Max Lucado Daily: Actions Have Consequences
Actions have consequences! In the book of Genesis we read how Joseph placed his loyalty above lust when he was tempted by Potiphar’s wife. His primary concern was the preference of God when he said, “How can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God” (Genesis 39:9)?
The lesson we learn from Joseph is surprisingly simple: Do what pleases God. Your co-workers want to include a trip to a gentleman’s club on the evening agenda. What do you do? Do what pleases God. Your date invites you to conclude the evening with drinks at his place. How should you reply? Do what pleases God.
You don’t fix a struggling marriage with an affair, a drug problem with more drugs, debt with more debt. You don’t get out of a mess by making another one. You’ll never go wrong doing what is right. Just do what pleases God.
From You’ll Get Through This
1 Corinthians 13
Love Is the Greatest
If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it;[a] but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
8 Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages[b] and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! 9 Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! 10 But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless.
11 When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things. 12 Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity.[c] All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.
13 Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.
Footnotes:
13:3 Some manuscripts read sacrificed my body to be burned.
13:8 Or in tongues.
13:12 Greek see face to face.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, June 18, 2016
Read: 1 John 5:1–13
Faith in the Son of God
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ[a] has become a child of God. And everyone who loves the Father loves his children, too. 2 We know we love God’s children if we love God and obey his commandments. 3 Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome. 4 For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. 5 And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
6 And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by his baptism in water and by shedding his blood on the cross[b]—not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms it with his testimony. 7 So we have these three witnesses[c]— 8 the Spirit, the water, and the blood—and all three agree. 9 Since we believe human testimony, surely we can believe the greater testimony that comes from God. And God has testified about his Son. 10 All who believe in the Son of God know in their hearts that this testimony is true. Those who don’t believe this are actually calling God a liar because they don’t believe what God has testified about his Son.
11 And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life.
Conclusion
13 I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life.
Footnotes:
5:1 Or the Messiah.
5:6 Greek This is he who came by water and blood.
5:7 A few very late manuscripts add in heaven—the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. And we have three witnesses on earth.
INSIGHT:
There is an interesting connection between being born of God, keeping His commands, and overcoming the world. If we are children of God, then we will keep His commandments, and this is how we overcome the world. This suggests that the world is against God’s commands and that to be born of God is to be separate from the world.
Defeat or Victory?
By David McCasland
Everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 1 John 5:4
Each year on June 18 the great Battle of Waterloo is recalled in what is now Belgium. On that day in 1815, Napoleon’s French army was defeated by a multinational force commanded by the Duke of Wellington. Since then, the phrase “to meet your Waterloo” has come to mean “to be defeated by someone who is too strong for you or by a problem that is too difficult for you.”
When it comes to our spiritual lives, some people feel that ultimate failure is inevitable and it’s only a matter of time until each of us will “meet our Waterloo.” But John refuted that pessimistic view when he wrote to followers of Jesus: “Everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith” (1 John 5:4).
Enable us to overcome the world through faith and obedience to You.
John weaves this theme of spiritual victory throughout his first letter as he urges us not to love the things this world offers, which will soon fade away (2:15–17). Instead, we are to love and please God, “And this is what he promised us—eternal life” (v. 25).
While we may have ups and downs in life, and even some battles that feel like defeats, the ultimate victory is ours in Christ as we trust in His power.
Lord Jesus, Your ultimate victory in this fallen world is assured, and You ask us to share in it each day of our lives. By Your grace, enable us to overcome the world through faith and obedience to You.
When it comes to problems, the way out is to trust God on the way through.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, June 18, 2016
Keep Recognizing Jesus
…Peter…walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid… —Matthew 14:29-30
The wind really was boisterous and the waves really were high, but Peter didn’t see them at first. He didn’t consider them at all; he simply recognized his Lord, stepped out in recognition of Him, and “walked on the water.” Then he began to take those things around him into account, and instantly, down he went. Why couldn’t our Lord have enabled him to walk at the bottom of the waves, as well as on top of them? He could have, yet neither could be done without Peter’s continuing recognition of the Lord Jesus.
We step right out with recognition of God in some things, then self-consideration enters our lives and down we go. If you are truly recognizing your Lord, you have no business being concerned about how and where He engineers your circumstances. The things surrounding you are real, but when you look at them you are immediately overwhelmed, and even unable to recognize Jesus. Then comes His rebuke, “…why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:31). Let your actual circumstances be what they may, but keep recognizing Jesus, maintaining complete reliance upon Him.
If you debate for even one second when God has spoken, it is all over for you. Never start to say, “Well, I wonder if He really did speak to me?” Be reckless immediately— totally unrestrained and willing to risk everything— by casting your all upon Him. You do not know when His voice will come to you, but whenever the realization of God comes, even in the faintest way imaginable, be determined to recklessly abandon yourself, surrendering everything to Him. It is only through abandonment of yourself and your circumstances that you will recognize Him. You will only recognize His voice more clearly through recklessness— being willing to risk your all.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We never enter into the Kingdom of God by having our head questions answered, but only by commitment.
The Highest Good—Thy Great Redemption
Saturday, June 18, 2016
Friday, June 17, 2016
1 Chronicles 19, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: PRAY—FIRST AND MOST
Let’s pray—first! Traveling to help the hungry? Be sure to bathe your mission in prayer. Weary of a world of racism and division? So is God. And he would love to talk with you about it.
Let’s pray—most! Did God call us to preach without ceasing? Or teach without ceasing? Or have committee meetings without ceasing? Or sing without ceasing? No, but he did call us to “pray without ceasing” (I Thessalonians 5:17).
Did Jesus declare…my house shall be called a house of study? Fellowship? Music? A house of activities? No, but he did say “My house will be called a house of prayer” (Mark 11:17). Jesus said, “When two of you get together on anything and make a prayer of it, my Father in heaven goes into action” (Matthew 18:19).
So, Pray! Pray first and pray most!
From God is With You Every Day
1 Chronicles 19
David Defeats the Ammonites
In the course of time, Nahash king of the Ammonites died, and his son succeeded him as king. 2 David thought, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent a delegation to express his sympathy to Hanun concerning his father.
When David’s envoys came to Hanun in the land of the Ammonites to express sympathy to him, 3 the Ammonite commanders said to Hanun, “Do you think David is honoring your father by sending envoys to you to express sympathy? Haven’t his envoys come to you only to explore and spy out the country and overthrow it?” 4 So Hanun seized David’s envoys, shaved them, cut off their garments at the buttocks, and sent them away.
5 When someone came and told David about the men, he sent messengers to meet them, for they were greatly humiliated. The king said, “Stay at Jericho till your beards have grown, and then come back.”
6 When the Ammonites realized that they had become obnoxious to David, Hanun and the Ammonites sent a thousand talents[e] of silver to hire chariots and charioteers from Aram Naharaim,[f] Aram Maakah and Zobah. 7 They hired thirty-two thousand chariots and charioteers, as well as the king of Maakah with his troops, who came and camped near Medeba, while the Ammonites were mustered from their towns and moved out for battle.
8 On hearing this, David sent Joab out with the entire army of fighting men. 9 The Ammonites came out and drew up in battle formation at the entrance to their city, while the kings who had come were by themselves in the open country.
10 Joab saw that there were battle lines in front of him and behind him; so he selected some of the best troops in Israel and deployed them against the Arameans. 11 He put the rest of the men under the command of Abishai his brother, and they were deployed against the Ammonites. 12 Joab said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you are to rescue me; but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will rescue you. 13 Be strong, and let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God. The Lord will do what is good in his sight.”
14 Then Joab and the troops with him advanced to fight the Arameans, and they fled before him. 15 When the Ammonites realized that the Arameans were fleeing, they too fled before his brother Abishai and went inside the city. So Joab went back to Jerusalem.
16 After the Arameans saw that they had been routed by Israel, they sent messengers and had Arameans brought from beyond the Euphrates River, with Shophak the commander of Hadadezer’s army leading them.
17 When David was told of this, he gathered all Israel and crossed the Jordan; he advanced against them and formed his battle lines opposite them. David formed his lines to meet the Arameans in battle, and they fought against him. 18 But they fled before Israel, and David killed seven thousand of their charioteers and forty thousand of their foot soldiers. He also killed Shophak the commander of their army.
19 When the vassals of Hadadezer saw that they had been routed by Israel, they made peace with David and became subject to him.
So the Arameans were not willing to help the Ammonites anymore.
Footnotes:
1 Chronicles 19:6 That is, about 38 tons or about 34 metric tons
1 Chronicles 19:6 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, June 17, 2016
Read: Nehemiah 8:1–8
all the people assembled with a unified purpose at the square just inside the Water Gate. They asked Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had given for Israel to obey.
2 So on October 8[a] Ezra the priest brought the Book of the Law before the assembly, which included the men and women and all the children old enough to understand. 3 He faced the square just inside the Water Gate from early morning until noon and read aloud to everyone who could understand. All the people listened closely to the Book of the Law.
4 Ezra the scribe stood on a high wooden platform that had been made for the occasion. To his right stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah. To his left stood Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam. 5 Ezra stood on the platform in full view of all the people. When they saw him open the book, they all rose to their feet.
6 Then Ezra praised the Lord, the great God, and all the people chanted, “Amen! Amen!” as they lifted their hands. Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.
7 The Levites—Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah—then instructed the people in the Law while everyone remained in their places. 8 They read from the Book of the Law of God and clearly explained the meaning of what was being read, helping the people understand each passage.
Footnotes:
8:2 Hebrew on the first day of the seventh month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This day was October 8, 445 B.c.; also see note on 1:1.
INSIGHT:
Nehemiah was the “cupbearer to the king” (Neh. 1:11), a position of great trust and influence in ancient cultures. The cupbearer was responsible to serve wine at the king’s table and would be positioned at the king’s side as an advisor during times of deliberation. Since ancient monarchs were often assassinated by poison, the cupbearer was sometimes required to taste the wine before serving. The person who handled the king’s cup was important and needed to be trustworthy.
Marathon Reading
By Dave Branon
They read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read. Nehemiah 8:8
When the sun came up on the first day of the seventh month in 444 bc, Ezra started reading the law of Moses (what we know as the first five books of the Bible). Standing on a platform in front of the people in Jerusalem, he read it straight through for the next six hours.
Men, women, and children had gathered at the entrance to the city known as the Water Gate to observe the Festival of Trumpets—one of the feasts prescribed for them by God. As they listened, four reactions stand out.
Lord, thank You for this amazing book we call the Bible.
They stood up in reverence for the Book of the Law (Neh. 8:5). They praised God by lifting their hands and saying “Amen.” They bowed down in humble worship (v. 6). Then they listened carefully as the Scriptures were both read and explained to them (v. 8). What an amazing day as the book that “the Lord had commanded for Israel” (v. 1) was read aloud inside Jerusalem’s newly rebuilt walls!
Ezra’s marathon reading session can remind us that God’s words to us are still meant to be a source of praise, worship, and learning. When we open the Bible and learn more about Christ, let’s praise God, worship Him, and seek to discover what He is saying to us now.
Lord, thank You for this amazing book we call the Bible. Thank You for inspiring its creation by the writers You chose to pen its words. Thank You for preserving this book through the ages so we can learn Your people’s story and the good news of Your love.
The goal of Bible study is not just learning but living.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, June 17, 2016
Beware of Criticizing Others
Judge not, that you be not judged. —Matthew 7:1
Jesus’ instructions with regard to judging others is very simply put; He says, “Don’t.” The average Christian is the most piercingly critical individual known. Criticism is one of the ordinary activities of people, but in the spiritual realm nothing is accomplished by it. The effect of criticism is the dividing up of the strengths of the one being criticized. The Holy Spirit is the only one in the proper position to criticize, and He alone is able to show what is wrong without hurting and wounding. It is impossible to enter into fellowship with God when you are in a critical mood. Criticism serves to make you harsh, vindictive, and cruel, and leaves you with the soothing and flattering idea that you are somehow superior to others. Jesus says that as His disciple you should cultivate a temperament that is never critical. This will not happen quickly but must be developed over a span of time. You must constantly beware of anything that causes you to think of yourself as a superior person.
There is no escaping the penetrating search of my life by Jesus. If I see the little speck in your eye, it means that I have a plank of timber in my own (see Matthew 7:3-5). Every wrong thing that I see in you, God finds in me. Every time I judge, I condemn myself (see Romans 2:17-24). Stop having a measuring stick for other people. There is always at least one more fact, which we know nothing about, in every person’s situation. The first thing God does is to give us a thorough spiritual cleaning. After that, there is no possibility of pride remaining in us. I have never met a person I could despair of, or lose all hope for, after discerning what lies in me apart from the grace of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
To live a life alone with God does not mean that we live it apart from everyone else. The connection between godly men and women and those associated with them is continually revealed in the Bible, e.g., 1 Timothy 4:10. Not Knowing Whither, 867 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, June 17, 2016
Good News for Dad - #7680
I enjoy reading my newspaper. My kids enjoyed crashing through my newspaper to sit on my lap. Nowadays, it's getting harder to bother your father while he's checking out the news. You'd have to jump on his iPhone.
Anyway, I could relate when I heard about this little guy who kept interrupting his dad while he was reading his voluminous Sunday paper. For a while, Dad was able to buy a little time by saying "pretty soon, Son." But eventually, Son wasn't buying it.
So, deeply immersed in the sports section, his father had a sudden brainstorm. There just happened to be a full page ad that showed a map of the whole world. Resourceful Dad tore it into lots of little puzzle pieces. "Here, Scotty - why don't you put this puzzle together? As soon as you're finished, I promise we'll go out and play ball." Scotty eagerly hit the floor with his ragged pieces of the world.
It was just about two minutes later when he came knocking again on his father's newspaper. "I'm done, Daddy." "What? With all those pieces? How did you ever put the whole world together that fast?" The boy's answer blew his dad away. "It was easy, Daddy. There was a picture of a man on the other side!" Score one for the kid. But then came the clincher: "And when you put the man together right, the world goes together just fine!"
This Father's Day season, a lot of dads will get celebrated - maybe even pampered a little, if they're lucky. But beneath the "World's Greatest Dad" shirts and the "You rock, Dad!" cards, a lot of fathers realize an uncomfortable secret. "I'm not the man I should be." I know this man needs some "putting together right."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Good News for Dad."
Being a dad exposes a lot of baggage you might have been able to ignore before. Our children see behind closed doors the real us that few outside ever see. Our kids are our mirror. And sometimes we don't like what we see. Like those things that our parents did that we said we'd never do - and we're doing them. We see - reflected in our children - our weaknesses, our failures, our selfishness, and our baggage. One dad told me, "I look out the window at my precious eight-year-old daughter in the yard - and I think, 'I just can't be what she needs me to be.'"
Every father who's honest with himself knows the feelings that are expressed so bluntly by one of the writers of the Bible. He said, "What I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." Then he cries out in a desperate desire to change: "Who will rescue me?" That's in Romans 7:15, 24.
That's what all of us fathers need - if we'll be honest about the darkness we've got in us. We need a rescuer. That Bible writer found Him. The answer to his "who will rescue me?" is to the point - "Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!"
That's right! Jesus came here to tame the monster of sin that first poisons us, and then progressively poisons everyone we love. I might not have thought it was so bad when I was the only one being hurt by my sin. But now it scars the people I love the most. I want to change - but if I could have changed, I would have. Like every dad, I really do need the Rescuer.
Truth is, a man needs Jesus to be the man he needs to be. That his wife needs him to be. That his children really need him to be. And when a man surrenders himself to Jesus, He unleashes the same power that raised Him from the dead to change a man from the inside out.
The Bible promises in our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Corinthians 5:17, "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation." Jesus can beat the sin in a man because He died on the cross to pay for every sin of our life. The selfish things and hurting things - He'll forgive every one of them! Then that son or daughter God gave you gets a gift that will change them, too. They get a new dad, with Jesus in his life.
Because when Jesus puts the man together right, the world of his family will go together just fine.
Dad, are you ready to get started with Jesus? Tell Him that right now, with Him driving, not you anymore. Go to our website, and let me show you exactly the steps to take to make sure you belong to Him. Go to ANewStory.com
When God wanted to rescue us, He came to us as a man. The 12 people who were the original "Team Jesus" were all men - real men. For 2,000 years, men have found in the God-man, Jesus Christ, the power to love, to change, and to be forgiven. But it starts with a choice. Jesus, you're driving, I'm not.
Let’s pray—first! Traveling to help the hungry? Be sure to bathe your mission in prayer. Weary of a world of racism and division? So is God. And he would love to talk with you about it.
Let’s pray—most! Did God call us to preach without ceasing? Or teach without ceasing? Or have committee meetings without ceasing? Or sing without ceasing? No, but he did call us to “pray without ceasing” (I Thessalonians 5:17).
Did Jesus declare…my house shall be called a house of study? Fellowship? Music? A house of activities? No, but he did say “My house will be called a house of prayer” (Mark 11:17). Jesus said, “When two of you get together on anything and make a prayer of it, my Father in heaven goes into action” (Matthew 18:19).
So, Pray! Pray first and pray most!
From God is With You Every Day
1 Chronicles 19
David Defeats the Ammonites
In the course of time, Nahash king of the Ammonites died, and his son succeeded him as king. 2 David thought, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent a delegation to express his sympathy to Hanun concerning his father.
When David’s envoys came to Hanun in the land of the Ammonites to express sympathy to him, 3 the Ammonite commanders said to Hanun, “Do you think David is honoring your father by sending envoys to you to express sympathy? Haven’t his envoys come to you only to explore and spy out the country and overthrow it?” 4 So Hanun seized David’s envoys, shaved them, cut off their garments at the buttocks, and sent them away.
5 When someone came and told David about the men, he sent messengers to meet them, for they were greatly humiliated. The king said, “Stay at Jericho till your beards have grown, and then come back.”
6 When the Ammonites realized that they had become obnoxious to David, Hanun and the Ammonites sent a thousand talents[e] of silver to hire chariots and charioteers from Aram Naharaim,[f] Aram Maakah and Zobah. 7 They hired thirty-two thousand chariots and charioteers, as well as the king of Maakah with his troops, who came and camped near Medeba, while the Ammonites were mustered from their towns and moved out for battle.
8 On hearing this, David sent Joab out with the entire army of fighting men. 9 The Ammonites came out and drew up in battle formation at the entrance to their city, while the kings who had come were by themselves in the open country.
10 Joab saw that there were battle lines in front of him and behind him; so he selected some of the best troops in Israel and deployed them against the Arameans. 11 He put the rest of the men under the command of Abishai his brother, and they were deployed against the Ammonites. 12 Joab said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you are to rescue me; but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will rescue you. 13 Be strong, and let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God. The Lord will do what is good in his sight.”
14 Then Joab and the troops with him advanced to fight the Arameans, and they fled before him. 15 When the Ammonites realized that the Arameans were fleeing, they too fled before his brother Abishai and went inside the city. So Joab went back to Jerusalem.
16 After the Arameans saw that they had been routed by Israel, they sent messengers and had Arameans brought from beyond the Euphrates River, with Shophak the commander of Hadadezer’s army leading them.
17 When David was told of this, he gathered all Israel and crossed the Jordan; he advanced against them and formed his battle lines opposite them. David formed his lines to meet the Arameans in battle, and they fought against him. 18 But they fled before Israel, and David killed seven thousand of their charioteers and forty thousand of their foot soldiers. He also killed Shophak the commander of their army.
19 When the vassals of Hadadezer saw that they had been routed by Israel, they made peace with David and became subject to him.
So the Arameans were not willing to help the Ammonites anymore.
Footnotes:
1 Chronicles 19:6 That is, about 38 tons or about 34 metric tons
1 Chronicles 19:6 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, June 17, 2016
Read: Nehemiah 8:1–8
all the people assembled with a unified purpose at the square just inside the Water Gate. They asked Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had given for Israel to obey.
2 So on October 8[a] Ezra the priest brought the Book of the Law before the assembly, which included the men and women and all the children old enough to understand. 3 He faced the square just inside the Water Gate from early morning until noon and read aloud to everyone who could understand. All the people listened closely to the Book of the Law.
4 Ezra the scribe stood on a high wooden platform that had been made for the occasion. To his right stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah. To his left stood Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam. 5 Ezra stood on the platform in full view of all the people. When they saw him open the book, they all rose to their feet.
6 Then Ezra praised the Lord, the great God, and all the people chanted, “Amen! Amen!” as they lifted their hands. Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.
7 The Levites—Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah—then instructed the people in the Law while everyone remained in their places. 8 They read from the Book of the Law of God and clearly explained the meaning of what was being read, helping the people understand each passage.
Footnotes:
8:2 Hebrew on the first day of the seventh month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This day was October 8, 445 B.c.; also see note on 1:1.
INSIGHT:
Nehemiah was the “cupbearer to the king” (Neh. 1:11), a position of great trust and influence in ancient cultures. The cupbearer was responsible to serve wine at the king’s table and would be positioned at the king’s side as an advisor during times of deliberation. Since ancient monarchs were often assassinated by poison, the cupbearer was sometimes required to taste the wine before serving. The person who handled the king’s cup was important and needed to be trustworthy.
Marathon Reading
By Dave Branon
They read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read. Nehemiah 8:8
When the sun came up on the first day of the seventh month in 444 bc, Ezra started reading the law of Moses (what we know as the first five books of the Bible). Standing on a platform in front of the people in Jerusalem, he read it straight through for the next six hours.
Men, women, and children had gathered at the entrance to the city known as the Water Gate to observe the Festival of Trumpets—one of the feasts prescribed for them by God. As they listened, four reactions stand out.
Lord, thank You for this amazing book we call the Bible.
They stood up in reverence for the Book of the Law (Neh. 8:5). They praised God by lifting their hands and saying “Amen.” They bowed down in humble worship (v. 6). Then they listened carefully as the Scriptures were both read and explained to them (v. 8). What an amazing day as the book that “the Lord had commanded for Israel” (v. 1) was read aloud inside Jerusalem’s newly rebuilt walls!
Ezra’s marathon reading session can remind us that God’s words to us are still meant to be a source of praise, worship, and learning. When we open the Bible and learn more about Christ, let’s praise God, worship Him, and seek to discover what He is saying to us now.
Lord, thank You for this amazing book we call the Bible. Thank You for inspiring its creation by the writers You chose to pen its words. Thank You for preserving this book through the ages so we can learn Your people’s story and the good news of Your love.
The goal of Bible study is not just learning but living.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, June 17, 2016
Beware of Criticizing Others
Judge not, that you be not judged. —Matthew 7:1
Jesus’ instructions with regard to judging others is very simply put; He says, “Don’t.” The average Christian is the most piercingly critical individual known. Criticism is one of the ordinary activities of people, but in the spiritual realm nothing is accomplished by it. The effect of criticism is the dividing up of the strengths of the one being criticized. The Holy Spirit is the only one in the proper position to criticize, and He alone is able to show what is wrong without hurting and wounding. It is impossible to enter into fellowship with God when you are in a critical mood. Criticism serves to make you harsh, vindictive, and cruel, and leaves you with the soothing and flattering idea that you are somehow superior to others. Jesus says that as His disciple you should cultivate a temperament that is never critical. This will not happen quickly but must be developed over a span of time. You must constantly beware of anything that causes you to think of yourself as a superior person.
There is no escaping the penetrating search of my life by Jesus. If I see the little speck in your eye, it means that I have a plank of timber in my own (see Matthew 7:3-5). Every wrong thing that I see in you, God finds in me. Every time I judge, I condemn myself (see Romans 2:17-24). Stop having a measuring stick for other people. There is always at least one more fact, which we know nothing about, in every person’s situation. The first thing God does is to give us a thorough spiritual cleaning. After that, there is no possibility of pride remaining in us. I have never met a person I could despair of, or lose all hope for, after discerning what lies in me apart from the grace of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
To live a life alone with God does not mean that we live it apart from everyone else. The connection between godly men and women and those associated with them is continually revealed in the Bible, e.g., 1 Timothy 4:10. Not Knowing Whither, 867 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, June 17, 2016
Good News for Dad - #7680
I enjoy reading my newspaper. My kids enjoyed crashing through my newspaper to sit on my lap. Nowadays, it's getting harder to bother your father while he's checking out the news. You'd have to jump on his iPhone.
Anyway, I could relate when I heard about this little guy who kept interrupting his dad while he was reading his voluminous Sunday paper. For a while, Dad was able to buy a little time by saying "pretty soon, Son." But eventually, Son wasn't buying it.
So, deeply immersed in the sports section, his father had a sudden brainstorm. There just happened to be a full page ad that showed a map of the whole world. Resourceful Dad tore it into lots of little puzzle pieces. "Here, Scotty - why don't you put this puzzle together? As soon as you're finished, I promise we'll go out and play ball." Scotty eagerly hit the floor with his ragged pieces of the world.
It was just about two minutes later when he came knocking again on his father's newspaper. "I'm done, Daddy." "What? With all those pieces? How did you ever put the whole world together that fast?" The boy's answer blew his dad away. "It was easy, Daddy. There was a picture of a man on the other side!" Score one for the kid. But then came the clincher: "And when you put the man together right, the world goes together just fine!"
This Father's Day season, a lot of dads will get celebrated - maybe even pampered a little, if they're lucky. But beneath the "World's Greatest Dad" shirts and the "You rock, Dad!" cards, a lot of fathers realize an uncomfortable secret. "I'm not the man I should be." I know this man needs some "putting together right."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Good News for Dad."
Being a dad exposes a lot of baggage you might have been able to ignore before. Our children see behind closed doors the real us that few outside ever see. Our kids are our mirror. And sometimes we don't like what we see. Like those things that our parents did that we said we'd never do - and we're doing them. We see - reflected in our children - our weaknesses, our failures, our selfishness, and our baggage. One dad told me, "I look out the window at my precious eight-year-old daughter in the yard - and I think, 'I just can't be what she needs me to be.'"
Every father who's honest with himself knows the feelings that are expressed so bluntly by one of the writers of the Bible. He said, "What I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." Then he cries out in a desperate desire to change: "Who will rescue me?" That's in Romans 7:15, 24.
That's what all of us fathers need - if we'll be honest about the darkness we've got in us. We need a rescuer. That Bible writer found Him. The answer to his "who will rescue me?" is to the point - "Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!"
That's right! Jesus came here to tame the monster of sin that first poisons us, and then progressively poisons everyone we love. I might not have thought it was so bad when I was the only one being hurt by my sin. But now it scars the people I love the most. I want to change - but if I could have changed, I would have. Like every dad, I really do need the Rescuer.
Truth is, a man needs Jesus to be the man he needs to be. That his wife needs him to be. That his children really need him to be. And when a man surrenders himself to Jesus, He unleashes the same power that raised Him from the dead to change a man from the inside out.
The Bible promises in our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Corinthians 5:17, "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation." Jesus can beat the sin in a man because He died on the cross to pay for every sin of our life. The selfish things and hurting things - He'll forgive every one of them! Then that son or daughter God gave you gets a gift that will change them, too. They get a new dad, with Jesus in his life.
Because when Jesus puts the man together right, the world of his family will go together just fine.
Dad, are you ready to get started with Jesus? Tell Him that right now, with Him driving, not you anymore. Go to our website, and let me show you exactly the steps to take to make sure you belong to Him. Go to ANewStory.com
When God wanted to rescue us, He came to us as a man. The 12 people who were the original "Team Jesus" were all men - real men. For 2,000 years, men have found in the God-man, Jesus Christ, the power to love, to change, and to be forgiven. But it starts with a choice. Jesus, you're driving, I'm not.
Thursday, June 16, 2016
1 Chronicles 18 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: THE FINAL WORD
God has the final word on your life. And his word is grace! According to the Bible, Jesus said, “The Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins” (Mark 2:10).
If you are in Christ, your sin is gone. Jesus did his part. Now do yours. Give God your guilt. Tell Jesus what you did. Hold nothing back. Go into as much detail as you can. Healing happens when the wound is exposed to the atmosphere of grace. Confession is not a punishment for sin; it is an isolation of sin so it can be exposed and extracted.
Be firm in your prayer! Satan traffics in guilt. So tell his guilt where to get off. And for heaven’s sake, stop tormenting yourself. Jesus is strong enough to carry your sin. Did he not say he would do so? Believe him. He has the final word.
From God is With You Every Day
1 Chronicles 18
David’s Victories
In the course of time, David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and he took Gath and its surrounding villages from the control of the Philistines.
2 David also defeated the Moabites, and they became subject to him and brought him tribute.
3 Moreover, David defeated Hadadezer king of Zobah, in the vicinity of Hamath, when he went to set up his monument at[b] the Euphrates River. 4 David captured a thousand of his chariots, seven thousand charioteers and twenty thousand foot soldiers. He hamstrung all but a hundred of the chariot horses.
5 When the Arameans of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand of them. 6 He put garrisons in the Aramean kingdom of Damascus, and the Arameans became subject to him and brought him tribute. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.
7 David took the gold shields carried by the officers of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 From Tebah[c] and Kun, towns that belonged to Hadadezer, David took a great quantity of bronze, which Solomon used to make the bronze Sea, the pillars and various bronze articles.
9 When Tou king of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer king of Zobah, 10 he sent his son Hadoram to King David to greet him and congratulate him on his victory in battle over Hadadezer, who had been at war with Tou. Hadoram brought all kinds of articles of gold, of silver and of bronze.
11 King David dedicated these articles to the Lord, as he had done with the silver and gold he had taken from all these nations: Edom and Moab, the Ammonites and the Philistines, and Amalek.
12 Abishai son of Zeruiah struck down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt. 13 He put garrisons in Edom, and all the Edomites became subject to David. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.
David’s Officials
14 David reigned over all Israel, doing what was just and right for all his people. 15 Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was recorder; 16 Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelek[d] son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was secretary; 17 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials at the king’s side.
Footnotes:
1 Chronicles 18:3 Or to restore his control over
1 Chronicles 18:8 Hebrew Tibhath, a variant of Tebah
1 Chronicles 18:16 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Vulgate and Syriac (see also 2 Samuel 8:17); most Hebrew manuscripts Abimelek
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, June 16, 2016
Read: Judges 2:7–19
And the Israelites served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and the leaders who outlived him—those who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel.
8 Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110. 9 They buried him in the land he had been allocated, at Timnath-serah[a] in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.
Israel Disobeys the Lord
10 After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel.
11 The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight and served the images of Baal. 12 They abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them. And they angered the Lord. 13 They abandoned the Lord to serve Baal and the images of Ashtoreth. 14 This made the Lord burn with anger against Israel, so he handed them over to raiders who stole their possessions. He turned them over to their enemies all around, and they were no longer able to resist them. 15 Every time Israel went out to battle, the Lord fought against them, causing them to be defeated, just as he had warned. And the people were in great distress.
The Lord Rescues His People
16 Then the Lord raised up judges to rescue the Israelites from their attackers. 17 Yet Israel did not listen to the judges but prostituted themselves by worshiping other gods. How quickly they turned away from the path of their ancestors, who had walked in obedience to the Lord’s commands.
18 Whenever the Lord raised up a judge over Israel, he was with that judge and rescued the people from their enemies throughout the judge’s lifetime. For the Lord took pity on his people, who were burdened by oppression and suffering. 19 But when the judge died, the people returned to their corrupt ways, behaving worse than those who had lived before them. They went after other gods, serving and worshiping them. And they refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.
Footnotes:
2:9 As in parallel text at Josh 24:30; Hebrew reads Timnath-heres, a variant spelling of Timnath-serah.
INSIGHT:
After Joshua died, Israel began worshiping the Canaanite fertility deities Baal and Ashtoreth. In Judges 2 this sin of idolatry is likely presented in terms of harlotry or prostitution (v. 17) to reinforce the unfaithfulness of idolatry and the sexual nature of Baal and Ashtoreth worship.
Some Assembly Required
By Randy Kilgore
Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies. Judges 2:18
Around our home, the words “some assembly required” have been the cause of great frustration (mine) and great humor (my family). When my wife and I first married, I attempted to make simple home repairs—with disastrous results. A repaired shower handle worked perfectly—if the plan was for the water to run between the walls. My fiascoes continued after we had children, when I assured my wife, Cheryl, I “don’t need instructions” to put these “simple” toys together. Wrong!
Gradually, I learned my lesson and began to pay strict attention to the instructions and things went together as they should. Unfortunately, the longer things went well, the more confident I became, and soon I was again ignoring instructions with predictably disastrous results.
God has reasons for all of the instructions He’s given us.
The ancient Israelites struggled with a similar tendency: they would forget God, ignoring His instructions to avoid following after Baal and the other gods of the region (Judg. 2:12). This produced disastrous results, until God, in His mercy, raised up judges to rescue them and bring them back to Himself (v. 18).
God has reasons for all of the instructions He’s given us to keep our affections on Him. Only by a daily awareness of His loving presence can we resist the temptation to “construct” our lives our own way. What great gifts He has given us in His Word and His presence!
Lord, keep me close to You this day. Remind me of Your presence through Your Word and prayer and the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Our greatest privilege is to enjoy God’s presence.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, June 16, 2016
“Will You Lay Down Your Life?”
Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends….I have called you friends… —John 15:13, 15
Jesus does not ask me to die for Him, but to lay down my life for Him. Peter said to the Lord, “I will lay down my life for Your sake,” and he meant it (John 13:37). He had a magnificent sense of the heroic. For us to be incapable of making this same statement Peter made would be a bad thing— our sense of duty is only fully realized through our sense of heroism. Has the Lord ever asked you, “Will you lay down your life for My sake?” (John 13:38). It is much easier to die than to lay down your life day in and day out with the sense of the high calling of God. We are not made for the bright-shining moments of life, but we have to walk in the light of them in our everyday ways. There was only one bright-shining moment in the life of Jesus, and that was on the Mount of Transfiguration. It was there that He emptied Himself of His glory for the second time, and then came down into the demon-possessed valley (seeMark 9:1-29). For thirty-three years Jesus laid down His life to do the will of His Father. “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren” (1 John 3:16). Yet it is contrary to our human nature to do so.
If I am a friend of Jesus, I must deliberately and carefully lay down my life for Him. It is a difficult thing to do, and thank God that it is. Salvation is easy for us, because it cost God so much. But the exhibiting of salvation in my life is difficult. God saves a person, fills him with the Holy Spirit, and then says, in effect, “Now you work it out in your life, and be faithful to Me, even though the nature of everything around you is to cause you to be unfaithful.” And Jesus says to us, “…I have called you friends….” Remain faithful to your Friend, and remember that His honor is at stake in your bodily life.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
When you are joyful, be joyful; when you are sad, be sad. If God has given you a sweet cup, don’t make it bitter; and if He has given you a bitter cup, don’t try and make it sweet; take things as they come. Shade of His Hand, 1226 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, June 16, 2016
The Trail You're Leaving - #7679
My daughter and I hugged a lot when she was little. Even when she got to be a grownup college student, we would still declare "hug alert!" Sometimes, when I hug my daughter, she'll say, "You smell like Daddy." Now, I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing. Now she hugs other men, of course – her husband, most of all...her brothers. She tells me they smell like themselves, too. I guess it's good that I smell like Daddy – I'd hate to smell like someone else. The fact is that people actually do have a distinctive aroma, whether it's pleasant or unpleasant. And we remember the smell they leave behind, don't we?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Trail You're Leaving."
Our word for today from the Word of God actually talks about the fragrance you should be remembered for. It's in 2 Corinthians 2:14. "Thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him."
You probably know someone who is preceded by the aroma of their cologne or their perfume or after shave – and whose aroma lingers even after they move on. Well the impact of your life is described in this verse as a fragrance. What is that fragrance? It's the knowledge of Christ. In other words, people should be thinking of Jesus after you've been with them. They should have had a taste of Jesus by being around you. Do they?
Modern Christianity tends to measure our influence by our actions – the words you speak, the groups you lead, the good deeds you do, the people you help, the activities you support. But your greatest impact on lives doesn't come through the actions you do – it comes through the atmosphere you create. And everywhere you are you are creating some kind of atmosphere, some kind of aroma. The question is – what kind?
When you walk into your home, what aroma do you bring? Stress or peace? Gentleness or harshness? Do you bring affection or coldness? A servant spirit or self-centeredness? What kind of atmosphere accompanies you at work or at school - that you're all about yourself or that you're all about other people? Patient or impatient? A positive attitude or a negative attitude? Thankfulness or complaining?
After all is said and done, people may not remember much of what you said or most of what you did. But they will remember the atmosphere you left behind – how they feel when you're around. It could even be that your positive actions are actually cancelled out by the stinky atmosphere you bring – the stress, the insensitivity, and the criticism you create while you're doing all those good things. You can be doing great stuff and have a lousy attitude and drag people down. What people are supposed to experience by being around you is "the fragrance of the knowledge of Jesus." Do you remember what impressed even the enemies of Christ? It's told about in Acts 4:13 "They took note that these men had been with Jesus." Even though they were against those men, they noticed that they had been around Jesus and they reminded them of Jesus.
Your aroma is there longer than you are. And the aroma you should be leaving is the finest fragrance of all...the Essence of Jesus.
God has the final word on your life. And his word is grace! According to the Bible, Jesus said, “The Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins” (Mark 2:10).
If you are in Christ, your sin is gone. Jesus did his part. Now do yours. Give God your guilt. Tell Jesus what you did. Hold nothing back. Go into as much detail as you can. Healing happens when the wound is exposed to the atmosphere of grace. Confession is not a punishment for sin; it is an isolation of sin so it can be exposed and extracted.
Be firm in your prayer! Satan traffics in guilt. So tell his guilt where to get off. And for heaven’s sake, stop tormenting yourself. Jesus is strong enough to carry your sin. Did he not say he would do so? Believe him. He has the final word.
From God is With You Every Day
1 Chronicles 18
David’s Victories
In the course of time, David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and he took Gath and its surrounding villages from the control of the Philistines.
2 David also defeated the Moabites, and they became subject to him and brought him tribute.
3 Moreover, David defeated Hadadezer king of Zobah, in the vicinity of Hamath, when he went to set up his monument at[b] the Euphrates River. 4 David captured a thousand of his chariots, seven thousand charioteers and twenty thousand foot soldiers. He hamstrung all but a hundred of the chariot horses.
5 When the Arameans of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand of them. 6 He put garrisons in the Aramean kingdom of Damascus, and the Arameans became subject to him and brought him tribute. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.
7 David took the gold shields carried by the officers of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 From Tebah[c] and Kun, towns that belonged to Hadadezer, David took a great quantity of bronze, which Solomon used to make the bronze Sea, the pillars and various bronze articles.
9 When Tou king of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer king of Zobah, 10 he sent his son Hadoram to King David to greet him and congratulate him on his victory in battle over Hadadezer, who had been at war with Tou. Hadoram brought all kinds of articles of gold, of silver and of bronze.
11 King David dedicated these articles to the Lord, as he had done with the silver and gold he had taken from all these nations: Edom and Moab, the Ammonites and the Philistines, and Amalek.
12 Abishai son of Zeruiah struck down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt. 13 He put garrisons in Edom, and all the Edomites became subject to David. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.
David’s Officials
14 David reigned over all Israel, doing what was just and right for all his people. 15 Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was recorder; 16 Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelek[d] son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was secretary; 17 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials at the king’s side.
Footnotes:
1 Chronicles 18:3 Or to restore his control over
1 Chronicles 18:8 Hebrew Tibhath, a variant of Tebah
1 Chronicles 18:16 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Vulgate and Syriac (see also 2 Samuel 8:17); most Hebrew manuscripts Abimelek
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, June 16, 2016
Read: Judges 2:7–19
And the Israelites served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and the leaders who outlived him—those who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel.
8 Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110. 9 They buried him in the land he had been allocated, at Timnath-serah[a] in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.
Israel Disobeys the Lord
10 After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel.
11 The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight and served the images of Baal. 12 They abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them. And they angered the Lord. 13 They abandoned the Lord to serve Baal and the images of Ashtoreth. 14 This made the Lord burn with anger against Israel, so he handed them over to raiders who stole their possessions. He turned them over to their enemies all around, and they were no longer able to resist them. 15 Every time Israel went out to battle, the Lord fought against them, causing them to be defeated, just as he had warned. And the people were in great distress.
The Lord Rescues His People
16 Then the Lord raised up judges to rescue the Israelites from their attackers. 17 Yet Israel did not listen to the judges but prostituted themselves by worshiping other gods. How quickly they turned away from the path of their ancestors, who had walked in obedience to the Lord’s commands.
18 Whenever the Lord raised up a judge over Israel, he was with that judge and rescued the people from their enemies throughout the judge’s lifetime. For the Lord took pity on his people, who were burdened by oppression and suffering. 19 But when the judge died, the people returned to their corrupt ways, behaving worse than those who had lived before them. They went after other gods, serving and worshiping them. And they refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.
Footnotes:
2:9 As in parallel text at Josh 24:30; Hebrew reads Timnath-heres, a variant spelling of Timnath-serah.
INSIGHT:
After Joshua died, Israel began worshiping the Canaanite fertility deities Baal and Ashtoreth. In Judges 2 this sin of idolatry is likely presented in terms of harlotry or prostitution (v. 17) to reinforce the unfaithfulness of idolatry and the sexual nature of Baal and Ashtoreth worship.
Some Assembly Required
By Randy Kilgore
Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies. Judges 2:18
Around our home, the words “some assembly required” have been the cause of great frustration (mine) and great humor (my family). When my wife and I first married, I attempted to make simple home repairs—with disastrous results. A repaired shower handle worked perfectly—if the plan was for the water to run between the walls. My fiascoes continued after we had children, when I assured my wife, Cheryl, I “don’t need instructions” to put these “simple” toys together. Wrong!
Gradually, I learned my lesson and began to pay strict attention to the instructions and things went together as they should. Unfortunately, the longer things went well, the more confident I became, and soon I was again ignoring instructions with predictably disastrous results.
God has reasons for all of the instructions He’s given us.
The ancient Israelites struggled with a similar tendency: they would forget God, ignoring His instructions to avoid following after Baal and the other gods of the region (Judg. 2:12). This produced disastrous results, until God, in His mercy, raised up judges to rescue them and bring them back to Himself (v. 18).
God has reasons for all of the instructions He’s given us to keep our affections on Him. Only by a daily awareness of His loving presence can we resist the temptation to “construct” our lives our own way. What great gifts He has given us in His Word and His presence!
Lord, keep me close to You this day. Remind me of Your presence through Your Word and prayer and the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Our greatest privilege is to enjoy God’s presence.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, June 16, 2016
“Will You Lay Down Your Life?”
Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends….I have called you friends… —John 15:13, 15
Jesus does not ask me to die for Him, but to lay down my life for Him. Peter said to the Lord, “I will lay down my life for Your sake,” and he meant it (John 13:37). He had a magnificent sense of the heroic. For us to be incapable of making this same statement Peter made would be a bad thing— our sense of duty is only fully realized through our sense of heroism. Has the Lord ever asked you, “Will you lay down your life for My sake?” (John 13:38). It is much easier to die than to lay down your life day in and day out with the sense of the high calling of God. We are not made for the bright-shining moments of life, but we have to walk in the light of them in our everyday ways. There was only one bright-shining moment in the life of Jesus, and that was on the Mount of Transfiguration. It was there that He emptied Himself of His glory for the second time, and then came down into the demon-possessed valley (seeMark 9:1-29). For thirty-three years Jesus laid down His life to do the will of His Father. “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren” (1 John 3:16). Yet it is contrary to our human nature to do so.
If I am a friend of Jesus, I must deliberately and carefully lay down my life for Him. It is a difficult thing to do, and thank God that it is. Salvation is easy for us, because it cost God so much. But the exhibiting of salvation in my life is difficult. God saves a person, fills him with the Holy Spirit, and then says, in effect, “Now you work it out in your life, and be faithful to Me, even though the nature of everything around you is to cause you to be unfaithful.” And Jesus says to us, “…I have called you friends….” Remain faithful to your Friend, and remember that His honor is at stake in your bodily life.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
When you are joyful, be joyful; when you are sad, be sad. If God has given you a sweet cup, don’t make it bitter; and if He has given you a bitter cup, don’t try and make it sweet; take things as they come. Shade of His Hand, 1226 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, June 16, 2016
The Trail You're Leaving - #7679
My daughter and I hugged a lot when she was little. Even when she got to be a grownup college student, we would still declare "hug alert!" Sometimes, when I hug my daughter, she'll say, "You smell like Daddy." Now, I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing. Now she hugs other men, of course – her husband, most of all...her brothers. She tells me they smell like themselves, too. I guess it's good that I smell like Daddy – I'd hate to smell like someone else. The fact is that people actually do have a distinctive aroma, whether it's pleasant or unpleasant. And we remember the smell they leave behind, don't we?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Trail You're Leaving."
Our word for today from the Word of God actually talks about the fragrance you should be remembered for. It's in 2 Corinthians 2:14. "Thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him."
You probably know someone who is preceded by the aroma of their cologne or their perfume or after shave – and whose aroma lingers even after they move on. Well the impact of your life is described in this verse as a fragrance. What is that fragrance? It's the knowledge of Christ. In other words, people should be thinking of Jesus after you've been with them. They should have had a taste of Jesus by being around you. Do they?
Modern Christianity tends to measure our influence by our actions – the words you speak, the groups you lead, the good deeds you do, the people you help, the activities you support. But your greatest impact on lives doesn't come through the actions you do – it comes through the atmosphere you create. And everywhere you are you are creating some kind of atmosphere, some kind of aroma. The question is – what kind?
When you walk into your home, what aroma do you bring? Stress or peace? Gentleness or harshness? Do you bring affection or coldness? A servant spirit or self-centeredness? What kind of atmosphere accompanies you at work or at school - that you're all about yourself or that you're all about other people? Patient or impatient? A positive attitude or a negative attitude? Thankfulness or complaining?
After all is said and done, people may not remember much of what you said or most of what you did. But they will remember the atmosphere you left behind – how they feel when you're around. It could even be that your positive actions are actually cancelled out by the stinky atmosphere you bring – the stress, the insensitivity, and the criticism you create while you're doing all those good things. You can be doing great stuff and have a lousy attitude and drag people down. What people are supposed to experience by being around you is "the fragrance of the knowledge of Jesus." Do you remember what impressed even the enemies of Christ? It's told about in Acts 4:13 "They took note that these men had been with Jesus." Even though they were against those men, they noticed that they had been around Jesus and they reminded them of Jesus.
Your aroma is there longer than you are. And the aroma you should be leaving is the finest fragrance of all...the Essence of Jesus.
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
1 Chronicles 17 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: GOD USES FAILURES
Psalm 40:3 says, “He has given me a new song to sing…” Have you heard voices of failure? When you lost your job, flunked the exam, or dropped out of school? When your marriage went south…when you failed? The voices began to howl—and you joined them! Failure finds us all.
Bookstores overflow with volumes on how to succeed. But you’ll look a long time before you find a section called, “How to Succeed at Failing.” Maybe no one knows what to say. But God does. His book is written for failures. David was a moral failure, yet God used him. Elijah was an emotional train wreck after Mount Carmel, but God blessed him. Perfect people? No. Perfect messes? You bet. Yet God used them. A surprising and welcome discovery of the Bible is this: God uses failures!
From God is With You Every Day
1 Chronicles 17
God’s Promise to David
After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under a tent.”
2 Nathan replied to David, “Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you.”
3 But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying:
4 “Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: You are not the one to build me a house to dwell in. 5 I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt to this day. I have moved from one tent site to another, from one dwelling place to another. 6 Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their leaders[a] whom I commanded to shepherd my people, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’
7 “Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. 8 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like the names of the greatest men on earth. 9 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning 10 and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also subdue all your enemies.
“‘I declare to you that the Lord will build a house for you: 11 When your days are over and you go to be with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. 13 I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. 14 I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever.’”
15 Nathan reported to David all the words of this entire revelation.
David’s Prayer
16 Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said:
“Who am I, Lord God, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? 17 And as if this were not enough in your sight, my God, you have spoken about the future of the house of your servant. You, Lord God, have looked on me as though I were the most exalted of men.
18 “What more can David say to you for honoring your servant? For you know your servant, 19 Lord. For the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made known all these great promises.
20 “There is no one like you, Lord, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. 21 And who is like your people Israel—the one nation on earth whose God went out to redeem a people for himself, and to make a name for yourself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt? 22 You made your people Israel your very own forever, and you, Lord, have become their God.
23 “And now, Lord, let the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house be established forever. Do as you promised, 24 so that it will be established and that your name will be great forever. Then people will say, ‘The Lord Almighty, the God over Israel, is Israel’s God!’ And the house of your servant David will be established before you.
25 “You, my God, have revealed to your servant that you will build a house for him. So your servant has found courage to pray to you. 26 You, Lord, are God! You have promised these good things to your servant. 27 Now you have been pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, Lord, have blessed it, and it will be blessed forever.”
Footnotes:
1 Chronicles 17:6 Traditionally judges; also in verse 10
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
Read: Acts 2:1–12
The Holy Spirit Comes
On the day of Pentecost[a] all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages,[b] as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.
5 At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. 6 When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.
7 They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, 8 and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages! 9 Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the areas of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism), Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!” 12 They stood there amazed and perplexed. “What can this mean?” they asked each other.
Footnotes:
2:1 The Festival of Pentecost came 50 days after Passover (when Jesus was crucified).
2:4 Or in other tongues.
INSIGHT:
Hours before Jesus went to the cross, He promised His disciples He would send “another advocate to help [them] and be with [them] forever—the Spirit of truth” (John 14:16–17). Before ascending to heaven, Jesus restated His promise of the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4–5). What Jesus promised, the Father fulfilled on the day of Pentecost (2:1–12). The Feast of Pentecost is also called the Festival of Harvest (Ex. 23:16) or the Festival of Weeks (Deut. 16:10). It is celebrated fifty days after Passover to express thanks to the Lord for the blessing of the harvest (Lev. 23:15–22). Jesus celebrated the Passover with His disciples on the day He died (Mark 14:12; Luke 22:15; John 18:28), and the Holy Spirit was sent fifty days later.
True Communication
By Amy Boucher Pye
A crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Acts 2:6
Walking in my North London neighborhood, I can hear snatches of conversation in many languages—Polish, Japanese, Hindi, Croatian, and Italian, to name a few. This diversity feels like a taste of heaven, yet I can’t understand what they’re saying. As I step into the Russian café or the Polish market and hear the different accents and sounds, I sometimes reflect on how wonderful it must have been on the day of Pentecost when people of many nations could understand what the disciples were saying.
On that day, pilgrims gathered together in Jerusalem to celebrate the festival of the harvest. The Holy Spirit rested on the believers so that when they spoke, the hearers (who had come from all over the known world) could understand them in their own languages (Acts 2:5–6). What a miracle that these strangers from different lands could understand the praises to God in their own tongues! Many were spurred on to find out more about Jesus.
Lord, give us eyes to see those around us as You see them.
We may not speak or understand many languages, but we know that the Holy Spirit equips us to connect with people in other ways. Amazingly, we are God’s hands and feet—and mouth—to further His mission. Today, how might we—with the Spirit’s help—reach out to someone unlike us?
Lord, give us eyes to see those around us as You see them. Give us ears to hear their stories; give us hearts to share Your love.
Share your story of how you've helped others at odb.org
Love is the language everybody understands.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
Get Moving! (2)
Also…add to your faith… —2 Peter 1:5
In the matter of drudgery. Peter said in this passage that we have become “partakers of the divine nature” and that we should now be “giving all diligence,” concentrating on forming godly habits (2 Peter 1:4-5). We are to “add” to our lives all that character means. No one is born either naturally or supernaturally with character; it must be developed. Nor are we born with habits— we have to form godly habits on the basis of the new life God has placed within us. We are not meant to be seen as God’s perfect, bright-shining examples, but to be seen as the everyday essence of ordinary life exhibiting the miracle of His grace. Drudgery is the test of genuine character. The greatest hindrance in our spiritual life is that we will only look for big things to do. Yet, “Jesus…took a towel and…began to wash the disciples’ feet…” (John 13:3-5).
We all have those times when there are no flashes of light and no apparent thrill to life, where we experience nothing but the daily routine with its common everyday tasks. The routine of life is actually God’s way of saving us between our times of great inspiration which come from Him. Don’t always expect God to give you His thrilling moments, but learn to live in those common times of the drudgery of life by the power of God.
It is difficult for us to do the “adding” that Peter mentioned here. We say we do not expect God to take us to heaven on flowery beds of ease, and yet we act as if we do! I must realize that my obedience even in the smallest detail of life has all of the omnipotent power of the grace of God behind it. If I will do my duty, not for duty’s sake but because I believe God is engineering my circumstances, then at the very point of my obedience all of the magnificent grace of God is mine through the glorious atonement by the Cross of Christ.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Crises reveal character. When we are put to the test the hidden resources of our character are revealed exactly. Disciples Indeed, 393 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
The Power of One Lonely Light - #7678
It was one of those many nights with our team of young Native Americans when God had dramatically shown His power. We were in the middle of a major outreach on a reservation basketball court when some huge storms started to surround us. There were predictions of severe thunderstorms, and it appeared that they were bearing right down on us. Then the storms did something that the locals said storms don't do around there – they stopped. Two hours later, when we had had the time to help many Native young people there begin a relationship with Jesus Christ, the storms roared through. By then we were having our team debriefing in a church fellowship hall. Suddenly, in the middle of our sharing time, all the lights went out. We were in total darkness. In a matter of moments, someone had found some candles, and as soon as we lit a candle, things changed in the room. We could see each other again, even if it was a little dimly. It was just one light, but it wasn't totally dark anymore.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Power of One Lonely Light."
That lonely light in a dark place might be you. Maybe you're in a place where dishonesty seems is the norm, or talking dirty, or talking trash against other people. Where sin is a laughing matter and a way of life people don't even give much thought to. And then there's you. You're the living proof that there's another way to be; that there's hope, not just despair. There's integrity, not just deceit. There's looking out for others, not just looking out for yourself. There's joy, not being negative all the time. You are the light.
That's exactly what our Lord said we were supposed to be. In Matthew 5, beginning with verse 14, our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus said, "You are the light of the world." You certainly are meant to be the light for at least your little corner of the world. "A city on a hill..." He said, "...cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
One thing I saw that night when we were in total darkness is this: it only takes a little light to make a big difference. That's true where you are. You may not feel like you're making much of a difference, but take you out of that place, and it is total darkness. You are the conscience there. You are the face, the voice, and the hands of Jesus there. You are the hope of something better.
And you can be sure Satan is doing everything possible to blow out your light, isn't he? He's pushing all your buttons to discourage you, to get you to compromise, or even to bail out.
But you can't let your light flicker. You can't let your light go dim or go out. When our daughter-in-law was expecting our grandchild, she suddenly gave up something we've kiddingly said she's addicted to – a certain soft drink. Why should she suddenly change her behavior like that? Because she knew that now another life was being affected by her choices. That's how it is where Jesus has placed you as His light. If you flicker, if you go out, it's going to make other lives darker. Whether you realize it or not, whether they realize it or not, you are their best hope.
Some Christians just try to put all the lights together and withdraw the light from dark places. Can you imagine a dark house where you put all the light fixtures in one room and leave the rest of the house dark? You need to spread the light into all the dark places. And if your Savior has placed you in one of those dark places, realize He has trusted you to be His light there. It's a holy trust. It's a life-saving mission. Don't fail them. Don't fail Him by letting your light flicker or go out, or abandoning the darkness.
In a totally dark place one night, I saw the power of one lonely light – it was a very different place because of it. You may be that one lonely light. Burn brightly, because without you it's total darkness.
Psalm 40:3 says, “He has given me a new song to sing…” Have you heard voices of failure? When you lost your job, flunked the exam, or dropped out of school? When your marriage went south…when you failed? The voices began to howl—and you joined them! Failure finds us all.
Bookstores overflow with volumes on how to succeed. But you’ll look a long time before you find a section called, “How to Succeed at Failing.” Maybe no one knows what to say. But God does. His book is written for failures. David was a moral failure, yet God used him. Elijah was an emotional train wreck after Mount Carmel, but God blessed him. Perfect people? No. Perfect messes? You bet. Yet God used them. A surprising and welcome discovery of the Bible is this: God uses failures!
From God is With You Every Day
1 Chronicles 17
God’s Promise to David
After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under a tent.”
2 Nathan replied to David, “Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you.”
3 But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying:
4 “Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: You are not the one to build me a house to dwell in. 5 I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt to this day. I have moved from one tent site to another, from one dwelling place to another. 6 Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their leaders[a] whom I commanded to shepherd my people, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’
7 “Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. 8 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like the names of the greatest men on earth. 9 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning 10 and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also subdue all your enemies.
“‘I declare to you that the Lord will build a house for you: 11 When your days are over and you go to be with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. 13 I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. 14 I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever.’”
15 Nathan reported to David all the words of this entire revelation.
David’s Prayer
16 Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said:
“Who am I, Lord God, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? 17 And as if this were not enough in your sight, my God, you have spoken about the future of the house of your servant. You, Lord God, have looked on me as though I were the most exalted of men.
18 “What more can David say to you for honoring your servant? For you know your servant, 19 Lord. For the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made known all these great promises.
20 “There is no one like you, Lord, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. 21 And who is like your people Israel—the one nation on earth whose God went out to redeem a people for himself, and to make a name for yourself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt? 22 You made your people Israel your very own forever, and you, Lord, have become their God.
23 “And now, Lord, let the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house be established forever. Do as you promised, 24 so that it will be established and that your name will be great forever. Then people will say, ‘The Lord Almighty, the God over Israel, is Israel’s God!’ And the house of your servant David will be established before you.
25 “You, my God, have revealed to your servant that you will build a house for him. So your servant has found courage to pray to you. 26 You, Lord, are God! You have promised these good things to your servant. 27 Now you have been pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, Lord, have blessed it, and it will be blessed forever.”
Footnotes:
1 Chronicles 17:6 Traditionally judges; also in verse 10
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
Read: Acts 2:1–12
The Holy Spirit Comes
On the day of Pentecost[a] all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages,[b] as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.
5 At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. 6 When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.
7 They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, 8 and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages! 9 Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the areas of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism), Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!” 12 They stood there amazed and perplexed. “What can this mean?” they asked each other.
Footnotes:
2:1 The Festival of Pentecost came 50 days after Passover (when Jesus was crucified).
2:4 Or in other tongues.
INSIGHT:
Hours before Jesus went to the cross, He promised His disciples He would send “another advocate to help [them] and be with [them] forever—the Spirit of truth” (John 14:16–17). Before ascending to heaven, Jesus restated His promise of the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4–5). What Jesus promised, the Father fulfilled on the day of Pentecost (2:1–12). The Feast of Pentecost is also called the Festival of Harvest (Ex. 23:16) or the Festival of Weeks (Deut. 16:10). It is celebrated fifty days after Passover to express thanks to the Lord for the blessing of the harvest (Lev. 23:15–22). Jesus celebrated the Passover with His disciples on the day He died (Mark 14:12; Luke 22:15; John 18:28), and the Holy Spirit was sent fifty days later.
True Communication
By Amy Boucher Pye
A crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Acts 2:6
Walking in my North London neighborhood, I can hear snatches of conversation in many languages—Polish, Japanese, Hindi, Croatian, and Italian, to name a few. This diversity feels like a taste of heaven, yet I can’t understand what they’re saying. As I step into the Russian café or the Polish market and hear the different accents and sounds, I sometimes reflect on how wonderful it must have been on the day of Pentecost when people of many nations could understand what the disciples were saying.
On that day, pilgrims gathered together in Jerusalem to celebrate the festival of the harvest. The Holy Spirit rested on the believers so that when they spoke, the hearers (who had come from all over the known world) could understand them in their own languages (Acts 2:5–6). What a miracle that these strangers from different lands could understand the praises to God in their own tongues! Many were spurred on to find out more about Jesus.
Lord, give us eyes to see those around us as You see them.
We may not speak or understand many languages, but we know that the Holy Spirit equips us to connect with people in other ways. Amazingly, we are God’s hands and feet—and mouth—to further His mission. Today, how might we—with the Spirit’s help—reach out to someone unlike us?
Lord, give us eyes to see those around us as You see them. Give us ears to hear their stories; give us hearts to share Your love.
Share your story of how you've helped others at odb.org
Love is the language everybody understands.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
Get Moving! (2)
Also…add to your faith… —2 Peter 1:5
In the matter of drudgery. Peter said in this passage that we have become “partakers of the divine nature” and that we should now be “giving all diligence,” concentrating on forming godly habits (2 Peter 1:4-5). We are to “add” to our lives all that character means. No one is born either naturally or supernaturally with character; it must be developed. Nor are we born with habits— we have to form godly habits on the basis of the new life God has placed within us. We are not meant to be seen as God’s perfect, bright-shining examples, but to be seen as the everyday essence of ordinary life exhibiting the miracle of His grace. Drudgery is the test of genuine character. The greatest hindrance in our spiritual life is that we will only look for big things to do. Yet, “Jesus…took a towel and…began to wash the disciples’ feet…” (John 13:3-5).
We all have those times when there are no flashes of light and no apparent thrill to life, where we experience nothing but the daily routine with its common everyday tasks. The routine of life is actually God’s way of saving us between our times of great inspiration which come from Him. Don’t always expect God to give you His thrilling moments, but learn to live in those common times of the drudgery of life by the power of God.
It is difficult for us to do the “adding” that Peter mentioned here. We say we do not expect God to take us to heaven on flowery beds of ease, and yet we act as if we do! I must realize that my obedience even in the smallest detail of life has all of the omnipotent power of the grace of God behind it. If I will do my duty, not for duty’s sake but because I believe God is engineering my circumstances, then at the very point of my obedience all of the magnificent grace of God is mine through the glorious atonement by the Cross of Christ.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Crises reveal character. When we are put to the test the hidden resources of our character are revealed exactly. Disciples Indeed, 393 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
The Power of One Lonely Light - #7678
It was one of those many nights with our team of young Native Americans when God had dramatically shown His power. We were in the middle of a major outreach on a reservation basketball court when some huge storms started to surround us. There were predictions of severe thunderstorms, and it appeared that they were bearing right down on us. Then the storms did something that the locals said storms don't do around there – they stopped. Two hours later, when we had had the time to help many Native young people there begin a relationship with Jesus Christ, the storms roared through. By then we were having our team debriefing in a church fellowship hall. Suddenly, in the middle of our sharing time, all the lights went out. We were in total darkness. In a matter of moments, someone had found some candles, and as soon as we lit a candle, things changed in the room. We could see each other again, even if it was a little dimly. It was just one light, but it wasn't totally dark anymore.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Power of One Lonely Light."
That lonely light in a dark place might be you. Maybe you're in a place where dishonesty seems is the norm, or talking dirty, or talking trash against other people. Where sin is a laughing matter and a way of life people don't even give much thought to. And then there's you. You're the living proof that there's another way to be; that there's hope, not just despair. There's integrity, not just deceit. There's looking out for others, not just looking out for yourself. There's joy, not being negative all the time. You are the light.
That's exactly what our Lord said we were supposed to be. In Matthew 5, beginning with verse 14, our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus said, "You are the light of the world." You certainly are meant to be the light for at least your little corner of the world. "A city on a hill..." He said, "...cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
One thing I saw that night when we were in total darkness is this: it only takes a little light to make a big difference. That's true where you are. You may not feel like you're making much of a difference, but take you out of that place, and it is total darkness. You are the conscience there. You are the face, the voice, and the hands of Jesus there. You are the hope of something better.
And you can be sure Satan is doing everything possible to blow out your light, isn't he? He's pushing all your buttons to discourage you, to get you to compromise, or even to bail out.
But you can't let your light flicker. You can't let your light go dim or go out. When our daughter-in-law was expecting our grandchild, she suddenly gave up something we've kiddingly said she's addicted to – a certain soft drink. Why should she suddenly change her behavior like that? Because she knew that now another life was being affected by her choices. That's how it is where Jesus has placed you as His light. If you flicker, if you go out, it's going to make other lives darker. Whether you realize it or not, whether they realize it or not, you are their best hope.
Some Christians just try to put all the lights together and withdraw the light from dark places. Can you imagine a dark house where you put all the light fixtures in one room and leave the rest of the house dark? You need to spread the light into all the dark places. And if your Savior has placed you in one of those dark places, realize He has trusted you to be His light there. It's a holy trust. It's a life-saving mission. Don't fail them. Don't fail Him by letting your light flicker or go out, or abandoning the darkness.
In a totally dark place one night, I saw the power of one lonely light – it was a very different place because of it. You may be that one lonely light. Burn brightly, because without you it's total darkness.
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Psalm 88, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: OUTLIVE YOUR LIFE
Many years ago I attended an event where I heard a woman discuss Matthew 25, particularly the passage where Jesus says, “I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink..” The audience was chatty and restless. Yet when she entered the room, all stirring stopped.
She wore her characteristic white Indian sari with a blue border that represented the Missionaries of Charity, the order she had founded in 1950. Her years had bent her already small frame. But there was nothing small about Mother Teresa’s presence. “Give me your unborn children,” she offered. “Don’t abort them. If you cannot raise them, I will. They are precious to God.” I wonder if God creates people like Mother Teresa so he can prove his point– See, you can do something today that will outlive your life.
From God is With You Every Day
Psalm 88
A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah. For the director of music. According to mahalath leannoth.[f] A maskil[g] of Heman the Ezrahite.
1 Lord, you are the God who saves me;
day and night I cry out to you.
2 May my prayer come before you;
turn your ear to my cry.
3 I am overwhelmed with troubles
and my life draws near to death.
4 I am counted among those who go down to the pit;
I am like one without strength.
5 I am set apart with the dead,
like the slain who lie in the grave,
whom you remember no more,
who are cut off from your care.
6 You have put me in the lowest pit,
in the darkest depths.
7 Your wrath lies heavily on me;
you have overwhelmed me with all your waves.[h]
8 You have taken from me my closest friends
and have made me repulsive to them.
I am confined and cannot escape;
9 my eyes are dim with grief.
I call to you, Lord, every day;
I spread out my hands to you.
10 Do you show your wonders to the dead?
Do their spirits rise up and praise you?
11 Is your love declared in the grave,
your faithfulness in Destruction[i]?
12 Are your wonders known in the place of darkness,
or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?
13 But I cry to you for help, Lord;
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
14 Why, Lord, do you reject me
and hide your face from me?
15 From my youth I have suffered and been close to death;
I have borne your terrors and am in despair.
16 Your wrath has swept over me;
your terrors have destroyed me.
17 All day long they surround me like a flood;
they have completely engulfed me.
18 You have taken from me friend and neighbor—
darkness is my closest friend.
Footnotes:
Psalm 88:1 In Hebrew texts 88:1-18 is numbered 88:2-19.
Psalm 88:1 Title: Possibly a tune, “The Suffering of Affliction”
Psalm 88:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
Psalm 88:7 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verse 10.
Psalm 88:11 Hebrew Abaddon
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Read: Genesis 12:1–4; 17:1–2
The Call of Abram
The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”
4 So Abram departed as the Lord had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.
Genesis 17:1-2
Abram Is Named Abraham
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. 2 I will make a covenant with you, by which I will guarantee to give you countless descendants.”
INSIGHT:
Sometimes we read past the ages of individuals listed in the Bible, unless of course they are shocking in some way (such as Methuselah, who was 969 years old when he died [Gen. 5:27]). When only a few details are recorded, they should be given special attention. We can ask, Why is this here? Abraham’s age in verse four of today’s reading is one such detail. Abraham was 75 when he answered the call to follow God. He grew up in an idolatrous society and a pagan home (Josh. 24:2). Perhaps the reason his age is listed is to show that God calls each person when and how He wills. To us it makes more sense to call a person to travel a great distance and start a large family when he or she is young. But the timing is God’s, even if it doesn’t make sense to us.
God of the Ordinary
By Joe Stowell
He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. 1 Corinthians 10:13
Hearing testimonies about how God did something spectacular in someone else’s life can challenge us. While we may rejoice to hear about answers to prayer, we may also wonder why God hasn’t done anything amazing for us lately.
It’s easy to think that if God showed up in astonishing ways for us like He did for Abraham, then we would be more inspired to be faithful servants of God. But then we remember that God showed up for Abraham every 12 to 14 years, and most of Abraham’s journey was rather ordinary (see Gen. 12:1–4; 15:1–6; 16:16–17:12).
Thank God for the amazing things He has done for us.
God’s work is usually done behind the scenes in the ordinary things of life. As 1 Corinthians 10 says, “He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out.” Every day God is busy shielding us from devastating onslaughts of Satan that would otherwise leave us helplessly defeated. And when temptation hits, He is making exit ramps for us so we can escape.
When we put our head on the pillow at night, we should pause to thank God for the amazing things He has done for us that day in the midst of our ordinary lives. So, instead of longing for Him to do something spectacular for you, thank Him! He already has.
Lord, help me to be constantly aware that Your power and presence are with me even in the ordinary times in my life. Thank You for Your amazing work on my behalf that I know nothing about.
God is always in control behind the scenes, even on “ordinary” days.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Get Moving! (1)
Abide in Me… —John 15:4
In the matter of determination. The Spirit of Jesus is put into me by way of the atonement by the Cross of Christ. I then have to build my thinking patiently to bring it into perfect harmony with my Lord. God will not make me think like Jesus— I have to do it myself. I have to bring “every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). “Abide in Me”— in intellectual matters, in money matters, in every one of the matters that make human life what it is. Our lives are not made up of only one neatly confined area.
Am I preventing God from doing things in my circumstances by saying that it will only serve to hinder my fellowship with Him? How irrelevant and disrespectful that is! It does not matter what my circumstances are. I can be as much assured of abiding in Jesus in any one of them as I am in any prayer meeting. It is unnecessary to change and arrange my circumstances myself. Our Lord’s inner abiding was pure and unblemished. He was at home with God wherever His body was. He never chose His own circumstances, but was meek, submitting to His Father’s plans and directions for Him. Just think of how amazingly relaxed our Lord’s life was! But we tend to keep God at a fever pitch in our lives. We have none of the serenity of the life which is “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).
Think of the things that take you out of the position of abiding in Christ. You say, “Yes, Lord, just a minute— I still have this to do. Yes, I will abide as soon as this is finished, or as soon as this week is over. It will be all right, Lord. I will abide then.” Get moving— begin to abide now. In the initial stages it will be a continual effort to abide, but as you continue, it will become so much a part of your life that you will abide in Him without any conscious effort. Make the determination to abide in Jesus wherever you are now or wherever you may be placed in the future.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We are in danger of being stern where God is tender, and of being tender where God is stern. The Love of God—The Message of Invincible Consolation, 673 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Making Sure You're Secure - #7677
"Office of Homeland Security" – I suppose there are some younger people that didn't know that wasn't always part of the United States government. It's a pretty new thing. The fact that we have, and that we need, an Office of Homeland Security pretty much tells the story of the kind of world we're in right now. I mean, we've got enhanced security at our airports, sometimes tours are curtailed at many public utilities, your bags get searched at sporting events, and business is booming at security companies.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Making Sure You're Secure."
Security is on a lot of our minds these days. We feel a lot more vulnerable, probably, than we ever have. I mean, when we think about security for here and now. Unfortunately, we tend to neglect the largest security concerns of all – our security beyond this life, beyond our last heartbeat. It's eternally important to know that you're safe then. Whether it's the awful toll we've seen in terrorist attacks, or just the death of someone in our personal world, there are constant reminders that eternity can come so close, so quickly.
I once heard about a medieval king who was on his deathbed. He called for the court jester; they called him the court fool back then. He wanted him to come and make him feel better. At one point, the king said, "Fool, I am going on a long journey from which I will not return." The court fool asked if the king had made preparations for his journey, to which the king answered 'no'. The jester answered, "Then, sire, I fear that you are a greater fool than I."
That sounds like a conversation God had with a very rich man in our word for today from the Word of God in Luke 12, beginning in verse 19. The man is totally involved in managing his success, protecting his financial security. He says, "I'll say to myself, 'You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink, and be merry.' But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then you will get what you have prepared for yourself'." Tragically, this man who had made such elaborate preparations for his earth-security had made no preparations for eternity.
That man made the mistake of thinking he had many years – a mistake many have made. Frankly, we never know how much longer we have. And you're not secure until you know that you're ready for eternity...which you can be today. 1 John 5, beginning in verse 11, tells us that "God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know you have eternal life." Now that is security! Knowing for sure. Knowing right now that when you die you are going to heaven.
And it all depends on whether you have Jesus. Why? Because He's the One, the only One, who died to remove what will keep you out of heaven – your sin. It can't be repaid by doing good. There's a death penalty for the sin. It can only be erased by putting your trust in the One who took your death penalty for you. When you commit yourself to Jesus, what's between you and God is gone and you "have eternal life"!
That is a choice you can make this very day, right where you are. Don't you want to belong to this Jesus? You can from this day on. You just tell Him you're putting your total trust in Him, you're done running your life. You are His, beginning this day, based on His dying for you.
If you'll go to our website as soon as you possibly can today, I'd love to show you there how to be sure you belong to Jesus Christ. Meet me at ANewStory.com.
With eternity so close, does it make any sense to wait? Ultimate security is knowing you're going to heaven, no matter what happens here. Jesus made His move to get you to heaven when He died on the cross for you. It's your move now.
Many years ago I attended an event where I heard a woman discuss Matthew 25, particularly the passage where Jesus says, “I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink..” The audience was chatty and restless. Yet when she entered the room, all stirring stopped.
She wore her characteristic white Indian sari with a blue border that represented the Missionaries of Charity, the order she had founded in 1950. Her years had bent her already small frame. But there was nothing small about Mother Teresa’s presence. “Give me your unborn children,” she offered. “Don’t abort them. If you cannot raise them, I will. They are precious to God.” I wonder if God creates people like Mother Teresa so he can prove his point– See, you can do something today that will outlive your life.
From God is With You Every Day
Psalm 88
A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah. For the director of music. According to mahalath leannoth.[f] A maskil[g] of Heman the Ezrahite.
1 Lord, you are the God who saves me;
day and night I cry out to you.
2 May my prayer come before you;
turn your ear to my cry.
3 I am overwhelmed with troubles
and my life draws near to death.
4 I am counted among those who go down to the pit;
I am like one without strength.
5 I am set apart with the dead,
like the slain who lie in the grave,
whom you remember no more,
who are cut off from your care.
6 You have put me in the lowest pit,
in the darkest depths.
7 Your wrath lies heavily on me;
you have overwhelmed me with all your waves.[h]
8 You have taken from me my closest friends
and have made me repulsive to them.
I am confined and cannot escape;
9 my eyes are dim with grief.
I call to you, Lord, every day;
I spread out my hands to you.
10 Do you show your wonders to the dead?
Do their spirits rise up and praise you?
11 Is your love declared in the grave,
your faithfulness in Destruction[i]?
12 Are your wonders known in the place of darkness,
or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?
13 But I cry to you for help, Lord;
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
14 Why, Lord, do you reject me
and hide your face from me?
15 From my youth I have suffered and been close to death;
I have borne your terrors and am in despair.
16 Your wrath has swept over me;
your terrors have destroyed me.
17 All day long they surround me like a flood;
they have completely engulfed me.
18 You have taken from me friend and neighbor—
darkness is my closest friend.
Footnotes:
Psalm 88:1 In Hebrew texts 88:1-18 is numbered 88:2-19.
Psalm 88:1 Title: Possibly a tune, “The Suffering of Affliction”
Psalm 88:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
Psalm 88:7 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verse 10.
Psalm 88:11 Hebrew Abaddon
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Read: Genesis 12:1–4; 17:1–2
The Call of Abram
The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”
4 So Abram departed as the Lord had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.
Genesis 17:1-2
Abram Is Named Abraham
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. 2 I will make a covenant with you, by which I will guarantee to give you countless descendants.”
INSIGHT:
Sometimes we read past the ages of individuals listed in the Bible, unless of course they are shocking in some way (such as Methuselah, who was 969 years old when he died [Gen. 5:27]). When only a few details are recorded, they should be given special attention. We can ask, Why is this here? Abraham’s age in verse four of today’s reading is one such detail. Abraham was 75 when he answered the call to follow God. He grew up in an idolatrous society and a pagan home (Josh. 24:2). Perhaps the reason his age is listed is to show that God calls each person when and how He wills. To us it makes more sense to call a person to travel a great distance and start a large family when he or she is young. But the timing is God’s, even if it doesn’t make sense to us.
God of the Ordinary
By Joe Stowell
He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. 1 Corinthians 10:13
Hearing testimonies about how God did something spectacular in someone else’s life can challenge us. While we may rejoice to hear about answers to prayer, we may also wonder why God hasn’t done anything amazing for us lately.
It’s easy to think that if God showed up in astonishing ways for us like He did for Abraham, then we would be more inspired to be faithful servants of God. But then we remember that God showed up for Abraham every 12 to 14 years, and most of Abraham’s journey was rather ordinary (see Gen. 12:1–4; 15:1–6; 16:16–17:12).
Thank God for the amazing things He has done for us.
God’s work is usually done behind the scenes in the ordinary things of life. As 1 Corinthians 10 says, “He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out.” Every day God is busy shielding us from devastating onslaughts of Satan that would otherwise leave us helplessly defeated. And when temptation hits, He is making exit ramps for us so we can escape.
When we put our head on the pillow at night, we should pause to thank God for the amazing things He has done for us that day in the midst of our ordinary lives. So, instead of longing for Him to do something spectacular for you, thank Him! He already has.
Lord, help me to be constantly aware that Your power and presence are with me even in the ordinary times in my life. Thank You for Your amazing work on my behalf that I know nothing about.
God is always in control behind the scenes, even on “ordinary” days.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Get Moving! (1)
Abide in Me… —John 15:4
In the matter of determination. The Spirit of Jesus is put into me by way of the atonement by the Cross of Christ. I then have to build my thinking patiently to bring it into perfect harmony with my Lord. God will not make me think like Jesus— I have to do it myself. I have to bring “every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). “Abide in Me”— in intellectual matters, in money matters, in every one of the matters that make human life what it is. Our lives are not made up of only one neatly confined area.
Am I preventing God from doing things in my circumstances by saying that it will only serve to hinder my fellowship with Him? How irrelevant and disrespectful that is! It does not matter what my circumstances are. I can be as much assured of abiding in Jesus in any one of them as I am in any prayer meeting. It is unnecessary to change and arrange my circumstances myself. Our Lord’s inner abiding was pure and unblemished. He was at home with God wherever His body was. He never chose His own circumstances, but was meek, submitting to His Father’s plans and directions for Him. Just think of how amazingly relaxed our Lord’s life was! But we tend to keep God at a fever pitch in our lives. We have none of the serenity of the life which is “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).
Think of the things that take you out of the position of abiding in Christ. You say, “Yes, Lord, just a minute— I still have this to do. Yes, I will abide as soon as this is finished, or as soon as this week is over. It will be all right, Lord. I will abide then.” Get moving— begin to abide now. In the initial stages it will be a continual effort to abide, but as you continue, it will become so much a part of your life that you will abide in Him without any conscious effort. Make the determination to abide in Jesus wherever you are now or wherever you may be placed in the future.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We are in danger of being stern where God is tender, and of being tender where God is stern. The Love of God—The Message of Invincible Consolation, 673 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Making Sure You're Secure - #7677
"Office of Homeland Security" – I suppose there are some younger people that didn't know that wasn't always part of the United States government. It's a pretty new thing. The fact that we have, and that we need, an Office of Homeland Security pretty much tells the story of the kind of world we're in right now. I mean, we've got enhanced security at our airports, sometimes tours are curtailed at many public utilities, your bags get searched at sporting events, and business is booming at security companies.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Making Sure You're Secure."
Security is on a lot of our minds these days. We feel a lot more vulnerable, probably, than we ever have. I mean, when we think about security for here and now. Unfortunately, we tend to neglect the largest security concerns of all – our security beyond this life, beyond our last heartbeat. It's eternally important to know that you're safe then. Whether it's the awful toll we've seen in terrorist attacks, or just the death of someone in our personal world, there are constant reminders that eternity can come so close, so quickly.
I once heard about a medieval king who was on his deathbed. He called for the court jester; they called him the court fool back then. He wanted him to come and make him feel better. At one point, the king said, "Fool, I am going on a long journey from which I will not return." The court fool asked if the king had made preparations for his journey, to which the king answered 'no'. The jester answered, "Then, sire, I fear that you are a greater fool than I."
That sounds like a conversation God had with a very rich man in our word for today from the Word of God in Luke 12, beginning in verse 19. The man is totally involved in managing his success, protecting his financial security. He says, "I'll say to myself, 'You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink, and be merry.' But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then you will get what you have prepared for yourself'." Tragically, this man who had made such elaborate preparations for his earth-security had made no preparations for eternity.
That man made the mistake of thinking he had many years – a mistake many have made. Frankly, we never know how much longer we have. And you're not secure until you know that you're ready for eternity...which you can be today. 1 John 5, beginning in verse 11, tells us that "God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know you have eternal life." Now that is security! Knowing for sure. Knowing right now that when you die you are going to heaven.
And it all depends on whether you have Jesus. Why? Because He's the One, the only One, who died to remove what will keep you out of heaven – your sin. It can't be repaid by doing good. There's a death penalty for the sin. It can only be erased by putting your trust in the One who took your death penalty for you. When you commit yourself to Jesus, what's between you and God is gone and you "have eternal life"!
That is a choice you can make this very day, right where you are. Don't you want to belong to this Jesus? You can from this day on. You just tell Him you're putting your total trust in Him, you're done running your life. You are His, beginning this day, based on His dying for you.
If you'll go to our website as soon as you possibly can today, I'd love to show you there how to be sure you belong to Jesus Christ. Meet me at ANewStory.com.
With eternity so close, does it make any sense to wait? Ultimate security is knowing you're going to heaven, no matter what happens here. Jesus made His move to get you to heaven when He died on the cross for you. It's your move now.
Monday, June 13, 2016
Psalm 87, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: WHAT WILL JESUS DO WITH YOU?
Jesus claimed to be able to forgive sins—a privilege only God can exercise! In Matthew 12:6-42, Jesus claimed to be greater than Jonah, Solomon, Jacob, and even Abraham! He commanded people to pray in his name. He claimed that all authority in heaven and on earth had been given to him. Does a decent fellow say things like this? No, but a demented fool does.
But honestly, could a madman do what Jesus did? People didn’t just respect Jesus. They liked him; they left their homes and businesses and followed him. Men and women have tethered their hope to his life; passionate men like John, careful men like Thomas, and impulsive people like Peter. Jesus transformed common dockworkers and net casters into the authors of history’s greatest book and founders of its greatest movement. What will Jesus do with you?
From God is With You Every Day
Psalm 87
Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm. A song.
1 He has founded his city on the holy mountain.
2 The Lord loves the gates of Zion
more than all the other dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are said of you,
city of God:[a]
4 “I will record Rahab[b] and Babylon
among those who acknowledge me—
Philistia too, and Tyre, along with Cush[c]—
and will say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’”[d]
5 Indeed, of Zion it will be said,
“This one and that one were born in her,
and the Most High himself will establish her.”
6 The Lord will write in the register of the peoples:
“This one was born in Zion.”
7 As they make music they will sing,
“All my fountains are in you.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, June 13, 2016
Read: Psalm 141
A psalm of David.
1 O Lord, I am calling to you. Please hurry!
Listen when I cry to you for help!
2 Accept my prayer as incense offered to you,
and my upraised hands as an evening offering.
3 Take control of what I say, O Lord,
and guard my lips.
4 Don’t let me drift toward evil
or take part in acts of wickedness.
Don’t let me share in the delicacies
of those who do wrong.
5 Let the godly strike me!
It will be a kindness!
If they correct me, it is soothing medicine.
Don’t let me refuse it.
But I pray constantly
against the wicked and their deeds.
6 When their leaders are thrown down from a cliff,
the wicked will listen to my words and find them true.
7 Like rocks brought up by a plow,
the bones of the wicked will lie scattered without burial.[a]
8 I look to you for help, O Sovereign Lord.
You are my refuge; don’t let them kill me.
9 Keep me from the traps they have set for me,
from the snares of those who do wrong.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
but let me escape.
Footnotes:
141:7 Hebrew our bones will be scattered at the mouth of Sheol.
NSIGHT:
This psalm is filled with meaningful prayers for protection and can be an encouragement for all of us. Because we live in a world cursed by sin, we need prayer for protection from the damage we can inflict on others in attitude, speech, and behavior (vv. 3–4) as well as protection from those who plan evil against us (vv. 9-10).
Repeat After Me
By Anne Cetas
Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips. Psalm 141:3 (nlt)
When Rebecca stood on stage to speak at a conference, her first sentence into the microphone echoed around the room. It was a bit unsettling for her to hear her own words come back at her, and she had to adjust to the faulty sound system and try to ignore the echo of every word she spoke.
Imagine what it would be like to hear everything we say repeated! It wouldn’t be so bad to hear ourselves repeat "I love you" or "I was wrong" or “Thank You, Lord” or "I'm praying for you." But not all of our words are beautiful or gentle or kind. What about those angry outbursts or demeaning comments that no one wants to hear once, let alone twice—those words that we would really rather take back?
He forgives us when we fail.
Like the psalmist David, we long to have the Lord’s control over our words. He prayed, "Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips” (Ps. 141:3 nlt). And thankfully, the Lord wants to do that. He can help us control what we say. He can guard our lips.
As we learn to adjust to our own sound system by paying careful attention to what we say and praying about the words we speak, the Lord will patiently teach us and even empower us to have self-control. And best of all, He forgives us when we fail and is pleased with our desire for His help.
Can you think of something you said recently that you would like to take back? Ask the Lord to help you become aware of careless words.
Part of self-control is mouth-control.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, June 13, 2016
Getting There (3)
…come, follow Me. —Luke 18:22
Where our individual desire dies and sanctified surrender lives. One of the greatest hindrances in coming to Jesus is the excuse of our own individual temperament. We make our temperament and our natural desires barriers to coming to Jesus. Yet the first thing we realize when we do come to Jesus is that He pays no attention whatsoever to our natural desires. We have the idea that we can dedicate our gifts to God. However, you cannot dedicate what is not yours. There is actually only one thing you can dedicate to God, and that is your right to yourself (see Romans 12:1). If you will give God your right to yourself, He will make a holy experiment out of you— and His experiments always succeed. The one true mark of a saint of God is the inner creativity that flows from being totally surrendered to Jesus Christ. In the life of a saint there is this amazing Well, which is a continual Source of original life. The Spirit of God is a Well of water springing up perpetually fresh. A saint realizes that it is God who engineers his circumstances; consequently there are no complaints, only unrestrained surrender to Jesus. Never try to make your experience a principle for others, but allow God to be as creative and original with others as He is with you.
If you abandon everything to Jesus, and come when He says, “Come,” then He will continue to say, “Come,” through you. You will go out into the world reproducing the echo of Christ’s “Come.” That is the result in every soul who has abandoned all and come to Jesus.
Have I come to Him? Will I come now?
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end. Not Knowing Whither, 901 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, June 13, 2016
Your Plans, Not His - #7676
The youngest of our three children had the opportunity to observe what worked and what didn't work for his older brother and sister - especially when it came to getting or not getting their way in their social life. By the time he reached junior high, he had developed a very interesting approach to getting a "Yes" to what he wanted to do with his friends. He would come to us, he would lay out a thorough plan, let's say for this Friday night. He told us which five friends were going, where they were going, whose mother would drive them there, whose mother would drive them home, what time they would leave, what time they would get home. We had everything but photo IDs of the kids who were going. Although, I'm sure he probably would have supplied those upon request. Obviously, there was one problem with this exquisite planning. We weren't consulted until the plans were complete, and a "No" to him would be a "No" to five friends and two drivers! As a father, I'd give that boy an "A" for initiative, but an "F" for checking with your father before your plans are almost irreversible!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your Plans, Not His."
When you make your plans and arrangements before you check with your father, that's kind of backwards planning! Especially if the father involved is your Heavenly Father! That's why He says what He says in our word for today from the Word of God in Isaiah 30 beginning at verse 1, "'Woe to the obstinate children,' declares the Lord, 'to those who carry out plans that are not mine, forming an alliance, but not by My Spirit, heaping sin upon sin.'" God says, "You're making plans without consulting Me. You're figuring out ways to get it done that are not My ways of getting it done. And, as a result, you're just accumulating sin." Pretty sobering verses huh?
How often does God shake His head, and say to you or me, "Those plans aren't mine"? Being a planner as I am, being a make-it-happen person by nature, I have to really keep this passage right up front in my heart. Because people like me, and maybe like you, can do exactly what our son did when he was in junior high: figure out a way to get what we want and then presumptuously expect our Heavenly Father to sign off on it, even to bless it. It is just too easy to run ahead of God, to consult Him after we're already way down the road.
2 Chronicles 18 tells us about King Ahab's invitation to King Jehoshaphat to join him in a planned military campaign. Jehoshaphat gave some very wise advice, "First seek the counsel of the Lord" (2 Chron. 18:4). Well, that's good, "First, seek the counsel of the Lord." But when a prophet dared to give Ahab God's counsel - that this attack was going to cost him his life - the king ignored it and went ahead with what he wanted to do, what looked best to him. He did not come back alive.
I hope you will put that seven-word key to victory somewhere where you will never forget it. "First seek the counsel of the Lord" Do it before you make a purchase, before you begin a relationship, before you answer a question or a request, before you post on Facebook, before you start something new, before you hire someone, date someone, make a change, start pursuing your vision or your dream. Isn't this Proverbs 3:6, "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths."
Bob Pierce, who was the founder of the great world-wide ministry of World Vision, used to pray this powerful prayer - one I hope that you and I can make our own. "Lord, we ask not that You bless what we do, but that we do what You bless." Don't bring your plans to your Father after they're all done and virtually unchangeable. Start with your Father. Plans you conceive with Him are really unstoppable!
Jesus claimed to be able to forgive sins—a privilege only God can exercise! In Matthew 12:6-42, Jesus claimed to be greater than Jonah, Solomon, Jacob, and even Abraham! He commanded people to pray in his name. He claimed that all authority in heaven and on earth had been given to him. Does a decent fellow say things like this? No, but a demented fool does.
But honestly, could a madman do what Jesus did? People didn’t just respect Jesus. They liked him; they left their homes and businesses and followed him. Men and women have tethered their hope to his life; passionate men like John, careful men like Thomas, and impulsive people like Peter. Jesus transformed common dockworkers and net casters into the authors of history’s greatest book and founders of its greatest movement. What will Jesus do with you?
From God is With You Every Day
Psalm 87
Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm. A song.
1 He has founded his city on the holy mountain.
2 The Lord loves the gates of Zion
more than all the other dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are said of you,
city of God:[a]
4 “I will record Rahab[b] and Babylon
among those who acknowledge me—
Philistia too, and Tyre, along with Cush[c]—
and will say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’”[d]
5 Indeed, of Zion it will be said,
“This one and that one were born in her,
and the Most High himself will establish her.”
6 The Lord will write in the register of the peoples:
“This one was born in Zion.”
7 As they make music they will sing,
“All my fountains are in you.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, June 13, 2016
Read: Psalm 141
A psalm of David.
1 O Lord, I am calling to you. Please hurry!
Listen when I cry to you for help!
2 Accept my prayer as incense offered to you,
and my upraised hands as an evening offering.
3 Take control of what I say, O Lord,
and guard my lips.
4 Don’t let me drift toward evil
or take part in acts of wickedness.
Don’t let me share in the delicacies
of those who do wrong.
5 Let the godly strike me!
It will be a kindness!
If they correct me, it is soothing medicine.
Don’t let me refuse it.
But I pray constantly
against the wicked and their deeds.
6 When their leaders are thrown down from a cliff,
the wicked will listen to my words and find them true.
7 Like rocks brought up by a plow,
the bones of the wicked will lie scattered without burial.[a]
8 I look to you for help, O Sovereign Lord.
You are my refuge; don’t let them kill me.
9 Keep me from the traps they have set for me,
from the snares of those who do wrong.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
but let me escape.
Footnotes:
141:7 Hebrew our bones will be scattered at the mouth of Sheol.
NSIGHT:
This psalm is filled with meaningful prayers for protection and can be an encouragement for all of us. Because we live in a world cursed by sin, we need prayer for protection from the damage we can inflict on others in attitude, speech, and behavior (vv. 3–4) as well as protection from those who plan evil against us (vv. 9-10).
Repeat After Me
By Anne Cetas
Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips. Psalm 141:3 (nlt)
When Rebecca stood on stage to speak at a conference, her first sentence into the microphone echoed around the room. It was a bit unsettling for her to hear her own words come back at her, and she had to adjust to the faulty sound system and try to ignore the echo of every word she spoke.
Imagine what it would be like to hear everything we say repeated! It wouldn’t be so bad to hear ourselves repeat "I love you" or "I was wrong" or “Thank You, Lord” or "I'm praying for you." But not all of our words are beautiful or gentle or kind. What about those angry outbursts or demeaning comments that no one wants to hear once, let alone twice—those words that we would really rather take back?
He forgives us when we fail.
Like the psalmist David, we long to have the Lord’s control over our words. He prayed, "Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips” (Ps. 141:3 nlt). And thankfully, the Lord wants to do that. He can help us control what we say. He can guard our lips.
As we learn to adjust to our own sound system by paying careful attention to what we say and praying about the words we speak, the Lord will patiently teach us and even empower us to have self-control. And best of all, He forgives us when we fail and is pleased with our desire for His help.
Can you think of something you said recently that you would like to take back? Ask the Lord to help you become aware of careless words.
Part of self-control is mouth-control.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, June 13, 2016
Getting There (3)
…come, follow Me. —Luke 18:22
Where our individual desire dies and sanctified surrender lives. One of the greatest hindrances in coming to Jesus is the excuse of our own individual temperament. We make our temperament and our natural desires barriers to coming to Jesus. Yet the first thing we realize when we do come to Jesus is that He pays no attention whatsoever to our natural desires. We have the idea that we can dedicate our gifts to God. However, you cannot dedicate what is not yours. There is actually only one thing you can dedicate to God, and that is your right to yourself (see Romans 12:1). If you will give God your right to yourself, He will make a holy experiment out of you— and His experiments always succeed. The one true mark of a saint of God is the inner creativity that flows from being totally surrendered to Jesus Christ. In the life of a saint there is this amazing Well, which is a continual Source of original life. The Spirit of God is a Well of water springing up perpetually fresh. A saint realizes that it is God who engineers his circumstances; consequently there are no complaints, only unrestrained surrender to Jesus. Never try to make your experience a principle for others, but allow God to be as creative and original with others as He is with you.
If you abandon everything to Jesus, and come when He says, “Come,” then He will continue to say, “Come,” through you. You will go out into the world reproducing the echo of Christ’s “Come.” That is the result in every soul who has abandoned all and come to Jesus.
Have I come to Him? Will I come now?
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end. Not Knowing Whither, 901 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, June 13, 2016
Your Plans, Not His - #7676
The youngest of our three children had the opportunity to observe what worked and what didn't work for his older brother and sister - especially when it came to getting or not getting their way in their social life. By the time he reached junior high, he had developed a very interesting approach to getting a "Yes" to what he wanted to do with his friends. He would come to us, he would lay out a thorough plan, let's say for this Friday night. He told us which five friends were going, where they were going, whose mother would drive them there, whose mother would drive them home, what time they would leave, what time they would get home. We had everything but photo IDs of the kids who were going. Although, I'm sure he probably would have supplied those upon request. Obviously, there was one problem with this exquisite planning. We weren't consulted until the plans were complete, and a "No" to him would be a "No" to five friends and two drivers! As a father, I'd give that boy an "A" for initiative, but an "F" for checking with your father before your plans are almost irreversible!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your Plans, Not His."
When you make your plans and arrangements before you check with your father, that's kind of backwards planning! Especially if the father involved is your Heavenly Father! That's why He says what He says in our word for today from the Word of God in Isaiah 30 beginning at verse 1, "'Woe to the obstinate children,' declares the Lord, 'to those who carry out plans that are not mine, forming an alliance, but not by My Spirit, heaping sin upon sin.'" God says, "You're making plans without consulting Me. You're figuring out ways to get it done that are not My ways of getting it done. And, as a result, you're just accumulating sin." Pretty sobering verses huh?
How often does God shake His head, and say to you or me, "Those plans aren't mine"? Being a planner as I am, being a make-it-happen person by nature, I have to really keep this passage right up front in my heart. Because people like me, and maybe like you, can do exactly what our son did when he was in junior high: figure out a way to get what we want and then presumptuously expect our Heavenly Father to sign off on it, even to bless it. It is just too easy to run ahead of God, to consult Him after we're already way down the road.
2 Chronicles 18 tells us about King Ahab's invitation to King Jehoshaphat to join him in a planned military campaign. Jehoshaphat gave some very wise advice, "First seek the counsel of the Lord" (2 Chron. 18:4). Well, that's good, "First, seek the counsel of the Lord." But when a prophet dared to give Ahab God's counsel - that this attack was going to cost him his life - the king ignored it and went ahead with what he wanted to do, what looked best to him. He did not come back alive.
I hope you will put that seven-word key to victory somewhere where you will never forget it. "First seek the counsel of the Lord" Do it before you make a purchase, before you begin a relationship, before you answer a question or a request, before you post on Facebook, before you start something new, before you hire someone, date someone, make a change, start pursuing your vision or your dream. Isn't this Proverbs 3:6, "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths."
Bob Pierce, who was the founder of the great world-wide ministry of World Vision, used to pray this powerful prayer - one I hope that you and I can make our own. "Lord, we ask not that You bless what we do, but that we do what You bless." Don't bring your plans to your Father after they're all done and virtually unchangeable. Start with your Father. Plans you conceive with Him are really unstoppable!
Sunday, June 12, 2016
1 Corinthians 12, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Enjoy God's Presence
You will never go where God is not. Envision the next few hours of your life. Where will you find yourself? In a school? God indwells the classroom. On the highways? His presence lingers among the traffic. In the hospital, the boardroom, the living room, the funeral home? God will be there.
Acts 17:27 says, "He is not far from each one of us." Each of us. God doesn't play favorites. All people can enjoy God's presence. But many don't. They plod through life as if their only strength was their own. As if their only solution comes from within, not from above. They live God-less lives. Lay claim to the nearness of God. Grip God's promise like the parachute it is. Repeat it to yourself over and over. "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5).
From You'll Get Through This
1 Corinthians 12
Spiritual Gifts
12 Now, dear brothers and sisters,[a] regarding your question about the special abilities the Spirit gives us. I don’t want you to misunderstand this. 2 You know that when you were still pagans, you were led astray and swept along in worshiping speechless idols. 3 So I want you to know that no one speaking by the Spirit of God will curse Jesus, and no one can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit.
4 There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. 5 There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. 6 God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.
7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. 8 To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice[b]; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge.[c] 9 The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. 10 He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages,[d] while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. 11 It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.
One Body with Many Parts
12 The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. 13 Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles,[e] some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.[f]
14 Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part. 15 If the foot says, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,” that does not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “I am not part of the body because I am not an eye,” would that make it any less a part of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, how would you hear? Or if your whole body were an ear, how would you smell anything?
18 But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it. 19 How strange a body would be if it had only one part! 20 Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. 21 The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.”
22 In fact, some parts of the body that seem weakest and least important are actually the most necessary. 23 And the parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect those parts that should not be seen, 24 while the more honorable parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. 25 This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. 26 If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.
27 All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. 28 Here are some of the parts God has appointed for the church:
first are apostles,
second are prophets,
third are teachers,
then those who do miracles,
those who have the gift of healing,
those who can help others,
those who have the gift of leadership,
those who speak in unknown languages.
29 Are we all apostles? Are we all prophets? Are we all teachers? Do we all have the power to do miracles? 30 Do we all have the gift of healing? Do we all have the ability to speak in unknown languages? Do we all have the ability to interpret unknown languages? Of course not! 31 So you should earnestly desire the most helpful gifts.
But now let me show you a way of life that is best of all.
Footnotes:
12:1 Greek brothers.
12:8a Or gives a word of wisdom.
12:8b Or gives a word of knowledge.
12:10 Or in various tongues; also in 12:28, 30.
12:13a Greek some are Greeks.
12:13b Greek we were all given one Spirit to drink.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, June 12, 2016
Read: Ezra 3:7–13
The People Begin to Rebuild the Temple
7 Then the people hired masons and carpenters and bought cedar logs from the people of Tyre and Sidon, paying them with food, wine, and olive oil. The logs were brought down from the Lebanon mountains and floated along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea[a] to Joppa, for King Cyrus had given permission for this.
8 The construction of the Temple of God began in midspring,[b] during the second year after they arrived in Jerusalem. The work force was made up of everyone who had returned from exile, including Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Jeshua son of Jehozadak and his fellow priests, and all the Levites. The Levites who were twenty years old or older were put in charge of rebuilding the Lord’s Temple. 9 The workers at the Temple of God were supervised by Jeshua with his sons and relatives, and Kadmiel and his sons, all descendants of Hodaviah.[c] They were helped in this task by the Levites of the family of Henadad.
10 When the builders completed the foundation of the Lord’s Temple, the priests put on their robes and took their places to blow their trumpets. And the Levites, descendants of Asaph, clashed their cymbals to praise the Lord, just as King David had prescribed. 11 With praise and thanks, they sang this song to the Lord:
“He is so good!
His faithful love for Israel endures forever!”
Then all the people gave a great shout, praising the Lord because the foundation of the Lord’s Temple had been laid.
12 But many of the older priests, Levites, and other leaders who had seen the first Temple wept aloud when they saw the new Temple’s foundation. The others, however, were shouting for joy. 13 The joyful shouting and weeping mingled together in a loud noise that could be heard far in the distance.
Footnotes:
3:7 Hebrew the sea.
3:8 Hebrew in the second month. This month in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred within the months of April and May 536 B.c.
3:9 Hebrew sons of Judah (i.e., bene Yehudah). Bene might also be read here as the proper name Binnui; Yehudah is probably another name for Hodaviah. Compare 2:40; Neh 7:43; 1 Esdras 5:58.
INSIGHT:
The books of Ezra and Nehemiah focus on the return of Judah—the southern kingdom of Israel—to their homeland following their years of captivity in Babylon. While Nehemiah concentrates on the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, Ezra focuses on the rebuilding and dedication of the temple.
Tears and Laughter
By Keila Ochoa
No one could distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping. Ezra 3:13
Last year at a retreat I reconnected with some friends I hadn’t seen in a long time. I laughed with them as we enjoyed the reunion, but I also cried because I knew how much I had missed them.
On the last day of our time together we celebrated the Lord’s Supper. More smiles and tears! I rejoiced over the grace of God, who had given me eternal life and these beautiful days with my friends. But again I cried as I was sobered by what it had cost Jesus to deliver me from my sin.
Both tears and smiles bring God praise.
I thought about Ezra and that wonderful day in Jerusalem. The exiles had returned from captivity and had just completed rebuilding the foundation of the Lord’s temple. The people sang for joy, but some of the older priests cried (Ezra 3:10–12). They were likely remembering Solomon’s temple and its former glory. Or were they grieving over their sins that had led to the captivity in the first place?
Sometimes when we see God at work we experience a wide range of emotions, including joy when we see God’s wonders and sorrow as we remember our sins and the need for His sacrifice.
The Israelites were singing and weeping, the noise was heard far away (v. 13). May our emotions be expressions of our love and worship to our Lord, and may they touch those around us.
Lord, You welcome our sorrow and our joy, our tears and our laughter. We bring all of our emotions in their raw honesty to You. May we praise You with our whole being.
Both tears and smiles bring God praise.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, June 12, 2016
Getting There (2)
They said to Him, "Rabbi…where are You staying?" He said to them, "Come and see." —John 1:38-39
Where our self-interest sleeps and the real interest is awakened. “They…remained with Him that day….” That is about all some of us ever do. We stay with Him a short time, only to wake up to our own realities of life. Our self-interest rises up and our abiding with Him is past. Yet there is no circumstance of life in which we cannot abide in Jesus.
“You are Simon….You shall be called Cephas” (John 1:42). God writes our new name only on those places in our lives where He has erased our pride, self-sufficiency, and self-interest. Some of us have our new name written only in certain spots, like spiritual measles. And in those areas of our lives we look all right. When we are in our best spiritual mood, you would think we were the highest quality saints. But don’t dare look at us when we are not in that mood. A true disciple is one who has his new name written all over him— self-interest, pride, and self-sufficiency have been completely erased.
Pride is the sin of making “self” our god. And some of us today do this, not like the Pharisee, but like the tax collector (see Luke 18:9-14). For you to say, “Oh, I’m no saint,” is acceptable by human standards of pride, but it is unconscious blasphemy against God. You defy God to make you a saint, as if to say, “I am too weak and hopeless and outside the reach of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.” Why aren’t you a saint? It is either that you do not want to be a saint, or that you do not believe that God can make you into one. You say it would be all right if God saved you and took you straight to heaven. That is exactly what He will do! And not only do we make our home with Him, but Jesus said of His Father and Himself, “…We will come to him and make Our home with him” (John 14:23). Put no conditions on your life— let Jesus be everything to you, and He will take you home with Him not only for a day, but for eternity.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.
Not Knowing Whither
You will never go where God is not. Envision the next few hours of your life. Where will you find yourself? In a school? God indwells the classroom. On the highways? His presence lingers among the traffic. In the hospital, the boardroom, the living room, the funeral home? God will be there.
Acts 17:27 says, "He is not far from each one of us." Each of us. God doesn't play favorites. All people can enjoy God's presence. But many don't. They plod through life as if their only strength was their own. As if their only solution comes from within, not from above. They live God-less lives. Lay claim to the nearness of God. Grip God's promise like the parachute it is. Repeat it to yourself over and over. "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5).
From You'll Get Through This
1 Corinthians 12
12 Now, dear brothers and sisters,[a] regarding your question about the special abilities the Spirit gives us. I don’t want you to misunderstand this. 2 You know that when you were still pagans, you were led astray and swept along in worshiping speechless idols. 3 So I want you to know that no one speaking by the Spirit of God will curse Jesus, and no one can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit.
4 There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. 5 There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. 6 God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.
7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. 8 To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice[b]; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge.[c] 9 The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. 10 He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages,[d] while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. 11 It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.
One Body with Many Parts
12 The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. 13 Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles,[e] some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.[f]
14 Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part. 15 If the foot says, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,” that does not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “I am not part of the body because I am not an eye,” would that make it any less a part of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, how would you hear? Or if your whole body were an ear, how would you smell anything?
18 But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it. 19 How strange a body would be if it had only one part! 20 Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. 21 The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.”
22 In fact, some parts of the body that seem weakest and least important are actually the most necessary. 23 And the parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect those parts that should not be seen, 24 while the more honorable parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. 25 This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. 26 If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.
27 All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. 28 Here are some of the parts God has appointed for the church:
first are apostles,
second are prophets,
third are teachers,
then those who do miracles,
those who have the gift of healing,
those who can help others,
those who have the gift of leadership,
those who speak in unknown languages.
29 Are we all apostles? Are we all prophets? Are we all teachers? Do we all have the power to do miracles? 30 Do we all have the gift of healing? Do we all have the ability to speak in unknown languages? Do we all have the ability to interpret unknown languages? Of course not! 31 So you should earnestly desire the most helpful gifts.
But now let me show you a way of life that is best of all.
Footnotes:
12:1 Greek brothers.
12:8a Or gives a word of wisdom.
12:8b Or gives a word of knowledge.
12:10 Or in various tongues; also in 12:28, 30.
12:13a Greek some are Greeks.
12:13b Greek we were all given one Spirit to drink.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, June 12, 2016
Read: Ezra 3:7–13
The People Begin to Rebuild the Temple
7 Then the people hired masons and carpenters and bought cedar logs from the people of Tyre and Sidon, paying them with food, wine, and olive oil. The logs were brought down from the Lebanon mountains and floated along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea[a] to Joppa, for King Cyrus had given permission for this.
8 The construction of the Temple of God began in midspring,[b] during the second year after they arrived in Jerusalem. The work force was made up of everyone who had returned from exile, including Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Jeshua son of Jehozadak and his fellow priests, and all the Levites. The Levites who were twenty years old or older were put in charge of rebuilding the Lord’s Temple. 9 The workers at the Temple of God were supervised by Jeshua with his sons and relatives, and Kadmiel and his sons, all descendants of Hodaviah.[c] They were helped in this task by the Levites of the family of Henadad.
10 When the builders completed the foundation of the Lord’s Temple, the priests put on their robes and took their places to blow their trumpets. And the Levites, descendants of Asaph, clashed their cymbals to praise the Lord, just as King David had prescribed. 11 With praise and thanks, they sang this song to the Lord:
“He is so good!
His faithful love for Israel endures forever!”
Then all the people gave a great shout, praising the Lord because the foundation of the Lord’s Temple had been laid.
12 But many of the older priests, Levites, and other leaders who had seen the first Temple wept aloud when they saw the new Temple’s foundation. The others, however, were shouting for joy. 13 The joyful shouting and weeping mingled together in a loud noise that could be heard far in the distance.
Footnotes:
3:7 Hebrew the sea.
3:8 Hebrew in the second month. This month in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred within the months of April and May 536 B.c.
3:9 Hebrew sons of Judah (i.e., bene Yehudah). Bene might also be read here as the proper name Binnui; Yehudah is probably another name for Hodaviah. Compare 2:40; Neh 7:43; 1 Esdras 5:58.
INSIGHT:
The books of Ezra and Nehemiah focus on the return of Judah—the southern kingdom of Israel—to their homeland following their years of captivity in Babylon. While Nehemiah concentrates on the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, Ezra focuses on the rebuilding and dedication of the temple.
Tears and Laughter
By Keila Ochoa
No one could distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping. Ezra 3:13
Last year at a retreat I reconnected with some friends I hadn’t seen in a long time. I laughed with them as we enjoyed the reunion, but I also cried because I knew how much I had missed them.
On the last day of our time together we celebrated the Lord’s Supper. More smiles and tears! I rejoiced over the grace of God, who had given me eternal life and these beautiful days with my friends. But again I cried as I was sobered by what it had cost Jesus to deliver me from my sin.
Both tears and smiles bring God praise.
I thought about Ezra and that wonderful day in Jerusalem. The exiles had returned from captivity and had just completed rebuilding the foundation of the Lord’s temple. The people sang for joy, but some of the older priests cried (Ezra 3:10–12). They were likely remembering Solomon’s temple and its former glory. Or were they grieving over their sins that had led to the captivity in the first place?
Sometimes when we see God at work we experience a wide range of emotions, including joy when we see God’s wonders and sorrow as we remember our sins and the need for His sacrifice.
The Israelites were singing and weeping, the noise was heard far away (v. 13). May our emotions be expressions of our love and worship to our Lord, and may they touch those around us.
Lord, You welcome our sorrow and our joy, our tears and our laughter. We bring all of our emotions in their raw honesty to You. May we praise You with our whole being.
Both tears and smiles bring God praise.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, June 12, 2016
Getting There (2)
They said to Him, "Rabbi…where are You staying?" He said to them, "Come and see." —John 1:38-39
Where our self-interest sleeps and the real interest is awakened. “They…remained with Him that day….” That is about all some of us ever do. We stay with Him a short time, only to wake up to our own realities of life. Our self-interest rises up and our abiding with Him is past. Yet there is no circumstance of life in which we cannot abide in Jesus.
“You are Simon….You shall be called Cephas” (John 1:42). God writes our new name only on those places in our lives where He has erased our pride, self-sufficiency, and self-interest. Some of us have our new name written only in certain spots, like spiritual measles. And in those areas of our lives we look all right. When we are in our best spiritual mood, you would think we were the highest quality saints. But don’t dare look at us when we are not in that mood. A true disciple is one who has his new name written all over him— self-interest, pride, and self-sufficiency have been completely erased.
Pride is the sin of making “self” our god. And some of us today do this, not like the Pharisee, but like the tax collector (see Luke 18:9-14). For you to say, “Oh, I’m no saint,” is acceptable by human standards of pride, but it is unconscious blasphemy against God. You defy God to make you a saint, as if to say, “I am too weak and hopeless and outside the reach of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.” Why aren’t you a saint? It is either that you do not want to be a saint, or that you do not believe that God can make you into one. You say it would be all right if God saved you and took you straight to heaven. That is exactly what He will do! And not only do we make our home with Him, but Jesus said of His Father and Himself, “…We will come to him and make Our home with him” (John 14:23). Put no conditions on your life— let Jesus be everything to you, and He will take you home with Him not only for a day, but for eternity.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.
Not Knowing Whither
Saturday, June 11, 2016
1 Corinthians 11:17-34 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Don't Settle for a Small Destiny
We re-define ourselves according to our catastrophes. As a result, we settle for a small destiny!
Think you've lost it all? You haven't. The truth of Romans 11:29 is that God's gifts and God's call are under full warranty-never canceled, never rescinded.
Here's how it works. Your boss calls you into the office. As kind as it sounds, a layoff is a layoff. How will I pay the bills? Who's going to hire me? Dread dominates your thoughts. But then you remember your destiny. What do I have that I cannot lose? Wait a second- I am still God's child. My life is more than this life. God will make something good out of this. I will work hard, stay faithful, and trust Him-no matter what.
Bingo! You just trusted your destiny. Another victory for God. It begins with a yes to God's call on your life!
From You'll Get Through This
1 Corinthians 11:17-34
Order at the Lord’s Supper
17 But in the following instructions, I cannot praise you. For it sounds as if more harm than good is done when you meet together. 18 First, I hear that there are divisions among you when you meet as a church, and to some extent I believe it. 19 But, of course, there must be divisions among you so that you who have God’s approval will be recognized!
20 When you meet together, you are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. 21 For some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk. 22 What? Don’t you have your own homes for eating and drinking? Or do you really want to disgrace God’s church and shame the poor? What am I supposed to say? Do you want me to praise you? Well, I certainly will not praise you for this!
23 For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord himself. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread 24 and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you.[a] Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it.” 26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.
27 So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against[b] the body and blood of the Lord. 28 That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. 29 For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ,[c] you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died.
31 But if we would examine ourselves, we would not be judged by God in this way. 32 Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world.
33 So, my dear brothers and sisters,[d] when you gather for the Lord’s Supper, wait for each other. 34 If you are really hungry, eat at home so you won’t bring judgment upon yourselves when you meet together. I’ll give you instructions about the other matters after I arrive.
Footnotes:
11:24 Greek which is for you; other manuscripts read which is broken for you.
11:27 Or is responsible for.
11:29 Greek the body; other manuscripts read the Lord’s body.
11:33 Greek brothers.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, June 11, 2016
Read: Matthew 5:43–48
Teaching about Love for Enemies
43 “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’[a] and hate your enemy. 44 But I say, love your enemies![b] Pray for those who persecute you! 45 In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. 46 If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. 47 If you are kind only to your friends,[c] how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. 48 But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Footnotes:
5:43 Lev 19:18.
5:44 Some manuscripts add Bless those who curse you. Do good to those who hate you. Compare Luke 6:27-28.
5:47 Greek your brothers.
INSIGHT:
The final verse in today’s reading is often used as an encouragement to live morally pure lives: “Be perfect . . . as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Jesus’s words in this passage, however, are more than moral instruction. The word translated “perfect” in the original language means “mature,” “complete,” or “grown-up.” Perfection in this context includes loving and praying for those who seek to do us harm—just as Christ did on the cross. When we love our enemies, we mirror the perfection of heaven and the heart of the Father.
Safety Net
By Philip Yancey
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:48
For years I thought of the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5–7) as a blueprint for human behavior, a standard no one could possibly meet. How could I have missed the true meaning? Jesus spoke these words not to frustrate us, but to tell us what God is like.
Why should we love our enemies? Because our merciful Father causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good. Why store up treasures in heaven? Because the Father lives there and will lavishly reward us. Why live without fear and worry? Because the same God who clothes the lilies and the grass of the field has promised to take care of us. Why pray? If an earthly father gives his son bread or fish, how much more will the Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask?
Only God can transform a sinful soul into a masterpiece of grace.
Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5–7) not only to explain God’s ideal toward which we should never stop striving but also to show that in this life none of us will ever reach that ideal.
Before God, we all stand on level ground: murderers and tantrum-throwers, adulterers and lusters, thieves and coveters. We are all desperate, and that is the only state appropriate to a human being who wants to know God. Having fallen from the absolute ideal, we have nowhere to land but in the safety net of absolute grace.
Dear Lord, I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe that You died on the cross to pay the penalty for my sin. You did what I could not do for myself, and in humility I accept Your gift of grace. Help me to live a life that is pleasing to You.
Only God can t
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, June 11, 2016
Getting There (1)
Come to Me… —Matthew 11:28
Where sin and sorrow stops, and the song of the saint starts. Do I really want to get there? I can right now. The questions that truly matter in life are remarkably few, and they are all answered by these words— “Come to Me.” Our Lord’s words are not, “Do this, or don’t do that,” but— “Come to me.” If I will simply come to Jesus, my real life will be brought into harmony with my real desires. I will actually cease from sin, and will find the song of the Lord beginning in my life.
Have you ever come to Jesus? Look at the stubbornness of your heart. You would rather do anything than this one simple childlike thing— “Come to Me.” If you really want to experience ceasing from sin, you must come to Jesus.
Jesus Christ makes Himself the test to determine your genuineness. Look how He used the word come. At the most unexpected moments in your life there is this whisper of the Lord— “Come to Me,” and you are immediately drawn to Him. Personal contact with Jesus changes everything. Be “foolish” enough to come and commit yourself to what He says. The attitude necessary for you to come to Him is one where your will has made the determination to let go of everything and deliberately commit it all to Him.
“…and I will give you rest”— that is, “I will sustain you, causing you to stand firm.” He is not saying, “I will put you to bed, hold your hand, and sing you to sleep.” But, in essence, He is saying, “I will get you out of bed— out of your listlessness and exhaustion, and out of your condition of being half dead while you are still alive. I will penetrate you with the spirit of life, and you will be sustained by the perfection of vital activity.” Yet we become so weak and pitiful and talk about “suffering” the will of the Lord! Where is the majestic vitality and the power of the Son of God in that?
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
“I have chosen you” (John 15:16). Keep that note of greatness in your creed. It is not that you have got God, but that He has got you. My Utmost for His Highest, October 25, 837 R
We re-define ourselves according to our catastrophes. As a result, we settle for a small destiny!
Think you've lost it all? You haven't. The truth of Romans 11:29 is that God's gifts and God's call are under full warranty-never canceled, never rescinded.
Here's how it works. Your boss calls you into the office. As kind as it sounds, a layoff is a layoff. How will I pay the bills? Who's going to hire me? Dread dominates your thoughts. But then you remember your destiny. What do I have that I cannot lose? Wait a second- I am still God's child. My life is more than this life. God will make something good out of this. I will work hard, stay faithful, and trust Him-no matter what.
Bingo! You just trusted your destiny. Another victory for God. It begins with a yes to God's call on your life!
From You'll Get Through This
1 Corinthians 11:17-34
Order at the Lord’s Supper
17 But in the following instructions, I cannot praise you. For it sounds as if more harm than good is done when you meet together. 18 First, I hear that there are divisions among you when you meet as a church, and to some extent I believe it. 19 But, of course, there must be divisions among you so that you who have God’s approval will be recognized!
20 When you meet together, you are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. 21 For some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk. 22 What? Don’t you have your own homes for eating and drinking? Or do you really want to disgrace God’s church and shame the poor? What am I supposed to say? Do you want me to praise you? Well, I certainly will not praise you for this!
23 For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord himself. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread 24 and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you.[a] Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it.” 26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.
27 So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against[b] the body and blood of the Lord. 28 That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. 29 For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ,[c] you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died.
31 But if we would examine ourselves, we would not be judged by God in this way. 32 Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world.
33 So, my dear brothers and sisters,[d] when you gather for the Lord’s Supper, wait for each other. 34 If you are really hungry, eat at home so you won’t bring judgment upon yourselves when you meet together. I’ll give you instructions about the other matters after I arrive.
Footnotes:
11:24 Greek which is for you; other manuscripts read which is broken for you.
11:27 Or is responsible for.
11:29 Greek the body; other manuscripts read the Lord’s body.
11:33 Greek brothers.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, June 11, 2016
Read: Matthew 5:43–48
Teaching about Love for Enemies
43 “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’[a] and hate your enemy. 44 But I say, love your enemies![b] Pray for those who persecute you! 45 In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. 46 If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. 47 If you are kind only to your friends,[c] how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. 48 But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Footnotes:
5:43 Lev 19:18.
5:44 Some manuscripts add Bless those who curse you. Do good to those who hate you. Compare Luke 6:27-28.
5:47 Greek your brothers.
INSIGHT:
The final verse in today’s reading is often used as an encouragement to live morally pure lives: “Be perfect . . . as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Jesus’s words in this passage, however, are more than moral instruction. The word translated “perfect” in the original language means “mature,” “complete,” or “grown-up.” Perfection in this context includes loving and praying for those who seek to do us harm—just as Christ did on the cross. When we love our enemies, we mirror the perfection of heaven and the heart of the Father.
Safety Net
By Philip Yancey
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:48
For years I thought of the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5–7) as a blueprint for human behavior, a standard no one could possibly meet. How could I have missed the true meaning? Jesus spoke these words not to frustrate us, but to tell us what God is like.
Why should we love our enemies? Because our merciful Father causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good. Why store up treasures in heaven? Because the Father lives there and will lavishly reward us. Why live without fear and worry? Because the same God who clothes the lilies and the grass of the field has promised to take care of us. Why pray? If an earthly father gives his son bread or fish, how much more will the Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask?
Only God can transform a sinful soul into a masterpiece of grace.
Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5–7) not only to explain God’s ideal toward which we should never stop striving but also to show that in this life none of us will ever reach that ideal.
Before God, we all stand on level ground: murderers and tantrum-throwers, adulterers and lusters, thieves and coveters. We are all desperate, and that is the only state appropriate to a human being who wants to know God. Having fallen from the absolute ideal, we have nowhere to land but in the safety net of absolute grace.
Dear Lord, I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe that You died on the cross to pay the penalty for my sin. You did what I could not do for myself, and in humility I accept Your gift of grace. Help me to live a life that is pleasing to You.
Only God can t
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, June 11, 2016
Getting There (1)
Come to Me… —Matthew 11:28
Where sin and sorrow stops, and the song of the saint starts. Do I really want to get there? I can right now. The questions that truly matter in life are remarkably few, and they are all answered by these words— “Come to Me.” Our Lord’s words are not, “Do this, or don’t do that,” but— “Come to me.” If I will simply come to Jesus, my real life will be brought into harmony with my real desires. I will actually cease from sin, and will find the song of the Lord beginning in my life.
Have you ever come to Jesus? Look at the stubbornness of your heart. You would rather do anything than this one simple childlike thing— “Come to Me.” If you really want to experience ceasing from sin, you must come to Jesus.
Jesus Christ makes Himself the test to determine your genuineness. Look how He used the word come. At the most unexpected moments in your life there is this whisper of the Lord— “Come to Me,” and you are immediately drawn to Him. Personal contact with Jesus changes everything. Be “foolish” enough to come and commit yourself to what He says. The attitude necessary for you to come to Him is one where your will has made the determination to let go of everything and deliberately commit it all to Him.
“…and I will give you rest”— that is, “I will sustain you, causing you to stand firm.” He is not saying, “I will put you to bed, hold your hand, and sing you to sleep.” But, in essence, He is saying, “I will get you out of bed— out of your listlessness and exhaustion, and out of your condition of being half dead while you are still alive. I will penetrate you with the spirit of life, and you will be sustained by the perfection of vital activity.” Yet we become so weak and pitiful and talk about “suffering” the will of the Lord! Where is the majestic vitality and the power of the Son of God in that?
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
“I have chosen you” (John 15:16). Keep that note of greatness in your creed. It is not that you have got God, but that He has got you. My Utmost for His Highest, October 25, 837 R
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