Max Lucado Daily: AGENTS OF HAPPINESS
Jesus wants to bring joy to the people of this generation, and he has enlisted some special agents of happiness to do the job. You and me! It’s not an easy task. The people in our world can be moody, fickle, and stubborn. And that just describes my wife’s husband.
If we are going to find the joy that comes through giving joy away, we need instruction. No wonder the Bible has so much to say about finding joy in the act of sharing. The New Testament contains more than fifty “one another” statements.
You and I indwell a lonely planet. We cannot solve every problem in society, but we can bring smiles to a few faces. And who knows? If you brighten your corner of the world and I do the same in mine, a quiet revolution of joy might break out. This is how happiness happens.
2 Kings 18
In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah son of Ahaz began his rule over Judah. He was twenty-five years old when he became king and he ruled for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abijah daughter of Zechariah. In God’s opinion he was a good king; he kept to the standards of his ancestor David. He got rid of the local fertility shrines, smashed the phallic stone monuments, and cut down the sex-and-religion Asherah groves. As a final stroke he pulverized the ancient bronze serpent that Moses had made; at that time the Israelites had taken up the practice of sacrificing to it—they had even dignified it with a name, Nehushtan (The Old Serpent).
5-6 Hezekiah put his whole trust in the God of Israel. There was no king quite like him, either before or after. He held fast to God—never loosened his grip—and obeyed to the letter everything God had commanded Moses. And God, for his part, held fast to him through all his adventures.
7-8 He revolted against the king of Assyria; he refused to serve him one more day. And he drove back the Philistines, whether in sentry outposts or fortress cities, all the way to Gaza and its borders.
9-11 In the fourth year of Hezekiah and the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Shalmaneser king of Assyria attacked Samaria. He threw a siege around it and after three years captured it. It was in the sixth year of Hezekiah and the ninth year of Hoshea that Samaria fell to Assyria. The king of Assyria took Israel into exile and relocated them in Halah, in Gozan on the Habor River, and in towns of the Medes.
12 All this happened because they wouldn’t listen to the voice of their God and treated his covenant with careless contempt. They refused either to listen or do a word of what Moses, the servant of God, commanded.
13-14 In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the outlying fortress cities of Judah and captured them. King Hezekiah sent a message to the king of Assyria at his headquarters in Lachish: “I’ve done wrong; I admit it. Pull back your army; I’ll pay whatever tribute you set.”
14-16 The king of Assyria demanded tribute from Hezekiah king of Judah—eleven tons of silver and a ton of gold. Hezekiah turned over all the silver he could find in The Temple of God and in the palace treasuries. Hezekiah even took down the doors of The Temple of God and the doorposts that he had overlaid with gold and gave them to the king of Assyria.
17 So the king of Assyria sent his top three military chiefs (the Tartan, the Rabsaris, and the Rabshakeh) from Lachish with a strong military force to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem. When they arrived at Jerusalem, they stopped at the aqueduct of the Upper Pool on the road to the laundry commons.
18 They called loudly for the king. Eliakim son of Hilkiah who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the royal secretary, and Joah son of Asaph the court historian went out to meet them.
19-22 The third officer, the Rabshakeh, was spokesman. He said, “Tell Hezekiah: A message from The Great King, the king of Assyria: You’re living in a world of make-believe, of pious fantasy. Do you think that mere words are any substitute for military strategy and troops? Now that you’ve revolted against me, who can you expect to help you? You thought Egypt would, but Egypt’s nothing but a paper tiger—one puff of wind and she collapses; Pharaoh king of Egypt is nothing but bluff and bluster. Or are you going to tell me, ‘We rely on God’? But Hezekiah has just eliminated most of the people’s access to God by getting rid of all the local God-shrines, ordering everyone in Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You must worship at the Jerusalem altar only.’
23-24 “So be reasonable. Make a deal with my master, the king of Assyria. I’ll give you two thousand horses if you think you can provide riders for them. You can’t do it? Well, then, how do you think you’re going to turn back even one raw buck private from my master’s troops? How long are you going to hold on to that figment of your imagination, these hoped-for Egyptian chariots and horses?
25 “Do you think I’ve come up here to destroy this country without the express approval of God? The fact is that God expressly ordered me, ‘Attack and destroy this country!’”
26 Eliakim son of Hilkiah and Shebna and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, “Please, speak to us in the Aramaic language. We understand Aramaic. Don’t speak in Hebrew—everyone crowded on the city wall can hear you.”
27 But the Rabshakeh said, “We weren’t sent with a private message to your master and you; this is public—a message to everyone within earshot. After all, they’re involved in this as well as you; if you don’t come to terms, they’ll be eating their own turds and drinking their own pee right along with you.”
28-32 Then he stepped forward and spoke in Hebrew loud enough for everyone to hear, “Listen carefully to the words of The Great King, the king of Assyria: Don’t let Hezekiah fool you; he can’t save you. And don’t let Hezekiah give you that line about trusting in God, telling you, ‘God will save us—this city will never be abandoned to the king of Assyria.’ Don’t listen to Hezekiah—he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Listen to the king of Assyria—deal with me and live the good life; I’ll guarantee everyone your own plot of ground—a garden and a well! I’ll take you to a land sweeter by far than this one, a land of grain and wine, bread and vineyards, olive orchards and honey. You only live once—so live, really live!
32-35 “No. Don’t listen to Hezekiah. Don’t listen to his lies, telling you ‘God will save us.’ Has there ever been a god anywhere who delivered anyone from the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? And Samaria—did their gods save them? Can you name a god who saved anyone anywhere from me, the king of Assyria? So what makes you think that God can save Jerusalem from me?”
36 The people were silent. No one spoke a word for the king had ordered, “Don’t anyone say a word—not one word!”
37 Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, the palace administrator, and Shebna the royal secretary, and Joah son of Asaph the court historian went back to Hezekiah. They had ripped their robes in despair; they reported to Hezekiah the speech of the Rabshakeh.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, September 09, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Revelation 21:1–5
Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”[a] for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’[b] or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
Footnotes:
Revelation 21:1 Isaiah 65:17
Revelation 21:4 Isaiah 25:8
Insight
If we’re not careful, our concept of heaven can be cartoonish. We might picture clouds and harps and sweet-looking cherub figures. This isn’t the idea Revelation presents. The clouds John describes in Revelation are associated with judgment and great violence (10:1; 14:14–16). The harp-like “music” heard in chapter 14 is like the sound “of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder” (v. 2). And the angelic beings appear absolutely terrifying (14:6–20). Yet here in chapter 21 we read one of the most comforting passages ever written. And the biggest comfort is that “God’s dwelling place is now among the people” (v. 3). We don’t know exactly how this works, but when Jesus Himself tells us “I am making everything new!” (v. 5), we know it will be grand. This old world is described as “very good” (Genesis 1:31). Why would God’s new heaven and earth be less so?
When We Know Who Wins
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. Revelation 21:4
My supervisor is a huge fan of a certain college basketball team. This year, they won the national championship, so another coworker texted him congratulations. The only problem was my boss hadn’t yet had a chance to watch the final game! He was frustrated, he said, knowing the outcome beforehand. But, he admitted, at least when he watched the game he wasn’t nervous when the score stayed close to the end. He knew who won!
We never really know what tomorrow will hold. Some days can feel mundane and tedious, while other days are filled with joy. Still other times, life can be grueling, agonizing even, for long periods of time.
But despite life’s unpredictable ups and downs, we can still be securely grounded in God’s peace. Because, like my supervisor, we know the end of the story. We know who “wins.”
Revelation, the Bible’s final book, lifts the curtain on that spectacular finale. After the final defeat of death and evil (20:10, 14), John describes a beautiful victory scene (21:1–3) where God makes His home with His people (v. 3) and wipes “every tear from their eyes” in a world with “no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (v. 4).
On difficult days, we can cling to this promise. No more loss or weeping. No more what-ifs or broken hearts. Instead, we’ll spend eternity together with our Savior. What a glorious celebration that will be! By: Adam Holz
Reflect & Pray
How can the hope of heaven give you strength? How might your favorite “happily ever after” story echo Revelation 21?
One day God will soothe every hurt, heal every wound, and wipe away every tear.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, September 09, 2019
Do It Yourself (2)
…bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ… —2 Corinthians 10:5
Determinedly Discipline Other Things. This is another difficult aspect of the strenuous nature of sainthood. Paul said, according to the Moffatt translation of this verse, “…I take every project prisoner to make it obey Christ….” So much Christian work today has never been disciplined, but has simply come into being by impulse! In our Lord’s life every project was disciplined to the will of His Father. There was never the slightest tendency to follow the impulse of His own will as distinct from His Father’s will— “the Son can do nothing of Himself…” (John 5:19). Then compare this with what we do— we take “every thought” or project that comes to us by impulse and jump into action immediately, instead of imprisoning and disciplining ourselves to obey Christ.
Practical work for Christians is greatly overemphasized today, and the saints who are “bringing every thought [and project] into captivity” are criticized and told that they are not determined, and that they lack zeal for God or zeal for the souls of others. But true determination and zeal are found in obeying God, not in the inclination to serve Him that arises from our own undisciplined human nature. It is inconceivable, but true nevertheless, that saints are not “bringing every thought [and project] into captivity,” but are simply doing work for God that has been instigated by their own human nature, and has not been made spiritual through determined discipline.
We have a tendency to forget that a person is not only committed to Jesus Christ for salvation, but is also committed, responsible, and accountable to Jesus Christ’s view of God, the world, and of sin and the devil. This means that each person must recognize the responsibility to “be transformed by the renewing of [his] mind….” (Romans 12:2).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
There is no condition of life in which we cannot abide in Jesus. We have to learn to abide in Him wherever we are placed. Our Brilliant Heritage
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, September 09, 2019
Delicious Poison - #8521
If you offer a candy bar to my sister-in-law she just might shake her head in disgust and say, "Nuts!" Now, she's not being rude. No, she's telling you why she doesn't dare accept your offer - nuts. You see it all started one Saturday morning. She was doing computer work in our office and she was munching on some hazelnuts. Eventually she noticed this rash breaking out. Within a few hours she could hardly breathe, and my wife was rushing her to the doctor. Her throat was literally swelling shut! Well, the doctor pulled her through that scare and then he took a battery of allergy tests. Well sure enough the tests showed that she has a serious allergy to all nuts and eggs and anything that has peanut oil in it. Those ingredients, of course, are in a lot of things that she loves to eat, but she doesn't. No! It could be fatal. Nothing tastes that good!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Delicious Poison."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Psalm 40. It's David's beautiful account of how the Lord rescued him and changed his life forever, including one area where we don't always let the Lord change us. Verses 1-3, "I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and the mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God." David says, "I finally got security, I finally got peace." David's relationship with God has changed everything including his music. He said he's got a new song; he's got a hymn of praise.
Well, have you let Him change your music? Does the music you listen to really matter anyway? Well it does matter what my sister-in-law eats. Yes! If she lets certain things and lets them enter her system it can poison her system, it can have a deadly effect. There are a lot of things she really enjoys that she just can't afford to partake of and that's how it is with your music. If you listen to music, no matter how much it appeals to your taste. and it carries immoral or unchristian ideas, it's eventually going to sink into your soul. It poisons your soul.
The Bible is very clear about watching what gets into your mind and heart. It says, "Guard your heart because out of it are the issues of life" (Proverbs 4:23). Few things have the power to drive an idea into your heart like music does. Advertisers know that, that's why they write all those jingles you can't forget. And Satan knows it. He knows our minds have their guard down when we're in relaxation mode, entertainment mode. That's his best opportunity to infiltrate our system with images and ideas that we would never allow in any other way. It's not just music. Its novels, TV, websites, videos, and humor - all these media that are pumping into our heart and mind hours a week. But music is a hammer that pounds messages into your soul. Messages that later soften us up morally, and harden us spiritually.
You say, "Well I like the beat," or, "I love this artist." Well, that's not good enough to measure what you let into your system. Here's the measure for a follower of the Savior who died because of our sin. Ephesians 5:11 - "Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness. It's shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret." Let alone sing about it, or watch it portrayed, or listen to music about it over and over again. You see, David knew that with a new life comes a new song; music that pumps into our soul God's praise, God's ideas.
My sister-in-law knows that there are things that are delicious, that have deadly ingredients in them. You need to know there are many things you may love to listen to or watch that contain spiritual poison. Nothing tastes so good that it's worth poisoning your soul.
Monday, September 9, 2019
Sunday, September 8, 2019
2 Kings 17, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Your Promised-Land Life
Think about the Christian you want to be. What qualities do you want to have? More compassion? More conviction? More courage? What attitudes do you want to discontinue? Greed? Guilt? Endless negativity?
Here’s the good news. You can. With God’s help you can close the gap between the person you are and the person you want to be—indeed, the person God made you to be. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 3:18 that we can live “from glory to glory.”
The walls of Jericho—are already condemned. The giants already on the run. The deed to your new life already signed. It just falls to you to possess the land. Joshua 21:43 says, “So the Lord gave to Israel all the land of which He had sworn to their fathers—and they took possession of it and dwelt in it.”
Your promised-land life— It’s yours for the taking.
From Glory Days
2 Kings 17
In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria for nine years. As far as God was concerned, he lived a bad life, but not nearly as bad as the kings who had preceded him.
3-5 Then Shalmaneser king of Assyria attacked. Hoshea was already a puppet of the Assyrian king and regularly sent him tribute, but Shalmaneser discovered that Hoshea had been operating traitorously behind his back—having worked out a deal with King So of Egypt. And, adding insult to injury, Hoshea was way behind on his annual payments of tribute to Assyria. So the king of Assyria arrested him and threw him in prison, then proceeded to invade the entire country. He attacked Samaria and threw up a siege against it. The siege lasted three years.
6 In the ninth year of Hoshea’s reign the king of Assyria captured Samaria and took the people into exile in Assyria. He relocated them in Halah, in Gozan along the Habor River, and in the towns of the Medes.
7-12 The exile came about because of sin: The children of Israel sinned against God, their God, who had delivered them from Egypt and the brutal oppression of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They took up with other gods, fell in with the ways of life of the pagan nations God had chased off, and went along with whatever their kings did. They did all kinds of things on the sly, things offensive to their God, then openly and shamelessly built local sex-and-religion shrines at every available site. They set up their sex-and-religion symbols at practically every crossroads. Everywhere you looked there was smoke from their pagan offerings to the deities—the identical offerings that had gotten the pagan nations off into exile. They had accumulated a long list of evil actions and God was fed up, fed up with their persistent worship of gods carved out of deadwood or shaped out of clay, even though God had plainly said, “Don’t do this—ever!”
13 God had taken a stand against Israel and Judah, speaking clearly through countless holy prophets and seers time and time again, “Turn away from your evil way of life. Do what I tell you and have been telling you in The Revelation I gave your ancestors and of which I’ve kept reminding you ever since through my servants the prophets.”
14-15 But they wouldn’t listen. If anything, they were even more bullheaded than their stubborn ancestors, if that’s possible. They were contemptuous of his instructions, the solemn and holy covenant he had made with their ancestors, and of his repeated reminders and warnings. They lived a “nothing” life and became “nothings”—just like the pagan peoples all around them. They were well-warned: God said, “Don’t!” but they did it anyway.
16-17 They threw out everything God, their God, had told them, and replaced him with two statue-gods shaped like bull-calves and then a phallic pole for the whore goddess Asherah. They worshiped cosmic forces—sky gods and goddesses—and frequented the sex-and-religion shrines of Baal. They even sank so low as to offer their own sons and daughters as sacrificial burnt offerings! They indulged in all the black arts of magic and sorcery. In short, they prostituted themselves to every kind of evil available to them. And God had had enough.
18-20 God was so thoroughly angry that he got rid of them, got them out of the country for good until only one tribe was left—Judah. (Judah, actually, wasn’t much better, for Judah also failed to keep God’s commands, falling into the same way of life that Israel had adopted.) God rejected everyone connected with Israel, made life hard for them, and permitted anyone with a mind to exploit them to do so. And then this final No as he threw them out of his sight.
21-23 Back at the time that God ripped Israel out of their place in the family of David, they had made Jeroboam son of Nebat king. Jeroboam debauched Israel—turned them away from serving God and led them into a life of total sin. The children of Israel went along with all the sins that Jeroboam did, never murmured so much as a word of protest. In the end, God spoke a final No to Israel and turned his back on them. He had given them fair warning, and plenty of time, through the preaching of all his servants the prophets. Then he exiled Israel from her land to Assyria. And that’s where they are now.
24-25 The king of Assyria brought in people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and relocated them in the towns of Samaria, replacing the exiled Israelites. They moved in as if they owned the place and made themselves at home. When the Assyrians first moved in, God was just another god to them; they neither honored nor worshiped him. Then God sent lions among them and people were mauled and killed.
26 This message was then sent back to the king of Assyria: “The people you brought in to occupy the towns of Samaria don’t know what’s expected of them from the god of the land, and now he’s sent lions and they’re killing people right and left because nobody knows what the god of the land expects of them.”
27 The king of Assyria ordered, “Send back some priests who were taken into exile from there. They can go back and live there and instruct the people in what the god of the land expects of them.”
28 One of the priests who had been exiled from Samaria came back and moved into Bethel. He taught them how to honor and worship God.
29-31 But each people that Assyria had settled went ahead anyway making its own gods and setting them up in the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines that the citizens of Samaria had left behind—a local custom-made god for each people:
for Babylon, Succoth Benoth;
for Cuthah, Nergal;
for Hamath, Ashima;
for Avva, Nibhaz and Tartak;
for Sepharvaim, Adrammelech and Anammelech (people burned their children in sacrificial offerings to these gods!).
32-33 They honored and worshiped God, but not exclusively—they also appointed all sorts of priests, regardless of qualification, to conduct a variety of rites at the local fertility shrines. They honored and worshiped God, but they also kept up their devotions to the old gods of the places they had come from.
34-39 And they’re still doing it, still worshiping any old god that has nostalgic appeal to them. They don’t really worship God—they don’t take seriously what he says regarding how to behave and what to believe, what he revealed to the children of Jacob whom he named Israel. God made a covenant with his people and ordered them, “Don’t honor other gods: Don’t worship them, don’t serve them, don’t offer sacrifices to them. Worship God, the God who delivered you from Egypt in great and personal power. Reverence and fear him. Worship him. Sacrifice to him. And only him! All the things he had written down for you, directing you in what to believe and how to behave—well, do them for as long as you live. And whatever you do, don’t worship other gods! And the covenant he made with you, don’t forget your part in that. And don’t worship other gods! Worship God, and God only—he’s the one who will save you from enemy oppression.”
40-41 But they didn’t pay any attention. They kept doing what they’d always done. As it turned out, all the time these people were putting on a front of worshiping God, they were at the same time involved with their local idols. And they’re still doing it. Like father, like son.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, September 08, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Proverbs 4:10–27
Listen, my son, accept what I say,
and the years of your life will be many.
11 I instruct you in the way of wisdom
and lead you along straight paths.
12 When you walk, your steps will not be hampered;
when you run, you will not stumble.
13 Hold on to instruction, do not let it go;
guard it well, for it is your life.
14 Do not set foot on the path of the wicked
or walk in the way of evildoers.
15 Avoid it, do not travel on it;
turn from it and go on your way.
16 For they cannot rest until they do evil;
they are robbed of sleep till they make someone stumble.
17 They eat the bread of wickedness
and drink the wine of violence.
18 The path of the righteous is like the morning sun,
shining ever brighter till the full light of day.
19 But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness;
they do not know what makes them stumble.
20 My son, pay attention to what I say;
turn your ear to my words.
21 Do not let them out of your sight,
keep them within your heart;
22 for they are life to those who find them
and health to one’s whole body.
23 Above all else, guard your heart,
for everything you do flows from it.
24 Keep your mouth free of perversity;
keep corrupt talk far from your lips.
25 Let your eyes look straight ahead;
fix your gaze directly before you.
26 Give careful thought to the[a] paths for your feet
and be steadfast in all your ways.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left;
keep your foot from evil.
Footnotes:
Proverbs 4:26 Or Make level
Insight
The structure of the book of Proverbs is distinctive. Chapters 1–9 form the counsel of a father to a son, including themes like the pursuit of wisdom and the need for sexual purity. Proverbs 10–31, however, are for the most part a collection of wise sayings that often contrast the wise living described in the first nine chapters with self-destructive foolishness.
Blue Lines
I instruct you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths. Proverbs 4:11
Downhill skiing racecourses are often marked by swaths of blue paint sprayed across the white, snowy surface. The crude arcs might be a visual distraction for spectators but prove to be vital to both the success and safety of the competitors. The paint serves as a guide for the racers to visualize the fastest line to the bottom of the hill. Additionally, the contrast of the paint against the snow offers racers depth perception, which is critical to their safety when traveling at such high rates of speed.
Solomon begs his sons to seek wisdom in hopes of keeping them safe on the racecourse of life. Like the blue lines, wisdom, he says, will “lead [them] along straight paths” and keep them from stumbling (Proverbs 4:11–12). His deepest hope as a father is for his sons to enjoy a rich life, free from the damaging effects of living apart from the wisdom of God.
God, as our loving Father, offers us “blue-line” guidance in the Bible. While He’s given us the freedom to “ski” wherever we like, the wisdom He offers in the Scriptures, like racecourse markers, are “life to those who find them” (v. 22). When we turn from evil and walk instead with Him, our path will be lit with His righteousness, keeping our feet from stumbling and guiding us onward each day (vv. 12, 18). By: Kirsten Holmberg
Reflect & Pray
How has reflecting on the wisdom of God kept you from stumbling? In what ways are you becoming more like Jesus?
God, thank You for Your Word. Help me to hold fast to the wisdom You offer. To learn more about how to get the most out of your Bible study time, visit christianuniversity.org/SF106.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, September 08, 2019
Do It Yourself (1)
…casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God… —2 Corinthians 10:5
Determinedly Demolish Some Things. Deliverance from sin is not the same as deliverance from human nature. There are things in human nature, such as prejudices, that the saint can only destroy through sheer neglect. But there are other things that have to be destroyed through violence, that is, through God’s divine strength imparted by His Spirit. There are some things over which we are not to fight, but only to “stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord…” (see Exodus 14:13). But every theory or thought that raises itself up as a fortified barrier “against the knowledge of God” is to be determinedly demolished by drawing on God’s power, not through human effort or by compromise (see 2 Corinthians 10:4).
It is only when God has transformed our nature and we have entered into the experience of sanctification that the fight begins. The warfare is not against sin; we can never fight against sin— Jesus Christ conquered that in His redemption of us. The conflict is waged over turning our natural life into a spiritual life. This is never done easily, nor does God intend that it be so. It is accomplished only through a series of moral choices. God does not make us holy in the sense that He makes our character holy. He makes us holy in the sense that He has made us innocent before Him. And then we have to turn that innocence into holy character through the moral choices we make. These choices are continually opposed and hostile to the things of our natural life which have become so deeply entrenched— the very things that raise themselves up as fortified barriers “against the knowledge of God.” We can either turn back, making ourselves of no value to the kingdom of God, or we can determinedly demolish these things, allowing Jesus to bring another son to glory (see Hebrews 2:10).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Our danger is to water down God’s word to suit ourselves. God never fits His word to suit me; He fits me to suit His word. Not Knowing Whither, 901 R
Think about the Christian you want to be. What qualities do you want to have? More compassion? More conviction? More courage? What attitudes do you want to discontinue? Greed? Guilt? Endless negativity?
Here’s the good news. You can. With God’s help you can close the gap between the person you are and the person you want to be—indeed, the person God made you to be. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 3:18 that we can live “from glory to glory.”
The walls of Jericho—are already condemned. The giants already on the run. The deed to your new life already signed. It just falls to you to possess the land. Joshua 21:43 says, “So the Lord gave to Israel all the land of which He had sworn to their fathers—and they took possession of it and dwelt in it.”
Your promised-land life— It’s yours for the taking.
From Glory Days
2 Kings 17
In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria for nine years. As far as God was concerned, he lived a bad life, but not nearly as bad as the kings who had preceded him.
3-5 Then Shalmaneser king of Assyria attacked. Hoshea was already a puppet of the Assyrian king and regularly sent him tribute, but Shalmaneser discovered that Hoshea had been operating traitorously behind his back—having worked out a deal with King So of Egypt. And, adding insult to injury, Hoshea was way behind on his annual payments of tribute to Assyria. So the king of Assyria arrested him and threw him in prison, then proceeded to invade the entire country. He attacked Samaria and threw up a siege against it. The siege lasted three years.
6 In the ninth year of Hoshea’s reign the king of Assyria captured Samaria and took the people into exile in Assyria. He relocated them in Halah, in Gozan along the Habor River, and in the towns of the Medes.
7-12 The exile came about because of sin: The children of Israel sinned against God, their God, who had delivered them from Egypt and the brutal oppression of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They took up with other gods, fell in with the ways of life of the pagan nations God had chased off, and went along with whatever their kings did. They did all kinds of things on the sly, things offensive to their God, then openly and shamelessly built local sex-and-religion shrines at every available site. They set up their sex-and-religion symbols at practically every crossroads. Everywhere you looked there was smoke from their pagan offerings to the deities—the identical offerings that had gotten the pagan nations off into exile. They had accumulated a long list of evil actions and God was fed up, fed up with their persistent worship of gods carved out of deadwood or shaped out of clay, even though God had plainly said, “Don’t do this—ever!”
13 God had taken a stand against Israel and Judah, speaking clearly through countless holy prophets and seers time and time again, “Turn away from your evil way of life. Do what I tell you and have been telling you in The Revelation I gave your ancestors and of which I’ve kept reminding you ever since through my servants the prophets.”
14-15 But they wouldn’t listen. If anything, they were even more bullheaded than their stubborn ancestors, if that’s possible. They were contemptuous of his instructions, the solemn and holy covenant he had made with their ancestors, and of his repeated reminders and warnings. They lived a “nothing” life and became “nothings”—just like the pagan peoples all around them. They were well-warned: God said, “Don’t!” but they did it anyway.
16-17 They threw out everything God, their God, had told them, and replaced him with two statue-gods shaped like bull-calves and then a phallic pole for the whore goddess Asherah. They worshiped cosmic forces—sky gods and goddesses—and frequented the sex-and-religion shrines of Baal. They even sank so low as to offer their own sons and daughters as sacrificial burnt offerings! They indulged in all the black arts of magic and sorcery. In short, they prostituted themselves to every kind of evil available to them. And God had had enough.
18-20 God was so thoroughly angry that he got rid of them, got them out of the country for good until only one tribe was left—Judah. (Judah, actually, wasn’t much better, for Judah also failed to keep God’s commands, falling into the same way of life that Israel had adopted.) God rejected everyone connected with Israel, made life hard for them, and permitted anyone with a mind to exploit them to do so. And then this final No as he threw them out of his sight.
21-23 Back at the time that God ripped Israel out of their place in the family of David, they had made Jeroboam son of Nebat king. Jeroboam debauched Israel—turned them away from serving God and led them into a life of total sin. The children of Israel went along with all the sins that Jeroboam did, never murmured so much as a word of protest. In the end, God spoke a final No to Israel and turned his back on them. He had given them fair warning, and plenty of time, through the preaching of all his servants the prophets. Then he exiled Israel from her land to Assyria. And that’s where they are now.
24-25 The king of Assyria brought in people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and relocated them in the towns of Samaria, replacing the exiled Israelites. They moved in as if they owned the place and made themselves at home. When the Assyrians first moved in, God was just another god to them; they neither honored nor worshiped him. Then God sent lions among them and people were mauled and killed.
26 This message was then sent back to the king of Assyria: “The people you brought in to occupy the towns of Samaria don’t know what’s expected of them from the god of the land, and now he’s sent lions and they’re killing people right and left because nobody knows what the god of the land expects of them.”
27 The king of Assyria ordered, “Send back some priests who were taken into exile from there. They can go back and live there and instruct the people in what the god of the land expects of them.”
28 One of the priests who had been exiled from Samaria came back and moved into Bethel. He taught them how to honor and worship God.
29-31 But each people that Assyria had settled went ahead anyway making its own gods and setting them up in the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines that the citizens of Samaria had left behind—a local custom-made god for each people:
for Babylon, Succoth Benoth;
for Cuthah, Nergal;
for Hamath, Ashima;
for Avva, Nibhaz and Tartak;
for Sepharvaim, Adrammelech and Anammelech (people burned their children in sacrificial offerings to these gods!).
32-33 They honored and worshiped God, but not exclusively—they also appointed all sorts of priests, regardless of qualification, to conduct a variety of rites at the local fertility shrines. They honored and worshiped God, but they also kept up their devotions to the old gods of the places they had come from.
34-39 And they’re still doing it, still worshiping any old god that has nostalgic appeal to them. They don’t really worship God—they don’t take seriously what he says regarding how to behave and what to believe, what he revealed to the children of Jacob whom he named Israel. God made a covenant with his people and ordered them, “Don’t honor other gods: Don’t worship them, don’t serve them, don’t offer sacrifices to them. Worship God, the God who delivered you from Egypt in great and personal power. Reverence and fear him. Worship him. Sacrifice to him. And only him! All the things he had written down for you, directing you in what to believe and how to behave—well, do them for as long as you live. And whatever you do, don’t worship other gods! And the covenant he made with you, don’t forget your part in that. And don’t worship other gods! Worship God, and God only—he’s the one who will save you from enemy oppression.”
40-41 But they didn’t pay any attention. They kept doing what they’d always done. As it turned out, all the time these people were putting on a front of worshiping God, they were at the same time involved with their local idols. And they’re still doing it. Like father, like son.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, September 08, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Proverbs 4:10–27
Listen, my son, accept what I say,
and the years of your life will be many.
11 I instruct you in the way of wisdom
and lead you along straight paths.
12 When you walk, your steps will not be hampered;
when you run, you will not stumble.
13 Hold on to instruction, do not let it go;
guard it well, for it is your life.
14 Do not set foot on the path of the wicked
or walk in the way of evildoers.
15 Avoid it, do not travel on it;
turn from it and go on your way.
16 For they cannot rest until they do evil;
they are robbed of sleep till they make someone stumble.
17 They eat the bread of wickedness
and drink the wine of violence.
18 The path of the righteous is like the morning sun,
shining ever brighter till the full light of day.
19 But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness;
they do not know what makes them stumble.
20 My son, pay attention to what I say;
turn your ear to my words.
21 Do not let them out of your sight,
keep them within your heart;
22 for they are life to those who find them
and health to one’s whole body.
23 Above all else, guard your heart,
for everything you do flows from it.
24 Keep your mouth free of perversity;
keep corrupt talk far from your lips.
25 Let your eyes look straight ahead;
fix your gaze directly before you.
26 Give careful thought to the[a] paths for your feet
and be steadfast in all your ways.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left;
keep your foot from evil.
Footnotes:
Proverbs 4:26 Or Make level
Insight
The structure of the book of Proverbs is distinctive. Chapters 1–9 form the counsel of a father to a son, including themes like the pursuit of wisdom and the need for sexual purity. Proverbs 10–31, however, are for the most part a collection of wise sayings that often contrast the wise living described in the first nine chapters with self-destructive foolishness.
Blue Lines
I instruct you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths. Proverbs 4:11
Downhill skiing racecourses are often marked by swaths of blue paint sprayed across the white, snowy surface. The crude arcs might be a visual distraction for spectators but prove to be vital to both the success and safety of the competitors. The paint serves as a guide for the racers to visualize the fastest line to the bottom of the hill. Additionally, the contrast of the paint against the snow offers racers depth perception, which is critical to their safety when traveling at such high rates of speed.
Solomon begs his sons to seek wisdom in hopes of keeping them safe on the racecourse of life. Like the blue lines, wisdom, he says, will “lead [them] along straight paths” and keep them from stumbling (Proverbs 4:11–12). His deepest hope as a father is for his sons to enjoy a rich life, free from the damaging effects of living apart from the wisdom of God.
God, as our loving Father, offers us “blue-line” guidance in the Bible. While He’s given us the freedom to “ski” wherever we like, the wisdom He offers in the Scriptures, like racecourse markers, are “life to those who find them” (v. 22). When we turn from evil and walk instead with Him, our path will be lit with His righteousness, keeping our feet from stumbling and guiding us onward each day (vv. 12, 18). By: Kirsten Holmberg
Reflect & Pray
How has reflecting on the wisdom of God kept you from stumbling? In what ways are you becoming more like Jesus?
God, thank You for Your Word. Help me to hold fast to the wisdom You offer. To learn more about how to get the most out of your Bible study time, visit christianuniversity.org/SF106.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, September 08, 2019
Do It Yourself (1)
…casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God… —2 Corinthians 10:5
Determinedly Demolish Some Things. Deliverance from sin is not the same as deliverance from human nature. There are things in human nature, such as prejudices, that the saint can only destroy through sheer neglect. But there are other things that have to be destroyed through violence, that is, through God’s divine strength imparted by His Spirit. There are some things over which we are not to fight, but only to “stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord…” (see Exodus 14:13). But every theory or thought that raises itself up as a fortified barrier “against the knowledge of God” is to be determinedly demolished by drawing on God’s power, not through human effort or by compromise (see 2 Corinthians 10:4).
It is only when God has transformed our nature and we have entered into the experience of sanctification that the fight begins. The warfare is not against sin; we can never fight against sin— Jesus Christ conquered that in His redemption of us. The conflict is waged over turning our natural life into a spiritual life. This is never done easily, nor does God intend that it be so. It is accomplished only through a series of moral choices. God does not make us holy in the sense that He makes our character holy. He makes us holy in the sense that He has made us innocent before Him. And then we have to turn that innocence into holy character through the moral choices we make. These choices are continually opposed and hostile to the things of our natural life which have become so deeply entrenched— the very things that raise themselves up as fortified barriers “against the knowledge of God.” We can either turn back, making ourselves of no value to the kingdom of God, or we can determinedly demolish these things, allowing Jesus to bring another son to glory (see Hebrews 2:10).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Our danger is to water down God’s word to suit ourselves. God never fits His word to suit me; He fits me to suit His word. Not Knowing Whither, 901 R
Saturday, September 7, 2019
Galatians 3, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Our Best Days Are Ahead
Perhaps you can relate to the deflated little fellow I saw in an airport terminal. Everything about the dad’s expression said, Hurry up! We have to run if we’re going to make the connection. Can the little fellow keep up? Mom could. The big brothers could. But the little guy? He tried to match his parents’ pace, but he just couldn’t. Can you relate? Sometimes the challenge is just too much. It’s not that you don’t try. You just run out of fight.
The story of Joshua in the Bible dares us to believe our best days are ahead of us. A life in which the Bible says we are anxious for nothing, we are praying always; a life in which Paul says, we are giving thanks to God the Father through Him. (Philippians 4:6). We may stumble but we don’t collapse. God has a promised land for us to take!
From Glory Days
Galatians 3
You crazy Galatians! Did someone put a hex on you? Have you taken leave of your senses? Something crazy has happened, for it’s obvious that you no longer have the crucified Jesus in clear focus in your lives. His sacrifice on the cross was certainly set before you clearly enough.
2-4 Let me put this question to you: How did your new life begin? Was it by working your heads off to please God? Or was it by responding to God’s Message to you? Are you going to continue this craziness? For only crazy people would think they could complete by their own efforts what was begun by God. If you weren’t smart enough or strong enough to begin it, how do you suppose you could perfect it? Did you go through this whole painful learning process for nothing? It is not yet a total loss, but it certainly will be if you keep this up!
5-6 Answer this question: Does the God who lavishly provides you with his own presence, his Holy Spirit, working things in your lives you could never do for yourselves, does he do these things because of your strenuous moral striving or because you trust him to do them in you? Don’t these things happen among you just as they happened with Abraham? He believed God, and that act of belief was turned into a life that was right with God.
7-8 Is it not obvious to you that persons who put their trust in Christ (not persons who put their trust in the law!) are like Abraham: children of faith? It was all laid out beforehand in Scripture that God would set things right with non-Jews by faith. Scripture anticipated this in the promise to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed in you.”
9-10 So those now who live by faith are blessed along with Abraham, who lived by faith—this is no new doctrine! And that means that anyone who tries to live by his own effort, independent of God, is doomed to failure. Scripture backs this up: “Utterly cursed is every person who fails to carry out every detail written in the Book of the law.”
11-12 The obvious impossibility of carrying out such a moral program should make it plain that no one can sustain a relationship with God that way. The person who lives in right relationship with God does it by embracing what God arranges for him. Doing things for God is the opposite of entering into what God does for you. Habakkuk had it right: “The person who believes God, is set right by God—and that’s the real life.” Rule-keeping does not naturally evolve into living by faith, but only perpetuates itself in more and more rule-keeping, a fact observed in Scripture: “The one who does these things [rule-keeping] continues to live by them.”
13-14 Christ redeemed us from that self-defeating, cursed life by absorbing it completely into himself. Do you remember the Scripture that says, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”? That is what happened when Jesus was nailed to the cross: He became a curse, and at the same time dissolved the curse. And now, because of that, the air is cleared and we can see that Abraham’s blessing is present and available for non-Jews, too. We are all able to receive God’s life, his Spirit, in and with us by believing—just the way Abraham received it.
15-18 Friends, let me give you an example from everyday affairs of the free life I am talking about. Once a person’s will has been ratified, no one else can annul it or add to it. Now, the promises were made to Abraham and to his descendant. You will observe that Scripture, in the careful language of a legal document, does not say “to descendants,” referring to everybody in general, but “to your descendant” (the noun, note, is singular), referring to Christ. This is the way I interpret this: A will, earlier ratified by God, is not annulled by an addendum attached 430 years later, thereby negating the promise of the will. No, this addendum, with its instructions and regulations, has nothing to do with the promised inheritance in the will.
18-20 What is the point, then, of the law, the attached addendum? It was a thoughtful addition to the original covenant promises made to Abraham. The purpose of the law was to keep a sinful people in the way of salvation until Christ (the descendant) came, inheriting the promises and distributing them to us. Obviously this law was not a firsthand encounter with God. It was arranged by angelic messengers through a middleman, Moses. But if there is a middleman as there was at Sinai, then the people are not dealing directly with God, are they? But the original promise is the direct blessing of God, received by faith.
21-22 If such is the case, is the law, then, an anti-promise, a negation of God’s will for us? Not at all. Its purpose was to make obvious to everyone that we are, in ourselves, out of right relationship with God, and therefore to show us the futility of devising some religious system for getting by our own efforts what we can only get by waiting in faith for God to complete his promise. For if any kind of rule-keeping had power to create life in us, we would certainly have gotten it by this time.
23-24 Until the time when we were mature enough to respond freely in faith to the living God, we were carefully surrounded and protected by the Mosaic law. The law was like those Greek tutors, with which you are familiar, who escort children to school and protect them from danger or distraction, making sure the children will really get to the place they set out for.
25-27 But now you have arrived at your destination: By faith in Christ you are in direct relationship with God. Your baptism in Christ was not just washing you up for a fresh start. It also involved dressing you in an adult faith wardrobe—Christ’s life, the fulfillment of God’s original promise.
28-29 In Christ’s family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, since you are Christ’s family, then you are Abraham’s famous “descendant,” heirs according to the covenant promises.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, September 07, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Philippians 2:1–11
Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.
5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature[a] God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature[b] of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Footnotes:
Philippians 2:6 Or in the form of
Philippians 2:7 Or the form
Insight
In Philippians 2:1–11, Paul calls believers to live counter-culturally. He wasn’t naive about the capacity for believers to live driven by “selfish ambition” (v. 3), by a self-interested need for power or control. It would be only natural for the Philippian believers to continue the habits learned in their culture, which Paul described as a “warped and crooked generation” (v. 15).
But Paul urged them to learn to live “worthy of the gospel of Christ” (1:27). And in chapter 2, he paints a stunning picture of the life believers are invited into, one of radical self-giving love (vv. 1–4). Living in a community marked by unity, joy, and freedom is only possible when we follow the example of Christ (v. 5) and remain rooted in, nourished by, and sustained by the Spirit (v. 1).
Walking Backward
Rather, [Jesus] made himself nothing. Philippians 2:7
I stumbled upon footage from a British newsreel crew who filmed six-year-old Flannery O’Connor on her family farm in 1932. Flannery, who would go on to become an acclaimed US writer, caught the crew’s curiosity because she’d taught a chicken to walk backward. Apart from the novelty of the feat, I thought this glimpse of history was a perfect metaphor. Flannery, due to both her literary sensibilities and her spiritual convictions, spent her thirty-nine years definitely walking backward—thinking and writing in a counter-cultural way. Publishers and readers were entirely baffled by how her biblical themes ran counter to the religious views they expected.
A life that runs counter to the norm is inevitable for those who would truly imitate Jesus. Philippians tells us that Jesus, though His “very nature” was God, didn’t move in the predictable ways we would expect (2:6). He didn’t use His power “to his own advantage,” but “rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant” (vv. 6–7). Christ, the Lord of creation, surrendered to death for the sake of love. He didn’t seize prestige but embraced humility. He didn’t grab power but relinquished control. Jesus, in essence, walked backward—counter to the power-driven ways of the world.
Scripture tells us to do the same (v. 5). Like Jesus, we serve rather than dominate. We move toward humility rather than prominence. We give rather than take. In Jesus’s power, we walk backward. By: Winn Collier
Reflect & Pray
How has Jesus demonstrated a way of walking backward in the world? Where is God calling you to live out Christ’s humble example?
The only way to healing and goodness, the only way to move forward, is to join Jesus in walking backward.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, September 07, 2019
Fountains of Blessings
The water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. —John 4:14
The picture our Lord described here is not that of a simple stream of water, but an overflowing fountain. Continue to “be filled” (Ephesians 5:18) and the sweetness of your vital relationship to Jesus will flow as generously out of you as it has been given to you. If you find that His life is not springing up as it should, you are to blame— something is obstructing the flow. Was Jesus saying to stay focused on the Source so that you may be blessed personally? No, you are to focus on the Source so that out of you “will flow rivers of living water”— irrepressible life (John 7:38).
We are to be fountains through which Jesus can flow as “rivers of living water” in blessing to everyone. Yet some of us are like the Dead Sea, always receiving but never giving, because our relationship is not right with the Lord Jesus. As surely as we receive blessings from Him, He will pour out blessings through us. But whenever the blessings are not being poured out in the same measure they are received, there is a defect in our relationship with Him. Is there anything between you and Jesus Christ? Is there anything hindering your faith in Him? If not, then Jesus says that out of you “will flow rivers of living water.” It is not a blessing that you pass on, or an experience that you share with others, but a river that continually flows through you. Stay at the Source, closely guarding your faith in Jesus Christ and your relationship to Him, and there will be a steady flow into the lives of others with no dryness or deadness whatsoever.
Is it excessive to say that rivers will flow out of one individual believer? Do you look at yourself and say, “But I don’t see the rivers”? Through the history of God’s work you will usually find that He has started with the obscure, the unknown, the ignored, but those who have been steadfastly true to Jesus Christ.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.
Not Knowing Whither
Perhaps you can relate to the deflated little fellow I saw in an airport terminal. Everything about the dad’s expression said, Hurry up! We have to run if we’re going to make the connection. Can the little fellow keep up? Mom could. The big brothers could. But the little guy? He tried to match his parents’ pace, but he just couldn’t. Can you relate? Sometimes the challenge is just too much. It’s not that you don’t try. You just run out of fight.
The story of Joshua in the Bible dares us to believe our best days are ahead of us. A life in which the Bible says we are anxious for nothing, we are praying always; a life in which Paul says, we are giving thanks to God the Father through Him. (Philippians 4:6). We may stumble but we don’t collapse. God has a promised land for us to take!
From Glory Days
Galatians 3
You crazy Galatians! Did someone put a hex on you? Have you taken leave of your senses? Something crazy has happened, for it’s obvious that you no longer have the crucified Jesus in clear focus in your lives. His sacrifice on the cross was certainly set before you clearly enough.
2-4 Let me put this question to you: How did your new life begin? Was it by working your heads off to please God? Or was it by responding to God’s Message to you? Are you going to continue this craziness? For only crazy people would think they could complete by their own efforts what was begun by God. If you weren’t smart enough or strong enough to begin it, how do you suppose you could perfect it? Did you go through this whole painful learning process for nothing? It is not yet a total loss, but it certainly will be if you keep this up!
5-6 Answer this question: Does the God who lavishly provides you with his own presence, his Holy Spirit, working things in your lives you could never do for yourselves, does he do these things because of your strenuous moral striving or because you trust him to do them in you? Don’t these things happen among you just as they happened with Abraham? He believed God, and that act of belief was turned into a life that was right with God.
7-8 Is it not obvious to you that persons who put their trust in Christ (not persons who put their trust in the law!) are like Abraham: children of faith? It was all laid out beforehand in Scripture that God would set things right with non-Jews by faith. Scripture anticipated this in the promise to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed in you.”
9-10 So those now who live by faith are blessed along with Abraham, who lived by faith—this is no new doctrine! And that means that anyone who tries to live by his own effort, independent of God, is doomed to failure. Scripture backs this up: “Utterly cursed is every person who fails to carry out every detail written in the Book of the law.”
11-12 The obvious impossibility of carrying out such a moral program should make it plain that no one can sustain a relationship with God that way. The person who lives in right relationship with God does it by embracing what God arranges for him. Doing things for God is the opposite of entering into what God does for you. Habakkuk had it right: “The person who believes God, is set right by God—and that’s the real life.” Rule-keeping does not naturally evolve into living by faith, but only perpetuates itself in more and more rule-keeping, a fact observed in Scripture: “The one who does these things [rule-keeping] continues to live by them.”
13-14 Christ redeemed us from that self-defeating, cursed life by absorbing it completely into himself. Do you remember the Scripture that says, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”? That is what happened when Jesus was nailed to the cross: He became a curse, and at the same time dissolved the curse. And now, because of that, the air is cleared and we can see that Abraham’s blessing is present and available for non-Jews, too. We are all able to receive God’s life, his Spirit, in and with us by believing—just the way Abraham received it.
15-18 Friends, let me give you an example from everyday affairs of the free life I am talking about. Once a person’s will has been ratified, no one else can annul it or add to it. Now, the promises were made to Abraham and to his descendant. You will observe that Scripture, in the careful language of a legal document, does not say “to descendants,” referring to everybody in general, but “to your descendant” (the noun, note, is singular), referring to Christ. This is the way I interpret this: A will, earlier ratified by God, is not annulled by an addendum attached 430 years later, thereby negating the promise of the will. No, this addendum, with its instructions and regulations, has nothing to do with the promised inheritance in the will.
18-20 What is the point, then, of the law, the attached addendum? It was a thoughtful addition to the original covenant promises made to Abraham. The purpose of the law was to keep a sinful people in the way of salvation until Christ (the descendant) came, inheriting the promises and distributing them to us. Obviously this law was not a firsthand encounter with God. It was arranged by angelic messengers through a middleman, Moses. But if there is a middleman as there was at Sinai, then the people are not dealing directly with God, are they? But the original promise is the direct blessing of God, received by faith.
21-22 If such is the case, is the law, then, an anti-promise, a negation of God’s will for us? Not at all. Its purpose was to make obvious to everyone that we are, in ourselves, out of right relationship with God, and therefore to show us the futility of devising some religious system for getting by our own efforts what we can only get by waiting in faith for God to complete his promise. For if any kind of rule-keeping had power to create life in us, we would certainly have gotten it by this time.
23-24 Until the time when we were mature enough to respond freely in faith to the living God, we were carefully surrounded and protected by the Mosaic law. The law was like those Greek tutors, with which you are familiar, who escort children to school and protect them from danger or distraction, making sure the children will really get to the place they set out for.
25-27 But now you have arrived at your destination: By faith in Christ you are in direct relationship with God. Your baptism in Christ was not just washing you up for a fresh start. It also involved dressing you in an adult faith wardrobe—Christ’s life, the fulfillment of God’s original promise.
28-29 In Christ’s family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, since you are Christ’s family, then you are Abraham’s famous “descendant,” heirs according to the covenant promises.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, September 07, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Philippians 2:1–11
Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.
5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature[a] God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature[b] of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Footnotes:
Philippians 2:6 Or in the form of
Philippians 2:7 Or the form
Insight
In Philippians 2:1–11, Paul calls believers to live counter-culturally. He wasn’t naive about the capacity for believers to live driven by “selfish ambition” (v. 3), by a self-interested need for power or control. It would be only natural for the Philippian believers to continue the habits learned in their culture, which Paul described as a “warped and crooked generation” (v. 15).
But Paul urged them to learn to live “worthy of the gospel of Christ” (1:27). And in chapter 2, he paints a stunning picture of the life believers are invited into, one of radical self-giving love (vv. 1–4). Living in a community marked by unity, joy, and freedom is only possible when we follow the example of Christ (v. 5) and remain rooted in, nourished by, and sustained by the Spirit (v. 1).
Walking Backward
Rather, [Jesus] made himself nothing. Philippians 2:7
I stumbled upon footage from a British newsreel crew who filmed six-year-old Flannery O’Connor on her family farm in 1932. Flannery, who would go on to become an acclaimed US writer, caught the crew’s curiosity because she’d taught a chicken to walk backward. Apart from the novelty of the feat, I thought this glimpse of history was a perfect metaphor. Flannery, due to both her literary sensibilities and her spiritual convictions, spent her thirty-nine years definitely walking backward—thinking and writing in a counter-cultural way. Publishers and readers were entirely baffled by how her biblical themes ran counter to the religious views they expected.
A life that runs counter to the norm is inevitable for those who would truly imitate Jesus. Philippians tells us that Jesus, though His “very nature” was God, didn’t move in the predictable ways we would expect (2:6). He didn’t use His power “to his own advantage,” but “rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant” (vv. 6–7). Christ, the Lord of creation, surrendered to death for the sake of love. He didn’t seize prestige but embraced humility. He didn’t grab power but relinquished control. Jesus, in essence, walked backward—counter to the power-driven ways of the world.
Scripture tells us to do the same (v. 5). Like Jesus, we serve rather than dominate. We move toward humility rather than prominence. We give rather than take. In Jesus’s power, we walk backward. By: Winn Collier
Reflect & Pray
How has Jesus demonstrated a way of walking backward in the world? Where is God calling you to live out Christ’s humble example?
The only way to healing and goodness, the only way to move forward, is to join Jesus in walking backward.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, September 07, 2019
Fountains of Blessings
The water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. —John 4:14
The picture our Lord described here is not that of a simple stream of water, but an overflowing fountain. Continue to “be filled” (Ephesians 5:18) and the sweetness of your vital relationship to Jesus will flow as generously out of you as it has been given to you. If you find that His life is not springing up as it should, you are to blame— something is obstructing the flow. Was Jesus saying to stay focused on the Source so that you may be blessed personally? No, you are to focus on the Source so that out of you “will flow rivers of living water”— irrepressible life (John 7:38).
We are to be fountains through which Jesus can flow as “rivers of living water” in blessing to everyone. Yet some of us are like the Dead Sea, always receiving but never giving, because our relationship is not right with the Lord Jesus. As surely as we receive blessings from Him, He will pour out blessings through us. But whenever the blessings are not being poured out in the same measure they are received, there is a defect in our relationship with Him. Is there anything between you and Jesus Christ? Is there anything hindering your faith in Him? If not, then Jesus says that out of you “will flow rivers of living water.” It is not a blessing that you pass on, or an experience that you share with others, but a river that continually flows through you. Stay at the Source, closely guarding your faith in Jesus Christ and your relationship to Him, and there will be a steady flow into the lives of others with no dryness or deadness whatsoever.
Is it excessive to say that rivers will flow out of one individual believer? Do you look at yourself and say, “But I don’t see the rivers”? Through the history of God’s work you will usually find that He has started with the obscure, the unknown, the ignored, but those who have been steadfastly true to Jesus Christ.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.
Not Knowing Whither
Friday, September 6, 2019
2 Kings 16, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: JESUS WANTS US TO BE HAPPY
Jesus was accused of much, but he was never described as a grump, sourpuss, or self- centered jerk. People didn’t groan when he appeared. He called people by name. He listened to their stories. He answered their questions. He visited their sick relatives and he helped their sick friends. Jesus fished with fishermen and ate lunch with the little guy and spoke words of resounding affirmation. He went to weddings. He went to so many parties that he was criticized for hanging out with questionable people.
Thousands came to hear him teach. Hundreds chose to follow him. They walked away from careers to be with him. His purpose statement read, “I came to give life with joy and abundance” (John 10:10). Jesus was happy and wants us to be the same.
2 Kings 16
In the seventeenth year of Pekah son of Remaliah, Ahaz son of Jotham became king of Judah. Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king and he ruled for sixteen years in Jerusalem. He didn’t behave in the eyes of his God; he wasn’t at all like his ancestor David. Instead he followed in the track of the kings of Israel. He even indulged in the outrageous practice of “passing his son through the fire”—a truly abominable act he picked up from the pagans God had earlier thrown out of the country. He also participated in the activities of the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines that flourished all over the place.
5 Then Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel ganged up against Jerusalem, throwing a siege around the city, but they couldn’t make further headway against Ahaz.
6 At about this same time and on another front, the king of Edom recovered the port of Elath and expelled the men of Judah. The Edomites occupied Elath and have been there ever since.
7-8 Ahaz sent envoys to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria with this message: “I’m your servant and your son. Come and save me from the heavy-handed invasion of the king of Aram and the king of Israel. They’re attacking me right now.” Then Ahaz robbed the treasuries of the palace and The Temple of God of their gold and silver and sent them to the king of Assyria as a bribe.
9 The king of Assyria responded to him. He attacked and captured Damascus. He deported the people to Nineveh as exiles. Rezin he killed.
10-11 King Ahaz went to meet Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria in Damascus. The altar in Damascus made a great impression on him. He sent back to Uriah the priest a drawing and set of blueprints of the altar. Uriah the priest built the altar to the specifications that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus. By the time the king returned from Damascus, Uriah had completed the altar.
12-14 The minute the king saw the altar he approached it with reverence and arranged a service of worship with a full course of offerings: Whole-Burnt-Offerings with billows of smoke, Grain-Offerings, libations of Drink-Offerings, the sprinkling of blood from the Peace-Offerings—the works. But the old bronze Altar that signaled the presence of God he displaced from its central place and pushed it off to the side of his new altar.
15 Then King Ahaz ordered Uriah the priest: “From now on offer all the sacrifices on the new altar, the great altar: morning Whole-Burnt-Offerings, evening Grain-Offerings, the king’s Whole-Burnt-Offerings and Grain-Offerings, the people’s Whole-Burnt-Offerings and Grain-Offerings, and also their Drink-Offerings. Splash all the blood from the burnt offerings and sacrifices against this altar. The old bronze Altar will be for my personal use.
16 The priest Uriah followed King Ahaz’s orders to the letter.
17-18 Then King Ahaz proceeded to plunder The Temple furniture of all its bronze. He stripped the bronze from The Temple furnishings, even salvaged the four bronze oxen that supported the huge basin, The Sea, and set The Sea unceremoniously on the stone pavement. Finally, he removed any distinctive features from within The Temple that were offensive to the king of Assyria.
19-20 The rest of the life and times of Ahaz is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. Ahaz died and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. His son Hezekiah became the next king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, September 06, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Leviticus 19:9–18
“‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the Lord your God.
11 “‘Do not steal.
“‘Do not lie.
“‘Do not deceive one another.
12 “‘Do not swear falsely by my name and so profane the name of your God. I am the Lord.
13 “‘Do not defraud or rob your neighbor.
“‘Do not hold back the wages of a hired worker overnight.
14 “‘Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but fear your God. I am the Lord.
15 “‘Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.
16 “‘Do not go about spreading slander among your people.
“‘Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life. I am the Lord.
17 “‘Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in their guilt.
18 “‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.
Insight
The command to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18) is found in a chapter containing a variety of rules for godly living that many scholars consider a counterpart of the Ten Commandments. Leviticus 19:18, like the tenth commandment (Exodus 20:17), is about responsibility toward one’s neighbor. But it goes a step further by saying our care for others includes love, which extends not only to members of the believing community but also to “foreigners” (Leviticus 19:34). Jesus quoted this golden rule as an extension of our love for God: “The most important [commandment] . . . [is to] love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ ” (Mark 12:29–31).
I Will
Love your neighbor as yourself. Leviticus 19:18
Shirley settled into her recliner after a long day. She looked out the window and noticed an older couple struggling to move a section of old fence left in a yard and labeled “free.” Shirley grabbed her husband, and they headed out the door to help. The four of them wrestled the fence onto a dolly and pushed it up the city street and around the corner to the couple’s home—laughing all the way at the spectacle they must be. As they returned to get a second section of fence, the woman asked Shirley, “You be my friend?” “Yes, I will,” she replied. Shirley later learned that her new Vietnamese friend knew little English and was lonely because her grown children had moved hours away.
In Leviticus, God reminded the Israelites that they knew how it felt to be strangers (19:34) and how to treat others (vv. 9–18). God had set them apart to be His own nation, and in return they were to bless their “neighbors” by loving them as themselves. Jesus, the greatest blessing from God to the nations, later restated His Father’s words and extended them to us all: “Love the Lord your God . . . . Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37–39).
Through Christ’s Spirit living in us, we can love God and others because He loved us first (Galatians 5:22–23; 1 John 4:19). Can we say with Shirley, “Yes, I will”? By: Anne Cetas
Reflect & Pray
How have you been cared for by someone when you felt alone? Who can you reach out to this week to show the love of Jesus?
Loving God, thank You for the love You’ve shown me. Please, Holy Spirit, love others through me so that You might be glorified.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, September 06, 2019
The Far-Reaching Rivers of Life
He who believes in Me…out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. —John 7:38
A river reaches places which its source never knows. And Jesus said that, if we have received His fullness, “rivers of living water” will flow out of us, reaching in blessing even “to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8) regardless of how small the visible effects of our lives may appear to be. We have nothing to do with the outflow— “This is the work of God, that you believe…” (John 6:29). God rarely allows a person to see how great a blessing he is to others.
A river is victoriously persistent, overcoming all barriers. For a while it goes steadily on its course, but then comes to an obstacle. And for a while it is blocked, yet it soon makes a pathway around the obstacle. Or a river will drop out of sight for miles, only later to emerge again even broader and greater than ever. Do you see God using the lives of others, but an obstacle has come into your life and you do not seem to be of any use to God? Then keep paying attention to the Source, and God will either take you around the obstacle or remove it. The river of the Spirit of God overcomes all obstacles. Never focus your eyes on the obstacle or the difficulty. The obstacle will be a matter of total indifference to the river that will flow steadily through you if you will simply remember to stay focused on the Source. Never allow anything to come between you and Jesus Christ— not emotion nor experience— nothing must keep you from the one great sovereign Source.
Think of the healing and far-reaching rivers developing and nourishing themselves in our souls! God has been opening up wonderful truths to our minds, and every point He has opened up is another indication of the wider power of the river that He will flow through us. If you believe in Jesus, you will find that God has developed and nourished in you mighty, rushing rivers of blessing for others.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The root of faith is the knowledge of a Person, and one of the biggest snares is the idea that God is sure to lead us to success. My Utmost for His Highest, March 19, 761 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, September 06, 2019
The Trouble with the Top of the Mountain - #8520
I was reminiscing with our son about some of the great experiences we had together as a family when he and his siblings were kids. I was thinking especially of the hikes we took up mountains, through forests, and along the seashore. To which my son added, with a little whimsy in his voice, "And sand dunes?" See, that's kind of a sore point in our family memories. It's all about the time I led our family on an exhausting hike up a massive Cape Cod sand dune, promising them, based on what I had been told, a beautiful view of the ocean when we reached the top. Well, there was a view of another sand dune, which we climbed as well. And there it was finally, "There! There it is!" another sand dune! The next dune was like that, too, and the next one. This was not one of my better ideas.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Trouble with the Top of the Mountain."
I made a pretty simple mistake that day of the dunes. I kept thinking that what I was looking for was just over the next hill, and it wasn't. That's a mistake a lot of us have made with our life. We've kept climbing a mountain that we were sure would bring us what we were looking for once we got to the top. But so far, it never has. You've got to wonder if one day, when you climb that final hill called death, if you'll still be looking, still without any real peace, any real fulfillment, any real answers.
Maybe you've gotten to the top of some of the mountains you thought would bring you happiness. You got your man. You got your woman. You got that job. You got a decent income. You got the house, the position, the promotion, the award. You got your dream. But now, looking out from the top of your mountain, the view just isn't what you hoped it would be. You're feeling as empty inside at the top as you did at the bottom.
Our word for today from the Word of God reveals the reason, actually, behind our lifetime search and our lifetime disappointment. It spells out the reason for our lives in these simple words from Colossians 1:16. Speaking of Jesus, it says, "All things were created by Him and for Him." Well, that's it. That's why you were created; you were created by Jesus, you were created for Jesus, so nothing is going to fill that hole in your heart until you have Jesus. The Old Testament prophet Isaiah says that until we get rid of the wall between us and our Creator, we are like "the tossing sea, which cannot rest." God describes the turbulent condition of our hearts very pointedly in four words, "There is no peace..." (Isaiah 57:20-21).
The Bible says we've all pretty much pushed God to the edges of our life. We've declared ourselves in charge of this life that He was supposed to run. We're restless and we're searching because we're away from the One we were made for, and that is why Jesus came to die on a cross to absorb the eternal death penalty for every sin we've ever done. So to find forgiveness, to find peace, to find the only love that can truly satisfy your heart, you have to climb one more hill. It's that hill where Jesus died for you. It's got a cross on the top. You go there in your heart, you open up to the One who gave His life for you, and who rose again so He could give you life forever.
If you've never really given yourself to this Jesus, you could do that today. You could tell Him right now, "Jesus, You run my life from now on. It was supposed to be run by You all along, but I've been running it. I've done it my way. And I turn from that now, and I accept the payment You made - the death penalty you took for me when you died on the cross. Beginning right now, Jesus, I'm Yours."
He's what you've been trying to find all these years, and you can belong to Him this very day. There's some wonderful information I would love to give you. It's at our website so you could be sure you have begun this relationship with the only One who can save you from your sin. That website is ANewStory.com. Get there as soon as you can.
It could be that God brought you here to hear His voice and to have this opportunity to finally experience a personal relationship with Him. You've been searching long enough. It's time to finally be home.
Jesus was accused of much, but he was never described as a grump, sourpuss, or self- centered jerk. People didn’t groan when he appeared. He called people by name. He listened to their stories. He answered their questions. He visited their sick relatives and he helped their sick friends. Jesus fished with fishermen and ate lunch with the little guy and spoke words of resounding affirmation. He went to weddings. He went to so many parties that he was criticized for hanging out with questionable people.
Thousands came to hear him teach. Hundreds chose to follow him. They walked away from careers to be with him. His purpose statement read, “I came to give life with joy and abundance” (John 10:10). Jesus was happy and wants us to be the same.
2 Kings 16
In the seventeenth year of Pekah son of Remaliah, Ahaz son of Jotham became king of Judah. Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king and he ruled for sixteen years in Jerusalem. He didn’t behave in the eyes of his God; he wasn’t at all like his ancestor David. Instead he followed in the track of the kings of Israel. He even indulged in the outrageous practice of “passing his son through the fire”—a truly abominable act he picked up from the pagans God had earlier thrown out of the country. He also participated in the activities of the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines that flourished all over the place.
5 Then Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel ganged up against Jerusalem, throwing a siege around the city, but they couldn’t make further headway against Ahaz.
6 At about this same time and on another front, the king of Edom recovered the port of Elath and expelled the men of Judah. The Edomites occupied Elath and have been there ever since.
7-8 Ahaz sent envoys to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria with this message: “I’m your servant and your son. Come and save me from the heavy-handed invasion of the king of Aram and the king of Israel. They’re attacking me right now.” Then Ahaz robbed the treasuries of the palace and The Temple of God of their gold and silver and sent them to the king of Assyria as a bribe.
9 The king of Assyria responded to him. He attacked and captured Damascus. He deported the people to Nineveh as exiles. Rezin he killed.
10-11 King Ahaz went to meet Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria in Damascus. The altar in Damascus made a great impression on him. He sent back to Uriah the priest a drawing and set of blueprints of the altar. Uriah the priest built the altar to the specifications that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus. By the time the king returned from Damascus, Uriah had completed the altar.
12-14 The minute the king saw the altar he approached it with reverence and arranged a service of worship with a full course of offerings: Whole-Burnt-Offerings with billows of smoke, Grain-Offerings, libations of Drink-Offerings, the sprinkling of blood from the Peace-Offerings—the works. But the old bronze Altar that signaled the presence of God he displaced from its central place and pushed it off to the side of his new altar.
15 Then King Ahaz ordered Uriah the priest: “From now on offer all the sacrifices on the new altar, the great altar: morning Whole-Burnt-Offerings, evening Grain-Offerings, the king’s Whole-Burnt-Offerings and Grain-Offerings, the people’s Whole-Burnt-Offerings and Grain-Offerings, and also their Drink-Offerings. Splash all the blood from the burnt offerings and sacrifices against this altar. The old bronze Altar will be for my personal use.
16 The priest Uriah followed King Ahaz’s orders to the letter.
17-18 Then King Ahaz proceeded to plunder The Temple furniture of all its bronze. He stripped the bronze from The Temple furnishings, even salvaged the four bronze oxen that supported the huge basin, The Sea, and set The Sea unceremoniously on the stone pavement. Finally, he removed any distinctive features from within The Temple that were offensive to the king of Assyria.
19-20 The rest of the life and times of Ahaz is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. Ahaz died and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. His son Hezekiah became the next king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, September 06, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Leviticus 19:9–18
“‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the Lord your God.
11 “‘Do not steal.
“‘Do not lie.
“‘Do not deceive one another.
12 “‘Do not swear falsely by my name and so profane the name of your God. I am the Lord.
13 “‘Do not defraud or rob your neighbor.
“‘Do not hold back the wages of a hired worker overnight.
14 “‘Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but fear your God. I am the Lord.
15 “‘Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.
16 “‘Do not go about spreading slander among your people.
“‘Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life. I am the Lord.
17 “‘Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in their guilt.
18 “‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.
Insight
The command to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18) is found in a chapter containing a variety of rules for godly living that many scholars consider a counterpart of the Ten Commandments. Leviticus 19:18, like the tenth commandment (Exodus 20:17), is about responsibility toward one’s neighbor. But it goes a step further by saying our care for others includes love, which extends not only to members of the believing community but also to “foreigners” (Leviticus 19:34). Jesus quoted this golden rule as an extension of our love for God: “The most important [commandment] . . . [is to] love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ ” (Mark 12:29–31).
I Will
Love your neighbor as yourself. Leviticus 19:18
Shirley settled into her recliner after a long day. She looked out the window and noticed an older couple struggling to move a section of old fence left in a yard and labeled “free.” Shirley grabbed her husband, and they headed out the door to help. The four of them wrestled the fence onto a dolly and pushed it up the city street and around the corner to the couple’s home—laughing all the way at the spectacle they must be. As they returned to get a second section of fence, the woman asked Shirley, “You be my friend?” “Yes, I will,” she replied. Shirley later learned that her new Vietnamese friend knew little English and was lonely because her grown children had moved hours away.
In Leviticus, God reminded the Israelites that they knew how it felt to be strangers (19:34) and how to treat others (vv. 9–18). God had set them apart to be His own nation, and in return they were to bless their “neighbors” by loving them as themselves. Jesus, the greatest blessing from God to the nations, later restated His Father’s words and extended them to us all: “Love the Lord your God . . . . Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37–39).
Through Christ’s Spirit living in us, we can love God and others because He loved us first (Galatians 5:22–23; 1 John 4:19). Can we say with Shirley, “Yes, I will”? By: Anne Cetas
Reflect & Pray
How have you been cared for by someone when you felt alone? Who can you reach out to this week to show the love of Jesus?
Loving God, thank You for the love You’ve shown me. Please, Holy Spirit, love others through me so that You might be glorified.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, September 06, 2019
The Far-Reaching Rivers of Life
He who believes in Me…out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. —John 7:38
A river reaches places which its source never knows. And Jesus said that, if we have received His fullness, “rivers of living water” will flow out of us, reaching in blessing even “to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8) regardless of how small the visible effects of our lives may appear to be. We have nothing to do with the outflow— “This is the work of God, that you believe…” (John 6:29). God rarely allows a person to see how great a blessing he is to others.
A river is victoriously persistent, overcoming all barriers. For a while it goes steadily on its course, but then comes to an obstacle. And for a while it is blocked, yet it soon makes a pathway around the obstacle. Or a river will drop out of sight for miles, only later to emerge again even broader and greater than ever. Do you see God using the lives of others, but an obstacle has come into your life and you do not seem to be of any use to God? Then keep paying attention to the Source, and God will either take you around the obstacle or remove it. The river of the Spirit of God overcomes all obstacles. Never focus your eyes on the obstacle or the difficulty. The obstacle will be a matter of total indifference to the river that will flow steadily through you if you will simply remember to stay focused on the Source. Never allow anything to come between you and Jesus Christ— not emotion nor experience— nothing must keep you from the one great sovereign Source.
Think of the healing and far-reaching rivers developing and nourishing themselves in our souls! God has been opening up wonderful truths to our minds, and every point He has opened up is another indication of the wider power of the river that He will flow through us. If you believe in Jesus, you will find that God has developed and nourished in you mighty, rushing rivers of blessing for others.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The root of faith is the knowledge of a Person, and one of the biggest snares is the idea that God is sure to lead us to success. My Utmost for His Highest, March 19, 761 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, September 06, 2019
The Trouble with the Top of the Mountain - #8520
I was reminiscing with our son about some of the great experiences we had together as a family when he and his siblings were kids. I was thinking especially of the hikes we took up mountains, through forests, and along the seashore. To which my son added, with a little whimsy in his voice, "And sand dunes?" See, that's kind of a sore point in our family memories. It's all about the time I led our family on an exhausting hike up a massive Cape Cod sand dune, promising them, based on what I had been told, a beautiful view of the ocean when we reached the top. Well, there was a view of another sand dune, which we climbed as well. And there it was finally, "There! There it is!" another sand dune! The next dune was like that, too, and the next one. This was not one of my better ideas.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Trouble with the Top of the Mountain."
I made a pretty simple mistake that day of the dunes. I kept thinking that what I was looking for was just over the next hill, and it wasn't. That's a mistake a lot of us have made with our life. We've kept climbing a mountain that we were sure would bring us what we were looking for once we got to the top. But so far, it never has. You've got to wonder if one day, when you climb that final hill called death, if you'll still be looking, still without any real peace, any real fulfillment, any real answers.
Maybe you've gotten to the top of some of the mountains you thought would bring you happiness. You got your man. You got your woman. You got that job. You got a decent income. You got the house, the position, the promotion, the award. You got your dream. But now, looking out from the top of your mountain, the view just isn't what you hoped it would be. You're feeling as empty inside at the top as you did at the bottom.
Our word for today from the Word of God reveals the reason, actually, behind our lifetime search and our lifetime disappointment. It spells out the reason for our lives in these simple words from Colossians 1:16. Speaking of Jesus, it says, "All things were created by Him and for Him." Well, that's it. That's why you were created; you were created by Jesus, you were created for Jesus, so nothing is going to fill that hole in your heart until you have Jesus. The Old Testament prophet Isaiah says that until we get rid of the wall between us and our Creator, we are like "the tossing sea, which cannot rest." God describes the turbulent condition of our hearts very pointedly in four words, "There is no peace..." (Isaiah 57:20-21).
The Bible says we've all pretty much pushed God to the edges of our life. We've declared ourselves in charge of this life that He was supposed to run. We're restless and we're searching because we're away from the One we were made for, and that is why Jesus came to die on a cross to absorb the eternal death penalty for every sin we've ever done. So to find forgiveness, to find peace, to find the only love that can truly satisfy your heart, you have to climb one more hill. It's that hill where Jesus died for you. It's got a cross on the top. You go there in your heart, you open up to the One who gave His life for you, and who rose again so He could give you life forever.
If you've never really given yourself to this Jesus, you could do that today. You could tell Him right now, "Jesus, You run my life from now on. It was supposed to be run by You all along, but I've been running it. I've done it my way. And I turn from that now, and I accept the payment You made - the death penalty you took for me when you died on the cross. Beginning right now, Jesus, I'm Yours."
He's what you've been trying to find all these years, and you can belong to Him this very day. There's some wonderful information I would love to give you. It's at our website so you could be sure you have begun this relationship with the only One who can save you from your sin. That website is ANewStory.com. Get there as soon as you can.
It could be that God brought you here to hear His voice and to have this opportunity to finally experience a personal relationship with Him. You've been searching long enough. It's time to finally be home.
Thursday, September 5, 2019
2 Kings 15, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: THE UNEXPECTED DOOR TO JOY
Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). The words of Jesus are spot- on. When you give, it has a boomerang effect. Happiness happens when we give it away. That is such great news!
You can’t control your genetics, the weather, the traffic, or the occupant of the White House. But you can always increase the number of smiles on our planet. You! Yes, you can help people to sleep better, laugh more, hum instead of grumble, walk instead of stumble. You can lighten the load and brighten the day of other human beings.
And don’t be surprised when you begin to sense a newfound joy yourself. This is the unexpected door to joy. And standing at the entryway to welcome you is Jesus of Nazareth.
2 Kings 15
In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah became king in Judah. He was sixteen years old when he began his rule and he was king for fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoliah. She was from Jerusalem. He did well in the eyes of God, following in the footsteps of his father Amaziah. But he also failed to get rid of the local sex-and-religion shrines; they continued to be popular with the people. God afflicted the king with a bad skin disease until the day of his death. He lived in the palace but no longer acted as king; his son Jotham ran the government and ruled the country.
6-7 The rest of the life and times of Azariah, everything he accomplished, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. Azariah died and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. Jotham his son was king after him.
8-9 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah son of Jeroboam became king over Israel in Samaria. He lasted only six months. He lived a bad life before God, no different from his ancestors. He continued in the line of Jeroboam son of Nebat who led Israel into a life of sin.
10 Shallum son of Jabesh conspired against him, assassinated him in public view, and took over as king.
11-12 The rest of the life and times of Zechariah is written plainly in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. That completed the word of God that was given to Jehu, namely, “For four generations your sons will sit on the throne of Israel.” Zechariah was the fourth.
13 Shallum son of Jabesh became king in the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah. He was king in Samaria for only a month.
14 Menahem son of Gadi came up from Tirzah to Samaria. He attacked Shallum son of Jabesh and killed him. He then became king.
15 The rest of the life and times of Shallum and the account of the conspiracy are written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
16 Using Tirzah as his base, Menahem opened his reign by smashing Tiphsah, devastating both the town and its suburbs because they didn’t welcome him with open arms. He savagely ripped open all the pregnant women.
17-18 In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem son of Gadi became king over Israel. He ruled from Samaria for ten years. As far as God was concerned he lived an evil life. Sin for sin, he repeated the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin.
19-20 Then Tiglath-Pileser III king of Assyria showed up and attacked the country. But Menahem made a deal with him: He bought his support by handing over about thirty-seven tons of silver. He raised the money by making every landowner in Israel pay fifty shekels to the king of Assyria. That satisfied the king of Assyria, and he left the country.
21-22 The rest of the life and times of Menahem, everything he did, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. Menahem died and joined his ancestors. His son Pekahiah became the next king.
23-24 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah son of Menahem became king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria for two years. In God’s eyes he lived an evil life. He stuck to the old sin tracks of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin.
25 And then his military aide Pekah son of Remaliah conspired against him—killed him in cold blood while he was in his private quarters in the royal palace in Samaria. He also killed Argob and Arieh. Fifty Gadites were in on the conspiracy with him. After the murder he became the next king.
26 The rest of the life and times of Pekahiah, everything he did, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
27-28 In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah son of Remaliah became king of Israel in Samaria. He ruled for twenty years. In God’s view he lived an evil life; he didn’t deviate so much as a hair’s breadth from the path laid down by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin.
29 During the reign of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser III king of Assyria invaded the country. He captured Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, Galilee—the whole country of Naphtali—and took everyone captive to Assyria.
30 But then Hoshea son of Elah mounted a conspiracy against Pekah son of Remaliah. He assassinated him and took over as king. This was in the twentieth year of Jotham son of Uzziah.
31 The rest of the life and times of Pekah, everything he did, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
32-35 In the second year of Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel, Jotham son of Uzziah became king in Judah. He was twenty-five years old when he became king and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerusha daughter of Zadok. He acted well in God’s eyes, following in the steps of his father Uzziah. But he didn’t interfere with the traffic to the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines; they continued, as popular as ever. The construction of the High Gate to The Temple of God was his work.
36-38 The rest of the life and times of Jotham, the record of his work, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. It was during these years that God began sending Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah to attack Judah. Jotham died and joined his ancestors. They buried him in the family cemetery in the City of David. His son Ahaz was the next king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, September 05, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
1 Corinthians 15:12–19
But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
Insight
Paul’s preaching and that of others in the New Testament about the resurrection of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:12) was rooted in Old Testament Scriptures (vv. 3–4). Their preaching followed the example of Jesus who also referred to these Scriptures to enlighten His perplexed disciples about His resurrection. He said, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms. . . . This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day” (Luke 24:44–46). Peter spoke of Christ’s resurrection in Acts 2:23–28 and quoted from Psalm 16:8–11 to show that this was predicted by David. Then Peter quotes Psalm 110:1 to show that David also predicted Christ’s ascension and exaltation (Acts 2:34–36).
The Last Word
If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. 1 Corinthians 15:19
Her name was Saralyn, and I sort of had a crush on her back in our school days. She had the most wonderful laugh. I’m not sure whether she knew about my crush, but I suspect she did. After graduation I lost track of her. Our lives went in different directions as lives often do.
I keep up with my graduating class in some online forums, and I was intensely sad when I heard that Saralyn died. I found myself wondering about the direction her life had taken over the years. This is happening more and more the older I grow, this experience of losing friends and family. But many of us tend to avoid talking about it.
While we still sorrow, the hope the apostle Paul talks about is that death doesn’t have the final say (1 Corinthians 15:54–55). There is something that follows, another word: resurrection. Paul grounds that hope in the reality of the resurrection of Christ (v. 12), and says “if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith” (v. 14). If our hope as believers is limited to this world only, that’s just a pity (v. 19).
We will one day see those again who have “fallen asleep in Christ” (v. 18)—grandparents and parents, friends and neighbors, or perhaps even old schoolyard crushes.
Death doesn’t get the last word. Resurrection does. By: John Blase
Reflect & Pray
What does Christ’s resurrection mean to you? How might you express your faith and point someone to the hope of the resurrection?
Jesus, may the power of Your resurrection become more and more evident in my life. May it be clear in my words and actions, especially as I interact with those who do not know You.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, September 05, 2019
Watching With Jesus
Stay here and watch with Me. —Matthew 26:38
“Watch with Me.” Jesus was saying, in effect, “Watch with no private point of view at all, but watch solely and entirely with Me.” In the early stages of our Christian life, we do not watch with Jesus, we watch for Him. We do not watch with Him through the revealed truth of the Bible even in the circumstances of our own lives. Our Lord is trying to introduce us to identification with Himself through a particular “Gethsemane” experience of our own. But we refuse to go, saying, “No, Lord, I can’t see the meaning of this, and besides, it’s very painful.” And how can we possibly watch with Someone who is so incomprehensible? How are we going to understand Jesus sufficiently to watch with Him in His Gethsemane, when we don’t even know why He is suffering? We don’t know how to watch with Him— we are only used to the idea of Jesus watching with us.
The disciples loved Jesus Christ to the limit of their natural capacity, but they did not fully understand His purpose. In the Garden of Gethsemane they slept as a result of their own sorrow, and at the end of three years of the closest and most intimate relationship of their lives they “all…forsook Him and fled” (Matthew 26:56).
“They were all filled with the Holy Spirit…” (Acts 2:4). “They” refers to the same people, but something wonderful has happened between these two events— our Lord’s death, resurrection, and ascension— and the disciples have now been invaded and “filled with the Holy Spirit.” Our Lord had said, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you…” (Acts 1:8). This meant that they learned to watch with Him the rest of their lives.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
For the past three hundred years men have been pointing out how similar Jesus Christ’s teachings are to other good teachings. We have to remember that Christianity, if it is not a supernatural miracle, is a sham. The Highest Good, 548 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, September 05, 2019
Three Little Words Through the Silence - #8519
This is going to come as a big surprise to you, but I like to talk. It was a blow, then, when this throat doctor told me some years ago I had to stop talking for three weeks! That was a long time ago but my memory is still fresh on this. I had what was known as a growth on one of my vocal cords, and he said it could do serious damage to the other vocal cord. His prescription: total voice rest! Ahhh!!! I argued with him about all the appointments and speaking engagements I had, and he told me the consequences of not stopping. So, I stopped. Now, a lot of my friends got a good laugh out of Ron not being able to talk. In fact, they loved my little Donald Duck magic slate that I carried around. It helped me communicate. But there was one person who didn't laugh, and that was my wife. It was tough on her because she had to be my voice for so many people. Okay, it had been two weeks since I had spoken a word. My wife and I were in bed, we turned off the light, and suddenly she was startled by a sound next to her. It was me, breaking that long silence. Just long enough to say three little words, "I love you." And then back to silence for one more week. But those three little words, that sounded so loud after so much silence, made her happy enough to cry.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Three Little Words Through the Silence."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from John 11, beginning with verse 1. It says, "A man named Lazarus was sick, he was from Bethany the village of Mary and her sister Martha. The sisters sent word to Jesus, 'Lord the one you love is sick.' Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. Yet, when He heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where he was two more days." Now they really needed to hear from Jesus, but all there was was this long silence. Does that sound familiar at all?
We know now, of course, that Jesus had something more powerful than a healing in mind. He was going to do a resurrection. Mary and Martha were going to be part of a far greater miracle than they could have ever dreamed. Jesus had to wait in order for that to happen. But in the meantime there is no word from Jesus, and it gets worse before it gets better - before it gets amazing.
Now it could be that you or someone you love is facing a hurting time right now and you have sent word to Jesus through prayer but there has been no response. I can just see Mary going to the window every few minutes and saying, "Where is Jesus? Has anybody seen Jesus?" Maybe you've been asking that, but He's waiting because there are some mightier things He wants to do than just relieve the immediate distress. Meanwhile, you're like my wife during my long silence. You haven't heard His voice for a while, and you need to.
John 11:28 says, "After she had said this she went back and called her sister Mary aside, 'The Teacher is here,'" she said, "and He is asking for you." See, Jesus knows who's hurting because He's waiting. And He asks for the one who's wounded by His silence, and that's Mary. In essence Jesus breaks the silence with three words, "I love you." Not, "Let Me explain it to you." But a personal moment to reassure His friend that He still cares.
Well, maybe that's what this program is all about today. The Lord wants to say to you, "I know you haven't seen an answer yet; I know you're wondering where I am. I'm working on something much bigger than you could imagine. But I know you're hurting now." And then He says, "There's one thing I want you to know," and out of God's long silence He speaks those three incredible words, "I love you." Now He won't explain it. He won't rush it. But at this very moment He wants to break into your pain and tell you how very much He loves you, whether you can feel it or not.
So, don't let the wait, don't let the silence of God cause you to drift into doubt or bitterness. Letting this hurt drive you from God will only increase your hurt and decrease your hope. Let it drive you to God instead. Remember, never doubt in the darkness what God has told you in the light. And listen, your Savior turns to you today to remind you that even during His long silence, He loves you so very much.
Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). The words of Jesus are spot- on. When you give, it has a boomerang effect. Happiness happens when we give it away. That is such great news!
You can’t control your genetics, the weather, the traffic, or the occupant of the White House. But you can always increase the number of smiles on our planet. You! Yes, you can help people to sleep better, laugh more, hum instead of grumble, walk instead of stumble. You can lighten the load and brighten the day of other human beings.
And don’t be surprised when you begin to sense a newfound joy yourself. This is the unexpected door to joy. And standing at the entryway to welcome you is Jesus of Nazareth.
2 Kings 15
In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah became king in Judah. He was sixteen years old when he began his rule and he was king for fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoliah. She was from Jerusalem. He did well in the eyes of God, following in the footsteps of his father Amaziah. But he also failed to get rid of the local sex-and-religion shrines; they continued to be popular with the people. God afflicted the king with a bad skin disease until the day of his death. He lived in the palace but no longer acted as king; his son Jotham ran the government and ruled the country.
6-7 The rest of the life and times of Azariah, everything he accomplished, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. Azariah died and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. Jotham his son was king after him.
8-9 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah son of Jeroboam became king over Israel in Samaria. He lasted only six months. He lived a bad life before God, no different from his ancestors. He continued in the line of Jeroboam son of Nebat who led Israel into a life of sin.
10 Shallum son of Jabesh conspired against him, assassinated him in public view, and took over as king.
11-12 The rest of the life and times of Zechariah is written plainly in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. That completed the word of God that was given to Jehu, namely, “For four generations your sons will sit on the throne of Israel.” Zechariah was the fourth.
13 Shallum son of Jabesh became king in the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah. He was king in Samaria for only a month.
14 Menahem son of Gadi came up from Tirzah to Samaria. He attacked Shallum son of Jabesh and killed him. He then became king.
15 The rest of the life and times of Shallum and the account of the conspiracy are written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
16 Using Tirzah as his base, Menahem opened his reign by smashing Tiphsah, devastating both the town and its suburbs because they didn’t welcome him with open arms. He savagely ripped open all the pregnant women.
17-18 In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem son of Gadi became king over Israel. He ruled from Samaria for ten years. As far as God was concerned he lived an evil life. Sin for sin, he repeated the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin.
19-20 Then Tiglath-Pileser III king of Assyria showed up and attacked the country. But Menahem made a deal with him: He bought his support by handing over about thirty-seven tons of silver. He raised the money by making every landowner in Israel pay fifty shekels to the king of Assyria. That satisfied the king of Assyria, and he left the country.
21-22 The rest of the life and times of Menahem, everything he did, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. Menahem died and joined his ancestors. His son Pekahiah became the next king.
23-24 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah son of Menahem became king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria for two years. In God’s eyes he lived an evil life. He stuck to the old sin tracks of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin.
25 And then his military aide Pekah son of Remaliah conspired against him—killed him in cold blood while he was in his private quarters in the royal palace in Samaria. He also killed Argob and Arieh. Fifty Gadites were in on the conspiracy with him. After the murder he became the next king.
26 The rest of the life and times of Pekahiah, everything he did, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
27-28 In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah son of Remaliah became king of Israel in Samaria. He ruled for twenty years. In God’s view he lived an evil life; he didn’t deviate so much as a hair’s breadth from the path laid down by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin.
29 During the reign of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser III king of Assyria invaded the country. He captured Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, Galilee—the whole country of Naphtali—and took everyone captive to Assyria.
30 But then Hoshea son of Elah mounted a conspiracy against Pekah son of Remaliah. He assassinated him and took over as king. This was in the twentieth year of Jotham son of Uzziah.
31 The rest of the life and times of Pekah, everything he did, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
32-35 In the second year of Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel, Jotham son of Uzziah became king in Judah. He was twenty-five years old when he became king and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerusha daughter of Zadok. He acted well in God’s eyes, following in the steps of his father Uzziah. But he didn’t interfere with the traffic to the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines; they continued, as popular as ever. The construction of the High Gate to The Temple of God was his work.
36-38 The rest of the life and times of Jotham, the record of his work, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. It was during these years that God began sending Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah to attack Judah. Jotham died and joined his ancestors. They buried him in the family cemetery in the City of David. His son Ahaz was the next king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, September 05, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
1 Corinthians 15:12–19
But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
Insight
Paul’s preaching and that of others in the New Testament about the resurrection of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:12) was rooted in Old Testament Scriptures (vv. 3–4). Their preaching followed the example of Jesus who also referred to these Scriptures to enlighten His perplexed disciples about His resurrection. He said, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms. . . . This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day” (Luke 24:44–46). Peter spoke of Christ’s resurrection in Acts 2:23–28 and quoted from Psalm 16:8–11 to show that this was predicted by David. Then Peter quotes Psalm 110:1 to show that David also predicted Christ’s ascension and exaltation (Acts 2:34–36).
The Last Word
If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. 1 Corinthians 15:19
Her name was Saralyn, and I sort of had a crush on her back in our school days. She had the most wonderful laugh. I’m not sure whether she knew about my crush, but I suspect she did. After graduation I lost track of her. Our lives went in different directions as lives often do.
I keep up with my graduating class in some online forums, and I was intensely sad when I heard that Saralyn died. I found myself wondering about the direction her life had taken over the years. This is happening more and more the older I grow, this experience of losing friends and family. But many of us tend to avoid talking about it.
While we still sorrow, the hope the apostle Paul talks about is that death doesn’t have the final say (1 Corinthians 15:54–55). There is something that follows, another word: resurrection. Paul grounds that hope in the reality of the resurrection of Christ (v. 12), and says “if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith” (v. 14). If our hope as believers is limited to this world only, that’s just a pity (v. 19).
We will one day see those again who have “fallen asleep in Christ” (v. 18)—grandparents and parents, friends and neighbors, or perhaps even old schoolyard crushes.
Death doesn’t get the last word. Resurrection does. By: John Blase
Reflect & Pray
What does Christ’s resurrection mean to you? How might you express your faith and point someone to the hope of the resurrection?
Jesus, may the power of Your resurrection become more and more evident in my life. May it be clear in my words and actions, especially as I interact with those who do not know You.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, September 05, 2019
Watching With Jesus
Stay here and watch with Me. —Matthew 26:38
“Watch with Me.” Jesus was saying, in effect, “Watch with no private point of view at all, but watch solely and entirely with Me.” In the early stages of our Christian life, we do not watch with Jesus, we watch for Him. We do not watch with Him through the revealed truth of the Bible even in the circumstances of our own lives. Our Lord is trying to introduce us to identification with Himself through a particular “Gethsemane” experience of our own. But we refuse to go, saying, “No, Lord, I can’t see the meaning of this, and besides, it’s very painful.” And how can we possibly watch with Someone who is so incomprehensible? How are we going to understand Jesus sufficiently to watch with Him in His Gethsemane, when we don’t even know why He is suffering? We don’t know how to watch with Him— we are only used to the idea of Jesus watching with us.
The disciples loved Jesus Christ to the limit of their natural capacity, but they did not fully understand His purpose. In the Garden of Gethsemane they slept as a result of their own sorrow, and at the end of three years of the closest and most intimate relationship of their lives they “all…forsook Him and fled” (Matthew 26:56).
“They were all filled with the Holy Spirit…” (Acts 2:4). “They” refers to the same people, but something wonderful has happened between these two events— our Lord’s death, resurrection, and ascension— and the disciples have now been invaded and “filled with the Holy Spirit.” Our Lord had said, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you…” (Acts 1:8). This meant that they learned to watch with Him the rest of their lives.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
For the past three hundred years men have been pointing out how similar Jesus Christ’s teachings are to other good teachings. We have to remember that Christianity, if it is not a supernatural miracle, is a sham. The Highest Good, 548 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, September 05, 2019
Three Little Words Through the Silence - #8519
This is going to come as a big surprise to you, but I like to talk. It was a blow, then, when this throat doctor told me some years ago I had to stop talking for three weeks! That was a long time ago but my memory is still fresh on this. I had what was known as a growth on one of my vocal cords, and he said it could do serious damage to the other vocal cord. His prescription: total voice rest! Ahhh!!! I argued with him about all the appointments and speaking engagements I had, and he told me the consequences of not stopping. So, I stopped. Now, a lot of my friends got a good laugh out of Ron not being able to talk. In fact, they loved my little Donald Duck magic slate that I carried around. It helped me communicate. But there was one person who didn't laugh, and that was my wife. It was tough on her because she had to be my voice for so many people. Okay, it had been two weeks since I had spoken a word. My wife and I were in bed, we turned off the light, and suddenly she was startled by a sound next to her. It was me, breaking that long silence. Just long enough to say three little words, "I love you." And then back to silence for one more week. But those three little words, that sounded so loud after so much silence, made her happy enough to cry.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Three Little Words Through the Silence."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from John 11, beginning with verse 1. It says, "A man named Lazarus was sick, he was from Bethany the village of Mary and her sister Martha. The sisters sent word to Jesus, 'Lord the one you love is sick.' Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. Yet, when He heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where he was two more days." Now they really needed to hear from Jesus, but all there was was this long silence. Does that sound familiar at all?
We know now, of course, that Jesus had something more powerful than a healing in mind. He was going to do a resurrection. Mary and Martha were going to be part of a far greater miracle than they could have ever dreamed. Jesus had to wait in order for that to happen. But in the meantime there is no word from Jesus, and it gets worse before it gets better - before it gets amazing.
Now it could be that you or someone you love is facing a hurting time right now and you have sent word to Jesus through prayer but there has been no response. I can just see Mary going to the window every few minutes and saying, "Where is Jesus? Has anybody seen Jesus?" Maybe you've been asking that, but He's waiting because there are some mightier things He wants to do than just relieve the immediate distress. Meanwhile, you're like my wife during my long silence. You haven't heard His voice for a while, and you need to.
John 11:28 says, "After she had said this she went back and called her sister Mary aside, 'The Teacher is here,'" she said, "and He is asking for you." See, Jesus knows who's hurting because He's waiting. And He asks for the one who's wounded by His silence, and that's Mary. In essence Jesus breaks the silence with three words, "I love you." Not, "Let Me explain it to you." But a personal moment to reassure His friend that He still cares.
Well, maybe that's what this program is all about today. The Lord wants to say to you, "I know you haven't seen an answer yet; I know you're wondering where I am. I'm working on something much bigger than you could imagine. But I know you're hurting now." And then He says, "There's one thing I want you to know," and out of God's long silence He speaks those three incredible words, "I love you." Now He won't explain it. He won't rush it. But at this very moment He wants to break into your pain and tell you how very much He loves you, whether you can feel it or not.
So, don't let the wait, don't let the silence of God cause you to drift into doubt or bitterness. Letting this hurt drive you from God will only increase your hurt and decrease your hope. Let it drive you to God instead. Remember, never doubt in the darkness what God has told you in the light. And listen, your Savior turns to you today to remind you that even during His long silence, He loves you so very much.
Wednesday, September 4, 2019
Galatians 2, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: DOING GOOD DOES GOOD FOR THE DOER
Doing good does good for the doer. Research bears this out. When volunteers were put in a functional MRI scanner and were told they would be giving some of their money to charity, the areas of their brains associated with pleasure— like food and sex— lit up like Christmas trees. Giving to others triggers dopamine. Perhaps that could be a new fund-raising slogan?
In another study a team of social psychologists distilled happiness factors into eight common denominators. Two of the first three involve helping others. Happy, contented people “devote a great amount of time to their family and friends, nurturing and enjoying those relationships.” And “they are often the first to offer a helping hand to co-workers and passers-by.” Seeking joy? Do good for someone else.
Galatians 2
Fourteen years after that first visit, Barnabas and I went up to Jerusalem and took Titus with us. I went to clarify with them what had been revealed to me. At that time I placed before them exactly what I was preaching to the non-Jews. I did this in private with the leaders, those held in esteem by the church, so that our concern would not become a controversial public issue, marred by ethnic tensions, exposing my years of work to denigration and endangering my present ministry. Significantly, Titus, non-Jewish though he was, was not required to be circumcised. While we were in conference we were infiltrated by spies pretending to be Christians, who slipped in to find out just how free true Christians are. Their ulterior motive was to reduce us to their brand of servitude. We didn’t give them the time of day. We were determined to preserve the truth of the Message for you.
6-10 As for those who were considered important in the church, their reputation doesn’t concern me. God isn’t impressed with mere appearances, and neither am I. And of course these leaders were able to add nothing to the message I had been preaching. It was soon evident that God had entrusted me with the same message to the non-Jews as Peter had been preaching to the Jews. Recognizing that my calling had been given by God, James, Peter, and John—the pillars of the church—shook hands with me and Barnabas, assigning us to a ministry to the non-Jews, while they continued to be responsible for reaching out to the Jews. The only additional thing they asked was that we remember the poor, and I was already eager to do that.
11-13 Later, when Peter came to Antioch, I had a face-to-face confrontation with him because he was clearly out of line. Here’s the situation. Earlier, before certain persons had come from James, Peter regularly ate with the non-Jews. But when that conservative group came from Jerusalem, he cautiously pulled back and put as much distance as he could manage between himself and his non-Jewish friends. That’s how fearful he was of the conservative Jewish clique that’s been pushing the old system of circumcision. Unfortunately, the rest of the Jews in the Antioch church joined in that hypocrisy so that even Barnabas was swept along in the charade.
14 But when I saw that they were not maintaining a steady, straight course according to the Message, I spoke up to Peter in front of them all: “If you, a Jew, live like a non-Jew when you’re not being observed by the watchdogs from Jerusalem, what right do you have to require non-Jews to conform to Jewish customs just to make a favorable impression on your old Jerusalem cronies?”
15-16 We Jews know that we have no advantage of birth over “non-Jewish sinners.” We know very well that we are not set right with God by rule-keeping but only through personal faith in Jesus Christ. How do we know? We tried it—and we had the best system of rules the world has ever seen! Convinced that no human being can please God by self-improvement, we believed in Jesus as the Messiah so that we might be set right before God by trusting in the Messiah, not by trying to be good.
17-18 Have some of you noticed that we are not yet perfect? (No great surprise, right?) And are you ready to make the accusation that since people like me, who go through Christ in order to get things right with God, aren’t perfectly virtuous, Christ must therefore be an accessory to sin? The accusation is frivolous. If I was “trying to be good,” I would be rebuilding the same old barn that I tore down. I would be acting as a charlatan.
19-21 What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law man” so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.
Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God’s grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, September 04, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Genesis 1:1–5
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
Insight
One of the fascinating characteristics of Scripture is how different portions of the Bible echo one another—ultimately combining to tell the story of Jesus. We see this synergy when we compare today’s reading, Genesis 1:1–5, to John 1:1–5. Both begin with the phrase “in the beginning,” taking us back before time to see the work of God in creation. In the beginning, God existed (Genesis 1:1), and the Word (Jesus; John 1:1, 14) existed with the Father and the Spirit (Genesis 1:2). As Genesis 1 tracks the work of the Godhead in creation, John affirms that Christ was the primary agent of that creation (John 1:3). Both accounts resolve with light penetrating the darkness of the pre-creation void. Initially, that light was through the declared word of the Father (Genesis 1:3), a reality that anticipated the eventual coming of Jesus—the Light of the world (John 1:4–5; 8:12; 9:5).
Guiding Light
God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. Genesis 1:3
The restaurant was lovely but dark. Only one small candle flickered on every table. To create light, diners used their smartphones to read their menus, look to their tablemates, and even to see what they were eating.
Finally, a patron quietly pushed back his chair, walked over to a waiter, and asked a simple question. “Could you turn on the lights?” Before long, a warm ceiling light flashed on and the room erupted with applause. But also with laughter. And happy chatter. And thank-yous. My friend’s husband turned off his phone, picked up his utensils, and spoke for us all. “Let there be light! Now, let’s eat!”
Our gloomy evening turned festive with the flick of a switch. But how much more important to know the real source of true light. God Himself spoke those astonishing words, “Let there be light,” on the first day when He created the universe, “and there was light” (Genesis 1:3). Then “God saw that the light was good” (v. 4).
Light expresses God’s great love for us. His light points us to Jesus, “the light of the world” (John 8:12), who guides us from the gloom of sin. Walking in His light, we find the bright path to a life that glorifies the Son. He is the world’s brightest gift. As He shines, may we walk His way. By: Patricia Raybon
Reflect & Pray
In what situation do you need Christ’s light to shine? When has His light guided you?
Loving God, we thank You for Jesus, the Light of the World, and the guiding light of His great love.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, September 04, 2019
His!
They were Yours, You gave them to Me… —John 17:6
A missionary is someone in whom the Holy Spirit has brought about this realization: “You are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19). To say, “I am not my own,” is to have reached a high point in my spiritual stature. The true nature of that life in actual everyday confusion is evidenced by the deliberate giving up of myself to another Person through a sovereign decision, and that Person is Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit interprets and explains the nature of Jesus to me to make me one with my Lord, not that I might simply become a trophy for His showcase. Our Lord never sent any of His disciples out on the basis of what He had done for them. It was not until after the resurrection, when the disciples had perceived through the power of the Holy Spirit who Jesus really was, that He said, “Go” (Matthew 28:19; also see Luke 24:49 and Acts 1:8).
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26). He was not saying that this person cannot be good and upright, but that he cannot be someone over whom Jesus can write the word Mine. Any one of the relationships our Lord mentions in this verse can compete with our relationship with Him. I may prefer to belong to my mother, or to my wife, or to myself, but if that is the case, then, Jesus said, “[You] cannot be My disciple.” This does not mean that I will not be saved, but it does mean that I cannot be entirely His.
Our Lord makes His disciple His very own possession, becoming responsible for him. “…you shall be witnesses to Me…” (Acts 1:8). The desire that comes into a disciple is not one of doing anything for Jesus, but of being a perfect delight to Him. The missionary’s secret is truly being able to say, “I am His, and He is accomplishing His work and His purposes through me.”
Be entirely His!
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
A fanatic is one who entrenches himself in invincible ignorance. Baffled to Fight Better, 59 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, September 04, 2019
Braving the Cold, Building a Fire - #8518
Winter came early to the mountains where we were spending our summer vacation. Of course, that's to be expected if we're on vacation; in the summer, it's probably going to get to be winter. But one night the temperature actually dropped into the 30s and no one was prepared for that. We're in this little cabin, and all of us... suddenly we're snuggling under this warm, Hudson Bay blanket. Therefore, we actually didn't have any awareness of how cold it was outside, because, well, we were warm.
Well, I ventured out of bed first that morning, and I very quickly discovered that we were in a very cold situation. So I wrapped up in everything I could find and I knew what I had to do. I had to get to the only source of heat in that cabin, which was the wood stove, and I had to get a fire going as fast as possible - pioneer Ron. Right! You know if you're warm where you are, it's pretty easy to forget how cold it is all around you.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Braving the Cold, Building a Fire."
Now, our word for today from the Word of God is about braving the cold and building a fire I guess you could say. It's in Romans 15. I'm going to read verses 20 and 21, where Paul talks about the driving ambition of his life. Here's what he says: "It has always been my ambition..." Oh really, Paul, what's that? "...to preach the gospel where Christ was not known so that I would not be building on someone else's foundation. Rather, as it is written, those who were not told about Him will see, and those who have not heard will understand."
Now, I like that word ambition. I don't know what you think of when you think of ambition, but don't you usually think of somebody driving and pushing for something that they're determined is going to happen in their life, sort of a consuming, obsessing goal?
Paul says here that this magnificent obsession for him is to get to a world out there who has no knowledge about our Jesus. In essence, Paul is saying, "I want to go out into the cold; there's a big, cold world out there, and I want to go out and build a fire where there is no warmth. I can't just keep staying where it's warm." Man, I hope you feel that way. I think God hopes you feel that way. I hope it's a driving ambition. a passion of your life, because I know it's how God feels. I know it's what drove Jesus. I mean, He said He was here to seek and save the lost.
See, we Western Christians live under a pretty warm blanket spiritually, don't we? We're warmed by Bible studies and seminars, concerts, Christian radio, Christian books, Christian TV, and Christian websites, and our favorite teachers, and our heroes. But outside our little blanket, it's really cold outside.
Martin Marty, the church historian was quoted once on the front page of the Wall Street Journal as saying, "If you're part of the evangelical subculture, it's your whole life. You go to church, you buy the religious books, you watch the television programs. But if you're not part of the subculture, you never even know it exists." Yeah, there's a cold world out there where families are collapsing, sex and love are totally devalued, relationships are disappointing, broken. There's an epidemic of loneliness, a growing epidemic of suicide. There's no meaning to stick around for. There's a quiet desperation.
It's time for us to get out from under our blanket and start a fire. How can we be content or comfortable any longer? Let's pray, "Lord, I want to lift up my eyes to the lost people around me. I want to live my life to reach them; to rescue them for You. I want to urge my troubled believers, my church, to see that it exists for those who aren't in the church yet, churches aren't just for those who are already in."
Let's actually ask God to break our heart with the things that break His. Take some risks to reach your neighbor, to give, to reach out to other people, to see your time, your money, your influence, your building, and your background, and your talent as a resource to take Christ's warmth into a cold, cold world. We've got to get out there and build a fire.
Doing good does good for the doer. Research bears this out. When volunteers were put in a functional MRI scanner and were told they would be giving some of their money to charity, the areas of their brains associated with pleasure— like food and sex— lit up like Christmas trees. Giving to others triggers dopamine. Perhaps that could be a new fund-raising slogan?
In another study a team of social psychologists distilled happiness factors into eight common denominators. Two of the first three involve helping others. Happy, contented people “devote a great amount of time to their family and friends, nurturing and enjoying those relationships.” And “they are often the first to offer a helping hand to co-workers and passers-by.” Seeking joy? Do good for someone else.
Galatians 2
Fourteen years after that first visit, Barnabas and I went up to Jerusalem and took Titus with us. I went to clarify with them what had been revealed to me. At that time I placed before them exactly what I was preaching to the non-Jews. I did this in private with the leaders, those held in esteem by the church, so that our concern would not become a controversial public issue, marred by ethnic tensions, exposing my years of work to denigration and endangering my present ministry. Significantly, Titus, non-Jewish though he was, was not required to be circumcised. While we were in conference we were infiltrated by spies pretending to be Christians, who slipped in to find out just how free true Christians are. Their ulterior motive was to reduce us to their brand of servitude. We didn’t give them the time of day. We were determined to preserve the truth of the Message for you.
6-10 As for those who were considered important in the church, their reputation doesn’t concern me. God isn’t impressed with mere appearances, and neither am I. And of course these leaders were able to add nothing to the message I had been preaching. It was soon evident that God had entrusted me with the same message to the non-Jews as Peter had been preaching to the Jews. Recognizing that my calling had been given by God, James, Peter, and John—the pillars of the church—shook hands with me and Barnabas, assigning us to a ministry to the non-Jews, while they continued to be responsible for reaching out to the Jews. The only additional thing they asked was that we remember the poor, and I was already eager to do that.
11-13 Later, when Peter came to Antioch, I had a face-to-face confrontation with him because he was clearly out of line. Here’s the situation. Earlier, before certain persons had come from James, Peter regularly ate with the non-Jews. But when that conservative group came from Jerusalem, he cautiously pulled back and put as much distance as he could manage between himself and his non-Jewish friends. That’s how fearful he was of the conservative Jewish clique that’s been pushing the old system of circumcision. Unfortunately, the rest of the Jews in the Antioch church joined in that hypocrisy so that even Barnabas was swept along in the charade.
14 But when I saw that they were not maintaining a steady, straight course according to the Message, I spoke up to Peter in front of them all: “If you, a Jew, live like a non-Jew when you’re not being observed by the watchdogs from Jerusalem, what right do you have to require non-Jews to conform to Jewish customs just to make a favorable impression on your old Jerusalem cronies?”
15-16 We Jews know that we have no advantage of birth over “non-Jewish sinners.” We know very well that we are not set right with God by rule-keeping but only through personal faith in Jesus Christ. How do we know? We tried it—and we had the best system of rules the world has ever seen! Convinced that no human being can please God by self-improvement, we believed in Jesus as the Messiah so that we might be set right before God by trusting in the Messiah, not by trying to be good.
17-18 Have some of you noticed that we are not yet perfect? (No great surprise, right?) And are you ready to make the accusation that since people like me, who go through Christ in order to get things right with God, aren’t perfectly virtuous, Christ must therefore be an accessory to sin? The accusation is frivolous. If I was “trying to be good,” I would be rebuilding the same old barn that I tore down. I would be acting as a charlatan.
19-21 What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law man” so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.
Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God’s grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, September 04, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Genesis 1:1–5
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
Insight
One of the fascinating characteristics of Scripture is how different portions of the Bible echo one another—ultimately combining to tell the story of Jesus. We see this synergy when we compare today’s reading, Genesis 1:1–5, to John 1:1–5. Both begin with the phrase “in the beginning,” taking us back before time to see the work of God in creation. In the beginning, God existed (Genesis 1:1), and the Word (Jesus; John 1:1, 14) existed with the Father and the Spirit (Genesis 1:2). As Genesis 1 tracks the work of the Godhead in creation, John affirms that Christ was the primary agent of that creation (John 1:3). Both accounts resolve with light penetrating the darkness of the pre-creation void. Initially, that light was through the declared word of the Father (Genesis 1:3), a reality that anticipated the eventual coming of Jesus—the Light of the world (John 1:4–5; 8:12; 9:5).
Guiding Light
God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. Genesis 1:3
The restaurant was lovely but dark. Only one small candle flickered on every table. To create light, diners used their smartphones to read their menus, look to their tablemates, and even to see what they were eating.
Finally, a patron quietly pushed back his chair, walked over to a waiter, and asked a simple question. “Could you turn on the lights?” Before long, a warm ceiling light flashed on and the room erupted with applause. But also with laughter. And happy chatter. And thank-yous. My friend’s husband turned off his phone, picked up his utensils, and spoke for us all. “Let there be light! Now, let’s eat!”
Our gloomy evening turned festive with the flick of a switch. But how much more important to know the real source of true light. God Himself spoke those astonishing words, “Let there be light,” on the first day when He created the universe, “and there was light” (Genesis 1:3). Then “God saw that the light was good” (v. 4).
Light expresses God’s great love for us. His light points us to Jesus, “the light of the world” (John 8:12), who guides us from the gloom of sin. Walking in His light, we find the bright path to a life that glorifies the Son. He is the world’s brightest gift. As He shines, may we walk His way. By: Patricia Raybon
Reflect & Pray
In what situation do you need Christ’s light to shine? When has His light guided you?
Loving God, we thank You for Jesus, the Light of the World, and the guiding light of His great love.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, September 04, 2019
His!
They were Yours, You gave them to Me… —John 17:6
A missionary is someone in whom the Holy Spirit has brought about this realization: “You are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19). To say, “I am not my own,” is to have reached a high point in my spiritual stature. The true nature of that life in actual everyday confusion is evidenced by the deliberate giving up of myself to another Person through a sovereign decision, and that Person is Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit interprets and explains the nature of Jesus to me to make me one with my Lord, not that I might simply become a trophy for His showcase. Our Lord never sent any of His disciples out on the basis of what He had done for them. It was not until after the resurrection, when the disciples had perceived through the power of the Holy Spirit who Jesus really was, that He said, “Go” (Matthew 28:19; also see Luke 24:49 and Acts 1:8).
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26). He was not saying that this person cannot be good and upright, but that he cannot be someone over whom Jesus can write the word Mine. Any one of the relationships our Lord mentions in this verse can compete with our relationship with Him. I may prefer to belong to my mother, or to my wife, or to myself, but if that is the case, then, Jesus said, “[You] cannot be My disciple.” This does not mean that I will not be saved, but it does mean that I cannot be entirely His.
Our Lord makes His disciple His very own possession, becoming responsible for him. “…you shall be witnesses to Me…” (Acts 1:8). The desire that comes into a disciple is not one of doing anything for Jesus, but of being a perfect delight to Him. The missionary’s secret is truly being able to say, “I am His, and He is accomplishing His work and His purposes through me.”
Be entirely His!
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
A fanatic is one who entrenches himself in invincible ignorance. Baffled to Fight Better, 59 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, September 04, 2019
Braving the Cold, Building a Fire - #8518
Winter came early to the mountains where we were spending our summer vacation. Of course, that's to be expected if we're on vacation; in the summer, it's probably going to get to be winter. But one night the temperature actually dropped into the 30s and no one was prepared for that. We're in this little cabin, and all of us... suddenly we're snuggling under this warm, Hudson Bay blanket. Therefore, we actually didn't have any awareness of how cold it was outside, because, well, we were warm.
Well, I ventured out of bed first that morning, and I very quickly discovered that we were in a very cold situation. So I wrapped up in everything I could find and I knew what I had to do. I had to get to the only source of heat in that cabin, which was the wood stove, and I had to get a fire going as fast as possible - pioneer Ron. Right! You know if you're warm where you are, it's pretty easy to forget how cold it is all around you.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Braving the Cold, Building a Fire."
Now, our word for today from the Word of God is about braving the cold and building a fire I guess you could say. It's in Romans 15. I'm going to read verses 20 and 21, where Paul talks about the driving ambition of his life. Here's what he says: "It has always been my ambition..." Oh really, Paul, what's that? "...to preach the gospel where Christ was not known so that I would not be building on someone else's foundation. Rather, as it is written, those who were not told about Him will see, and those who have not heard will understand."
Now, I like that word ambition. I don't know what you think of when you think of ambition, but don't you usually think of somebody driving and pushing for something that they're determined is going to happen in their life, sort of a consuming, obsessing goal?
Paul says here that this magnificent obsession for him is to get to a world out there who has no knowledge about our Jesus. In essence, Paul is saying, "I want to go out into the cold; there's a big, cold world out there, and I want to go out and build a fire where there is no warmth. I can't just keep staying where it's warm." Man, I hope you feel that way. I think God hopes you feel that way. I hope it's a driving ambition. a passion of your life, because I know it's how God feels. I know it's what drove Jesus. I mean, He said He was here to seek and save the lost.
See, we Western Christians live under a pretty warm blanket spiritually, don't we? We're warmed by Bible studies and seminars, concerts, Christian radio, Christian books, Christian TV, and Christian websites, and our favorite teachers, and our heroes. But outside our little blanket, it's really cold outside.
Martin Marty, the church historian was quoted once on the front page of the Wall Street Journal as saying, "If you're part of the evangelical subculture, it's your whole life. You go to church, you buy the religious books, you watch the television programs. But if you're not part of the subculture, you never even know it exists." Yeah, there's a cold world out there where families are collapsing, sex and love are totally devalued, relationships are disappointing, broken. There's an epidemic of loneliness, a growing epidemic of suicide. There's no meaning to stick around for. There's a quiet desperation.
It's time for us to get out from under our blanket and start a fire. How can we be content or comfortable any longer? Let's pray, "Lord, I want to lift up my eyes to the lost people around me. I want to live my life to reach them; to rescue them for You. I want to urge my troubled believers, my church, to see that it exists for those who aren't in the church yet, churches aren't just for those who are already in."
Let's actually ask God to break our heart with the things that break His. Take some risks to reach your neighbor, to give, to reach out to other people, to see your time, your money, your influence, your building, and your background, and your talent as a resource to take Christ's warmth into a cold, cold world. We've got to get out there and build a fire.
Tuesday, September 3, 2019
Amos 9, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: CHANGING DOORS
As one Harvard professor said, “We think money will bring lots of happiness for a long time, yet actually it brings a little happiness for a short time.” We’ve all seen happy peasants and miserable millionaires, right?
There is another option. It requires no credit card, monthly mortgage, or stroke of fortune. It demands no airline tickets or hotel reservations. Age, ethnicity, and gender are not factors. You don’t have to change jobs, change cities, change looks, or change neighborhoods. But you might need to change doors.
The motto on the front door says “Happiness happens when you get.” The sign on the lesser-used back door counters “Happiness happens when you give.” Doing good does good for the doer.
Amos 9
I saw my Master standing beside the altar at the shrine. He said:
“Hit the tops of the shrine’s pillars,
make the floor shake.
The roof’s about to fall on the heads of the people,
and whoever’s still alive, I’ll kill.
No one will get away,
no runaways will make it.
If they dig their way down into the underworld,
I’ll find them and bring them up.
If they climb to the stars,
I’ll find them and bring them down.
If they hide out at the top of Mount Carmel,
I’ll find them and bring them back.
If they dive to the bottom of the ocean,
I’ll send Dragon to swallow them up.
If they’re captured alive by their enemies,
I’ll send Sword to kill them.
I’ve made up my mind
to hurt them, not help them.”
5-6 My Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
touches the earth, a mere touch, and it trembles.
The whole world goes into mourning.
Earth swells like the Nile at flood stage;
then the water subsides, like the great Nile of Egypt.
God builds his palace—towers soaring high in the skies,
foundations set on the rock-firm earth.
He calls ocean waters and they come,
then he ladles them out on the earth.
God, your God, does all this.
7-8 “Do you Israelites think you’re any better than the far-off Cushites?” God’s Decree.
“Am I not involved with all nations? Didn’t I bring Israel up from Egypt, the Philistines from Caphtor, the Arameans from Qir? But you can be sure that I, God, the Master, have my eye on the Kingdom of Sin. I’m going to wipe it off the face of the earth. Still, I won’t totally destroy the family of Jacob.” God’s Decree.
9-10 “I’m still giving the orders around here. I’m throwing Israel into a sieve among all the nations and shaking them good, shaking out all the sin, all the sinners. No real grain will be lost, but all the sinners will be sifted out and thrown away, the people who say, ‘Nothing bad will ever happen in our lifetime. It won’t even come close.’
11-12 “But also on that Judgment Day I will restore David’s house that has fallen to pieces. I’ll repair the holes in the roof, replace the broken windows, fix it up like new. David’s people will be strong again and seize what’s left of enemy Edom, plus everyone else under my sovereign judgment.” God’s Decree. He will do this.
13-15 “Yes indeed, it won’t be long now.” God’s Decree.
“Things are going to happen so fast your head will swim, one thing fast on the heels of the other. You won’t be able to keep up. Everything will be happening at once—and everywhere you look, blessings! Blessings like wine pouring off the mountains and hills. I’ll make everything right again for my people Israel:
“They’ll rebuild their ruined cities.
They’ll plant vineyards and drink good wine.
They’ll work their gardens and eat fresh vegetables.
And I’ll plant them, plant them on their own land.
They’ll never again be uprooted from the land I’ve given them.”
God, your God, says so.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, September 03, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Psalm 141
A psalm of David.
1 I call to you, Lord, come quickly to me;
hear me when I call to you.
2 May my prayer be set before you like incense;
may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.
3 Set a guard over my mouth, Lord;
keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil
so that I take part in wicked deeds
along with those who are evildoers;
do not let me eat their delicacies.
5 Let a righteous man strike me—that is a kindness;
let him rebuke me—that is oil on my head.
My head will not refuse it,
for my prayer will still be against the deeds of evildoers.
6 Their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs,
and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken.
7 They will say, “As one plows and breaks up the earth,
so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave.”
8 But my eyes are fixed on you, Sovereign Lord;
in you I take refuge—do not give me over to death.
9 Keep me safe from the traps set by evildoers,
from the snares they have laid for me.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
while I pass by in safety.
Insight
We easily understand David’s prayer, “Keep me safe from the traps set by evildoers” (Psalm 141:9). But we can also relate to his plea for protection from himself: “Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips” (v. 3). David may have been fleeing from King Saul when he wrote this psalm. The restraint in his words matches his behavior toward Saul. David refused to harm “the Lord’s anointed” when he had the opportunity (1 Samuel 24:1–7; 26:7–24). He understood the temptation to say something inflammatory or to succumb to the “advice” to assassinate Saul (26:8). This may explain his reference to the “wicked deeds” (Psalm 141:4) he wished to avoid. David sought justice but left it up to God.
It’s Slippery Out Here!
Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil. Psalm 141:4
Years ago, when I was learning to ski, I followed my son Josh down what appeared to be a gentle slope. With my eyes on him I failed to notice he turned down the steepest hill on the mountain, and I found myself careening down the slope, completely out of control. I cratered, of course.
Psalm 141 shows how we can easily find ourselves slipping down sin’s slope. Prayer is one of the ways we stay alert to those slopes: “Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil” (v. 4) is a plea that echoes the Lord’s Prayer almost exactly: “Lead [me] not into temptation, but deliver [me] from the evil one” (Matthew 6:13). In His goodness, God hears and answers this prayer.
And then I find in this psalm another agent of grace: a faithful friend. “Let a righteous man strike me—that is a kindness; let him rebuke me—that is oil on my head. My head will not refuse it” (Psalm 141:5). Temptations are subtle. We’re not always aware that we’re going wrong. A true friend can be objective. “Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (Proverbs 27:6 nkjv). It’s hard to accept rebuke, but if we see the wounding as a “kindness” it can become an anointing that puts us back on the path of obedience.
May we be open to truth from a trusted friend and rely on God through prayer. By: David H. Roper
Reflect & Pray
What slippery slopes do you gravitate toward? In what ways can you set a guard over your heart?
Father, please keep my feet from straying. Help me to listen to You and good friends.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, September 03, 2019
Pouring Out the Water of Satisfaction
He would not drink it, but poured it out to the Lord. —2 Samuel 23:16
What has been like “water from the well of Bethlehem” to you recently— love, friendship, or maybe some spiritual blessing (2 Samuel 23:16)? Have you taken whatever it may be, even at the risk of damaging your own soul, simply to satisfy yourself? If you have, then you cannot pour it out “to the Lord.” You can never set apart for God something that you desire for yourself to achieve your own satisfaction. If you try to satisfy yourself with a blessing from God, it will corrupt you. You must sacrifice it, pouring it out to God— something that your common sense says is an absurd waste.
How can I pour out “to the Lord” natural love and spiritual blessings? There is only one way— I must make a determination in my mind to do so. There are certain things other people do that could never be received by someone who does not know God, because it is humanly impossible to repay them. As soon as I realize that something is too wonderful for me, that I am not worthy to receive it, and that it is not meant for a human being at all, I must pour it out “to the Lord.” Then these very things that have come to me will be poured out as “rivers of living water” all around me (John 7:38). And until I pour these things out to God, they actually endanger those I love, as well as myself, because they will be turned into lust. Yes, we can be lustful in things that are not sordid and vile. Even love must be transformed by being poured out “to the Lord.”
If you have become bitter and sour, it is because when God gave you a blessing you hoarded it. Yet if you had poured it out to Him, you would have been the sweetest person on earth. If you are always keeping blessings to yourself and never learning to pour out anything “to the Lord,” other people will never have their vision of God expanded through you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
A fanatic is one who entrenches himself in invincible ignorance. Baffled to Fight Better, 59 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, September 03, 2019
The Sharks You Never Saw - #8517
It was a day at the beach to never forget. Rob Howes was swimming off New Zealand's northern coast with his daughter and two friends. That's when the dolphins surrounded them - on porpoise. Sorry. What happened was that that group of dolphins began doing laps around them in these tighter and tighter circles. It was crazy! It was as if the people were being herded like sheep by the dolphins. There was a lifeguard in a nearby lifeboat, but neither he nor the Howes party could figure out what the dolphins were up to, until they saw the great white shark coming toward them. Apparently, the dolphins had made a formation around the swimmers to repel the shark. And sure enough, the shark swam away, leaving the swimmers to make it safely to shore. Amazing, huh?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Sharks You Never Saw."
Those folks had no idea of the danger they were in. But amazingly, a hedge of protection was provided from a danger they didn't even know they had. If you belong to Jesus Christ, that has happened to you more times than you will ever know, until you get to heaven. So many times, God, who sees every danger, has either steered you away from the threat or the threat away from you. He's been protecting you constantly from the sharks you never saw, and the ones you did see are just reminders of the many others that He has kept from hurting you over the years and of the ones He'll keep from you every step of the journey ahead.
I'll tell you, one of the more comforting psalms in the Bible is part of our word for today from the Word of God. It's Psalm 121. It's a great one, a good chapter to read at times when you're anxious or afraid or in some kind of trouble or danger. David says, "My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip - he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel - or you could put in there maybe "His people" - "He who watches over (His people) will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you..." Okay, do you get the repetition? Think there's something here that God wants you not to miss? "...the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm - he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore."
You probably picked it up. Eight verses in this psalm. Five times it says, "the Lord watches over you." The Father looking out for you knows everything, He is everywhere, He can do anything, and there's never a moment when He's not looking out for you. So what was that you were afraid again? You don't even know half of the things around you that you could be afraid of. But fear makes no sense in the life of a child of Almighty God. In fact, fear is actually in a way, it's an insult to Him, saying either "God, You might miss something," or "God, there might be something You can't handle."
That's why 2 Timothy 1:7 can say: "God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind." But this isn't just for you. It's for your children, and your grandchildren, and the people you love. Isaiah 40:11 says that "He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart." That includes your lambs. Don't let your fears define how you parent, or how you plan, or how you proceed. Not when you have the God of the universe and His mighty army of angels on round-the-clock security duty protecting you. All that worrying is so unnecessary and it is such a waste of time!
No matter where you are, no matter how dark or dangerous it seems to be, God is there and God can handle it, even if He has to send a few dolphins to protect you. Your safety and the safety of those you love, has nothing to do with the surroundings. It has to do with the Savior, who keeps them day and night.
Remember that line from Amazing Grace, "Tis grace has brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home!"
As one Harvard professor said, “We think money will bring lots of happiness for a long time, yet actually it brings a little happiness for a short time.” We’ve all seen happy peasants and miserable millionaires, right?
There is another option. It requires no credit card, monthly mortgage, or stroke of fortune. It demands no airline tickets or hotel reservations. Age, ethnicity, and gender are not factors. You don’t have to change jobs, change cities, change looks, or change neighborhoods. But you might need to change doors.
The motto on the front door says “Happiness happens when you get.” The sign on the lesser-used back door counters “Happiness happens when you give.” Doing good does good for the doer.
Amos 9
I saw my Master standing beside the altar at the shrine. He said:
“Hit the tops of the shrine’s pillars,
make the floor shake.
The roof’s about to fall on the heads of the people,
and whoever’s still alive, I’ll kill.
No one will get away,
no runaways will make it.
If they dig their way down into the underworld,
I’ll find them and bring them up.
If they climb to the stars,
I’ll find them and bring them down.
If they hide out at the top of Mount Carmel,
I’ll find them and bring them back.
If they dive to the bottom of the ocean,
I’ll send Dragon to swallow them up.
If they’re captured alive by their enemies,
I’ll send Sword to kill them.
I’ve made up my mind
to hurt them, not help them.”
5-6 My Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
touches the earth, a mere touch, and it trembles.
The whole world goes into mourning.
Earth swells like the Nile at flood stage;
then the water subsides, like the great Nile of Egypt.
God builds his palace—towers soaring high in the skies,
foundations set on the rock-firm earth.
He calls ocean waters and they come,
then he ladles them out on the earth.
God, your God, does all this.
7-8 “Do you Israelites think you’re any better than the far-off Cushites?” God’s Decree.
“Am I not involved with all nations? Didn’t I bring Israel up from Egypt, the Philistines from Caphtor, the Arameans from Qir? But you can be sure that I, God, the Master, have my eye on the Kingdom of Sin. I’m going to wipe it off the face of the earth. Still, I won’t totally destroy the family of Jacob.” God’s Decree.
9-10 “I’m still giving the orders around here. I’m throwing Israel into a sieve among all the nations and shaking them good, shaking out all the sin, all the sinners. No real grain will be lost, but all the sinners will be sifted out and thrown away, the people who say, ‘Nothing bad will ever happen in our lifetime. It won’t even come close.’
11-12 “But also on that Judgment Day I will restore David’s house that has fallen to pieces. I’ll repair the holes in the roof, replace the broken windows, fix it up like new. David’s people will be strong again and seize what’s left of enemy Edom, plus everyone else under my sovereign judgment.” God’s Decree. He will do this.
13-15 “Yes indeed, it won’t be long now.” God’s Decree.
“Things are going to happen so fast your head will swim, one thing fast on the heels of the other. You won’t be able to keep up. Everything will be happening at once—and everywhere you look, blessings! Blessings like wine pouring off the mountains and hills. I’ll make everything right again for my people Israel:
“They’ll rebuild their ruined cities.
They’ll plant vineyards and drink good wine.
They’ll work their gardens and eat fresh vegetables.
And I’ll plant them, plant them on their own land.
They’ll never again be uprooted from the land I’ve given them.”
God, your God, says so.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, September 03, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Psalm 141
A psalm of David.
1 I call to you, Lord, come quickly to me;
hear me when I call to you.
2 May my prayer be set before you like incense;
may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.
3 Set a guard over my mouth, Lord;
keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil
so that I take part in wicked deeds
along with those who are evildoers;
do not let me eat their delicacies.
5 Let a righteous man strike me—that is a kindness;
let him rebuke me—that is oil on my head.
My head will not refuse it,
for my prayer will still be against the deeds of evildoers.
6 Their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs,
and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken.
7 They will say, “As one plows and breaks up the earth,
so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave.”
8 But my eyes are fixed on you, Sovereign Lord;
in you I take refuge—do not give me over to death.
9 Keep me safe from the traps set by evildoers,
from the snares they have laid for me.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
while I pass by in safety.
Insight
We easily understand David’s prayer, “Keep me safe from the traps set by evildoers” (Psalm 141:9). But we can also relate to his plea for protection from himself: “Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips” (v. 3). David may have been fleeing from King Saul when he wrote this psalm. The restraint in his words matches his behavior toward Saul. David refused to harm “the Lord’s anointed” when he had the opportunity (1 Samuel 24:1–7; 26:7–24). He understood the temptation to say something inflammatory or to succumb to the “advice” to assassinate Saul (26:8). This may explain his reference to the “wicked deeds” (Psalm 141:4) he wished to avoid. David sought justice but left it up to God.
It’s Slippery Out Here!
Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil. Psalm 141:4
Years ago, when I was learning to ski, I followed my son Josh down what appeared to be a gentle slope. With my eyes on him I failed to notice he turned down the steepest hill on the mountain, and I found myself careening down the slope, completely out of control. I cratered, of course.
Psalm 141 shows how we can easily find ourselves slipping down sin’s slope. Prayer is one of the ways we stay alert to those slopes: “Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil” (v. 4) is a plea that echoes the Lord’s Prayer almost exactly: “Lead [me] not into temptation, but deliver [me] from the evil one” (Matthew 6:13). In His goodness, God hears and answers this prayer.
And then I find in this psalm another agent of grace: a faithful friend. “Let a righteous man strike me—that is a kindness; let him rebuke me—that is oil on my head. My head will not refuse it” (Psalm 141:5). Temptations are subtle. We’re not always aware that we’re going wrong. A true friend can be objective. “Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (Proverbs 27:6 nkjv). It’s hard to accept rebuke, but if we see the wounding as a “kindness” it can become an anointing that puts us back on the path of obedience.
May we be open to truth from a trusted friend and rely on God through prayer. By: David H. Roper
Reflect & Pray
What slippery slopes do you gravitate toward? In what ways can you set a guard over your heart?
Father, please keep my feet from straying. Help me to listen to You and good friends.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, September 03, 2019
Pouring Out the Water of Satisfaction
He would not drink it, but poured it out to the Lord. —2 Samuel 23:16
What has been like “water from the well of Bethlehem” to you recently— love, friendship, or maybe some spiritual blessing (2 Samuel 23:16)? Have you taken whatever it may be, even at the risk of damaging your own soul, simply to satisfy yourself? If you have, then you cannot pour it out “to the Lord.” You can never set apart for God something that you desire for yourself to achieve your own satisfaction. If you try to satisfy yourself with a blessing from God, it will corrupt you. You must sacrifice it, pouring it out to God— something that your common sense says is an absurd waste.
How can I pour out “to the Lord” natural love and spiritual blessings? There is only one way— I must make a determination in my mind to do so. There are certain things other people do that could never be received by someone who does not know God, because it is humanly impossible to repay them. As soon as I realize that something is too wonderful for me, that I am not worthy to receive it, and that it is not meant for a human being at all, I must pour it out “to the Lord.” Then these very things that have come to me will be poured out as “rivers of living water” all around me (John 7:38). And until I pour these things out to God, they actually endanger those I love, as well as myself, because they will be turned into lust. Yes, we can be lustful in things that are not sordid and vile. Even love must be transformed by being poured out “to the Lord.”
If you have become bitter and sour, it is because when God gave you a blessing you hoarded it. Yet if you had poured it out to Him, you would have been the sweetest person on earth. If you are always keeping blessings to yourself and never learning to pour out anything “to the Lord,” other people will never have their vision of God expanded through you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
A fanatic is one who entrenches himself in invincible ignorance. Baffled to Fight Better, 59 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, September 03, 2019
The Sharks You Never Saw - #8517
It was a day at the beach to never forget. Rob Howes was swimming off New Zealand's northern coast with his daughter and two friends. That's when the dolphins surrounded them - on porpoise. Sorry. What happened was that that group of dolphins began doing laps around them in these tighter and tighter circles. It was crazy! It was as if the people were being herded like sheep by the dolphins. There was a lifeguard in a nearby lifeboat, but neither he nor the Howes party could figure out what the dolphins were up to, until they saw the great white shark coming toward them. Apparently, the dolphins had made a formation around the swimmers to repel the shark. And sure enough, the shark swam away, leaving the swimmers to make it safely to shore. Amazing, huh?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Sharks You Never Saw."
Those folks had no idea of the danger they were in. But amazingly, a hedge of protection was provided from a danger they didn't even know they had. If you belong to Jesus Christ, that has happened to you more times than you will ever know, until you get to heaven. So many times, God, who sees every danger, has either steered you away from the threat or the threat away from you. He's been protecting you constantly from the sharks you never saw, and the ones you did see are just reminders of the many others that He has kept from hurting you over the years and of the ones He'll keep from you every step of the journey ahead.
I'll tell you, one of the more comforting psalms in the Bible is part of our word for today from the Word of God. It's Psalm 121. It's a great one, a good chapter to read at times when you're anxious or afraid or in some kind of trouble or danger. David says, "My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip - he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel - or you could put in there maybe "His people" - "He who watches over (His people) will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you..." Okay, do you get the repetition? Think there's something here that God wants you not to miss? "...the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm - he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore."
You probably picked it up. Eight verses in this psalm. Five times it says, "the Lord watches over you." The Father looking out for you knows everything, He is everywhere, He can do anything, and there's never a moment when He's not looking out for you. So what was that you were afraid again? You don't even know half of the things around you that you could be afraid of. But fear makes no sense in the life of a child of Almighty God. In fact, fear is actually in a way, it's an insult to Him, saying either "God, You might miss something," or "God, there might be something You can't handle."
That's why 2 Timothy 1:7 can say: "God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind." But this isn't just for you. It's for your children, and your grandchildren, and the people you love. Isaiah 40:11 says that "He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart." That includes your lambs. Don't let your fears define how you parent, or how you plan, or how you proceed. Not when you have the God of the universe and His mighty army of angels on round-the-clock security duty protecting you. All that worrying is so unnecessary and it is such a waste of time!
No matter where you are, no matter how dark or dangerous it seems to be, God is there and God can handle it, even if He has to send a few dolphins to protect you. Your safety and the safety of those you love, has nothing to do with the surroundings. It has to do with the Savior, who keeps them day and night.
Remember that line from Amazing Grace, "Tis grace has brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home!"
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