2 Chronicles 7 Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

(Click to listen to God’s teaching)
Max Lucado Daily: His Kingdom Will Never End

In Bethlehem, the human being who best understood who God was and what he was doing, is a teenage girl in a smelly stable. As Mary looks into the face of the baby.  Her son. Her Lord.  His majesty—she can’t take her eyes off him.  Somehow Mary knows she’s holding God. So this is he. She remembers the words of the angel.  “His kingdom will never end!”

He looks like anything but a king. His cry, though strong and healthy, is still the helpless and piercing cry of a baby. Majesty in the midst of the mundane.  Holiness in the filth of sheep manure and sweat.  Divinity entering the world on the floor of a stable, through the womb of a teenager and in the presence of a carpenter.

God came near!

“And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end. Luke 1:33″

From Grace for the Moment

2 Chronicles 7

The Dedication of the Temple

7 When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. 2 The priests could not enter the temple of the Lord because the glory of the Lord filled it. 3 When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the Lord above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying,

“He is good;
    his love endures forever.”
4 Then the king and all the people offered sacrifices before the Lord. 5 And King Solomon offered a sacrifice of twenty-two thousand head of cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats. So the king and all the people dedicated the temple of God. 6 The priests took their positions, as did the Levites with the Lord’s musical instruments, which King David had made for praising the Lord and which were used when he gave thanks, saying, “His love endures forever.” Opposite the Levites, the priests blew their trumpets, and all the Israelites were standing.

7 Solomon consecrated the middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple of the Lord, and there he offered burnt offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings, because the bronze altar he had made could not hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat portions.

8 So Solomon observed the festival at that time for seven days, and all Israel with him—a vast assembly, people from Lebo Hamath to the Wadi of Egypt. 9 On the eighth day they held an assembly, for they had celebrated the dedication of the altar for seven days and the festival for seven days more. 10 On the twenty-third day of the seventh month he sent the people to their homes, joyful and glad in heart for the good things the Lord had done for David and Solomon and for his people Israel.

The Lord Appears to Solomon

11 When Solomon had finished the temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and had succeeded in carrying out all he had in mind to do in the temple of the Lord and in his own palace, 12 the Lord appeared to him at night and said:

“I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.

13 “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 15 Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. 16 I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.

17 “As for you, if you walk before me faithfully as David your father did, and do all I command, and observe my decrees and laws, 18 I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father when I said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to rule over Israel.’

19 “But if you[a] turn away and forsake the decrees and commands I have given you[b] and go off to serve other gods and worship them, 20 then I will uproot Israel from my land, which I have given them, and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. I will make it a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples. 21 This temple will become a heap of rubble. All[c] who pass by will be appalled and say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ 22 People will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—that is why he brought all this disaster on them.’”


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Luke 2:13-20

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Moment Of Grace

December 24, 2012 — by David C. McCasland

Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them. —Luke 2:20

Every year, I enjoy listening to the BBC’s worldwide live radio broadcast of the Christmas Eve service from King’s College Chapel in Cambridge, England. This Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols combines Scripture readings, prayers, and choral music in a moving service of worship. One year, I was struck by the announcer’s description of the congregation leaving the magnificent chapel, saying they were “stepping out of this moment of grace and back into the real world.”

Wasn’t it that way on the first Christmas? The shepherds heard an angel announce the birth of the Savior, Christ the Lord (Luke 2:11), followed by a “multitude of the heavenly host praising God” (vv.13-14). After they found Mary, Joseph, and the Baby in Bethlehem, the shepherds couldn’t help telling others about this Child (v.17). “The shepherds went back to work, glorifying and praising God for everything that they had heard and seen, which had happened just as they had been told” (v.20 Phillips).

They had been changed by their “moment of grace.” As they stepped back into their real world, they carried the good news about Jesus in their hearts and voices.

May we too take God’s grace into the real world this Christmas and every day of the new year.

May the grace that we encounter
At this time of Christmas cheer
Not be true just in this season
But remain throughout the year. —Sper
Take the joy of Christmas with you every day.



My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 24, 2012

The Hidden Life

. . . your life is hidden with Christ in God —Colossians 3:3

The Spirit of God testifies to and confirms the simple, but almighty, security of the life that “is hidden with Christ in God.” Paul continually brought this out in his New Testament letters. We talk as if living a sanctified life were the most uncertain and insecure thing we could do. Yet it is the most secure thing possible, because it has Almighty God in and behind it. The most dangerous and unsure thing is to try to live without God. For one who is born again, it is easier to live in a right-standing relationship with God than it is to go wrong, provided we heed God’s warnings and “walk in the light” (1 John 1:7).

When we think of being delivered from sin, being “filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18), and “walk[ing] in the light,” we picture the peak of a great mountain. We see it as very high and wonderful, but we say, “Oh, I could never live up there!” However, when we do get there through God’s grace, we find it is not a mountain peak at all, but a plateau with plenty of room to live and to grow. “You enlarged my path under me, so my feet did not slip” (Psalm 18:36).

When you really see Jesus, I defy you to doubt Him. If you see Him when He says, “Let not your heart be troubled . . .” (John 14:27), I defy you to worry. It is virtually impossible to doubt when He is there. Every time you are in personal contact with Jesus, His words are real to you. “My peace I give to you . . .” (John 14:27)— a peace which brings an unconstrained confidence and covers you completely, from the top of your head to the soles of your feet. “. . . your life is hidden with Christ in God,” and the peace of Jesus Christ that cannot be disturbed has been imparted to you.


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

A Battlefield Christmas - #6771

Monday, December 24, 2012

Boy, it's been great to see, the last couple of Christmases, a lot of soldiers coming home. But last Christmas that wasn't Amy's story. I met her at a dinner I spoke at. Wow, was she stressed! She had just gotten called up to go to Afghanistan. So as the Christmas displays were lighting up everything, Amy was saying goodbye to the people she loved and leaving for the battlefield. God knows that feeling.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Battlefield Christmas."

Yeah, Jesus knows how that feels. That's actually what the Son of God was doing that first Christmas. He actually left the safety - the glory of heaven, to come to this battlefield where we live. Imagine this: The Creator of a hundred billion galaxies, of the stars, the moon, the sun, and this planet and everyone on it. The Bible says, "Worshiped by angels." The book of Revelation tells us that "He is worshiped by 10,000 times 10,000 angels." That's a hundred million angels!

Now, listen to our word for today from the Word of God in John 1:14. It says, "He became human and made His home among us." And, when He came, of course, His life began not in a palace, but in a stable and it ended on a cross. You say, "Well, poor Jesus. That's so sad that happened to Him; that He was a victim of that violence." Jesus wasn't a victim. He said in John 10:18, He said, "No one takes my life from me. I lay it down myself." He said, "I am the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep." He chose to come here. He chose to let them strip him and beat him. He chose to let them mock and ridicule him, and to drive nails through his hands and feet, and to hang on that cross. They couldn't do that to him without his permission! He made the men who nailed him to the cross. He made the tree they nailed him to.

But He had come here to do battle with the monster that has ruined so many things; so many things you and I care about. Sin - it's not breaking somebody's religious rules. Sin is the "all about me" choices that we've all made. Who hasn't? And it's because ultimately, we've hijacked our lives from the God who gave us our life. Where does that take us: Broken relationships, broken promises, broken dreams, broken marriages, broken hearts. And Jesus won when He came and paid our death penalty on that cross.

In Isaiah 53, the Bible says this, that "the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him." "The punishment that made peace in my heart - peace with God possible - was upon Jesus. That sacrifice on that cross was something not just historic, not just religious, but so deeply personal.

One of the writers of the Bible put it this way, "God loved me and gave Himself for me." He did that so you could be forgiven and so you could be with Him forever in heaven some day.

So, now guess where the battle is? It's in your soul. You can feel it. It's over whether or not you will put all your trust, pin all your hopes on Him. And that battle can be over today if you'll just say, "Jesus, You who loved me enough to die for me; You who was powerful enough to walk out of Your grave, this Christmas I want to be Yours. I want to be forgiven. I want to know I'll be with You forever." Tell Him that now.

If you want to know more about how to start the relationship I've talked about, go to our website this very day - YoursForLife.net. When you open your heart to Him, the battle is finally over and the peace is in your soul.

2 Corinthians 1 bible reading and daily devotionals.

(Talk with God lately if not click to listen to God's teaching)

Max Lucado Daily: Ordinary No More

Today your Savior was
born in the town of David.
He is Christ, the Lord.
Luke 2:11

It was an ordinary night with ordinary sheep and ordinary shepherds.

Then the black sky exploded with brightness. Trees that had been shadows jumped into clarity. Sheep that had been silent became a chorus of curiosity. One minute the shepherd was dead asleep, the next he was rubbing his eyes and staring into the face of an alien.

The night was ordinary no more.

The angel came in the night because that is when lights are best seen and when they are most needed.

It all happened in a most remarkable moment—a moment like no other.

God became a man. Divinity arrived. Heaven opened and place her most precious one in a human womb. God had come near!

In the mystery of Christmas, we find its majesty. The mystery of how God became flesh, why he chose to come, and how much he must love his people.

2 Corinthians 1
New International Version (NIV)
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

To the church of God in Corinth, together with all his holy people throughout Achaia:

2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Praise to the God of All Comfort

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

8 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters,[a] about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. 10 He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, 11 as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.

Paul’s Change of Plans

12 Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity[b] and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace. 13 For we do not write you anything you cannot read or understand. And I hope that, 14 as you have understood us in part, you will come to understand fully that you can boast of us just as we will boast of you in the day of the Lord Jesus.

15 Because I was confident of this, I wanted to visit you first so that you might benefit twice. 16 I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia and to come back to you from Macedonia, and then to have you send me on my way to Judea. 17 Was I fickle when I intended to do this? Or do I make my plans in a worldly manner so that in the same breath I say both “Yes, yes” and “No, no”?

18 But as surely as God is faithful, our message to you is not “Yes” and “No.” 19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us—by me and Silas[c] and Timothy—was not “Yes” and “No,” but in him it has always been “Yes.” 20 For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God. 21 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

23 I call God as my witness—and I stake my life on it—that it was in order to spare you that I did not return to Corinth. 24 Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm.


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Isaiah 2:1-4

The Mountain of the Lord

2 This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:

2 In the last days

the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established
    as the highest of the mountains;
it will be exalted above the hills,
    and all nations will stream to it.
3 Many peoples will come and say,

“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
    to the temple of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
    so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law will go out from Zion,
    the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 He will judge between the nations
    and will settle disputes for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares
    and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
    nor will they train for war anymore.

Plowshare Christmas

December 23, 2012 — by Dennis Fisher

They shall beat their swords into plowshares . . . ; neither shall they learn war anymore. —Isaiah 2:4

In his book Christmas 1945, Matthew Litt tells about the first peacetime Christmas celebration in the US after World War II. The New York Daily News alerted readers to expect a fleet of warships in New York Harbor: “Christmas Day will find a mighty armada, consisting of 4 battleships, 6 carriers, 7 cruisers, and 24 destroyers.” But instead of waging war, the military ships hosted 1,000 needy children.

The children’s measurements had been taken previously so that perfectly fitted navy-blue coats and woolen caps would be gift-wrapped and awaiting them aboard the ships. These vessels of war had been transformed into carriers of compassion.

The prophet Isaiah predicted a future day of Christ’s reign of peace on this earth: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore” (2:4). Christmastime serves as a reminder that the Prince of Peace will ultimately bring a time of global calm and compassion.

As we celebrate the first coming of the Prince of Peace and wait for His second coming, we are reminded of our privilege to serve as His “carriers of compassion.”

Lord, You have come and brought peace, and I long to
share Your compassion everywhere I go.
Thank You that this world will know ultimate peace
when You return. Amen.
True peace comes from the Prince of Peace.


My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 23, 2012

Sharing in the Atonement

God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ . . . —Galatians 6:14

The gospel of Jesus Christ always forces a decision of our will. Have I accepted God’s verdict on sin as judged on the Cross of Christ? Do I have even the slightest interest in the death of Jesus? Do I want to be identified with His death— to be completely dead to all interest in sin, worldliness, and self? Do I long to be so closely identified with Jesus that I am of no value for anything except Him and His purposes? The great privilege of discipleship is that I can commit myself under the banner of His Cross, and that means death to sin. You must get alone with Jesus and either decide to tell Him that you do not want sin to die out in you, or that at any cost you want to be identified with His death. When you act in confident faith in what our Lord did on the cross, a supernatural identification with His death takes place immediately. And you will come to know through a higher knowledge that your old life was “crucified with Him” (Romans 6:6). The proof that your old life is dead, having been “crucified with Christ” (Galatians 2:20), is the amazing ease with which the life of God in you now enables you to obey the voice of Jesus Christ.

Every once in a while our Lord gives us a glimpse of what we would be like if it were not for Him. This is a confirmation of what He said— “. . . without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). That is why the underlying foundation of Christianity is personal, passionate devotion to the Lord Jesus. We mistake the joy of our first introduction into God’s kingdom as His purpose for getting us there. Yet God’s purpose in getting us into His kingdom is that we may realize all that identification with Jesus Christ means.

2 Chronicles 6 Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

(Click to listen to God’s teaching)
Max Lucado Daily: His Kingdom Will Never End

His kingdom will never end. Luke 1:33

In Bethlehem, the human being who best understood who God was and what he was doing, is the teenage girl in the smelly stable.

As Mary looks into the face of the baby. Her son. Her Lord. His Majesty—she can’t take her eyes off him. Somehow Mary knows she is holding God.

So this is he. She remembers the words of the angel. “His kingdom will never end.” (Luke 1:33)

He looks like anything but a king. His cry, though strong and healthy, is still the helpless and piercing cry of a baby.

Majesty in the midst of the mundane. Holiness in the filth of sheep manure and sweat. Divinity entering the world on the floor of a stable, through the womb of a teenager and in the presence of a carpenter.

God came near!

And Luke 1:33 says, “His kingdom will never end.”

2 Chronicles 6 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud; 2 I have built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever.”

3 While the whole assembly of Israel was standing there, the king turned around and blessed them. 4 Then he said:

“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who with his hands has fulfilled what he promised with his mouth to my father David. For he said, 5 ‘Since the day I brought my people out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built so that my Name might be there, nor have I chosen anyone to be ruler over my people Israel. 6 But now I have chosen Jerusalem for my Name to be there, and I have chosen David to rule my people Israel.’

7 “My father David had it in his heart to build a temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 8 But the Lord said to my father David, ‘You did well to have it in your heart to build a temple for my Name. 9 Nevertheless, you are not the one to build the temple, but your son, your own flesh and blood—he is the one who will build the temple for my Name.’

10 “The Lord has kept the promise he made. I have succeeded David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord promised, and I have built the temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 11 There I have placed the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with the people of Israel.”

Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication

12 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel and spread out his hands. 13 Now he had made a bronze platform, five cubits long, five cubits wide and three cubits high,[h] and had placed it in the center of the outer court. He stood on the platform and then knelt down before the whole assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven. 14 He said:

“Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven or on earth—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way. 15 You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today.

16 “Now, Lord, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me according to my law, as you have done.’ 17 And now, Lord, the God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David come true.

18 “But will God really dwell on earth with humans? The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! 19 Yet, Lord my God, give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plea for mercy. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence. 20 May your eyes be open toward this temple day and night, this place of which you said you would put your Name there. May you hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place. 21 Hear the supplications of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place; and when you hear, forgive.

22 “When anyone wrongs their neighbor and is required to take an oath and they come and swear the oath before your altar in this temple, 23 then hear from heaven and act. Judge between your servants, condemning the guilty and bringing down on their heads what they have done, and vindicating the innocent by treating them in accordance with their innocence.

24 “When your people Israel have been defeated by an enemy because they have sinned against you and when they turn back and give praise to your name, praying and making supplication before you in this temple, 25 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land you gave to them and their ancestors.

26 “When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, and when they pray toward this place and give praise to your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them, 27 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach them the right way to live, and send rain on the land you gave your people for an inheritance.

28 “When famine or plague comes to the land, or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers, or when enemies besiege them in any of their cities, whatever disaster or disease may come, 29 and when a prayer or plea is made by anyone among your people Israel—being aware of their afflictions and pains, and spreading out their hands toward this temple— 30 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive, and deal with everyone according to all they do, since you know their hearts (for you alone know the human heart), 31 so that they will fear you and walk in obedience to you all the time they live in the land you gave our ancestors.

32 “As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm—when they come and pray toward this temple, 33 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.

34 “When your people go to war against their enemies, wherever you send them, and when they pray to you toward this city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name, 35 then hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.

36 “When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes them captive to a land far away or near; 37 and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captivity and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong and acted wickedly’; 38 and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their captivity where they were taken, and pray toward the land you gave their ancestors, toward the city you have chosen and toward the temple I have built for your Name; 39 then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their pleas, and uphold their cause. And forgive your people, who have sinned against you.

40 “Now, my God, may your eyes be open and your ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.

41 “Now arise, Lord God, and come to your resting place,
    you and the ark of your might.
May your priests, Lord God, be clothed with salvation,
    may your faithful people rejoice in your goodness.
42 Lord God, do not reject your anointed one.
    Remember the great love promised to David your servant.”


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Psalm 19:1-6

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
    night after night they reveal knowledge.
3 They have no speech, they use no words;
    no sound is heard from them.
4 Yet their voice[b] goes out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
5     It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
    like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
6 It rises at one end of the heavens
    and makes its circuit to the other;
    nothing is deprived of its warmth.

The Heavens Declare

December 22, 2012 — by Joe Stowell

The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. —Psalm 19:1

You don’t have to gaze long at the night sky to marvel at the wonder of God’s awe-inspiring handiwork. The massive stretch of galaxies and the cloudy mass of our own Milky Way remind us of the spectacular creation and the sustaining work of Jesus by whom it is all held together (Col. 1:16-17). It’s as though all of us have front-row seats in the theater of God’s creative power.

But the nightly show we experience is nothing compared with the glory that God displayed when He sent His Son to Earth. While shepherds were watching their flocks, the sky was suddenly ablaze with angelic messengers praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest!” (Luke 2:14). Even Magi from a foreign land came and worshiped the King when God planted the brightest of stars in the east, which led them to Bethlehem.

While “the heavens declare the glory of God” nightly (Ps. 19:1), never before or since has the theater of the universe been more alive with His glory than it was with the announcement that the Creator of this universe loved us enough to come to our planet to save us from our sin. Keep that thought in mind the next time you marvel at the stars!

Lord, make us mindful of the glorious day when the
heavens resounded with the announcement of the
coming of Your Son. Lead us to glorify Him in ways
that catch the attention of our watching world.
The spectacular glory of God’s love for us
was revealed in the coming of Jesus.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 22, 2012

The Drawing of the Father

No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him . . . —John 6:44

When God begins to draw me to Himself, the problem of my will comes in immediately. Will I react positively to the truth that God has revealed? Will I come to Him? To discuss or deliberate over spiritual matters when God calls is inappropriate and disrespectful to Him. When God speaks, never discuss it with anyone as if to decide what your response may be (see Galatians 1:15-16). Belief is not the result of an intellectual act, but the result of an act of my will whereby I deliberately commit myself. But will I commit, placing myself completely and absolutely on God, and be willing to act solely on what He says? If I will, I will find that I am grounded on reality as certain as God’s throne.

In preaching the gospel, always focus on the matter of the will. Belief must come from the will to believe. There must be a surrender of the will, not a surrender to a persuasive or powerful argument. I must deliberately step out, placing my faith in God and in His truth. And I must place no confidence in my own works, but only in God. Trusting in my own mental understanding becomes a hindrance to complete trust in God. I must be willing to ignore and leave my feelings behind. I must will to believe. But this can never be accomplished without my forceful, determined effort to separate myself from my old ways of looking at things. I must surrender myself completely to God.

Everyone has been created with the ability to reach out beyond his own grasp. But it is God who draws me, and my relationship to Him in the first place is an inner, personal one, not an intellectual one. I come into the relationship through the miracle of God and through my own will to believe. Then I begin to get an intelligent appreciation and understanding of the wonder of the transformation in my life.

2 Chronicles 5 bible reading and devotionals.

(Talk with God lately if not click to listen to God's teaching)

Max Lucado Daily:No Room

Some of the saddest words on earth are:  “We don’t have room for you.”

Jesus knew the sound of those words.  He was still in Mary’s womb when the innkeeper said, “We don’t have room for you.” (Luke 2:7)

And when he was hung on the cross, wasn’t the message one of utter rejection?  “We don’t have room for you in our world.”

Even today Jesus is given the same treatment.  He goes from heart to heart, asking if he might enter. Every so often, he’s welcomed.  Someone throws open the door of his or her heart and invites him to stay.  And to that person Jesus gives this great promise: “In my Father’s house are many rooms.” (John 14:2)

What a delightful promise he makes us! We make room for him in our hearts….And he makes room for us in his house!

From Grace for the Moment

5 When all the work Solomon had done for the temple of the Lord was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated—the silver and gold and all the furnishings—and he placed them in the treasuries of God’s temple.

The Ark Brought to the Temple

2 Then Solomon summoned to Jerusalem the elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs of the Israelite families, to bring up the ark of the Lord’s covenant from Zion, the City of David. 3 And all the Israelites came together to the king at the time of the festival in the seventh month.

4 When all the elders of Israel had arrived, the Levites took up the ark, 5 and they brought up the ark and the tent of meeting and all the sacred furnishings in it. The Levitical priests carried them up; 6 and King Solomon and the entire assembly of Israel that had gathered about him were before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and cattle that they could not be recorded or counted.

7 The priests then brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim. 8 The cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark and covered the ark and its carrying poles. 9 These poles were so long that their ends, extending from the ark, could be seen from in front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside the Holy Place; and they are still there today. 10 There was nothing in the ark except the two tablets that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.

11 The priests then withdrew from the Holy Place. All the priests who were there had consecrated themselves, regardless of their divisions. 12 All the Levites who were musicians—Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun and their sons and relatives—stood on the east side of the altar, dressed in fine linen and playing cymbals, harps and lyres. They were accompanied by 120 priests sounding trumpets. 13 The trumpeters and musicians joined in unison to give praise and thanks to the Lord. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, the singers raised their voices in praise to the Lord and sang:

“He is good;
    his love endures forever.”
Then the temple of the Lord was filled with the cloud, 14 and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the temple of God.


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Proverbs 16:19-24

English Standard Version (ESV)
19 It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor
    than to divide the spoil with the proud.
20 Whoever gives thought to the word[a] will discover good,
    and blessed is he who trusts in the Lord.
21 The wise of heart is called discerning,
    and sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness.
22 Good sense is a fountain of life to him who has it,
    but the instruction of fools is folly.
23 The heart of the wise makes his speech judicious
    and adds persuasiveness to his lips.
24 Gracious words are like a honeycomb,
    sweetness to the soul and health to the body.

Sweet Words

December 21, 2012 — by Anne Cetas

Put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering. —Colossians 3:12

Scott had always admired the relationship between Ken and Phyllis, his wife’s parents. So he asked them one day what made their marriage work. Ken replied, “You need to keep it sweet!”

A friend of mine concludes many of her notes to me and my husband and other friends with these words: “Remember to be good to each other.”

That’s great advice from both of them about being kind. The daily stresses of life can easily cause us to get irritable with our spouses or with others. We pick at the little annoyances or criticize minor habits. We blurt out harmful, unkind words without thinking.

The book of Proverbs gives us counsel about the words we use with others. It says, “Whoever guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from troubles” (21:23). And there are these warnings: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (18:21); and “Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing” (12:18 niv). Ken’s advice about “keeping it sweet” reminds me of Proverbs 16:24, “Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.”

Lord, fill our hearts with words that will be a blessing to others today.

Instead of hurling angry words
That wound and stir up strife,
Use words of kindness, filled with love,
That heal and nourish life. —Sper
Kind hearts are the gardens; kind thoughts are the roots; kind words are the flowers; kind deeds are the fruits.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 21.

Experience or God’s Revealed Truth?

We have received . . . the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God —1 Corinthians 2:12

My experience is not what makes redemption real— redemption is reality. Redemption has no real meaning for me until it is worked out through my conscious life. When I am born again, the Spirit of God takes me beyond myself and my experiences, and identifies me with Jesus Christ. If I am left only with my personal experiences, I am left with something not produced by redemption. But experiences produced by redemption prove themselves by leading me beyond myself, to the point of no longer paying any attention to experiences as the basis of reality. Instead, I see that only the reality itself produced the experiences. My experiences are not worth anything unless they keep me at the Source of truth— Jesus Christ.

If you try to hold back the Holy Spirit within you, with the desire of producing more inner spiritual experiences, you will find that He will break the hold and take you again to the historic Christ. Never support an experience which does not have God as its Source and faith in God as its result. If you do, your experience is anti-Christian, no matter what visions or insights you may have had. Is Jesus Christ Lord of your experiences, or do you place your experiences above Him? Is any experience dearer to you than your Lord? You must allow Him to be Lord over you, and pay no attention to any experience over which He is not Lord. Then there will come a time when God will make you impatient with your own experience, and you can truthfully say, “I do not care what I experience— I am sure of Him!”

Be relentless and hard on yourself if you are in the habit of talking about the experiences you have had. Faith based on experience is not faith; faith based on God’s revealed truth is the only faith there is.


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Surprises in the Family Tree - #6770

Friday, December 21, 2012

There are lots of people digging into their family tree these days. In fact, we've done some of our own. A lot of digging around to find out where your roots are. You know, where my grandfather came from and my great grandfather, and which king or famous person I'm descended from. Of course I would be descended from someone famous, right?

Some people do find out that they are related to royalty, and then other people find out some embarrassment in their family tree - the old horse thief, you know, that they'd rather not talk about. For 2,000 years God has been developing and protecting a line for His Son to come through, and there are in that family tree some eyebrow raisers.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Surprises in the Family Tree."

Now, our word for today from the Word of God, comes right out of the Christmas Story, is found in Matthew 1. Now, you may or may not be aware of the fact that the Christmas Story begins actually with a genealogy; a list of Jesus' family tree. God's been preparing this line for the Messiah; it's this most special lineup of people - the most special family tree in the history of planet earth. He goes down a long list of names that starts here with Abraham, works its way on down, and I'll just read a couple of them to you.

"Salmon was the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth," etc. You probably don't want to hear a whole lot more of that. But all of a sudden you stop and your eye goes back and you say, "Rahab? What's she doing in Jesus' family tree?" Now, in most of this genealogy only the father is mentioned. It's only in rare cases where God wants to make a special point of it that He includes the mother. Why Rahab?

Now, if you remember your Old Testament a little bit, some years before, the Israelites were preparing to conquer the land of Canaan. God sent in a couple of spies and they went to the city of Jericho and they found one home where they were taken in to hide, and it turned out it was the home of Rahab - the prostitute. She turned out to be the prostitute who gave herself to the Jewish God for the rest of her life.

But these aren't the kind of people you talk about in your family tree; these are the ones you cover up. This isn't the king! And yet God makes it a point to include her. You see, there's a hidden message here in the Christmas Story. A message that Jesus is for people who know they need forgiving and who know that God's grace has no limits. God doesn't use the word deserve when it comes to salvation. None of us deserves to be in His family tree. It's not just Rahab that's a surprise; what is Ron Hutchcraft doing in God's family? What are you doing in His family?

We're sinners who must always find grace to be "Amazing grace - how sweet the sound." The hymn says, "I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene, and wonder how He could love me...a sinner condemned, unclean." I hope today you still find God's grace amazing, and that you haven't been around so long that you think you belong in God's family because you deserve it. There is no one listening today who will not be forgiven by Him. Rahab was. And there is no person who doesn't still need His amazing grace today.

But maybe you've never experienced that grace for yourself. Oh, you've heard that song a lot of times - Amazing Grace. It says, "I once was lost but now I'm found, was blind but now I see." But today, this Christmas season, how appropriate. The God who will forgive all those who come to Him, holds out His hand to you and says, "Grab My hand, my child." His Son died to pay the penalty that you deserve. And God can be a forgiver because of the death of His Son on a cross. And, because His Son walked out of His grave under His own power, what began in a manger ended on a cross, and culminated with a resurrection and becomes personal for you when you let this Jesus be the forgiver of your sins.

That's the day you're welcomed into His family. Would you tell Him today, "Jesus, I want the Savior you came to be, to be my Savior. You came into the world at Christmas. Come into my life this Christmas season."

And, go to our website and find out there how you can be sure you belong to Him - YoursForLife.net. Because the story of Rahab tells us this Christmas that there is no one who He will not welcome into the family of God.

2 Chronicles 4 bible reading and devotionals.

(Talk with God lately if not click to listen to God's teaching) 

Max Lucado Daily:

He Called His Name Jesus

Scripture says,  “And Joseph took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son.  And he called His name Jesus! Matthew 1:24”

Joseph was literally willing to tank his reputation.  And he did. He traded it in for a pregnant fiancée and an illegitimate son and made the big decision of discipleship.  He placed God’s plan ahead of his own.  Rather than make a name for himself, he made a home for Christ.  And because he did, a great reward came his way. “And he called His name Jesus!”

Of all the saints, sinners, prodigals, and preachers who’ve spoken the name, Joseph—a blue-collar, small-town construction worker said it first.  Joseph cradled the wrinkle-faced prince of heaven, and with an audience of angels and pigs, whispered, “Jesus—You’ll be called Jesus!”

From: Grace for the Moment

2 Chronicles 4

New International Version (NIV)
The Temple’s Furnishings

4 He made a bronze altar twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide and ten cubits high.[a] 2 He made the Sea of cast metal, circular in shape, measuring ten cubits from rim to rim and five cubits[b] high. It took a line of thirty cubits[c] to measure around it. 3 Below the rim, figures of bulls encircled it—ten to a cubit.[d] The bulls were cast in two rows in one piece with the Sea.

4 The Sea stood on twelve bulls, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south and three facing east. The Sea rested on top of them, and their hindquarters were toward the center. 5 It was a handbreadth[e] in thickness, and its rim was like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held three thousand baths.[f]

6 He then made ten basins for washing and placed five on the south side and five on the north. In them the things to be used for the burnt offerings were rinsed, but the Sea was to be used by the priests for washing.

7 He made ten gold lampstands according to the specifications for them and placed them in the temple, five on the south side and five on the north.

8 He made ten tables and placed them in the temple, five on the south side and five on the north. He also made a hundred gold sprinkling bowls.

9 He made the courtyard of the priests, and the large court and the doors for the court, and overlaid the doors with bronze. 10 He placed the Sea on the south side, at the southeast corner.

11 And Huram also made the pots and shovels and sprinkling bowls.

So Huram finished the work he had undertaken for King Solomon in the temple of God:

12 the two pillars;

the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;

the two sets of network decorating the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;

13 the four hundred pomegranates for the two sets of network (two rows of pomegranates for each network, decorating the bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars);

14 the stands with their basins;

15 the Sea and the twelve bulls under it;

16 the pots, shovels, meat forks and all related articles.

All the objects that Huram-Abi made for King Solomon for the temple of the Lord were of polished bronze. 17 The king had them cast in clay molds in the plain of the Jordan between Sukkoth and Zarethan.[g] 18 All these things that Solomon made amounted to so much that the weight of the bronze could not be calculated.

19 Solomon also made all the furnishings that were in God’s temple:

the golden altar;

the tables on which was the bread of the Presence;

20 the lampstands of pure gold with their lamps, to burn in front of the inner sanctuary as prescribed;

21 the gold floral work and lamps and tongs (they were solid gold);

22 the pure gold wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes and censers; and the gold doors of the temple: the inner doors to the Most Holy Place and the doors of the main hall.


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Colossians 1:19-27

Colossians 1:19-27
English Standard Version (ESV)
19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation[a] under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Paul's Ministry to the Church

24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, 26 the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. 27 To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

The Gift

December 20, 2012 — by Julie Ackerman Link

And you . . . He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight. —Colossians 1:21-22

We refer to Christmas as the season of giving. Most of us try hard to find gifts that friends and family will like, but not all gifts are equal. Some gifts come with a subtle hint, like an exercise machine or a book about weight loss. Other gifts are those that the giver really wants for himself. But the best gifts are those that come from someone who loves us and knows what we want.

Last Christmas, my pastor, Jim Samra, challenged us to think about Christ’s coming in another way. We know that Jesus was God’s perfect gift to us (Rom. 6:23), but Pastor Jim added another thought. He said that His coming to earth could also be looked at as a gift that Jesus gave to His Father. Jesus loved His Father and knew that what He wanted more than anything else was for us, His creation, to be reconciled to Him. Through His incarnation, Jesus made it possible for us to be a holy and blameless present to God (Col. 1:22).

Thinking of ourselves as a gift to God makes us want to be a present worth the cost, “fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (v.10).

Dear Lord, from whom all blessings flow,
Most precious gifts dost Thou bestow;
So truly faithful may I be
As Thou art gracious unto me. —Roworth
God’s highest Gift should awaken our deepest gratitude.


My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 20, 2012

The Right Kind of Help

And I, if I am lifted up . . . will draw all peoples to Myself —John 12:32

Very few of us have any understanding of the reason why Jesus Christ died. If sympathy is all that human beings need, then the Cross of Christ is an absurdity and there is absolutely no need for it. What the world needs is not “a little bit of love,” but major surgery.

When you find yourself face to face with a person who is spiritually lost, remind yourself of Jesus Christ on the cross. If that person can get to God in any other way, then the Cross of Christ is unnecessary. If you think you are helping lost people with your sympathy and understanding, you are a traitor to Jesus Christ. You must have a right-standing relationship with Him yourself, and pour your life out in helping others in His way— not in a human way that ignores God. The theme of the world’s religion today is to serve in a pleasant, non-confrontational manner.

But our only priority must be to present Jesus Christ crucified— to lift Him up all the time (see 1 Corinthians 2:2). Every belief that is not firmly rooted in the Cross of Christ will lead people astray. If the worker himself believes in Jesus Christ and is trusting in the reality of redemption, his words will be compelling to others. What is extremely important is for the worker’s simple relationship with Jesus Christ to be strong and growing. His usefulness to God depends on that, and that alone.

The calling of a New Testament worker is to expose sin and to reveal Jesus Christ as Savior. Consequently, he cannot always be charming and friendly, but must be willing to be stern to accomplish major surgery. We are sent by God to lift up Jesus Christ, not to give wonderfully beautiful speeches. We must be willing to examine others as deeply as God has examined us. We must also be sharply intent on sensing those Scripture passages that will drive the truth home, and then not be afraid to apply them.


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

The Gift He Didn't Want - #6769

Thursday, December 20, 2012

When my friend Rich was about seven years old, his parents really splurged on his Christmas gift. They got him a big boy bike! What a moment that Christmas morning. Can you imagine? They'd been holding on to this, waiting to surprise him. They wheel it into the living room, and Rich says, "Thanks, but I don't want it." That's the truth, really. Can you imagine? That boy rejected the best gift his parents could give him. He's not alone.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Gift He Didn't Want."

Man, I can only imagine how his father felt about that bike that he had spent a good deal on, and his boy didn't want it. More importantly, can you imagine how God feels when we do that to Him? Because Christmas...that's when He gave the most expensive gift He could possibly give. In the words of the Bible, "He spared not His Son but delivered Him up for us all" (Romans 8:32). Jesus came that Christmas to end up dying alone on a cross to pay for every sin we've ever done; to take our hell so we could go to His heaven. That's the ultimate gift!

But see, that tells us how bad our sin is. We can't excuse sin as just a few immoral failures. It's rebellion against God that could only be paid for by a death penalty. It's spiritual hijacking. And we've said, "God, you made the universe. You run the universe. I'll run me, thank you." How dare I defy the God of a hundred billion galaxies, who decides if I take my next breath. Yeah, that's how bad our sin is. If you don't know how bad it is, you go to that cross and look at what it took to pay for it. There's only one way to pay for our sin. Either we pay the death penalty forever in a place away from God, or we accept the payment Jesus made. That's the gift He died to pay for.

Now, in our word for today from the Word of God, Romans 6:23, it says, "The gift of God is eternal life." Before that it says, "The wages of sin is death." That's what we deserve. But "the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Now, I'll tell you why it's a gift. It's because there's nothing you can do to earn heaven. You don't pay God for it. You don't begin to somehow acquire it by doing good works. When someone gives you a gift on Christmas, you don't do anything for it. Your only way of making it yours is to receive it and to take it for yourself. There's a big lie out there. You see it across the world among religious people that, "I can be good enough somehow to make it to heaven." But if we could have been good enough, would God have sent His Son to pay this awful price if there was any other way? Obviously it had to be bought with the blood of the only perfect One there was - God's Son.

And that gift? That gift is being wheeled out in front of you this Christmas season. The biggest mistake of your life would be to say "Thanks, God, but I don't want it." This Christmas, you've got to decide what you're going to do with this greatest gift of all. To reject that gift is to reject God's great sacrifice for you, is to spurn this ultimate act of love from the God who made you, and to turn your back on the heaven that you want to go to when you die.

Listen, if you want to take that gift for yourself, will you tell Him that, "Jesus, I am Yours. I cannot any longer ignore, postpone, marginalize or reject this gift. I want the gift of eternal life You died to give me." This Christmas season, what a wonderful time to receive God's greatest gift. You can go to our website and walk right through there how to begin this relationship with Jesus. Go to, YoursForLife.net.

It's so important that you take this gift, because I can tell you, the God who sent His Son here will never forget what you do with His Son.

1 Corinthians 16 bible reading and devotionals.

(Talk with God lately if not click to listen to God's teaching) 

Max Lucado Daily: God Stakes His Claim

I heard the announcement, “Your name is on the standby list!”  Groan!  The dreaded standby list.  Possibility but no guarantee.

Oh, to be numbered among the confirmed!  To have my own seat and departure time.  How can you rest if you aren’t assured passage on the final flight home?

Many live with a deep-seated anxiety about eternity.  They think they’re saved, but they still doubt, wondering, “Am I really saved?” Jesus promised a new life that could not be forfeited or terminated.  He says “whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned.” God stakes his claim on us.  Bridges are burned, and the transfer is accomplished.  Ups and downs may mark our days, but they will never ban us from his kingdom.  Jesus bottom-lines our lives with His grace!

“I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.  John 5:24?

From GRACE

1 Corinthians 16
New International Version (NIV)
The Collection for the Lord’s People

16 Now about the collection for the Lord’s people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. 2 On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. 3 Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem. 4 If it seems advisable for me to go also, they will accompany me.

Personal Requests

5 After I go through Macedonia, I will come to you—for I will be going through Macedonia. 6 Perhaps I will stay with you for a while, or even spend the winter, so that you can help me on my journey, wherever I go. 7 For I do not want to see you now and make only a passing visit; I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord permits. 8 But I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost, 9 because a great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me.

10 When Timothy comes, see to it that he has nothing to fear while he is with you, for he is carrying on the work of the Lord, just as I am. 11 No one, then, should treat him with contempt. Send him on his way in peace so that he may return to me. I am expecting him along with the brothers.

12 Now about our brother Apollos: I strongly urged him to go to you with the brothers. He was quite unwilling to go now, but he will go when he has the opportunity.

13 Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. 14 Do everything in love.

15 You know that the household of Stephanas were the first converts in Achaia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of the Lord’s people. I urge you, brothers and sisters, 16 to submit to such people and to everyone who joins in the work and labors at it. 17 I was glad when Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus arrived, because they have supplied what was lacking from you. 18 For they refreshed my spirit and yours also. Such men deserve recognition.

Final Greetings

19 The churches in the province of Asia send you greetings. Aquila and Priscilla[a] greet you warmly in the Lord, and so does the church that meets at their house. 20 All the brothers and sisters here send you greetings. Greet one another with a holy kiss.

21 I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand.

22 If anyone does not love the Lord, let that person be cursed! Come, Lord[b]!

23 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you.

24 My love to all of you in Christ Jesus. Amen.[c]


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Mark 10:46-52

Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus

46 And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.

Be Specific

December 19, 2012 — by Cindy Hess Kasper

What do you want Me to do for you? —Mark 10:51

On the day before a major surgery, I shared with my friend that I was really scared about the procedure. “What part scares you?” she inquired. “I’m just so afraid that I won’t wake up from the anesthesia,” I replied. Immediately, Anne prayed: “Father, you know all about Cindy’s fear. Please calm her heart and fill her with Your peace. And, Lord, please wake her up after surgery.”

I think God likes that kind of specificity when we talk to Him. When Bartimaeus, the blind beggar, called out to Jesus for help, Jesus said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” And the blind man said, “Rabboni, that I may receive my sight!” Jesus said, “Go your way; your faith has made you well” (Mark 10:51-52).

We don’t need to beat around the bush with God. While there may be a time to pray poetically as David did, there are also times to say bluntly, “God, I’m so sorry for what I just said,” or to say simply, “Jesus, I love You because . . . .” Being specific with God can even be a sign of faith because we are acknowledging that we know we’re not talking to a far-off Being but to a real Person who loves us intimately.

God is not impressed by a flurry of fanciful words. He is listening for what our heart is saying.

Poetic prose in prayer to God
Is not what He requires;
Instead, specific heartfelt pleas
Are what the Lord desires. —Sper
The heart of prayer is prayer from the heart.


My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 19, 2012

The Focus Of Our Message

I did not come to bring peace but a sword —Matthew 10:34

Never be sympathetic with a person whose situation causes you to conclude that God is dealing harshly with him. God can be more tender than we can conceive, and every once in a while He gives us the opportunity to deal firmly with someone so that He may be viewed as the tender One. If a person cannot go to God, it is because he has something secret which he does not intend to give up— he may admit his sin, but would no more give up that thing than he could fly under his own power. It is impossible to deal sympathetically with people like that. We must reach down deep in their lives to the root of the problem, which will cause hostility and resentment toward the message. People want the blessing of God, but they can’t stand something that pierces right through to the heart of the matter.

If you are sensitive to God’s way, your message as His servant will be merciless and insistent, cutting to the very root. Otherwise, there will be no healing. We must drive the message home so forcefully that a person cannot possibly hide, but must apply its truth. Deal with people where they are, until they begin to realize their true need. Then hold high the standard of Jesus for their lives. Their response may be, “We can never be that.” Then drive it home with, “Jesus Christ says you must.” “But how can we be?” “You can’t, unless you have a new Spirit” (see Luke 11:13).

There must be a sense of need created before your message is of any use. Thousands of people in this world profess to be happy without God. But if we could be truly happy and moral without Jesus, then why did He come? He came because that kind of happiness and peace is only superficial. Jesus Christ came to “bring . . . a sword” through every kind of peace that is not based on a personal relationship with Himself.


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Wanting to be King - #6768

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

There's nothing quite so precious as a little child screaming on an airplane. You're a captive group; what are you going to do? A couple of people might have a suggestion for what to do with the child, but you're stuck. It happened to me on a plane not long ago. Actually we hadn't taken off yet; I guess we could have left. But here's this little five-year-old and his mother's trying to get him to sit down.

He is screaming, and hollering, and having a tantrum in the aisle, stamping his feet, and they're trying to get him seated so we could take off. And she said, "Harvey! Will you please sit down!" And he just screamed at the top of his lungs, "No! I want to drive!"

No way, baby. No way he's going to drive. There's a man up front who knows what to do with that plane. I'll let him scream all the way, but I have no interest in letting him drive. Of course, you and I probably sound like that obnoxious little kid, and Christmas brings it all to a head.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Wanting to Be King."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Matthew 2, and I'm going to begin reading at verse 1. "After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea during the time of King Herod, magi came from the East to Jerusalem and asked, 'Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews? We saw his star in the East and have come to worship him.' When King Herod heard this he was disturbed and all Jerusalem with him."

Now, we know later that he was more than disturbed; he turned his anger on all those newborn babies to destroy a threat to his rule. He said, "No one else is going to be king, I'll tell you that!" You know what he was saying? "I want to drive! I'm going to stay in charge here."

Before you file King Herod away under "N" for "Not Me," consider this: most of us are willing to give Jesus everything but the one thing that matters. Oh, you'll give Him time; you'll give Him money, "Jesus, I'll give You my allegiance." "I pledge my allegiance to You! I'll go by most of Your rules." We'll give Him everything except control. In fact, we learn about King Herod in Matthew 2:8, that he said, "Tell me when you find Him that I may go and worship Him." Look, he's talking religious talk! He's got a religious exterior, but underneath he's saying, "As long as I can still be king. I want to drive."

As we count down to our annual visit to the manger, let me ask you, "Who's king in your life?" "Who's driving?" We don't mind the baby in a manger; that's kind of sweet. We don't even mind the Savior on the cross, but king on the throne; king of my life? Him driving? That's another story.

It may be that because you've run your life, you're missing the greatest word in the Christmas Story in your own heart, "Peace on earth." I had a teenager tell one of our staff, as he pointed to his heart, "It's empty in here; there's nothing there." Can you feel that this Christmas? Peace has always supposedly been over that next hill for you, but it's never come has it? Well, peace actually does begin at the top of a hill; a cross on that hill. Christ is dying there for you.

That little baby; that Jewish baby in the manger, those little hands; they made the tree He died on. It was all for you. This Christmas could be the one where you go beyond religion - Herod was religious. This can be the time when you finally walk to the cross and say, "I'm Yours, Lord." Oh, you've felt His tug on your heart recently; He's calling you to come home to Him now. It all begins when you say, "Jesus, I'm giving You what You came here for. I'm giving You me." Would you tell Him just before Christmas, "I'm Yours."

Our website is all about how to begin that relationship with Him. I urge you to go check it out today and get this settled. Get it done! YoursForLife.net is where you can go.

Like that song says, you will finally be "Home for Christmas."

2 Chronicles 3 bible reading and devotionals.

(Talk with God lately if not click to listen to God's teaching)

Max Lucado Daily: Uncle Billy

Uncle Billy had come to west Texas to visit the grave of my dad, who’d died several months before.  We laughed, talked, and reminisced. When time came to leave, he followed me to my car.  He placed his hand on my shoulder and said, “Max, I want you to know, your dad was very proud of you.”  I contained the emotion until I pulled away.  Then I began to blubber like a six-year-old.

We never outgrow our need for a father’s love.  May I serve the role of an Uncle Billy in your life?  The words I give you are God’s.  Don’t filter, or downplay them.  Just receive them.  God says, I have redeemed you.  The transaction is sealed.  Settled.  I God, choose you to be part of my forever family. To live as God’s child is to know, at this very instant, that you’re loved by your Maker!

“How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!   I John 3:1?

From GRACE

2 Chronicles 3

Solomon Builds the Temple

3 Then Solomon began to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David. It was on the threshing floor of Araunah[k] the Jebusite, the place provided by David. 2 He began building on the second day of the second month in the fourth year of his reign.

3 The foundation Solomon laid for building the temple of God was sixty cubits long and twenty cubits wide[l] (using the cubit of the old standard). 4 The portico at the front of the temple was twenty cubits[m] long across the width of the building and twenty[n] cubits high.

He overlaid the inside with pure gold. 5 He paneled the main hall with juniper and covered it with fine gold and decorated it with palm tree and chain designs. 6 He adorned the temple with precious stones. And the gold he used was gold of Parvaim. 7 He overlaid the ceiling beams, doorframes, walls and doors of the temple with gold, and he carved cherubim on the walls.

8 He built the Most Holy Place, its length corresponding to the width of the temple—twenty cubits long and twenty cubits wide. He overlaid the inside with six hundred talents[o] of fine gold. 9 The gold nails weighed fifty shekels.[p] He also overlaid the upper parts with gold.

10 For the Most Holy Place he made a pair of sculptured cherubim and overlaid them with gold. 11 The total wingspan of the cherubim was twenty cubits. One wing of the first cherub was five cubits[q] long and touched the temple wall, while its other wing, also five cubits long, touched the wing of the other cherub. 12 Similarly one wing of the second cherub was five cubits long and touched the other temple wall, and its other wing, also five cubits long, touched the wing of the first cherub. 13 The wings of these cherubim extended twenty cubits. They stood on their feet, facing the main hall.[r]

14 He made the curtain of blue, purple and crimson yarn and fine linen, with cherubim worked into it.

15 For the front of the temple he made two pillars, which together were thirty-five cubits[s] long, each with a capital five cubits high. 16 He made interwoven chains[t] and put them on top of the pillars. He also made a hundred pomegranates and attached them to the chains. 17 He erected the pillars in the front of the temple, one to the south and one to the north. The one to the south he named Jakin[u] and the one to the north Boaz.[v]


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Psalm 40:1-10

My Help and My Deliverer

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

40 I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He drew me up from the pit of destruction,
    out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
    making my steps secure.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
    a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
    and put their trust in the Lord.
4 Blessed is the man who makes
    the Lord his trust,
who does not turn to the proud,
    to those who go astray after a lie!
5 You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
    your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
    none can compare with you!
I will proclaim and tell of them,
    yet they are more than can be told.
6 In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,
    but you have given me an open ear.[a]
Burnt offering and sin offering
    you have not required.
7 Then I said, “Behold, I have come;
    in the scroll of the book it is written of me:
8 I delight to do your will, O my God;
    your law is within my heart.”
9 I have told the glad news of deliverance[b]
    in the great congregation;
behold, I have not restrained my lips,
    as you know, O Lord.
10 I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart;
    I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
    from the great congregation.

Opened Ears

December 18, 2012 — by Bill Crowder

Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; my ears You have opened. Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require. —Psalm 40:6

Recently I was having trouble with my ears and decided to try a somewhat controversial treatment. It was supposed to melt the wax in my ears and clear out any impediments that might get in the way of the ability to hear. I have to admit that it sounded like a strange experience. But I was desperate to be able to hear clearly, so I was willing to give it a try.

As important as good hearing is in life, it is even more important in our walk with God. In Psalm 40:6, David declared, “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; my ears You have opened. Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require.” The word opened in this verse can be translated “cleared out,” and it speaks of what God desires for us. He wants our ears to be open and ready to hear Him as He speaks to us through His Word. Sometimes, however, our spiritual ears may be blocked by the background noise of the surrounding culture or the siren songs of temptation and sin.

May we instead turn our hearts to the Lord in full devotion, keeping our ears open to Him so that we will be sensitive to His voice. As He speaks, He will put His Word in our hearts, and we will learn from Him to delight in His will (v.8).

Open my ears, that I may hear
Voices of truth Thou sendest clear;
And while the wave-notes fall on my ear,
Everything false will disappear. —Scott
God speaks through His Word
to those who listen with their heart.


My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 18, 2012

Test of Faithfulness

We know that all things work together for good to those who love God . . . —Romans 8:28

It is only a faithful person who truly believes that God sovereignly controls his circumstances. We take our circumstances for granted, saying God is in control, but not really believing it. We act as if the things that happen were completely controlled by people. To be faithful in every circumstance means that we have only one loyalty, or object of our faith— the Lord Jesus Christ. God may cause our circumstances to suddenly fall apart, which may bring the realization of our unfaithfulness to Him for not recognizing that He had ordained the situation. We never saw what He was trying to accomplish, and that exact event will never be repeated in our life. This is where the test of our faithfulness comes. If we will just learn to worship God even during the difficult circumstances, He will change them for the better very quickly if He so chooses.

Being faithful to Jesus Christ is the most difficult thing we try to do today. We will be faithful to our work, to serving others, or to anything else; just don’t ask us to be faithful to Jesus Christ. Many Christians become very impatient when we talk about faithfulness to Jesus. Our Lord is dethroned more deliberately by Christian workers than by the world. We treat God as if He were a machine designed only to bless us, and we think of Jesus as just another one of the workers.

The goal of faithfulness is not that we will do work for God, but that He will be free to do His work through us. God calls us to His service and places tremendous responsibilities on us. He expects no complaining on our part and offers no explanation on His part. God wants to use us as He used His own Son.


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

The Pregnant Pause - #6767

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

It was a perfect winter scene: father and son sledding down a hill, on beautiful new snowfall, together on one sled. My son was laughing as we reached the bottom. We'd had a great run down the hill, and suddenly I shook up that happy little feeling. I just suddenly shouted, "Jump!" and he did. He rolled right off the sled, and I did too. And he didn't ask why, he just jumped.

When he looked back, he saw why I had told him to jump. I had seen that sled bearing down on us, right behind us, full of kids, out of control, and it plowed right into our sled. Had I left my son where he was, those sled runners might well have sliced right into him at high speed. Oh, he didn't understand my command, but he did it before he understood. Whoa! You know, that's a good idea for all of us kids.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Pregnant Pause."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Matthew 1; I'll begin at verse 18. "This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream."

Now, it's a familiar story and here's what's happening. God starts something in Joseph's life, but He explains it later. Did you notice that? He starts this whole process of letting Joseph be the one who will raise God's Son on earth. But it starts with a seeming disaster! Joseph's fiancé is mysteriously pregnant. Joseph's heart must be broken. His world is caving in and God has not explained it yet. He started it, but He explained it later.

In between, God watches to see if Joseph will obey before he understands, and he does. You see, it was within Joseph's rights to divorce Mary and say, "I had nothing to do with this" and to publicly disgrace her, and in so doing he'd be protecting his own reputation. But instead, he chooses to act unselfishly, to act responsibly even though he's hurting.

See, God is up to a greater good. Now, Joseph's good would be, "I just want to get married to my Jewish girlfriend. Why does all this have to happen?" God initiates this much greater good, but He remains silent and then He later interprets it. And Joseph faces (pardon the expression) a pregnant pause in God's work.

Now, right now what you would consider good maybe is up for grabs...that relationship. You say, "Why can't I have it?" Your health, the money, the job, why don't your plans work, why aren't your prayers getting answered? Remember, God is the God of the greater good, and God often has to shake up your world like He did Joseph's in order to bring about His greater good. You'll see that someday, but can you quote Romans 8:28 in the present tense, "All things are working together for good." Will you work before you can see the good? Will you do it before you can see the good?

See, God has started His greater good, but right now it's just shaking up your world. Oh, He'll explain it. He'll fulfill it in the future. But now, in between, obey before you understand - like a boy jumping off a sled before his Dad told him why. Joseph discovered that the apparent disaster is actually clearing the way for a mighty work of God. You've just got to obey in the meantime.

So, remember, you're in the loving hands of the God of the greater good, which is often preceded by that pregnant pause.

2 Chronicles 2, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

(Click to listen to God’s teaching)
Max Lucado Daily: Your Identity

Your identity isn’t in your possessions, talents, tattoos, kudos, or accomplishments.  Nor are you defined by your divorce, deformity, debt or dumb choices.  You are God’s child.  You get to call him “Papa.”

According to Scripture, Ephesians 3:12 invites you to approach God with freedom and confidence. I John 4:9-11 promises that you will receive the blessings of his special love and provision. Romans 8:17 says you will inherit the riches of Christ and reign with him forever.

If God loves you, you must be worth loving.  If he wants to have you in his kingdom, then you must be worth having.  God’s grace invites you—no, requires you—to change your attitude about yourself and take sides with God against your feelings of rejection.  Let these words cement in your heart a deep, satisfying, fear-quenching confidence that God will never let you go.

You belong to Him!

From GRACE

Preparations for Building the Temple

2 [e]Solomon gave orders to build a temple for the Name of the Lord and a royal palace for himself. 2 He conscripted 70,000 men as carriers and 80,000 as stonecutters in the hills and 3,600 as foremen over them.

3 Solomon sent this message to Hiram[f] king of Tyre:

“Send me cedar logs as you did for my father David when you sent him cedar to build a palace to live in. 4 Now I am about to build a temple for the Name of the Lord my God and to dedicate it to him for burning fragrant incense before him, for setting out the consecrated bread regularly, and for making burnt offerings every morning and evening and on the Sabbaths, at the New Moons and at the appointed festivals of the Lord our God. This is a lasting ordinance for Israel.

5 “The temple I am going to build will be great, because our God is greater than all other gods. 6 But who is able to build a temple for him, since the heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain him? Who then am I to build a temple for him, except as a place to burn sacrifices before him?

7 “Send me, therefore, a man skilled to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, and in purple, crimson and blue yarn, and experienced in the art of engraving, to work in Judah and Jerusalem with my skilled workers, whom my father David provided.

8 “Send me also cedar, juniper and algum[g] logs from Lebanon, for I know that your servants are skilled in cutting timber there. My servants will work with yours 9 to provide me with plenty of lumber, because the temple I build must be large and magnificent. 10 I will give your servants, the woodsmen who cut the timber, twenty thousand cors[h] of ground wheat, twenty thousand cors[i] of barley, twenty thousand baths[j] of wine and twenty thousand baths of olive oil.”

11 Hiram king of Tyre replied by letter to Solomon:

“Because the Lord loves his people, he has made you their king.”

12 And Hiram added:

“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth! He has given King David a wise son, endowed with intelligence and discernment, who will build a temple for the Lord and a palace for himself.

13 “I am sending you Huram-Abi, a man of great skill, 14 whose mother was from Dan and whose father was from Tyre. He is trained to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, stone and wood, and with purple and blue and crimson yarn and fine linen. He is experienced in all kinds of engraving and can execute any design given to him. He will work with your skilled workers and with those of my lord, David your father.

15 “Now let my lord send his servants the wheat and barley and the olive oil and wine he promised, 16 and we will cut all the logs from Lebanon that you need and will float them as rafts by sea down to Joppa. You can then take them up to Jerusalem.”

17 Solomon took a census of all the foreigners residing in Israel, after the census his father David had taken; and they were found to be 153,600. 18 He assigned 70,000 of them to be carriers and 80,000 to be stonecutters in the hills, with 3,600 foremen over them to keep the people working.


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Acts 7:51–8:2

51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, 53 you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.”

The Stoning of Stephen

54 Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together[a] at him. 58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

Saul Ravages the Church

8 And Saul approved of his execution.

And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. 2 Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him.

Worth The Risk

December 17, 2012 — by Albert Lee

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. —Ephesians 2:8-9

What would one give in exchange for a new iPad? One 17-year-old boy gave a kidney! Apparently, he couldn’t afford an iPad and wanted one so badly that he was willing to risk surgery.

Stephen, in Acts 7, took a serious risk, but it was for proclaiming the good news about Jesus. While performing miracles, he was seized, falsely accused of blasphemy against God and the Mosaic law, and brought before the high priest (6:8-14). In response to a question from the high priest (7:1), Stephen took a risk and preached a sermon he knew his hearers would not like. He said that throughout Israel’s history, the nation had repeatedly rejected God’s messengers. And now, they had rejected the Messiah.

Stephen’s sermon provoked a strong reaction. “They cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him” (vv.57-58). Why would Stephen risk his life to preach about Jesus? He desperately wanted his hearers to know that because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, they no longer needed to live under the law but could live under grace and forgiveness (6:13-15; Eph. 2:8-9). Jesus died so that we may have eternal life.

Lord, You have done so much for us. You give us
our very breath and blessing upon blessing.
We give ourselves back to You to use
to spread the glorious gospel of Christ. Amen.
A Christian’s life is a window
through which others can see Jesus.


My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 17, 2012

Redemption— Creating the Need it Satisfies

The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him . . . —1 Corinthians 2:14

The gospel of God creates the sense of need for the gospel. Is the gospel hidden to those who are servants already? No, Paul said, “But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe . . .” (2 Corinthians 4:3-4). The majority of people think of themselves as being completely moral, and have no sense of need for the gospel. It is God who creates this sense of need in a human being, but that person remains totally unaware of his need until God makes Himself evident. Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you . . .” (Matthew 7:7). But God cannot give until a man asks. It is not that He wants to withhold something from us, but that is the plan He has established for the way of redemption. Through our asking, God puts His process in motion, creating something in us that was nonexistent until we asked. The inner reality of redemption is that it creates all the time. And as redemption creates the life of God in us, it also creates the things which belong to that life. The only thing that can possibly satisfy the need is what created the need. This is the meaning of redemption— it creates and it satisfies.

Jesus said, “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself” (John 12:32). When we preach our own experiences, people may be interested, but it awakens no real sense of need. But once Jesus Christ is “lifted up,” the Spirit of God creates an awareness of the need for Him. The creative power of the redemption of God works in the souls of men only through the preaching of the gospel. It is never the sharing of personal experiences that saves people, but the truth of redemption. “The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Destiny in the Drudgery - #6766

Monday, December 17, 2012

If you want to have some fun at a gathering where there are married couples, try asking a simple question. "How did you two meet?" You'll get some run-of-the-mill, average type stories like, "We knew each other since we were six days old." But you may also get a few of them who start laughing out loud before they tell you why, they start rolling their eyes, they look at each other, and one or the other of them will say, "Do you really want to know?"

Of course, occasionally, you'll get an answer that is about some random way of meeting - in a laundromat, or an elevator, or some unexpected public place. It's amazing how you can go out not looking, just doing something mundane, and in the middle of some everyday activity, "Poof!" There's what turns out to be your life partner. You know, sometimes that everyday stuff isn't so every day.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Destiny in the Drudgery."

Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes right out of the Christmas Story; those wonderful, familiar words about destiny in the drudgery. Luke 2:4 says, "So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son." Well, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Now, Joseph needed to be in Bethlehem. Mary needed to be in Bethlehem, because all the prophecies of the Old Testament have said that the Son of God will come and be born in Bethlehem. Problem: Joseph and Mary are 90 miles away; they're up in Nazareth. How are we going to get them to be in the destiny place for their lives? Ah ha! Taxes! That's right! It was taxes that got Joseph to the town where Jesus was destined to be born. He had to go there and register. What a drudge!

Here he is, tromping over the hills, going there with his wife - mundane chores. And in the middle of the mundane is the birth of the Son of God. Now, that's very appropriate that it would happen that way, because God often buries a great gift in everyday stuff. Often the good things of your life that you're looking for come when you're not looking for them. God makes destiny out of drudgery...like a woman going to a well to draw water and she meets her Messiah in the middle of her daily chores. Or a fisherman cleaning his nets; he's cleaning up for the day, getting ready to go home and leaves that day as a disciple of Jesus Christ - it's Simon Peter. Or a farmer's son, looking for his Dad's lost donkeys - Saul - and it's in that maneuver that he runs into Samuel and becomes the King of Israel.

You know, I remember back some years ago, I had been looking - I think for about five years - for an experienced leader to take a vital leadership role in our organization, and God brought me together with someone perfectly gifted, perfectly prepared. You know how? He picked me up in an airport one day. That's how we met. Big deal! But his destiny and mine were in the drudgery of a trip to and from an airport. You say, "Well, so what?" Well, there's no such thing as waking up and saying, "Ho-hum, another day." Uh-uh. God is making something with this day. He is weaving a tapestry. Oh, we just see the threads, but God sees the tapestry.

So, it's wise to commit yourself to a daily God hunt; to look for Him as He reveals himself somewhere in today's everyday stuff. So go with your eyes wide open into each new day; there's destiny in that drudgery. When Christ is your Lord, everyday stuff isn't everyday stuff.