Luke 3 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Speak Words of Truth - February 22, 2022

Admonishment is high-octane encouragement. The word literally means “putting in mind.” To admonish is to deposit truth into a person’s thoughts. It might take the form of discipline, encouragement, or affirmation. It may be commendation or correction. Above all, admonishment is truth spoken into a difficult circumstance. It inserts the chlorine tablet of veracity into the algae of difficulty.

Admonishment speaks up. Yes, we hold the hand of the struggler. Yes, we bring water to the thirsty. And yes, yes, yes, we speak words of truth into moments of despair. Dare we sit idly by while Satan spreads his lies? By no means! Ephesians 6, verse 11: “Put on the full armor of God.”

Luke 3

A Baptism of Life-Change

 In the fifteenth year of the rule of Caesar Tiberius—it was while Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea; Herod, ruler of Galilee; his brother Philip, ruler of Iturea and Trachonitis; Lysanias, ruler of Abilene; during the Chief-Priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas—John, Zachariah’s son, out in the desert at the time, received a message from God. He went all through the country around the Jordan River preaching a baptism of life-change leading to forgiveness of sins, as described in the words of Isaiah the prophet:

Thunder in the desert!
“Prepare God’s arrival!
Make the road smooth and straight!
Every ditch will be filled in,
Every bump smoothed out,
The detours straightened out,
All the ruts paved over.
Everyone will be there to see
The parade of God’s salvation.”

7-9 When crowds of people came out for baptism because it was the popular thing to do, John exploded: “Brood of snakes! What do you think you’re doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to deflect God’s judgment? It’s your life that must change, not your skin. And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as ‘father.’ Being a child of Abraham is neither here nor there—children of Abraham are a dime a dozen. God can make children from stones if he wants. What counts is your life. Is it green and flourishing? Because if it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire.”

10 The crowd asked him, “Then what are we supposed to do?”

11 “If you have two coats, give one away,” he said. “Do the same with your food.”

12 Tax men also came to be baptized and said, “Teacher, what should we do?”

13 He told them, “No more extortion—collect only what is required by law.”

14 Soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?”

He told them, “No harassment, no blackmail—and be content with your rations.”

15 The interest of the people by now was building. They were all beginning to wonder, “Could this John be the Messiah?”

16-17 But John intervened: “I’m baptizing you here in the river. The main character in this drama, to whom I’m a mere stagehand, will ignite the kingdom life, a fire, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out. He’s going to clean house—make a clean sweep of your lives. He’ll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false he’ll put out with the trash to be burned.”

18-20 There was a lot more of this—words that gave strength to the people, words that put heart in them. The Message! But Herod, the ruler, stung by John’s rebuke in the matter of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, capped his long string of evil deeds with this outrage: He put John in jail.

21-22 After all the people were baptized, Jesus was baptized. As he was praying, the sky opened up and the Holy Spirit, like a dove descending, came down on him. And along with the Spirit, a voice: “You are my Son, chosen and marked by my love, pride of my life.”
Son of Adam, Son of God

23-38 When Jesus entered public life he was about thirty years old, the son (in public perception) of Joseph, who was—

son of Heli,

son of Matthat,

son of Levi,

son of Melki,

son of Jannai,

son of Joseph,

son of Mattathias,

son of Amos,

son of Nahum,

son of Esli,

son of Naggai,

son of Maath,

son of Mattathias,

son of Semein,

son of Josech,

son of Joda,

son of Joanan,

son of Rhesa,

son of Zerubbabel,

son of Shealtiel,

son of Neri,

son of Melchi,

son of Addi,

son of Cosam,

son of Elmadam,

son of Er,

son of Joshua,

son of Eliezer,

son of Jorim,

son of Matthat,

son of Levi,

son of Simeon,

son of Judah,

son of Joseph,

son of Jonam,

son of Eliakim,

son of Melea,

son of Menna,

son of Mattatha,

son of Nathan,

son of David,

son of Jesse,

son of Obed,

son of Boaz,

son of Salmon,

son of Nahshon,

son of Amminadab,

son of Admin,

son of Arni,

son of Hezron,

son of Perez,

son of Judah,

son of Jacob,

son of Isaac,

son of Abraham,

son of Terah,

son of Nahor,

son of Serug,

son of Reu,

son of Peleg,

son of Eber,

son of Shelah,

son of Kenan,

son of Arphaxad,

son of Shem,

son of Noah,

son of Lamech,

son of Methuselah,

son of Enoch,

son of Jared,

son of Mahalaleel,

son of Kenan,

son of Enos,

son of Seth,

son of Adam,

son of God.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   
Tuesday, February 22, 2022

Today's Scripture
Colossians 4:7–10
(NIV)

    My good friend Tychicus will tell you all about me. He’s a trusted minister and companion in the service of the Master. I’ve sent him to you so that you would know how things are with us, and so he could encourage you in your faith. And I’ve sent Onesimus with him. Onesimus is one of you, and has become such a trusted and dear brother! Together they’ll bring you up-to-date on everything that has been going on here.

10–11     Aristarchus, who is in jail here with me, sends greetings; also Mark, cousin of Barnabas (you received a letter regarding him; if he shows up, welcome him);

Insight

Acts 15:36–41 portrays Paul as a hard-nosed project leader lacking empathy or kindness and intolerant of failure. But this isn’t the complete picture of who Paul was. Scripture also presents him with a pastoral heart. He showed his appreciation for people who worked with him, singling out individuals for special mention in his letters. Eighty to ninety people are variously designated as his “fellow workers” or “co-workers” (Romans 16:3, 9, 21; Colossians 4:11; 1 Thessalonians 3:2; Philemon 1:1, 24). Some are his fellow missionaries, and some are his interns and subordinates, ministry partners, traveling companions, fellow prisoners, and supporters. Colossians 4:7–18 gives us a window into Paul’s pastoral heart when he names ten of his co-workers from the church in Colossae for special mention. The apostle wasn’t just a great visionary leader; he was also a great mentor and a loving pastor and friend with a great capacity for caring for others and their ministry. By: K. T. Sim

Love Your Loved Ones

If he comes to you, welcome him.
Colossians 4:10

Amos was an overbearing extrovert, and Danny was a loner wracked with self-doubt. Somehow these eccentric geniuses became best friends. They spent a decade laughing and learning together. One day their work would receive a Nobel Prize. But Danny tired of Amos’ self-centered ways and told him they were no longer friends.

Three days later, Amos called with terrible news. Doctors had found cancer and given him six months to live. Danny’s heart broke. “We’re friends,” he said, “whatever you think we are.”

Paul was a hard-nosed visionary and Barnabas a soft-hearted encourager. The Spirit put them together and sent them on a missionary journey (Acts 13:2–3). They preached and started churches, until their disagreement over Mark’s desertion. Barnabas wanted to give Mark a second chance. Paul said he could no longer be trusted. So they split up (15:36–41).

Paul eventually forgave Mark. He closed three letters with greetings from or commendations for him (Colossians 4:10; 2 Timothy 4:11; Philemon 1:24). We don’t know what happened with Barnabas. Did he live long enough to be reconciled with Paul in this life? I hope so.

Whatever your situation today, try to reach out to those with whom you may have had a falling out. Now is the time to show and tell them how much you love them.

Reflect & Pray

With whom do you need to reconcile? What can you do with your pain if that person is no longer living?

Father, help me to see that one primary purpose of life is to show love to those around me.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, February 22, 2022
The Discipline of Spiritual Perseverance

Be still, and know that I am God… —Psalm 46:10

Perseverance is more than endurance. It is endurance combined with absolute assurance and certainty that what we are looking for is going to happen. Perseverance means more than just hanging on, which may be only exposing our fear of letting go and falling. Perseverance is our supreme effort of refusing to believe that our hero is going to be conquered. Our greatest fear is not that we will be damned, but that somehow Jesus Christ will be defeated. Also, our fear is that the very things our Lord stood for— love, justice, forgiveness, and kindness among men— will not win out in the end and will represent an unattainable goal for us. Then there is the call to spiritual perseverance. A call not to hang on and do nothing, but to work deliberately, knowing with certainty that God will never be defeated.

If our hopes seem to be experiencing disappointment right now, it simply means that they are being purified. Every hope or dream of the human mind will be fulfilled if it is noble and of God. But one of the greatest stresses in life is the stress of waiting for God. He brings fulfillment, “because you have kept My command to persevere…” (Revelation 3:10).

Continue to persevere spiritually.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One Who is leading.  My Utmost for His Highest, March 19, 761 L

Bible in a Year: Numbers 4-6; Mark 4:1-20

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, February 22, 2022

The Bread for Tomorrow - #9162

They took good care of the little girl in the orphanage. But apparently there was never quite enough food, and the children were hungry most of the time. It's a country where there are a lot of orphans to take care of and not a lot of money to take care of them with. We heard recently about the couple who adopted this little four-year-old girl. That's who I was just talking about. We heard their story of how, in their first weeks of having that girl as a part of their family, she has, in their words, "been eating everything in sight." Eating, in fact, until she makes herself sick. It's pretty heartbreaking to think of how fearful she must be of never having enough to eat. Well, mom and dad had an idea. They make sure that she has a slice of bread she can hold onto whenever she wants to. And, you know what? That's helped a lot.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Bread for Tomorrow."

A child, who because of her past experiences, fears that she won't have what she needs ... and now she's finding a new security. What she's going to need in the future is already in her hands. That's a picture of you if you are a child of God by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. What you're going to need tomorrow is as good as already in your hands. Your Heavenly Father promised many places in the Bible, including our word for today from the Word of God that that would be the case.

Here are the familiar, and comforting, words of Psalm 23:1, maybe just the promise you need right now. "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." Your Lord is the Shepherd who makes sure that His sheep always have what they need, when they need it. Since He knows all of your needs, I think it's safe for you to say, "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want for what I need physically, financially, maritally, emotionally, parentally, spiritually."

Many times there was something I thought I should have that He didn't give me, because, as I now know, it would have not been for my good. I was wrong about what I needed; He never is. Other times, I thought I needed something now, when God's timing was different and ultimately better. And still other times, He will supply a need before you've even realized how much you're going to need it. So God's care and provision is always based on what He knows, in His all knowingness, will be best for me to have and what will be the best time for me to have it.

But His promise is that the bread is in your hand, the guarantee that you will need for tomorrow is, in essence, already yours because He's already got it for you. He's promised, for example, that "your strength will equal your days" (Deuteronomy 33:25). He says again in His Word that "His grace will always be sufficient for your situation" (2 Corinthians 12:9). He's promised that you can go anytime to His throne room and "find grace to help in your time of need" (Hebrews 4:16). He's promised that "God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19). There is no greater security than that. You have His Word on it. The Bible is full of promises like that.

Maybe you've been let down by others in the past. I get that. And maybe you're often anxious about whether you'll have what you need and if you'll have it when you need it. You have God as your Heavenly Father, with you as His child, purchased with the life of His Son, that's unnecessary worry. Remember the hymn that says, "Oh what needless pain we bear. Oh what peace we often forfeit all because we do not carry everything to Him in prayer."

In a sense, it's an insult to the God you belong to to worry about whether you're going to have what you need. You are living with the greatest security in the world. You are literally living from hand to mouth. From His hand to your mouth, and what you need for tomorrow is as good as already in your hand.