Max Lucado Daily: ACCEPT GOD’S OFFER - January 26, 2024
A person can be religious and yet lost. Attending church won’t make you God’s child. You must accept his offer. “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God” (1st Peter 3:18).
It makes no sense to seek your God-given strength until you trust in his. “It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for” (Ephesians 1:11 MSG).
Take a few moments and talk to God. Whether you are making a decision or reaffirming an earlier one, talk to your Maker about your eternal life. You might find this prayer helpful: Immanuel, you are with me. You became a person and took on flesh. You became my Savior and took on my sin. I accept your gift. I receive you as my Lord, Savior, and friend. And because of you, I’ll never be alone again.
Isaiah 61
Announce Freedom to All Captives
1–7 61 The Spirit of God, the Master, is on me
because God anointed me.
He sent me to preach good news to the poor,
heal the heartbroken,
Announce freedom to all captives,
pardon all prisoners.
God sent me to announce the year of his grace—
a celebration of God’s destruction of our enemies—
and to comfort all who mourn,
To care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion,
give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes,
Messages of joy instead of news of doom,
a praising heart instead of a languid spirit.
Rename them “Oaks of Righteousness”
planted by God to display his glory.
They’ll rebuild the old ruins,
raise a new city out of the wreckage.
They’ll start over on the ruined cities,
take the rubble left behind and make it new.
You’ll hire outsiders to herd your flocks
and foreigners to work your fields,
But you’ll have the title “Priests of God,”
honored as ministers of our God.
You’ll feast on the bounty of nations,
you’ll bask in their glory.
Because you got a double dose of trouble
and more than your share of contempt,
Your inheritance in the land will be doubled
and your joy go on forever.
8–9 “Because I, God, love fair dealing
and hate thievery and crime,
I’ll pay your wages on time and in full,
and establish my eternal covenant with you.
Your descendants will become well-known all over.
Your children in foreign countries
Will be recognized at once
as the people I have blessed.”
10–11 I will sing for joy in God,
explode in praise from deep in my soul!
He dressed me up in a suit of salvation,
he outfitted me in a robe of righteousness,
As a bridegroom who puts on a tuxedo
and a bride a jeweled tiara.
For as the earth bursts with spring wildflowers,
and as a garden cascades with blossoms,
So the Master, God, brings righteousness into full bloom
and puts praise on display before the nations.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, January 26, 2024
Today's Scripture
1 Samuel 16:1–7
God Looks into the Heart
1 16 God addressed Samuel: “So, how long are you going to mope over Saul? You know I’ve rejected him as king over Israel. Fill your flask with anointing oil and get going. I’m sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I’ve spotted the very king I want among his sons.”
2–3 “I can’t do that,” said Samuel. “Saul will hear about it and kill me.”
God said, “Take a heifer with you and announce, ‘I’ve come to lead you in worship of God, with this heifer as a sacrifice.’ Make sure Jesse gets invited. I’ll let you know what to do next. I’ll point out the one you are to anoint.”
4 Samuel did what God told him. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the town fathers greeted him, but apprehensively. “Is there something wrong?”
5 “Nothing’s wrong. I’ve come to sacrifice this heifer and lead you in the worship of God. Prepare yourselves, be consecrated, and join me in worship.” He made sure Jesse and his sons were also consecrated and called to worship.
6 When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Here he is! God’s anointed!”
7 But God told Samuel, “Looks aren’t everything. Don’t be impressed with his looks and stature. I’ve already eliminated him. God judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; God looks into the heart.”
Insight
In 1 Samuel 16, David is formally introduced in the Old Testament. However, although David appears in the story in 1 Samuel, he was mentioned much earlier. In Ruth 4:17 we read, “The women living there said, ‘Naomi has a son!’ And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.” The story of Naomi is a story of preparation. Naomi lost her husband and sons but gained a lifelong companion and friend in her daughter-in-law Ruth. When they returned from Moab to Bethlehem, Naomi’s losses had made her bitter. But, when Ruth married their near kinsman Boaz, their son Obed brought Naomi renewed hope—and even more, made her the great-grandmother of David, Israel’s greatest king. By: Bill Crowder
No More Prejudice
People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7
Many years ago, Julie Landsman auditioned for principal French hornist for New York’s Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. The MET held their auditions behind a screen to avoid prejudice by the judges. Landsman did well in her audition and ended up winning the competition. But when she stepped out from behind the screen, some of the all-male judges walked to the rear of the room and turned their backs on her. Apparently, they were looking for someone else.
When the Israelites asked for a king, God accommodated the people and gave them a man who was physically imposing like the other nations had (1 Samuel 8:5; 9:2). But because Saul’s first years as king were marked by faithlessness and disobedience, God sent Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint a new king (16:1–13). When Samuel saw Eliab, the oldest son, he assumed that God had chosen him to be king because he was physically impressive. But God challenged Samuel’s thinking: “People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (v. 7). God had chosen David to lead His people (v. 12).
When evaluating people’s ability and suitability for His purposes, God looks at character, will, and motives. He invites us to be attuned to see the world and people as He does—focusing on peoples’ hearts and not their outward appearance or credentials. By: Marvin Williams
Reflect & Pray
Why is it vital not to judge someone based on personal prejudices? What does it mean for you to have a true heart for God?
Compassionate God, please help me not to evaluate people based on their appearances.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, January 26, 2024
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
There is nothing, naturally speaking, that makes us lose heart quicker than decay—the decay of bodily beauty, of natural life, of friendship, of associations, all these things make a man lose heart; but Paul says when we are trusting in Jesus Christ these things do not find us discouraged, light comes through them. The Place of Help, 1032 L
Bible in a Year: Exodus 14-15; Matthew 17
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, January 26, 2024
Hope From the Rubble - #9665
Centuries ago, Tyre was one of the great cities of the Middle East, strategically located on the Mediterranean Sea...until it was leveled by a foreign invader. Actually, there was an ancient Biblical prophecy that Tyre would not only be leveled, which was unimaginable at the time, but that the site would be so swept of Tyre's rubble that fishermen would one day lay their nets there to dry. The city was gone, but the rubble still remained until Alexander the Great came along. By that time, Tyre had moved to an island offshore, confident that they would now be unreachable by any future invader. They underestimated Alexander. He ordered his engineers to use the rubble of the old city to build a causeway to the island, and that's what they did. And Alexander and his army marched across the bridge that was made from rubble and won what seemed to be an impossible victory. So the site of ancient Tyre was, in fact, swept clean. And in modern times, fishermen have (Well, you guessed it.) dried their nets where the city once was.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Hope From the Rubble."
So history was made by a conqueror who made a bridge out of rubble. Many a personal history has been changed the same way; by someone who could make from the rubble of a broken life a bridge to something better. A bridge to hope, I guess you might say, when hope seemed pretty hard to find.
It could be that you're living in the rubble right now of a broken marriage or a broken romance. Maybe you're trying to put together the pieces of a broken career. Or maybe it's your health that's broken, or a dream you've held onto for a long time.
I know a Savior who makes our broken times into a bridge; a bridge to a victory we could have never imagined. For so many people I know, their broken time turned out to be the last stop before a place called hope. Jesus uses your broken hope to turn you to the hope that will never let you down.
It's the hope God describes in Hebrews 6:19, our word for today from the Word of God. It describes the incredible security so many have found in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It says, "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure." No other hope can ultimately be an "anchor for the soul, firm and secure." Only Jesus can do that. But often it isn't until we're standing in the rubble of what we once depended on that we consider looking in Jesus' direction, and you may be at that crossroads right now.
The Bible tells us that we're without hope because we're "without God" (Ephesians 2:12). And we're without God because we've repeatedly chosen to do things our way instead of God's way - even the most religious of us. Every one and every thing we try in order to fill the hole in our heart ultimately becomes just another god that failed us. And then along comes Jesus. He's God's one and only Son who went all the way to a cross to build a bridge from our brokenness to God's power and God's presence. He died to pay for the sin that's created an awful chasm between us and God; a chasm that one day will keep us out of heaven.
But the bridge is there for you to cross; the cross that bridges the chasm. If you'll step across that bridge today, you'll step into the hope that is "the anchor for your soul, firm and secure." Are you ready for that? We're talking every sin forgiven and we're talking you in a permanent love relationship with the God who made you. If you say, "I want that." Then tell Jesus, "I'm Yours, Lord, because You paid the price for my sin."
We'd love to help you plug into this hope that Jesus has. Someone did that for us, and we'd love to do it for you. We can at our website, I hope that you'll go there today. It's ANewStory.com.
Wouldn't it be something if this broken moment in your life became the bridge to the greatest hope you've ever known? It could happen today.
