us,q we also ought to love one another.r 12 No one has ever seen God;s but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.t

13 This is how we knowu that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit.v 14 And we have seen and testifyw that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.x 15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God,y God lives in them and they in God.z 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love.a Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.b 17 This is how love is made completec among us so that we will have confidenced on the day of judgment:e In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear,f because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

19 We love because he first loved us.g 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sisterh is a liar.i For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen,j cannot love God, whom they have not seen.k 21 And he has given us this command:l Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.

Insight

Scholars believe 1 John was written by the apostle John, the author of the fourth gospel. Some ten years after writing his gospel, John wrote this letter to teach believers how to “live as Jesus did” (1 John 2:6)—putting love into action. Reminiscent of the language of John 3:16–17, John reminds us that God “sent his one and only Son into the world . . . as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:9–10). “Atoning sacrifice” describes what Jesus did on the cross in “removing guilt and purifying sinners (expiation), and appeasing God’s anger toward sinners (propitiation)” (NIV Zondervan Study Bible). By: K. T. Sim

Loving God

We know and rely on the love God has for us.
1 John 4:16

The professor ended his online class in one of two ways each time. He’d say, “See you next time” or “Have a good weekend.” Some students would respond with “Thank you. You too!” But one day a student responded, “I love you.” Surprised, he replied, “I love you too!” That evening the classmates agreed to create an “I love you chain” for the next class time in appreciation for their professor who had to teach to a screen on his computer, not in-person teaching as he preferred. A few days later when he finished teaching, the professor said, “See you next time,” and one by one the students replied, “I love you.” They continued this practice for months. The teacher said this created a strong bond with his students, and he now feels they’re “family.”

In 1 John 4:10–21, we, as part of God’s family, find several reasons to say “I love you” to Him: He sent His Son as a sacrifice for our sin (v. 10). He gave us His Spirit to live in us (vv. 13, 15). His love is always reliable (v. 16), and we never need to fear judgment (v. 17). He enables us to love Him and others “because he first loved us” (v. 19).

The next time you gather with God’s people, take time to share your reasons for loving Him. Making an “I love you” chain for God will bring Him praise and bring you closer together.

Reflect & Pray

Why do you love God? How can you show others His love?

I’m grateful to know Your love and to be a part of Your family, Father. Show me ways to creatively express that love.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, January 25, 2022
Leave Room for God

When it pleased God… —Galatians 1:15

As servants of God, we must learn to make room for Him— to give God “elbow room.” We plan and figure and predict that this or that will happen, but we forget to make room for God to come in as He chooses. Would we be surprised if God came into our meeting or into our preaching in a way we had never expected Him to come? Do not look for God to come in a particular way, but do look for Him. The way to make room for Him is to expect Him to come, but not in a certain way. No matter how well we may know God, the great lesson to learn is that He may break in at any minute. We tend to overlook this element of surprise, yet God never works in any other way. Suddenly—God meets our life “…when it pleased God….”

Keep your life so constantly in touch with God that His surprising power can break through at any point. Live in a constant state of expectancy, and leave room for God to come in as He decides.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

There is no allowance whatever in the New Testament for the man who says he is saved by grace but who does not produce the graceful goods. Jesus Christ by His Redemption can make our actual life in keeping with our religious profession.

Bible in a Year: Exodus 12-13; Matthew 16

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Hitting Pause - #9142

I could tell that our first grandson was going to be a busy little guy when he was just a little guy. He wasn't even in school yet, and he was already immersed in a project of some kind. And when I mean he got immersed, he got immersed. One day he was involved first in a detailed coloring project where he was intently working to have it just right, you know. And then there was a large puzzle he was focused on completing. And what he hadn't taken time for recently, well, was what a lot of little boys don't take time for...a bathroom stop. Too busy you know. Knowing this boy understood video functions very well, his Dad just said, "Time for a bathroom break. Don't you think it's time to hit 'pause'?" Without looking up from his current project, our grandson said in all sincerity, "I don't have a 'pause.'"

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Hitting Pause."

Some of us have a father, actually a Heavenly Father, who's saying to us, "It's time to hit 'pause.'" But we're moving really fast. We're focused on the demands and the projects in front of us and we're saying, "I don't have a 'pause.'" That's a bad idea.

In Psalm 46:10, our word for today from the Word of God, He says, "Be still, and know that I am God." Hit pause and remember who's really in charge here, whose battle this really is, and whose plans you're supposed to be pursuing. God may be trying to get you to slow down or stop right now so He can show you some things that you're never going to see if you're on the run.

It could be you've been running ahead of the Lord's timing, or you've been pursuing what you want instead of what He wants. Isaiah quotes the Lord as saying, "Woe to the obstinate children...to those who carry out plans that are not Mine..." (Isaiah 30:1). Those are pretty sobering words. Often we can't see that we're trying desperately to make something work that wasn't God's idea in the first place. He has to pull us over to the side of the road for us to realize we're on the wrong road.

Or maybe you've been neglecting the regular timeout that God calls a "Sabbath"; you're all accelerator and no brakes, you're violating God's created order of taking regular rest. It's possible that God's been trying to say some very important things to you, things that would bring sense to your swirling world, but you can't hear Him because you're running so fast. Whatever the reason for your non-stop pace, I know there has to be someone listening right now to whom God is saying, "It's time to hit 'pause.'" Don't ignore His call to "be still and know that He is God."

If we don't choose to slow down, He will as the 23rd Psalm says, "make us lie down in green pastures." He has a lot of creative ways to get you to slow down if you don't choose to slow down - health, finances, crises, family problems. He asks us to pause, or ultimately makes us pause, not to punish us, but to refit us.

He's wanting to slow you down for work that needs to be done, for refueling that you desperately need, for retooling, for redirecting you back into the center of His will. And He's actually wired us to do what His Son did at the beginning of His unbelievably busy days here on earth - to spend quiet time with Him. To hit 'pause' each new day so we can hear our Master's voice before we hear any other, so we can appropriate our Master's resources, see things through His eyes, experience our Master's healing touch, and receive our Master's orders for that day.

When you don't hit "pause," you'll end up running right past the God that you can't do without.

Mark 15:26-47, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: It Is Better - January 24, 2022

“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you” (Luke 6:38).

It is better to forgive than to hold a grudge, better to build up than to tear down, better to seek to understand than to disregard, better to love than to hate.

God’s solution for the ills of society is a quorum of unselfish, life-giving, God-loving folks who flow through the neighborhoods and businesses like cleansing agents, bringing in the good and flushing out the bad. They hail from all corners of the globe, reflect all hues of skin. Liberal, conservative, rural, metropolitan, young, old. Yet they are bound together by this amazing discovery: happiness is found by giving it away.

Mark 15:26-47

 They nailed him up at nine o’clock in the morning. The charge against him—the king of the jews—was scrawled across a sign. Along with him, they crucified two criminals, one to his right, the other to his left. People passing along the road jeered, shaking their heads in mock lament: “You bragged that you could tear down the Temple and then rebuild it in three days—so show us your stuff! Save yourself! If you’re really God’s Son, come down from that cross!”

31-32 The high priests, along with the religion scholars, were right there mixing it up with the rest of them, having a great time poking fun at him: “He saved others—but he can’t save himself! Messiah, is he? King of Israel? Then let him climb down from that cross. We’ll all become believers then!” Even the men crucified alongside him joined in the mockery.

33-34 At noon the sky became extremely dark. The darkness lasted three hours. At three o’clock, Jesus groaned out of the depths, crying loudly, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

35-36 Some of the bystanders who heard him said, “Listen, he’s calling for Elijah.” Someone ran off, soaked a sponge in sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down.”

37-39 But Jesus, with a loud cry, gave his last breath. At that moment the Temple curtain ripped right down the middle. When the Roman captain standing guard in front of him saw that he had quit breathing, he said, “This has to be the Son of God!”
Taken to a Tomb

40-41 There were women watching from a distance, among them Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of the younger James and Joses, and Salome. When Jesus was in Galilee, these women followed and served him, and had come up with him to Jerusalem.

42-45 Late in the afternoon, since it was the Day of Preparation (that is, Sabbath eve), Joseph of Arimathea, a highly respected member of the Jewish Council, came. He was one who lived expectantly, on the lookout for the kingdom of God. Working up his courage, he went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate questioned whether he could be dead that soon and called for the captain to verify that he was really dead. Assured by the captain, he gave Joseph the corpse.

46-47 Having already purchased a linen shroud, Joseph took him down, wrapped him in the shroud, placed him in a tomb that had been cut into the rock, and rolled a large stone across the opening. Mary Magdalene and Mary, mother of Joses, watched the burial.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   
Monday, January 24, 2022

Today's Scripture
Jeremiah 18:1–6
(NIV)

At the Potter’s House

18 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” 3 So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. 4 But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.

5 Then the word of the Lord came to me. 6 He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Like claym in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand,n Israel.

Insight

Jeremiah used the analogy of the potter and clay to illustrate God’s freedom to judge and restore His people. Even if God promised that a nation would be “built up and planted” (Jeremiah 18:9), that didn’t mean a nation should become complacent and arrogant, for God is free to respond to unrepentant sin with judgment (v. 10). At the same time, God’s judgment of Israel didn’t suggest their permanent destruction; for if Israel repented, God, like a potter reshaping clay, would freely reshape and rebuild Israel (v. 8).

The metaphor of the potter and clay also emphasizes God’s good purposes for His creation. A potter responds to defects in the clay (lack of moisture, a lump, or other issues) by further working the clay into a usable form. Likewise, God doesn’t throw away His creation but continues to work toward His good purposes. By: Monica La Rose

The Potter’s Wheel

The pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.
Jeremiah 18:4

In 1952, in an effort to prevent clumsy or careless people from breaking items in a shop, a Miami Beach storeowner posted a sign that read: “You break it, you buy it.” The catchy phrase served as a warning to shoppers. This type of sign can now be seen in many boutiques.

Ironically, a different sign might be placed in a real potter’s shop. It would say: “If you break it, we’ll make it into something better.” And that’s exactly what’s revealed in Jeremiah 18.

Jeremiah visits a potter’s house and sees the potter shaping the “marred” clay with his hands, carefully handling the material and forming “it into another pot” (v. 4). The prophet reminds us that God is indeed a skillful potter, and we are the clay. He is sovereign and can use what He creates to both destroy evil and create beauty in us.

God can shape us even when we’re marred or broken. He, the masterful potter, can and is willing to create new and precious pottery from our shattered pieces. God doesn’t look at our broken lives, mistakes, and past sins as unusable material. Instead, He picks up our pieces and reshapes them as He sees best.

Even in our brokenness, we have immense value to our Master Potter. In His hands, the broken pieces of our lives can be reshaped into beautiful vessels that can be used by Him (v. 4).

By:  Katara Patton

Reflect & Pray

What comfort can you find in knowing God is a potter who can form something new from your broken pieces? How can you relax as the Potter reshapes you into a beautiful vessel?

God, You’re the Potter and I’m the clay. Mold me as You wish. Remind me that I’m in Your skillful and caring hands.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, January 24, 2022
God’s Overpowering Purpose

I have appeared to you for this purpose… —Acts 26:16

The vision Paul had on the road to Damascus was not a passing emotional experience, but a vision that had very clear and emphatic directions for him. And Paul stated, “I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision” (Acts 26:19). Our Lord said to Paul, in effect, “Your whole life is to be overpowered or subdued by Me; you are to have no end, no aim, and no purpose but Mine.” And the Lord also says to us, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go…” (John 15:16).

When we are born again, if we are spiritual at all, we have visions of what Jesus wants us to be. It is important that I learn not to be “disobedient to the heavenly vision” — not to doubt that it can be attained. It is not enough to give mental assent to the fact that God has redeemed the world, nor even to know that the Holy Spirit can make all that Jesus did a reality in my life. I must have the foundation of a personal relationship with Him. Paul was not given a message or a doctrine to proclaim. He was brought into a vivid, personal, overpowering relationship with Jesus Christ. Acts 26:16 is tremendously compelling “…to make you a minister and a witness….” There would be nothing there without a personal relationship. Paul was devoted to a Person, not to a cause. He was absolutely Jesus Christ’s. He saw nothing else and he lived for nothing else. “For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2).

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.

Bible in a Year: Exodus 9-11; Matthew 15:21-39

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, January 24, 2022
Which Way in the Wildfire? - #9141

It seems like every spring, every summer we hear about those raging wildfires! It's like on the news every day sometimes. When I hear about it, my ears perk up. I mean, we've had friends who lost their home in one of those wildfires. We know Native American friends who are sometimes on the front lines fighting those fires. I hate it when we hear about a firefighter who has been lost.

Now, when there were some major fires raging in Washington State a few years ago, my mind flashed back to another Washington fire that they called the Thirty-Mile Fire. It was one of those that just exploded suddenly. It forced the firefighters to stop fighting the fire and start fighting for their lives. Most of them deployed those survival tents that can save lives in a sudden emergency like this.

But then there were the four rookie firefighters. Partly because of what were later proven to be supervisory errors, they ended up on a road that they felt would lead them to safety. It was a dead-end road. And four young firefighters, each one outstanding in their own way, lost their lives that day.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Which Way in the Wildfire?"

I can't recall that tragedy without it bringing to mind an even greater tragedy that costs so many lives...forever. The Bible starkly describes people who think they're on a road that leads to life - eternal life - and then to find out too late that it's a dead-end road.

Our word for today from the Word of God puts it this way in Proverbs 16:25: "There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death." That's a disturbing verse. There are a lot of things you can be wrong about without paying a horrific price, but eternity is not one of them.

And Jesus said a lot of people are wrong about where they're headed after they die. He said, "Wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it" (Matthew 7:13, 14).

It's popular today to believe that the road of heaven is so wide that any number of beliefs - believed sincerely enough - will get you there. But sincerity doesn't mean you'll escape the fire, or the fact that it looks like or feels like the right road. Not if it's a dead-end.

Jesus came because, in a sense, every religion is a dead-end road, because it can't erase your sin. And "nothing impure will ever enter" heaven, the Bible says (Revelation 21:27). Truth is, we're all "impure." We've all, in the Bible's words, "left God's path to follow our own" (Isaiah 53:6 - NLT). And our sin (again from the Bible) "has separated you from your God" (Isaiah 59:1). God says our hijacking of our own life carries an eternal death penalty that can only be paid one way. Somebody's got to die for my sin to get paid for and forgiven. Clearly, I'm the one who deserves to pay that penalty.

But in the greatest act of love in human history, God's Son - here's the Bible again - "personally carried our sins in His own body on the cross" (1 Peter 2:24). So I did the sinning, but Jesus did the dying. I still can't get over that.

Only the One who died for our sins can forgive our sins and erase what will keep us out of heaven. It's not about the superiority of the Christian religion. It's not about a religion at all; no religion can die for you. It's about a Rescuer, the only One who can save us from the fire of sin's judgment, because He took that fire for us. To trust in anything else is to learn too late that you've made the greatest mistake a human can make. You chose a dead-end road.

More than anything, Jesus wants you in heaven with Him one day. That's why He paid that price on the cross. And if you've never put your total trust in Him to rescue you from your sin and you're ready to, well tell Him right now, "Jesus, I'm Yours. You're my only hope, because You died for me."

Check out our website. You'll see there how you can be sure you belong to Him - ANewStory.com. Look, is there any better day to get this settled than today?