Luke 17:1-19 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: My Ananias - June 6, 2022

“Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 9:17 NKJV). Don’t give up on your Saul. God never sends you where he hasn’t already been.

My favorite Ananias-type story involves a couple of college roommates. The Ananias of the pair was a tolerant soul. He tolerated his friend’s late-night drunkenness, midnight throw-ups, and all-day sleep-ins. He hung with his personal Saul, seeming to think that something good could happen if the guy could pull his life together.

I distinctly remember Jesus knocking me off my perch and flipping on the light. It took four semesters, but Steve’s example and Jesus’ message finally got through. So if this story lifts your spirit, you might thank God for my Ananias, my dear friend Steve Green.

Luke 17:1-19

He said to his disciples, “Hard trials and temptations are bound to come, but too bad for whoever brings them on! Better to wear a concrete vest and take a swim with the fishes than give even one of these dear little ones a hard time!

3-4 “Be alert. If you see your friend going wrong, correct him. If he responds, forgive him. Even if it’s personal against you and repeated seven times through the day, and seven times he says, ‘I’m sorry, I won’t do it again,’ forgive him.”

5 The apostles came up and said to the Master, “Give us more faith.”

6 But the Master said, “You don’t need more faith. There is no ‘more’ or ‘less’ in faith. If you have a bare kernel of faith, say the size of a poppy seed, you could say to this sycamore tree, ‘Go jump in the lake,’ and it would do it.

7-10 “Suppose one of you has a servant who comes in from plowing the field or tending the sheep. Would you take his coat, set the table, and say, ‘Sit down and eat’? Wouldn’t you be more likely to say, ‘Prepare dinner; change your clothes and wait table for me until I’ve finished my coffee; then go to the kitchen and have your supper’? Does the servant get special thanks for doing what’s expected of him? It’s the same with you. When you’ve done everything expected of you, be matter-of-fact and say, ‘The work is done. What we were told to do, we did.’”

11-13 It happened that as he made his way toward Jerusalem, he crossed over the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten men, all lepers, met him. They kept their distance but raised their voices, calling out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

14-16 Taking a good look at them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.”

They went, and while still on their way, became clean. One of them, when he realized that he was healed, turned around and came back, shouting his gratitude, glorifying God. He kneeled at Jesus’ feet, so grateful. He couldn’t thank him enough—and he was a Samaritan.

17-19 Jesus said, “Were not ten healed? Where are the nine? Can none be found to come back and give glory to God except this outsider?” Then he said to him, “Get up. On your way. Your faith has healed and saved you.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Monday, June 06, 2022

Today's Scripture
Proverbs 27:1–9
You Don’t Know Tomorrow

1     27 Don’t brashly announce what you’re going to do tomorrow;

you don’t know the first thing about tomorrow.

2     Don’t call attention to yourself;

let others do that for you.

3     Carrying a log across your shoulders

while you’re hefting a boulder with your arms

Is nothing compared to the burden

of putting up with a fool.

4     We’re blasted by anger and swamped by rage,

but who can survive jealousy?

5     A spoken reprimand is better

than approval that’s never expressed.

6     The wounds from a lover are worth it;

kisses from an enemy do you in.

7     When you’ve stuffed yourself, you refuse dessert;

when you’re starved, you could eat a horse.

8     People who won’t settle down, wandering hither and yon,

are like restless birds, flitting to and fro.


9     Just as lotions and fragrance give sensual delight,

a sweet friendship refreshes the soul.

Insight

The book of Proverbs provides general insights into facing life’s challenges and is built on the important principle that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10). Why is this so critical? As the Creator, our God is best equipped to counsel us on how to live well within His world. So to begin the pursuit of wisdom, we must begin with a right attitude toward Him—a healthy respect or reverence. As pastor and teacher Warren Wiersbe wrote, “The better you know God, the keener will be your knowledge and discernment when it comes to the decisions of life.” Wisdom is the proper use of knowledge, and there’s no better source for knowledge than the One who is, in fact, the Source of all good things. By: Bill Crowder

The Kindness of Candor

The pleasantness of a friend springs from their heartfelt advice.
Proverbs 27:9

“My dear friend, sometimes you sound holier than you really are.”

Those words were leveled with a direct gaze and gentle smile. Had they come from someone other than a close friend and mentor whose discernment I highly valued, my feelings might have been hurt. Instead, I winced and laughed at the same time, knowing that while his words “hit a nerve,” he was also right. Sometimes when I talked about my faith, I used jargon that didn’t sound natural, which gave the impression that I wasn’t being sincere. My friend loved me and was trying to help me be more effective in sharing with others what I genuinely believed. Looking back, I see it as some of the best advice I ever received.

“Wounds from a friend can be trusted,” Solomon wisely wrote, “but an enemy multiplies kisses” (Proverbs 27:6). My friend’s insights demonstrated the truth of that counsel. I was grateful he cared enough to tell me something I needed to hear, even though he knew it might not be easy to accept. Sometimes when someone tells you only what they think you want to hear, it isn’t helpful, because it can keep you from growing and developing in vital ways.   

Candor can be kindness when measured out with genuine, humble love. May God give us the wisdom to receive it and impart it well, and so reflect His caring heart. By:  James Banks

Reflect & Pray

Why is it difficult for us to sometimes receive good but hard advice? How has someone been candid with you in a helpful and loving way?

Abba, Father, thank You for speaking truth to me through Scripture. Please help me to receive and give advice well by relying on You to lead me.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, June 06, 2022

“Work Out” What God “Works in” You

…work out your own salvation…for it is God who works in you… —Philippians 2:12-13

Your will agrees with God, but in your flesh there is a nature that renders you powerless to do what you know you ought to do. When the Lord initially comes in contact with our conscience, the first thing our conscience does is awaken our will, and our will always agrees with God. Yet you say, “But I don’t know if my will is in agreement with God.” Look to Jesus and you will find that your will and your conscience are in agreement with Him every time. What causes you to say “I will not obey” is something less deep and penetrating than your will. It is perversity or stubbornness, and they are never in agreement with God. The most profound thing in a person is his will, not sin.

The will is the essential element in God’s creation of human beings— sin is a perverse nature which entered into people. In someone who has been born again, the source of the will is Almighty God. “…for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” With focused attention and great care, you have to “work out” what God “works in” you— not work to accomplish or earn “your own salvation,” but work it out so you will exhibit the evidence of a life based with determined, unshakable faith on the complete and perfect redemption of the Lord. As you do this, you do not bring an opposing will up against God’s will— God’s will is your will. Your natural choices will be in accordance with God’s will, and living this life will be as natural as breathing. Stubbornness is an unintelligent barrier, refusing enlightenment and blocking its flow. The only thing to do with this barrier of stubbornness is to blow it up with “dynamite,” and the “dynamite” is obedience to the Holy Spirit.

Do I believe that Almighty God is the Source of my will? God not only expects me to do His will, but He is in me to do it.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

Much of the misery in our Christian life comes not because the devil tackles us, but because we have never understood the simple laws of our make-up. We have to treat the body as the servant of Jesus Christ: when the body says “Sit,” and He says “Go,” go! When the body says “Eat,” and He says “Fast,” fast! When the body says “Yawn,” and He says “Pray,” pray! Biblical Ethics, 107 R

Bible in a Year: 2 Chronicles 25-27; John 16

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, June 06, 2022

The Trouble With Passing the Buck - #9236

Few times in human history has so much rested on the shoulders of one man. That man was General Dwight Eisenhower, commander of the Allied forces in World War II. The responsibility: planning and leading the massive secret attack against Hitler's hold on Europe; the attack that would come to be known as the D-Day Invasion. It can be said that the fate of the world rested on the outcome of that invasion, launched on five beaches on the northern coast of France. And the ultimate decisions about that invasion rested with Dwight Eisenhower. He had said that they only had a plan for victory, and that's what they expected. But after he gave the final "go" order and committing so many lives to that battle, he must have had some secret doubts about the outcome. In the back of a military vehicle, General Eisenhower drafted a letter that was only revealed years later. In it, he said something like this: "The invasion has failed, and I take full responsibility for that failure. No blame goes to President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Churchill, or any other commanders. I am fully responsible." Well, thank God that letter was never needed. The invasion, of course, succeeded. But that letter revealed the heart of a truly great leader.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Trouble With Passing the Buck."

Taking responsibility: That's a basic trait of a man or woman of character. And it's getting harder and harder to find. Sadly, there may not be any real progress or any real healing in your situation until someone is man or woman enough to take responsibility, and that someone needs to be you.

Unfortunately, we don't let the buck stop with us. We're better at playing the blame game than taking responsibility. That started in the Garden of Eden when Adam blamed Eve for disobeying God and Eve blamed the serpent. When, in fact, each one was responsible for his or her own sin. Not much has changed over the years, has it? It's my wife's fault, it's my husband's fault, it's my parents' fault, it's my children's fault, it's society's fault, it's because of the people who wronged me, it's because of my boss, my job, my church. Round and round goes the buck, and never is there any healing and never any answers.

It's interesting to see the first place the Prodigal Son of Jesus' parable began to turn his life around. Apparently, he thought the reason his life wasn't what he wanted it to be was his home. So he asked his dad for an early inheritance so he could leave home and do his own thing. Eventually, he blew all that money on partying. Now he thought his problem was no money. Then friends turned their backs on him when he ran out of money. Next thing you know, he's feeding pigs, and the pigs are probably the problem now.

Well, in Luke 15:17, our word for today from the Word of God, the Bible says, "When he came to himself" he was finally ready to say, "I will...go back to my father and say to him: 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.'" At last, the buck stopped. He's gone down the list of all the people, all the circumstances he could blame, and finally he came to himself as the reason. And that's when the pieces of his life finally began to come together.

For you, there's not going to be any healing, there's not going to be any answers, any restoration, any peace until you finally say, "I'm responsible." Maybe you're not the only one responsible, but only you can fix the part that's you. That may mean a letter you need to write, a call, a visit you need to make, an apology, a confession you need to give, maybe a bitterness or a grudge that you need to release. I know this is hard, but it's the only way something broken in your life has a chance of getting fixed. And it's for sure the only way you're going to get fixed.

Your pride can make you blind to the problem that's right in the mirror and fill your life with so much unnecessary pain. And the hurt and the hassle just keep going because you keep passing the buck. Be a man or woman of character and integrity. Step up to your responsibility for the way things are. It's your first big step to finally being free.