Max Lucado Daily: ARRIVAL OF THE SAINTS - January 9, 2025
The people of Paradise enjoy a much better, but still incomplete, state. They anticipate the new heaven and earth, the glorified body to be received at the rapture, and—this may surprise you—they look forward to the arrival of the rest of the saints.
In Hebrews chapter eleven the author highlights the lives of Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and Rahab the harlot. He writes, “All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised” (Hebrews 11:39 NLT). The writer surprises us by describing how the saints are waiting for the rest of us.
As wonderful as Paradise is, it won’t be complete until all God’s children are home.
What Happens Next
Revelation 19
The Sound of Hallelujahs
1–3 19 I heard a sound like massed choirs in Heaven singing,
Hallelujah!
The salvation and glory and power are God’s—
his judgments true, his judgments just.
He judged the great Whore
who corrupted the earth with her lust.
He avenged on her the blood of his servants.
Then, more singing:
Hallelujah!
The smoke from her burning billows up
to high Heaven forever and ever and ever.
4 The Twenty-four Elders and the Four Animals fell to their knees and worshiped God on his Throne, praising,
Amen! Yes! Hallelujah!
5 From the Throne came a shout, a command:
Praise our God, all you his servants,
All you who fear him, small and great!
6–8 Then I heard the sound of massed choirs, the sound of a mighty cataract, the sound of strong thunder:
Hallelujah!
The Master reigns,
our God, the Sovereign-Strong!
Let us celebrate, let us rejoice,
let us give him the glory!
The Marriage of the Lamb has come;
his Wife has made herself ready.
She was given a bridal gown
of bright and shining linen.
The linen is the righteousness of the saints.
9 The Angel said to me, “Write this: ‘Blessed are those invited to the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.’ ” He added, “These are the true words of God!”
10 I fell at his feet to worship him, but he wouldn’t let me. “Don’t do that,” he said. “I’m a servant just like you, and like your brothers and sisters who hold to the witness of Jesus. The witness of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
A White Horse and Its Rider
11–16 Then I saw Heaven open wide—and oh! a white horse and its Rider. The Rider, named Faithful and True, judges and makes war in pure righteousness. His eyes are a blaze of fire, on his head many crowns. He has a Name inscribed that’s known only to himself. He is dressed in a robe soaked with blood, and he is addressed as “Word of God.” The armies of Heaven, mounted on white horses and dressed in dazzling white linen, follow him. A sharp sword comes out of his mouth so he can subdue the nations, then rule them with a rod of iron. He treads the winepress of the raging wrath of God, the Sovereign-Strong. On his robe and thigh is written, King of kings, Lord of lords.
17–18 I saw an Angel standing in the sun, shouting to all flying birds in Middle-Heaven, “Come to the Great Supper of God! Feast on the flesh of kings and captains and champions, horses and their riders. Eat your fill of them all—free and slave, small and great!”
19–21 I saw the Beast and, assembled with him, earth’s kings and their armies, ready to make war against the One on the horse and his army. The Beast was taken, and with him, his puppet, the False Prophet, who used signs to dazzle and deceive those who had taken the mark of the Beast and worshiped his image. They were thrown alive, those two, into Lake Fire and Brimstone. The rest were killed by the sword of the One on the horse, the sword that comes from his mouth. All the birds held a feast on their flesh.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, January 09, 2025
by Xochitl Dixon
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE
Psalm 63
A David Psalm, When He Was out in the Judean Wilderness
1 63 God—you’re my God!
I can’t get enough of you!
I’ve worked up such hunger and thirst for God,
traveling across dry and weary deserts.
2–4 So here I am in the place of worship, eyes open,
drinking in your strength and glory.
In your generous love I am really living at last!
My lips brim praises like fountains.
I bless you every time I take a breath;
My arms wave like banners of praise to you.
5–8 I eat my fill of prime rib and gravy;
I smack my lips. It’s time to shout praises!
If I’m sleepless at midnight,
I spend the hours in grateful reflection.
Because you’ve always stood up for me,
I’m free to run and play.
I hold on to you for dear life,
and you hold me steady as a post.
9–11 Those who are out to get me are marked for doom,
marked for death, bound for hell.
They’ll die violent deaths;
jackals will tear them limb from limb.
But the king is glad in God;
his true friends spread the joy,
While small-minded gossips
are gagged for good.
Today's Insights
David wrote seventy-five psalms, seventy-three of which bear his name. Acts 4:25 confirms he also wrote Psalm 2 and Hebrews 4:7 confirms he wrote Psalm 95.
Psalm 63 includes a note about its historical background. We’re told that David penned it “when he was in the Desert of Judah.” On several occasions, David retreated into the wilderness when he was fleeing from Saul (see 1 Samuel 23:14-15; 24:1) and also when his own son Absalom rebelled to usurp his throne (see 2 Samuel 15:13-30). When he wrote Psalm 63, he was probably fleeing from Absalom because David refers to himself as “the king” (v. 11), and he wasn’t yet king when Saul pursued him.
Better than Life
Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. Psalm 63:3
After another unexpected health setback, I joined my husband and others during a retreat in the mountains. I trudged up the wooden staircase that led to the tiny church on the top of a hill. Alone in the dark, I stopped to rest on a splintered step. “Help me, Lord,” I whispered as the music began. I walked slowly until I stepped into the small room. I breathed through the lingering pain, grateful that God hears us in the wilderness!
Some of the most intimate moments of worshiping God recorded in Scripture took place in the wilderness. While hiding in the Desert of Judah and most likely on the run from his son Absalom, King David sang: “You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you” (Psalm 63:1). Having experienced God’s power and glory, David deemed God’s love as “better than life” (v. 3), and it was the reason he committed to a lifetime of worship—even while in the wilderness (vv. 2-6). He said, “Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. I cling to you; your right hand upholds me” (vv. 7-8).
Like David, regardless of our circumstances or the fierceness of those standing against us, we can demonstrate confidence in God by praising Him (v. 11). Though we’ll suffer, sometimes by no fault of our own, we can trust that God’s love is always better than life.
Reflect & Pray
How can knowing God loves you help when you’re feeling attacked or defeated? When has praising Him strengthened your faith during hard times?
My God, Your love is better than life!
Wondering if God loves you? Be assured of His unfailing love with this video.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, January 09, 2025
Where God Can Go
May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless. —1 Thessalonians 5:23
Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonians, that they be kept blameless in their whole spirit, soul, and body, is a prayer that can only be answered through the great mystical work of the Holy Spirit.
Far beneath the surface of our personality lies a shadowy region we ourselves can’t get at. This is where our deepest fears and motivations are found, those unconscious forces we haven’t chosen and can’t control. If we are to be made blameless here, we need the Spirit to seek us out: “You have searched me, Lord, and you know me,” writes David in Psalm 139:1. “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” (v. 7).
The psalm is a testimony to God’s omnipresence and eternity, his everywhereness and alwaysness. David is saying, “You are the God of the early mornings and the late-at-nights, the God of the mountain peaks and of the sea. But, my God, my soul has further horizons than the early mornings, deeper darknesses than the night, higher peaks than any mountain, greater depths than any sea. You who are God of all these things, be my God. There are motives I cannot understand, dreams I cannot grasp. Please, Lord, search them out.”
Do we believe that God can garrison our imagination far beyond where we can go? As the ancient Romans sent garrisons of soldiers beyond the reaches of their empire, so God sends the Spirit to the outer limits of our soul. It is only when we are garrisoned by God in this way that we are made blameless. Blameless does not mean perfection but preserved in unspotted integrity, undeserving of censure in God’s sight, until Jesus comes.
Genesis 23-24; Matthew 7
WISDOM FROM OSWALD
The Bible is the only Book that gives us any indication of the true nature of sin, and where it came from.
The Philosophy of Sin, 1107 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, January 09, 2025
HOPE WHEN THE PRESSURE'S ON - #9914
I think I've been on a diet since I was about three days old, and I've become somewhat of an expert at what works and what doesn't work at losing weight...or putting it on.
Frankly, I find it very difficult to lose weight, especially during times when I'm under pressure. Oh, many of you will understand this unless maybe you're one of those people who are terminally thin. But maybe you're the one who does understand about losing weight and gaining it; my thorn in the flesh I think is my metabolism. Well, when things are calm and normal - status quo - it's a lot easier to maintain your diet disciplines. Then the crunch comes - extra stress - and out comes the crunch of cookies, and chips, and candy, and an attack of the munchies to help you get through the pressure. Pressure gives you this strangely expanded desire to eat. Now, usually, that's a bad response...usually. In some cases, it's actually a good idea.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Hope When the Pressure's On."
Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Corinthians 1, and I'm going to begin reading in verse 8, where we hear about Paul under pressure. I mean a lot of pressure. Listen to his words. He said, "We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so we despaired even of life." Boy, if you've been under pressure, maybe you know that feeling of "beyond my ability to take any more." Then he goes on to say, "This happened that we might not rely on ourselves, but on God."
Well, in a sense, Paul's response to pressure in his life was to eat. Not physically, but spiritually; to download spiritual resources he needed to make it through. He ate spiritual protein, not spiritual snacks. See, when you're pushed beyond your ability to take it - to handle it - it's more than you can do, more than you can solve, more than you can provide for. OK, you understand? Well, then it's time to load up on two resources.
In 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, he talks about "the father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles with the comfort we have received from God, we are able to comfort those who are in any trouble."
Notice He's the God of all comfort in all situations. It's like a comprehensive insurance policy. You will always have comfort as big as the pain or the hurt. You'll never fully learn the comfort of God though until you're really uncomfortable. That's interesting! So, if you're uncomfortable right now at this time in your life, load up on a heaping helping of the comfort of God; even enough to serve others.
The other resource you eat very aggressively at this time is God's power. That's why he says, "This all happened to us so we could taste God's power and not rely on ourselves." "The God," he says, "who raises the dead." Now, you'll never fully learn the power of God until you're at a point where you're fully powerless. Then comes that sweet surrender to God's working; you've run out of options. And all of a sudden there's a lot of Him and almost none of you. So, you get a big helping of the power of God; working where you're powerless to do anything. And what kind of God? A God who raises the dead! This is a death-reversing, resurrecting, life-giving God in the moments when there's so little you have to give.
Maybe you're in one of them right now. Is that pressure on you right now? Spend quality time in your Lord's presence, even though it may be harder than ever to do it, you've never needed it more. Feed on His resources. Download them. Partake of it. That's why He's brought you to this point. Get the resources you would never experience if the pressure didn't drive you to it.
When the pressure's on, eat heartily from God's shelves. You know what you'll get? You will get stronger than you've ever been!
