Max Lucado Daily: How Do you Say Lucado?
My last name has created some awkward moments. A woman said, “Max Lu-KAH-do—I’ve been wanting to meet you.” I let it go thinking that was the end of it. But then a man said to me, “My wife and I’ve been trying to figure out how you say your name. Is it Lu-KAY-doh or Lu-KAH-doh! I felt trapped…as I looked at my new friend who had been mispronouncing my name.
On an infinitely grander scale, God faces with humankind a similar issue I faced with the woman. How can He be both just and kind? How can He redeem the sinner without endorsing the sin? From our perspective there are only two equally unappealing solutions. From God’s perspective, however, there is a third. It’s called the Cross of Christ! And that is one phrase you want to say correctly!
From He Chose the Nails
John 11:1-29
A man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. This was the same Mary who massaged the Lord’s feet with aromatic oils and then wiped them with her hair. It was her brother Lazarus who was sick. So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Master, the one you love so very much is sick.”
4 When Jesus got the message, he said, “This sickness is not fatal. It will become an occasion to show God’s glory by glorifying God’s Son.”
5-7 Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, but oddly, when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed on where he was for two more days. After the two days, he said to his disciples, “Let’s go back to Judea.”
8 They said, “Rabbi, you can’t do that. The Jews are out to kill you, and you’re going back?”
9-10 Jesus replied, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in daylight doesn’t stumble because there’s plenty of light from the sun. Walking at night, he might very well stumble because he can’t see where he’s going.”
11 He said these things, and then announced, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep. I’m going to wake him up.”
12-13 The disciples said, “Master, if he’s gone to sleep, he’ll get a good rest and wake up feeling fine.” Jesus was talking about death, while his disciples thought he was talking about taking a nap.
14-15 Then Jesus became explicit: “Lazarus died. And I am glad for your sakes that I wasn’t there. You’re about to be given new grounds for believing. Now let’s go to him.”
16 That’s when Thomas, the one called the Twin, said to his companions, “Come along. We might as well die with him.”
17-20 When Jesus finally got there, he found Lazarus already four days dead. Bethany was near Jerusalem, only a couple of miles away, and many of the Jews were visiting Martha and Mary, sympathizing with them over their brother. Martha heard Jesus was coming and went out to meet him. Mary remained in the house.
21-22 Martha said, “Master, if you’d been here, my brother wouldn’t have died. Even now, I know that whatever you ask God he will give you.”
23 Jesus said, “Your brother will be raised up.”
24 Martha replied, “I know that he will be raised up in the resurrection at the end of time.”
25-26 “You don’t have to wait for the End. I am, right now, Resurrection and Life. The one who believes in me, even though he or she dies, will live. And everyone who lives believing in me does not ultimately die at all. Do you believe this?”
27 “Yes, Master. All along I have believed that you are the Messiah, the Son of God who comes into the world.”
28 After saying this, she went to her sister Mary and whispered in her ear, “The Teacher is here and is asking for you.”
29-32 The moment she heard that, she jumped up and ran out to him. Jesus had not yet entered the town but was still at the place where Martha had met him. When her sympathizing Jewish friends saw Mary run off, they followed her, thinking she was on her way to the tomb to weep there. Mary came to where Jesus was waiting and fell at his feet, saying, “Master, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, March 09, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Deuteronomy 10:12-19
So now Israel, what do you think God expects from you? Just this: Live in his presence in holy reverence, follow the road he sets out for you, love him, serve God, your God, with everything you have in you, obey the commandments and regulations of God that I’m commanding you today—live a good life.
14-18 Look around you: Everything you see is God’s—the heavens above and beyond, the Earth, and everything on it. But it was your ancestors who God fell in love with; he picked their children—that’s you!—out of all the other peoples. That’s where we are right now. So cut away the thick calluses from your heart and stop being so willfully hardheaded. God, your God, is the God of all gods, he’s the Master of all masters, a God immense and powerful and awesome. He doesn’t play favorites, takes no bribes, makes sure orphans and widows are treated fairly, takes loving care of foreigners by seeing that they get food and clothing.
19-21 You must treat foreigners with the same loving care—
remember, you were once foreigners in Egypt.
Reverently respect God, your God, serve him, hold tight to him,
back up your promises with the authority of his name.
He’s your praise! He’s your God!
He did all these tremendous, these staggering things
that you saw with your own eyes.
Insight
The book of Deuteronomy, the fifth book in the Pentateuch, is attributed to Moses. This book is a series of three sermons (chs. 1–4; 5–26; 27–34) given to the Israelites shortly before Moses’s death and the conquest of the land under Joshua’s leadership. Among the themes in Deuteronomy is the call to obedience, as we see in Deuteronomy 10:12–19. God wants His people to love and obey Him (v. 12), and one way they can do this is to treat others (including foreigners) with kindness. Why? Because God Himself does so and because they too were once foreigners (vv. 18–19). We see this theme throughout the Pentateuch (Exodus 22:21; Leviticus 19:34; Deuteronomy 23:7). Like the Israelites, all God’s people are to follow His loving example. After all, before God adopted us as His sons and daughters, we were all foreigners (Ephesians 2:12–19). By: Alyson Kieda
Welcoming Strangers
You are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt. Deuteronomy 10:19
When my friends lived in Moldova, one of the poorest countries in Europe, they were overwhelmed by the warm welcome they received there, especially from other Christians. Once they took some clothes and provisions to a couple from their church who were very poor, yet who were fostering several children. The couple treated my friends like honored guests, giving them sweet tea and, despite their protests, something to eat. As my friends left with gifts of watermelons and other fruits and vegetables, they marveled at the hospitality they experienced.
These believers embody the welcome that God commanded His people, the Israelites, to exhibit. He instructed them “to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deuteronomy 10:12). How could the Israelites live this out? The answer comes a few verses later: “You are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt” (v. 19). By welcoming strangers, they would be serving and honoring God; and in showing them love and care, they would demonstrate their trust in Him.
Our circumstances might differ from the Moldovans or the Israelites, but we too can live out our love for God through our welcome to others. Whether through opening our homes or smiling a greeting to those we meet, we can extend God’s care and hospitality in a lonely, hurting world. By Amy Boucher Pye
Today's Reflection
When you receive the gift of hospitality, how does that affect you? When you think about welcoming someone, does a specific person come to mind?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, March 09, 2019
Turning Back or Walking with Jesus?
Do you also want to go away? —John 6:67
What a penetrating question! Our Lord’s words often hit home for us when He speaks in the simplest way. In spite of the fact that we know who Jesus is, He asks, “Do you also want to go away?” We must continually maintain an adventurous attitude toward Him, despite any potential personal risk.
“From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (John 6:66). They turned back from walking with Jesus; not into sin, but away from Him. Many people today are pouring their lives out and working for Jesus Christ, but are not really walking with Him. One thing God constantly requires of us is a oneness with Jesus Christ. After being set apart through sanctification, we should discipline our lives spiritually to maintain this intimate oneness. When God gives you a clear determination of His will for you, all your striving to maintain that relationship by some particular method is completely unnecessary. All that is required is to live a natural life of absolute dependence on Jesus Christ. Never try to live your life with God in any other way than His way. And His way means absolute devotion to Him. Showing no concern for the uncertainties that lie ahead is the secret of walking with Jesus.
Peter saw in Jesus only someone who could minister salvation to him and to the world. But our Lord wants us to be fellow laborers with Him.
In John 6:70 Jesus lovingly reminded Peter that he was chosen to go with Him. And each of us must answer this question for ourselves and no one else: “Do you also want to go away?”
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Christianity is not consistency to conscience or to convictions; Christianity is being true to Jesus Christ. Biblical Ethics, 111 L
Saturday, March 9, 2019
Friday, March 8, 2019
John 10:22-42, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: GUARD YOUR ATTITUDE
The tenth chapter of Luke describes the step-by-step process of the sweet becoming sour. It’s the story of two sisters. Martha has things to do. Mary has thoughts to think.
Martha is having Jesus and friends over for dinner. She’s literally serving Jesus. But she makes a common, yet dangerous mistake. Her work becomes more important than her Lord. Martha’s heart sours with anxiety. And worry makes her forget who’s in charge, and she bosses God around.
Jesus points out that “only one thing is important. Mary has chosen it.” God is more pleased with the quiet attention of a sincere servant than the noisy service of a sour one. A bad attitude spoils the gift we leave on the altar for God. So guard your attitude.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
John 10:22-42
They were celebrating Hanukkah just then in Jerusalem. It was winter. Jesus was strolling in the Temple across Solomon’s Porch. The Jews, circling him, said, “How long are you going to keep us guessing? If you’re the Messiah, tell us straight out.”
25-30 Jesus answered, “I told you, but you don’t believe. Everything I have done has been authorized by my Father, actions that speak louder than words. You don’t believe because you’re not my sheep. My sheep recognize my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them real and eternal life. They are protected from the Destroyer for good. No one can steal them from out of my hand. The Father who put them under my care is so much greater than the Destroyer and Thief. No one could ever get them away from him. I and the Father are one heart and mind.”
31-32 Again the Jews picked up rocks to throw at him. Jesus said, “I have made a present to you from the Father of a great many good actions. For which of these acts do you stone me?”
33 The Jews said, “We’re not stoning you for anything good you did, but for what you said—this blasphemy of calling yourself God.”
34-38 Jesus said, “I’m only quoting your inspired Scriptures, where God said, ‘I tell you—you are gods.’ If God called your ancestors ‘gods’—and Scripture doesn’t lie—why do you yell, ‘Blasphemer! Blasphemer!’ at the unique One the Father consecrated and sent into the world, just because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? If I don’t do the things my Father does, well and good; don’t believe me. But if I am doing them, put aside for a moment what you hear me say about myself and just take the evidence of the actions that are right before your eyes. Then perhaps things will come together for you, and you’ll see that not only are we doing the same thing, we are the same—Father and Son. He is in me; I am in him.”
39-42 They tried yet again to arrest him, but he slipped through their fingers. He went back across the Jordan to the place where John first baptized, and stayed there. A lot of people followed him over. They were saying, “John did no miracles, but everything he said about this man has come true.” Many believed in him then and there.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, March 08, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Isaiah 40:10-11
Climb a high mountain, Zion.
You’re the preacher of good news.
Raise your voice. Make it good and loud, Jerusalem.
You’re the preacher of good news.
Speak loud and clear. Don’t be timid!
Tell the cities of Judah,
“Look! Your God!”
Look at him! God, the Master, comes in power,
ready to go into action.
He is going to pay back his enemies
and reward those who have loved him.
Like a shepherd, he will care for his flock,
gathering the lambs in his arms,
Hugging them as he carries them,
leading the nursing ewes to good pasture.
Insight
The theme of shepherds and sheep is repeated in Isaiah’s prophecies. In Isaiah 40:11, Isaiah paints a picture of God Himself as the loving, caring Shepherd of Israel. In 38:12, the prophet quotes King Hezekiah referring to his own dwelling as a “shepherd’s tent”; and in 44:28, God surprisingly refers to the conquering King Cyrus as God’s own shepherd! Finally, in 63:11 the people reflect on God’s care for their ancestors in the wilderness and long for that care afresh. Isaiah captures four different speakers (himself, Hezekiah, God, the people) using the imagery of a shepherd in very different ways, no doubt because it was a word picture that would resonate with people living in an agricultural culture where sheep and shepherds were common sights. This imagery of shepherds and their care for their flocks reminded the people of their need for that same care from their God. By: Bill Crowder
Gentle Yet Powerful
Let your gentleness be evident to all. Philippians 4:5
As the enemy occupation of the Netherlands increased, Anne Frank and her family bravely prepared and then moved to a secret hiding place to escape the danger. They hid there two years during World War II before being found and sent to concentration camps. Yet Anne, writing in what became her famous Diary of a Young Girl, said this: “In the long run, the sharpest weapon of all is a kind and gentle spirit.”
Gentleness can be a complicated issue as we deal with real life.
In Isaiah 40 we get a picture of God that shows Him to be both gentle and powerful. In verse 11 we read: “He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms.” But that verse follows this: “See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and he rules with a mighty arm” (v. 10). Full of power, but gentle when it comes to protecting the vulnerable.
And think of Jesus, who fashioned a whip and brandished it as He flipped over the money-changers tables in the temple but who also gently cared for children. He used powerful words to denounce the Pharisees (Matthew 23) but forgave a woman who needed His gentle mercy (John 8:1–11).
While there may be times to stand up with power for the weak and challenge others to pursue justice—we’re also to “let [our] gentleness be evident to all” (Philippians 4:5). As we serve God, sometimes our greatest strength reveals a heart of gentleness to those in need. By Dave Branon
Today's Reflection
How can you gently but firmly promote justice and mercy today? How does the Holy Spirit help us be both gentle and powerful?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, March 08, 2019
The Surrendered Life
I have been crucified with Christ… —Galatians 2:20
To become one with Jesus Christ, a person must be willing not only to give up sin, but also to surrender his whole way of looking at things. Being born again by the Spirit of God means that we must first be willing to let go before we can grasp something else. The first thing we must surrender is all of our pretense or deceit. What our Lord wants us to present to Him is not our goodness, honesty, or our efforts to do better, but real solid sin. Actually, that is all He can take from us. And what He gives us in exchange for our sin is real solid righteousness. But we must surrender all pretense that we are anything, and give up all our claims of even being worthy of God’s consideration.
Once we have done that, the Spirit of God will show us what we need to surrender next. Along each step of this process, we will have to give up our claims to our rights to ourselves. Are we willing to surrender our grasp on all that we possess, our desires, and everything else in our lives? Are we ready to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ?
We will suffer a sharp painful disillusionment before we fully surrender. When people really see themselves as the Lord sees them, it is not the terribly offensive sins of the flesh that shock them, but the awful nature of the pride of their own hearts opposing Jesus Christ. When they see themselves in the light of the Lord, the shame, horror, and desperate conviction hit home for them.
If you are faced with the question of whether or not to surrender, make a determination to go on through the crisis, surrendering all that you have and all that you are to Him. And God will then equip you to do all that He requires of you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
I have no right to say I believe in God unless I order my life as under His all-seeing Eye. Disciples Indeed, 385 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, March 08, 2019
A Brand New You - #8390
We were on a business trip when my friend Rich found a site that advertised caverns and an Indian artifact museum. An Indian man, with his coal black hair pulled back and a face my friend described as "well-weathered," offered to take Rich on the museum tour which he thought would last about 15 minutes. Nearly two hours later, he had received an incredible history lesson on the Shawnee Nation. The guide said the Shawnee Nation is made up of many different Indian tribes and the Shawnees have "adopted" these people into their nation. And several times he pointed out that once the tribe allows this to happen, the adopted people or person can never speak of their former tribe or nation again!
Several times Rich's guide asked if he really understood that concept and my friend assured him that he did. Suddenly, the Shawnee man stepped back a few feet and he said, "You're a Christian, aren't you?" Rich gave him a wholehearted yes, and then he asked how he could tell. The Native American man's response: "Only a true Shawnee or a Christian can understand forsaking all past life and accepting a new life!" Later, these guys prayed together, and it was clear that this man who my friend described as "truly amazing" was both a Shawnee and a Christian.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Brand New You."
The Indian brother really understands what it means to become a part of Jesus' tribe far better than many of us who claim to be following Jesus. What he said is almost a paraphrase of exactly what God says in our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Corinthians 5, beginning in verse 15.
"Christ died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves." Wait a minute! Stop and ask yourself, "Are you really living for yourself?" - "but to live for Him who died for them and was raised again...Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" And paralleling the Shawnee experience, the way we become "in Christ" is "to be adopted as God's sons through Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 1:5). Adopted - not to have part of us in our old family, which is really the devil's family, and part of us in God's family. No, we're talking here about leaving one way of life for good and taking on a brand new you! Which may make some of the junk in your life right now a little hard to explain.
You can't really hold Jesus with one hand, and with your other hand you're holding some of the junk that killed Him. After all, in God's words, "He bore our sins in His own body on the tree so we might die to sins and live for righteousness" (1 Peter 2:24). Imagine how it must make Jesus feel to see you hanging onto sins that He died to get you out of!
It may be that you've missed the imperative Jesus gave us to "repent" when we come to Him. It would be easy to miss. I mean, nobody talks much about repenting these days. But it still matters just as much to Jesus. And your failure to really repent may explain your constant spiritual roller coaster, your recurring doubts about whether or not you really belong to Jesus. In Acts 3:19, the call is to "repent and turn to God, so your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord." Repenting of that sin isn't just saying, "I'm sorry." It's saying, "I'm not doing that stuff anymore!"
You've tried carrying your dual identity long enough; you're a half-hearted sinner and a half-hearted Christian. It's time to turn your back, once and for all, on that junk that has shackled you for so long. Tell Jesus right now, "Jesus, with Your power, I'm dropping this junk. I'm saying goodbye to the old me once and for all."
This might be the time you actually are pinning your hopes, for the first time, on Jesus completely, who died on the cross for those sins. This could be the beginning of really belonging to Him; having a real love relationship with Jesus.
You want to make sure of that? Our website is for that, and that's why we do it. I encourage you to go there today and check it out for yourself. It's called ANewStory.com appropriately. It might be the beginning of yours.
You know, Jesus died to get you out of the old darkness. And beginning today, this could be the beginning of a brand new you.
The tenth chapter of Luke describes the step-by-step process of the sweet becoming sour. It’s the story of two sisters. Martha has things to do. Mary has thoughts to think.
Martha is having Jesus and friends over for dinner. She’s literally serving Jesus. But she makes a common, yet dangerous mistake. Her work becomes more important than her Lord. Martha’s heart sours with anxiety. And worry makes her forget who’s in charge, and she bosses God around.
Jesus points out that “only one thing is important. Mary has chosen it.” God is more pleased with the quiet attention of a sincere servant than the noisy service of a sour one. A bad attitude spoils the gift we leave on the altar for God. So guard your attitude.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
John 10:22-42
They were celebrating Hanukkah just then in Jerusalem. It was winter. Jesus was strolling in the Temple across Solomon’s Porch. The Jews, circling him, said, “How long are you going to keep us guessing? If you’re the Messiah, tell us straight out.”
25-30 Jesus answered, “I told you, but you don’t believe. Everything I have done has been authorized by my Father, actions that speak louder than words. You don’t believe because you’re not my sheep. My sheep recognize my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them real and eternal life. They are protected from the Destroyer for good. No one can steal them from out of my hand. The Father who put them under my care is so much greater than the Destroyer and Thief. No one could ever get them away from him. I and the Father are one heart and mind.”
31-32 Again the Jews picked up rocks to throw at him. Jesus said, “I have made a present to you from the Father of a great many good actions. For which of these acts do you stone me?”
33 The Jews said, “We’re not stoning you for anything good you did, but for what you said—this blasphemy of calling yourself God.”
34-38 Jesus said, “I’m only quoting your inspired Scriptures, where God said, ‘I tell you—you are gods.’ If God called your ancestors ‘gods’—and Scripture doesn’t lie—why do you yell, ‘Blasphemer! Blasphemer!’ at the unique One the Father consecrated and sent into the world, just because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? If I don’t do the things my Father does, well and good; don’t believe me. But if I am doing them, put aside for a moment what you hear me say about myself and just take the evidence of the actions that are right before your eyes. Then perhaps things will come together for you, and you’ll see that not only are we doing the same thing, we are the same—Father and Son. He is in me; I am in him.”
39-42 They tried yet again to arrest him, but he slipped through their fingers. He went back across the Jordan to the place where John first baptized, and stayed there. A lot of people followed him over. They were saying, “John did no miracles, but everything he said about this man has come true.” Many believed in him then and there.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, March 08, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Isaiah 40:10-11
Climb a high mountain, Zion.
You’re the preacher of good news.
Raise your voice. Make it good and loud, Jerusalem.
You’re the preacher of good news.
Speak loud and clear. Don’t be timid!
Tell the cities of Judah,
“Look! Your God!”
Look at him! God, the Master, comes in power,
ready to go into action.
He is going to pay back his enemies
and reward those who have loved him.
Like a shepherd, he will care for his flock,
gathering the lambs in his arms,
Hugging them as he carries them,
leading the nursing ewes to good pasture.
Insight
The theme of shepherds and sheep is repeated in Isaiah’s prophecies. In Isaiah 40:11, Isaiah paints a picture of God Himself as the loving, caring Shepherd of Israel. In 38:12, the prophet quotes King Hezekiah referring to his own dwelling as a “shepherd’s tent”; and in 44:28, God surprisingly refers to the conquering King Cyrus as God’s own shepherd! Finally, in 63:11 the people reflect on God’s care for their ancestors in the wilderness and long for that care afresh. Isaiah captures four different speakers (himself, Hezekiah, God, the people) using the imagery of a shepherd in very different ways, no doubt because it was a word picture that would resonate with people living in an agricultural culture where sheep and shepherds were common sights. This imagery of shepherds and their care for their flocks reminded the people of their need for that same care from their God. By: Bill Crowder
Gentle Yet Powerful
Let your gentleness be evident to all. Philippians 4:5
As the enemy occupation of the Netherlands increased, Anne Frank and her family bravely prepared and then moved to a secret hiding place to escape the danger. They hid there two years during World War II before being found and sent to concentration camps. Yet Anne, writing in what became her famous Diary of a Young Girl, said this: “In the long run, the sharpest weapon of all is a kind and gentle spirit.”
Gentleness can be a complicated issue as we deal with real life.
In Isaiah 40 we get a picture of God that shows Him to be both gentle and powerful. In verse 11 we read: “He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms.” But that verse follows this: “See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and he rules with a mighty arm” (v. 10). Full of power, but gentle when it comes to protecting the vulnerable.
And think of Jesus, who fashioned a whip and brandished it as He flipped over the money-changers tables in the temple but who also gently cared for children. He used powerful words to denounce the Pharisees (Matthew 23) but forgave a woman who needed His gentle mercy (John 8:1–11).
While there may be times to stand up with power for the weak and challenge others to pursue justice—we’re also to “let [our] gentleness be evident to all” (Philippians 4:5). As we serve God, sometimes our greatest strength reveals a heart of gentleness to those in need. By Dave Branon
Today's Reflection
How can you gently but firmly promote justice and mercy today? How does the Holy Spirit help us be both gentle and powerful?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, March 08, 2019
The Surrendered Life
I have been crucified with Christ… —Galatians 2:20
To become one with Jesus Christ, a person must be willing not only to give up sin, but also to surrender his whole way of looking at things. Being born again by the Spirit of God means that we must first be willing to let go before we can grasp something else. The first thing we must surrender is all of our pretense or deceit. What our Lord wants us to present to Him is not our goodness, honesty, or our efforts to do better, but real solid sin. Actually, that is all He can take from us. And what He gives us in exchange for our sin is real solid righteousness. But we must surrender all pretense that we are anything, and give up all our claims of even being worthy of God’s consideration.
Once we have done that, the Spirit of God will show us what we need to surrender next. Along each step of this process, we will have to give up our claims to our rights to ourselves. Are we willing to surrender our grasp on all that we possess, our desires, and everything else in our lives? Are we ready to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ?
We will suffer a sharp painful disillusionment before we fully surrender. When people really see themselves as the Lord sees them, it is not the terribly offensive sins of the flesh that shock them, but the awful nature of the pride of their own hearts opposing Jesus Christ. When they see themselves in the light of the Lord, the shame, horror, and desperate conviction hit home for them.
If you are faced with the question of whether or not to surrender, make a determination to go on through the crisis, surrendering all that you have and all that you are to Him. And God will then equip you to do all that He requires of you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
I have no right to say I believe in God unless I order my life as under His all-seeing Eye. Disciples Indeed, 385 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, March 08, 2019
A Brand New You - #8390
We were on a business trip when my friend Rich found a site that advertised caverns and an Indian artifact museum. An Indian man, with his coal black hair pulled back and a face my friend described as "well-weathered," offered to take Rich on the museum tour which he thought would last about 15 minutes. Nearly two hours later, he had received an incredible history lesson on the Shawnee Nation. The guide said the Shawnee Nation is made up of many different Indian tribes and the Shawnees have "adopted" these people into their nation. And several times he pointed out that once the tribe allows this to happen, the adopted people or person can never speak of their former tribe or nation again!
Several times Rich's guide asked if he really understood that concept and my friend assured him that he did. Suddenly, the Shawnee man stepped back a few feet and he said, "You're a Christian, aren't you?" Rich gave him a wholehearted yes, and then he asked how he could tell. The Native American man's response: "Only a true Shawnee or a Christian can understand forsaking all past life and accepting a new life!" Later, these guys prayed together, and it was clear that this man who my friend described as "truly amazing" was both a Shawnee and a Christian.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Brand New You."
The Indian brother really understands what it means to become a part of Jesus' tribe far better than many of us who claim to be following Jesus. What he said is almost a paraphrase of exactly what God says in our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Corinthians 5, beginning in verse 15.
"Christ died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves." Wait a minute! Stop and ask yourself, "Are you really living for yourself?" - "but to live for Him who died for them and was raised again...Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" And paralleling the Shawnee experience, the way we become "in Christ" is "to be adopted as God's sons through Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 1:5). Adopted - not to have part of us in our old family, which is really the devil's family, and part of us in God's family. No, we're talking here about leaving one way of life for good and taking on a brand new you! Which may make some of the junk in your life right now a little hard to explain.
You can't really hold Jesus with one hand, and with your other hand you're holding some of the junk that killed Him. After all, in God's words, "He bore our sins in His own body on the tree so we might die to sins and live for righteousness" (1 Peter 2:24). Imagine how it must make Jesus feel to see you hanging onto sins that He died to get you out of!
It may be that you've missed the imperative Jesus gave us to "repent" when we come to Him. It would be easy to miss. I mean, nobody talks much about repenting these days. But it still matters just as much to Jesus. And your failure to really repent may explain your constant spiritual roller coaster, your recurring doubts about whether or not you really belong to Jesus. In Acts 3:19, the call is to "repent and turn to God, so your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord." Repenting of that sin isn't just saying, "I'm sorry." It's saying, "I'm not doing that stuff anymore!"
You've tried carrying your dual identity long enough; you're a half-hearted sinner and a half-hearted Christian. It's time to turn your back, once and for all, on that junk that has shackled you for so long. Tell Jesus right now, "Jesus, with Your power, I'm dropping this junk. I'm saying goodbye to the old me once and for all."
This might be the time you actually are pinning your hopes, for the first time, on Jesus completely, who died on the cross for those sins. This could be the beginning of really belonging to Him; having a real love relationship with Jesus.
You want to make sure of that? Our website is for that, and that's why we do it. I encourage you to go there today and check it out for yourself. It's called ANewStory.com appropriately. It might be the beginning of yours.
You know, Jesus died to get you out of the old darkness. And beginning today, this could be the beginning of a brand new you.
Thursday, March 7, 2019
Psalm 26, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: THREE IMPORTANT WORDS: DON’T GIVE UP!
Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James and Joseph, had a task to do—Jesus’ body had to be prepared for burial.
Matthew 28:2 says, “At that time there was a strong earthquake. An angel of the Lord came down from heaven, went to the tomb, and rolled the stone away from the entrance.” Did the angel roll away the rock for Jesus? Did God have to have help? I don’t think so. Then the angel says to the women, “Come and see the place where his body was.” The stone was moved—not so Jesus could come out, but so the women could see in!
Just when the road was too dark for Mary Magdalene and Mary, the angel glowed and the Savior showed, and they were forever changed. The lesson? Three words: Don’t give up! God still sends angels and He still moves stones.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
Psalm 26
A David Psalm
26 Clear my name, God;
I’ve kept an honest shop.
I’ve thrown in my lot with you, God, and
I’m not budging.
2 Examine me, God, from head to foot,
order your battery of tests.
Make sure I’m fit
inside and out
3 So I never lose
sight of your love,
But keep in step with you,
never missing a beat.
4-5 I don’t hang out with tricksters,
I don’t pal around with thugs;
I hate that pack of gangsters,
I don’t deal with double-dealers.
6-7 I scrub my hands with purest soap,
then join hands with the others in the great circle,
dancing around your altar, God,
Singing God-songs at the top of my lungs,
telling God-stories.
8-10 God, I love living with you;
your house glows with your glory.
When it’s time for spring cleaning,
don’t sweep me out with the quacks and crooks,
Men with bags of dirty tricks,
women with purses stuffed with bribe-money.
11-12 You know I’ve been aboveboard with you;
now be aboveboard with me.
I’m on the level with you, God;
I bless you every chance I get.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, March 07, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: 1 Kings 19:9-13
He got up, ate and drank his fill, and set out. Nourished by that meal, he walked forty days and nights, all the way to the mountain of God, to Horeb. When he got there, he crawled into a cave and went to sleep.
Then the word of God came to him: “So Elijah, what are you doing here?”
10 “I’ve been working my heart out for the God-of-the-Angel-Armies,” said Elijah. “The people of Israel have abandoned your covenant, destroyed the places of worship, and murdered your prophets. I’m the only one left, and now they’re trying to kill me.”
11-12 Then he was told, “Go, stand on the mountain at attention before God. God will pass by.”
A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn’t to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn’t in the earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn’t in the fire; and after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper.
13-14 When Elijah heard the quiet voice, he muffled his face with his great cloak, went to the mouth of the cave, and stood there. A quiet voice asked, “So Elijah, now tell me, what are you doing here?” Elijah said it again, “I’ve been working my heart out for God, the God-of-the-Angel-Armies, because the people of Israel have abandoned your covenant, destroyed your places of worship, and murdered your prophets. I’m the only one left, and now they’re trying to kill me.”
Insight
Elijah’s meeting with the Lord on “Horeb, the mountain of God” (1 Kings 19:8) was not the first time the Lord met with one of His servants in that place. Centuries earlier the Lord had met Moses there. “Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God” (Exodus 3:1). At Horeb the Lord revealed Himself to Moses and commissioned him to bring the children of Israel out of Egypt (vv. 2–12). The mountain we mostly associate Moses with is Mount Sinai (19:18–20). But passages like Deuteronomy 4:10 help us to see that Horeb and Sinai are used synonymously and interchangeably in Scripture. Two of the Lord’s chosen servants met Him on that mountain and departed to do His will in His strength. By: Arthur Jackson
Escaping the Noise
After the fire came a gentle whisper. 1 Kings 19:12
Several years ago, the president of a college suggested that students join her in “powering down” for an evening. Although the students agreed, it was with great reluctance that they laid aside their cell phones and entered the chapel. For the next hour, they sat quietly in a service of music and prayer. Afterward, one participant described the experience as “a wonderful opportunity to calm down . . . a place to just tune out all of the extra noise.”
Sometimes, it’s difficult to escape “extra noise.” The clamor of both our external and internal worlds can be deafening. But when we’re willing to “power down,” we begin to understand the psalmist’s reminder of the necessity to be still so we can know God (Psalm 46:10). In 1 Kings 19, we discover as well that when the prophet Elijah looked for the Lord, he didn’t find Him in the pandemonium of the wind or the earthquake or the fire (vv. 9–13). Instead, Elijah heard God’s gentle whisper (v. 12).
Extra noise is practically guaranteed during celebrations. When families and friends come together, it’s likely a time of animated conversations, excess food, boisterous laughter, and sweet expressions of love. But when we quietly open our hearts, we find that time with God is even sweeter. Like Elijah, we’re more likely to encounter God in the stillness. And sometimes, if we listen, we too will hear that gentle whisper. By Cindy Hess Kasper
Today's Reflection
What will help you draw close to God in silence and solitude? How can you regularly “power down” both your devices and your busy mind?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, March 07, 2019
The Source of Abundant Joy
In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. —Romans 8:37
Paul was speaking here of the things that might seem likely to separate a saint from the love of God. But the remarkable thing is that nothing can come between the love of God and a saint. The things Paul mentioned in this passage can and do disrupt the close fellowship of our soul with God and separate our natural life from Him. But none of them is able to come between the love of God and the soul of a saint on the spiritual level. The underlying foundation of the Christian faith is the undeserved, limitless miracle of the love of God that was exhibited on the Cross of Calvary; a love that is not earned and can never be. Paul said this is the reason that “in all these things we are more than conquerors.” We are super-victors with a joy that comes from experiencing the very things which look as if they are going to overwhelm us.
Huge waves that would frighten an ordinary swimmer produce a tremendous thrill for the surfer who has ridden them. Let’s apply that to our own circumstances. The things we try to avoid and fight against— tribulation, suffering, and persecution— are the very things that produce abundant joy in us. “We are more than conquerors through Him” “in all these things”; not in spite of them, but in the midst of them. A saint doesn’t know the joy of the Lord in spite of tribulation, but because of it. Paul said, “I am exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation” (2 Corinthians 7:4).
The undiminished radiance, which is the result of abundant joy, is not built on anything passing, but on the love of God that nothing can change. And the experiences of life, whether they are everyday events or terrifying ones, are powerless to “separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We have no right to judge where we should be put, or to have preconceived notions as to what God is fitting us for. God engineers everything; wherever He puts us, our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.” My Utmost for His Highest, April 23, 773 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, March 07, 2019
How to Improve Your Man - #8389
Now here's a memory for your summer vacation scrapbook. You got kissed by a dolphin. No thank you. But it happens to people at SeaWorld. At least when I was there they were doing it. You know, it's that park where you can see the fish and the seals, etc. doing these amazing tricks. Those dolphins are really something. I watched them jump through hoops (I wish you could get your kids to do that), they'll dance on their tails, and did I mention jumping out of the water and kissing tourists? Yeah. But if you want to understand why they do all this neat stuff, you have to watch what they do after each trick. They swim around the pool and straight for the guy with the bag. You know what's in that bag. Fish! Yummy fish! If you want a dolphin to do something, give him a fish and he'll do it again! Men are a lot like that.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Improve Your Man."
I really do think my half of the human race has a lot in common with those dolphins. If you give us a fish when we do something good, we'll want to jump through that hoop again.
Some women seem to believe that the best way to get their man to improve is to nag him into it, to shame him into it, or to criticize him into doing it. The Bible describes two kinds of women in Proverbs 14:1: "The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down." There are some things that a woman does that build the people she cares about, and there are others that tear them down.
Now there's no question every man needs a lot of work. We know that. But if you approach your husband like your personal home improvement project, like "I've got to fix this guy!" you'll probably keep him from changing. Is it stubbornness? Ego? Deafness? I'm not sure, but I do know that when a man is pushed, he tends to go the other way, not come your way.
Part of love is what I call "mirroring" - holding up a mirror to the person you love and letting them know what you see when you look at them. We tend to be a lot better at mirroring the things we don't like than some of the good things about that person. But it's in affirming the good that we give a person the courage and the encouragement to work on the rest.
Proverbs 31 contains God's description of a woman who's got it right. And, after all, He invented man and woman! In Proverbs 31, beginning with verse 10, our word for today from the Word of God, He says, "A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and he lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life." This woman continues to bring value and confidence and good into her husband's life. And it pays off. It says, "Her husband is respected at the city gate. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, he praises her."
I guess if you want to improve your man, bring him good, bring him value. Tell him what's good about him. Praise him when he does something right, even if it's just a tiny improvement. Give him a fish if you want him to do it some more. Or, as my wife has often said, "Water what you want to grow."
When you consistently have a ministry of encouragement and affirmation in your man's life, he feels safe. And, look, we're insecure. We're not going to risk changing unless we're in a place where we feel safe. If he feels safe and valued by you, he's a lot more likely to listen when you need to tell him something that's hard to hear. He'll know you love him and he'll know that you want him to be the best man he can possibly be.
Billy Graham's wife, Ruth, had a wonderful outlook on this. She said, "It's my job to love Billy. It's God's job to change him!" Well, that says it better than I ever could.
Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James and Joseph, had a task to do—Jesus’ body had to be prepared for burial.
Matthew 28:2 says, “At that time there was a strong earthquake. An angel of the Lord came down from heaven, went to the tomb, and rolled the stone away from the entrance.” Did the angel roll away the rock for Jesus? Did God have to have help? I don’t think so. Then the angel says to the women, “Come and see the place where his body was.” The stone was moved—not so Jesus could come out, but so the women could see in!
Just when the road was too dark for Mary Magdalene and Mary, the angel glowed and the Savior showed, and they were forever changed. The lesson? Three words: Don’t give up! God still sends angels and He still moves stones.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
Psalm 26
A David Psalm
26 Clear my name, God;
I’ve kept an honest shop.
I’ve thrown in my lot with you, God, and
I’m not budging.
2 Examine me, God, from head to foot,
order your battery of tests.
Make sure I’m fit
inside and out
3 So I never lose
sight of your love,
But keep in step with you,
never missing a beat.
4-5 I don’t hang out with tricksters,
I don’t pal around with thugs;
I hate that pack of gangsters,
I don’t deal with double-dealers.
6-7 I scrub my hands with purest soap,
then join hands with the others in the great circle,
dancing around your altar, God,
Singing God-songs at the top of my lungs,
telling God-stories.
8-10 God, I love living with you;
your house glows with your glory.
When it’s time for spring cleaning,
don’t sweep me out with the quacks and crooks,
Men with bags of dirty tricks,
women with purses stuffed with bribe-money.
11-12 You know I’ve been aboveboard with you;
now be aboveboard with me.
I’m on the level with you, God;
I bless you every chance I get.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, March 07, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: 1 Kings 19:9-13
He got up, ate and drank his fill, and set out. Nourished by that meal, he walked forty days and nights, all the way to the mountain of God, to Horeb. When he got there, he crawled into a cave and went to sleep.
Then the word of God came to him: “So Elijah, what are you doing here?”
10 “I’ve been working my heart out for the God-of-the-Angel-Armies,” said Elijah. “The people of Israel have abandoned your covenant, destroyed the places of worship, and murdered your prophets. I’m the only one left, and now they’re trying to kill me.”
11-12 Then he was told, “Go, stand on the mountain at attention before God. God will pass by.”
A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn’t to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn’t in the earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn’t in the fire; and after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper.
13-14 When Elijah heard the quiet voice, he muffled his face with his great cloak, went to the mouth of the cave, and stood there. A quiet voice asked, “So Elijah, now tell me, what are you doing here?” Elijah said it again, “I’ve been working my heart out for God, the God-of-the-Angel-Armies, because the people of Israel have abandoned your covenant, destroyed your places of worship, and murdered your prophets. I’m the only one left, and now they’re trying to kill me.”
Insight
Elijah’s meeting with the Lord on “Horeb, the mountain of God” (1 Kings 19:8) was not the first time the Lord met with one of His servants in that place. Centuries earlier the Lord had met Moses there. “Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God” (Exodus 3:1). At Horeb the Lord revealed Himself to Moses and commissioned him to bring the children of Israel out of Egypt (vv. 2–12). The mountain we mostly associate Moses with is Mount Sinai (19:18–20). But passages like Deuteronomy 4:10 help us to see that Horeb and Sinai are used synonymously and interchangeably in Scripture. Two of the Lord’s chosen servants met Him on that mountain and departed to do His will in His strength. By: Arthur Jackson
Escaping the Noise
After the fire came a gentle whisper. 1 Kings 19:12
Several years ago, the president of a college suggested that students join her in “powering down” for an evening. Although the students agreed, it was with great reluctance that they laid aside their cell phones and entered the chapel. For the next hour, they sat quietly in a service of music and prayer. Afterward, one participant described the experience as “a wonderful opportunity to calm down . . . a place to just tune out all of the extra noise.”
Sometimes, it’s difficult to escape “extra noise.” The clamor of both our external and internal worlds can be deafening. But when we’re willing to “power down,” we begin to understand the psalmist’s reminder of the necessity to be still so we can know God (Psalm 46:10). In 1 Kings 19, we discover as well that when the prophet Elijah looked for the Lord, he didn’t find Him in the pandemonium of the wind or the earthquake or the fire (vv. 9–13). Instead, Elijah heard God’s gentle whisper (v. 12).
Extra noise is practically guaranteed during celebrations. When families and friends come together, it’s likely a time of animated conversations, excess food, boisterous laughter, and sweet expressions of love. But when we quietly open our hearts, we find that time with God is even sweeter. Like Elijah, we’re more likely to encounter God in the stillness. And sometimes, if we listen, we too will hear that gentle whisper. By Cindy Hess Kasper
Today's Reflection
What will help you draw close to God in silence and solitude? How can you regularly “power down” both your devices and your busy mind?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, March 07, 2019
The Source of Abundant Joy
In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. —Romans 8:37
Paul was speaking here of the things that might seem likely to separate a saint from the love of God. But the remarkable thing is that nothing can come between the love of God and a saint. The things Paul mentioned in this passage can and do disrupt the close fellowship of our soul with God and separate our natural life from Him. But none of them is able to come between the love of God and the soul of a saint on the spiritual level. The underlying foundation of the Christian faith is the undeserved, limitless miracle of the love of God that was exhibited on the Cross of Calvary; a love that is not earned and can never be. Paul said this is the reason that “in all these things we are more than conquerors.” We are super-victors with a joy that comes from experiencing the very things which look as if they are going to overwhelm us.
Huge waves that would frighten an ordinary swimmer produce a tremendous thrill for the surfer who has ridden them. Let’s apply that to our own circumstances. The things we try to avoid and fight against— tribulation, suffering, and persecution— are the very things that produce abundant joy in us. “We are more than conquerors through Him” “in all these things”; not in spite of them, but in the midst of them. A saint doesn’t know the joy of the Lord in spite of tribulation, but because of it. Paul said, “I am exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation” (2 Corinthians 7:4).
The undiminished radiance, which is the result of abundant joy, is not built on anything passing, but on the love of God that nothing can change. And the experiences of life, whether they are everyday events or terrifying ones, are powerless to “separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We have no right to judge where we should be put, or to have preconceived notions as to what God is fitting us for. God engineers everything; wherever He puts us, our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.” My Utmost for His Highest, April 23, 773 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, March 07, 2019
How to Improve Your Man - #8389
Now here's a memory for your summer vacation scrapbook. You got kissed by a dolphin. No thank you. But it happens to people at SeaWorld. At least when I was there they were doing it. You know, it's that park where you can see the fish and the seals, etc. doing these amazing tricks. Those dolphins are really something. I watched them jump through hoops (I wish you could get your kids to do that), they'll dance on their tails, and did I mention jumping out of the water and kissing tourists? Yeah. But if you want to understand why they do all this neat stuff, you have to watch what they do after each trick. They swim around the pool and straight for the guy with the bag. You know what's in that bag. Fish! Yummy fish! If you want a dolphin to do something, give him a fish and he'll do it again! Men are a lot like that.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Improve Your Man."
I really do think my half of the human race has a lot in common with those dolphins. If you give us a fish when we do something good, we'll want to jump through that hoop again.
Some women seem to believe that the best way to get their man to improve is to nag him into it, to shame him into it, or to criticize him into doing it. The Bible describes two kinds of women in Proverbs 14:1: "The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down." There are some things that a woman does that build the people she cares about, and there are others that tear them down.
Now there's no question every man needs a lot of work. We know that. But if you approach your husband like your personal home improvement project, like "I've got to fix this guy!" you'll probably keep him from changing. Is it stubbornness? Ego? Deafness? I'm not sure, but I do know that when a man is pushed, he tends to go the other way, not come your way.
Part of love is what I call "mirroring" - holding up a mirror to the person you love and letting them know what you see when you look at them. We tend to be a lot better at mirroring the things we don't like than some of the good things about that person. But it's in affirming the good that we give a person the courage and the encouragement to work on the rest.
Proverbs 31 contains God's description of a woman who's got it right. And, after all, He invented man and woman! In Proverbs 31, beginning with verse 10, our word for today from the Word of God, He says, "A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and he lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life." This woman continues to bring value and confidence and good into her husband's life. And it pays off. It says, "Her husband is respected at the city gate. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, he praises her."
I guess if you want to improve your man, bring him good, bring him value. Tell him what's good about him. Praise him when he does something right, even if it's just a tiny improvement. Give him a fish if you want him to do it some more. Or, as my wife has often said, "Water what you want to grow."
When you consistently have a ministry of encouragement and affirmation in your man's life, he feels safe. And, look, we're insecure. We're not going to risk changing unless we're in a place where we feel safe. If he feels safe and valued by you, he's a lot more likely to listen when you need to tell him something that's hard to hear. He'll know you love him and he'll know that you want him to be the best man he can possibly be.
Billy Graham's wife, Ruth, had a wonderful outlook on this. She said, "It's my job to love Billy. It's God's job to change him!" Well, that says it better than I ever could.
Wednesday, March 6, 2019
Psalm 25, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: DEALING WITH DIFFICULT RELATIVES
Odds are, you probably have a difficult relative—someone you can’t talk to and can’t walk away from. Did you know Jesus had a difficult family? In fact, they were embarrassed by him. Mark 3:21 tells us, “His family went to get him because they thought he was out of his mind.”
Notice that Jesus didn’t try to control his family’s behavior, nor did he let their behavior control his. As long as you think you can control people’s behavior toward you, you are held in bondage by their opinions.
Let God give you what your family doesn’t. We know that God affirmed Jesus as “my Son, whom I love, and I am very pleased with him.” Jesus gave his relatives space, time, and grace. And because he did, they changed. One brother became an apostle, and others became missionaries. So don’t lose heart. God still changes families.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
Psalm 25
A David Psalm
25 1-2 My head is high, God, held high;
I’m looking to you, God;
No hangdog skulking for me.
3 I’ve thrown in my lot with you;
You won’t embarrass me, will you?
Or let my enemies get the best of me?
Don’t embarrass any of us
Who went out on a limb for you.
It’s the traitors who should be humiliated.
4 Show me how you work, God;
School me in your ways.
5 Take me by the hand;
Lead me down the path of truth.
You are my Savior, aren’t you?
6 Mark the milestones of your mercy and love, God;
Rebuild the ancient landmarks!
7 Forget that I sowed wild oats;
Mark me with your sign of love.
Plan only the best for me, God!
8 God is fair and just;
He corrects the misdirected,
Sends them in the right direction.
9 He gives the rejects his hand,
And leads them step-by-step.
10 From now on every road you travel
Will take you to God.
Follow the Covenant signs;
Read the charted directions.
11 Keep up your reputation, God;
Forgive my bad life;
It’s been a very bad life.
12 My question: What are God-worshipers like?
Your answer: Arrows aimed at God’s bull’s-eye.
13 They settle down in a promising place;
Their kids inherit a prosperous farm.
14 God-friendship is for God-worshipers;
They are the ones he confides in.
15 If I keep my eyes on God,
I won’t trip over my own feet.
16 Look at me and help me!
I’m all alone and in big trouble.
17 My heart and kidneys are fighting each other;
Call a truce to this civil war.
18 Take a hard look at my life of hard labor,
Then lift this ton of sin.
19 Do you see how many people
Have it in for me?
How viciously they hate me?
20 Keep watch over me and keep me out of trouble;
Don’t let me down when I run to you.
21 Use all your skill to put me together;
I wait to see your finished product.
22 God, give your people a break
From this run of bad luck
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, March 06, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Mark 10:17-31
As he went out into the street, a man came running up, greeted him with great reverence, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get eternal life?”
18-19 Jesus said, “Why are you calling me good? No one is good, only God. You know the commandments: Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t cheat, honor your father and mother.”
20 He said, “Teacher, I have—from my youth—kept them all!”
21 Jesus looked him hard in the eye—and loved him! He said, “There’s one thing left: Go sell whatever you own and give it to the poor. All your wealth will then be heavenly wealth. And come follow me.”
22 The man’s face clouded over. This was the last thing he expected to hear, and he walked off with a heavy heart. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and not about to let go.
23-25 Looking at his disciples, Jesus said, “Do you have any idea how difficult it is for people who ‘have it all’ to enter God’s kingdom?” The disciples couldn’t believe what they were hearing, but Jesus kept on: “You can’t imagine how difficult. I’d say it’s easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for the rich to get into God’s kingdom.”
26 That set the disciples back on their heels. “Then who has any chance at all?” they asked.
27 Jesus was blunt: “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.”
28 Peter tried another angle: “We left everything and followed you.”
29-31 Jesus said, “Mark my words, no one who sacrifices house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, land—whatever—because of me and the Message will lose out. They’ll get it all back, but multiplied many times in homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and land—but also in troubles. And then the bonus of eternal life! This is once again the Great Reversal: Many who are first will end up last, and the last first.”
Insight
The Old Testament law contains no commandment to sell all our possessions, yet Jesus told the rich young man to do exactly that. Why? Would that save him? No! Jesus uncovered the man’s true love—wealth. The law is powerless to change our hearts; it can only condemn us. Jesus fulfilled the law, accomplishing what we cannot (Mark 10:27). By: Tim Gustafson
Return on Investment
We have left everything to follow you! Mark 10:28
In 1995 US stock market investors received record-high returns—on average, a whopping 37.6 percent return on their dollars. Then in 2008 investors lost almost exactly as much: a negative 37.0 percent. The years between had varying returns, causing those with money in the market to wonder—sometimes with fear—what would become of their investment.
Jesus assured His followers they would have an incredible return on investing their lives in Him. They “left everything to follow [Him]”—leaving their homes, jobs, status, and families to put their lives on deposit (v. 28). But they grew concerned that their investment might not pay off after watching a wealthy man struggle with the grip worldly goods had on him. Jesus replied, however, that anyone willing to sacrifice for Him would “receive a hundred times as much in this present age . . . and in the age to come eternal life” (v. 30). That’s a far better outcome than any stock market could ever match.
We don’t have to be concerned about the “interest rate” on our spiritual investment—with God, it’s an unmatched certainty. With money, our aim is to maximize the financial gain from our investment. With God, what we get back isn’t measured in dollars and cents, but in the joy that comes from knowing Him now and forever—and sharing that joy with others! By Kirsten Holmberg
Today's Reflection
What can you “invest” in God today—including your time, talents, or treasure? How have you experienced joy in your relationship with Jesus?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, March 06, 2019
Taking the Next Step
…in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses. —2 Corinthians 6:4
When you have no vision from God, no enthusiasm left in your life, and no one watching and encouraging you, it requires the grace of Almighty God to take the next step in your devotion to Him, in the reading and studying of His Word, in your family life, or in your duty to Him. It takes much more of the grace of God, and a much greater awareness of drawing upon Him, to take that next step, than it does to preach the gospel.
Every Christian must experience the essence of the incarnation by bringing the next step down into flesh-and-blood reality and by working it out with his hands. We lose interest and give up when we have no vision, no encouragement, and no improvement, but only experience our everyday life with its trivial tasks. The thing that really testifies for God and for the people of God in the long run is steady perseverance, even when the work cannot be seen by others. And the only way to live an undefeated life is to live looking to God. Ask God to keep the eyes of your spirit open to the risen Christ, and it will be impossible for drudgery to discourage you. Never allow yourself to think that some tasks are beneath your dignity or too insignificant for you to do, and remind yourself of the example of Christ inJohn 13:1-17.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Christianity is not consistency to conscience or to convictions; Christianity is being true to Jesus Christ. Biblical Ethics, 111 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, March 06, 2019
Running Out of Ammo - #8388
For many years, it was an inspiring book. Then it became a hit Broadway musical. Then it's been made into a movie several times. The story is Victor Hugo's classic, Lés Misérables. One of the many dramas in the book portrays the efforts of this group of valiant young men and women to fight to free their fellow Frenchmen from a tyrannical government. They make their stand against a massive French army at a makeshift wall they have constructed. They call it the "barricade of freedom." They fight bravely, but their cause is threatened by a major problem that develops. They begin to run out of ammunition. Well, this one little boy realizes that their fight for freedom can only continue if they can find more ammunition. So, he risks his own life to crawl across the battle zone, picking up bullets from wounded and dying French soldiers. Because you can't win the battle when you're running out of bullets.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Running Out of Ammo."
Right now, there's an ammunition shortage in the most decisive battle of all - that would be the battle for human souls, the battle for human lives. It began at the cross where Jesus died to make eternal life possible. It moved out across the planet at Jesus' command and in the power of His resurrection, and it continues this very day in cities and towns across this country and in every country of the world. It is a fight to liberate people Jesus died for from the penalty and the power of their sin, from an unspeakable eternity, and from Satan's chains.
But on so many fronts in the battle, Jesus' forces are running out of bullets. In many places God's soldiers are beating back the enemy, taking prisoners from the enemy and pushing back the darkness. But they're running short of bullets. The money just isn't there to keep pressing the battle.
All those letters and appeals you get asking for money for ministry - they're about a lot more than money. For ministries that are really making a difference, it's all about ammunition to keep fighting the battle for lives. But something's gone wrong. It can't be that God isn't giving the money to people through whom He wants to meet these needs. It must be that some of us are sitting on the ammunition instead of sending it to the front lines. And when we lose one of these battles, it's lives we lose - maybe forever.
Our word for today from the Word of God lays out how the supply line for God's army is supposed to work. And thinking of the economic battles and struggles and sometimes the downturns of our time, it seems particularly relevant to go back to those Macedonian believers that Paul cited as an example for all of us. Here's what Paul says, "Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity...they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability" (2 Corinthians 8:2-3).
It was sacrificial giving so the believers in Jerusalem would have the ammunition they needed to fight their battles. Why? It goes on to say, "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that through His poverty we might become rich" (2 Corinthians 8:9). Jesus impoverished Himself to make us rich, and He's the Son of God. So, how can we hang onto what He's given us so we can stay in our comfort zone? The battle for a lost and dying world is every believer's battle, not just the battle for a few spiritual daredevils who take all the risks, exercise all the faith, and make all the sacrifices.
For those who are fighting on the front lines, it's our responsibility to make every bullet count, to stay on mission, to always take the high road of integrity, and put our faith in Jehovah Jireh, not in our contributors. And for every one of us, we need to hear the cries from the front lines, "We're winning, but we're running out of ammunition!" Listen, while there time, let's throw everything we can into this battle for which Jesus gave everything He had!
Odds are, you probably have a difficult relative—someone you can’t talk to and can’t walk away from. Did you know Jesus had a difficult family? In fact, they were embarrassed by him. Mark 3:21 tells us, “His family went to get him because they thought he was out of his mind.”
Notice that Jesus didn’t try to control his family’s behavior, nor did he let their behavior control his. As long as you think you can control people’s behavior toward you, you are held in bondage by their opinions.
Let God give you what your family doesn’t. We know that God affirmed Jesus as “my Son, whom I love, and I am very pleased with him.” Jesus gave his relatives space, time, and grace. And because he did, they changed. One brother became an apostle, and others became missionaries. So don’t lose heart. God still changes families.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
Psalm 25
A David Psalm
25 1-2 My head is high, God, held high;
I’m looking to you, God;
No hangdog skulking for me.
3 I’ve thrown in my lot with you;
You won’t embarrass me, will you?
Or let my enemies get the best of me?
Don’t embarrass any of us
Who went out on a limb for you.
It’s the traitors who should be humiliated.
4 Show me how you work, God;
School me in your ways.
5 Take me by the hand;
Lead me down the path of truth.
You are my Savior, aren’t you?
6 Mark the milestones of your mercy and love, God;
Rebuild the ancient landmarks!
7 Forget that I sowed wild oats;
Mark me with your sign of love.
Plan only the best for me, God!
8 God is fair and just;
He corrects the misdirected,
Sends them in the right direction.
9 He gives the rejects his hand,
And leads them step-by-step.
10 From now on every road you travel
Will take you to God.
Follow the Covenant signs;
Read the charted directions.
11 Keep up your reputation, God;
Forgive my bad life;
It’s been a very bad life.
12 My question: What are God-worshipers like?
Your answer: Arrows aimed at God’s bull’s-eye.
13 They settle down in a promising place;
Their kids inherit a prosperous farm.
14 God-friendship is for God-worshipers;
They are the ones he confides in.
15 If I keep my eyes on God,
I won’t trip over my own feet.
16 Look at me and help me!
I’m all alone and in big trouble.
17 My heart and kidneys are fighting each other;
Call a truce to this civil war.
18 Take a hard look at my life of hard labor,
Then lift this ton of sin.
19 Do you see how many people
Have it in for me?
How viciously they hate me?
20 Keep watch over me and keep me out of trouble;
Don’t let me down when I run to you.
21 Use all your skill to put me together;
I wait to see your finished product.
22 God, give your people a break
From this run of bad luck
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, March 06, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Mark 10:17-31
As he went out into the street, a man came running up, greeted him with great reverence, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get eternal life?”
18-19 Jesus said, “Why are you calling me good? No one is good, only God. You know the commandments: Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t cheat, honor your father and mother.”
20 He said, “Teacher, I have—from my youth—kept them all!”
21 Jesus looked him hard in the eye—and loved him! He said, “There’s one thing left: Go sell whatever you own and give it to the poor. All your wealth will then be heavenly wealth. And come follow me.”
22 The man’s face clouded over. This was the last thing he expected to hear, and he walked off with a heavy heart. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and not about to let go.
23-25 Looking at his disciples, Jesus said, “Do you have any idea how difficult it is for people who ‘have it all’ to enter God’s kingdom?” The disciples couldn’t believe what they were hearing, but Jesus kept on: “You can’t imagine how difficult. I’d say it’s easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for the rich to get into God’s kingdom.”
26 That set the disciples back on their heels. “Then who has any chance at all?” they asked.
27 Jesus was blunt: “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.”
28 Peter tried another angle: “We left everything and followed you.”
29-31 Jesus said, “Mark my words, no one who sacrifices house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, land—whatever—because of me and the Message will lose out. They’ll get it all back, but multiplied many times in homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and land—but also in troubles. And then the bonus of eternal life! This is once again the Great Reversal: Many who are first will end up last, and the last first.”
Insight
The Old Testament law contains no commandment to sell all our possessions, yet Jesus told the rich young man to do exactly that. Why? Would that save him? No! Jesus uncovered the man’s true love—wealth. The law is powerless to change our hearts; it can only condemn us. Jesus fulfilled the law, accomplishing what we cannot (Mark 10:27). By: Tim Gustafson
Return on Investment
We have left everything to follow you! Mark 10:28
In 1995 US stock market investors received record-high returns—on average, a whopping 37.6 percent return on their dollars. Then in 2008 investors lost almost exactly as much: a negative 37.0 percent. The years between had varying returns, causing those with money in the market to wonder—sometimes with fear—what would become of their investment.
Jesus assured His followers they would have an incredible return on investing their lives in Him. They “left everything to follow [Him]”—leaving their homes, jobs, status, and families to put their lives on deposit (v. 28). But they grew concerned that their investment might not pay off after watching a wealthy man struggle with the grip worldly goods had on him. Jesus replied, however, that anyone willing to sacrifice for Him would “receive a hundred times as much in this present age . . . and in the age to come eternal life” (v. 30). That’s a far better outcome than any stock market could ever match.
We don’t have to be concerned about the “interest rate” on our spiritual investment—with God, it’s an unmatched certainty. With money, our aim is to maximize the financial gain from our investment. With God, what we get back isn’t measured in dollars and cents, but in the joy that comes from knowing Him now and forever—and sharing that joy with others! By Kirsten Holmberg
Today's Reflection
What can you “invest” in God today—including your time, talents, or treasure? How have you experienced joy in your relationship with Jesus?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, March 06, 2019
Taking the Next Step
…in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses. —2 Corinthians 6:4
When you have no vision from God, no enthusiasm left in your life, and no one watching and encouraging you, it requires the grace of Almighty God to take the next step in your devotion to Him, in the reading and studying of His Word, in your family life, or in your duty to Him. It takes much more of the grace of God, and a much greater awareness of drawing upon Him, to take that next step, than it does to preach the gospel.
Every Christian must experience the essence of the incarnation by bringing the next step down into flesh-and-blood reality and by working it out with his hands. We lose interest and give up when we have no vision, no encouragement, and no improvement, but only experience our everyday life with its trivial tasks. The thing that really testifies for God and for the people of God in the long run is steady perseverance, even when the work cannot be seen by others. And the only way to live an undefeated life is to live looking to God. Ask God to keep the eyes of your spirit open to the risen Christ, and it will be impossible for drudgery to discourage you. Never allow yourself to think that some tasks are beneath your dignity or too insignificant for you to do, and remind yourself of the example of Christ inJohn 13:1-17.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Christianity is not consistency to conscience or to convictions; Christianity is being true to Jesus Christ. Biblical Ethics, 111 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, March 06, 2019
Running Out of Ammo - #8388
For many years, it was an inspiring book. Then it became a hit Broadway musical. Then it's been made into a movie several times. The story is Victor Hugo's classic, Lés Misérables. One of the many dramas in the book portrays the efforts of this group of valiant young men and women to fight to free their fellow Frenchmen from a tyrannical government. They make their stand against a massive French army at a makeshift wall they have constructed. They call it the "barricade of freedom." They fight bravely, but their cause is threatened by a major problem that develops. They begin to run out of ammunition. Well, this one little boy realizes that their fight for freedom can only continue if they can find more ammunition. So, he risks his own life to crawl across the battle zone, picking up bullets from wounded and dying French soldiers. Because you can't win the battle when you're running out of bullets.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Running Out of Ammo."
Right now, there's an ammunition shortage in the most decisive battle of all - that would be the battle for human souls, the battle for human lives. It began at the cross where Jesus died to make eternal life possible. It moved out across the planet at Jesus' command and in the power of His resurrection, and it continues this very day in cities and towns across this country and in every country of the world. It is a fight to liberate people Jesus died for from the penalty and the power of their sin, from an unspeakable eternity, and from Satan's chains.
But on so many fronts in the battle, Jesus' forces are running out of bullets. In many places God's soldiers are beating back the enemy, taking prisoners from the enemy and pushing back the darkness. But they're running short of bullets. The money just isn't there to keep pressing the battle.
All those letters and appeals you get asking for money for ministry - they're about a lot more than money. For ministries that are really making a difference, it's all about ammunition to keep fighting the battle for lives. But something's gone wrong. It can't be that God isn't giving the money to people through whom He wants to meet these needs. It must be that some of us are sitting on the ammunition instead of sending it to the front lines. And when we lose one of these battles, it's lives we lose - maybe forever.
Our word for today from the Word of God lays out how the supply line for God's army is supposed to work. And thinking of the economic battles and struggles and sometimes the downturns of our time, it seems particularly relevant to go back to those Macedonian believers that Paul cited as an example for all of us. Here's what Paul says, "Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity...they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability" (2 Corinthians 8:2-3).
It was sacrificial giving so the believers in Jerusalem would have the ammunition they needed to fight their battles. Why? It goes on to say, "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that through His poverty we might become rich" (2 Corinthians 8:9). Jesus impoverished Himself to make us rich, and He's the Son of God. So, how can we hang onto what He's given us so we can stay in our comfort zone? The battle for a lost and dying world is every believer's battle, not just the battle for a few spiritual daredevils who take all the risks, exercise all the faith, and make all the sacrifices.
For those who are fighting on the front lines, it's our responsibility to make every bullet count, to stay on mission, to always take the high road of integrity, and put our faith in Jehovah Jireh, not in our contributors. And for every one of us, we need to hear the cries from the front lines, "We're winning, but we're running out of ammunition!" Listen, while there time, let's throw everything we can into this battle for which Jesus gave everything He had!
Tuesday, March 5, 2019
Psalm 24, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: DON’T MISS THE PARTY
Perhaps the best-known of Jesus’ parables is found in the fifteenth chapter of Luke—the story of the lost son. It’s also the case of the elder brother. While his brother sowed wild oats, he stayed home and sowed the crops. But when the rebellious son returned, the father threw a party! And the elder son sat outside and pouted.
Bitterness is its own prison. You can choose to chain yourself to your hurt. Or you put away your hurts and go to the party. How does God deal with your bitter heart? He reminds you that you still have your relationship with God. No one can take that. We are wise if we rise above our hurts. For if we do, we’ll be present at the Father’s final celebration. A party where no pouters will be present.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
Psalm 24
A David Psalm
24 1-2 God claims Earth and everything in it,
God claims World and all who live on it.
He built it on Ocean foundations,
laid it out on River girders.
3-4 Who can climb Mount God?
Who can scale the holy north-face?
Only the clean-handed,
only the pure-hearted;
Men who won’t cheat,
women who won’t seduce.
5-6 God is at their side;
with God’s help they make it.
This, Jacob, is what happens
to God-seekers, God-questers.
7 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
King-Glory is ready to enter.
8 Who is this King-Glory?
God, armed
and battle-ready.
9 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
King-Glory is ready to enter.
10 Who is this King-Glory?
God-of-the-Angel-Armies:
he is King-Glory.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, March 05, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Acts 1:15-26
During this time, Peter stood up in the company—there were about 120 of them in the room at the time—and said, “Friends, long ago the Holy Spirit spoke through David regarding Judas, who became the guide to those who arrested Jesus. That Scripture had to be fulfilled, and now has been. Judas was one of us and had his assigned place in this ministry.
18-20 “As you know, he took the evil bribe money and bought a small farm. There he came to a bad end, rupturing his belly and spilling his guts. Everybody in Jerusalem knows this by now; they call the place Murder Meadow. It’s exactly what we find written in the Psalms:
Let his farm become haunted
So no one can ever live there.
“And also what was written later:
Let someone else take over his post.
21-22 “Judas must now be replaced. The replacement must come from the company of men who stayed together with us from the time Jesus was baptized by John up to the day of his ascension, designated along with us as a witness to his resurrection.”
23-26 They nominated two: Joseph Barsabbas, nicknamed Justus, and Matthias. Then they prayed, “You, O God, know every one of us inside and out. Make plain which of these two men you choose to take the place in this ministry and leadership that Judas threw away in order to go his own way.” They then drew straws. Matthias won and was counted in with the eleven apostles.
Insight
In Acts 1:15–26, Matthias is selected to replace Judas’s position in the Twelve—symbolically pointing to God’s restoration of His people into a “new Israel” ( Luke 22:30). Although the Psalms alluded to (69:25 and 109:8) originally referred to David’s enemies, Peter saw a deeper meaning—the ultimate betrayal by Judas. Still, Peter’s own betrayal and restoration couldn’t have been far from his mind. Matthias’s name (“gift of God”) points to grace even deeper than the gravest sin. By: Monica Brands
When You’re Not Chosen
Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias. Acts 1:26
My friend’s Facebook post announced he had finished a project. Others congratulated him, but his post knifed my heart. That project was supposed to be mine. I had been passed over, and I wasn’t sure why.
Poor Joseph. He was passed over by God, and he knew why. Joseph was one of two men in the running to replace Judas. The disciples prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen” (Acts 1:24). God chose the other guy. Then He announced His decision to the group, when “the lot fell to Matthias” (v. 26).
As the disciples congratulated Matthias, I wonder about Joseph. How did he handle his rejection? Did he feel jilted, wallow in self-pity, and distance himself from the others? Or did he trust God and cheerfully remain in a supportive role?
I know which option is best. And I know which option I’d want to take. How embarrassing! If you don’t want me, fine. Let’s see how you do without me. That choice might feel better, but only because it’s selfish.
Joseph isn’t mentioned again in Scripture, so we don’t know how he reacted. More relevant is how we respond when we’re not chosen. May we remember that Jesus’s kingdom matters more than our success, and may we joyfully serve in whatever role He selects. By Mike Wittmer
Today's Reflection
How do you feel when you’re not chosen or are left out? How could your attitude be hindering you from seeing God’s direction for your life?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, March 05, 2019
Is He Really My Lord?
…so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus… —Acts 20:24
Joy comes from seeing the complete fulfillment of the specific purpose for which I was created and born again, not from successfully doing something of my own choosing. The joy our Lord experienced came from doing what the Father sent Him to do. And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21). Have you received a ministry from the Lord? If so, you must be faithful to it— to consider your life valuable only for the purpose of fulfilling that ministry. Knowing that you have done what Jesus sent you to do, think how satisfying it will be to hear Him say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21). We each have to find a niche in life, and spiritually we find it when we receive a ministry from the Lord. To do this we must have close fellowship with Jesus and must know Him as more than our personal Savior. And we must be willing to experience the full impact of Acts 9:16 — “I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”
“Do you love Me?” Then, “Feed My sheep” (John 21:17). He is not offering us a choice of how we can serve Him; He is asking for absolute loyalty to His commission, a faithfulness to what we discern when we are in the closest possible fellowship with God. If you have received a ministry from the Lord Jesus, you will know that the need is not the same as the call— the need is the opportunity to exercise the call. The call is to be faithful to the ministry you received when you were in true fellowship with Him. This does not imply that there is a whole series of differing ministries marked out for you. It does mean that you must be sensitive to what God has called you to do, and this may sometimes require ignoring demands for service in other areas.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We have no right to judge where we should be put, or to have preconceived notions as to what God is fitting us for. God engineers everything; wherever He puts us, our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.” My Utmost for His Highest, April 23, 773 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, March 05, 2019
The High Price of a Little Ice - #8387
Some years ago, during a trip to Alaska to reach young Native Alaskans, I spent a lot of time in those little missionary aircraft. It's the only way to get to villages that are like 400 miles from the nearest road! One day when the weather wasn't much fun, our pilot asked me to keep an eye on the wing on my side. He said, "Let me know if you see any icing." Of course, I hear icing, I think of a birthday cake, right? But a pilot hears icing, and he thinks danger in the air. Amazingly, a little ice on the wings can add just enough weight to endanger the whole plane. It interrupts the airflow somehow that keeps the plane airborne, and the plane will start losing altitude. So that day over Alaska, I really kept my eyes open for ice!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The High Price of a Little Ice."
Now, it doesn't take much ice on the wings to cause an airplane to start losing altitude. It doesn't take much ice in your soul to cause you to start losing altitude - to start going down spiritually.
Our word for today from the Word of God addresses some of the attitudes and the reactions that start an ice buildup in your heart. Let's begin in Ephesians 4:26. Paul says, "In your anger, do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry."
A little anger accumulating in your heart; hard feelings that aren't immediately confronted and resolved. Hey, how dangerous can that be? About as dangerous to your relationship with God and with that other person as a little ice on an airplane's wings. Listen to what God says about it. "And do not give the devil a foothold." Woah! Unresolved anger, even for a day, literally gives the devil a wide open door to bring you down!
Then God tells us to take radical action against other destructive feelings. "Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice." In other words, God says get rid of it! Attack it - the resentment you've allowed to build up inside you, the jealousy, the unforgiveness, the anger.
God knows you can't remove the ice in your soul without replacing it with something warm. So He tells you to treat the people who have angered or aggravated or hurt you exactly the opposite of the way you feel like treating them. He says, "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you."
See, those last few words are the key, and they basically do in any excuse I've got. You make a conscious decision to remove the walls and treat that person, not as they've treated you, but as Jesus has treated you. And how was that? Undeserved grace. Undeserved forgiveness.
Until you reach out to God for the grace to forgive that person, to treat them with compassion, kindness, and gentleness - you'll keep going down. And ultimately the weight of that ice in your soul will make you crash in your relationship with God and in your relationships with other people who weren't even involved in what hurt you in the first place.
Be as vigilant about that ice in your soul as a pilot is about ice on the wings. And do not let it build up for even a day! If you do, it can ultimately bring down a relationship, a marriage, a family, a church, a ministry. It will bring down your walk with God, and that's a very high price to pay for a little ice!
Perhaps the best-known of Jesus’ parables is found in the fifteenth chapter of Luke—the story of the lost son. It’s also the case of the elder brother. While his brother sowed wild oats, he stayed home and sowed the crops. But when the rebellious son returned, the father threw a party! And the elder son sat outside and pouted.
Bitterness is its own prison. You can choose to chain yourself to your hurt. Or you put away your hurts and go to the party. How does God deal with your bitter heart? He reminds you that you still have your relationship with God. No one can take that. We are wise if we rise above our hurts. For if we do, we’ll be present at the Father’s final celebration. A party where no pouters will be present.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
Psalm 24
A David Psalm
24 1-2 God claims Earth and everything in it,
God claims World and all who live on it.
He built it on Ocean foundations,
laid it out on River girders.
3-4 Who can climb Mount God?
Who can scale the holy north-face?
Only the clean-handed,
only the pure-hearted;
Men who won’t cheat,
women who won’t seduce.
5-6 God is at their side;
with God’s help they make it.
This, Jacob, is what happens
to God-seekers, God-questers.
7 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
King-Glory is ready to enter.
8 Who is this King-Glory?
God, armed
and battle-ready.
9 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
King-Glory is ready to enter.
10 Who is this King-Glory?
God-of-the-Angel-Armies:
he is King-Glory.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, March 05, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Acts 1:15-26
During this time, Peter stood up in the company—there were about 120 of them in the room at the time—and said, “Friends, long ago the Holy Spirit spoke through David regarding Judas, who became the guide to those who arrested Jesus. That Scripture had to be fulfilled, and now has been. Judas was one of us and had his assigned place in this ministry.
18-20 “As you know, he took the evil bribe money and bought a small farm. There he came to a bad end, rupturing his belly and spilling his guts. Everybody in Jerusalem knows this by now; they call the place Murder Meadow. It’s exactly what we find written in the Psalms:
Let his farm become haunted
So no one can ever live there.
“And also what was written later:
Let someone else take over his post.
21-22 “Judas must now be replaced. The replacement must come from the company of men who stayed together with us from the time Jesus was baptized by John up to the day of his ascension, designated along with us as a witness to his resurrection.”
23-26 They nominated two: Joseph Barsabbas, nicknamed Justus, and Matthias. Then they prayed, “You, O God, know every one of us inside and out. Make plain which of these two men you choose to take the place in this ministry and leadership that Judas threw away in order to go his own way.” They then drew straws. Matthias won and was counted in with the eleven apostles.
Insight
In Acts 1:15–26, Matthias is selected to replace Judas’s position in the Twelve—symbolically pointing to God’s restoration of His people into a “new Israel” ( Luke 22:30). Although the Psalms alluded to (69:25 and 109:8) originally referred to David’s enemies, Peter saw a deeper meaning—the ultimate betrayal by Judas. Still, Peter’s own betrayal and restoration couldn’t have been far from his mind. Matthias’s name (“gift of God”) points to grace even deeper than the gravest sin. By: Monica Brands
When You’re Not Chosen
Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias. Acts 1:26
My friend’s Facebook post announced he had finished a project. Others congratulated him, but his post knifed my heart. That project was supposed to be mine. I had been passed over, and I wasn’t sure why.
Poor Joseph. He was passed over by God, and he knew why. Joseph was one of two men in the running to replace Judas. The disciples prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen” (Acts 1:24). God chose the other guy. Then He announced His decision to the group, when “the lot fell to Matthias” (v. 26).
As the disciples congratulated Matthias, I wonder about Joseph. How did he handle his rejection? Did he feel jilted, wallow in self-pity, and distance himself from the others? Or did he trust God and cheerfully remain in a supportive role?
I know which option is best. And I know which option I’d want to take. How embarrassing! If you don’t want me, fine. Let’s see how you do without me. That choice might feel better, but only because it’s selfish.
Joseph isn’t mentioned again in Scripture, so we don’t know how he reacted. More relevant is how we respond when we’re not chosen. May we remember that Jesus’s kingdom matters more than our success, and may we joyfully serve in whatever role He selects. By Mike Wittmer
Today's Reflection
How do you feel when you’re not chosen or are left out? How could your attitude be hindering you from seeing God’s direction for your life?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, March 05, 2019
Is He Really My Lord?
…so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus… —Acts 20:24
Joy comes from seeing the complete fulfillment of the specific purpose for which I was created and born again, not from successfully doing something of my own choosing. The joy our Lord experienced came from doing what the Father sent Him to do. And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21). Have you received a ministry from the Lord? If so, you must be faithful to it— to consider your life valuable only for the purpose of fulfilling that ministry. Knowing that you have done what Jesus sent you to do, think how satisfying it will be to hear Him say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21). We each have to find a niche in life, and spiritually we find it when we receive a ministry from the Lord. To do this we must have close fellowship with Jesus and must know Him as more than our personal Savior. And we must be willing to experience the full impact of Acts 9:16 — “I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”
“Do you love Me?” Then, “Feed My sheep” (John 21:17). He is not offering us a choice of how we can serve Him; He is asking for absolute loyalty to His commission, a faithfulness to what we discern when we are in the closest possible fellowship with God. If you have received a ministry from the Lord Jesus, you will know that the need is not the same as the call— the need is the opportunity to exercise the call. The call is to be faithful to the ministry you received when you were in true fellowship with Him. This does not imply that there is a whole series of differing ministries marked out for you. It does mean that you must be sensitive to what God has called you to do, and this may sometimes require ignoring demands for service in other areas.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We have no right to judge where we should be put, or to have preconceived notions as to what God is fitting us for. God engineers everything; wherever He puts us, our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.” My Utmost for His Highest, April 23, 773 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, March 05, 2019
The High Price of a Little Ice - #8387
Some years ago, during a trip to Alaska to reach young Native Alaskans, I spent a lot of time in those little missionary aircraft. It's the only way to get to villages that are like 400 miles from the nearest road! One day when the weather wasn't much fun, our pilot asked me to keep an eye on the wing on my side. He said, "Let me know if you see any icing." Of course, I hear icing, I think of a birthday cake, right? But a pilot hears icing, and he thinks danger in the air. Amazingly, a little ice on the wings can add just enough weight to endanger the whole plane. It interrupts the airflow somehow that keeps the plane airborne, and the plane will start losing altitude. So that day over Alaska, I really kept my eyes open for ice!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The High Price of a Little Ice."
Now, it doesn't take much ice on the wings to cause an airplane to start losing altitude. It doesn't take much ice in your soul to cause you to start losing altitude - to start going down spiritually.
Our word for today from the Word of God addresses some of the attitudes and the reactions that start an ice buildup in your heart. Let's begin in Ephesians 4:26. Paul says, "In your anger, do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry."
A little anger accumulating in your heart; hard feelings that aren't immediately confronted and resolved. Hey, how dangerous can that be? About as dangerous to your relationship with God and with that other person as a little ice on an airplane's wings. Listen to what God says about it. "And do not give the devil a foothold." Woah! Unresolved anger, even for a day, literally gives the devil a wide open door to bring you down!
Then God tells us to take radical action against other destructive feelings. "Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice." In other words, God says get rid of it! Attack it - the resentment you've allowed to build up inside you, the jealousy, the unforgiveness, the anger.
God knows you can't remove the ice in your soul without replacing it with something warm. So He tells you to treat the people who have angered or aggravated or hurt you exactly the opposite of the way you feel like treating them. He says, "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you."
See, those last few words are the key, and they basically do in any excuse I've got. You make a conscious decision to remove the walls and treat that person, not as they've treated you, but as Jesus has treated you. And how was that? Undeserved grace. Undeserved forgiveness.
Until you reach out to God for the grace to forgive that person, to treat them with compassion, kindness, and gentleness - you'll keep going down. And ultimately the weight of that ice in your soul will make you crash in your relationship with God and in your relationships with other people who weren't even involved in what hurt you in the first place.
Be as vigilant about that ice in your soul as a pilot is about ice on the wings. And do not let it build up for even a day! If you do, it can ultimately bring down a relationship, a marriage, a family, a church, a ministry. It will bring down your walk with God, and that's a very high price to pay for a little ice!
Monday, March 4, 2019
John 10:1-21, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: JESUS MESSAGE IS NOT GUILTY!
Whether private or public, shame is always painful. And unless you deal with it, it is permanent. The eighth chapter of John tells us about a woman caught in the act of adultery. It was really a trap to snag Jesus. The woman was only the bait in the Pharisees’ game. Jesus responded by writing in the sand and saying, “Anyone here who has never sinned can throw the first stone at her.” Finally, Jesus and the woman are left alone and he said to her, “I also don’t judge you guilty.”
If you’ve ever wondered how God reacts when you fail, read these words and let them wash over your soul. Jesus left a message—not in the sand, but on a cross. Not with his hand, but with his blood. His message has two words– Not guilty.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
John 10:1-21
“Let me set this before you as plainly as I can. If a person climbs over or through the fence of a sheep pen instead of going through the gate, you know he’s up to no good—a sheep rustler! The shepherd walks right up to the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he gets them all out, he leads them and they follow because they are familiar with his voice. They won’t follow a stranger’s voice but will scatter because they aren’t used to the sound of it.”
6-10 Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. So he tried again. “I’ll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. All those others are up to no good—sheep stealers, every one of them. But the sheep didn’t listen to them. I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for—will freely go in and out, and find pasture. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
11-13 “I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd puts the sheep before himself, sacrifices himself if necessary. A hired man is not a real shepherd. The sheep mean nothing to him. He sees a wolf come and runs for it, leaving the sheep to be ravaged and scattered by the wolf. He’s only in it for the money. The sheep don’t matter to him.
14-18 “I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own sheep and my own sheep know me. In the same way, the Father knows me and I know the Father. I put the sheep before myself, sacrificing myself if necessary. You need to know that I have other sheep in addition to those in this pen. I need to gather and bring them, too. They’ll also recognize my voice. Then it will be one flock, one Shepherd. This is why the Father loves me: because I freely lay down my life. And so I am free to take it up again. No one takes it from me. I lay it down of my own free will. I have the right to lay it down; I also have the right to take it up again. I received this authority personally from my Father.”
19-21 This kind of talk caused another split in the Jewish ranks. A lot of them were saying, “He’s crazy, a maniac—out of his head completely. Why bother listening to him?” But others weren’t so sure: “These aren’t the words of a crazy man. Can a ‘maniac’ open blind eyes?”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, March 04, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Matthew 14:13-21
When Jesus got the news, he slipped away by boat to an out-of-the-way place by himself. But unsuccessfully—someone saw him and the word got around. Soon a lot of people from the nearby villages walked around the lake to where he was. When he saw them coming, he was overcome with pity and healed their sick.
15 Toward evening the disciples approached him. “We’re out in the country and it’s getting late. Dismiss the people so they can go to the villages and get some supper.”
16 But Jesus said, “There is no need to dismiss them. You give them supper.”
17 “All we have are five loaves of bread and two fish,” they said.
18-21 Jesus said, “Bring them here.” Then he had the people sit on the grass. He took the five loaves and two fish, lifted his face to heaven in prayer, blessed, broke, and gave the bread to the disciples. The disciples then gave the food to the congregation. They all ate their fill. They gathered twelve baskets of leftovers. About five thousand were fed.
Insight
A set of three events illustrates the fast-paced, powerful nature of Jesus’s ministry and the emotional roller coaster it must have been for the disciples. First is the recounting of John the Baptist’s death, culminating with John’s disciples reporting his death to Jesus (Matthew 14:1–12). This is followed by the miraculous feeding of 5,000 men, plus women and children (vv. 13–21). After this miracle, Jesus sends the disciples away by boat (vv. 22–33), joining them later that night by walking to them on the stormy Galilee. This appearance prompts His men to worship Him as “the Son of God” (v. 33). By: Bill Crowder
Right There with Us
“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. Matthew 14:17
She was completely focused on the top shelf, where the glass jars of spaghetti sauce sat. I’d been standing beside her in the grocery aisle for a minute or two eyeing that same shelf, trying to decide. But she seemed oblivious to my presence, lost in her own predicament. Now I have no problem with top shelves because I’m a fairly tall man. She, on the other hand, was not tall, not at all. I spoke up and offered to help. Startled, she said, “Goodness, I didn’t even see you standing there. Yes, please help me.”
The disciples had quite the situation on their hands—hungry crowds, a remote place, and time slipping away—“It’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food” (Matthew 14:15). When challenged by Jesus to take care of the people themselves, they responded, “We have here only . . .” (v. 17). All they seemed to be aware of was their lack. Yet standing right beside them was Jesus, not just the multiplier of bread but the Bread of Life Himself.
We can get so wrapped up in our challenges and trying to figure them out for ourselves with our often-limited perspective that we miss the abiding presence of the risen Christ. From remote hillsides to grocery store aisles and everywhere else in between, He’s Immanuel—God right there with us, an ever-present help in trouble. By John Blase
Today's Reflection
How can you increase your awareness of Jesus’s presence? Why is it vital for us to gain His perspective in what we’re facing?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, March 04, 2019
Is This True of Me?
None of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself… —Acts 20:24
It is easier to serve or work for God without a vision and without a call, because then you are not bothered by what He requires. Common sense, covered with a layer of Christian emotion, becomes your guide. You may be more prosperous and successful from the world’s perspective, and will have more leisure time, if you never acknowledge the call of God. But once you receive a commission from Jesus Christ, the memory of what God asks of you will always be there to prod you on to do His will. You will no longer be able to work for Him on the basis of common sense.
What do I count in my life as “dear to myself”? If I have not been seized by Jesus Christ and have not surrendered myself to Him, I will consider the time I decide to give God and my own ideas of service as dear. I will also consider my own life as “dear to myself.” But Paul said he considered his life dear so that he might fulfill the ministry he had received, and he refused to use his energy on anything else. This verse shows an almost noble annoyance by Paul at being asked to consider himself. He was absolutely indifferent to any consideration other than that of fulfilling the ministry he had received. Our ordinary and reasonable service to God may actually compete against our total surrender to Him. Our reasonable work is based on the following argument which we say to ourselves, “Remember how useful you are here, and think how much value you would be in that particular type of work.” That attitude chooses our own judgment, instead of Jesus Christ, to be our guide as to where we should go and where we could be used the most. Never consider whether or not you are of use— but always consider that “you are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19). You are His.
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
Monday, March 04, 2019
Stranded On This Side of the Rainbow - #8386
So what was the greatest song of the Twentieth Century? That was the question they asked on a major survey that was taken early in the twenty-first century. And the winner: Judy Garland's signature song from The Wizard of Oz believe it or not "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." Let me sing that for you...no, I won't - blessed are the merciful. The tragedy is that Judy Garland herself could never seem to get there. She was an international star at the age of 17 and she remains one of the towering entertainers of the last century. But tragically, her search for health and happiness led her down a road of drug addiction, disappointing relationships, psychiatric hospitals, and a physical collapse. She died of a drug overdose in a London hotel. It's just painfully ironic, huh? The voice that tried to take us "over the rainbow" could never make it there herself.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Stranded On This Side Of the Rainbow."
"The rainbow" means something a little different to all of us, but it ultimately represents the fulfillment, the worth, the love that we all want to have to fill us up inside. But Judy Garland's inability to ever get what her heart craved is not an isolated exception. You know that. In a sense, maybe you feel stranded on this side of the rainbow.
It isn't for lack of trying. It's just that every achievement has left you feeling hollow afterwards. Every relationship's left you still feeling unexplainably lonely. Every great experience, even spiritual experiences, has left you strangely unsatisfied. In a sense, you've been searching for as long as you can remember, but so far never really finding. The "rainbow" is still beyond your reach. It always will be until you belong to the person who gave you your life in the first place. Every other "rainbow" in our life is a terribly inadequate substitute for a love relationship with the God of the universe.
In our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus is talking to a woman who's been looking for the end of her search in relationships with men. You can fill in the blank and you can put in there whatever your "rainbow" has been. Jesus has run into this woman at a well where they were both looking for water, and in John 4:13-14, He says, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again." Just a minute here, that's the problem with every "rainbow," every "well" that we've thought would do it for us. We end up like "thirsty again."
Then Jesus goes on to say, "But whoever drinks the water I give Him, it will become in him a spring of water, welling up to eternal life." Jesus is offering to her and to you a spring inside that will never leave you thirsty again, a relationship with Him that will literally give you life here and life forever in heaven. We've cut ourselves off from our source because we've stubbornly lived our way instead of His way. And there would be no hope of belonging to the One we were made for, except that Jesus died on that cross to absorb the death penalty that you and I deserve for hijacking our life from God.
And He's coming to you today to offer you the relationship with Him that will end your search once and for all. He's reaching out to you, but you have to reach back. You have to like grab His hand as your only hope of being forgiven - your only hope of going to heaven. Would you like to belong to this Jesus, who loves you like no one loves you, who has power to walk out of His grave under His own power? Who's got power like that to give? You want to belong to Him from this day on, tell Him that right now where you are, "Jesus, beginning right now I'm yours. I'm pinning all my hopes on you."
Look, you're going to want more information, and it's available right there at our website - ANewStory.com. I want to urge you to go there as soon as you can today. Can you remember that? ANewStory.com. There I think you will find out how you can be sure before this day is over you belong to Jesus Christ.
If you're tired of seeking and you're ready to find, then make this your Jesus-day. He's everything your heart has always looked for and never found...until today.
Whether private or public, shame is always painful. And unless you deal with it, it is permanent. The eighth chapter of John tells us about a woman caught in the act of adultery. It was really a trap to snag Jesus. The woman was only the bait in the Pharisees’ game. Jesus responded by writing in the sand and saying, “Anyone here who has never sinned can throw the first stone at her.” Finally, Jesus and the woman are left alone and he said to her, “I also don’t judge you guilty.”
If you’ve ever wondered how God reacts when you fail, read these words and let them wash over your soul. Jesus left a message—not in the sand, but on a cross. Not with his hand, but with his blood. His message has two words– Not guilty.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
John 10:1-21
“Let me set this before you as plainly as I can. If a person climbs over or through the fence of a sheep pen instead of going through the gate, you know he’s up to no good—a sheep rustler! The shepherd walks right up to the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he gets them all out, he leads them and they follow because they are familiar with his voice. They won’t follow a stranger’s voice but will scatter because they aren’t used to the sound of it.”
6-10 Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. So he tried again. “I’ll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. All those others are up to no good—sheep stealers, every one of them. But the sheep didn’t listen to them. I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for—will freely go in and out, and find pasture. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
11-13 “I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd puts the sheep before himself, sacrifices himself if necessary. A hired man is not a real shepherd. The sheep mean nothing to him. He sees a wolf come and runs for it, leaving the sheep to be ravaged and scattered by the wolf. He’s only in it for the money. The sheep don’t matter to him.
14-18 “I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own sheep and my own sheep know me. In the same way, the Father knows me and I know the Father. I put the sheep before myself, sacrificing myself if necessary. You need to know that I have other sheep in addition to those in this pen. I need to gather and bring them, too. They’ll also recognize my voice. Then it will be one flock, one Shepherd. This is why the Father loves me: because I freely lay down my life. And so I am free to take it up again. No one takes it from me. I lay it down of my own free will. I have the right to lay it down; I also have the right to take it up again. I received this authority personally from my Father.”
19-21 This kind of talk caused another split in the Jewish ranks. A lot of them were saying, “He’s crazy, a maniac—out of his head completely. Why bother listening to him?” But others weren’t so sure: “These aren’t the words of a crazy man. Can a ‘maniac’ open blind eyes?”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, March 04, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Matthew 14:13-21
When Jesus got the news, he slipped away by boat to an out-of-the-way place by himself. But unsuccessfully—someone saw him and the word got around. Soon a lot of people from the nearby villages walked around the lake to where he was. When he saw them coming, he was overcome with pity and healed their sick.
15 Toward evening the disciples approached him. “We’re out in the country and it’s getting late. Dismiss the people so they can go to the villages and get some supper.”
16 But Jesus said, “There is no need to dismiss them. You give them supper.”
17 “All we have are five loaves of bread and two fish,” they said.
18-21 Jesus said, “Bring them here.” Then he had the people sit on the grass. He took the five loaves and two fish, lifted his face to heaven in prayer, blessed, broke, and gave the bread to the disciples. The disciples then gave the food to the congregation. They all ate their fill. They gathered twelve baskets of leftovers. About five thousand were fed.
Insight
A set of three events illustrates the fast-paced, powerful nature of Jesus’s ministry and the emotional roller coaster it must have been for the disciples. First is the recounting of John the Baptist’s death, culminating with John’s disciples reporting his death to Jesus (Matthew 14:1–12). This is followed by the miraculous feeding of 5,000 men, plus women and children (vv. 13–21). After this miracle, Jesus sends the disciples away by boat (vv. 22–33), joining them later that night by walking to them on the stormy Galilee. This appearance prompts His men to worship Him as “the Son of God” (v. 33). By: Bill Crowder
Right There with Us
“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. Matthew 14:17
She was completely focused on the top shelf, where the glass jars of spaghetti sauce sat. I’d been standing beside her in the grocery aisle for a minute or two eyeing that same shelf, trying to decide. But she seemed oblivious to my presence, lost in her own predicament. Now I have no problem with top shelves because I’m a fairly tall man. She, on the other hand, was not tall, not at all. I spoke up and offered to help. Startled, she said, “Goodness, I didn’t even see you standing there. Yes, please help me.”
The disciples had quite the situation on their hands—hungry crowds, a remote place, and time slipping away—“It’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food” (Matthew 14:15). When challenged by Jesus to take care of the people themselves, they responded, “We have here only . . .” (v. 17). All they seemed to be aware of was their lack. Yet standing right beside them was Jesus, not just the multiplier of bread but the Bread of Life Himself.
We can get so wrapped up in our challenges and trying to figure them out for ourselves with our often-limited perspective that we miss the abiding presence of the risen Christ. From remote hillsides to grocery store aisles and everywhere else in between, He’s Immanuel—God right there with us, an ever-present help in trouble. By John Blase
Today's Reflection
How can you increase your awareness of Jesus’s presence? Why is it vital for us to gain His perspective in what we’re facing?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, March 04, 2019
Is This True of Me?
None of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself… —Acts 20:24
It is easier to serve or work for God without a vision and without a call, because then you are not bothered by what He requires. Common sense, covered with a layer of Christian emotion, becomes your guide. You may be more prosperous and successful from the world’s perspective, and will have more leisure time, if you never acknowledge the call of God. But once you receive a commission from Jesus Christ, the memory of what God asks of you will always be there to prod you on to do His will. You will no longer be able to work for Him on the basis of common sense.
What do I count in my life as “dear to myself”? If I have not been seized by Jesus Christ and have not surrendered myself to Him, I will consider the time I decide to give God and my own ideas of service as dear. I will also consider my own life as “dear to myself.” But Paul said he considered his life dear so that he might fulfill the ministry he had received, and he refused to use his energy on anything else. This verse shows an almost noble annoyance by Paul at being asked to consider himself. He was absolutely indifferent to any consideration other than that of fulfilling the ministry he had received. Our ordinary and reasonable service to God may actually compete against our total surrender to Him. Our reasonable work is based on the following argument which we say to ourselves, “Remember how useful you are here, and think how much value you would be in that particular type of work.” That attitude chooses our own judgment, instead of Jesus Christ, to be our guide as to where we should go and where we could be used the most. Never consider whether or not you are of use— but always consider that “you are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19). You are His.
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
Monday, March 04, 2019
Stranded On This Side of the Rainbow - #8386
So what was the greatest song of the Twentieth Century? That was the question they asked on a major survey that was taken early in the twenty-first century. And the winner: Judy Garland's signature song from The Wizard of Oz believe it or not "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." Let me sing that for you...no, I won't - blessed are the merciful. The tragedy is that Judy Garland herself could never seem to get there. She was an international star at the age of 17 and she remains one of the towering entertainers of the last century. But tragically, her search for health and happiness led her down a road of drug addiction, disappointing relationships, psychiatric hospitals, and a physical collapse. She died of a drug overdose in a London hotel. It's just painfully ironic, huh? The voice that tried to take us "over the rainbow" could never make it there herself.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Stranded On This Side Of the Rainbow."
"The rainbow" means something a little different to all of us, but it ultimately represents the fulfillment, the worth, the love that we all want to have to fill us up inside. But Judy Garland's inability to ever get what her heart craved is not an isolated exception. You know that. In a sense, maybe you feel stranded on this side of the rainbow.
It isn't for lack of trying. It's just that every achievement has left you feeling hollow afterwards. Every relationship's left you still feeling unexplainably lonely. Every great experience, even spiritual experiences, has left you strangely unsatisfied. In a sense, you've been searching for as long as you can remember, but so far never really finding. The "rainbow" is still beyond your reach. It always will be until you belong to the person who gave you your life in the first place. Every other "rainbow" in our life is a terribly inadequate substitute for a love relationship with the God of the universe.
In our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus is talking to a woman who's been looking for the end of her search in relationships with men. You can fill in the blank and you can put in there whatever your "rainbow" has been. Jesus has run into this woman at a well where they were both looking for water, and in John 4:13-14, He says, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again." Just a minute here, that's the problem with every "rainbow," every "well" that we've thought would do it for us. We end up like "thirsty again."
Then Jesus goes on to say, "But whoever drinks the water I give Him, it will become in him a spring of water, welling up to eternal life." Jesus is offering to her and to you a spring inside that will never leave you thirsty again, a relationship with Him that will literally give you life here and life forever in heaven. We've cut ourselves off from our source because we've stubbornly lived our way instead of His way. And there would be no hope of belonging to the One we were made for, except that Jesus died on that cross to absorb the death penalty that you and I deserve for hijacking our life from God.
And He's coming to you today to offer you the relationship with Him that will end your search once and for all. He's reaching out to you, but you have to reach back. You have to like grab His hand as your only hope of being forgiven - your only hope of going to heaven. Would you like to belong to this Jesus, who loves you like no one loves you, who has power to walk out of His grave under His own power? Who's got power like that to give? You want to belong to Him from this day on, tell Him that right now where you are, "Jesus, beginning right now I'm yours. I'm pinning all my hopes on you."
Look, you're going to want more information, and it's available right there at our website - ANewStory.com. I want to urge you to go there as soon as you can today. Can you remember that? ANewStory.com. There I think you will find out how you can be sure before this day is over you belong to Jesus Christ.
If you're tired of seeking and you're ready to find, then make this your Jesus-day. He's everything your heart has always looked for and never found...until today.
Sunday, March 3, 2019
Psalm 22, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: He Became Sin for Us
What is the fruit of sin? Step into the briar patch of humanity and feel a few thistles. Shame. Fear. Disgrace. Discouragement. Anxiety! Haven't our hearts been caught in these brambles?
The heart of Jesus, however, had not. He had never been cut by the thorns of sin. Anxiety? He never worried. Guilt? He was never guilty. Fear? He never left the presence of God, He never knew the fruits of sin until He became sin for us.
Can't you hear the emotion in His prayer? "My God, my God, why have you rejected me?" These are not the words of a saint. This is the cry of a sinner. And these are words we should say… but these are words we don't have to say because Jesus said them for us.
From He Chose the Nails
Psalm 22
1-2 God, God . . . my God!
Why did you dump me
miles from nowhere?
Doubled up with pain, I call to God
all the day long. No answer. Nothing.
I keep at it all night, tossing and turning.
3-5 And you! Are you indifferent, above it all,
leaning back on the cushions of Israel’s praise?
We know you were there for our parents:
they cried for your help and you gave it;
they trusted and lived a good life.
6-8 And here I am, a nothing—an earthworm,
something to step on, to squash.
Everyone pokes fun at me;
they make faces at me, they shake their heads:
“Let’s see how God handles this one;
since God likes him so much, let him help him!”
9-11 And to think you were midwife at my birth,
setting me at my mother’s breasts!
When I left the womb you cradled me;
since the moment of birth you’ve been my God.
Then you moved far away
and trouble moved in next door.
I need a neighbor.
12-13 Herds of bulls come at me,
the raging bulls stampede,
Horns lowered, nostrils flaring,
like a herd of buffalo on the move.
14-15 I’m a bucket kicked over and spilled,
every joint in my body has been pulled apart.
My heart is a blob
of melted wax in my gut.
I’m dry as a bone,
my tongue black and swollen.
They have laid me out for burial
in the dirt.
16-18 Now packs of wild dogs come at me;
thugs gang up on me.
They pin me down hand and foot,
and lock me in a cage—a bag
Of bones in a cage, stared at
by every passerby.
They take my wallet and the shirt off my back,
and then throw dice for my clothes.
19-21 You, God—don’t put off my rescue!
Hurry and help me!
Don’t let them cut my throat;
don’t let those mongrels devour me.
If you don’t show up soon,
I’m done for—gored by the bulls,
meat for the lions.
22-24 Here’s the story I’ll tell my friends when they come to worship,
and punctuate it with Hallelujahs:
Shout Hallelujah, you God-worshipers;
give glory, you sons of Jacob;
adore him, you daughters of Israel.
He has never let you down,
never looked the other way
when you were being kicked around.
He has never wandered off to do his own thing;
he has been right there, listening.
25-26 Here in this great gathering for worship
I have discovered this praise-life.
And I’ll do what I promised right here
in front of the God-worshipers.
Down-and-outers sit at God’s table
and eat their fill.
Everyone on the hunt for God
is here, praising him.
“Live it up, from head to toe.
Don’t ever quit!”
27-28 From the four corners of the earth
people are coming to their senses,
are running back to God.
Long-lost families
are falling on their faces before him.
God has taken charge;
from now on he has the last word.
29 All the power-mongers are before him
—worshiping!
All the poor and powerless, too
—worshiping!
Along with those who never got it together
—worshiping!
30-31 Our children and their children
will get in on this
As the word is passed along
from parent to child.
Babies not yet conceived
will hear the good news—
that God does what he says.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, March 03, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: 2 Corinthians 1:3-7
All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus the Messiah! Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.
6-7 When we suffer for Jesus, it works out for your healing and salvation. If we are treated well, given a helping hand and encouraging word, that also works to your benefit, spurring you on, face forward, unflinching. Your hard times are also our hard times. When we see that you’re just as willing to endure the hard times as to enjoy the good times, we know you’re going to make it, no doubt about it.
Insight
Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians begins in a way that is full of empathy for people like us. He refers nine times to the comfort we all need so that we can comfort and encourage one another (1:3–7). Paul goes on to describe a comfort of Christ that is given to those who suffer with Christ (1:5, 8–9). The rest of Paul’s letter shows that these words of comfort include those who join Christ in self-sacrifice without excluding those who hurt for lesser reasons. The apostle shows, as Jesus so often did, that in all our needs, anxieties, and wrongs, there’s a way to find the reassurance of a God who groans with us and for us—even before pain and trouble open our heart to Him ( Romans 8:18–39). By: Mart DeHaan
A Purpose in Pain?
[God] comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 2 Corinthians 1:4
When Siu Fen discovered she had kidney failure and would need dialysis for the rest of her life, she wanted to give up. Retired and single, the longtime believer in Jesus saw no point in prolonging her life. But friends convinced her to persevere and go for dialysis and trust in God to help her.
Two years later, she found her experience coming into play when she visited a friend from church with a debilitating disease. The woman felt alone, as few could truly understand what she was going through. But Siu Fen was able to identify with her physical and emotional pain and could connect with her in a personal way. Her own journey enabled her to walk alongside the woman, giving her a special measure of comfort others couldn’t. “Now I see how God can still use me,” she said.
It can be hard to understand why we suffer. Yet God can use our affliction in unexpected ways. As we turn to Him for comfort and love in the midst of trials, it also empowers us to help others. No wonder Paul learned to see purpose in his own suffering: It gave him the opportunity to receive God’s comfort, which he could then use to bless others (2 Corinthians 1:3–5). We’re not asked to deny our pain and suffering, but we can take heart in God’s ability to use it for good. By Leslie Koh
Today's Reflection
How has God used you to bring comfort to another? How has your faith helped you to persevere?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, March 03, 2019
His Commission to Us
Feed My sheep. —John 21:17
This is love in the making. The love of God is not created— it is His nature. When we receive the life of Christ through the Holy Spirit, He unites us with God so that His love is demonstrated in us. The goal of the indwelling Holy Spirit is not just to unite us with God, but to do it in such a way that we will be one with the Father in exactly the same way Jesus was. And what kind of oneness did Jesus Christ have with the Father? He had such a oneness with the Father that He was obedient when His Father sent Him down here to be poured out for us. And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).
Peter now realizes that he does love Him, due to the revelation that came with the Lord’s piercing question. The Lord’s next point is— “Pour yourself out. Don’t testify about how much you love Me and don’t talk about the wonderful revelation you have had, just ‘Feed My sheep.’ ” Jesus has some extraordinarily peculiar sheep: some that are unkempt and dirty, some that are awkward or pushy, and some that have gone astray! But it is impossible to exhaust God’s love, and it is impossible to exhaust my love if it flows from the Spirit of God within me. The love of God pays no attention to my prejudices caused by my natural individuality. If I love my Lord, I have no business being guided by natural emotions— I have to feed His sheep. We will not be delivered or released from His commission to us. Beware of counterfeiting the love of God by following your own natural human emotions, sympathies, or understandings. That will only serve to revile and abuse the true love of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
It is perilously possible to make our conceptions of God like molten lead poured into a specially designed mould, and when it is cold and hard we fling it at the heads of the religious people who don’t agree with us. Disciples Indeed, 388 R
What is the fruit of sin? Step into the briar patch of humanity and feel a few thistles. Shame. Fear. Disgrace. Discouragement. Anxiety! Haven't our hearts been caught in these brambles?
The heart of Jesus, however, had not. He had never been cut by the thorns of sin. Anxiety? He never worried. Guilt? He was never guilty. Fear? He never left the presence of God, He never knew the fruits of sin until He became sin for us.
Can't you hear the emotion in His prayer? "My God, my God, why have you rejected me?" These are not the words of a saint. This is the cry of a sinner. And these are words we should say… but these are words we don't have to say because Jesus said them for us.
From He Chose the Nails
Psalm 22
1-2 God, God . . . my God!
Why did you dump me
miles from nowhere?
Doubled up with pain, I call to God
all the day long. No answer. Nothing.
I keep at it all night, tossing and turning.
3-5 And you! Are you indifferent, above it all,
leaning back on the cushions of Israel’s praise?
We know you were there for our parents:
they cried for your help and you gave it;
they trusted and lived a good life.
6-8 And here I am, a nothing—an earthworm,
something to step on, to squash.
Everyone pokes fun at me;
they make faces at me, they shake their heads:
“Let’s see how God handles this one;
since God likes him so much, let him help him!”
9-11 And to think you were midwife at my birth,
setting me at my mother’s breasts!
When I left the womb you cradled me;
since the moment of birth you’ve been my God.
Then you moved far away
and trouble moved in next door.
I need a neighbor.
12-13 Herds of bulls come at me,
the raging bulls stampede,
Horns lowered, nostrils flaring,
like a herd of buffalo on the move.
14-15 I’m a bucket kicked over and spilled,
every joint in my body has been pulled apart.
My heart is a blob
of melted wax in my gut.
I’m dry as a bone,
my tongue black and swollen.
They have laid me out for burial
in the dirt.
16-18 Now packs of wild dogs come at me;
thugs gang up on me.
They pin me down hand and foot,
and lock me in a cage—a bag
Of bones in a cage, stared at
by every passerby.
They take my wallet and the shirt off my back,
and then throw dice for my clothes.
19-21 You, God—don’t put off my rescue!
Hurry and help me!
Don’t let them cut my throat;
don’t let those mongrels devour me.
If you don’t show up soon,
I’m done for—gored by the bulls,
meat for the lions.
22-24 Here’s the story I’ll tell my friends when they come to worship,
and punctuate it with Hallelujahs:
Shout Hallelujah, you God-worshipers;
give glory, you sons of Jacob;
adore him, you daughters of Israel.
He has never let you down,
never looked the other way
when you were being kicked around.
He has never wandered off to do his own thing;
he has been right there, listening.
25-26 Here in this great gathering for worship
I have discovered this praise-life.
And I’ll do what I promised right here
in front of the God-worshipers.
Down-and-outers sit at God’s table
and eat their fill.
Everyone on the hunt for God
is here, praising him.
“Live it up, from head to toe.
Don’t ever quit!”
27-28 From the four corners of the earth
people are coming to their senses,
are running back to God.
Long-lost families
are falling on their faces before him.
God has taken charge;
from now on he has the last word.
29 All the power-mongers are before him
—worshiping!
All the poor and powerless, too
—worshiping!
Along with those who never got it together
—worshiping!
30-31 Our children and their children
will get in on this
As the word is passed along
from parent to child.
Babies not yet conceived
will hear the good news—
that God does what he says.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, March 03, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: 2 Corinthians 1:3-7
All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus the Messiah! Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.
6-7 When we suffer for Jesus, it works out for your healing and salvation. If we are treated well, given a helping hand and encouraging word, that also works to your benefit, spurring you on, face forward, unflinching. Your hard times are also our hard times. When we see that you’re just as willing to endure the hard times as to enjoy the good times, we know you’re going to make it, no doubt about it.
Insight
Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians begins in a way that is full of empathy for people like us. He refers nine times to the comfort we all need so that we can comfort and encourage one another (1:3–7). Paul goes on to describe a comfort of Christ that is given to those who suffer with Christ (1:5, 8–9). The rest of Paul’s letter shows that these words of comfort include those who join Christ in self-sacrifice without excluding those who hurt for lesser reasons. The apostle shows, as Jesus so often did, that in all our needs, anxieties, and wrongs, there’s a way to find the reassurance of a God who groans with us and for us—even before pain and trouble open our heart to Him ( Romans 8:18–39). By: Mart DeHaan
A Purpose in Pain?
[God] comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 2 Corinthians 1:4
When Siu Fen discovered she had kidney failure and would need dialysis for the rest of her life, she wanted to give up. Retired and single, the longtime believer in Jesus saw no point in prolonging her life. But friends convinced her to persevere and go for dialysis and trust in God to help her.
Two years later, she found her experience coming into play when she visited a friend from church with a debilitating disease. The woman felt alone, as few could truly understand what she was going through. But Siu Fen was able to identify with her physical and emotional pain and could connect with her in a personal way. Her own journey enabled her to walk alongside the woman, giving her a special measure of comfort others couldn’t. “Now I see how God can still use me,” she said.
It can be hard to understand why we suffer. Yet God can use our affliction in unexpected ways. As we turn to Him for comfort and love in the midst of trials, it also empowers us to help others. No wonder Paul learned to see purpose in his own suffering: It gave him the opportunity to receive God’s comfort, which he could then use to bless others (2 Corinthians 1:3–5). We’re not asked to deny our pain and suffering, but we can take heart in God’s ability to use it for good. By Leslie Koh
Today's Reflection
How has God used you to bring comfort to another? How has your faith helped you to persevere?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, March 03, 2019
His Commission to Us
Feed My sheep. —John 21:17
This is love in the making. The love of God is not created— it is His nature. When we receive the life of Christ through the Holy Spirit, He unites us with God so that His love is demonstrated in us. The goal of the indwelling Holy Spirit is not just to unite us with God, but to do it in such a way that we will be one with the Father in exactly the same way Jesus was. And what kind of oneness did Jesus Christ have with the Father? He had such a oneness with the Father that He was obedient when His Father sent Him down here to be poured out for us. And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).
Peter now realizes that he does love Him, due to the revelation that came with the Lord’s piercing question. The Lord’s next point is— “Pour yourself out. Don’t testify about how much you love Me and don’t talk about the wonderful revelation you have had, just ‘Feed My sheep.’ ” Jesus has some extraordinarily peculiar sheep: some that are unkempt and dirty, some that are awkward or pushy, and some that have gone astray! But it is impossible to exhaust God’s love, and it is impossible to exhaust my love if it flows from the Spirit of God within me. The love of God pays no attention to my prejudices caused by my natural individuality. If I love my Lord, I have no business being guided by natural emotions— I have to feed His sheep. We will not be delivered or released from His commission to us. Beware of counterfeiting the love of God by following your own natural human emotions, sympathies, or understandings. That will only serve to revile and abuse the true love of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
It is perilously possible to make our conceptions of God like molten lead poured into a specially designed mould, and when it is cold and hard we fling it at the heads of the religious people who don’t agree with us. Disciples Indeed, 388 R
Saturday, March 2, 2019
Psalm 21 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: We Have a Problem
Can you live without sin for one day? No? How about one hour? Can you do it? No…nor can I. And if we can't live without sin, we have a problem. Proverbs 10:16 says that we are evil and "evil people are paid with punishment." What can we do? Observe what Jesus does with our filth. He carries it to the Cross.
God speaks in Isaiah 50:6, "I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting." Mingled with His blood and sweat was the essence of our sin. Angels were a prayer away. Couldn't they have taken the spittle away? They could have, but Jesus never commanded them to. The One who chose the nails also chose the saliva. Why? The sinless One took on the face of a sinner, so that we sinners could take on the face of a saint!
From He Chose the Nails
Psalm 21
A David Psalm
21 1-7 Your strength, God, is the king’s strength.
Helped, he’s hollering Hosannas.
You gave him exactly what he wanted;
you didn’t hold back.
You filled his arms with gifts;
you gave him a right royal welcome.
He wanted a good life; you gave it to him,
and then made it a long life as a bonus.
You lifted him high and bright as a cumulus cloud,
then dressed him in rainbow colors.
You pile blessings on him;
you make him glad when you smile.
Is it any wonder the king loves God?
that he’s sticking with the Best?
8-12 With a fistful of enemies in one hand
and a fistful of haters in the other,
You radiate with such brilliance
that they cringe as before a furnace.
Now the furnace swallows them whole,
the fire eats them alive!
You purge the earth of their progeny,
you wipe the slate clean.
All their evil schemes, the plots they cook up,
have fizzled—every one.
You sent them packing;
they couldn’t face you.
13 Show your strength, God, so no one can miss it.
We are out singing the good news!
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, March 02, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Proverbs 4:5-19
When I was a boy at my father’s knee,
the pride and joy of my mother,
He would sit me down and drill me:
“Take this to heart. Do what I tell you—live!
Sell everything and buy Wisdom! Forage for Understanding!
Don’t forget one word! Don’t deviate an inch!
Never walk away from Wisdom—she guards your life;
love her—she keeps her eye on you.
Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom!
Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding!
Throw your arms around her—believe me, you won’t regret it;
never let her go—she’ll make your life glorious.
She’ll garland your life with grace,
she’ll festoon your days with beauty.”
10-15 Dear friend, take my advice;
it will add years to your life.
I’m writing out clear directions to Wisdom Way,
I’m drawing a map to Righteous Road.
I don’t want you ending up in blind alleys,
or wasting time making wrong turns.
Hold tight to good advice; don’t relax your grip.
Guard it well—your life is at stake!
Don’t take Wicked Bypass;
don’t so much as set foot on that road.
Stay clear of it; give it a wide berth.
Make a detour and be on your way.
16-17 Evil people are restless
unless they’re making trouble;
They can’t get a good night’s sleep
unless they’ve made life miserable for somebody.
Perversity is their food and drink,
violence their drug of choice.
18-19 The ways of right-living people glow with light;
the longer they live, the brighter they shine.
But the road of wrongdoing gets darker and darker—
travelers can’t see a thing; they fall flat on their faces.
Insight
In Proverbs 4, Solomon encourages his sons to pursue wisdom and then emphasizes its benefits. Wisdom will watch over and protect (v. 6). She will exalt and honor the one who finds her (v. 8). She will adorn those who find her with “garland” and a “crown”—symbols of respect and dignity (v. 9). She will keep those who pursue her from stumbling and from stepping on the path of evildoers (vv. 12, 14). With all these benefits, it’s no wonder we’re to pursue wisdom no matter the cost. It’s worth everything we have (v. 7). By: J.R. Hudberg
Searching for Treasure
[Wisdom] is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. Proverbs 3:14
Buried treasure. It sounds like something out of a children’s storybook. But eccentric millionaire Forrest Fenn claims to have left a box of jewels and gold, worth up to $2 million, somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. Many people have gone in search of it. In fact, four people have lost their lives trying to find the hidden riches.
The author of Proverbs gives us reason to stop and think: Does any kind of treasure merit such a quest? In Proverbs 4, a father writing to his sons about how to live well suggests that wisdom is one thing worth seeking at any cost (v. 7). Wisdom, he says, will lead us through life, keep us from stumbling, and crown us with honor (vv. 8–12). Writing hundreds of years later, James, half-brother of Jesus and leader in the early church, also emphasized the importance of wisdom. “The wisdom that comes from heaven,” he writes, “is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere” (James 3:17). When we seek wisdom, we find all kinds of good things flourishing in our lives.
To seek wisdom is ultimately to seek God, the source of all wisdom and understanding. And the wisdom that comes from above is worth more than any buried treasure we could ever imagine. By Amy Peterson
Today's Reflection
Are you actively seeking God’s wisdom? How can you do so today?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, March 02, 2019
Have You Felt the Pain Inflicted by the Lord?
He said to him the third time, "…do you love Me?" —John 21:17
Have you ever felt the pain, inflicted by the Lord, at the very center of your being, deep down in the most sensitive area of your life? The devil never inflicts pain there, and neither can sin nor human emotions. Nothing can cut through to that part of our being but the Word of God. “Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ ” Yet he was awakened to the fact that at the center of his personal life he was devoted to Jesus. And then he began to see what Jesus’ patient questioning meant. There was not the slightest bit of doubt left in Peter’s mind; he could never be deceived again. And there was no need for an impassioned response; no need for immediate action or an emotional display. It was a revelation to him to realize how much he did love the Lord, and with amazement he simply said, “Lord, You know all things….” Peter began to see how very much he did love Jesus, and there was no need to say, “Look at this or that as proof of my love.” Peter was beginning to discover within himself just how much he really did love the Lord. He discovered that his eyes were so fixed on Jesus Christ that he saw no one else in heaven above or on the earth below. But he did not know it until the probing, hurting questions of the Lord were asked. The Lord’s questions always reveal the true me to myself.
Oh, the wonder of the patient directness and skill of Jesus Christ with Peter! Our Lord never asks questions until the perfect time. Rarely, but probably once in each of our lives, He will back us into a corner where He will hurt us with His piercing questions. Then we will realize that we do love Him far more deeply than our words can ever say.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Awe is the condition of a man’s spirit realizing Who God is and what He has done for him personally. Our Lord emphasizes the attitude of a child; no attitude can express such solemn awe and familiarity as that of a child. Not Knowing Whither, 882 L
Can you live without sin for one day? No? How about one hour? Can you do it? No…nor can I. And if we can't live without sin, we have a problem. Proverbs 10:16 says that we are evil and "evil people are paid with punishment." What can we do? Observe what Jesus does with our filth. He carries it to the Cross.
God speaks in Isaiah 50:6, "I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting." Mingled with His blood and sweat was the essence of our sin. Angels were a prayer away. Couldn't they have taken the spittle away? They could have, but Jesus never commanded them to. The One who chose the nails also chose the saliva. Why? The sinless One took on the face of a sinner, so that we sinners could take on the face of a saint!
From He Chose the Nails
Psalm 21
A David Psalm
21 1-7 Your strength, God, is the king’s strength.
Helped, he’s hollering Hosannas.
You gave him exactly what he wanted;
you didn’t hold back.
You filled his arms with gifts;
you gave him a right royal welcome.
He wanted a good life; you gave it to him,
and then made it a long life as a bonus.
You lifted him high and bright as a cumulus cloud,
then dressed him in rainbow colors.
You pile blessings on him;
you make him glad when you smile.
Is it any wonder the king loves God?
that he’s sticking with the Best?
8-12 With a fistful of enemies in one hand
and a fistful of haters in the other,
You radiate with such brilliance
that they cringe as before a furnace.
Now the furnace swallows them whole,
the fire eats them alive!
You purge the earth of their progeny,
you wipe the slate clean.
All their evil schemes, the plots they cook up,
have fizzled—every one.
You sent them packing;
they couldn’t face you.
13 Show your strength, God, so no one can miss it.
We are out singing the good news!
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, March 02, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Proverbs 4:5-19
When I was a boy at my father’s knee,
the pride and joy of my mother,
He would sit me down and drill me:
“Take this to heart. Do what I tell you—live!
Sell everything and buy Wisdom! Forage for Understanding!
Don’t forget one word! Don’t deviate an inch!
Never walk away from Wisdom—she guards your life;
love her—she keeps her eye on you.
Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom!
Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding!
Throw your arms around her—believe me, you won’t regret it;
never let her go—she’ll make your life glorious.
She’ll garland your life with grace,
she’ll festoon your days with beauty.”
10-15 Dear friend, take my advice;
it will add years to your life.
I’m writing out clear directions to Wisdom Way,
I’m drawing a map to Righteous Road.
I don’t want you ending up in blind alleys,
or wasting time making wrong turns.
Hold tight to good advice; don’t relax your grip.
Guard it well—your life is at stake!
Don’t take Wicked Bypass;
don’t so much as set foot on that road.
Stay clear of it; give it a wide berth.
Make a detour and be on your way.
16-17 Evil people are restless
unless they’re making trouble;
They can’t get a good night’s sleep
unless they’ve made life miserable for somebody.
Perversity is their food and drink,
violence their drug of choice.
18-19 The ways of right-living people glow with light;
the longer they live, the brighter they shine.
But the road of wrongdoing gets darker and darker—
travelers can’t see a thing; they fall flat on their faces.
Insight
In Proverbs 4, Solomon encourages his sons to pursue wisdom and then emphasizes its benefits. Wisdom will watch over and protect (v. 6). She will exalt and honor the one who finds her (v. 8). She will adorn those who find her with “garland” and a “crown”—symbols of respect and dignity (v. 9). She will keep those who pursue her from stumbling and from stepping on the path of evildoers (vv. 12, 14). With all these benefits, it’s no wonder we’re to pursue wisdom no matter the cost. It’s worth everything we have (v. 7). By: J.R. Hudberg
Searching for Treasure
[Wisdom] is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. Proverbs 3:14
Buried treasure. It sounds like something out of a children’s storybook. But eccentric millionaire Forrest Fenn claims to have left a box of jewels and gold, worth up to $2 million, somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. Many people have gone in search of it. In fact, four people have lost their lives trying to find the hidden riches.
The author of Proverbs gives us reason to stop and think: Does any kind of treasure merit such a quest? In Proverbs 4, a father writing to his sons about how to live well suggests that wisdom is one thing worth seeking at any cost (v. 7). Wisdom, he says, will lead us through life, keep us from stumbling, and crown us with honor (vv. 8–12). Writing hundreds of years later, James, half-brother of Jesus and leader in the early church, also emphasized the importance of wisdom. “The wisdom that comes from heaven,” he writes, “is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere” (James 3:17). When we seek wisdom, we find all kinds of good things flourishing in our lives.
To seek wisdom is ultimately to seek God, the source of all wisdom and understanding. And the wisdom that comes from above is worth more than any buried treasure we could ever imagine. By Amy Peterson
Today's Reflection
Are you actively seeking God’s wisdom? How can you do so today?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, March 02, 2019
Have You Felt the Pain Inflicted by the Lord?
He said to him the third time, "…do you love Me?" —John 21:17
Have you ever felt the pain, inflicted by the Lord, at the very center of your being, deep down in the most sensitive area of your life? The devil never inflicts pain there, and neither can sin nor human emotions. Nothing can cut through to that part of our being but the Word of God. “Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ ” Yet he was awakened to the fact that at the center of his personal life he was devoted to Jesus. And then he began to see what Jesus’ patient questioning meant. There was not the slightest bit of doubt left in Peter’s mind; he could never be deceived again. And there was no need for an impassioned response; no need for immediate action or an emotional display. It was a revelation to him to realize how much he did love the Lord, and with amazement he simply said, “Lord, You know all things….” Peter began to see how very much he did love Jesus, and there was no need to say, “Look at this or that as proof of my love.” Peter was beginning to discover within himself just how much he really did love the Lord. He discovered that his eyes were so fixed on Jesus Christ that he saw no one else in heaven above or on the earth below. But he did not know it until the probing, hurting questions of the Lord were asked. The Lord’s questions always reveal the true me to myself.
Oh, the wonder of the patient directness and skill of Jesus Christ with Peter! Our Lord never asks questions until the perfect time. Rarely, but probably once in each of our lives, He will back us into a corner where He will hurt us with His piercing questions. Then we will realize that we do love Him far more deeply than our words can ever say.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Awe is the condition of a man’s spirit realizing Who God is and what He has done for him personally. Our Lord emphasizes the attitude of a child; no attitude can express such solemn awe and familiarity as that of a child. Not Knowing Whither, 882 L
Friday, March 1, 2019
Psalm 20, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: BRUISED REEDS AND SMOLDERING WICKS
Look at a bruised reed at the water’s edge—once slender, sturdy, and tall— now bowed and bent. Are you a bruised reed? You were upright and sturdy, rooted in the riverbed of confidence. Then you were bruised by harsh words, a friend’s anger, a spouse’s betrayal, religion’s rigidity, or your own failure.
Is there anything closer to death than the smoldering wick on a candle? Once you blazed with faith. Then they said your ideas were foolish, your dreams were too lofty.
But the theme of the New Testament is that God is the friend of the wounded heart and the keeper of your dreams. Christ met people at all points of pain. By His touch bruised reeds straightened and smoldering wicks were ignited.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
Psalm 20
A David Psalm
20 1-4 God answer you on the day you crash,
The name God-of-Jacob put you out of harm’s reach,
Send reinforcements from Holy Hill,
Dispatch from Zion fresh supplies,
Exclaim over your offerings,
Celebrate your sacrifices,
Give you what your heart desires,
Accomplish your plans.
5 When you win, we plan to raise the roof
and lead the parade with our banners.
May all your wishes come true!
6 That clinches it—help’s coming,
an answer’s on the way,
everything’s going to work out.
7-8 See those people polishing their chariots,
and those others grooming their horses?
But we’re making garlands for God our God.
The chariots will rust,
those horses pull up lame—
and we’ll be on our feet, standing tall.
9 Make the king a winner, God;
the day we call, give us your answer.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, March 01, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:John 21:17-25
Then he said it a third time: “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was upset that he asked for the third time, “Do you love me?” so he answered, “Master, you know everything there is to know. You’ve got to know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. I’m telling you the very truth now: When you were young you dressed yourself and went wherever you wished, but when you get old you’ll have to stretch out your hands while someone else dresses you and takes you where you don’t want to go.” He said this to hint at the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And then he commanded, “Follow me.”
20-21 Turning his head, Peter noticed the disciple Jesus loved following right behind. When Peter noticed him, he asked Jesus, “Master, what’s going to happen to him?”
22-23 Jesus said, “If I want him to live until I come again, what’s that to you? You—follow me.” That is how the rumor got out among the brothers that this disciple wouldn’t die. But that is not what Jesus said. He simply said, “If I want him to live until I come again, what’s that to you?”
24 This is the same disciple who was eyewitness to all these things and wrote them down. And we all know that his eyewitness account is reliable and accurate.
25 There are so many other things Jesus did. If they were all written down, each of them, one by one, I can’t imagine a world big enough to hold such a library of books.
Insight
Some scholars speculate that John 21 was written (under the guidance of the Holy Spirit) at a later time than the first 20 chapters and was added to clarify a misunderstanding. Apparently, some believed that Jesus had promised John he wouldn’t die until Jesus returned, and that rumor had spread widely. The so-called “second ending” (ch. 21) was intended to address that false idea by clarifying Jesus’s words (vv. 22–23). By: Bill Crowder
No Comparison
A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones. Proverbs 14:30
“One of these days I’m going to put it all on Facebook—not just the good stuff!”
My friend Sue’s comment—made casually over lunch with her husband—caused me to laugh out loud and also to think. Social media can be a good thing, helping us stay in touch with and pray for friends across the years and miles. But if we’re not careful, it can also create an unrealistic outlook on life. When much of what we see posted is a “highlight reel” of “the good stuff,” we can be misled into thinking others’ lives are without trouble, and wonder where our own went wrong.
Comparing ourselves with others is a sure recipe for unhappiness. When the disciples compared themselves to each other (see Luke 9:46; 22:24), Jesus quickly discouraged it. Soon after His resurrection, Jesus told Peter how he would suffer for his faith. Peter then turned to John and asked, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me” (John 21:21–22).
Jesus pointed Peter to the best remedy for unhealthy comparisons. When our minds are focused on God and all He’s done for us, self-focused thoughts fall gently away and we long to follow Him. In place of the world’s competitive strain and stress, He gives us His loving presence and peace. Nothing can compare with Him. By James Banks
Today's Reflection
How can you use social media in a God-honoring way? How can a real relationship with God keep you from making unhealthy comparisons?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, March 01, 2019
The Piercing Question
Do you love Me? —John 21:17
Peter’s response to this piercing question is considerably different from the bold defiance he exhibited only a few days before when he declared, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” (Matthew 26:35; also see Matthew 26:33-34). Our natural individuality, or our natural self, boldly speaks out and declares its feelings. But the true love within our inner spiritual self can be discovered only by experiencing the hurt of this question of Jesus Christ. Peter loved Jesus in the way any natural man loves a good person. Yet that is nothing but emotional love. It may reach deeply into our natural self, but it never penetrates to the spirit of a person. True love never simply declares itself. Jesus said, “Whoever confesses Me before men [that is, confesses his love by everything he does, not merely by his words], him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God” (Luke 12:8).
Unless we are experiencing the hurt of facing every deception about ourselves, we have hindered the work of the Word of God in our lives. The Word of God inflicts hurt on us more than sin ever could, because sin dulls our senses. But this question of the Lord intensifies our sensitivities to the point that this hurt produced by Jesus is the most exquisite pain conceivable. It hurts not only on the natural level, but also on the deeper spiritual level. “For the Word of God is living and powerful…, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit…”— to the point that no deception can remain (Hebrews 4:12). When the Lord asks us this question, it is impossible to think and respond properly, because when the Lord speaks directly to us, the pain is too intense. It causes such a tremendous hurt that any part of our life which may be out of line with His will can feel the pain. There is never any mistaking the pain of the Lord’s Word by His children, but the moment that pain is felt is the very moment at which God reveals His truth to us.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, March 01, 2019
Mail From Someone Who Loves You - #8385
I used to laugh at my roommate in college when he'd get a love letter from his girlfriend. He was kind of weird all day. He'd go off and he'd read that thing, you know, four or five times. And I'd go, "Hey, Buddy, there's nothing new in there. It says the same thing every time." Well, there was no laughing when I was separated from the woman I loved and ended up marrying. No, Karen and I were separated for the summers, and boy, I'll tell you what. I would write a letter to her just about every day, and she'd write a letter to me just about every day. I've got a whole suitcase full of those letters it's still nice to go back and read. Because I'll tell you, what made my day was going to that mailbox and getting some mail and knowing there would probably be mail there from somebody who loved me very much.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Mail From Someone Who Loves You."
Actually, you get mail every day from someone who loves you very much, but you could. It's actually mail from Almighty God Himself! It's contained in the Word of God - the Bible. See, God's messages are in His Book. Maybe you say, "Well, yeah, but that's not new information." Well, right, God's messages in the Bible are timeless information. They're always there, they are as true today as they were the day He authored them. and they've been true for generation after generation after generation. But, on the other hand, God's messages are always breaking news, too, because your situation is different today than the last time you may have read that verse.
God has a way through His Holy Spirit of personalizing that message. Of course, God's Holy Spirit, who knows all about the Bible and knows all about you, will miraculously use one of God's messages to change how you see your situation, and it might even change the situation! Timeless information, yes. But it is also breaking news for your situation.
Yes, you've got mail from God. But, like any message you might receive through email or text, you'll never get the message if you don't check in to see what God has to say today. So many days have been so unnecessarily confusing, frustrating and messed up because you didn't pick up your mail from God.
There's a great picture of how God sends His messages to us in our word for today from the Word of God in Exodus 16:14. God's ancient people were traveling through the wilderness in need of food. And God supplied their need by sending this miracle food called manna – which interestingly enough the Hebrew word means, "What is it?" "Hey, let's go get some 'what is it' Honey." The Bible says, "When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor. When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, 'What is it?'"
"Moses said to them, 'This is what the Lord has commanded: Each one is to gather as much as he needs...No one is to keep any of it until morning.' However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggot," the Bible says, "and it began to smell." In the New Testament, manna is actually used to symbolize spiritual food from God. And the "collection" principle is still the same – pick up a fresh batch each new day.
Yesterday's messages from God? Well, they're not going to do for today, because He's got fresh manna for you, fresh messages for the needs of this fresh new day. That's one of the main ways "His new mercies come every morning."
Some days your mail from God are going to give you perspective on what's going on in your life. Other days it will give you a corrective to steer you back on course from a detour you're almost about to take. But it's daily bread! You'll have to want God's messages enough to turn off some of the other messages for a little while: all the stuff you get on your phone, and the text, and the TV, and the Internet, and newspaper, and music – all of which can end up stealing all or most of your time with God.
If you'll open God's Word with the eagerness and the anticipation of someone who is opening their love letter, I can guarantee you that you will always have mail, holy mail, life-changing mail - messages from the God of the universe to your heart.
Look at a bruised reed at the water’s edge—once slender, sturdy, and tall— now bowed and bent. Are you a bruised reed? You were upright and sturdy, rooted in the riverbed of confidence. Then you were bruised by harsh words, a friend’s anger, a spouse’s betrayal, religion’s rigidity, or your own failure.
Is there anything closer to death than the smoldering wick on a candle? Once you blazed with faith. Then they said your ideas were foolish, your dreams were too lofty.
But the theme of the New Testament is that God is the friend of the wounded heart and the keeper of your dreams. Christ met people at all points of pain. By His touch bruised reeds straightened and smoldering wicks were ignited.
Read more He Still Moves Stones
Psalm 20
A David Psalm
20 1-4 God answer you on the day you crash,
The name God-of-Jacob put you out of harm’s reach,
Send reinforcements from Holy Hill,
Dispatch from Zion fresh supplies,
Exclaim over your offerings,
Celebrate your sacrifices,
Give you what your heart desires,
Accomplish your plans.
5 When you win, we plan to raise the roof
and lead the parade with our banners.
May all your wishes come true!
6 That clinches it—help’s coming,
an answer’s on the way,
everything’s going to work out.
7-8 See those people polishing their chariots,
and those others grooming their horses?
But we’re making garlands for God our God.
The chariots will rust,
those horses pull up lame—
and we’ll be on our feet, standing tall.
9 Make the king a winner, God;
the day we call, give us your answer.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, March 01, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:John 21:17-25
Then he said it a third time: “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was upset that he asked for the third time, “Do you love me?” so he answered, “Master, you know everything there is to know. You’ve got to know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. I’m telling you the very truth now: When you were young you dressed yourself and went wherever you wished, but when you get old you’ll have to stretch out your hands while someone else dresses you and takes you where you don’t want to go.” He said this to hint at the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And then he commanded, “Follow me.”
20-21 Turning his head, Peter noticed the disciple Jesus loved following right behind. When Peter noticed him, he asked Jesus, “Master, what’s going to happen to him?”
22-23 Jesus said, “If I want him to live until I come again, what’s that to you? You—follow me.” That is how the rumor got out among the brothers that this disciple wouldn’t die. But that is not what Jesus said. He simply said, “If I want him to live until I come again, what’s that to you?”
24 This is the same disciple who was eyewitness to all these things and wrote them down. And we all know that his eyewitness account is reliable and accurate.
25 There are so many other things Jesus did. If they were all written down, each of them, one by one, I can’t imagine a world big enough to hold such a library of books.
Insight
Some scholars speculate that John 21 was written (under the guidance of the Holy Spirit) at a later time than the first 20 chapters and was added to clarify a misunderstanding. Apparently, some believed that Jesus had promised John he wouldn’t die until Jesus returned, and that rumor had spread widely. The so-called “second ending” (ch. 21) was intended to address that false idea by clarifying Jesus’s words (vv. 22–23). By: Bill Crowder
No Comparison
A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones. Proverbs 14:30
“One of these days I’m going to put it all on Facebook—not just the good stuff!”
My friend Sue’s comment—made casually over lunch with her husband—caused me to laugh out loud and also to think. Social media can be a good thing, helping us stay in touch with and pray for friends across the years and miles. But if we’re not careful, it can also create an unrealistic outlook on life. When much of what we see posted is a “highlight reel” of “the good stuff,” we can be misled into thinking others’ lives are without trouble, and wonder where our own went wrong.
Comparing ourselves with others is a sure recipe for unhappiness. When the disciples compared themselves to each other (see Luke 9:46; 22:24), Jesus quickly discouraged it. Soon after His resurrection, Jesus told Peter how he would suffer for his faith. Peter then turned to John and asked, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me” (John 21:21–22).
Jesus pointed Peter to the best remedy for unhealthy comparisons. When our minds are focused on God and all He’s done for us, self-focused thoughts fall gently away and we long to follow Him. In place of the world’s competitive strain and stress, He gives us His loving presence and peace. Nothing can compare with Him. By James Banks
Today's Reflection
How can you use social media in a God-honoring way? How can a real relationship with God keep you from making unhealthy comparisons?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, March 01, 2019
The Piercing Question
Do you love Me? —John 21:17
Peter’s response to this piercing question is considerably different from the bold defiance he exhibited only a few days before when he declared, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” (Matthew 26:35; also see Matthew 26:33-34). Our natural individuality, or our natural self, boldly speaks out and declares its feelings. But the true love within our inner spiritual self can be discovered only by experiencing the hurt of this question of Jesus Christ. Peter loved Jesus in the way any natural man loves a good person. Yet that is nothing but emotional love. It may reach deeply into our natural self, but it never penetrates to the spirit of a person. True love never simply declares itself. Jesus said, “Whoever confesses Me before men [that is, confesses his love by everything he does, not merely by his words], him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God” (Luke 12:8).
Unless we are experiencing the hurt of facing every deception about ourselves, we have hindered the work of the Word of God in our lives. The Word of God inflicts hurt on us more than sin ever could, because sin dulls our senses. But this question of the Lord intensifies our sensitivities to the point that this hurt produced by Jesus is the most exquisite pain conceivable. It hurts not only on the natural level, but also on the deeper spiritual level. “For the Word of God is living and powerful…, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit…”— to the point that no deception can remain (Hebrews 4:12). When the Lord asks us this question, it is impossible to think and respond properly, because when the Lord speaks directly to us, the pain is too intense. It causes such a tremendous hurt that any part of our life which may be out of line with His will can feel the pain. There is never any mistaking the pain of the Lord’s Word by His children, but the moment that pain is felt is the very moment at which God reveals His truth to us.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, March 01, 2019
Mail From Someone Who Loves You - #8385
I used to laugh at my roommate in college when he'd get a love letter from his girlfriend. He was kind of weird all day. He'd go off and he'd read that thing, you know, four or five times. And I'd go, "Hey, Buddy, there's nothing new in there. It says the same thing every time." Well, there was no laughing when I was separated from the woman I loved and ended up marrying. No, Karen and I were separated for the summers, and boy, I'll tell you what. I would write a letter to her just about every day, and she'd write a letter to me just about every day. I've got a whole suitcase full of those letters it's still nice to go back and read. Because I'll tell you, what made my day was going to that mailbox and getting some mail and knowing there would probably be mail there from somebody who loved me very much.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Mail From Someone Who Loves You."
Actually, you get mail every day from someone who loves you very much, but you could. It's actually mail from Almighty God Himself! It's contained in the Word of God - the Bible. See, God's messages are in His Book. Maybe you say, "Well, yeah, but that's not new information." Well, right, God's messages in the Bible are timeless information. They're always there, they are as true today as they were the day He authored them. and they've been true for generation after generation after generation. But, on the other hand, God's messages are always breaking news, too, because your situation is different today than the last time you may have read that verse.
God has a way through His Holy Spirit of personalizing that message. Of course, God's Holy Spirit, who knows all about the Bible and knows all about you, will miraculously use one of God's messages to change how you see your situation, and it might even change the situation! Timeless information, yes. But it is also breaking news for your situation.
Yes, you've got mail from God. But, like any message you might receive through email or text, you'll never get the message if you don't check in to see what God has to say today. So many days have been so unnecessarily confusing, frustrating and messed up because you didn't pick up your mail from God.
There's a great picture of how God sends His messages to us in our word for today from the Word of God in Exodus 16:14. God's ancient people were traveling through the wilderness in need of food. And God supplied their need by sending this miracle food called manna – which interestingly enough the Hebrew word means, "What is it?" "Hey, let's go get some 'what is it' Honey." The Bible says, "When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor. When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, 'What is it?'"
"Moses said to them, 'This is what the Lord has commanded: Each one is to gather as much as he needs...No one is to keep any of it until morning.' However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggot," the Bible says, "and it began to smell." In the New Testament, manna is actually used to symbolize spiritual food from God. And the "collection" principle is still the same – pick up a fresh batch each new day.
Yesterday's messages from God? Well, they're not going to do for today, because He's got fresh manna for you, fresh messages for the needs of this fresh new day. That's one of the main ways "His new mercies come every morning."
Some days your mail from God are going to give you perspective on what's going on in your life. Other days it will give you a corrective to steer you back on course from a detour you're almost about to take. But it's daily bread! You'll have to want God's messages enough to turn off some of the other messages for a little while: all the stuff you get on your phone, and the text, and the TV, and the Internet, and newspaper, and music – all of which can end up stealing all or most of your time with God.
If you'll open God's Word with the eagerness and the anticipation of someone who is opening their love letter, I can guarantee you that you will always have mail, holy mail, life-changing mail - messages from the God of the universe to your heart.
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