Max Lucado Daily: JESUS BECAME FLESH
John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood” (The MSG).
Let’s begin where the earthly ministry of Jesus began— in the womb of Mary. The God of the universe, for a time, kicked against the wall of that womb. He was born in the poverty of a peasant and spent his first night in the feed trough of a cow. He didn’t have to, did he? Jesus could have become a voice— a voice in the air. He could have become a message— a message in the night. Jesus could have become a light— a light in the night. But he became flesh. Why?
Jesus came to be near you. Any concerns you might have about his power and love were removed from the discussion the moment he became flesh and entered the world. What a beginning. What an entrance. And what a moment.
2 Corinthians 11:1-15
Will you put up with a little foolish aside from me? Please, just for a moment. The thing that has me so upset is that I care about you so much—this is the passion of God burning inside me! I promised your hand in marriage to Christ, presented you as a pure virgin to her husband. And now I’m afraid that exactly as the Snake seduced Eve with his smooth patter, you are being lured away from the simple purity of your love for Christ.
4-6 It seems that if someone shows up preaching quite another Jesus than we preached—different spirit, different message—you put up with him quite nicely. But if you put up with these big-shot “apostles,” why can’t you put up with simple me? I’m as good as they are. It’s true that I don’t have their voice, haven’t mastered that smooth eloquence that impresses you so much. But when I do open my mouth, I at least know what I’m talking about. We haven’t kept anything back. We let you in on everything.
7-12 I wonder, did I make a bad mistake in proclaiming God’s Message to you without asking for something in return, serving you free of charge so that you wouldn’t be inconvenienced by me? It turns out that the other churches paid my way so that you could have a free ride. Not once during the time I lived among you did anyone have to lift a finger to help me out. My needs were always supplied by the believers from Macedonia province. I was careful never to be a burden to you, and I never will be, you can count on it. With Christ as my witness, it’s a point of honor with me, and I’m not going to keep it quiet just to protect you from what the neighbors will think. It’s not that I don’t love you; God knows I do. I’m just trying to keep things open and honest between us.
12-15 And I’m not changing my position on this. I’d die before taking your money. I’m giving nobody grounds for lumping me in with those money-grubbing “preachers,” vaunting themselves as something special. They’re a sorry bunch—pseudo-apostles, lying preachers, crooked workers—posing as Christ’s agents but sham to the core. And no wonder! Satan does it all the time, dressing up as a beautiful angel of light. So it shouldn’t surprise us when his servants masquerade as servants of God. But they’re not getting by with anything. They’ll pay for it in the end.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight: Luke 9:11–17
but the crowds learned about it and followed him. He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God,x and healed those who needed healing.
12 Late in the afternoon the Twelve came to him and said, “Send the crowd away so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside and find food and lodging, because we are in a remote place here.”
13 He replied, “You give them something to eat.”
They answered, “We have only five loaves of bread and two fish—unless we go and buy food for all this crowd.” 14 (About five thousand men were there.)
But he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 The disciples did so, and everyone sat down. 16 Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them.y Then he gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people. 17 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
Insight
Matthew’s account of the feeding of the five thousand suggests Jesus had withdrawn to a solitary place to mourn the death of John the Baptist (14:12–13). But when the crowds followed Him, “he had compassion on them” (v. 14). This demonstrates His self-giving character. He placed His own desires aside to meet the needs of those who came to Him. He said to His disciples, “You give them something to eat” (Luke 9:13). Imagine how that sounded to them. Jesus wasn’t unaware of their situation; He knew they didn’t have enough food for everyone. Jesus knows what we have and what it will take to accomplish what He’s asking us to do. When we give what we have to Him, He uses it in ways that only He can.
Broken to Be Shared
You give them something to eat. Luke 9:13
We met every Thursday after he lost his wife in a car accident. Sometimes he came with questions to which no answers exist; sometimes he came with memories he wanted to relive. Over time, he accepted that even though the accident was a result of the brokenness in our world, God could work in the midst of it. A few years later, he taught a class at our church about grief and how to lament well. Soon, he became our go-to guide for people experiencing loss. Sometimes it’s when we don’t feel like we have anything to offer that God takes our “not enough” and makes it “more than enough.”
Jesus told His disciples to give the people something to eat. They’d protested that there was nothing to give; Jesus multiplied their meager supplies and then turned back to the disciples and gave them the bread, as if to say, “I meant it: You give them something to eat!” (Luke 9:13–16). Christ will do the miraculous, but He often chooses to involve us.
Jesus says to us, “Place who you are and what you have in My hands. Your broken life. Your story. Your frailty and your failure, your pain and your suffering. Put it in My hands. You’ll be surprised what I can do with it.” Jesus knows that out of our emptiness, He can bring fullness. Out of our weakness, He can reveal His strength. By: Glenn Packiam
Reflect & Pray
What brokenness have you experienced? What would it look like to offer that experience to Jesus and ask Him to bring life to others from it?
Dear Jesus, take my “not enough” and make it “more than enough.” Take my pain, my failure, and my frailty, and make it something more.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Being an Example of His Message
Preach the word! —2 Timothy 4:2
We are not saved only to be instruments for God, but to be His sons and daughters. He does not turn us into spiritual agents but into spiritual messengers, and the message must be a part of us. The Son of God was His own message— “The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). As His disciples, our lives must be a holy example of the reality of our message. Even the natural heart of the unsaved will serve if called upon to do so, but it takes a heart broken by conviction of sin, baptized by the Holy Spirit, and crushed into submission to God’s purpose to make a person’s life a holy example of God’s message.
There is a difference between giving a testimony and preaching. A preacher is someone who has received the call of God and is determined to use all his energy to proclaim God’s truth. God takes us beyond our own aspirations and ideas for our lives, and molds and shapes us for His purpose, just as He worked in the disciples’ lives after Pentecost. The purpose of Pentecost was not to teach the disciples something, but to make them the incarnation of what they preached so that they would literally become God’s message in the flesh. “…you shall be witnesses to Me…” (Acts 1:8).
Allow God to have complete liberty in your life when you speak. Before God’s message can liberate other people, His liberation must first be real in you. Gather your material carefully, and then allow God to “set your words on fire” for His glory.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Am I getting nobler, better, more helpful, more humble, as I get older? Am I exhibiting the life that men take knowledge of as having been with Jesus, or am I getting more self-assertive, more deliberately determined to have my own way? It is a great thing to tell yourself the truth. The Place of Help, 1005 R
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 11-13; Mark 12:1-27
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Hiding Our Scars - #8652
Mine's in my shoulder, from replacement surgery. Our grandson, well, his is in his chest from heart surgery. Country singer, Carrie Underwood's was on her face from a bad fall and 40 stitches a while back. But most of ours are deep inside, where no one can see them.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You about "Hiding Our Scars."
Yep! Our scars. For Carrie Underwood, being such a public figure, having scars on her face was an understandable cause for concern. She couldn't be sure what she would look like when she healed. Her first public appearance came some four months later at the Academy of Country Music Awards. Her song: "Cry Pretty." She confessed to being "super nervous." She said, "I felt like I'd never been on stage before." The audience gave her a rousing ovation.
As I read about her anxiety over people's reaction to her scar, it struck a chord in me. I kept thinking, "Hey, we all have scars - emotional scars. And we don't want anybody to see them." Our scars might be the result of a fall - I mean an embarrassing failure or a major mistake. Some of us are scarred by rejection, betrayal, abuse, mistreatmen, divorce, or grief. Major life wounds leave major life scars.
We're not sure how people will react if we open up about the wounds. So, all too often, we stuff the hurt, we stuff the pain, we stuff the anger. But just like a beach ball pushed under the water, what we stuff will surface one way or another. And the more we push it under, the higher it's going to go when it goes. Years of hidden wounds and scars pile up into a building volcano of anger, resentment, self-pity, fear, distrust, depression - continually spilling out on those closest to us.
When my Karen, the love of my life, was suddenly gone on that awful day, I knew a lot of people would be watching how I responded. Because I'm in ministry, I would be expected to "be strong," proclaiming all the Christian "talking points," the things they affirm when they lose someone. And let there be no confusion here - my hope in Christ has been the anchor that holds in the most devastating storm of my life.
But, purely by God's grace, I made the choice to be as honest about the hurt as I was about the hope. To be real. To let the scar on my heart be seen and known. I had no idea the effect that would have. It seemed to give many people permission to talk about their hurts. To get beyond the rhetoric to the real. I'm seeing how an open heart opens hearts, including opening hearts to my Jesus.
So maybe we need to be more afraid of hiding our scars than sharing them. In most cases, letting our wounds be known allows people to offer comfort, encouragement, love, all of which bring healing to our hurt. And which can help other people unload the burden they've carried alone far too long.
Jesus famously said, "The truth will set you free" (John 8:32). And there is a sense of release in allowing yourself to be known and understood. Often the first step to healing a broken relationship is to share that hidden wound that has turned your heart cold. Not blaming, just reaching out for healing.
Jesus calls us to "carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill
the law of Christ" (Galatians 6:2). But we can't carry a burden that we don't know. I'm asking Jesus to make me a man people can feel safe with. Because our world is starved for people who will not condemn, who we know will love us with the mask off and with all the ugly out in the open.
My Jesus is like that. Not "I love you if..." or "I love you until..." Just His unconditional "I love you." Period. He knows about scars. They're the only thing from earth He took back to heaven with Him; from the nails in His hands and feet - the forever evidence of how endlessly He loves us.
He waits to come into your heart and begin to forgive your sin and heal the wounds of your past, and help you be somebody who can help heal the wounds of others. If you tell Him, "Jesus, I'm yours" it starts right there.
Our website's a place where many people have begun their relationship with Jesus. CanI encourage you to go there today? It's ANewStory.com.
Listen to the words of our Lord, "I will not forget you! See, I have you engraved on the palms of My hands" (Isaiah 49:15-16). He really is our one safe place.
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Monday, March 9, 2020
2 Chronicles 26 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: LET’S TALK ABOUT JESUS
Jesus: J-E-S-U-S. Five letters. Six hours. One cross. Three nails. We live because of Jesus. We Live because he lives; hope because he works; and matter because he matters. To be saved by grace is to be saved by Jesus—not by an idea, doctrine, creed, or church membership, but by Jesus himself, our Redeemer who will sweep into heaven anyone who gives him the nod.
Timid Jesus? Not on your life. Timid Jesus happens only on Christmas and Easter. The real Jesus claims every tick of the clock. Timid Jesus winks at sin. The real Jesus nukes it. Timid Jesus is a lucky charm crucifix on a necklace. Jesus is a tiger in your heart. Do you know this Jesus? Let’s talk about Jesus.
2 Chronicles 26
The people of Judah then took Uzziah, who was only sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. The first thing he did after his father was dead and buried was to recover Elath for Judah and rebuild it.
3-5 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king and reigned for fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jecoliah from Jerusalem. He behaved well in the eyes of God, following in the footsteps of his father Amaziah. He was a loyal seeker of God. He was well trained by his pastor and teacher Zechariah to live in reverent obedience before God, and for as long as Zechariah lived, Uzziah lived a godly life. And God prospered him.
6-8 He ventured out and fought the Philistines, breaking into the fortress cities of Gath, Jabneh, and Ashdod. He also built settlements around Ashdod and other Philistine areas. God helped him in his wars with the Philistines, the Arabs in Gur Baal, and the Meunites. The Ammonites also paid tribute. Uzziah became famous, his reputation extending all the way to Egypt. He became quite powerful.
9-10 Uzziah constructed defense towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, the Valley Gate, and at the corner of the wall. He also built towers and dug cisterns out in the country. He had herds of cattle down in the foothills and out on the plains, had farmers and vinedressers at work in the hills and fields—he loved growing things.
11-15 On the military side, Uzziah had a well-prepared army ready to fight. They were organized by companies under the direction of Jeiel the secretary, Maaseiah the field captain, and Hananiah of the general staff. The roster of family leaders over the fighting men accounted for 2,600. Under them were reinforcement troops numbering 307,000, with 500 of them on constant alert—a strong royal defense against any attack. Uzziah had them well-armed with shields, spears, helmets, armor, bows, and slingshots. He also installed the latest in military technology on the towers and corners of Jerusalem for shooting arrows and hurling stones. He became well known for all this—a famous king. Everything seemed to go his way.
16-18 But then the strength and success went to his head. Arrogant and proud, he fell. One day, contemptuous of God, he walked into The Temple of God like he owned it and took over, burning incense on the Incense Altar. The priest Azariah, backed up by eighty brave priests of God, tried to prevent him. They confronted Uzziah: “You must not, you cannot do this, Uzziah—only the Aaronite priests, especially consecrated for the work, are permitted to burn incense. Get out of God’s Temple; you are unfaithful and a disgrace!”
19-21 But Uzziah, censer in hand, was already in the middle of doing it and angrily rebuffed the priests. He lost his temper; angry words were exchanged—and then, even as they quarreled, a skin disease appeared on his forehead. As soon as they saw it, the chief priest Azariah and the other priests got him out of there as fast as they could. He hurried out—he knew that God then and there had given him the disease. Uzziah had his skin disease for the rest of his life and had to live in quarantine; he was not permitted to set foot in The Temple of God. His son Jotham, who managed the royal palace, took over the government of the country.
22-23 The rest of the history of Uzziah, from start to finish, was written by the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. When Uzziah died, they buried him with his ancestors in a field next to the royal cemetery. His skin disease disqualified him from burial in the royal cemetery. His son Jotham became the next king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, March 09, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Psalm 121:5–8
he Lord watches overe you—
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sunf will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will keep you from all harmg—
he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.
Insight
Psalm 121 is one of the “songs of ascent” (Psalms 120–134). Three times a year, at the great feasts of Unleavened Bread (Passover), Firstfruits (Pentecost), and Ingathering (Tabernacles), the Jewish people were to gather together for worship (Exodus 23:15–17). The songs of ascent were to be sung by the pilgrims as they made their way up to Jerusalem. As one of these songs, Psalm 121 is a song for the journey and speaks about seeking God’s help amid the dangers that could be encountered along the way. These dangers might include slipping (v. 3) and sunstroke or lunacy (moon madness, v. 6). During a dangerous journey, rather than looking to the high places where false gods were worshiped, God’s people were encouraged to look to God for help—“the Maker of heaven and earth” (v. 2).
Watched by God
The Lord watches over you. Psalm 121:5
Our little grandson waved goodbye, then turned back with a question. “Grandma, why do you stand on the porch and watch until we leave?” I smiled at him, finding his question “cute” because he’s so young. Seeing his concern, however, I tried to give a good answer. “Well, it’s a courtesy,” I told him. “If you’re my guest, watching until you leave shows I care.” He weighed my answer, but still looked perplexed. So, I told him the simple truth. “I watch,” I said, “because I love you. When I see your car drive away, I know you’re safely heading home.” He smiled, giving me a tender hug. Finally, he understood.
His childlike understanding reminded me what all of us should remember—that our heavenly Father is constantly watching over each of us, His precious children. As Psalm 121 says, “The Lord watches over you—the Lord is your shade at your right hand” (v. 5).
What assurance for Israel’s pilgrims as they climbed dangerous roads to Jerusalem to worship. “The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm—he will watch over your life” (vv. 6–7). Likewise, as we each climb our life’s road, sometimes facing spiritual threat or harm, “The Lord will watch over [our] coming and going.” Why? His love. When? “Now and forevermore” (v. 8). By: Patricia Raybon
Reflect & Pray
What “mountain” are you climbing today? What assurance do you find in knowing God is watching over you?
Our loving Father, as we travel the road of life, thank You for watching over us, keeping us safe.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, March 09, 2020
Turning Back or Walking with Jesus?
Do you also want to go away? —John 6:67
What a penetrating question! Our Lord’s words often hit home for us when He speaks in the simplest way. In spite of the fact that we know who Jesus is, He asks, “Do you also want to go away?” We must continually maintain an adventurous attitude toward Him, despite any potential personal risk.
“From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (John 6:66). They turned back from walking with Jesus; not into sin, but away from Him. Many people today are pouring their lives out and working for Jesus Christ, but are not really walking with Him. One thing God constantly requires of us is a oneness with Jesus Christ. After being set apart through sanctification, we should discipline our lives spiritually to maintain this intimate oneness. When God gives you a clear determination of His will for you, all your striving to maintain that relationship by some particular method is completely unnecessary. All that is required is to live a natural life of absolute dependence on Jesus Christ. Never try to live your life with God in any other way than His way. And His way means absolute devotion to Him. Showing no concern for the uncertainties that lie ahead is the secret of walking with Jesus.
Peter saw in Jesus only someone who could minister salvation to him and to the world. But our Lord wants us to be fellow laborers with Him.
In John 6:70 Jesus lovingly reminded Peter that he was chosen to go with Him. And each of us must answer this question for ourselves and no one else: “Do you also want to go away?”
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The fiery furnaces are there by God’s direct permission. It is misleading to imagine that we are developed in spite of our circumstances; we are developed because of them. It is mastery in circumstances that is needed, not mastery over them. The Love of God—The Message of Invincible Consolation, 674 R
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 8-10; Mark 11:19-33
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, March 09, 2020
Your High-Paying Construction Job - #8651
I've got a lot of friends who live on some pretty isolated Indian reservations in the United States. And, frankly, there just aren't many jobs there. But recently, a couple of them have suddenly found themselves making some pretty big money on a construction job. One of my Native friends said, "Man, this is a great job! They're building a road, and I got hired, and it's great money!" Actually, when you're working construction, it usually does mean some pretty decent pay.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your High-Paying Construction Job."
If you're a follower of Jesus, you already have a construction job. Yep! He's assigned every one of us to work on His building crew, and it's really rewarding. Except it's not a road or a structure He's hired us to build. It's people - the people you're with day after day in your personal world.
Our divine Contractor's instructions are in our word for today from the Word of God in Ephesians 4:29. The Lord says, "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up, according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." God is trying to build the people around you, and He wants you on His construction crew. And your primary tool in building people up is what comes out of your mouth.
For some of us, the problem is that first thing we need to do is resign from the demolitions crew! Our mouth may actually be tearing people down. People who are close to us, and it's tearing them down more than it's building them up. And according to the next verse, that literally "grieves the Holy Spirit of God." Why? Because you've been tearing down someone that He's trying to build, with your sarcasm, your criticism, your focus on what they're doing wrong, the names you call them, or the wounds that you inflict when you're angry or when you're frustrated with them.
God says, "Don't let any of that kind of junk come out of that mouth of yours!" Instead, dedicate yourself to using your mouth as something that builds people, not tears them down. So, how do you do that? Well, by always praising the good you see in someone and by always looking for something to praise. You're in the construction business when you share something encouraging from God's Word that can lighten their burden that day, or when you consistently thank people and don't take them for granted, when you say the nice things now that people usually say at a person's funeral - when they can't hear them anymore!
And when you're in the construction business with Jesus, it really does pay well. People look forward to being with you. Because your own attitude becomes much more positive as you look for the positive in other people, and then your own joy increases. Working relationships have less friction, your family has less friction, and your church has less friction. People trust you. They open up to you because they feel safe with you. They feel you care about them. They feel like you believe in them. And, most important of all, you have the blessing of Almighty God on your life.
Jesus is still hiring people. There's a want ad out there for His construction crew, and the rewards of being in the construction business with Jesus are tremendous. Won't you help Jesus build the people that He's placed under your influence where you are?
His mission is pretty simple. It's expressed in just a few words in Hebrews 3:13. Let's see how you're doing. "Encourage one another daily."
Jesus: J-E-S-U-S. Five letters. Six hours. One cross. Three nails. We live because of Jesus. We Live because he lives; hope because he works; and matter because he matters. To be saved by grace is to be saved by Jesus—not by an idea, doctrine, creed, or church membership, but by Jesus himself, our Redeemer who will sweep into heaven anyone who gives him the nod.
Timid Jesus? Not on your life. Timid Jesus happens only on Christmas and Easter. The real Jesus claims every tick of the clock. Timid Jesus winks at sin. The real Jesus nukes it. Timid Jesus is a lucky charm crucifix on a necklace. Jesus is a tiger in your heart. Do you know this Jesus? Let’s talk about Jesus.
2 Chronicles 26
The people of Judah then took Uzziah, who was only sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. The first thing he did after his father was dead and buried was to recover Elath for Judah and rebuild it.
3-5 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king and reigned for fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jecoliah from Jerusalem. He behaved well in the eyes of God, following in the footsteps of his father Amaziah. He was a loyal seeker of God. He was well trained by his pastor and teacher Zechariah to live in reverent obedience before God, and for as long as Zechariah lived, Uzziah lived a godly life. And God prospered him.
6-8 He ventured out and fought the Philistines, breaking into the fortress cities of Gath, Jabneh, and Ashdod. He also built settlements around Ashdod and other Philistine areas. God helped him in his wars with the Philistines, the Arabs in Gur Baal, and the Meunites. The Ammonites also paid tribute. Uzziah became famous, his reputation extending all the way to Egypt. He became quite powerful.
9-10 Uzziah constructed defense towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, the Valley Gate, and at the corner of the wall. He also built towers and dug cisterns out in the country. He had herds of cattle down in the foothills and out on the plains, had farmers and vinedressers at work in the hills and fields—he loved growing things.
11-15 On the military side, Uzziah had a well-prepared army ready to fight. They were organized by companies under the direction of Jeiel the secretary, Maaseiah the field captain, and Hananiah of the general staff. The roster of family leaders over the fighting men accounted for 2,600. Under them were reinforcement troops numbering 307,000, with 500 of them on constant alert—a strong royal defense against any attack. Uzziah had them well-armed with shields, spears, helmets, armor, bows, and slingshots. He also installed the latest in military technology on the towers and corners of Jerusalem for shooting arrows and hurling stones. He became well known for all this—a famous king. Everything seemed to go his way.
16-18 But then the strength and success went to his head. Arrogant and proud, he fell. One day, contemptuous of God, he walked into The Temple of God like he owned it and took over, burning incense on the Incense Altar. The priest Azariah, backed up by eighty brave priests of God, tried to prevent him. They confronted Uzziah: “You must not, you cannot do this, Uzziah—only the Aaronite priests, especially consecrated for the work, are permitted to burn incense. Get out of God’s Temple; you are unfaithful and a disgrace!”
19-21 But Uzziah, censer in hand, was already in the middle of doing it and angrily rebuffed the priests. He lost his temper; angry words were exchanged—and then, even as they quarreled, a skin disease appeared on his forehead. As soon as they saw it, the chief priest Azariah and the other priests got him out of there as fast as they could. He hurried out—he knew that God then and there had given him the disease. Uzziah had his skin disease for the rest of his life and had to live in quarantine; he was not permitted to set foot in The Temple of God. His son Jotham, who managed the royal palace, took over the government of the country.
22-23 The rest of the history of Uzziah, from start to finish, was written by the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. When Uzziah died, they buried him with his ancestors in a field next to the royal cemetery. His skin disease disqualified him from burial in the royal cemetery. His son Jotham became the next king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, March 09, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Psalm 121:5–8
he Lord watches overe you—
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sunf will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will keep you from all harmg—
he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.
Insight
Psalm 121 is one of the “songs of ascent” (Psalms 120–134). Three times a year, at the great feasts of Unleavened Bread (Passover), Firstfruits (Pentecost), and Ingathering (Tabernacles), the Jewish people were to gather together for worship (Exodus 23:15–17). The songs of ascent were to be sung by the pilgrims as they made their way up to Jerusalem. As one of these songs, Psalm 121 is a song for the journey and speaks about seeking God’s help amid the dangers that could be encountered along the way. These dangers might include slipping (v. 3) and sunstroke or lunacy (moon madness, v. 6). During a dangerous journey, rather than looking to the high places where false gods were worshiped, God’s people were encouraged to look to God for help—“the Maker of heaven and earth” (v. 2).
Watched by God
The Lord watches over you. Psalm 121:5
Our little grandson waved goodbye, then turned back with a question. “Grandma, why do you stand on the porch and watch until we leave?” I smiled at him, finding his question “cute” because he’s so young. Seeing his concern, however, I tried to give a good answer. “Well, it’s a courtesy,” I told him. “If you’re my guest, watching until you leave shows I care.” He weighed my answer, but still looked perplexed. So, I told him the simple truth. “I watch,” I said, “because I love you. When I see your car drive away, I know you’re safely heading home.” He smiled, giving me a tender hug. Finally, he understood.
His childlike understanding reminded me what all of us should remember—that our heavenly Father is constantly watching over each of us, His precious children. As Psalm 121 says, “The Lord watches over you—the Lord is your shade at your right hand” (v. 5).
What assurance for Israel’s pilgrims as they climbed dangerous roads to Jerusalem to worship. “The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm—he will watch over your life” (vv. 6–7). Likewise, as we each climb our life’s road, sometimes facing spiritual threat or harm, “The Lord will watch over [our] coming and going.” Why? His love. When? “Now and forevermore” (v. 8). By: Patricia Raybon
Reflect & Pray
What “mountain” are you climbing today? What assurance do you find in knowing God is watching over you?
Our loving Father, as we travel the road of life, thank You for watching over us, keeping us safe.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, March 09, 2020
Turning Back or Walking with Jesus?
Do you also want to go away? —John 6:67
What a penetrating question! Our Lord’s words often hit home for us when He speaks in the simplest way. In spite of the fact that we know who Jesus is, He asks, “Do you also want to go away?” We must continually maintain an adventurous attitude toward Him, despite any potential personal risk.
“From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (John 6:66). They turned back from walking with Jesus; not into sin, but away from Him. Many people today are pouring their lives out and working for Jesus Christ, but are not really walking with Him. One thing God constantly requires of us is a oneness with Jesus Christ. After being set apart through sanctification, we should discipline our lives spiritually to maintain this intimate oneness. When God gives you a clear determination of His will for you, all your striving to maintain that relationship by some particular method is completely unnecessary. All that is required is to live a natural life of absolute dependence on Jesus Christ. Never try to live your life with God in any other way than His way. And His way means absolute devotion to Him. Showing no concern for the uncertainties that lie ahead is the secret of walking with Jesus.
Peter saw in Jesus only someone who could minister salvation to him and to the world. But our Lord wants us to be fellow laborers with Him.
In John 6:70 Jesus lovingly reminded Peter that he was chosen to go with Him. And each of us must answer this question for ourselves and no one else: “Do you also want to go away?”
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The fiery furnaces are there by God’s direct permission. It is misleading to imagine that we are developed in spite of our circumstances; we are developed because of them. It is mastery in circumstances that is needed, not mastery over them. The Love of God—The Message of Invincible Consolation, 674 R
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 8-10; Mark 11:19-33
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, March 09, 2020
Your High-Paying Construction Job - #8651
I've got a lot of friends who live on some pretty isolated Indian reservations in the United States. And, frankly, there just aren't many jobs there. But recently, a couple of them have suddenly found themselves making some pretty big money on a construction job. One of my Native friends said, "Man, this is a great job! They're building a road, and I got hired, and it's great money!" Actually, when you're working construction, it usually does mean some pretty decent pay.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your High-Paying Construction Job."
If you're a follower of Jesus, you already have a construction job. Yep! He's assigned every one of us to work on His building crew, and it's really rewarding. Except it's not a road or a structure He's hired us to build. It's people - the people you're with day after day in your personal world.
Our divine Contractor's instructions are in our word for today from the Word of God in Ephesians 4:29. The Lord says, "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up, according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." God is trying to build the people around you, and He wants you on His construction crew. And your primary tool in building people up is what comes out of your mouth.
For some of us, the problem is that first thing we need to do is resign from the demolitions crew! Our mouth may actually be tearing people down. People who are close to us, and it's tearing them down more than it's building them up. And according to the next verse, that literally "grieves the Holy Spirit of God." Why? Because you've been tearing down someone that He's trying to build, with your sarcasm, your criticism, your focus on what they're doing wrong, the names you call them, or the wounds that you inflict when you're angry or when you're frustrated with them.
God says, "Don't let any of that kind of junk come out of that mouth of yours!" Instead, dedicate yourself to using your mouth as something that builds people, not tears them down. So, how do you do that? Well, by always praising the good you see in someone and by always looking for something to praise. You're in the construction business when you share something encouraging from God's Word that can lighten their burden that day, or when you consistently thank people and don't take them for granted, when you say the nice things now that people usually say at a person's funeral - when they can't hear them anymore!
And when you're in the construction business with Jesus, it really does pay well. People look forward to being with you. Because your own attitude becomes much more positive as you look for the positive in other people, and then your own joy increases. Working relationships have less friction, your family has less friction, and your church has less friction. People trust you. They open up to you because they feel safe with you. They feel you care about them. They feel like you believe in them. And, most important of all, you have the blessing of Almighty God on your life.
Jesus is still hiring people. There's a want ad out there for His construction crew, and the rewards of being in the construction business with Jesus are tremendous. Won't you help Jesus build the people that He's placed under your influence where you are?
His mission is pretty simple. It's expressed in just a few words in Hebrews 3:13. Let's see how you're doing. "Encourage one another daily."
Sunday, March 8, 2020
2 Chronicles 25, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: God Never Gives Up
God’s people often forget their God, but God never forgets them. When Joseph was dropped into a pit by his own brothers, God didn’t give up. When Moses said, “Here am I, send Aaron,” God didn’t give up. When the delivered Israelites wanted Egyptian slavery instead of milk and honey, God did not give up. When Aaron was making a false god at the very moment Moses was with the true God, God did not give up.
And when human hands fastened the divine hands of Jesus to a cross with spikes, it wasn’t the soldiers who held the hands of Jesus steady. It was God, the God who never gives up on his people, who held them steady. He held them to the cross where, with holy blood, the divine hand wrote these words, “God would give up His only son before He’d ever give up on you!” (John 3:16)
from Six Hours One Frid
2 Chronicles 25
Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king and reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jehoaddin from Jerusalem. He lived well before God, doing the right thing for the most part. But he wasn’t wholeheartedly devoted to God. When he had the affairs of the kingdom well in hand, he executed the palace guard who had assassinated his father the king. But he didn’t kill the sons of the assassins—he was mindful of what God commanded in The Revelation of Moses, that parents shouldn’t be executed for their childrens’ sins, nor children for their parents’. We each pay personally for our sins.
5-6 Amaziah organized Judah and sorted out Judah and Benjamin by families and by military units. Men twenty years and older had to register—they ended up with 300,000 judged capable of military service. In addition he hired 100,000 soldiers from Israel in the north at a cost of about four and a half tons of silver.
7-8 A holy man showed up and said, “No, O King—don’t let those northern Israelite soldiers into your army; God is not on their side, nor with any of the Ephraimites. Instead, you go by yourself and be strong. God and God only has the power to help or hurt your cause.”
9 But Amaziah said to the holy man, “But what about all this money—these tons of silver I have already paid out to hire these men?”
“God’s help is worth far more to you than that,” said the holy man.
10 So Amaziah fired the soldiers he had hired from the north and sent them home. They were very angry at losing their jobs and went home seething.
11-12 But Amaziah was optimistic. He led his troops into the Valley of Salt and killed ten thousand men of Seir. They took another ten thousand as prisoners, led them to the top of the Rock, and pushed them off a cliff. They all died in the fall, smashed on the rocks.
13 But the troops Amaziah had dismissed from his army, angry over their lost opportunity for plunder, rampaged through the towns of Judah all the way from Samaria to Beth Horon, killing three thousand people and taking much plunder.
14-15 On his return from the destruction of the Edomites, Amaziah brought back the gods of the men of Seir and installed them as his own gods, worshiping them and burning incense to them. That ignited God’s anger; a fiery blast of God’s wrath put into words by a God-sent prophet: “What is this? Why on earth would you pray to inferior gods who couldn’t so much as help their own people from you—gods weaker than Amaziah?”
16 Amaziah interrupted him, “Did I ask for your opinion? Shut up or get thrown out!”
The prophet quit speaking, but not before he got in one last word: “I have it on good authority: God has made up his mind to throw you out because of what you’ve done, and because you wouldn’t listen to me.”
17 One day Amaziah sent envoys to Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, challenging him to a fight: “Come and meet with me, I dare you. Let’s have it out face-to-face!”
18-19 Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah, “One day a thistle in Lebanon sent word to a cedar in Lebanon, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ But then a wild animal of Lebanon passed by and stepped on the thistle, crushing it. Just because you’ve defeated Edom in battle, you now think you’re a big shot. Go ahead and be proud, but stay home. Why press your luck? Why bring defeat on yourself and Judah?”
20-22 Amaziah wouldn’t take no for an answer—God had already decided to let Jehoash defeat him because he had defected to the gods of Edom. So Jehoash king of Israel came on ahead and confronted Amaziah king of Judah. They met at Beth Shemesh, a town of Judah. Judah was thoroughly beaten by Israel—all the soldiers straggled home in defeat.
23-24 Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Ahaziah, at Beth Shemesh. But Jehoash didn’t stop at that; he went on to attack Jerusalem. He demolished the Wall of Jerusalem all the way from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate—a stretch of about six hundred feet. He looted the gold, silver, and furnishings—anything he found that was worth taking—from both the palace and The Temple of God—and, for good measure, he took hostages. Then he returned to Samaria.
25-26 Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah continued as king fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel. The rest of the life and times of Amaziah from start to finish is written in the Royal Annals of the Kings of Judah and Israel.
27-28 During those last days, after Amaziah had defected from God, they cooked up a plot against Amaziah in Jerusalem, and he had to flee to Lachish. But they tracked him down in Lachish and killed him there. They brought him back on horseback and buried him in Jerusalem with his ancestors in the City of David.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, March 08, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight: Mark 11:15–18
On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17 And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’c?m But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’d”n
18 The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him,o because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.
Insight
A common literary technique Mark uses is what is sometimes called a “Markan sandwich.” In this technique, Mark interrupts one story (A) with another story (B) before returning to the first story (A), allowing both to inform how we interpret the meaning of each individually. Mark 11 offers a classic example of this “sandwich” technique. This chapter tells of Jesus cursing a fruitless fig tree (vv. 13–14), then shifts to Jesus driving out the temple’s sellers of merchandise (vv. 15–18), before returning to the fig tree (vv. 20–21). Jesus’ curse of the fig tree, withering it down to the roots (Mark 11:20) seems to symbolize His condemnation of the corrupt temple leadership that rejected Him. It’s likely He had Jeremiah 8:13 in mind: “There will be no figs on the tree, and their leaves will wither. What I have given them will be taken from them.”
To learn more about Jesus’ ministry, visit bit.ly/2lzTtAq.
Pure Worship
My house will be called a house of prayer. Mark 11:17
Jose pastored a church known for its programs and theatrical productions. They were well done, yet he worried the church’s busyness had slipped into a business. Was the church growing for the right reasons or because of its activities? Jose wanted to find out, so he canceled all extra church events for one year. His congregation would focus on being a living temple where people worshiped God.
Jose’s decision seems extreme, until you notice what Jesus did when He entered the temple’s outer courts. The holy space that should have been full of simple prayers had become a flurry of worship business. “Get your doves here! Lily white, as God requires!” Jesus overturned the merchant’s tables and stopped those who bought their merchandise. Furious at what they were doing, He quoted Isaiah 56 and Jeremiah 7: “ ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.’ But you have made it ‘a den of robbers’” (Mark 11:17). The court of the gentiles, the place for outsiders to worship God, had been turned into a mundane marketplace for making money.
There’s nothing wrong with business or staying busy. But that’s not the point of church. We’re the living temple of God, and our main task is to worship Jesus. We likely won’t need to flip over any tables as Jesus did, but He may be calling us to do something equally drastic. By: Mike Wittmer
Reflect & Pray
Why do you attend church and meet with believers? What expectations of yours might you need to let the Spirit change?
Father, show us where our expectations of worship fail to please You. Help us see that it’s all about You.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, March 08, 2020
The Surrendered Life
I have been crucified with Christ… —Galatians 2:20
To become one with Jesus Christ, a person must be willing not only to give up sin, but also to surrender his whole way of looking at things. Being born again by the Spirit of God means that we must first be willing to let go before we can grasp something else. The first thing we must surrender is all of our pretense or deceit. What our Lord wants us to present to Him is not our goodness, honesty, or our efforts to do better, but real solid sin. Actually, that is all He can take from us. And what He gives us in exchange for our sin is real solid righteousness. But we must surrender all pretense that we are anything, and give up all our claims of even being worthy of God’s consideration.
Once we have done that, the Spirit of God will show us what we need to surrender next. Along each step of this process, we will have to give up our claims to our rights to ourselves. Are we willing to surrender our grasp on all that we possess, our desires, and everything else in our lives? Are we ready to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ?
We will suffer a sharp painful disillusionment before we fully surrender. When people really see themselves as the Lord sees them, it is not the terribly offensive sins of the flesh that shock them, but the awful nature of the pride of their own hearts opposing Jesus Christ. When they see themselves in the light of the Lord, the shame, horror, and desperate conviction hit home for them.
If you are faced with the question of whether or not to surrender, make a determination to go on through the crisis, surrendering all that you have and all that you are to Him. And God will then equip you to do all that He requires of you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
There is nothing, naturally speaking, that makes us lose heart quicker than decay—the decay of bodily beauty, of natural life, of friendship, of associations, all these things make a man lose heart; but Paul says when we are trusting in Jesus Christ these things do not find us discouraged, light comes through them. The Place of Help, 1032 L
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 5-7; Mark 11:1-18
God’s people often forget their God, but God never forgets them. When Joseph was dropped into a pit by his own brothers, God didn’t give up. When Moses said, “Here am I, send Aaron,” God didn’t give up. When the delivered Israelites wanted Egyptian slavery instead of milk and honey, God did not give up. When Aaron was making a false god at the very moment Moses was with the true God, God did not give up.
And when human hands fastened the divine hands of Jesus to a cross with spikes, it wasn’t the soldiers who held the hands of Jesus steady. It was God, the God who never gives up on his people, who held them steady. He held them to the cross where, with holy blood, the divine hand wrote these words, “God would give up His only son before He’d ever give up on you!” (John 3:16)
from Six Hours One Frid
2 Chronicles 25
Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king and reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jehoaddin from Jerusalem. He lived well before God, doing the right thing for the most part. But he wasn’t wholeheartedly devoted to God. When he had the affairs of the kingdom well in hand, he executed the palace guard who had assassinated his father the king. But he didn’t kill the sons of the assassins—he was mindful of what God commanded in The Revelation of Moses, that parents shouldn’t be executed for their childrens’ sins, nor children for their parents’. We each pay personally for our sins.
5-6 Amaziah organized Judah and sorted out Judah and Benjamin by families and by military units. Men twenty years and older had to register—they ended up with 300,000 judged capable of military service. In addition he hired 100,000 soldiers from Israel in the north at a cost of about four and a half tons of silver.
7-8 A holy man showed up and said, “No, O King—don’t let those northern Israelite soldiers into your army; God is not on their side, nor with any of the Ephraimites. Instead, you go by yourself and be strong. God and God only has the power to help or hurt your cause.”
9 But Amaziah said to the holy man, “But what about all this money—these tons of silver I have already paid out to hire these men?”
“God’s help is worth far more to you than that,” said the holy man.
10 So Amaziah fired the soldiers he had hired from the north and sent them home. They were very angry at losing their jobs and went home seething.
11-12 But Amaziah was optimistic. He led his troops into the Valley of Salt and killed ten thousand men of Seir. They took another ten thousand as prisoners, led them to the top of the Rock, and pushed them off a cliff. They all died in the fall, smashed on the rocks.
13 But the troops Amaziah had dismissed from his army, angry over their lost opportunity for plunder, rampaged through the towns of Judah all the way from Samaria to Beth Horon, killing three thousand people and taking much plunder.
14-15 On his return from the destruction of the Edomites, Amaziah brought back the gods of the men of Seir and installed them as his own gods, worshiping them and burning incense to them. That ignited God’s anger; a fiery blast of God’s wrath put into words by a God-sent prophet: “What is this? Why on earth would you pray to inferior gods who couldn’t so much as help their own people from you—gods weaker than Amaziah?”
16 Amaziah interrupted him, “Did I ask for your opinion? Shut up or get thrown out!”
The prophet quit speaking, but not before he got in one last word: “I have it on good authority: God has made up his mind to throw you out because of what you’ve done, and because you wouldn’t listen to me.”
17 One day Amaziah sent envoys to Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, challenging him to a fight: “Come and meet with me, I dare you. Let’s have it out face-to-face!”
18-19 Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah, “One day a thistle in Lebanon sent word to a cedar in Lebanon, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ But then a wild animal of Lebanon passed by and stepped on the thistle, crushing it. Just because you’ve defeated Edom in battle, you now think you’re a big shot. Go ahead and be proud, but stay home. Why press your luck? Why bring defeat on yourself and Judah?”
20-22 Amaziah wouldn’t take no for an answer—God had already decided to let Jehoash defeat him because he had defected to the gods of Edom. So Jehoash king of Israel came on ahead and confronted Amaziah king of Judah. They met at Beth Shemesh, a town of Judah. Judah was thoroughly beaten by Israel—all the soldiers straggled home in defeat.
23-24 Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Ahaziah, at Beth Shemesh. But Jehoash didn’t stop at that; he went on to attack Jerusalem. He demolished the Wall of Jerusalem all the way from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate—a stretch of about six hundred feet. He looted the gold, silver, and furnishings—anything he found that was worth taking—from both the palace and The Temple of God—and, for good measure, he took hostages. Then he returned to Samaria.
25-26 Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah continued as king fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel. The rest of the life and times of Amaziah from start to finish is written in the Royal Annals of the Kings of Judah and Israel.
27-28 During those last days, after Amaziah had defected from God, they cooked up a plot against Amaziah in Jerusalem, and he had to flee to Lachish. But they tracked him down in Lachish and killed him there. They brought him back on horseback and buried him in Jerusalem with his ancestors in the City of David.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, March 08, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight: Mark 11:15–18
On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17 And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’c?m But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’d”n
18 The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him,o because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.
Insight
A common literary technique Mark uses is what is sometimes called a “Markan sandwich.” In this technique, Mark interrupts one story (A) with another story (B) before returning to the first story (A), allowing both to inform how we interpret the meaning of each individually. Mark 11 offers a classic example of this “sandwich” technique. This chapter tells of Jesus cursing a fruitless fig tree (vv. 13–14), then shifts to Jesus driving out the temple’s sellers of merchandise (vv. 15–18), before returning to the fig tree (vv. 20–21). Jesus’ curse of the fig tree, withering it down to the roots (Mark 11:20) seems to symbolize His condemnation of the corrupt temple leadership that rejected Him. It’s likely He had Jeremiah 8:13 in mind: “There will be no figs on the tree, and their leaves will wither. What I have given them will be taken from them.”
To learn more about Jesus’ ministry, visit bit.ly/2lzTtAq.
Pure Worship
My house will be called a house of prayer. Mark 11:17
Jose pastored a church known for its programs and theatrical productions. They were well done, yet he worried the church’s busyness had slipped into a business. Was the church growing for the right reasons or because of its activities? Jose wanted to find out, so he canceled all extra church events for one year. His congregation would focus on being a living temple where people worshiped God.
Jose’s decision seems extreme, until you notice what Jesus did when He entered the temple’s outer courts. The holy space that should have been full of simple prayers had become a flurry of worship business. “Get your doves here! Lily white, as God requires!” Jesus overturned the merchant’s tables and stopped those who bought their merchandise. Furious at what they were doing, He quoted Isaiah 56 and Jeremiah 7: “ ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.’ But you have made it ‘a den of robbers’” (Mark 11:17). The court of the gentiles, the place for outsiders to worship God, had been turned into a mundane marketplace for making money.
There’s nothing wrong with business or staying busy. But that’s not the point of church. We’re the living temple of God, and our main task is to worship Jesus. We likely won’t need to flip over any tables as Jesus did, but He may be calling us to do something equally drastic. By: Mike Wittmer
Reflect & Pray
Why do you attend church and meet with believers? What expectations of yours might you need to let the Spirit change?
Father, show us where our expectations of worship fail to please You. Help us see that it’s all about You.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, March 08, 2020
The Surrendered Life
I have been crucified with Christ… —Galatians 2:20
To become one with Jesus Christ, a person must be willing not only to give up sin, but also to surrender his whole way of looking at things. Being born again by the Spirit of God means that we must first be willing to let go before we can grasp something else. The first thing we must surrender is all of our pretense or deceit. What our Lord wants us to present to Him is not our goodness, honesty, or our efforts to do better, but real solid sin. Actually, that is all He can take from us. And what He gives us in exchange for our sin is real solid righteousness. But we must surrender all pretense that we are anything, and give up all our claims of even being worthy of God’s consideration.
Once we have done that, the Spirit of God will show us what we need to surrender next. Along each step of this process, we will have to give up our claims to our rights to ourselves. Are we willing to surrender our grasp on all that we possess, our desires, and everything else in our lives? Are we ready to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ?
We will suffer a sharp painful disillusionment before we fully surrender. When people really see themselves as the Lord sees them, it is not the terribly offensive sins of the flesh that shock them, but the awful nature of the pride of their own hearts opposing Jesus Christ. When they see themselves in the light of the Lord, the shame, horror, and desperate conviction hit home for them.
If you are faced with the question of whether or not to surrender, make a determination to go on through the crisis, surrendering all that you have and all that you are to Him. And God will then equip you to do all that He requires of you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
There is nothing, naturally speaking, that makes us lose heart quicker than decay—the decay of bodily beauty, of natural life, of friendship, of associations, all these things make a man lose heart; but Paul says when we are trusting in Jesus Christ these things do not find us discouraged, light comes through them. The Place of Help, 1032 L
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 5-7; Mark 11:1-18
Saturday, March 7, 2020
2 Chronicles 24, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: God as Heart Surgeon
Grace is God as heart surgeon! Grace is God cracking open your chest, removing your heart, poisoned as it is with pride and pain, and replacing it with his own.
God's dream isn't just to get you into heaven, but to get heaven into you. Grace lives because Jesus does, works because he works, and matters because he matters. To be saved by grace is to be saved by Jesus-not by an idea, doctrine, creed, or church membership, but by Jesus himself, who will sweep into heaven anyone who so much as gives him the nod. Grace won't be stage-managed. I have no tips on how to get grace. Truth is, we don't get grace. But it can sure get us.
If you wonder whether God can do something with the mess of your life, then grace is what you need! Make certain it happens to you!
From GRACE
2 Chronicles 24
Joash was seven years old when he became king; he was king for forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Gazelle (Zibiah). She was from Beersheba.
2-3 Taught and trained by Jehoiada the priest, Joash did what pleased God throughout Jehoiada’s lifetime. Jehoiada picked out two wives for him; he had a family of both sons and daughters.
4-6 The time came when Joash determined to renovate The Temple of God. He got the priests and Levites together and said, “Circulate through the towns of Judah every year and collect money from the people to repair The Temple of your God. You are in charge of carrying this out.” But the Levites dragged their feet and didn’t do anything.
7 Then the king called in Jehoiada the chief priest and said, “Why haven’t you made the Levites bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax Moses, servant of God and the congregation, set for the upkeep of the place of worship? You can see how bad things are—wicked Queen Athaliah and her sons let The Temple of God go to ruin and took all its sacred artifacts for use in Baal worship.”
8-9 Following the king’s orders, they made a chest and placed it at the entrance to The Temple of God. Then they sent out a tax notice throughout Judah and Jerusalem: “Pay the tax that Moses the servant of God set when Israel was in the wilderness.”
10 The people and their leaders were glad to do it and cheerfully brought their money until the chest was full.
11-14 Whenever the Levites brought the chest in for a royal audit and found it to be full, the king’s secretary and the official of the chief priest would empty the chest and put it back in its place. Day after day they did this and collected a lot of money. The king and Jehoiada gave the money to the managers of The Temple project; they in turn paid the masons and carpenters for the repair work on The Temple of God. The construction workers kept at their jobs steadily until the restoration was complete—the house of God as good as new! When they had finished the work, they returned the surplus money to the king and Jehoiada, who used the money for making sacred vessels for Temple worship, vessels for the daily worship, for the Whole-Burnt-Offerings, bowls, and other gold and silver liturgical artifacts.
14-16 Whole-Burnt-Offerings were made regularly in The Temple of God throughout Jehoiada’s lifetime. He died at a ripe old age—130 years old! They buried him in the royal cemetery because he had such a distinguished life of service to Israel and God and God’s Temple.
17-19 But after the death of Jehoiada things fell apart. The leaders of Judah made a formal presentation to the king and he went along with them. Things went from bad to worse; they deserted The Temple of God and took up with the cult of sex goddesses. An angry cloud hovered over Judah and Jerusalem because of this sin. God sent prophets to straighten them out, warning of judgment. But nobody paid attention.
20 Then the Spirit of God moved Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest to speak up: “God’s word: Why have you deliberately walked away from God’s commandments? You can’t live this way! If you walk out on God, he’ll walk out on you.”
21-22 But they worked out a plot against Zechariah, and with the complicity of the king—he actually gave the order!—they murdered him, pelting him with rocks, right in the court of The Temple of God. That’s the thanks King Joash showed the loyal Jehoiada, the priest who had made him king. He murdered Jehoiada’s son. Zechariah’s last words were, “Look, God! Make them pay for this!”
23-24 A year or so later Aramean troops attacked Joash. They invaded Judah and Jerusalem, massacred the leaders, and shipped all their plunder back to the king in Damascus. The Aramean army was quite small, but God used them to wipe out Joash’s large army—their punishment for deserting God, the God of their ancestors. Arameans implemented God’s judgment against Joash.
25-27 They left Joash badly wounded and his own servants finished him off—it was a palace conspiracy, avenging the murder of the son of Jehoiada the priest. They killed him in his bed. Afterward they buried him in the City of David, but he was not honored with a grave in the royal cemetery. The temple conspirators were Zabad, whose mother was Shimeath from Ammon, and Jehozabad, whose mother was Shimrith from Moab. The story of his sons, the many sermons preached to Joash, and the account of his repairs on The Temple of God can be found contained in the commentary on the royal history.
Amaziah, Joash’s son, was the next king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, March 07, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
1 Corinthians 12:20–27
As it is, there are many parts, but one body.c
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
27 Now you are the body of Christ,d and each one of you is a part of it.e
Insight
In Paul’s first New Testament letter to the Corinthians, he describes two ways his readers have been overlooking the body of Christ. First, they were ignoring the significance of sharing bread and wine in remembrance of His shed blood and broken body (1 Corinthians 11:29). In the process, they were also failing to live for the good of one another. Paul went on to explain that by the Holy Spirit they had been gifted to work together, just as members of our human bodies help and depend on each other (12:12–27). Paul sees his readers as members of the body of Christ brought together to share the heart of love He describes in chapter 13.
More than Meets the Eye
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 1 Corinthians 12:27
Attend any rodeo with riding and roping competition and you’ll see them—competitors with four fingers on one hand and a nub where their thumb should be. It’s a common injury in the sport—a thumb gets caught between a rope on one end and a decent-sized steer pulling on the other, and the thumb is usually the loser. It’s not a career-ending injury, but the absence of a thumb changes things. Without using your thumb, try to brush your teeth or button a shirt or comb your hair or tie your shoes or even eat. That little overlooked member of your body plays a significant role.
The apostle Paul indicates a similar scenario in the church. Those often less visible and frequently less vocal members sometimes experience an “I don’t need you” response from the others (1 Corinthians 12:21). Usually this is unspoken, but there are times when it’s said aloud.
God calls us to have equal concern and respect for one another (v. 25). Each and every one of us is a part of Christ’s body (v. 27), regardless of the gifting we’ve received, and we need each other. Some of us are eyes and ears, so to speak, and some of us are thumbs. But each of us plays a vital role in the body of Christ, sometimes more than meets the eye. By: John Blase
Reflect & Pray
If you’re an “eye,” what’s one way you could encourage a “thumb”? And if you think you’re a lesser member, why not memorize 1 Corinthians 12:27, an important scriptural truth.
Father, forgive us for our failure to remember that each of us is a member of the body of Christ. We’re the members, and You and You alone are the Head.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, March 07, 2020
The Source of Abundant Joy
In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. —Romans 8:37
Paul was speaking here of the things that might seem likely to separate a saint from the love of God. But the remarkable thing is that nothing can come between the love of God and a saint. The things Paul mentioned in this passage can and do disrupt the close fellowship of our soul with God and separate our natural life from Him. But none of them is able to come between the love of God and the soul of a saint on the spiritual level. The underlying foundation of the Christian faith is the undeserved, limitless miracle of the love of God that was exhibited on the Cross of Calvary; a love that is not earned and can never be. Paul said this is the reason that “in all these things we are more than conquerors.” We are super-victors with a joy that comes from experiencing the very things which look as if they are going to overwhelm us.
Huge waves that would frighten an ordinary swimmer produce a tremendous thrill for the surfer who has ridden them. Let’s apply that to our own circumstances. The things we try to avoid and fight against— tribulation, suffering, and persecution— are the very things that produce abundant joy in us. “We are more than conquerors through Him” “in all these things”; not in spite of them, but in the midst of them. A saint doesn’t know the joy of the Lord in spite of tribulation, but because of it. Paul said, “I am exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation” (2 Corinthians 7:4).
The undiminished radiance, which is the result of abundant joy, is not built on anything passing, but on the love of God that nothing can change. And the experiences of life, whether they are everyday events or terrifying ones, are powerless to “separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Our danger is to water down God’s word to suit ourselves. God never fits His word to suit me; He fits me to suit His word. Not Knowing Whither, 901 R
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 3-4; Mark 10:32-52
Grace is God as heart surgeon! Grace is God cracking open your chest, removing your heart, poisoned as it is with pride and pain, and replacing it with his own.
God's dream isn't just to get you into heaven, but to get heaven into you. Grace lives because Jesus does, works because he works, and matters because he matters. To be saved by grace is to be saved by Jesus-not by an idea, doctrine, creed, or church membership, but by Jesus himself, who will sweep into heaven anyone who so much as gives him the nod. Grace won't be stage-managed. I have no tips on how to get grace. Truth is, we don't get grace. But it can sure get us.
If you wonder whether God can do something with the mess of your life, then grace is what you need! Make certain it happens to you!
From GRACE
2 Chronicles 24
Joash was seven years old when he became king; he was king for forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Gazelle (Zibiah). She was from Beersheba.
2-3 Taught and trained by Jehoiada the priest, Joash did what pleased God throughout Jehoiada’s lifetime. Jehoiada picked out two wives for him; he had a family of both sons and daughters.
4-6 The time came when Joash determined to renovate The Temple of God. He got the priests and Levites together and said, “Circulate through the towns of Judah every year and collect money from the people to repair The Temple of your God. You are in charge of carrying this out.” But the Levites dragged their feet and didn’t do anything.
7 Then the king called in Jehoiada the chief priest and said, “Why haven’t you made the Levites bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax Moses, servant of God and the congregation, set for the upkeep of the place of worship? You can see how bad things are—wicked Queen Athaliah and her sons let The Temple of God go to ruin and took all its sacred artifacts for use in Baal worship.”
8-9 Following the king’s orders, they made a chest and placed it at the entrance to The Temple of God. Then they sent out a tax notice throughout Judah and Jerusalem: “Pay the tax that Moses the servant of God set when Israel was in the wilderness.”
10 The people and their leaders were glad to do it and cheerfully brought their money until the chest was full.
11-14 Whenever the Levites brought the chest in for a royal audit and found it to be full, the king’s secretary and the official of the chief priest would empty the chest and put it back in its place. Day after day they did this and collected a lot of money. The king and Jehoiada gave the money to the managers of The Temple project; they in turn paid the masons and carpenters for the repair work on The Temple of God. The construction workers kept at their jobs steadily until the restoration was complete—the house of God as good as new! When they had finished the work, they returned the surplus money to the king and Jehoiada, who used the money for making sacred vessels for Temple worship, vessels for the daily worship, for the Whole-Burnt-Offerings, bowls, and other gold and silver liturgical artifacts.
14-16 Whole-Burnt-Offerings were made regularly in The Temple of God throughout Jehoiada’s lifetime. He died at a ripe old age—130 years old! They buried him in the royal cemetery because he had such a distinguished life of service to Israel and God and God’s Temple.
17-19 But after the death of Jehoiada things fell apart. The leaders of Judah made a formal presentation to the king and he went along with them. Things went from bad to worse; they deserted The Temple of God and took up with the cult of sex goddesses. An angry cloud hovered over Judah and Jerusalem because of this sin. God sent prophets to straighten them out, warning of judgment. But nobody paid attention.
20 Then the Spirit of God moved Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest to speak up: “God’s word: Why have you deliberately walked away from God’s commandments? You can’t live this way! If you walk out on God, he’ll walk out on you.”
21-22 But they worked out a plot against Zechariah, and with the complicity of the king—he actually gave the order!—they murdered him, pelting him with rocks, right in the court of The Temple of God. That’s the thanks King Joash showed the loyal Jehoiada, the priest who had made him king. He murdered Jehoiada’s son. Zechariah’s last words were, “Look, God! Make them pay for this!”
23-24 A year or so later Aramean troops attacked Joash. They invaded Judah and Jerusalem, massacred the leaders, and shipped all their plunder back to the king in Damascus. The Aramean army was quite small, but God used them to wipe out Joash’s large army—their punishment for deserting God, the God of their ancestors. Arameans implemented God’s judgment against Joash.
25-27 They left Joash badly wounded and his own servants finished him off—it was a palace conspiracy, avenging the murder of the son of Jehoiada the priest. They killed him in his bed. Afterward they buried him in the City of David, but he was not honored with a grave in the royal cemetery. The temple conspirators were Zabad, whose mother was Shimeath from Ammon, and Jehozabad, whose mother was Shimrith from Moab. The story of his sons, the many sermons preached to Joash, and the account of his repairs on The Temple of God can be found contained in the commentary on the royal history.
Amaziah, Joash’s son, was the next king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, March 07, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
1 Corinthians 12:20–27
As it is, there are many parts, but one body.c
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
27 Now you are the body of Christ,d and each one of you is a part of it.e
Insight
In Paul’s first New Testament letter to the Corinthians, he describes two ways his readers have been overlooking the body of Christ. First, they were ignoring the significance of sharing bread and wine in remembrance of His shed blood and broken body (1 Corinthians 11:29). In the process, they were also failing to live for the good of one another. Paul went on to explain that by the Holy Spirit they had been gifted to work together, just as members of our human bodies help and depend on each other (12:12–27). Paul sees his readers as members of the body of Christ brought together to share the heart of love He describes in chapter 13.
More than Meets the Eye
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 1 Corinthians 12:27
Attend any rodeo with riding and roping competition and you’ll see them—competitors with four fingers on one hand and a nub where their thumb should be. It’s a common injury in the sport—a thumb gets caught between a rope on one end and a decent-sized steer pulling on the other, and the thumb is usually the loser. It’s not a career-ending injury, but the absence of a thumb changes things. Without using your thumb, try to brush your teeth or button a shirt or comb your hair or tie your shoes or even eat. That little overlooked member of your body plays a significant role.
The apostle Paul indicates a similar scenario in the church. Those often less visible and frequently less vocal members sometimes experience an “I don’t need you” response from the others (1 Corinthians 12:21). Usually this is unspoken, but there are times when it’s said aloud.
God calls us to have equal concern and respect for one another (v. 25). Each and every one of us is a part of Christ’s body (v. 27), regardless of the gifting we’ve received, and we need each other. Some of us are eyes and ears, so to speak, and some of us are thumbs. But each of us plays a vital role in the body of Christ, sometimes more than meets the eye. By: John Blase
Reflect & Pray
If you’re an “eye,” what’s one way you could encourage a “thumb”? And if you think you’re a lesser member, why not memorize 1 Corinthians 12:27, an important scriptural truth.
Father, forgive us for our failure to remember that each of us is a member of the body of Christ. We’re the members, and You and You alone are the Head.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, March 07, 2020
The Source of Abundant Joy
In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. —Romans 8:37
Paul was speaking here of the things that might seem likely to separate a saint from the love of God. But the remarkable thing is that nothing can come between the love of God and a saint. The things Paul mentioned in this passage can and do disrupt the close fellowship of our soul with God and separate our natural life from Him. But none of them is able to come between the love of God and the soul of a saint on the spiritual level. The underlying foundation of the Christian faith is the undeserved, limitless miracle of the love of God that was exhibited on the Cross of Calvary; a love that is not earned and can never be. Paul said this is the reason that “in all these things we are more than conquerors.” We are super-victors with a joy that comes from experiencing the very things which look as if they are going to overwhelm us.
Huge waves that would frighten an ordinary swimmer produce a tremendous thrill for the surfer who has ridden them. Let’s apply that to our own circumstances. The things we try to avoid and fight against— tribulation, suffering, and persecution— are the very things that produce abundant joy in us. “We are more than conquerors through Him” “in all these things”; not in spite of them, but in the midst of them. A saint doesn’t know the joy of the Lord in spite of tribulation, but because of it. Paul said, “I am exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation” (2 Corinthians 7:4).
The undiminished radiance, which is the result of abundant joy, is not built on anything passing, but on the love of God that nothing can change. And the experiences of life, whether they are everyday events or terrifying ones, are powerless to “separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Our danger is to water down God’s word to suit ourselves. God never fits His word to suit me; He fits me to suit His word. Not Knowing Whither, 901 R
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 3-4; Mark 10:32-52
Friday, March 6, 2020
2 Corinthians 10, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: THE REAL JESUS
The Jesus of many people is small enough to be contained in an aquarium that fits on the cabinet. He never causes trouble or demands attention. If you want a goldfish bowl of Jesus, steer clear of the real Jesus Christ. He changes everything!
No, Jesus doesn’t make you sexy, skinny, or clever. Jesus doesn’t change what you see in the mirror. He changes how you see what you see. He will not be silenced, packaged, or predicted. He is the pastor who chased people out of church. He is the prophet who had a soft spot for crooks and whores. He is the king who washed the grime off the feet of his betrayer. He turned a bread basket into a buffet and a dead friend into a living one. And most of all, he transformed the tomb into a womb out of which life was born life ….your life.
2 Corinthians 10
And now a personal but most urgent matter; I write in the gentle but firm spirit of Christ. I hear that I’m being painted as cringing and wishy-washy when I’m with you, but harsh and demanding when at a safe distance writing letters. Please don’t force me to take a hard line when I’m present with you. Don’t think that I’ll hesitate a single minute to stand up to those who say I’m an unprincipled opportunist. Then they’ll have to eat their words.
3-6 The world is unprincipled. It’s dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn’t fight fair. But we don’t live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren’t for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.
7-8 You stare and stare at the obvious, but you can’t see the forest for the trees. If you’re looking for a clear example of someone on Christ’s side, why do you so quickly cut me out? Believe me, I am quite sure of my standing with Christ. You may think I overstate the authority he gave me, but I’m not backing off. Every bit of my commitment is for the purpose of building you up, after all, not tearing you down.
9-11 And what’s this talk about me bullying you with my letters? “His letters are brawny and potent, but in person he’s a weakling and mumbles when he talks.” Such talk won’t survive scrutiny. What we write when away, we do when present. We’re the exact same people, absent or present, in letter or in person.
12 We’re not, understand, putting ourselves in a league with those who boast that they’re our superiors. We wouldn’t dare do that. But in all this comparing and grading and competing, they quite miss the point.
13-14 We aren’t making outrageous claims here. We’re sticking to the limits of what God has set for us. But there can be no question that those limits reach to and include you. We’re not moving into someone else’s “territory.” We were already there with you, weren’t we? We were the first ones to get there with the Message of Christ, right? So how can there be any question of overstepping our bounds by writing or visiting you?
15-18 We’re not barging in on the rightful work of others, interfering with their ministries, demanding a place in the sun with them. What we’re hoping for is that as your lives grow in faith, you’ll play a part within our expanding work. And we’ll all still be within the limits God sets as we proclaim the Message in countries beyond Corinth. But we have no intention of moving in on what others have done and taking credit for it. “If you want to claim credit, claim it for God.” What you say about yourself means nothing in God’s work. It’s what God says about you that makes the difference.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, March 06, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Ecclesiastes 4:9–11
Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
Insight
Along with Job, Psalms, Proverbs, and Song of Solomon, Ecclesiastes is classified as one of the Wisdom books of Scripture. Wisdom books, which emphasize the supreme value of fearing God (Ecclesiastes 8:13; 12:13), help the reader to navigate the good and not-so-good—the bitter and sweet of this life—from God’s perspective and to trust Him. Given Wisdom literature’s goal—to help its readers to “live skillfully”—it shouldn’t surprise us to find numerous occurrences in the book of Ecclesiastes of the word better or the phrase better than. The comparative value of wisdom is stressed in passages such as “Wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness” (2:13); “Wisdom is better than strength” (9:16); “Wisdom is better than weapons of war” (9:18). We also see this emphasis in Proverbs: “For she [wisdom] is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold” (3:14).
Two Are Better
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. Ecclesiastes 4:9
In the 1997 Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii, two women fought to stay on their feet as they hobbled toward the finish line. Exhausted, the runners persevered on wobbly legs, until Sian Welch bumped into Wendy Ingraham. They both dropped to the ground. Struggling to stand, they stumbled forward, only to fall again about twenty meters from the finish line. When Ingraham began to crawl, the crowd applauded. When her competitor followed suit, they cheered louder. Ingraham crossed the finish line in fourth place, and she slumped into the outstretched arms of her supporters. Then she turned and reached out to her fallen sister. Welch lunged her body forward, stretching her weary arm toward Ingraham’s hand and across the finish line. As she completed the race in fifth place, the crowd roared their approval.
This pair’s completion of the 140-mile swimming, biking, and running race inspired many. But the image of the weary competitors persevering together remains ingrained in my mind, affirming the life-empowering truth in Ecclesiastes 4:9–11.
There’s no shame in admitting we require assistance in life (v. 9), especially since we can’t honestly deny our needs or hide them from our all-knowing God. At one time or another, we’ll all fall, whether physically or emotionally. Knowing we’re not alone can comfort us as we persevere. As our loving Father helps us, He empowers us to reach out to others in need, affirming they too aren’t alone. By: Xochitl Dixon
Reflect & Pray
How has someone helped you? How can you encourage others this week?
All-powerful God, thank You for reassuring us of Your constant presence as You help us and give us opportunities to reach out and help others.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, March 06, 2020
Taking the Next Step
…in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses. —2 Corinthians 6:4
When you have no vision from God, no enthusiasm left in your life, and no one watching and encouraging you, it requires the grace of Almighty God to take the next step in your devotion to Him, in the reading and studying of His Word, in your family life, or in your duty to Him. It takes much more of the grace of God, and a much greater awareness of drawing upon Him, to take that next step, than it does to preach the gospel.
Every Christian must experience the essence of the incarnation by bringing the next step down into flesh-and-blood reality and by working it out with his hands. We lose interest and give up when we have no vision, no encouragement, and no improvement, but only experience our everyday life with its trivial tasks. The thing that really testifies for God and for the people of God in the long run is steady perseverance, even when the work cannot be seen by others. And the only way to live an undefeated life is to live looking to God. Ask God to keep the eyes of your spirit open to the risen Christ, and it will be impossible for drudgery to discourage you. Never allow yourself to think that some tasks are beneath your dignity or too insignificant for you to do, and remind yourself of the example of Christ inJohn 13:1-17.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
To read the Bible according to God’s providential order in your circumstances is the only way to read it, viz., in the blood and passion of personal life. Disciples Indeed, 387 R
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 1-2; Mark 10:1-31
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, March 06, 2020
Hurting But Passed By - #8650
Our friend Steve has been involved with horses most of his life. He's even owned a couple of champions. But one day at the barn, in one moment of carelessness, Steve allowed himself to get in what horse lovers know as the "kill zone" - that area behind a horse where they can kick you with those potentially deadly hooves. In one life-changing moment, Steve was kicked in the leg, shattered his bones. Even though he was in excruciating pain, he did manage to drag himself to the highway near his house where he pulled himself up and started waving for help. Car after car just drove right on past this seriously injured man - even his friends and neighbors. They didn't know he was hurting. They thought he was just waving "Hi!" Really?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Hurting But Passed By."
A broken man...and no one knew his need. No one stopped for him. That might be part of the story of your life; a waving world, speeding past all that hurt that you carry inside. Everybody's in a hurry to get where they're going. Meanwhile, you suffer with that brokenness inside you in a world that doesn't know, or doesn't seem to care.
There's someone who does know, and there's someone who does care. Someone who has been broken, too - more broken than any of us could possibly be. It's the One the Bible calls the "man of sorrows" - Jesus Christ. Why can you trust Him? Because, as the Bible says, He was "familiar with suffering...He was despised...He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows" (Isaiah 53:3-4). This is the man who told His followers to remember the sacrifice He was about to make for them on the cross with bread that was broken - a symbol of what would happen to the body of the very Son of God.
Jesus understands broken. When He was here, He always stopped for the hurting people that everyone else just drove on by. In Isaiah 61:1, our word for today from the Word of God, He announces what He wants to do for each of us - and for you. He said: "The Lord has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners."
But He came to do so much more than just relieve your pain. He came here to deal with the human cancer that causes our pain. Our brokenness is ultimately the result of a broken relationship with the very Creator, who gave us our life, who planned our life to have a cosmic purpose. But we all thought we could run it better. Instead of having God at the center of our life, we've just pushed Him to the margins, trying to placate Him with a little religion.
But sin is really serious stuff. It walls us off from God, from His love, and it brings us under the eternal judgment of the God we were made to live for. But God really loves you - enough to sacrifice the most precious thing He had to heal your broken relationship with Him. He allowed the body of His only Son to be broken on the cross for you as He died your death penalty for your sin.
Jesus wants to fix what's broken between you and God so He can forgive you, enter your life, and fix what sin has broken inside you. The problem hasn't been that He wouldn't stop for you. You haven't stopped for Him. He's been waiting for you to open up to His love for a long time. And one more time, He's giving you the chance to experience His healing - His forgiving touch. But you've got to open the door. You've got to tell Him, "Jesus, I want to be Yours starting right now. I'm ready to turn from living my way. I'm putting all my hope in what You did on that cross for me, and the fact that you are alive because you walked out of your grave."
Listen, there's some really wonderful information I'd love for you to have right now to help you be sure you belong to Him. It's at our website ANewStory.com. I urge you to check it out as soon as you can today.
Jesus, the only Son God had, was broken so you don't have to be. Would you let Him into the life that He died for, and today let the healing begin.
The Jesus of many people is small enough to be contained in an aquarium that fits on the cabinet. He never causes trouble or demands attention. If you want a goldfish bowl of Jesus, steer clear of the real Jesus Christ. He changes everything!
No, Jesus doesn’t make you sexy, skinny, or clever. Jesus doesn’t change what you see in the mirror. He changes how you see what you see. He will not be silenced, packaged, or predicted. He is the pastor who chased people out of church. He is the prophet who had a soft spot for crooks and whores. He is the king who washed the grime off the feet of his betrayer. He turned a bread basket into a buffet and a dead friend into a living one. And most of all, he transformed the tomb into a womb out of which life was born life ….your life.
2 Corinthians 10
And now a personal but most urgent matter; I write in the gentle but firm spirit of Christ. I hear that I’m being painted as cringing and wishy-washy when I’m with you, but harsh and demanding when at a safe distance writing letters. Please don’t force me to take a hard line when I’m present with you. Don’t think that I’ll hesitate a single minute to stand up to those who say I’m an unprincipled opportunist. Then they’ll have to eat their words.
3-6 The world is unprincipled. It’s dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn’t fight fair. But we don’t live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren’t for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.
7-8 You stare and stare at the obvious, but you can’t see the forest for the trees. If you’re looking for a clear example of someone on Christ’s side, why do you so quickly cut me out? Believe me, I am quite sure of my standing with Christ. You may think I overstate the authority he gave me, but I’m not backing off. Every bit of my commitment is for the purpose of building you up, after all, not tearing you down.
9-11 And what’s this talk about me bullying you with my letters? “His letters are brawny and potent, but in person he’s a weakling and mumbles when he talks.” Such talk won’t survive scrutiny. What we write when away, we do when present. We’re the exact same people, absent or present, in letter or in person.
12 We’re not, understand, putting ourselves in a league with those who boast that they’re our superiors. We wouldn’t dare do that. But in all this comparing and grading and competing, they quite miss the point.
13-14 We aren’t making outrageous claims here. We’re sticking to the limits of what God has set for us. But there can be no question that those limits reach to and include you. We’re not moving into someone else’s “territory.” We were already there with you, weren’t we? We were the first ones to get there with the Message of Christ, right? So how can there be any question of overstepping our bounds by writing or visiting you?
15-18 We’re not barging in on the rightful work of others, interfering with their ministries, demanding a place in the sun with them. What we’re hoping for is that as your lives grow in faith, you’ll play a part within our expanding work. And we’ll all still be within the limits God sets as we proclaim the Message in countries beyond Corinth. But we have no intention of moving in on what others have done and taking credit for it. “If you want to claim credit, claim it for God.” What you say about yourself means nothing in God’s work. It’s what God says about you that makes the difference.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, March 06, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Ecclesiastes 4:9–11
Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
Insight
Along with Job, Psalms, Proverbs, and Song of Solomon, Ecclesiastes is classified as one of the Wisdom books of Scripture. Wisdom books, which emphasize the supreme value of fearing God (Ecclesiastes 8:13; 12:13), help the reader to navigate the good and not-so-good—the bitter and sweet of this life—from God’s perspective and to trust Him. Given Wisdom literature’s goal—to help its readers to “live skillfully”—it shouldn’t surprise us to find numerous occurrences in the book of Ecclesiastes of the word better or the phrase better than. The comparative value of wisdom is stressed in passages such as “Wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness” (2:13); “Wisdom is better than strength” (9:16); “Wisdom is better than weapons of war” (9:18). We also see this emphasis in Proverbs: “For she [wisdom] is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold” (3:14).
Two Are Better
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. Ecclesiastes 4:9
In the 1997 Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii, two women fought to stay on their feet as they hobbled toward the finish line. Exhausted, the runners persevered on wobbly legs, until Sian Welch bumped into Wendy Ingraham. They both dropped to the ground. Struggling to stand, they stumbled forward, only to fall again about twenty meters from the finish line. When Ingraham began to crawl, the crowd applauded. When her competitor followed suit, they cheered louder. Ingraham crossed the finish line in fourth place, and she slumped into the outstretched arms of her supporters. Then she turned and reached out to her fallen sister. Welch lunged her body forward, stretching her weary arm toward Ingraham’s hand and across the finish line. As she completed the race in fifth place, the crowd roared their approval.
This pair’s completion of the 140-mile swimming, biking, and running race inspired many. But the image of the weary competitors persevering together remains ingrained in my mind, affirming the life-empowering truth in Ecclesiastes 4:9–11.
There’s no shame in admitting we require assistance in life (v. 9), especially since we can’t honestly deny our needs or hide them from our all-knowing God. At one time or another, we’ll all fall, whether physically or emotionally. Knowing we’re not alone can comfort us as we persevere. As our loving Father helps us, He empowers us to reach out to others in need, affirming they too aren’t alone. By: Xochitl Dixon
Reflect & Pray
How has someone helped you? How can you encourage others this week?
All-powerful God, thank You for reassuring us of Your constant presence as You help us and give us opportunities to reach out and help others.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, March 06, 2020
Taking the Next Step
…in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses. —2 Corinthians 6:4
When you have no vision from God, no enthusiasm left in your life, and no one watching and encouraging you, it requires the grace of Almighty God to take the next step in your devotion to Him, in the reading and studying of His Word, in your family life, or in your duty to Him. It takes much more of the grace of God, and a much greater awareness of drawing upon Him, to take that next step, than it does to preach the gospel.
Every Christian must experience the essence of the incarnation by bringing the next step down into flesh-and-blood reality and by working it out with his hands. We lose interest and give up when we have no vision, no encouragement, and no improvement, but only experience our everyday life with its trivial tasks. The thing that really testifies for God and for the people of God in the long run is steady perseverance, even when the work cannot be seen by others. And the only way to live an undefeated life is to live looking to God. Ask God to keep the eyes of your spirit open to the risen Christ, and it will be impossible for drudgery to discourage you. Never allow yourself to think that some tasks are beneath your dignity or too insignificant for you to do, and remind yourself of the example of Christ inJohn 13:1-17.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
To read the Bible according to God’s providential order in your circumstances is the only way to read it, viz., in the blood and passion of personal life. Disciples Indeed, 387 R
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 1-2; Mark 10:1-31
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, March 06, 2020
Hurting But Passed By - #8650
Our friend Steve has been involved with horses most of his life. He's even owned a couple of champions. But one day at the barn, in one moment of carelessness, Steve allowed himself to get in what horse lovers know as the "kill zone" - that area behind a horse where they can kick you with those potentially deadly hooves. In one life-changing moment, Steve was kicked in the leg, shattered his bones. Even though he was in excruciating pain, he did manage to drag himself to the highway near his house where he pulled himself up and started waving for help. Car after car just drove right on past this seriously injured man - even his friends and neighbors. They didn't know he was hurting. They thought he was just waving "Hi!" Really?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Hurting But Passed By."
A broken man...and no one knew his need. No one stopped for him. That might be part of the story of your life; a waving world, speeding past all that hurt that you carry inside. Everybody's in a hurry to get where they're going. Meanwhile, you suffer with that brokenness inside you in a world that doesn't know, or doesn't seem to care.
There's someone who does know, and there's someone who does care. Someone who has been broken, too - more broken than any of us could possibly be. It's the One the Bible calls the "man of sorrows" - Jesus Christ. Why can you trust Him? Because, as the Bible says, He was "familiar with suffering...He was despised...He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows" (Isaiah 53:3-4). This is the man who told His followers to remember the sacrifice He was about to make for them on the cross with bread that was broken - a symbol of what would happen to the body of the very Son of God.
Jesus understands broken. When He was here, He always stopped for the hurting people that everyone else just drove on by. In Isaiah 61:1, our word for today from the Word of God, He announces what He wants to do for each of us - and for you. He said: "The Lord has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners."
But He came to do so much more than just relieve your pain. He came here to deal with the human cancer that causes our pain. Our brokenness is ultimately the result of a broken relationship with the very Creator, who gave us our life, who planned our life to have a cosmic purpose. But we all thought we could run it better. Instead of having God at the center of our life, we've just pushed Him to the margins, trying to placate Him with a little religion.
But sin is really serious stuff. It walls us off from God, from His love, and it brings us under the eternal judgment of the God we were made to live for. But God really loves you - enough to sacrifice the most precious thing He had to heal your broken relationship with Him. He allowed the body of His only Son to be broken on the cross for you as He died your death penalty for your sin.
Jesus wants to fix what's broken between you and God so He can forgive you, enter your life, and fix what sin has broken inside you. The problem hasn't been that He wouldn't stop for you. You haven't stopped for Him. He's been waiting for you to open up to His love for a long time. And one more time, He's giving you the chance to experience His healing - His forgiving touch. But you've got to open the door. You've got to tell Him, "Jesus, I want to be Yours starting right now. I'm ready to turn from living my way. I'm putting all my hope in what You did on that cross for me, and the fact that you are alive because you walked out of your grave."
Listen, there's some really wonderful information I'd love for you to have right now to help you be sure you belong to Him. It's at our website ANewStory.com. I urge you to check it out as soon as you can today.
Jesus, the only Son God had, was broken so you don't have to be. Would you let Him into the life that He died for, and today let the healing begin.
Thursday, March 5, 2020
Joel 3, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: JUST JESUS
Is Peter speaking to us when he urges, “Friends, this world is not your home, so don’t make yourselves cozy in it” (1 Peter 2:11)?
We know our Father’s name, and he has claimed us, but he has yet to come for us. So here we are. Caught between what is and what will be. No longer orphans but not yet home. What do we do in the meantime? Indeed, it can be just that—a mean time. Time made mean with disease, deceit, death, and debt. How do we live in the meantime? How do we keep our hearts headed home?
“Let us look only to Jesus, the One who began our faith and who makes it perfect” (Hebrews 12:2). Look to Jesus. Ponder his life. Consider his ways. Meditate on his words. Jesus….just Jesus.
Joel 3
“In those days, yes, at that very time
when I put life back together again for Judah and Jerusalem,
I’ll assemble all the godless nations.
I’ll lead them down into Judgment Valley
And put them all on trial, and judge them one and all
because of their treatment of my own people Israel.
They scattered my people all over the pagan world
and grabbed my land for themselves.
They threw dice for my people
and used them for barter.
They would trade a boy for a whore,
sell a girl for a bottle of wine when they wanted a drink.
4-8 “As for you, Tyre and Sidon and Philistia,
why should I bother with you?
Are you trying to get back at me
for something I did to you?
If you are, forget it.
I’ll see to it that it boomerangs on you.
You robbed me, cleaned me out of silver and gold,
carted off everything valuable to furnish your own temples.
You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem
into slavery to the Greeks in faraway places.
But I’m going to reverse your crime.
I’m going to free those slaves.
I’ll have done to you what you did to them:
I’ll sell your children as slaves to your neighbors,
And they’ll sell them to the far-off Sabeans.”
God’s Verdict.
9-11 Announce this to the godless nations:
Prepare for battle!
Soldiers at attention!
Present arms! Advance!
Turn your shovels into swords,
turn your hoes into spears.
Let the weak one throw out his chest
and say, “I’m tough, I’m a fighter.”
Hurry up, pagans! Wherever you are, get a move on!
Get your act together.
Prepare to be
shattered by God!
12 Let the pagan nations set out
for Judgment Valley.
There I’ll take my place at the bench
and judge all the surrounding nations.
13 “Swing the sickle—
the harvest is ready.
Stomp on the grapes—
the winepress is full.
The wine vats are full,
overflowing with vintage evil.
14 “Mass confusion, mob uproar—
in Decision Valley!
God’s Judgment Day has arrived
in Decision Valley.
15-17 “The sky turns black,
sun and moon go dark, stars burn out.
God roars from Zion, shouts from Jerusalem.
Earth and sky quake in terror.
But God is a safe hiding place,
a granite safe house for the children of Israel.
Then you’ll know for sure
that I’m your God,
Living in Zion,
my sacred mountain.
Jerusalem will be a sacred city,
posted: ‘no trespassing.’
18-21 “What a day!
Wine streaming off the mountains,
Milk rivering out of the hills,
water flowing everywhere in Judah,
A fountain pouring out of God’s Sanctuary,
watering all the parks and gardens!
But Egypt will be reduced to weeds in a vacant lot,
Edom turned into barren badlands,
All because of brutalities to the Judean people,
the atrocities and murders of helpless innocents.
Meanwhile, Judah will be filled with people,
Jerusalem inhabited forever.
The sins I haven’t already forgiven, I’ll forgive.”
God has moved into Zion for good.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, March 05, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight: Acts 16:6–10
Paul’s Vision of the Man of Macedonia
6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygiaz and Galatia,a having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia.b 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesusc would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.d 9 During the night Paul had a visione of a man of Macedoniaf standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 After Paul had seen the vision, weg got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospelh to them.
Insight
In Paul’s vision in Acts 16:9–10, the man from Macedonia isn’t identified. However, we learn something about him in verse 9. The word translated “help” (boetheo) means “come to the aid of” and indicates the need for assistance, showing the man needed someone to physically come to him. It seems to refer to someone who doesn’t know the gospel or even how he can be helped.
It’s interesting to note there’s a pronoun shift from they (vv. 6–9) to we in verse 10: “After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia.” Most scholars believe this indicates that Luke (the author of Acts) had now joined the group.
For further study, read The Book of Acts at discoveryseries.org/q0418.
Plans Disrupted
Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21
Jane’s plans to become a speech therapist ended when an internship revealed the job was too emotionally challenging for her. Then she was given the opportunity to write for a magazine. She’d never seen herself as an author, but years later she found herself advocating for needy families through her writing. “Looking back, I can see why God changed my plans,” she says. “He had a bigger plan for me.”
The Bible has many stories of disrupted plans. On his second missionary journey, Paul had sought to bring the gospel into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus stopped him (Acts 16:6–7). This must have seemed mystifying: Why was Jesus disrupting plans that were in line with a God-given mission? The answer came in a dream one night: Macedonia needed him even more. There, Paul would plant the first church in Europe. Solomon also observed, “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” (Proverbs 19:21).
It’s sensible to make plans. A well-known adage goes, “Fail to plan, and you plan to fail.” But God may disrupt our plans with His own. Our challenge is to listen and obey, knowing we can trust God. If we submit to His will, we’ll find ourselves fitting into His purpose for our lives.
As we continue to make plans, we can add a new twist: Plan to listen. Listen to God’s plan. By: Leslie Koh
Reflect & Pray
How can you submit your plans to God today? How can you listen to His plans?
All-knowing God, give me the faith to listen to You when my plans are disrupted, knowing that You have a greater purpose for my life.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, March 05, 2020
Is He Really My Lord?
…so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus… —Acts 20:24
Joy comes from seeing the complete fulfillment of the specific purpose for which I was created and born again, not from successfully doing something of my own choosing. The joy our Lord experienced came from doing what the Father sent Him to do. And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21). Have you received a ministry from the Lord? If so, you must be faithful to it— to consider your life valuable only for the purpose of fulfilling that ministry. Knowing that you have done what Jesus sent you to do, think how satisfying it will be to hear Him say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21). We each have to find a niche in life, and spiritually we find it when we receive a ministry from the Lord. To do this we must have close fellowship with Jesus and must know Him as more than our personal Savior. And we must be willing to experience the full impact of Acts 9:16 — “I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”
“Do you love Me?” Then, “Feed My sheep” (John 21:17). He is not offering us a choice of how we can serve Him; He is asking for absolute loyalty to His commission, a faithfulness to what we discern when we are in the closest possible fellowship with God. If you have received a ministry from the Lord Jesus, you will know that the need is not the same as the call— the need is the opportunity to exercise the call. The call is to be faithful to the ministry you received when you were in true fellowship with Him. This does not imply that there is a whole series of differing ministries marked out for you. It does mean that you must be sensitive to what God has called you to do, and this may sometimes require ignoring demands for service in other areas.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We have no right to judge where we should be put, or to have preconceived notions as to what God is fitting us for. God engineers everything; wherever He puts us, our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.” My Utmost for His Highest, April 23, 773 L
Bible in a Year: Numbers 34-36; Mark 9:30-50
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, March 05, 2020
Fear Goes Viral - #8649
North Dakota's a long way from Wuhan, China. But our friend Wes has been seeing more and more customers wearing masks in the local Walmart. He says he's going to start telling them "to calm down." Then, thinking of how fear can spook the stock market, he said, "Then I'm going to thank them for destroying my 401(k)."
Well that may not be the best response but it is a reflection of the increasing fear that a whole lot of people are feeling right now. I mean, you think about the impact of this one virus - cities shut down and economies slowing down. Travel cancellations. Wall Street in freefall. Major events being cancelled.
Some are calling it a pandemic, which means it's everywhere. But beyond any medical pandemic there is another pandemic. Fear.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Fear Goes Viral."
You know as bad as the Coronavirus scare is, this anxiety thing is even bigger than that. I was with some mission leaders from around the world recently and they basically summed up what's going on in the world this way - "The nations are being shaken." And they are.
So many peoples. So many places. And now we've got this ominous cloud of Coronavirus hanging over us. So many unknowns. So many disturbing possibilities. And, so much fear.
Now, Precautions are good but panic and paralysis...no, they're not. But we feel vulnerable - and it's more than a feeling. We really are vulnerable. You think, for example, what happens when we have an extended power outage. Or with the pervasive dependence we have on technology, what happens if there's a cyber meltdown or attack? There's a lot to fear. Or maybe not.
The most repeated command in the world's best-selling book, the Bible, is this... "Do not be afraid."
Really? Do not be afraid? With runaway viruses...metastasized terror threats...and political storm clouds...financial storm clouds and mass shootings...and then even our personal crises like getting bad news from the doctor.
Is it reasonable to ask us to "not be afraid"? Well, not if our security is something vulnerable. Something we could lose.
The Bible says in Psalm 11, "When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?" Well that's a fascinating question because our foundations are shaking right now. And then it goes on to say this, "The Lord is in His holy temple. The Lord is on His heavenly throne" (Psalm 11:3-4). In other words, when everything's out of control, God is still ultimately in control. So He says in our word for today form the Word of God in Isaiah 43 beginning with verse 1, "Do not fear…when you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you…for I am the Lord your God…I love you".
I've been in several life-threatening situations on airlines, I've heard a doctor say my wife was "Code Blue." Thinking I would lose the love of my life that day. In many situations like that, God has come along with this supernatural peace.
Because my Anchor held. Here's how it's described in Romans 8, "Nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord". That's my anchor. It's a Relationship that's disease-proof, it's disaster-proof, it's death-proof. I don't deserve this love but I can't lose it. It was proven when Jesus died on the cross to absorb the death penalty for me, for you, rejecting God's rule of our life. And then, He was resurrected three days later and He validated His power to beat even death. Let me tell you, that's an anchor that holds.
And as for our loved ones. The Bible says, "I know the One in whom I trust, and I am sure that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him" (2 Timothy 1:12). This relationship is life's one anchor that holds.
Several years ago there were monster tornadoes in Oklahoma and I read about this mother and daughter who barely got the door on their safe room closed in
time. A couple hours later they went out to find their neighborhood gone - their house gone. They lost a lot that day. But they were okay because they had one place that could survive the storm.
Millions of people have found that in Jesus. I'm one of them. And you can be.
You want to know how to get started in that relationship with Him? Go to our website - ANewStory.com. Because Jesus, in this world, is your one safe place.
Is Peter speaking to us when he urges, “Friends, this world is not your home, so don’t make yourselves cozy in it” (1 Peter 2:11)?
We know our Father’s name, and he has claimed us, but he has yet to come for us. So here we are. Caught between what is and what will be. No longer orphans but not yet home. What do we do in the meantime? Indeed, it can be just that—a mean time. Time made mean with disease, deceit, death, and debt. How do we live in the meantime? How do we keep our hearts headed home?
“Let us look only to Jesus, the One who began our faith and who makes it perfect” (Hebrews 12:2). Look to Jesus. Ponder his life. Consider his ways. Meditate on his words. Jesus….just Jesus.
Joel 3
“In those days, yes, at that very time
when I put life back together again for Judah and Jerusalem,
I’ll assemble all the godless nations.
I’ll lead them down into Judgment Valley
And put them all on trial, and judge them one and all
because of their treatment of my own people Israel.
They scattered my people all over the pagan world
and grabbed my land for themselves.
They threw dice for my people
and used them for barter.
They would trade a boy for a whore,
sell a girl for a bottle of wine when they wanted a drink.
4-8 “As for you, Tyre and Sidon and Philistia,
why should I bother with you?
Are you trying to get back at me
for something I did to you?
If you are, forget it.
I’ll see to it that it boomerangs on you.
You robbed me, cleaned me out of silver and gold,
carted off everything valuable to furnish your own temples.
You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem
into slavery to the Greeks in faraway places.
But I’m going to reverse your crime.
I’m going to free those slaves.
I’ll have done to you what you did to them:
I’ll sell your children as slaves to your neighbors,
And they’ll sell them to the far-off Sabeans.”
God’s Verdict.
9-11 Announce this to the godless nations:
Prepare for battle!
Soldiers at attention!
Present arms! Advance!
Turn your shovels into swords,
turn your hoes into spears.
Let the weak one throw out his chest
and say, “I’m tough, I’m a fighter.”
Hurry up, pagans! Wherever you are, get a move on!
Get your act together.
Prepare to be
shattered by God!
12 Let the pagan nations set out
for Judgment Valley.
There I’ll take my place at the bench
and judge all the surrounding nations.
13 “Swing the sickle—
the harvest is ready.
Stomp on the grapes—
the winepress is full.
The wine vats are full,
overflowing with vintage evil.
14 “Mass confusion, mob uproar—
in Decision Valley!
God’s Judgment Day has arrived
in Decision Valley.
15-17 “The sky turns black,
sun and moon go dark, stars burn out.
God roars from Zion, shouts from Jerusalem.
Earth and sky quake in terror.
But God is a safe hiding place,
a granite safe house for the children of Israel.
Then you’ll know for sure
that I’m your God,
Living in Zion,
my sacred mountain.
Jerusalem will be a sacred city,
posted: ‘no trespassing.’
18-21 “What a day!
Wine streaming off the mountains,
Milk rivering out of the hills,
water flowing everywhere in Judah,
A fountain pouring out of God’s Sanctuary,
watering all the parks and gardens!
But Egypt will be reduced to weeds in a vacant lot,
Edom turned into barren badlands,
All because of brutalities to the Judean people,
the atrocities and murders of helpless innocents.
Meanwhile, Judah will be filled with people,
Jerusalem inhabited forever.
The sins I haven’t already forgiven, I’ll forgive.”
God has moved into Zion for good.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, March 05, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight: Acts 16:6–10
Paul’s Vision of the Man of Macedonia
6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygiaz and Galatia,a having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia.b 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesusc would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.d 9 During the night Paul had a visione of a man of Macedoniaf standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 After Paul had seen the vision, weg got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospelh to them.
Insight
In Paul’s vision in Acts 16:9–10, the man from Macedonia isn’t identified. However, we learn something about him in verse 9. The word translated “help” (boetheo) means “come to the aid of” and indicates the need for assistance, showing the man needed someone to physically come to him. It seems to refer to someone who doesn’t know the gospel or even how he can be helped.
It’s interesting to note there’s a pronoun shift from they (vv. 6–9) to we in verse 10: “After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia.” Most scholars believe this indicates that Luke (the author of Acts) had now joined the group.
For further study, read The Book of Acts at discoveryseries.org/q0418.
Plans Disrupted
Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21
Jane’s plans to become a speech therapist ended when an internship revealed the job was too emotionally challenging for her. Then she was given the opportunity to write for a magazine. She’d never seen herself as an author, but years later she found herself advocating for needy families through her writing. “Looking back, I can see why God changed my plans,” she says. “He had a bigger plan for me.”
The Bible has many stories of disrupted plans. On his second missionary journey, Paul had sought to bring the gospel into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus stopped him (Acts 16:6–7). This must have seemed mystifying: Why was Jesus disrupting plans that were in line with a God-given mission? The answer came in a dream one night: Macedonia needed him even more. There, Paul would plant the first church in Europe. Solomon also observed, “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” (Proverbs 19:21).
It’s sensible to make plans. A well-known adage goes, “Fail to plan, and you plan to fail.” But God may disrupt our plans with His own. Our challenge is to listen and obey, knowing we can trust God. If we submit to His will, we’ll find ourselves fitting into His purpose for our lives.
As we continue to make plans, we can add a new twist: Plan to listen. Listen to God’s plan. By: Leslie Koh
Reflect & Pray
How can you submit your plans to God today? How can you listen to His plans?
All-knowing God, give me the faith to listen to You when my plans are disrupted, knowing that You have a greater purpose for my life.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, March 05, 2020
Is He Really My Lord?
…so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus… —Acts 20:24
Joy comes from seeing the complete fulfillment of the specific purpose for which I was created and born again, not from successfully doing something of my own choosing. The joy our Lord experienced came from doing what the Father sent Him to do. And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21). Have you received a ministry from the Lord? If so, you must be faithful to it— to consider your life valuable only for the purpose of fulfilling that ministry. Knowing that you have done what Jesus sent you to do, think how satisfying it will be to hear Him say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21). We each have to find a niche in life, and spiritually we find it when we receive a ministry from the Lord. To do this we must have close fellowship with Jesus and must know Him as more than our personal Savior. And we must be willing to experience the full impact of Acts 9:16 — “I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”
“Do you love Me?” Then, “Feed My sheep” (John 21:17). He is not offering us a choice of how we can serve Him; He is asking for absolute loyalty to His commission, a faithfulness to what we discern when we are in the closest possible fellowship with God. If you have received a ministry from the Lord Jesus, you will know that the need is not the same as the call— the need is the opportunity to exercise the call. The call is to be faithful to the ministry you received when you were in true fellowship with Him. This does not imply that there is a whole series of differing ministries marked out for you. It does mean that you must be sensitive to what God has called you to do, and this may sometimes require ignoring demands for service in other areas.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We have no right to judge where we should be put, or to have preconceived notions as to what God is fitting us for. God engineers everything; wherever He puts us, our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.” My Utmost for His Highest, April 23, 773 L
Bible in a Year: Numbers 34-36; Mark 9:30-50
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, March 05, 2020
Fear Goes Viral - #8649
North Dakota's a long way from Wuhan, China. But our friend Wes has been seeing more and more customers wearing masks in the local Walmart. He says he's going to start telling them "to calm down." Then, thinking of how fear can spook the stock market, he said, "Then I'm going to thank them for destroying my 401(k)."
Well that may not be the best response but it is a reflection of the increasing fear that a whole lot of people are feeling right now. I mean, you think about the impact of this one virus - cities shut down and economies slowing down. Travel cancellations. Wall Street in freefall. Major events being cancelled.
Some are calling it a pandemic, which means it's everywhere. But beyond any medical pandemic there is another pandemic. Fear.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Fear Goes Viral."
You know as bad as the Coronavirus scare is, this anxiety thing is even bigger than that. I was with some mission leaders from around the world recently and they basically summed up what's going on in the world this way - "The nations are being shaken." And they are.
So many peoples. So many places. And now we've got this ominous cloud of Coronavirus hanging over us. So many unknowns. So many disturbing possibilities. And, so much fear.
Now, Precautions are good but panic and paralysis...no, they're not. But we feel vulnerable - and it's more than a feeling. We really are vulnerable. You think, for example, what happens when we have an extended power outage. Or with the pervasive dependence we have on technology, what happens if there's a cyber meltdown or attack? There's a lot to fear. Or maybe not.
The most repeated command in the world's best-selling book, the Bible, is this... "Do not be afraid."
Really? Do not be afraid? With runaway viruses...metastasized terror threats...and political storm clouds...financial storm clouds and mass shootings...and then even our personal crises like getting bad news from the doctor.
Is it reasonable to ask us to "not be afraid"? Well, not if our security is something vulnerable. Something we could lose.
The Bible says in Psalm 11, "When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?" Well that's a fascinating question because our foundations are shaking right now. And then it goes on to say this, "The Lord is in His holy temple. The Lord is on His heavenly throne" (Psalm 11:3-4). In other words, when everything's out of control, God is still ultimately in control. So He says in our word for today form the Word of God in Isaiah 43 beginning with verse 1, "Do not fear…when you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you…for I am the Lord your God…I love you".
I've been in several life-threatening situations on airlines, I've heard a doctor say my wife was "Code Blue." Thinking I would lose the love of my life that day. In many situations like that, God has come along with this supernatural peace.
Because my Anchor held. Here's how it's described in Romans 8, "Nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord". That's my anchor. It's a Relationship that's disease-proof, it's disaster-proof, it's death-proof. I don't deserve this love but I can't lose it. It was proven when Jesus died on the cross to absorb the death penalty for me, for you, rejecting God's rule of our life. And then, He was resurrected three days later and He validated His power to beat even death. Let me tell you, that's an anchor that holds.
And as for our loved ones. The Bible says, "I know the One in whom I trust, and I am sure that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him" (2 Timothy 1:12). This relationship is life's one anchor that holds.
Several years ago there were monster tornadoes in Oklahoma and I read about this mother and daughter who barely got the door on their safe room closed in
time. A couple hours later they went out to find their neighborhood gone - their house gone. They lost a lot that day. But they were okay because they had one place that could survive the storm.
Millions of people have found that in Jesus. I'm one of them. And you can be.
You want to know how to get started in that relationship with Him? Go to our website - ANewStory.com. Because Jesus, in this world, is your one safe place.
Wednesday, March 4, 2020
Joel 2, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: JOINT HEIRS WITH CHRIST
God sought you. He searched you out. Before you knew you needed adopting, he’d already filed the papers. Listen to this passage from Romans 8:29, “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”
What’s more, he covered the adoption fees. “God sent him, speaking of Christ, to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children” (Galatians 4:5).
The moment we accept his offer we go from orphans to heirs. Heirs! Heirs with a new name. A new home…a new life! Heaven knows no stepchildren or grandchildren. You and Christ share the same will. What he inherits, you inherit. And you are headed home.
Joel 2
Blow the ram’s horn trumpet in Zion!
Trumpet the alarm on my holy mountain!
Shake the country up!
God’s Judgment’s on its way—the Day’s almost here!
A black day! A Doomsday!
Clouds with no silver lining!
Like dawn light moving over the mountains,
a huge army is coming.
There’s never been anything like it
and never will be again.
Wildfire burns everything before this army
and fire licks up everything in its wake.
Before it arrives, the country is like the Garden of Eden.
When it leaves, it is Death Valley.
Nothing escapes unscathed.
4-6 The locust army seems all horses—
galloping horses, an army of horses.
It sounds like thunder
leaping on mountain ridges,
Or like the roar of wildfire
through grass and brush,
Or like an invincible army shouting for blood,
ready to fight, straining at the bit.
At the sight of this army,
the people panic, faces white with terror.
7-11 The invaders charge.
They climb barricades. Nothing stops them.
Each soldier does what he’s told,
so disciplined, so determined.
They don’t get in each other’s way.
Each one knows his job and does it.
Undaunted and fearless,
unswerving, unstoppable.
They storm the city,
swarm its defenses,
Loot the houses,
breaking down doors, smashing windows.
They arrive like an earthquake,
sweep through like a tornado.
Sun and moon turn out their lights,
stars black out.
God himself bellows in thunder
as he commands his forces.
Look at the size of that army!
And the strength of those who obey him!
God’s Judgment Day—great and terrible.
Who can possibly survive this?
12 But there’s also this, it’s not too late—
God’s personal Message!—
“Come back to me and really mean it!
Come fasting and weeping, sorry for your sins!”
13-14 Change your life, not just your clothes.
Come back to God, your God.
And here’s why: God is kind and merciful.
He takes a deep breath, puts up with a lot,
This most patient God, extravagant in love,
always ready to cancel catastrophe.
Who knows? Maybe he’ll do it now,
maybe he’ll turn around and show pity.
Maybe, when all’s said and done,
there’ll be blessings full and robust for your God!
15-17 Blow the ram’s horn trumpet in Zion!
Declare a day of repentance, a holy fast day.
Call a public meeting.
Get everyone there. Consecrate the congregation.
Make sure the elders come,
but bring in the children, too, even the nursing babies,
Even men and women on their honeymoon—
interrupt them and get them there.
Between Sanctuary entrance and altar,
let the priests, God’s servants, weep tears of repentance.
Let them intercede: “Have mercy, God, on your people!
Don’t abandon your heritage to contempt.
Don’t let the pagans take over and rule them
and sneer, ‘And so where is this God of theirs?’”
18-20 At that, God went into action to get his land back.
He took pity on his people.
God answered and spoke to his people,
“Look, listen—I’m sending a gift:
Grain and wine and olive oil.
The fast is over—eat your fill!
I won’t expose you any longer
to contempt among the pagans.
I’ll head off the final enemy coming out of the north
and dump them in a wasteland.
Half of them will end up in the Dead Sea,
the other half in the Mediterranean.
There they’ll rot, a stench to high heaven.
The bigger the enemy, the stronger the stench!”
21-24 Fear not, Earth! Be glad and celebrate!
God has done great things.
Fear not, wild animals!
The fields and meadows are greening up.
The trees are bearing fruit again:
a bumper crop of fig trees and vines!
Children of Zion, celebrate!
Be glad in your God.
He’s giving you a teacher
to train you how to live right—
Teaching, like rain out of heaven, showers of words
to refresh and nourish your soul, just as he used to do.
And plenty of food for your body—silos full of grain,
casks of wine and barrels of olive oil.
25-27 “I’ll make up for the years of the locust,
the great locust devastation—
Locusts savage, locusts deadly,
fierce locusts, locusts of doom,
That great locust invasion
I sent your way.
You’ll eat your fill of good food.
You’ll be full of praises to your God,
The God who has set you back on your heels in wonder.
Never again will my people be despised.
You’ll know without question
that I’m in the thick of life with Israel,
That I’m your God, yes, your God,
the one and only real God.
Never again will my people be despised.
28-32 “And that’s just the beginning: After that—
“I will pour out my Spirit
on every kind of people:
Your sons will prophesy,
also your daughters.
Your old men will dream,
your young men will see visions.
I’ll even pour out my Spirit on the servants,
men and women both.
I’ll set wonders in the sky above
and signs on the earth below:
Blood and fire and billowing smoke,
the sun turning black and the moon blood-red,
Before the Judgment Day of God,
the Day tremendous and awesome.
Whoever calls, ‘Help, God!’
gets help.
On Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
there will be a great rescue—just as God said.
Included in the survivors
are those that God calls.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, March 04, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Mark 9:2–10
The Transfiguration
After six days Jesus took Peter, James and Johnr with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. 3 His clothes became dazzling white,s whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. 4 And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.
5 Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi,t it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 6 (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)
7 Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud:u “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”v
8 Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.
9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyonew what they had seen until the Son of Manx had risen from the dead. 10 They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what “rising from the dead” meant.
Insight
It’s interesting to see both Moses and Elijah join Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mark 9:4). Though separated by many years, the ministries of Moses and Elijah had much in common. God used Moses to part the Red Sea with the symbol of his authority, the shepherd’s staff (Exodus 14:15–16). Meanwhile, Elijah parted the Jordan River with his cloak—which represented his prophetic office (2 Kings 2:6–8). Both had a significant encounter with God on Mount Sinai/Horeb (Exodus 34; 1 Kings 19). God provided food miraculously for Moses (and Israel) in the wilderness (Exodus 16), and did the same for Elijah during the drought-induced famine he’d prophesied (1 Kings 17). And both Moses and Elijah were succeeded by men (Joshua and Elisha—see Joshua 1:1–2; 1 Kings 19:16) whose names mean “The Lord/God saves.” Scholar H. H. Rowley said of the ministries of these Old Testament giants, “Without Moses the religion of Yahweh as it figured in the Old Testament would never have been born. Without Elijah it would have died.”
Live Wire
We were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 2 Peter 1:16
I felt like I had touched a live wire,” said Professor Holly Ordway, describing her reaction to John Donne’s majestic poem “Holy Sonnet 14.” There’s something happening in this poetry, she thought. I wonder what it is. Ordway recalls it as the moment her previously atheistic worldview allowed for the possibility of the supernatural. Eventually she would believe in the transforming reality of the resurrected Christ.
Touching a live wire—that must have been how Peter, James, and John felt on the day Jesus took them to a mountaintop, where they witnessed a dramatic transformation. Christ’s “clothes became dazzling white” (Mark 9:3) and Elijah and Moses appeared—an event we know today as the transfiguration.
Descending from the mountain, Jesus told the disciples not to tell anyone what they’d seen until He’d risen (v. 9). But they didn’t even know what He meant by “rising from the dead” (v. 10).
The disciples’ understanding of Jesus was woefully incomplete, because they couldn’t conceive of a destiny that included His death and resurrection. But eventually their experiences with their resurrected Lord would utterly transform their lives. Late in his life, Peter described his encounter with Christ’s transfiguration as the time when the disciples were first “eyewitnesses of his majesty” (2 Peter 1:16).
As Professor Ordway and the disciples learned, when we encounter the power of Jesus we touch a “live wire.” There’s something happening here. The living Christ beckons us. By: Tim Gustafson
Reflect & Pray
What are some of your “live wire” experiences: moments when you encountered God in a radically new way? How has your knowledge of Him changed over time?
Father, when we approach You in prayer, we come to what we don’t comprehend. Forgive us for taking for granted the majesty of Your presence.
To learn more about the life of Jesus, visit christianuniversity.org/NT111.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, March 04, 2020
Is This True of Me?
None of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself… —Acts 20:24
It is easier to serve or work for God without a vision and without a call, because then you are not bothered by what He requires. Common sense, covered with a layer of Christian emotion, becomes your guide. You may be more prosperous and successful from the world’s perspective, and will have more leisure time, if you never acknowledge the call of God. But once you receive a commission from Jesus Christ, the memory of what God asks of you will always be there to prod you on to do His will. You will no longer be able to work for Him on the basis of common sense.
What do I count in my life as “dear to myself”? If I have not been seized by Jesus Christ and have not surrendered myself to Him, I will consider the time I decide to give God and my own ideas of service as dear. I will also consider my own life as “dear to myself.” But Paul said he considered his life dear so that he might fulfill the ministry he had received, and he refused to use his energy on anything else. This verse shows an almost noble annoyance by Paul at being asked to consider himself. He was absolutely indifferent to any consideration other than that of fulfilling the ministry he had received. Our ordinary and reasonable service to God may actually compete against our total surrender to Him. Our reasonable work is based on the following argument which we say to ourselves, “Remember how useful you are here, and think how much value you would be in that particular type of work.” That attitude chooses our own judgment, instead of Jesus Christ, to be our guide as to where we should go and where we could be used the most. Never consider whether or not you are of use— but always consider that “you are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19). You are His.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
To live a life alone with God does not mean that we live it apart from everyone else. The connection between godly men and women and those associated with them is continually revealed in the Bible, e.g., 1 Timothy 4:10. Not Knowing Whither, 867 L
Bible in a Year: Numbers 31-33; Mark 9:1-29
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, March 04, 2020
Making the Days Left Really Count - #8648
It was one of those unexpected phone calls that leaves you stunned. Our friend Curt, one of the most experienced private pilots we know, had crashed two hours earlier. He was landing on a grass strip near his home, a strip where he's landed hundreds of times. This time he somehow went into a skid that propelled his plane right into a tree. The plane caught fire and exploded, and our friend Curt was in heaven. As a beloved leader in our community, I can tell you that his death rocked a lot of people, including me. Because of a collapsed wheel, he had been in a crash fourteen months earlier; one which should have been fatal but which he actually escaped from with serious but survivable injuries. I can't tell you how grateful I am he did not die then. See, something very important happened between those two crashes.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Making the Days Left Really Count."
It was my privilege to be asked by Curt's wife to talk about his faith at his funeral and the powerful changes that had taken place since that first crash. The word for that day from the Word of God is our word today. It's like a scale on which you can weigh the significance of your life and what you're living it for. You ready? Here it is: Philippians 1:20-21 - "I eagerly expect and hope that...Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain."
Now, we all need to honestly fill in the blank, "For to me to live is _________." See, the true answer - not the spiritual answer - might be, "For me to live is my business, my sports, my home, my kids, my success. For me to live is my family, or my friends, or my education, my dream. And maybe you should just put the name of the most important person in your life in that blank to fill it in. Here's the problem: if you're living for any of those things, to die is to lose it all. It's only when for you "to live is Christ" that to die will be gain.
When our friend Curt went down the first time, I'm not sure what he was living for. He was always a good man, but I think he would have said he wasn't always God's man. But after that crash he said, "God spared me for a reason." And he concluded that one major reason was for him to live for Christ in such a way that the people he cared about, the people who looked to him, would want his Jesus so they could be in heaven with him someday. And you know what? Curt began to live in such a way that "Christ would be exalted" by his life. And because he did, Christ was really exalted by his death.
In the months after that first crash, Curt had boldly told so many people in his large circle of influence about the Christ who died for them and for him. And it was only logical that his funeral would do the same thing - to give those he had touched the opportunity he had had - a wakeup call from a plane crash that would bring them into a vital relationship with Jesus Christ. But if you haven't lived to show Christ to people, well then, your death really can't lift Him up.
The death of a man or a woman who has really lived passionately for Christ can have such incredible meaning - helping others be in heaven with you. But a life not lived for Christ just can't have that kind of meaning. Death destroys every reason for living but one - living for Jesus and what matters to Him.
If Curt were here today, I believe he would tell you, "Don't wait to surrender your life and your influence to Jesus. You never know how many days you have left to
make your life count for something that's going to last forever." And, for sure, Jesus would tell you that. In fact, I believe He is telling you that - right now.
"Someday" isn't soon enough to give everything you've got to Jesus. No, it needs to be this day.
God sought you. He searched you out. Before you knew you needed adopting, he’d already filed the papers. Listen to this passage from Romans 8:29, “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”
What’s more, he covered the adoption fees. “God sent him, speaking of Christ, to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children” (Galatians 4:5).
The moment we accept his offer we go from orphans to heirs. Heirs! Heirs with a new name. A new home…a new life! Heaven knows no stepchildren or grandchildren. You and Christ share the same will. What he inherits, you inherit. And you are headed home.
Joel 2
Blow the ram’s horn trumpet in Zion!
Trumpet the alarm on my holy mountain!
Shake the country up!
God’s Judgment’s on its way—the Day’s almost here!
A black day! A Doomsday!
Clouds with no silver lining!
Like dawn light moving over the mountains,
a huge army is coming.
There’s never been anything like it
and never will be again.
Wildfire burns everything before this army
and fire licks up everything in its wake.
Before it arrives, the country is like the Garden of Eden.
When it leaves, it is Death Valley.
Nothing escapes unscathed.
4-6 The locust army seems all horses—
galloping horses, an army of horses.
It sounds like thunder
leaping on mountain ridges,
Or like the roar of wildfire
through grass and brush,
Or like an invincible army shouting for blood,
ready to fight, straining at the bit.
At the sight of this army,
the people panic, faces white with terror.
7-11 The invaders charge.
They climb barricades. Nothing stops them.
Each soldier does what he’s told,
so disciplined, so determined.
They don’t get in each other’s way.
Each one knows his job and does it.
Undaunted and fearless,
unswerving, unstoppable.
They storm the city,
swarm its defenses,
Loot the houses,
breaking down doors, smashing windows.
They arrive like an earthquake,
sweep through like a tornado.
Sun and moon turn out their lights,
stars black out.
God himself bellows in thunder
as he commands his forces.
Look at the size of that army!
And the strength of those who obey him!
God’s Judgment Day—great and terrible.
Who can possibly survive this?
12 But there’s also this, it’s not too late—
God’s personal Message!—
“Come back to me and really mean it!
Come fasting and weeping, sorry for your sins!”
13-14 Change your life, not just your clothes.
Come back to God, your God.
And here’s why: God is kind and merciful.
He takes a deep breath, puts up with a lot,
This most patient God, extravagant in love,
always ready to cancel catastrophe.
Who knows? Maybe he’ll do it now,
maybe he’ll turn around and show pity.
Maybe, when all’s said and done,
there’ll be blessings full and robust for your God!
15-17 Blow the ram’s horn trumpet in Zion!
Declare a day of repentance, a holy fast day.
Call a public meeting.
Get everyone there. Consecrate the congregation.
Make sure the elders come,
but bring in the children, too, even the nursing babies,
Even men and women on their honeymoon—
interrupt them and get them there.
Between Sanctuary entrance and altar,
let the priests, God’s servants, weep tears of repentance.
Let them intercede: “Have mercy, God, on your people!
Don’t abandon your heritage to contempt.
Don’t let the pagans take over and rule them
and sneer, ‘And so where is this God of theirs?’”
18-20 At that, God went into action to get his land back.
He took pity on his people.
God answered and spoke to his people,
“Look, listen—I’m sending a gift:
Grain and wine and olive oil.
The fast is over—eat your fill!
I won’t expose you any longer
to contempt among the pagans.
I’ll head off the final enemy coming out of the north
and dump them in a wasteland.
Half of them will end up in the Dead Sea,
the other half in the Mediterranean.
There they’ll rot, a stench to high heaven.
The bigger the enemy, the stronger the stench!”
21-24 Fear not, Earth! Be glad and celebrate!
God has done great things.
Fear not, wild animals!
The fields and meadows are greening up.
The trees are bearing fruit again:
a bumper crop of fig trees and vines!
Children of Zion, celebrate!
Be glad in your God.
He’s giving you a teacher
to train you how to live right—
Teaching, like rain out of heaven, showers of words
to refresh and nourish your soul, just as he used to do.
And plenty of food for your body—silos full of grain,
casks of wine and barrels of olive oil.
25-27 “I’ll make up for the years of the locust,
the great locust devastation—
Locusts savage, locusts deadly,
fierce locusts, locusts of doom,
That great locust invasion
I sent your way.
You’ll eat your fill of good food.
You’ll be full of praises to your God,
The God who has set you back on your heels in wonder.
Never again will my people be despised.
You’ll know without question
that I’m in the thick of life with Israel,
That I’m your God, yes, your God,
the one and only real God.
Never again will my people be despised.
28-32 “And that’s just the beginning: After that—
“I will pour out my Spirit
on every kind of people:
Your sons will prophesy,
also your daughters.
Your old men will dream,
your young men will see visions.
I’ll even pour out my Spirit on the servants,
men and women both.
I’ll set wonders in the sky above
and signs on the earth below:
Blood and fire and billowing smoke,
the sun turning black and the moon blood-red,
Before the Judgment Day of God,
the Day tremendous and awesome.
Whoever calls, ‘Help, God!’
gets help.
On Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
there will be a great rescue—just as God said.
Included in the survivors
are those that God calls.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, March 04, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Mark 9:2–10
The Transfiguration
After six days Jesus took Peter, James and Johnr with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. 3 His clothes became dazzling white,s whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. 4 And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.
5 Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi,t it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 6 (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)
7 Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud:u “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”v
8 Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.
9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyonew what they had seen until the Son of Manx had risen from the dead. 10 They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what “rising from the dead” meant.
Insight
It’s interesting to see both Moses and Elijah join Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mark 9:4). Though separated by many years, the ministries of Moses and Elijah had much in common. God used Moses to part the Red Sea with the symbol of his authority, the shepherd’s staff (Exodus 14:15–16). Meanwhile, Elijah parted the Jordan River with his cloak—which represented his prophetic office (2 Kings 2:6–8). Both had a significant encounter with God on Mount Sinai/Horeb (Exodus 34; 1 Kings 19). God provided food miraculously for Moses (and Israel) in the wilderness (Exodus 16), and did the same for Elijah during the drought-induced famine he’d prophesied (1 Kings 17). And both Moses and Elijah were succeeded by men (Joshua and Elisha—see Joshua 1:1–2; 1 Kings 19:16) whose names mean “The Lord/God saves.” Scholar H. H. Rowley said of the ministries of these Old Testament giants, “Without Moses the religion of Yahweh as it figured in the Old Testament would never have been born. Without Elijah it would have died.”
Live Wire
We were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 2 Peter 1:16
I felt like I had touched a live wire,” said Professor Holly Ordway, describing her reaction to John Donne’s majestic poem “Holy Sonnet 14.” There’s something happening in this poetry, she thought. I wonder what it is. Ordway recalls it as the moment her previously atheistic worldview allowed for the possibility of the supernatural. Eventually she would believe in the transforming reality of the resurrected Christ.
Touching a live wire—that must have been how Peter, James, and John felt on the day Jesus took them to a mountaintop, where they witnessed a dramatic transformation. Christ’s “clothes became dazzling white” (Mark 9:3) and Elijah and Moses appeared—an event we know today as the transfiguration.
Descending from the mountain, Jesus told the disciples not to tell anyone what they’d seen until He’d risen (v. 9). But they didn’t even know what He meant by “rising from the dead” (v. 10).
The disciples’ understanding of Jesus was woefully incomplete, because they couldn’t conceive of a destiny that included His death and resurrection. But eventually their experiences with their resurrected Lord would utterly transform their lives. Late in his life, Peter described his encounter with Christ’s transfiguration as the time when the disciples were first “eyewitnesses of his majesty” (2 Peter 1:16).
As Professor Ordway and the disciples learned, when we encounter the power of Jesus we touch a “live wire.” There’s something happening here. The living Christ beckons us. By: Tim Gustafson
Reflect & Pray
What are some of your “live wire” experiences: moments when you encountered God in a radically new way? How has your knowledge of Him changed over time?
Father, when we approach You in prayer, we come to what we don’t comprehend. Forgive us for taking for granted the majesty of Your presence.
To learn more about the life of Jesus, visit christianuniversity.org/NT111.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, March 04, 2020
Is This True of Me?
None of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself… —Acts 20:24
It is easier to serve or work for God without a vision and without a call, because then you are not bothered by what He requires. Common sense, covered with a layer of Christian emotion, becomes your guide. You may be more prosperous and successful from the world’s perspective, and will have more leisure time, if you never acknowledge the call of God. But once you receive a commission from Jesus Christ, the memory of what God asks of you will always be there to prod you on to do His will. You will no longer be able to work for Him on the basis of common sense.
What do I count in my life as “dear to myself”? If I have not been seized by Jesus Christ and have not surrendered myself to Him, I will consider the time I decide to give God and my own ideas of service as dear. I will also consider my own life as “dear to myself.” But Paul said he considered his life dear so that he might fulfill the ministry he had received, and he refused to use his energy on anything else. This verse shows an almost noble annoyance by Paul at being asked to consider himself. He was absolutely indifferent to any consideration other than that of fulfilling the ministry he had received. Our ordinary and reasonable service to God may actually compete against our total surrender to Him. Our reasonable work is based on the following argument which we say to ourselves, “Remember how useful you are here, and think how much value you would be in that particular type of work.” That attitude chooses our own judgment, instead of Jesus Christ, to be our guide as to where we should go and where we could be used the most. Never consider whether or not you are of use— but always consider that “you are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19). You are His.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
To live a life alone with God does not mean that we live it apart from everyone else. The connection between godly men and women and those associated with them is continually revealed in the Bible, e.g., 1 Timothy 4:10. Not Knowing Whither, 867 L
Bible in a Year: Numbers 31-33; Mark 9:1-29
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, March 04, 2020
Making the Days Left Really Count - #8648
It was one of those unexpected phone calls that leaves you stunned. Our friend Curt, one of the most experienced private pilots we know, had crashed two hours earlier. He was landing on a grass strip near his home, a strip where he's landed hundreds of times. This time he somehow went into a skid that propelled his plane right into a tree. The plane caught fire and exploded, and our friend Curt was in heaven. As a beloved leader in our community, I can tell you that his death rocked a lot of people, including me. Because of a collapsed wheel, he had been in a crash fourteen months earlier; one which should have been fatal but which he actually escaped from with serious but survivable injuries. I can't tell you how grateful I am he did not die then. See, something very important happened between those two crashes.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Making the Days Left Really Count."
It was my privilege to be asked by Curt's wife to talk about his faith at his funeral and the powerful changes that had taken place since that first crash. The word for that day from the Word of God is our word today. It's like a scale on which you can weigh the significance of your life and what you're living it for. You ready? Here it is: Philippians 1:20-21 - "I eagerly expect and hope that...Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain."
Now, we all need to honestly fill in the blank, "For to me to live is _________." See, the true answer - not the spiritual answer - might be, "For me to live is my business, my sports, my home, my kids, my success. For me to live is my family, or my friends, or my education, my dream. And maybe you should just put the name of the most important person in your life in that blank to fill it in. Here's the problem: if you're living for any of those things, to die is to lose it all. It's only when for you "to live is Christ" that to die will be gain.
When our friend Curt went down the first time, I'm not sure what he was living for. He was always a good man, but I think he would have said he wasn't always God's man. But after that crash he said, "God spared me for a reason." And he concluded that one major reason was for him to live for Christ in such a way that the people he cared about, the people who looked to him, would want his Jesus so they could be in heaven with him someday. And you know what? Curt began to live in such a way that "Christ would be exalted" by his life. And because he did, Christ was really exalted by his death.
In the months after that first crash, Curt had boldly told so many people in his large circle of influence about the Christ who died for them and for him. And it was only logical that his funeral would do the same thing - to give those he had touched the opportunity he had had - a wakeup call from a plane crash that would bring them into a vital relationship with Jesus Christ. But if you haven't lived to show Christ to people, well then, your death really can't lift Him up.
The death of a man or a woman who has really lived passionately for Christ can have such incredible meaning - helping others be in heaven with you. But a life not lived for Christ just can't have that kind of meaning. Death destroys every reason for living but one - living for Jesus and what matters to Him.
If Curt were here today, I believe he would tell you, "Don't wait to surrender your life and your influence to Jesus. You never know how many days you have left to
make your life count for something that's going to last forever." And, for sure, Jesus would tell you that. In fact, I believe He is telling you that - right now.
"Someday" isn't soon enough to give everything you've got to Jesus. No, it needs to be this day.
Tuesday, March 3, 2020
2 Chronicles 23, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: LOOK AT JESUS
These words are found in the book of Psalms: “The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand” (Psalm 37:23–24). Do the words of the psalmist surprise you? Where did we get this idea of a God who does not care, who is not near? We certainly didn’t get it from Jesus.
Jesus Christ is the perfect picture of God. Want to know how God feels about the sick? Look at Jesus. What angers God? Look at Jesus. Does God ever give up on people? Does he stand up for people? Find the answer in Jesus. Hebrews 1:3 says, “The Son is the radiance and only expression of the glory of our awesome God…and the exact representation and perfect imprint of His Father’s essence.”
2 Chronicles 23
In the seventh year the priest Jehoiada decided to make his move and worked out a strategy with certain influential officers in the army. He picked Azariah son of Jeroham, Ishmael son of Jehohanan, Azariah son of Obed, Maaseiah son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat son of Zicri as his associates. They dispersed throughout Judah and called in the Levites from all the towns in Judah along with the heads of families. They met in Jerusalem. The gathering met in The Temple of God. They made a covenant there in The Temple.
3-7 The priest Jehoiada showed them the young prince and addressed them: “Here he is—the son of the king. He is going to rule just as God promised regarding the sons of David. Now this is what you must do: A third of you priests and Levites who come on duty on the Sabbath are to be posted as security guards at the gates; another third will guard the palace; and the other third will guard the foundation gate. All the people will gather in the courtyards of The Temple of God. No one may enter The Temple of God except the priests and designated Levites—they are permitted in because they’ve been consecrated, but all the people must do the work assigned them. The Levites are to form a ring around the young king, weapons at the ready. Kill anyone who tries to break through your ranks. Your job is to stay with the king at all times and places, coming and going.”
8-10 All the Levites and officers obeyed the orders of Jehoiada the priest. Each took charge of his men, both those who came on duty on the Sabbath and those who went off duty on the Sabbath, for Jehoiada the priest hadn’t exempted any of them from duty. Then the priest armed the officers with spears and the large and small shields originally belonging to King David that were stored in The Temple of God. Well-armed, the guards took up their assigned positions for protecting the king, from one end of The Temple to the other, surrounding both Altar and Temple.
11 Then the priest brought the prince into view, crowned him, handed him the scroll of God’s covenant, and made him king. As Jehoiada and his sons anointed him they shouted, “Long live the king!”
12-13 Athaliah, hearing all the commotion, the people running around and praising the king, came to The Temple to see what was going on. Astonished, she saw the young king standing at the entrance flanked by the captains and heralds, with everybody beside themselves with joy, trumpets blaring, the choir and orchestra leading the praise. Athaliah ripped her robes in dismay and shouted, “Treason! Treason!”
14-15 Jehoiada the priest ordered the military officers, “Drag her outside—and kill anyone who tries to follow her!” (The priest had said, “Don’t kill her inside The Temple of God.”) So they dragged her out to the palace’s horse corral and there they killed her.
16 Jehoiada now made a covenant between himself and the king and the people: they were to be God’s special people.
17 The people poured into the temple of Baal and tore it down, smashing altar and images to smithereens. They killed Mattan the priest of Baal in front of the altar.
18-21 Jehoiada turned the care of God’s Temple over to the priests and Levites, the way David had directed originally. They were to offer the Whole-Burnt-Offerings of God as set out in The Revelation of Moses, and with praise and song as directed by David. He also assigned security guards at the gates of God’s Temple so that no one who was unprepared could enter. Then he got everyone together—officers, nobles, governors, and the people themselves—and escorted the king down from The Temple of God, through the Upper Gate, and placed him on the royal throne. Everybody celebrated the event. And the city was safe and undisturbed—Athaliah had been killed; no more Athaliah terror.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, March 03, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Jeremiah 1:1–8
The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathotha in the territory of Benjamin. 2 The word of the Lord cameb to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiahc son of Amon king of Judah, 3 and through the reign of Jehoiakimd son of Josiah king of Judah, down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiahe son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile.f
The Call of Jeremiah
4 The word of the Lord came to me, saying,
5 “Before I formed you in the wombg I knewa h you,
before you were borni I set you apart;j
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.k”
6 “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak;l I am too young.”m
7 But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. 8 Do not be afraidn of them, for I am with youo and will rescuep you,” declares the Lord.q
Insight
Scripture records God speaking directly to only a few people; for example, Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden (Genesis 1–3), Abram (ch. 12), Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3) and on Mount Sinai (ch. 31), and Elijah on Mount Horeb/Sinai (1 Kings 19). He also spoke directly to the prophets who wrote the prophetic books of the Old Testament. The phrase “the word of the Lord came to me” or “this is what the Lord says” is found throughout most of the prophetic books (see Jeremiah 1:4). When God speaks, He reveals something of Himself. In Jeremiah 1:1–8, He reveals Himself as creator (v. 5), director (v. 7), and rescuer (v. 8). We learn who God is through His own self-revelation.
Fully Known
Before I formed you . . . I knew you. Jeremiah 1:5
“You shouldn’t be here right now. Someone up there was looking out for you,” the tow truck driver told my mother after he had pulled her car from the edge of a steep mountain ravine and studied the tire tracks leading up to the wreck. Mom was pregnant with me at the time. As I grew, she often recounted the story of how God saved both our lives that day, and she assured me that God valued me even before I was born.
None of us escape our omniscient (all-knowing) Creator’s notice. More than 2,500 years ago He told the prophet Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you” (Jeremiah 1:5). God knows us more intimately than any person ever could and is able to give our lives purpose and meaning unlike any other. He not only formed us through His wisdom and power, but He also sustains every moment of our existence—including the personal details that occur every moment without our awareness: from the beating of our hearts to the intricate functioning of our brains. Reflecting on how our heavenly Father holds together every aspect of our existence, David exclaimed, “How precious to me are your thoughts, God!” (Psalm 139:17).
God is closer to us than our last breath. He made us, knows us, and loves us, and He’s ever worthy of our worship and praise. By: James Banks
Reflect & Pray
For what aspect of God’s care would you like to praise Him this moment? How can you encourage someone with the thought that He cares for them today?
You’re amazing, God! Thank You for holding me up and getting me through every moment of the day.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, March 03, 2020
His Commission to Us
Feed My sheep. —John 21:17
This is love in the making. The love of God is not created— it is His nature. When we receive the life of Christ through the Holy Spirit, He unites us with God so that His love is demonstrated in us. The goal of the indwelling Holy Spirit is not just to unite us with God, but to do it in such a way that we will be one with the Father in exactly the same way Jesus was. And what kind of oneness did Jesus Christ have with the Father? He had such a oneness with the Father that He was obedient when His Father sent Him down here to be poured out for us. And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).
Peter now realizes that he does love Him, due to the revelation that came with the Lord’s piercing question. The Lord’s next point is— “Pour yourself out. Don’t testify about how much you love Me and don’t talk about the wonderful revelation you have had, just ‘Feed My sheep.’ ” Jesus has some extraordinarily peculiar sheep: some that are unkempt and dirty, some that are awkward or pushy, and some that have gone astray! But it is impossible to exhaust God’s love, and it is impossible to exhaust my love if it flows from the Spirit of God within me. The love of God pays no attention to my prejudices caused by my natural individuality. If I love my Lord, I have no business being guided by natural emotions— I have to feed His sheep. We will not be delivered or released from His commission to us. Beware of counterfeiting the love of God by following your own natural human emotions, sympathies, or understandings. That will only serve to revile and abuse the true love of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Am I getting nobler, better, more helpful, more humble, as I get older? Am I exhibiting the life that men take knowledge of as having been with Jesus, or am I getting more self-assertive, more deliberately determined to have my own way? It is a great thing to tell yourself the truth.
The Place of Help
Bible in a Year: Numbers 28-30; Mark 8:22-38
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, March 03, 2020
How to Travel Far - #8647
For some people, a long drive is anything more than an hour or two. Over the years for my wife and me, well, it just had to be many hours before we could call it a long drive. Oh, good night, I think back! We've driven so many marathon trips over the years and, for the most part, we've enjoyed it...if we traveled together. It's not fun driving a long haul alone. In fact, unless you're a professional long-hauler, it's not even safe to drive a long trip alone. It never is a good idea to nap and drive simultaneously I believe. If you really want to cover a lot of miles, take somebody with you. You can go a lot longer. Oh sure, that second person might slow you down a little sometimes, but hey, they're worth it. There's an old African proverb that says it pretty well: "If you want to travel fast, travel alone. If you want to travel far, travel together." That's cool, huh?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Travel Far."
Of course, that proverb applies to much more than just a long-haul drive. You need to travel together with others for most of life's journeys: physical journeys, emotional journeys, and spiritual journeys. You'll just get a lot more done together.
That was one of the secrets of the survival and the amazing success of the first followers of Jesus Christ. They were new believers trying to stand for Christ in a city that was very hostile to anything about Jesus. They were a tiny minority. The odds were against them, but they won big-time!
Well, here's our word for today from the Word of God - tells us how they did it. Acts 2:44 says, "All the believers were together and had everything in common...they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." Did you catch that powerful word that was repeated three times in that passage - together! They traveled a long, long way because they traveled together.
How about you? I wonder if you tend to be more of a Lone Ranger type, doing it by yourself? You may travel fast, but you won't be able to travel nearly as far as you could teamed up with others. How about your church? How about your ministry? Are you trying to do Jesus' work by yourselves or are you forming partnerships with other believers in your area?
The lost world around us doesn't understand why we can't work together. They seem to understand our Lord's heart for us better than we do. After all, Jesus prayed, "May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Me" (John 17:23). That togetherness we read about in Acts 2 was the answer to that prayer.
But what about where you are? Are believers together? Are you all in your silos? You know, kind of all about your own turf? Are you separated by denominational turf, by neighborhoods, by racial backgrounds, by doctrinal differences, jealousies, or by leader's egos? We could go so much farther in rescuing the dying people around us and being taken seriously by a lost world if we'd just get together and travel together!
But getting together may start much closer to home for you. In fact, it may start at home. Maybe your family has become a group of Lone Rangers, each going in their own direction, each going it alone. That's wrong, and it's dangerous.
Are you willing to make whatever sacrifices you have to, to try to bring them together? It has to start with you. Or maybe the family of God you're a part of, a church, is more apart than together honestly. What is dividing you is probably nowhere near as important as the name and the cause of Christ that you have in common.
The journey is just too long, the challenges are just too great for you to keep going it alone. If you want to travel far, travel together.
These words are found in the book of Psalms: “The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand” (Psalm 37:23–24). Do the words of the psalmist surprise you? Where did we get this idea of a God who does not care, who is not near? We certainly didn’t get it from Jesus.
Jesus Christ is the perfect picture of God. Want to know how God feels about the sick? Look at Jesus. What angers God? Look at Jesus. Does God ever give up on people? Does he stand up for people? Find the answer in Jesus. Hebrews 1:3 says, “The Son is the radiance and only expression of the glory of our awesome God…and the exact representation and perfect imprint of His Father’s essence.”
2 Chronicles 23
In the seventh year the priest Jehoiada decided to make his move and worked out a strategy with certain influential officers in the army. He picked Azariah son of Jeroham, Ishmael son of Jehohanan, Azariah son of Obed, Maaseiah son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat son of Zicri as his associates. They dispersed throughout Judah and called in the Levites from all the towns in Judah along with the heads of families. They met in Jerusalem. The gathering met in The Temple of God. They made a covenant there in The Temple.
3-7 The priest Jehoiada showed them the young prince and addressed them: “Here he is—the son of the king. He is going to rule just as God promised regarding the sons of David. Now this is what you must do: A third of you priests and Levites who come on duty on the Sabbath are to be posted as security guards at the gates; another third will guard the palace; and the other third will guard the foundation gate. All the people will gather in the courtyards of The Temple of God. No one may enter The Temple of God except the priests and designated Levites—they are permitted in because they’ve been consecrated, but all the people must do the work assigned them. The Levites are to form a ring around the young king, weapons at the ready. Kill anyone who tries to break through your ranks. Your job is to stay with the king at all times and places, coming and going.”
8-10 All the Levites and officers obeyed the orders of Jehoiada the priest. Each took charge of his men, both those who came on duty on the Sabbath and those who went off duty on the Sabbath, for Jehoiada the priest hadn’t exempted any of them from duty. Then the priest armed the officers with spears and the large and small shields originally belonging to King David that were stored in The Temple of God. Well-armed, the guards took up their assigned positions for protecting the king, from one end of The Temple to the other, surrounding both Altar and Temple.
11 Then the priest brought the prince into view, crowned him, handed him the scroll of God’s covenant, and made him king. As Jehoiada and his sons anointed him they shouted, “Long live the king!”
12-13 Athaliah, hearing all the commotion, the people running around and praising the king, came to The Temple to see what was going on. Astonished, she saw the young king standing at the entrance flanked by the captains and heralds, with everybody beside themselves with joy, trumpets blaring, the choir and orchestra leading the praise. Athaliah ripped her robes in dismay and shouted, “Treason! Treason!”
14-15 Jehoiada the priest ordered the military officers, “Drag her outside—and kill anyone who tries to follow her!” (The priest had said, “Don’t kill her inside The Temple of God.”) So they dragged her out to the palace’s horse corral and there they killed her.
16 Jehoiada now made a covenant between himself and the king and the people: they were to be God’s special people.
17 The people poured into the temple of Baal and tore it down, smashing altar and images to smithereens. They killed Mattan the priest of Baal in front of the altar.
18-21 Jehoiada turned the care of God’s Temple over to the priests and Levites, the way David had directed originally. They were to offer the Whole-Burnt-Offerings of God as set out in The Revelation of Moses, and with praise and song as directed by David. He also assigned security guards at the gates of God’s Temple so that no one who was unprepared could enter. Then he got everyone together—officers, nobles, governors, and the people themselves—and escorted the king down from The Temple of God, through the Upper Gate, and placed him on the royal throne. Everybody celebrated the event. And the city was safe and undisturbed—Athaliah had been killed; no more Athaliah terror.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, March 03, 2020
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Jeremiah 1:1–8
The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathotha in the territory of Benjamin. 2 The word of the Lord cameb to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiahc son of Amon king of Judah, 3 and through the reign of Jehoiakimd son of Josiah king of Judah, down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiahe son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile.f
The Call of Jeremiah
4 The word of the Lord came to me, saying,
5 “Before I formed you in the wombg I knewa h you,
before you were borni I set you apart;j
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.k”
6 “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak;l I am too young.”m
7 But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. 8 Do not be afraidn of them, for I am with youo and will rescuep you,” declares the Lord.q
Insight
Scripture records God speaking directly to only a few people; for example, Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden (Genesis 1–3), Abram (ch. 12), Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3) and on Mount Sinai (ch. 31), and Elijah on Mount Horeb/Sinai (1 Kings 19). He also spoke directly to the prophets who wrote the prophetic books of the Old Testament. The phrase “the word of the Lord came to me” or “this is what the Lord says” is found throughout most of the prophetic books (see Jeremiah 1:4). When God speaks, He reveals something of Himself. In Jeremiah 1:1–8, He reveals Himself as creator (v. 5), director (v. 7), and rescuer (v. 8). We learn who God is through His own self-revelation.
Fully Known
Before I formed you . . . I knew you. Jeremiah 1:5
“You shouldn’t be here right now. Someone up there was looking out for you,” the tow truck driver told my mother after he had pulled her car from the edge of a steep mountain ravine and studied the tire tracks leading up to the wreck. Mom was pregnant with me at the time. As I grew, she often recounted the story of how God saved both our lives that day, and she assured me that God valued me even before I was born.
None of us escape our omniscient (all-knowing) Creator’s notice. More than 2,500 years ago He told the prophet Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you” (Jeremiah 1:5). God knows us more intimately than any person ever could and is able to give our lives purpose and meaning unlike any other. He not only formed us through His wisdom and power, but He also sustains every moment of our existence—including the personal details that occur every moment without our awareness: from the beating of our hearts to the intricate functioning of our brains. Reflecting on how our heavenly Father holds together every aspect of our existence, David exclaimed, “How precious to me are your thoughts, God!” (Psalm 139:17).
God is closer to us than our last breath. He made us, knows us, and loves us, and He’s ever worthy of our worship and praise. By: James Banks
Reflect & Pray
For what aspect of God’s care would you like to praise Him this moment? How can you encourage someone with the thought that He cares for them today?
You’re amazing, God! Thank You for holding me up and getting me through every moment of the day.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, March 03, 2020
His Commission to Us
Feed My sheep. —John 21:17
This is love in the making. The love of God is not created— it is His nature. When we receive the life of Christ through the Holy Spirit, He unites us with God so that His love is demonstrated in us. The goal of the indwelling Holy Spirit is not just to unite us with God, but to do it in such a way that we will be one with the Father in exactly the same way Jesus was. And what kind of oneness did Jesus Christ have with the Father? He had such a oneness with the Father that He was obedient when His Father sent Him down here to be poured out for us. And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).
Peter now realizes that he does love Him, due to the revelation that came with the Lord’s piercing question. The Lord’s next point is— “Pour yourself out. Don’t testify about how much you love Me and don’t talk about the wonderful revelation you have had, just ‘Feed My sheep.’ ” Jesus has some extraordinarily peculiar sheep: some that are unkempt and dirty, some that are awkward or pushy, and some that have gone astray! But it is impossible to exhaust God’s love, and it is impossible to exhaust my love if it flows from the Spirit of God within me. The love of God pays no attention to my prejudices caused by my natural individuality. If I love my Lord, I have no business being guided by natural emotions— I have to feed His sheep. We will not be delivered or released from His commission to us. Beware of counterfeiting the love of God by following your own natural human emotions, sympathies, or understandings. That will only serve to revile and abuse the true love of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Am I getting nobler, better, more helpful, more humble, as I get older? Am I exhibiting the life that men take knowledge of as having been with Jesus, or am I getting more self-assertive, more deliberately determined to have my own way? It is a great thing to tell yourself the truth.
The Place of Help
Bible in a Year: Numbers 28-30; Mark 8:22-38
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, March 03, 2020
How to Travel Far - #8647
For some people, a long drive is anything more than an hour or two. Over the years for my wife and me, well, it just had to be many hours before we could call it a long drive. Oh, good night, I think back! We've driven so many marathon trips over the years and, for the most part, we've enjoyed it...if we traveled together. It's not fun driving a long haul alone. In fact, unless you're a professional long-hauler, it's not even safe to drive a long trip alone. It never is a good idea to nap and drive simultaneously I believe. If you really want to cover a lot of miles, take somebody with you. You can go a lot longer. Oh sure, that second person might slow you down a little sometimes, but hey, they're worth it. There's an old African proverb that says it pretty well: "If you want to travel fast, travel alone. If you want to travel far, travel together." That's cool, huh?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Travel Far."
Of course, that proverb applies to much more than just a long-haul drive. You need to travel together with others for most of life's journeys: physical journeys, emotional journeys, and spiritual journeys. You'll just get a lot more done together.
That was one of the secrets of the survival and the amazing success of the first followers of Jesus Christ. They were new believers trying to stand for Christ in a city that was very hostile to anything about Jesus. They were a tiny minority. The odds were against them, but they won big-time!
Well, here's our word for today from the Word of God - tells us how they did it. Acts 2:44 says, "All the believers were together and had everything in common...they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." Did you catch that powerful word that was repeated three times in that passage - together! They traveled a long, long way because they traveled together.
How about you? I wonder if you tend to be more of a Lone Ranger type, doing it by yourself? You may travel fast, but you won't be able to travel nearly as far as you could teamed up with others. How about your church? How about your ministry? Are you trying to do Jesus' work by yourselves or are you forming partnerships with other believers in your area?
The lost world around us doesn't understand why we can't work together. They seem to understand our Lord's heart for us better than we do. After all, Jesus prayed, "May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Me" (John 17:23). That togetherness we read about in Acts 2 was the answer to that prayer.
But what about where you are? Are believers together? Are you all in your silos? You know, kind of all about your own turf? Are you separated by denominational turf, by neighborhoods, by racial backgrounds, by doctrinal differences, jealousies, or by leader's egos? We could go so much farther in rescuing the dying people around us and being taken seriously by a lost world if we'd just get together and travel together!
But getting together may start much closer to home for you. In fact, it may start at home. Maybe your family has become a group of Lone Rangers, each going in their own direction, each going it alone. That's wrong, and it's dangerous.
Are you willing to make whatever sacrifices you have to, to try to bring them together? It has to start with you. Or maybe the family of God you're a part of, a church, is more apart than together honestly. What is dividing you is probably nowhere near as important as the name and the cause of Christ that you have in common.
The journey is just too long, the challenges are just too great for you to keep going it alone. If you want to travel far, travel together.
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