Max Lucado Daily: LOVE PROTECTS - February 27, 2024
Have you ever heard anyone gossip about someone you know? “Well, I heard that she…” “Oh, but didn’t you know that he…” Then all of a sudden it’s your turn. What do you have to say?
Here’s what love says: 1 Peter 4:8 (NIV) says, “Love covers a multitude of sins.” Love doesn’t expose. It doesn’t gossip. If love says anything, it speaks words of protection.
Do you know anyone who needs protection? Of course you do. Then give some. Pay a gas bill for a struggling elderly couple. Make sure your divorced friends are invited to parties. Promise your kids that, God being your helper, they’ll never know a hungry day or a homeless night. In Matthew 25:40 (NIV) Jesus says, “I tell you the truth, anything you did for even the least of my people here, you also did for me.”
Micah 5
The Leader Who Will Shepherd-Rule Israel
1 5 But for now, prepare for the worst, victim daughter!
The siege is set against us.
They humiliate Israel’s king,
slapping him around like a rag doll.
2–4 But you, Bethlehem, David’s country,
the runt of the litter—
From you will come the leader
who will shepherd-rule Israel.
He’ll be no upstart, no pretender.
His family tree is ancient and distinguished.
Meanwhile, Israel will be in foster homes
until the birth pangs are over and the child is born,
And the scattered brothers come back
home to the family of Israel.
He will stand tall in his shepherd-rule by God’s strength,
centered in the majesty of God-Revealed.
And the people will have a good and safe home,
for the whole world will hold him in respect—
Peacemaker of the world!
5–6 And if some bullying Assyrian shows up,
invades and violates our land, don’t worry.
We’ll put him in his place, send him packing,
and watch his every move.
Shepherd-rule will extend as far as needed,
to Assyria and all other Nimrod-bullies.
Our shepherd-ruler will save us from old or new enemies,
from anyone who invades or violates our land.
7 The purged and select company of Jacob will be
like an island in the sea of peoples.
They’ll be like dew from God,
like summer showers
Not mentioned in the weather forecast,
not subject to calculation or control.
8–9 Yes, the purged and select company of Jacob will be
like an island in the sea of peoples,
Like the king of beasts among wild beasts,
like a young lion loose in a flock of sheep,
Killing and devouring the lambs
and no one able to stop him.
With your arms raised in triumph over your foes,
your enemies will be no more!
10–15 “The day is coming”
—God’s Decree—
“When there will be no more war. None.
I’ll slaughter your war horses and demolish your chariots.
I’ll dismantle military posts
and level your fortifications.
I’ll abolish your religious black markets,
your underworld traffic in black magic.
I will smash your carved and cast gods
and chop down your phallic posts.
No more taking control of the world,
worshiping what you do or make.
I’ll root out your sacred sex-and-power centers
and destroy the God-defiant.
In raging anger, I’ll make a clean sweep
of godless nations who haven’t listened.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, February 27, 2024
Today's Scripture
Luke 18:35–43
He came to the outskirts of Jericho. A blind man was sitting beside the road asking for handouts. When he heard the rustle of the crowd, he asked what was going on. They told him, “Jesus the Nazarene is going by.”
38 He yelled, “Jesus! Son of David! Mercy, have mercy on me!”
39 Those ahead of Jesus told the man to shut up, but he only yelled all the louder, “Son of David! Mercy, have mercy on me!”
40 Jesus stopped and ordered him to be brought over. When he had come near, Jesus asked, “What do you want from me?”
41 He said, “Master, I want to see again.”
42–43 Jesus said, “Go ahead—see again! Your faith has saved and healed you!” The healing was instant: He looked up, seeing—and then followed Jesus, glorifying God. Everyone in the street joined in, shouting praise to God.
Insight
The healing of the blind beggar in Luke 18:35-43 is also told in Matthew 20:29-34 and Mark 10:46-52, but with differences in the details. Matthew says there are two blind men, whereas Mark and Luke choose to tell the story of only one, whom Mark calls “Bartimaeus” or “son of Timaeus” (10:46). The Gospels tell of several other instances where Jesus healed the blind: Matthew 9:27-31 (two blind men); 12:22 (blind and mute demon-possessed man); Mark 8:22-26 (blind man at Bethsaida); and John 9 (man born blind). In addition, Matthew records a general healing of the blind (15:30; 21:14). At the start of His public ministry, Christ read from Isaiah 61:1-2 about the ministry of the Messiah. Healing of the blind is one of the signs of the Messiah (Luke 4:18-19, see also Matthew 11:2-6). After the Scriptures from Isaiah were read, Jesus declared that He’s indeed the Messiah: “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21). By: K. T. Sim
When Jesus Stops
Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. Luke 18:40
For days, the sickly cat cried, huddled in a box near my workplace. Abandoned on the street, the feline went unnoticed by many who passed it by—until Jun came along. The street sweeper carried the animal home, where he lived with two dogs, which were former strays.
“I care for them because they’re the creatures no one notices,” Jun said. “I see myself in them. No one notices a street sweeper, after all.”
As Jesus walked toward Jericho on His way to Jerusalem, a blind man sat begging by the roadside. He felt unnoticed too. And on this day especially—when a crowd was passing through and all eyes were focused on Christ—no one stopped to help the beggar.
No one except Jesus. In the midst of the clamoring crowd, He heard the forgotten man’s cry. “What do you want me to do for you?” Christ asked, and He received the heartfelt reply, “Lord, I want to see.” Then Jesus said, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you” (Luke 18:41–42).
Do we feel unnoticed at times? Are our cries drowned out by people who seem to matter more than us? Our Savior notices those the world doesn’t care to notice. Call to Him for help! While others may pass us by, He’ll stop for us. By: Karen Huang
Reflect & Pray
How would knowing that Jesus sees you change how you view yourself and your life? Who are those around you who might need to be noticed, and how can you “stop” to encourage them with the Savior’s love?
Dear Jesus, thank You for hearing me when I call to You. Like the blind man who received his sight, help me to follow and praise You all my life.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, February 27, 2024
The Impoverished Ministry of Jesus
Where then do You get that living water? —John 4:11
“The well is deep” — and even a great deal deeper than the Samaritan woman knew! (John 4:11). Think of the depths of human nature and human life; think of the depth of the “wells” in you. Have you been limiting, or impoverishing, the ministry of Jesus to the point that He is unable to work in your life? Suppose that you have a deep “well” of hurt and trouble inside your heart, and Jesus comes and says to you, “Let not your heart be troubled…” (John 14:1). Would your response be to shrug your shoulders and say, “But, Lord, the well is too deep, and even You can’t draw up quietness and comfort out of it.” Actually, that is correct. Jesus doesn’t bring anything up from the wells of human nature— He brings them down from above. We limit the Holy One of Israel by remembering only what we have allowed Him to do for us in the past, and also by saying, “Of course, I cannot expect God to do this particular thing.” The thing that approaches the very limits of His power is the very thing we as disciples of Jesus ought to believe He will do. We impoverish and weaken His ministry in us the moment we forget He is almighty. The impoverishment is in us, not in Him. We will come to Jesus for Him to be our comforter or our sympathizer, but we refrain from approaching Him as our Almighty God.
The reason some of us are such poor examples of Christianity is that we have failed to recognize that Christ is almighty. We have Christian attributes and experiences, but there is no abandonment or surrender to Jesus Christ. When we get into difficult circumstances, we impoverish His ministry by saying, “Of course, He can’t do anything about this.” We struggle to reach the bottom of our own well, trying to get water for ourselves. Beware of sitting back, and saying, “It can’t be done.” You will know it can be done if you will look to Jesus. The well of your incompleteness runs deep, but make the effort to look away from yourself and to look toward Him.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Both nations and individuals have tried Christianity and abandoned it, because it has been found too difficult; but no man has ever gone through the crisis of deliberately making Jesus Lord and found Him to be a failure. The Love of God—The Making of a Christian, 680 R
Bible in a Year: Numbers 17-19; Mark 6:30-56
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, February 27, 2024
When You Know the Final Score - #9687
We're pretty avid New York Giants football fans at our house. Don't hold that against us. You know, you can understand it if you follow football at all. We're eager after a long basketball season and a baseball season to see the first games, even when they're exhibition games. Now, when my children were growing up, there was a particular game on one season that we really wanted to see, because it was against a top NFL team.
There was one problem! That particular exhibition game wasn't aired live in the New York area. It was a home game. However, it was shown twice on tape late that night and then again the next morning. Now, we had heard the score of the game; we knew the outcome. My son was watching it and he said, "Well, Dad, it's sure exciting to watch a game when you already know the outcome." Well actually we did know the ending. We just didn't know how they got to that ending. It was fun to watch how they did it, but there wasn't much suspense.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "When You Know the Final Score."
Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 3, and I'm going to begin reading at verse 16. It's the familiar story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Now, whether or not you recognize the names, you remember the story of the three men who were commanded by King Nebuchadnezzar to bow down to his ninety-foot gold statue of himself. They refused to do it, and he said, "Then I'll have to throw you into this very, very hot fire," an oven prepared just for them. What a way to die, huh? They said to the king, "O, King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves... If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king."
Now, I like this. They're saying, "We don't know how God's going to do it, but we know He will. We're not sure all the plays He's going to call, we just know He's going to win." Now, you may be in a pretty bleak situation right now. Maybe the fire is heating up for you, and there's no apparent solution; there's no apparent way out.
One of my favorite passages of scripture is in Romans 8, where Paul speaks of some of the greatest stresses in life. And verse 35 talks about "trouble, hardship, persecution, famine, not enough food on the table, nakedness, no clothes, danger, sword, even death." Then right after all that in verse 37 he says this, "In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us." Wow! As a soldier of Jesus Christ, you're in the same position I am when I'm watching a Giants victory being replayed. I know the final score; I know we win. I just don't know how.
In Christ the question is never whether He will win in a situation, the only question is how. Our problem is if we can't see how victory will come, a lot of times we don't believe it will. "There's no money in sight, so I guess we're not going to make it." Or, "There's no person in sight, so I guess I'll just stay lonely." "There's no change in sight, so well, I guess it will always be this way." "Well, there's no progress I can see and there's no way to make any. I guess we'll always be in this mess." Read the scoreboard again! He wins all His battles. Live expectantly! The battle is not yours; it is God's. You can be more than conqueror, and He says it's in the middle of life's most intense moments.
After all, you're sitting back watching how God is going to win this one, because you know the final score, and it will be your Father who decides your outcome.