Max Lucado Daily: THERE IS ONE NAME - December 15, 2022
Son of God, the Lamb of God, the Resurrection and the Life, Alpha and Omega. Phrases that stretch the boundaries of human language in an effort to capture the uncapturable: the grandeur of God. They always fall short. Hearing them is somewhat like hearing a Salvation Army Christmas band on the street corner playing “Handel’s Messiah.” No names do God justice.
Bur there is one name. Jesus. A name so typical, if he were here today, his name might be John or Bob or Jim. He was touchable, approachable, reachable. “Just call me Jesus,” you can almost hear Him say. And those who walked with him remembered him not with a title or designation, but with a name—Jesus! It’s a beautiful name and a powerful name. The day is coming when at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that he is Lord!
John 21
Fishing
After this, Jesus appeared again to the disciples, this time at the Tiberias Sea (the Sea of Galilee). This is how he did it: Simon Peter, Thomas (nicknamed “Twin”), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the brothers Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. Simon Peter announced, “I’m going fishing.”
3-4 The rest of them replied, “We’re going with you.” They went out and got in the boat. They caught nothing that night. When the sun came up, Jesus was standing on the beach, but they didn’t recognize him.
5 Jesus spoke to them: “Good morning! Did you catch anything for breakfast?”
They answered, “No.”
6 He said, “Throw the net off the right side of the boat and see what happens.”
They did what he said. All of a sudden there were so many fish in it, they weren’t strong enough to pull it in.
7-9 Then the disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, “It’s the Master!”
When Simon Peter realized that it was the Master, he threw on some clothes, for he was stripped for work, and dove into the sea. The other disciples came in by boat for they weren’t far from land, a hundred yards or so, pulling along the net full of fish. When they got out of the boat, they saw a fire laid, with fish and bread cooking on it.
10-11 Jesus said, “Bring some of the fish you’ve just caught.” Simon Peter joined them and pulled the net to shore—153 big fish! And even with all those fish, the net didn’t rip.
12 Jesus said, “Breakfast is ready.” Not one of the disciples dared ask, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Master.
13-14 Jesus then took the bread and gave it to them. He did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus had shown himself alive to the disciples since being raised from the dead.
Do You Love Me?
15 After breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Master, you know I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
16 He then asked a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
“Yes, Master, you know I love you.”
Jesus said, “Shepherd my sheep.”
17-19 Then he said it a third time: “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was upset that he asked for the third time, “Do you love me?” so he answered, “Master, you know everything there is to know. You’ve got to know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. I’m telling you the very truth now: When you were young you dressed yourself and went wherever you wished, but when you get old you’ll have to stretch out your hands while someone else dresses you and takes you where you don’t want to go.” He said this to hint at the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And then he commanded, “Follow me.”
20-21 Turning his head, Peter noticed the disciple Jesus loved following right behind. When Peter noticed him, he asked Jesus, “Master, what’s going to happen to him?”
22-23 Jesus said, “If I want him to live until I come again, what’s that to you? You—follow me.” That is how the rumor got out among the brothers that this disciple wouldn’t die. But that is not what Jesus said. He simply said, “If I want him to live until I come again, what’s that to you?”
24 This is the same disciple who was eyewitness to all these things and wrote them down. And we all know that his eyewitness account is reliable and accurate.
25 There are so many other things Jesus did. If they were all written down, each of them, one by one, I can’t imagine a world big enough to hold such a library of books.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, December 15, 2022
Today's Scripture
1 Samuel 20:26–34
David hid in the field. On the holiday of the New Moon, the king came to the table to eat. He sat where he always sat, the place against the wall, with Jonathan across the table and Abner at Saul’s side. But David’s seat was empty. Saul didn’t mention it at the time, thinking, “Something’s happened that’s made him unclean. That’s it—he’s probably unclean for the holy meal.”
27 But the day after the New Moon, day two of the holiday, David’s seat was still empty. Saul asked Jonathan his son, “So where’s that son of Jesse? He hasn’t eaten with us either yesterday or today.”
28-29 Jonathan said, “David asked my special permission to go to Bethlehem. He said, ‘Give me leave to attend a family reunion back home. My brothers have ordered me to be there. If it seems all right to you, let me go and see my brothers.’ That’s why he’s not here at the king’s table.”
30-31 Saul exploded in anger at Jonathan: “You son of a slut! Don’t you think I know that you’re in cahoots with the son of Jesse, disgracing both you and your mother? For as long as the son of Jesse is walking around free on this earth, your future in this kingdom is at risk. Now go get him. Bring him here. From this moment, he’s as good as dead!”
32 Jonathan stood up to his father. “Why dead? What’s he done?”
33 Saul threw his spear at him to kill him. That convinced Jonathan that his father was fixated on killing David.
34 Jonathan stormed from the table, furiously angry, and ate nothing the rest of the day, upset for David and smarting under the humiliation from his father.
Insight
The deep friendship between David and Jonathan withstood the test of time and circumstances, evidenced when Jonathan went against his father, King Saul, and even endangered his own life to save David (1 Samuel 20). Though Jonathan was the crown prince, he encouraged David by assuring his safety and affirming that he’d be the next king (23:17). After Jonathan died (31:2), David honored him and expressed his deep loss: “I grieve for you, Jonathan my brother; you were very dear to me” (2 Samuel 1:26). After David became king, he showed kindness to Jonathan’s only son, Mephibosheth (ch. 9). By: K. T. Sim
Friends for Life
[Jonathan] was grieved at his father’s shameful treatment of David. 1 Samuel 20:34
William Cowper (1731–1800), the English poet, found a friend in his pastor, John Newton (1725–1807), the former slave trader. Cowper suffered from depression and anxiety, attempting to die by suicide more than once. When Newton visited him, they’d go on long walks together and talk about God. Thinking that Cowper would benefit from engaging creatively and having a reason to write his poetry, the minister had the idea to compile a hymnal. Cowper contributed many songs, including “God Moves in a Mysterious Way.” When Newton moved to another church, he and Cowper remained strong friends and corresponded regularly for the rest of Cowper’s life.
I see parallels between the strong friendship of Cowper and Newton with that of David and Jonathan in the Old Testament. After David defeated Goliath, “Jonathan became one in spirit with David,” loving him as himself (1 Samuel 18:1). Although Jonathan was the son of King Saul, he defended David against the king’s jealousy and anger, asking his father why David should be put to death. In response, “Saul hurled his spear at him to kill him” (20:33). Jonathan dodged the weapon and was grieved at this shameful treatment of his friend (v. 34).
For both sets of friends, their bond was life-giving as they spurred each other on to serve and love God. How might you similarly encourage a friend today? By: Amy Boucher Pye
Reflect & Pray
What role does friendship play in your sense of well-being? How could you show God’s love to someone and build them up?
Jesus, help me to enjoy Your friendship and fellowship.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, December 15, 2022
“Approved to God”
Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. —2 Timothy 2:15
If you cannot express yourself well on each of your beliefs, work and study until you can. If you don’t, other people may miss out on the blessings that come from knowing the truth. Strive to re-express a truth of God to yourself clearly and understandably, and God will use that same explanation when you share it with someone else. But you must be willing to go through God’s winepress where the grapes are crushed. You must struggle, experiment, and rehearse your words to express God’s truth clearly. Then the time will come when that very expression will become God’s wine of strength to someone else. But if you are not diligent and say, “I’m not going to study and struggle to express this truth in my own words; I’ll just borrow my words from someone else,” then the words will be of no value to you or to others. Try to state to yourself what you believe to be the absolute truth of God, and you will be allowing God the opportunity to pass it on through you to someone else.
Always make it a practice to stir your own mind thoroughly to think through what you have easily believed. Your position is not really yours until you make it yours through suffering and study. The author or speaker from whom you learn the most is not the one who teaches you something you didn’t know before, but the one who helps you take a truth with which you have quietly struggled, give it expression, and speak it clearly and boldly.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The Bible is a relation of facts, the truth of which must be tested. Life may go on all right for a while, when suddenly a bereavement comes, or some crisis; unrequited love or a new love, a disaster, a business collapse, or a shocking sin, and we turn up our Bibles again and God’s word comes straight home, and we say, “Why, I never saw that there before.” Shade of His Hand, 1223 L
Bible in a Year: Amos 1-3; Revelation 6
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, December 15, 2022
SAYING GOOD THINGS - WHILE THEY CAN HEAR THEM! - #9374
My wife had gotten a really nice wedding gift for our friend. This beautiful little serving dish and some cut glass and some silver. One of those things people get only at their wedding, usually. Well, here's the problem. The girl had been married for four years, and four years later, well, we found the present. Yeah, we put it behind a chair to get it out of the way one day, and we found it four years later. We had planned to have our daughter take it to the wedding for us. Well, we totally missed the time that you should give a gift like that.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Saying Good Things - While They Can Hear Them!"
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Ephesians 4:29. It's excellent advice for improving and nurturing the relationships in your life. Here are God's words, "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth, but only what is useful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." Now God says the only words you ought to be speaking to people are those that will build them up. Give those people around you build-up encouragement, give them compliments and thank yous, and affirmations - the kind of things we usually say at their funeral.
I remember when my dad died and I stood by that casket - and some wonderful, wonderful things were said about him. All these people had wonderful praise for the kind of man my dad had been. Unfortunately, my dad couldn't hear any of them.
I remember when I went to the memorial service for a sixteen-year-old young man who had been killed by a hit-and-run driver, and these big old football players who'd been on the team with him went to the microphone one after the other and they just... well, they tearfully told what a great friend he had been. And they praised him for a lot of great qualities. I could only hope that they had said those things when he could hear them. Why don't we give people their flowers when they can still smell them? Your family, your friends, your spiritual leaders, your spiritual helpers? They need encouragement today and you have the power to give that powerful gift.
Proverbs 18:21 says, "The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." You see, we can give people life sentences, because the tongue has the power of life. We can give them death sentences; things that make them feel more alive like compliments, praise, encouragement, or things that make them feel like they're dying inside like put-downs and criticism. How are you doing giving those life sentences each day to the people in your world?
Too often we make the same mistake that my wife and I made with the gift for that young bride; we waited too long to give the gift. Some of us have people who are gone now that we wish we could have back for like ten minutes just so we could tell them we love them, give them our appreciation. But we can't have them back.
What we can do is determine that the people who are still here will hear our love, hear our encouragement, hear our apology or our forgiveness. They'll hear our praise, often! They need your gift right now. We never know how long someone will be here for us to give those emotional gifts; those gifts that could mean so much.
The days are flying by and I'll bet there is someone whose gift, maybe, has been sitting on the shelf. Give them your love, now! Don't wait for the funeral to say what's in your heart right now.