Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
August 28
Our Work Is God’s Work
Jesus got into one of the boats,…that belonged to [Peter], and asked him to push off a little from the land.
Luke 5:3 (NCV)
Jesus claims Peter’s boat. He doesn’t request the use of it. Christ doesn’t fill out an application or ask permission; he simply boards the boat and begins to preach.
He can do that, you know. All boats belong to Christ. Your boat is where you spend your day, make your living, and to a large degree live your life. The taxi you drive,…the dental office you manage, the family you feed and transport—this is your boat. Christ shoulder-taps us and reminds:
“You drive my truck.”
“You work on my job site.”
“You serve my hospital wing.”
To us all, Jesus says, “Your work is my work.”
Titus 1
1Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God's elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness— 2a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, 3and at his appointed season he brought his word to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior,
4To Titus, my true son in our common faith:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
Titus' Task on Crete
5The reason I left you in Crete was that you might straighten out what was left unfinished and appoint[a] elders in every town, as I directed you. 6An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. 7Since an overseer[b] is entrusted with God's work, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. 8Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. 9He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
10For there are many rebellious people, mere talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision group. 11They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12Even one of their own prophets has said, "Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons." 13This testimony is true. Therefore, rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of those who reject the truth. 15To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Romans 15
1We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. 2Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. 3For even Christ did not please himself but, as it is written: "The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me."[a] 4For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
5May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, 6so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
7Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.
August 28, 2008
Comfort Food
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Romans 15:1-7
Whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. —Romans 15:4
I love the phrase “comfort food.” It speaks of the things that are so good, so familiar, so right, that they can always bring a smile to your face. For me, comfort food usually includes some form of beef and potatoes. Hamburgers and French fries. Meatloaf and mashed potatoes and gravy. Also, chocolate in almost any form imaginable. These are the foods that speak to me and say that all is well with the world. (I’m not saying they’re the most healthy!)
Unfortunately, all is not well with the world, and no amount of hamburgers and French fries can make it right. Real comfort is not the byproduct of specific foods any more than it is the result of alcohol or drugs or money or pleasure or power. It is a much deeper need that requires a much deeper solution.
Paul told the church at Rome that the search for comfort can begin in the pages of the Bible. He wrote, “Whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope” (Rom. 15:4).
God has given us His Word to draw us to Himself. Through a relationship with Him, He provides the comfort we need to live in a broken world. — Bill Crowder
Jesus is all this poor world needs today;
Blindly they strive, for sin darkens their way.
O to draw back the grim curtains of night—
One glimpse of Jesus and all will be bright! —Loes
© Renewal 1943 H. D. Loes. Assigned to Hope Publishing
God’s Word is a life preserver that keeps the soul from sinking in a sea of trouble.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 28, 2008
The Purpose of Prayer
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READ:
. . . one of His disciples said to Him, ’Lord, teach us to pray . . .’ —Luke 11:1
Prayer is not a normal part of the life of the natural man. We hear it said that a person’s life will suffer if he doesn’t pray, but I question that. What will suffer is the life of the Son of God in him, which is nourished not by food, but by prayer. When a person is born again from above, the life of the Son of God is born in him, and he can either starve or nourish that life. Prayer is the way that the life of God in us is nourished. Our common ideas regarding prayer are not found in the New Testament. We look upon prayer simply as a means of getting things for ourselves, but the biblical purpose of prayer is that we may get to know God Himself.
"Ask, and you will receive . . ." ( John 16:24 ). We complain before God, and sometimes we are apologetic or indifferent to Him, but we actually ask Him for very few things. Yet a child exhibits a magnificent boldness to ask! Our Lord said, ". . . unless you . . . become as little children . . ." ( Matthew 18:3 ). Ask and God will do. Give Jesus Christ the opportunity and the room to work. The problem is that no one will ever do this until he is at his wits’ end. When a person is at his wits’ end, it no longer seems to be a cowardly thing to pray; in fact, it is the only way he can get in touch with the truth and the reality of God Himself. Be yourself before God and present Him with your problems— the very things that have brought you to your wits’ end. But as long as you think you are self-sufficient, you do not need to ask God for anything.
To say that "prayer changes things" is not as close to the truth as saying, "Prayer changes me and then I change things." God has established things so that prayer, on the basis of redemption, changes the way a person looks at things. Prayer is not a matter of changing things externally, but one of working miracles in a person’s inner nature.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
What You Bring in the Door - #5644 - August 28, 2008
Category: Your Relationships
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
When our three kids were young, they'd run to the door to greet me when I was returning from an international trip. Isn't that tender! Yeah, but you need to know part of the reason for this enthusiastic greeting. You see, when I'm away from my family, I am a sucker for souvenirs. The one way I can be with them is by shopping for something for them, whether it's in Singapore, or Holland, or Australia. So there was a certain expectancy when old dad walked through the door. Oh, yes, there would be hugs and kisses, and we had missed each other, but the three kids each knew that those suitcases had things in them that weren't in them when I left. It's nice to come home with gifts for everyone.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "What You Bring in the Door."
Now, David was in the middle of an unforgettable experience as we read 1 Chronicles 16. He had led the Jewish people in bringing the holiest object in the world to the new capitol of Jerusalem. It was the ark of God. This was the center of the Lord's personal presence on earth at this point in spiritual history. After years of its being gone, David leads in the return of the ark and he sets up a tremendous leadership structure and worship program that everyone was just beginning to celebrate. But he left behind him memorable events in Jerusalem to go on another mission - he went home.
Our word for today from the Word of God, 1 Chronicles 16:43, "Then all the people left, each for his own home, and David returned home to bless his family." Not only did David bring blessing in public ministry, he brought blessing with him when he walked in the door at home. Do you? You see, each day when you return to your family from wherever you were that day you bring something in the door with you - stress, tension, or peace. Selfishness and looking to have your own needs met, or unselfishness - looking to help people meet their needs. Do you bring positive, encouraging talk, or negative, critical talk? Do you bring coldness or affection?
In many ways you set a tone when you walk in the door and you'll probably have to live with that tone for hours to come. After a stressful day it's just human nature to walk in with a pretty self-focused mind set, carrying the garbage of the day, which we then proceed to dump all over our loved ones! But, wouldn't you like to put your name in our word for today? "________ returned home to bless his or her family."
Well, how do you do that? You have to consciously discipline yourself to mentally close out your work day as you're traveling home. I used to call it "closing your mental briefcase" while you're on the way home. You have to consciously get outside of yourself and focus on how each family member was in the morning when you left. What was each one looking forward to? What were they dreading? What were they planning on? How was each one feeling? And then you enter their lives again before you are ever with them. Sort of with them before you're with them! When you walk through the door you're already in touch with these most important people in your life. Then, like a dad returning home from one of those big trips, you bring gifts through the door with you - like a sincere and specific question about some part of their day, or maybe a caring touch for each member of your family, or a word of encouragement for each one. Seek out each family member. Focus on them for a couple of minutes. Make them feel like they're the only person in the world. Give them all of you, at least for a short time. And if you make up your mind to bring blessing through the door with you, I'll tell you, the people at your house are going to be looking forward to your return! Come home with a commitment to give a gift - a gift of you, to each person you love.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
2 Timothy 4, daily reading and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one life, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one life, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one life, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one life, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one lif
e, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one life, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one life, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one life, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one life, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
August 27
Let the Redeemed Say So
You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
Colossians 3:10 (NCV)
I wonder if Jesus doesn't muster up a slight smile as he sees his lost sheep come straggling into the fold--the beaten, broken, dirty sheep who stands at the door looking up at the Shepherd asking, "Can I come in? I don't deserve it, but is there room in your kingdom for one more?" The Shepherd looks down at the sheep and says, "Come in, this is your home."
Salvation is the process that's done, that's secure, that no one can take away from you. Sanctification is the lifelong process of being changed from one degree of glory to the next, growing in Christ, putting away the old, taking on the new.
The Psalmist David would tell us that those who have been redeemed will say so! If we're not saying so, perhaps it's because we've forgotten what it is like to be redeemed. Let the redeemed of the earth say so!
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Personal Remarks
9Do your best to come to me quickly, 10for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
19Greet Priscilla[a] and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
August 27, 2008
An Audience Of One
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant. -Philippians 2:7
When I worked as a young journalist for Campus Life magazine, my assistant kept a plaque on her desk with this two-line poem: Only one lif
e, 'twill soon be past / Only what's done for Christ will last.
Reading that plaque brought me up short every time. Although I believed its truth, how could I put it into practice? How should my faith in the invisible world affect my day-to-day life in the visible world?
According to Jesus, it's what God thinks of us that matters, not what others think. Jesus instructed us to pray in a closed room, where no one could see us, rather than in a public place where we might get credit for being spiritual (Matt. 6:6). In other words, live for God and not others.
Do we clamor for attention and achievement? Jesus invites us to let go of that competitive struggle, to trust that God's opinion of us is the only one that ultimately counts.
How would our lives differ if we truly played to an audience of One? Certainly our sense of ego and rivalry would fade, because we would no longer need to worry about proving ourselves to others. We could concentrate instead on pleasing God by living in a way that would attract people to Jesus. - Philip Yancey
Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything,
To do it as for Thee! -Herbert
Christ is seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 27, 2008
Living Your Theology
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you . . . -John 12:35
Beware of not acting upon what you see in your moments on the mountaintop with God. If you do not obey the light, it will turn into darkness. "If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" ( Matthew 6:23 ). The moment you forsake the matter of sanctification or neglect anything else on which God has given you His light, your spiritual life begins to disintegrate within you. Continually bring the truth out into your real life, working it out into every area, or else even the light that you possess will itself prove to be a curse.
The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the prideful self-satisfaction of a past experience, but is not working that experience out in his everyday life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it shows in your life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent or self-gratifying; that belief came from the pit of hell itself, regardless of how beautiful it may sound.
Your theology must work itself out, exhibiting itself in your most common everyday relationships. Our Lord said, ". . . unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:20 ). In other words, you must be more moral than the most moral person you know. You may know all about the doctrine of sanctification, but are you working it out in the everyday issues of your life? Every detail of your life, whether physical, moral, or spiritual, is to be judged and measured by the standard of the atonement by the Cross of Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Footprints the Tide Can't Touch - #5643 - August 27, 2008
Category: Your Mission
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Oh, man, we love the ocean! We love to walk the beach and if my wife has a head-start on me, I can figure out which way she went - Oh, I kid her about being a little paddle footed - she leaves behind footprints that make a slight "V" in the sand. Of course, when the tide starts coming in you can forget all the footprints any of us left that day! When the waves finish giving the beach a bath, you can't even tell anyone walked there today. Notice when they want to commemorate the careers of those Hollywood stars. They have them put their footprints in cement in the sidewalk, not in sand at the beach.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Footprints the Tide Can't Touch."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Daniel 12:2. You see, we only get to walk this beach once. What kind of marks do we leave behind? How much will it matter that you and I have ever walked this way? Daniel 12:2-3 says this, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Now, the verse before it talks about eternal issues. It says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." That's why it's so important to lead people to righteousness. Two eternal destinations: everlasting life - that's heaven of course, and everlasting shame and contempt - that's hell. Now, he goes on here to say that you and I can have a vital part in which destination it will be for the people we know. If we lead them to righteousness, we'll shine like the stars forever and ever. People you influence for Jesus Christ will be the lasting legacy of your life. Everlasting! Footprints that are in cement, not in sand!
The problem is we get distracted from the eternal, don't we? We spent most of our time and our energy on earth stuff. We want to make a financial mark, a career mark, an educational mark, but the tide will one day come along and erase all those footprints we left in the sand. Someone else will get your position, they'll get your money, they'll get your house. Or maybe we'll get involved in causes that will help improve things a little but have no impact on eternity - sand. Or we'll just get so busy or self-occupied that we neglect the people around us for our schedule, our goals, and our security.
There's another poem I heard often as a young man and it puts everything in perspective, "Only one life, 'twill soon be passed, only what's done for Christ will last." Daniel affirms the ultimate lasting thing you can do with your life is to lead someone else to eternal life. Take somebody to heaven with you! Is there going to be anybody there because of you? Are you working on leaving that kind of mark on the people around you? Maybe you've become distracted by leaving marks in the sand; marks that just won't matter in eternity. The Lord's saying, "I've planted you among those people because I'm trusting you to tell them about Me. To let them know I love them enough to give My life for them. To tell them the difference I've made for you and how I can make all the difference for them."
How are you doing on the project that really matters; bringing people you know to heaven with you? It is, after all, what Jesus gave His life for. It ought to be what our lives are about, don't you think? Could it be that you've misplaced your priorities? That most of the marks of your life are in the sand of earth stuff rather than in the cement of eternity? Why don't you begin to use your influence to bring people you know to Jesus Christ - the relationship they've been looking for their whole life? The tides of time can never erase a life that you have brought to Jesus.
You may not have made many tracks in earth's sand, but marks you have made in eternity cement will be there for a hundred billion years and more - people who are in heaven because of you!
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
2 Timothy 3, daily reading and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
August 26
Ask and Believe
“If you believe, you will get anything you ask for in prayer.”
Matthew 21:22 (NCV)
“If you believe, you will get anything you ask for in prayer.”
Don’t reduce this grand statement to the category of new cars and paychecks. Don’t limit the promise of this passage to the selfish pool of perks and favors. The fruit God assures is far greater than earthly wealth. His dreams are much greater than promotions and proposals.
God wants you to fly. He wants you to fly free of yesterday’s guilt. He wants you to fly free of today’s fears. He wants you to fly free of tomorrow’s grave. Sin, fear, and death. These are the mountains he has moved. These are the prayers he will answer. That is the fruit he will grant. This is what he longs to do.
2 Timothy 3
Godlessness in the Last Days
1But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.
6They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, 7always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth. 8Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth—men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. 9But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.
Paul's Charge to Timothy
10You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 11persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. 12In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
John 13:31-35
Jesus Predicts Peter's Denial
31When he was gone, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. 32If God is glorified in him,[a] God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.
33"My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.
34"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
August 26, 2008
The King’s Colors
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: John 13:31-35
By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. —John 13:35
In Thailand, the people greatly love and admire King Bhumibol (Rama IX), who has led them for over 60 years. To display their respect for the king, the Thai people wear bright yellow shirts every Monday, because yellow is the official color of the king.
As we seek to live for our King, the Lord Jesus Christ, we should also show our colors of allegiance and appreciation for all He has done for us. But how? What are the “colors” that declare to the world that we serve the King of kings and Lord of lords?
The night before His crucifixion, King Jesus told us what our “colors” should be when He said, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). His disciple John echoed this when he wrote, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another” (1 John 4:11).
When we display Christ’s love for our fellow believers, it is more than just kindness or care. It is one of the most tangible ways we can show our love and devotion for the Savior.
As we interact with fellow Christ-followers, let’s be sure to show our colors. That will honor our King before a watching world. — Bill Crowder
Teach me to love as Thou dost love,
And let the whole world know
That Jesus Christ lives in my heart,
His glorious light to show. —Brandt
Our love for God shows in our love for others.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 26, 2008
Are You Ever Troubled?
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you . . . —John 14:27
There are times in our lives when our peace is based simply on our own ignorance. But when we are awakened to the realities of life, true inner peace is impossible unless it is received from Jesus. When our Lord speaks peace, He creates peace, because the words that He speaks are always "spirit, and they are life" ( John 6:63 ). Have I ever received what Jesus speaks? ". . . My peace I give to you. . ."— a peace that comes from looking into His face and fully understanding and receiving His quiet contentment.
Are you severely troubled right now? Are you afraid and confused by the waves and the turbulence God sovereignly allows to enter your life? Have you left no stone of your faith unturned, yet still not found any well of peace, joy, or comfort? Does your life seem completely barren to you? Then look up and receive the quiet contentment of the Lord Jesus. Reflecting His peace is proof that you are right with God, because you are exhibiting the freedom to turn your mind to Him. If you are not right with God, you can never turn your mind anywhere but on yourself. Allowing anything to hide the face of Jesus Christ from you either causes you to become troubled or gives you a false sense of security.
With regard to the problem that is pressing in on you right now, are you "looking unto Jesus" ( Hebrews 12:2 ) and receiving peace from Him? If so, He will be a gracious blessing of peace exhibited in and through you. But if you only try to worry your way out of the problem, you destroy His effectiveness in you, and you deserve whatever you get. We become troubled because we have not been taking Him into account. When a person confers with Jesus Christ, the confusion stops, because there is no confusion in Him. Lay everything out before Him, and when you are faced with difficulty, bereavement, and sorrow, listen to Him say, "Let not your heart be troubled . . ." ( John 14:27 ).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Fool's Gold - #5642 - August 26, 2008
Category: Your Personal Power
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
My outreach trips to South Africa have been with some wonderful ministry experiences. We saw African young people coming to Christ. We had the privilege of training South African youth workers to reach lost young people. And we're even training people to reach the lost and the young through radio. One afternoon we were able to sneak away long enough to visit one of the gold mines that helped make South Africa the richest country on that continent. Years ago this was the largest and richest gold mine in the world. Today, an old miner take guys like me, puts a helmet on them, gives them a light, and takes them on tours. It was fascinating to hear him describe how gold was uncovered and then extracted from deep inside the earth. At one point, he asked us to shine our light on one wall of the mine, and it sparkled with this bright, yellow gold! It was amazing - beautiful! The old miner told us, "Don't get too excited." He said, "Real gold is black. It doesn't even look like gold. That stuff that glitters, well, that's just fool's gold.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Fool's Gold."
It's "values clarification time," with the help of our word for today from the Word of God. 1 Timothy 6:8, "If we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich (that's the people who go after the stuff that glitters) fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs."
It's so easy to buy the values of a world that measures worth by success, by how much of the glittery stuff you have - to spend major life-energy going after more house, more car, more wardrobe, more position, more prestige. It's gold - but it's fool's gold. Notice the words God uses to describe the pursuit of more: a trap, foolish desires, harmful desires, ruin and destruction, wandering from the faith, grief. The foolishness of all this is summed up in two words God uses to describe security that is based on earth-stuff "so uncertain." That's what He calls it in 1 Timothy 6:17.
So God reveals the scam - what looks so valuable is so worthless, and the spiritual riches that may look so worthless are so valuable. Like fool's gold and real gold. The chapter goes on to describe the real gold. "But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness." Don't look for those on the Dow-Jones, but they are so much more precious than anything you'll find there and certainly a lot more lasting.
God says when you live your life to give instead of get, you will be one of those who "lay up treasures for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life" (1 Timothy 6:19) or the gold that is really gold.
Take a moment for a priority check - not about what you believe, but about how you're spending your life. Honestly now, is most of the best of your life tied up in going after fool's gold? Do you even have much energy, much time, much resource left to pursue the gold of what will last for eternity like getting to know Jesus better, getting people to heaven with you, showing Jesus' love to people who really need it, absorbing God's Word? It's time to live for what will last.
With whatever years you have left, go where the real gold is. The stuff that glitters is what most of the people around you are going for. But remember, it's just fool's gold.
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
August 26
Ask and Believe
“If you believe, you will get anything you ask for in prayer.”
Matthew 21:22 (NCV)
“If you believe, you will get anything you ask for in prayer.”
Don’t reduce this grand statement to the category of new cars and paychecks. Don’t limit the promise of this passage to the selfish pool of perks and favors. The fruit God assures is far greater than earthly wealth. His dreams are much greater than promotions and proposals.
God wants you to fly. He wants you to fly free of yesterday’s guilt. He wants you to fly free of today’s fears. He wants you to fly free of tomorrow’s grave. Sin, fear, and death. These are the mountains he has moved. These are the prayers he will answer. That is the fruit he will grant. This is what he longs to do.
2 Timothy 3
Godlessness in the Last Days
1But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.
6They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, 7always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth. 8Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth—men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. 9But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.
Paul's Charge to Timothy
10You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 11persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. 12In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
John 13:31-35
Jesus Predicts Peter's Denial
31When he was gone, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. 32If God is glorified in him,[a] God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.
33"My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.
34"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
August 26, 2008
The King’s Colors
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: John 13:31-35
By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. —John 13:35
In Thailand, the people greatly love and admire King Bhumibol (Rama IX), who has led them for over 60 years. To display their respect for the king, the Thai people wear bright yellow shirts every Monday, because yellow is the official color of the king.
As we seek to live for our King, the Lord Jesus Christ, we should also show our colors of allegiance and appreciation for all He has done for us. But how? What are the “colors” that declare to the world that we serve the King of kings and Lord of lords?
The night before His crucifixion, King Jesus told us what our “colors” should be when He said, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). His disciple John echoed this when he wrote, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another” (1 John 4:11).
When we display Christ’s love for our fellow believers, it is more than just kindness or care. It is one of the most tangible ways we can show our love and devotion for the Savior.
As we interact with fellow Christ-followers, let’s be sure to show our colors. That will honor our King before a watching world. — Bill Crowder
Teach me to love as Thou dost love,
And let the whole world know
That Jesus Christ lives in my heart,
His glorious light to show. —Brandt
Our love for God shows in our love for others.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 26, 2008
Are You Ever Troubled?
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you . . . —John 14:27
There are times in our lives when our peace is based simply on our own ignorance. But when we are awakened to the realities of life, true inner peace is impossible unless it is received from Jesus. When our Lord speaks peace, He creates peace, because the words that He speaks are always "spirit, and they are life" ( John 6:63 ). Have I ever received what Jesus speaks? ". . . My peace I give to you. . ."— a peace that comes from looking into His face and fully understanding and receiving His quiet contentment.
Are you severely troubled right now? Are you afraid and confused by the waves and the turbulence God sovereignly allows to enter your life? Have you left no stone of your faith unturned, yet still not found any well of peace, joy, or comfort? Does your life seem completely barren to you? Then look up and receive the quiet contentment of the Lord Jesus. Reflecting His peace is proof that you are right with God, because you are exhibiting the freedom to turn your mind to Him. If you are not right with God, you can never turn your mind anywhere but on yourself. Allowing anything to hide the face of Jesus Christ from you either causes you to become troubled or gives you a false sense of security.
With regard to the problem that is pressing in on you right now, are you "looking unto Jesus" ( Hebrews 12:2 ) and receiving peace from Him? If so, He will be a gracious blessing of peace exhibited in and through you. But if you only try to worry your way out of the problem, you destroy His effectiveness in you, and you deserve whatever you get. We become troubled because we have not been taking Him into account. When a person confers with Jesus Christ, the confusion stops, because there is no confusion in Him. Lay everything out before Him, and when you are faced with difficulty, bereavement, and sorrow, listen to Him say, "Let not your heart be troubled . . ." ( John 14:27 ).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Fool's Gold - #5642 - August 26, 2008
Category: Your Personal Power
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
My outreach trips to South Africa have been with some wonderful ministry experiences. We saw African young people coming to Christ. We had the privilege of training South African youth workers to reach lost young people. And we're even training people to reach the lost and the young through radio. One afternoon we were able to sneak away long enough to visit one of the gold mines that helped make South Africa the richest country on that continent. Years ago this was the largest and richest gold mine in the world. Today, an old miner take guys like me, puts a helmet on them, gives them a light, and takes them on tours. It was fascinating to hear him describe how gold was uncovered and then extracted from deep inside the earth. At one point, he asked us to shine our light on one wall of the mine, and it sparkled with this bright, yellow gold! It was amazing - beautiful! The old miner told us, "Don't get too excited." He said, "Real gold is black. It doesn't even look like gold. That stuff that glitters, well, that's just fool's gold.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Fool's Gold."
It's "values clarification time," with the help of our word for today from the Word of God. 1 Timothy 6:8, "If we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich (that's the people who go after the stuff that glitters) fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs."
It's so easy to buy the values of a world that measures worth by success, by how much of the glittery stuff you have - to spend major life-energy going after more house, more car, more wardrobe, more position, more prestige. It's gold - but it's fool's gold. Notice the words God uses to describe the pursuit of more: a trap, foolish desires, harmful desires, ruin and destruction, wandering from the faith, grief. The foolishness of all this is summed up in two words God uses to describe security that is based on earth-stuff "so uncertain." That's what He calls it in 1 Timothy 6:17.
So God reveals the scam - what looks so valuable is so worthless, and the spiritual riches that may look so worthless are so valuable. Like fool's gold and real gold. The chapter goes on to describe the real gold. "But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness." Don't look for those on the Dow-Jones, but they are so much more precious than anything you'll find there and certainly a lot more lasting.
God says when you live your life to give instead of get, you will be one of those who "lay up treasures for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life" (1 Timothy 6:19) or the gold that is really gold.
Take a moment for a priority check - not about what you believe, but about how you're spending your life. Honestly now, is most of the best of your life tied up in going after fool's gold? Do you even have much energy, much time, much resource left to pursue the gold of what will last for eternity like getting to know Jesus better, getting people to heaven with you, showing Jesus' love to people who really need it, absorbing God's Word? It's time to live for what will last.
With whatever years you have left, go where the real gold is. The stuff that glitters is what most of the people around you are going for. But remember, it's just fool's gold.
Monday, August 25, 2008
2 Timothy 2, daily reading and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
August 25
Admission into Joy
You took away my clothes of sadness, and clothed me in happiness.
Psalm 30:11 (NCV)
The first step to joy is a plea for help, an acknowledgment of moral destitution, an admission of inward paucity. Those who taste God's presence have declared spiritual bankruptcy and are aware of their spiritual crisis. Their cupboards are bare. Their pockets are empty. Their options are gone. They have long since stopped demanding justice; they are pleading for mercy....
They ask God to do for them what they can't do without him. They have seen how holy God is and how sinful they are and have agreed with Jesus' statement, "Salvation is impossible."
Oh, the irony of God's delight--born in the parched soil of destitution rather than the fertile ground of achievement.
It's a different path, a path we're not accustomed to taking. We don't often declare our impotence. Admission of failure is not usually admission into joy. Complete confession is not commonly followed by total pardon. But then again, God has never been governed by what is common.
2 Timothy 2
1You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. 3Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer. 5Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules. 6The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. 7Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.
8Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, 9for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God's word is not chained. 10Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.
11Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him,
we will also live with him;
12if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;
13if we are faithless,
he will remain faithful,
for he cannot disown himself.
A Workman Approved by God
14Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. 15Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 16Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. 17Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18who have wandered away from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some. 19Nevertheless, God's solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The Lord knows those who are his,"[a] and, "Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."
20In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for noble purposes and some for ignoble. 21If a man cleanses himself from the latter, he will be an instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.
22Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. 24And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, 26and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Psalm 131
A song of ascents. Of David.
1 My heart is not proud, O LORD,
my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters
or things too wonderful for me.
2 But I have stilled and quieted my soul;
like a weaned child with its mother,
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
3 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD
both now and forevermore.
August 25, 2008
Foundation Of The Heart
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Psalm 131
Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother. —Psalm 131:2
The great cathedrals of Europe are not only breathtaking but intriguing in their architecture. Because their massive ceilings were too heavy for the walls to support, flying buttresses, or external extensions, were built to support the expansive roofs.
Although we are “the temple of the living God” (2 Cor. 6:16), I wonder if we are not more like these cathedrals, with buttresses of external influences holding us up while we remain weak at the core. Pastors, friends, rules, books, and small groups are helpful to support and bolster our faith. But if we depend too heavily on them, they can actually distract us from developing a healthy heart for God.
Our heart is the place where God meets and relates to us personally. It’s where He allows us to respond to His correction. Spending time in His Word and in prayer opens the door for Him to interact with us at the deepest levels of our need and gives Him opportunities to comfort and convict. As we open our hearts to Him, He fans the flame of an intimate, life-changing relationship.
Authentic Christianity is the inside-out expression of this dynamic relationship with Jesus that provides the strength to live for His glory—regardless of what is happening on the outside! — Joe Stowell
Speak, O blessed Master,
In this quiet hour;
Let me see Thy face, Lord,
Feel Thy touch of power. —Grimes
When you open your heart to the Savior, He opens your mind to His Word.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 25, 2008
Sacrifice and Friendship
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
I have called you friends . . . —John 15:15
We will never know the joy of self-sacrifice until we surrender in every detail of our lives. Yet self-surrender is the most difficult thing for us to do. We make it conditional by saying, "I’ll surrender if . . . !" Or we approach it by saying, "I suppose I have to devote my life to God." We will never find the joy of self-sacrifice in either of these ways.
But as soon as we do totally surrender, abandoning ourselves to Jesus, the Holy Spirit gives us a taste of His joy. The ultimate goal of self-sacrifice is to lay down our lives for our Friend (see John 15:13-14 ). When the Holy Spirit comes into our lives, our greatest desire is to lay down our lives for Jesus. Yet the thought of self-sacrifice never even crosses our minds, because sacrifice is the Holy Spirit’s ultimate expression of love.
Our Lord is our example of a life of self-sacrifice, and He perfectly exemplified Psalm 40:8, "I delight to do Your will, O my God . . . ." He endured tremendous personal sacrifice, yet with overflowing joy. Have I ever yielded myself in absolute submission to Jesus Christ? If He is not the One to whom I am looking for direction and guidance, then there is no benefit in my sacrifice. But when my sacrifice is made with my eyes focused on Him, slowly but surely His molding influence becomes evident in my life (see Hebrews 12:1-2 ).
Beware of letting your natural desires hinder your walk in love before God. One of the cruelest ways to kill natural love is through the rejection that results from having built the love on natural desires. But the one true desire of a saint is the Lord Jesus. Love for God is not something sentimental or emotional— for a saint to love as God loves is the most practical thing imaginable.
"I have called you friends. . . ." Our friendship with Jesus is based on the new life He created in us, which has no resemblance or attraction to our old life but only to the life of God. It is a life that is completely humble, pure, and devoted to God.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
A Party in Your Honor - #5641 - August 25, 2008
Category: Your Most Important Relationship
Monday, August 25, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Somehow we managed to surprise each of the three Hutchcraft kids when it came time for their 16th birthday party. Now our daughter's was a Teddy Bear picnic party. (You should have seen all those high school students coming with their teddy bears - even the guys! They really did!) And then the boy's themes were - well, there was the '50s theme, and then there was the Wild West party for another son. Actually, we have always tried to make something special out of the kids' birthdays. After all, your birthday is the only day of the year that's uniquely your celebration. It's always a great feeling to have a party in your honor.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Party in Your Honor."
Now this may come as a surprise to you, but someone would love to have a party in your honor - the angels in heaven. Honest.
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from the words of Jesus in Luke 15 beginning with verse 3, "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says: 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."
Rejoicing in heaven when one person comes home spiritually; that's a great picture isn't it? It seems that the angels break into a celebration - a welcome home party - when someone turns from their sin to Jesus. Some of us stumble over that word "sinner"; we don't like to think that applies to us. That's somebody else, right? But the Bible says clearly, "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). Every one of us has missed the way that we were created to live.
We were supposed to live centered around the One who gave us our life. Instead we've lived with ourselves in the center, and sin is deadly. The Bible says it literally carries an eternal death penalty.
But Jesus is that loving Shepherd who came after us lost sheep. And "lost" may be a good word to describe how you feel - confused about why you're here, wondering why there's a deep loneliness that never really goes away, wondering where peace and fulfillment are really found. All that is because you're away from the One who made you - the One who loves you most. But Jesus came after you. He went all the way to a cross where He died to pay the sin-penalty that you could only pay with an eternity in hell.
So on the day that you finally put your trust in Jesus to be your own Savior, the angels begin the party in your honor. Why? Because they know how much it cost to rescue you. They saw the Son of God return to heaven with something He didn't have when He left for earth - nail prints in His hands and feet and a spear wound in His side. They also know what's at stake in your decision about Jesus. They know this is life-or-death; this is heaven or hell.
Maybe with all you know about Jesus, with all your religion, you've never actually been born into God's family. And you've never told Jesus that you're turning from running your own life and totally trusting Him to forgive your sin and get you to heaven. I hope you will not risk another day without Jesus.
If you want to get this settled once and for all, and you want to begin your relationship with Jesus Christ today, would you tell Him right now, "Jesus, I believe that I have run my own life, and I know that's wrong. And I believe You paid the penalty for it when You died on the cross. I believe You didn't stay dead, but You walked out of your grave. And Jesus, I turn from running my own life to grab You with both hands as my rescuer from my sin. Beginning today, Jesus, I am Yours."
We'd love to help you be sure you belong to Jesus Christ. In fact, that's why our website is there, and I want to invite you to go visit there as soon as you can today. It's YoursForLife.net, or you can call for the little booklet Yours for Life. Just call toll free at 877-741-1200.
This could be the day they've been waiting for in heaven for a long time - the day they have a party in your honor because you have finally come home.
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
August 25
Admission into Joy
You took away my clothes of sadness, and clothed me in happiness.
Psalm 30:11 (NCV)
The first step to joy is a plea for help, an acknowledgment of moral destitution, an admission of inward paucity. Those who taste God's presence have declared spiritual bankruptcy and are aware of their spiritual crisis. Their cupboards are bare. Their pockets are empty. Their options are gone. They have long since stopped demanding justice; they are pleading for mercy....
They ask God to do for them what they can't do without him. They have seen how holy God is and how sinful they are and have agreed with Jesus' statement, "Salvation is impossible."
Oh, the irony of God's delight--born in the parched soil of destitution rather than the fertile ground of achievement.
It's a different path, a path we're not accustomed to taking. We don't often declare our impotence. Admission of failure is not usually admission into joy. Complete confession is not commonly followed by total pardon. But then again, God has never been governed by what is common.
2 Timothy 2
1You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. 3Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer. 5Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules. 6The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. 7Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.
8Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, 9for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God's word is not chained. 10Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.
11Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him,
we will also live with him;
12if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;
13if we are faithless,
he will remain faithful,
for he cannot disown himself.
A Workman Approved by God
14Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. 15Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 16Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. 17Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18who have wandered away from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some. 19Nevertheless, God's solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The Lord knows those who are his,"[a] and, "Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."
20In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for noble purposes and some for ignoble. 21If a man cleanses himself from the latter, he will be an instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.
22Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. 24And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, 26and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Psalm 131
A song of ascents. Of David.
1 My heart is not proud, O LORD,
my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters
or things too wonderful for me.
2 But I have stilled and quieted my soul;
like a weaned child with its mother,
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
3 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD
both now and forevermore.
August 25, 2008
Foundation Of The Heart
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Psalm 131
Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother. —Psalm 131:2
The great cathedrals of Europe are not only breathtaking but intriguing in their architecture. Because their massive ceilings were too heavy for the walls to support, flying buttresses, or external extensions, were built to support the expansive roofs.
Although we are “the temple of the living God” (2 Cor. 6:16), I wonder if we are not more like these cathedrals, with buttresses of external influences holding us up while we remain weak at the core. Pastors, friends, rules, books, and small groups are helpful to support and bolster our faith. But if we depend too heavily on them, they can actually distract us from developing a healthy heart for God.
Our heart is the place where God meets and relates to us personally. It’s where He allows us to respond to His correction. Spending time in His Word and in prayer opens the door for Him to interact with us at the deepest levels of our need and gives Him opportunities to comfort and convict. As we open our hearts to Him, He fans the flame of an intimate, life-changing relationship.
Authentic Christianity is the inside-out expression of this dynamic relationship with Jesus that provides the strength to live for His glory—regardless of what is happening on the outside! — Joe Stowell
Speak, O blessed Master,
In this quiet hour;
Let me see Thy face, Lord,
Feel Thy touch of power. —Grimes
When you open your heart to the Savior, He opens your mind to His Word.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 25, 2008
Sacrifice and Friendship
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
I have called you friends . . . —John 15:15
We will never know the joy of self-sacrifice until we surrender in every detail of our lives. Yet self-surrender is the most difficult thing for us to do. We make it conditional by saying, "I’ll surrender if . . . !" Or we approach it by saying, "I suppose I have to devote my life to God." We will never find the joy of self-sacrifice in either of these ways.
But as soon as we do totally surrender, abandoning ourselves to Jesus, the Holy Spirit gives us a taste of His joy. The ultimate goal of self-sacrifice is to lay down our lives for our Friend (see John 15:13-14 ). When the Holy Spirit comes into our lives, our greatest desire is to lay down our lives for Jesus. Yet the thought of self-sacrifice never even crosses our minds, because sacrifice is the Holy Spirit’s ultimate expression of love.
Our Lord is our example of a life of self-sacrifice, and He perfectly exemplified Psalm 40:8, "I delight to do Your will, O my God . . . ." He endured tremendous personal sacrifice, yet with overflowing joy. Have I ever yielded myself in absolute submission to Jesus Christ? If He is not the One to whom I am looking for direction and guidance, then there is no benefit in my sacrifice. But when my sacrifice is made with my eyes focused on Him, slowly but surely His molding influence becomes evident in my life (see Hebrews 12:1-2 ).
Beware of letting your natural desires hinder your walk in love before God. One of the cruelest ways to kill natural love is through the rejection that results from having built the love on natural desires. But the one true desire of a saint is the Lord Jesus. Love for God is not something sentimental or emotional— for a saint to love as God loves is the most practical thing imaginable.
"I have called you friends. . . ." Our friendship with Jesus is based on the new life He created in us, which has no resemblance or attraction to our old life but only to the life of God. It is a life that is completely humble, pure, and devoted to God.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
A Party in Your Honor - #5641 - August 25, 2008
Category: Your Most Important Relationship
Monday, August 25, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Somehow we managed to surprise each of the three Hutchcraft kids when it came time for their 16th birthday party. Now our daughter's was a Teddy Bear picnic party. (You should have seen all those high school students coming with their teddy bears - even the guys! They really did!) And then the boy's themes were - well, there was the '50s theme, and then there was the Wild West party for another son. Actually, we have always tried to make something special out of the kids' birthdays. After all, your birthday is the only day of the year that's uniquely your celebration. It's always a great feeling to have a party in your honor.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Party in Your Honor."
Now this may come as a surprise to you, but someone would love to have a party in your honor - the angels in heaven. Honest.
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from the words of Jesus in Luke 15 beginning with verse 3, "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says: 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."
Rejoicing in heaven when one person comes home spiritually; that's a great picture isn't it? It seems that the angels break into a celebration - a welcome home party - when someone turns from their sin to Jesus. Some of us stumble over that word "sinner"; we don't like to think that applies to us. That's somebody else, right? But the Bible says clearly, "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). Every one of us has missed the way that we were created to live.
We were supposed to live centered around the One who gave us our life. Instead we've lived with ourselves in the center, and sin is deadly. The Bible says it literally carries an eternal death penalty.
But Jesus is that loving Shepherd who came after us lost sheep. And "lost" may be a good word to describe how you feel - confused about why you're here, wondering why there's a deep loneliness that never really goes away, wondering where peace and fulfillment are really found. All that is because you're away from the One who made you - the One who loves you most. But Jesus came after you. He went all the way to a cross where He died to pay the sin-penalty that you could only pay with an eternity in hell.
So on the day that you finally put your trust in Jesus to be your own Savior, the angels begin the party in your honor. Why? Because they know how much it cost to rescue you. They saw the Son of God return to heaven with something He didn't have when He left for earth - nail prints in His hands and feet and a spear wound in His side. They also know what's at stake in your decision about Jesus. They know this is life-or-death; this is heaven or hell.
Maybe with all you know about Jesus, with all your religion, you've never actually been born into God's family. And you've never told Jesus that you're turning from running your own life and totally trusting Him to forgive your sin and get you to heaven. I hope you will not risk another day without Jesus.
If you want to get this settled once and for all, and you want to begin your relationship with Jesus Christ today, would you tell Him right now, "Jesus, I believe that I have run my own life, and I know that's wrong. And I believe You paid the penalty for it when You died on the cross. I believe You didn't stay dead, but You walked out of your grave. And Jesus, I turn from running my own life to grab You with both hands as my rescuer from my sin. Beginning today, Jesus, I am Yours."
We'd love to help you be sure you belong to Jesus Christ. In fact, that's why our website is there, and I want to invite you to go visit there as soon as you can today. It's YoursForLife.net, or you can call for the little booklet Yours for Life. Just call toll free at 877-741-1200.
This could be the day they've been waiting for in heaven for a long time - the day they have a party in your honor because you have finally come home.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
2 Timothy 1, daily reading and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
August 24
The teaching that I ask you to accept is easy; the load I give you to carry is light.
Matthew 11:30 (NCV)
Jesus says he is the solution for weariness of soul.
Go to him. Be honest with him. Admit you have soul secrets you've
never dealt with. He already knows what they are. He's just waiting for
you to ask him to help....
Go ahead. You'll be glad you did. Those near to you will be glad as well.
2 Timothy 1
1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, according to the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus,
2To Timothy, my dear son:
Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Encouragement to Be Faithful
3I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. 5I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. 6For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
8So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, 9who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 11And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. 12That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.
13What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. 14Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.
15You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes.
16May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. 17On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me. 18May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Psalm 76
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph. A song.
1 In Judah God is known;
his name is great in Israel.
2 His tent is in Salem,
his dwelling place in Zion.
3 There he broke the flashing arrows,
the shields and the swords, the weapons of war.
Selah
4 You are resplendent with light,
more majestic than mountains rich with game.
5 Valiant men lie plundered,
they sleep their last sleep;
not one of the warriors
can lift his hands.
6 At your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
both horse and chariot lie still.
7 You alone are to be feared.
Who can stand before you when you are angry?
8 From heaven you pronounced judgment,
and the land feared and was quiet-
9 when you, O God, rose up to judge,
to save all the afflicted of the land.
Selah
10 Surely your wrath against men brings you praise,
and the survivors of your wrath are restrained. [a]
11 Make vows to the LORD your God and fulfill them;
let all the neighboring lands
bring gifts to the One to be feared.
12 He breaks the spirit of rulers;
he is feared by the kings of the earth.
August 24, 2008
God’s Restraint
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Psalm 76
Surely the wrath of man shall praise You; with the remainder of wrath You shall gird Yourself. —Psalm 76:10
Augustine said that God “judged it better to bring good out of evil, than not to permit any evil to exist.” Thus God takes the worst evil that men and women can do to us and turns it into good. Even the wrath of ungodly men brings praise to Him (Ps. 76:10).
God has not promised that your life will be easy—indeed it may not be. But He has promised to sustain you in your struggle and uphold you with His mighty arm. If you trust Him, He will empower you to make your way bravely through extraordinary difficulty with faith, hope, and love. The trials God permits in your life will lead to His praise and glory, if only you will abide in Him.
Furthermore, there will be a restraint and a respite. The Hebrew text is somewhat obscure in Psalm 76:10. Literally it reads, “Surely the wrath of man will praise You; the remnant of wrath [God] will bind.” God will use men’s wrath to bring glory and praise to Himself, but when that purpose is fulfilled He will then restrain it.
God will not allow you to be pressed beyond endurance. That is His sure promise. When the lesson has been learned, when the revelation of God’s glory is complete and your soul has been tried and proven—then God will raise His hand and save you. He will say, “No more.” — David H. Roper
When He leads through some valley of trouble,
His omnipotent hand we trace;
For the trials and sorrows He sends us
Are part of His lessons in grace. —Anon.
In every desert of trial, God has an oasis of comfort.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 24, 2008
The Spiritual Search
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? —Matthew 7:9
The illustration of prayer that our Lord used here is one of a good child who is asking for something good. We talk about prayer as if God hears us regardless of what our relationship is to Him (seeMatthew 5:45 ). Never say that it is not God’s will to give you what you ask. Don’t faint and give up, but find out the reason you have not received; increase the intensity of your search and examine the evidence. Is your relationship right with your spouse, your children, and your fellow students? Are you a "good child" in those relationships? Do you have to say to the Lord, "I have been irritable and cross, but I still want spiritual blessings"? You cannot receive and will have to do without them until you have the attitude of a "good child."
We mistake defiance for devotion, arguing with God instead of surrendering. We refuse to look at the evidence that clearly indicates where we are wrong. Have I been asking God to give me money for something I want, while refusing to pay someone what I owe him? Have I been asking God for liberty while I am withholding it from someone who belongs to me? Have I refused to forgive someone, and have I been unkind to that person? Have I been living as God’s child among my relatives and friends? (see Matthew 7:12 ).
I am a child of God only by being born again, and as His child I am good only as I "walk in the light" ( 1 John 1:7 ). For most of us, prayer simply becomes some trivial religious expression, a matter of mystical and emotional fellowship with God. We are all good at producing spiritual fog that blinds our sight. But if we will search out and examine the evidence, we will see very clearly what is wrong— a friendship, an unpaid debt, or an improper attitude. There is no use praying unless we are living as children of God. Then Jesus says, regarding His children, "Everyone who asks receives . . ." ( Matthew 7:8 ).
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
August 24
The teaching that I ask you to accept is easy; the load I give you to carry is light.
Matthew 11:30 (NCV)
Jesus says he is the solution for weariness of soul.
Go to him. Be honest with him. Admit you have soul secrets you've
never dealt with. He already knows what they are. He's just waiting for
you to ask him to help....
Go ahead. You'll be glad you did. Those near to you will be glad as well.
2 Timothy 1
1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, according to the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus,
2To Timothy, my dear son:
Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Encouragement to Be Faithful
3I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. 5I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. 6For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
8So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, 9who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 11And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. 12That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.
13What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. 14Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.
15You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes.
16May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. 17On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me. 18May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Psalm 76
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph. A song.
1 In Judah God is known;
his name is great in Israel.
2 His tent is in Salem,
his dwelling place in Zion.
3 There he broke the flashing arrows,
the shields and the swords, the weapons of war.
Selah
4 You are resplendent with light,
more majestic than mountains rich with game.
5 Valiant men lie plundered,
they sleep their last sleep;
not one of the warriors
can lift his hands.
6 At your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
both horse and chariot lie still.
7 You alone are to be feared.
Who can stand before you when you are angry?
8 From heaven you pronounced judgment,
and the land feared and was quiet-
9 when you, O God, rose up to judge,
to save all the afflicted of the land.
Selah
10 Surely your wrath against men brings you praise,
and the survivors of your wrath are restrained. [a]
11 Make vows to the LORD your God and fulfill them;
let all the neighboring lands
bring gifts to the One to be feared.
12 He breaks the spirit of rulers;
he is feared by the kings of the earth.
August 24, 2008
God’s Restraint
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Psalm 76
Surely the wrath of man shall praise You; with the remainder of wrath You shall gird Yourself. —Psalm 76:10
Augustine said that God “judged it better to bring good out of evil, than not to permit any evil to exist.” Thus God takes the worst evil that men and women can do to us and turns it into good. Even the wrath of ungodly men brings praise to Him (Ps. 76:10).
God has not promised that your life will be easy—indeed it may not be. But He has promised to sustain you in your struggle and uphold you with His mighty arm. If you trust Him, He will empower you to make your way bravely through extraordinary difficulty with faith, hope, and love. The trials God permits in your life will lead to His praise and glory, if only you will abide in Him.
Furthermore, there will be a restraint and a respite. The Hebrew text is somewhat obscure in Psalm 76:10. Literally it reads, “Surely the wrath of man will praise You; the remnant of wrath [God] will bind.” God will use men’s wrath to bring glory and praise to Himself, but when that purpose is fulfilled He will then restrain it.
God will not allow you to be pressed beyond endurance. That is His sure promise. When the lesson has been learned, when the revelation of God’s glory is complete and your soul has been tried and proven—then God will raise His hand and save you. He will say, “No more.” — David H. Roper
When He leads through some valley of trouble,
His omnipotent hand we trace;
For the trials and sorrows He sends us
Are part of His lessons in grace. —Anon.
In every desert of trial, God has an oasis of comfort.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 24, 2008
The Spiritual Search
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? —Matthew 7:9
The illustration of prayer that our Lord used here is one of a good child who is asking for something good. We talk about prayer as if God hears us regardless of what our relationship is to Him (seeMatthew 5:45 ). Never say that it is not God’s will to give you what you ask. Don’t faint and give up, but find out the reason you have not received; increase the intensity of your search and examine the evidence. Is your relationship right with your spouse, your children, and your fellow students? Are you a "good child" in those relationships? Do you have to say to the Lord, "I have been irritable and cross, but I still want spiritual blessings"? You cannot receive and will have to do without them until you have the attitude of a "good child."
We mistake defiance for devotion, arguing with God instead of surrendering. We refuse to look at the evidence that clearly indicates where we are wrong. Have I been asking God to give me money for something I want, while refusing to pay someone what I owe him? Have I been asking God for liberty while I am withholding it from someone who belongs to me? Have I refused to forgive someone, and have I been unkind to that person? Have I been living as God’s child among my relatives and friends? (see Matthew 7:12 ).
I am a child of God only by being born again, and as His child I am good only as I "walk in the light" ( 1 John 1:7 ). For most of us, prayer simply becomes some trivial religious expression, a matter of mystical and emotional fellowship with God. We are all good at producing spiritual fog that blinds our sight. But if we will search out and examine the evidence, we will see very clearly what is wrong— a friendship, an unpaid debt, or an improper attitude. There is no use praying unless we are living as children of God. Then Jesus says, regarding His children, "Everyone who asks receives . . ." ( Matthew 7:8 ).
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