Max Lucado Daily: Do What Pleases God
Dad, would you intentionally break the arm of your child? Of course not. Such an action violates every fiber of your moral being. Yet if you engage in sexual activity outside your marriage, you'll bring more pain into the life of your child than a broken bone.
Mom, would you force your children to sleep outside on a cold night? By no means. Yet if you involve yourself in an affair, you'll bring more darkness and chill into the lives of your children than a hundred winters.
Actions have consequences. Make this your rule of thumb: Do what pleases God! Your classmates showed you a way to cheat, the internet provides pornography to watch-ask yourself the question, "How can I please God?" Psalm 6:5 says, "Do what is right as a sacrifice to the Lord and trust the Lord." You will never go wrong doing what is right!
From You'll Get Through This
Titus 3
New International Version (NIV)
Saved in Order to Do Good
3 Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, 2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle toward everyone.
3 At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8 This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
9 But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. 10 Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them. 11 You may be sure that such people are warped and sinful; they are self-condemned.
Final Remarks
12 As soon as I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, because I have decided to winter there. 13 Do everything you can to help Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their way and see that they have everything they need. 14 Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives.
15 Everyone with me sends you greetings. Greet those who love us in the faith.
Grace be with you all.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Genesis 12:1-8
The Call of Abram
12 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
2 “I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.[a]
3 I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”[b]
4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran. 5 He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.
6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring[c] I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him.
8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord.
Footnotes:
Genesis 12:2 Or be seen as blessed
Genesis 12:3 Or earth / will use your name in blessings (see 48:20)
Genesis 12:7 Or seed
Time For A Change
September 19, 2013 — by Dennis Fisher
There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord. —Genesis 12:8
Many believers long to spend daily time with God, praying and reading His Word. Ironically, they are often distracted by a busy schedule. Frustrations mount as busyness seems to crowd out an opening in their schedule.
Oswald Chambers has wisely commented on the transforming power of even 5 minutes in the presence of the Lord. Indeed, even a short time spent in intercession and the Word still has great value: “It is not the thing on which we spend the most time that moulds us, but the thing that exerts the greatest power. Five minutes with God and His Word is worth more than all the rest of the day.” Now, it may sound like Chambers has made an overstatement. Yet powerful results can come from even a short time of prayer, because God is powerful.
Sometimes our days are filled with busy demands that crowd out time spent in listening to and responding to God. But no matter where we are, any time taken to build our own spiritual “altar” to the Lord as Abram did (Gen. 12:8) opens the door to His transforming power. If you are having trouble establishing a time with God, you could start with just 5 minutes and see where it leads. Our God longs to meet with us and show His power in our lives.
Lord, it’s amazing to me that You, Almighty God,
would want to spend time with me! Thank You.
I stumble with my words at times but am in awe of
You. Thank You that You want to hear from me.
Talk with God—He wants to hear your heart.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 19, 2013
Are You Going on With Jesus?
You are those who have continued with Me in My trials —Luke 22:28
It is true that Jesus Christ is with us through our temptations, but are we going on with Him through His temptations? Many of us turn back from going on with Jesus from the very moment we have an experience of what He can do. Watch when God changes your circumstances to see whether you are going on with Jesus, or siding with the world, the flesh, and the devil. We wear His name, but are we going on with Him? “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (John 6:66).
The temptations of Jesus continued throughout His earthly life, and they will continue throughout the life of the Son of God in us. Are we going on with Jesus in the life we are living right now?
We have the idea that we ought to shield ourselves from some of the things God brings around us. May it never be! It is God who engineers our circumstances, and whatever they may be we must see that we face them while continually abiding with Him in His temptations. They are His temptations, not temptations to us, but temptations to the life of the Son of God in us. Jesus Christ’s honor is at stake in our bodily lives. Are we remaining faithful to the Son of God in everything that attacks His life in us?
Are you going on with Jesus? The way goes through Gethsemane, through the city gate, and on “outside the camp” (Hebrews 13:13). The way is lonely and goes on until there is no longer even a trace of a footprint to follow— but only the voice saying, “FollowMe” (Matthew 4:19)
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The No Regrets Alarm - #6964
Thursday, September 19, 2013
I opened the refrigerator and there it was again - the pig! Yes, years ago someone bought it, put it in the refrigerator for a while and then it disappeared. I thought maybe he'd gone to the bacon factory, but then the pig was back. See, this pig was actually plastic, and whenever you would open the door, the plastic pig started oinking at you. It's annoying, but it does make you think about what you're about to do to yourself.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The No Regrets Alarm."
Our word for today from the Word of God: very familiar verses from Matthew 6, beginning at verse 9 - "This then is how you should pray." And this is what we commonly call The Lord's Prayer of course. Remember this phrase? Of course you do. "Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one." How many times have you prayed that? "Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil." Or as some translations say, "the evil one." That's an important prayer. We almost don't think about those words. "Lead me not into temptation; deliver me from evil."
In other words, "Lord, help me see where the temptation is. Help me steer away from it. Keep me from anything that the Devil might be trying to get me to do." Well, how do you do that? That's through His Holy Spirit. In fact, Jesus said that the Holy Sprit, who He called the Comforter would do that. He said it in John 16:8. He promises "that the Holy Spirit - the Comforter - when He is come, He will convict the world of sin." He also said in John 14:26 He will "bring to your remembrance all the things that I have taught you." In other words, the Holy Spirit's going to bring to mind how Jesus feels about this.
The day you put your trust in Jesus as your Savior, God plants in your soul a sin alarm. Now somebody planted a gluttony alarm in our refrigerator; this noise that makes you stop and think before you reach for something. It was annoying, but the pig could keep you from doing something you would regret later; like how you'll feel when you step on the scale tomorrow.
We do need some noise inside of us when we're about to reach for something we're going to later regret. And God delivers us from evil if we will listen to the inner alarms He triggers when we are about to sin. He says something like, "That's not the truth; don't lie. That's not pure; don't watch it. That's going to hurt; don't say it. That's going too far; don't do it."
See, one alarm in us is what I call Scripture brakes. God brings to your mind a statement from the Word of God that keeps you from making a mistake if you listen. It's the brakes; step on the brakes. D. L. Moody said that "When you think sin you ought to think Scripture." That's why it's important to commit to memory verses that God can later use to warn you away from the edge. Psalm 119: "I have hidden Your Word in my heart that I will not sin against You."
Now, another sin alarm is what I call shame warnings. See, many of us don't carry a sense of shame from the sins of the past, and God erased those from His books if you've brought those sins to Jesus. But sometimes the shame feelings are there a long time after God has forgiven us. And that's actually not all bad, because God can remind you of the damage that comes from saying yes to that temptation, using the shame warnings from the past. Listen to those.
One other sin alarm that God uses when you're reaching for something that could hurt you is Spirit tremors. It's an uneasiness in your spirit that says, "This just isn't right." That's probably the stirring of the Holy Spirit. Listen to that inner warning. But respond immediately and put on the Scripture brakes, respond to the shame warnings, to the Spirit tremors before sin drowns them out and you grab a plateful of regrets.
After a while, I have to admit I got immune to that pig warning in the fridge. I finally just put it away. Don't do that with the Holy Spirit alarm system inside you. Do not quench the Spirit, because He knows the price tag for what you are about to grab.
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Daniel 7, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Don't Fix Stupid with Stupid
You may think to yourself, "No one will know. I won't get caught. I'm only human. . ." But don't make matters worse by doing something you'll regret. Years ago, a friend gave me this counsel. "Make a list of all the lives you would impact through your sexual immorality." I did. Every so often I re-read it. Denalyn. My three daughters. My son-in-law. My yet-to-be-born grandchildren. Every person who's ever read one of my books or heard my sermons. My publishing team. Our church staff. The list reminds me that one act of carnality is a poor exchange for a lifetime of lost legacy.
You don't fix a struggling marriage with an affair, a drug problem with more drugs. You don't fix stupid with stupid. Do what pleases God. Turbulent times will tempt you to forget Him. Shortcuts will lure you. Don't be foolish or naïve. Do what pleases God. Nothing more, nothing less!
From You'll Get Through This
Daniel 7
Daniel’s Dream of Four Beasts
7 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying in bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream.
2 Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
4 “The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it.
5 “And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’
6 “After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.
7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully.
9 “As I looked,
“thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
10 A river of fire was flowing,
coming out from before him.
Thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.
The court was seated,
and the books were opened.
11 “Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. 12 (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)
13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man,[l] coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
The Interpretation of the Dream
15 “I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me. 16 I approached one of those standing there and asked him the meaning of all this.
“So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things: 17 ‘The four great beasts are four kings that will rise from the earth. 18 But the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever.’
19 “Then I wanted to know the meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others and most terrifying, with its iron teeth and bronze claws—the beast that crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. 20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21 As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the holy people of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom.
23 “He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. 25 He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time.[m]
26 “‘But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.’
28 “This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself.”
Footnotes:
Daniel 7:13 The Aramaic phrase bar enash means human being. The phrase son of man is retained here because of its use in the New Testament as a title of Jesus, probably based largely on this verse.
Daniel 7:25 Or for a year, two years and half a year
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Peter 1:1-9
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 2 who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood:
Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
Praise to God for a Living Hope
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
God Had Other Plans
September 18, 2013 — by Julie Ackerman Link
A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. —Proverbs 16:9
My friend Linda grew up planning to become a medical missionary. She loves the Lord and wanted to serve Him as a doctor by taking the gospel to sick people in parts of the world where medical care is hard to find. But God had other plans. Linda has indeed become a medical missionary, but not the way she expected.
At age 14, Linda developed a chronic health problem that required her to be hospitalized for major surgery several times a year. She survived bacterial meningitis that left her in a coma for 2 weeks and blind for 6 months. She once celebrated two birthdays in a row in the hospital—without going home in between. She has had several experiences when she was not expected to live. But yet Linda is the most vibrant, grateful, and cheerful person you will ever meet. She once told me that her mission field, as she hoped and planned, is the hospital. But instead of serving God as a doctor, she serves Him as a patient. No matter how sick she is, the light of the Lord radiates from her.
Linda exemplifies the teaching of the apostle Peter. Despite her trials, she rejoices, and the genuineness of her faith brings “praise, honor, and glory” to Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:6-7).
Lord, I’m so thankful that no matter where
we are, we can serve You. Help me to reflect
Your image in my current situation, even
if it’s not where I hoped I would be.
Write your plans in pencil and remember that God has the eraser.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 18, 2013
His Temptation and Ours
We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin —Hebrews 4:15
Until we are born again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” But through regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced. The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lord’s temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born again and become His brothers. The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as Man. Through regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us (see Galatians 4:19), and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to make us do wrong things— he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us through regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us to sin, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable. After Jesus’ baptism, having accepted His mission of being the One “who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) He “was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Matthew 4:1) and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted. He went through the temptation “without sin,” and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely intact.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Putting the Planets Where They Belong - #6963
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
When I visited the Gulf Coast of Florida, I got to see a couple of glorious earth turns. The sky was ablaze with color and the sun disappeared on the horizon. You say, "Excuse me, Ron, that's a sunset." Hey, wait a minute. Are you from the 14th century or something? The sun doesn't set; it doesn't move! The earth moves! As it makes its revolution, your point on earth turns away from the sun every 24 hours. So that would be an earth turn, right? And we say the sun sets. Well, the earth is turning and you can see how mankind got it wrong for so many centuries. I mean, it looks as if the sun is revolving around the earth. It revolutionized a lot of thinking when people finally understood what was revolving around what.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Putting the Planets Where They Belong."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Timothy 3:16. It says this: "All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." Verse 17: "so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." Now, what this is really saying is the Bible is the sun; God's unchanging, unmoving truth. Everything else has to revolve around what God's Word says. God's Word on any subject is the final word.
If you read this passage, it's written in the context of a time when Paul is predicting that moral values will be in total confusion, when wrong's going to seem right, when what's right will seem wrong. Doesn't that sound familiar? It's a time when imposters and false ideas will be deceiving many people. And so God's instructions to Timothy are, "You continue in what you've learned and become convinced of what you've learned from infancy - the Holy Scriptures."
In other words, you've got to stay where you are. Don't let anything make you compromise on what God's Word says. It's unsettling to see that some research indicates that only about a fourth of America's Christians are sure there's absolute truth. We're shaky on this authority issue; especially when it comes to areas that cramp our style or require us to change or go against what our group or our culture says is true today. We sometimes try to make our idea the sun, and then we try to make the Bible a planet that revolves around it. We put more weight on what is politically correct or culturally correct than what is biblically correct.
In academic circles, for example, there's this subtle temptation to submit the Bible to whatever your discipline is; whether that's the current trend in sociology, or literature, or the arts, or science. Well, you've got to submit your discipline to the Bible. God's Word is the final word of origin of the universe and the origin of man. And any explanation that says God did anything other than instantly creating a fully developed adult is wrong. God's Word is the final word on divorce, on re-marriage, on sexuality, whether it's hetero or homosexuality. Or what it means to be a woman; what it means to be a man. It's the final word on justice, on wealth, on sex, on the value of an unborn life.
No mental contortions can neutralize God's authoritative Word on the subject. You do no one a favor by trying to make God's Word more acceptable by diluting what it says. We stand on this book, and I hope every day as we're together this book becomes more practical and more living in your life.
The planets in our world are in chaos as human wisdoms are confusing; they're colliding. But God gave us this brilliant sun; one settled, unmoving, always true authority to keep the planets in the orbits they belong in - the Word of Almighty God, the Bible. People came out of the dark ages when they realized that the sun did not revolve around them.
We come out of the darkness when we realize and we never compromise the final centrality of the Bible in our personal universe, and when we put the planets of all those other ideas where they belong - in orbit around the sun of the Word of God.
You may think to yourself, "No one will know. I won't get caught. I'm only human. . ." But don't make matters worse by doing something you'll regret. Years ago, a friend gave me this counsel. "Make a list of all the lives you would impact through your sexual immorality." I did. Every so often I re-read it. Denalyn. My three daughters. My son-in-law. My yet-to-be-born grandchildren. Every person who's ever read one of my books or heard my sermons. My publishing team. Our church staff. The list reminds me that one act of carnality is a poor exchange for a lifetime of lost legacy.
You don't fix a struggling marriage with an affair, a drug problem with more drugs. You don't fix stupid with stupid. Do what pleases God. Turbulent times will tempt you to forget Him. Shortcuts will lure you. Don't be foolish or naïve. Do what pleases God. Nothing more, nothing less!
From You'll Get Through This
Daniel 7
Daniel’s Dream of Four Beasts
7 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying in bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream.
2 Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
4 “The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it.
5 “And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’
6 “After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.
7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully.
9 “As I looked,
“thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
10 A river of fire was flowing,
coming out from before him.
Thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.
The court was seated,
and the books were opened.
11 “Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. 12 (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)
13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man,[l] coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
The Interpretation of the Dream
15 “I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me. 16 I approached one of those standing there and asked him the meaning of all this.
“So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things: 17 ‘The four great beasts are four kings that will rise from the earth. 18 But the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever.’
19 “Then I wanted to know the meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others and most terrifying, with its iron teeth and bronze claws—the beast that crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. 20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21 As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the holy people of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom.
23 “He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. 25 He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time.[m]
26 “‘But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.’
28 “This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself.”
Footnotes:
Daniel 7:13 The Aramaic phrase bar enash means human being. The phrase son of man is retained here because of its use in the New Testament as a title of Jesus, probably based largely on this verse.
Daniel 7:25 Or for a year, two years and half a year
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Peter 1:1-9
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 2 who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood:
Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
Praise to God for a Living Hope
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
God Had Other Plans
September 18, 2013 — by Julie Ackerman Link
A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. —Proverbs 16:9
My friend Linda grew up planning to become a medical missionary. She loves the Lord and wanted to serve Him as a doctor by taking the gospel to sick people in parts of the world where medical care is hard to find. But God had other plans. Linda has indeed become a medical missionary, but not the way she expected.
At age 14, Linda developed a chronic health problem that required her to be hospitalized for major surgery several times a year. She survived bacterial meningitis that left her in a coma for 2 weeks and blind for 6 months. She once celebrated two birthdays in a row in the hospital—without going home in between. She has had several experiences when she was not expected to live. But yet Linda is the most vibrant, grateful, and cheerful person you will ever meet. She once told me that her mission field, as she hoped and planned, is the hospital. But instead of serving God as a doctor, she serves Him as a patient. No matter how sick she is, the light of the Lord radiates from her.
Linda exemplifies the teaching of the apostle Peter. Despite her trials, she rejoices, and the genuineness of her faith brings “praise, honor, and glory” to Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:6-7).
Lord, I’m so thankful that no matter where
we are, we can serve You. Help me to reflect
Your image in my current situation, even
if it’s not where I hoped I would be.
Write your plans in pencil and remember that God has the eraser.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 18, 2013
His Temptation and Ours
We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin —Hebrews 4:15
Until we are born again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” But through regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced. The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lord’s temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born again and become His brothers. The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as Man. Through regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us (see Galatians 4:19), and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to make us do wrong things— he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us through regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us to sin, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable. After Jesus’ baptism, having accepted His mission of being the One “who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) He “was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Matthew 4:1) and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted. He went through the temptation “without sin,” and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely intact.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Putting the Planets Where They Belong - #6963
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
When I visited the Gulf Coast of Florida, I got to see a couple of glorious earth turns. The sky was ablaze with color and the sun disappeared on the horizon. You say, "Excuse me, Ron, that's a sunset." Hey, wait a minute. Are you from the 14th century or something? The sun doesn't set; it doesn't move! The earth moves! As it makes its revolution, your point on earth turns away from the sun every 24 hours. So that would be an earth turn, right? And we say the sun sets. Well, the earth is turning and you can see how mankind got it wrong for so many centuries. I mean, it looks as if the sun is revolving around the earth. It revolutionized a lot of thinking when people finally understood what was revolving around what.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Putting the Planets Where They Belong."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Timothy 3:16. It says this: "All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." Verse 17: "so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." Now, what this is really saying is the Bible is the sun; God's unchanging, unmoving truth. Everything else has to revolve around what God's Word says. God's Word on any subject is the final word.
If you read this passage, it's written in the context of a time when Paul is predicting that moral values will be in total confusion, when wrong's going to seem right, when what's right will seem wrong. Doesn't that sound familiar? It's a time when imposters and false ideas will be deceiving many people. And so God's instructions to Timothy are, "You continue in what you've learned and become convinced of what you've learned from infancy - the Holy Scriptures."
In other words, you've got to stay where you are. Don't let anything make you compromise on what God's Word says. It's unsettling to see that some research indicates that only about a fourth of America's Christians are sure there's absolute truth. We're shaky on this authority issue; especially when it comes to areas that cramp our style or require us to change or go against what our group or our culture says is true today. We sometimes try to make our idea the sun, and then we try to make the Bible a planet that revolves around it. We put more weight on what is politically correct or culturally correct than what is biblically correct.
In academic circles, for example, there's this subtle temptation to submit the Bible to whatever your discipline is; whether that's the current trend in sociology, or literature, or the arts, or science. Well, you've got to submit your discipline to the Bible. God's Word is the final word of origin of the universe and the origin of man. And any explanation that says God did anything other than instantly creating a fully developed adult is wrong. God's Word is the final word on divorce, on re-marriage, on sexuality, whether it's hetero or homosexuality. Or what it means to be a woman; what it means to be a man. It's the final word on justice, on wealth, on sex, on the value of an unborn life.
No mental contortions can neutralize God's authoritative Word on the subject. You do no one a favor by trying to make God's Word more acceptable by diluting what it says. We stand on this book, and I hope every day as we're together this book becomes more practical and more living in your life.
The planets in our world are in chaos as human wisdoms are confusing; they're colliding. But God gave us this brilliant sun; one settled, unmoving, always true authority to keep the planets in the orbits they belong in - the Word of Almighty God, the Bible. People came out of the dark ages when they realized that the sun did not revolve around them.
We come out of the darkness when we realize and we never compromise the final centrality of the Bible in our personal universe, and when we put the planets of all those other ideas where they belong - in orbit around the sun of the Word of God.
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Daniel 6, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: God's Presence
Depression can buckle the knees of the best of us, and a pastor's wife is no exception. Years ago my wife, Denalyn, battled depression. Every day was gray. Her life was loud and busy-two kids in elementary school, a third in kindergarten, and a husband who didn't know how to get off the airplane and stay home.
The days took their toll. But Denalyn was never one to play games. On a given Sunday when the depression was suffocating, she armed herself with honesty and went to church. If people ask me how I'm doing, I'm going to tell them. She answered each, "How are you" with a candid, "Not well. I'm depressed. Will you pray for me?" Casual chats became long conversations. Brief hellos became heartfelt moments of ministry. She found God's presence amidst God's people! He's waiting on you, my friend. And He will get through this!
From You'll Get Through This
Daniel 6
Daniel in the Den of Lions
6 [j]It pleased Darius to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom, 2 with three administrators over them, one of whom was Daniel. The satraps were made accountable to them so that the king might not suffer loss. 3 Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. 4 At this, the administrators and the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent. 5 Finally these men said, “We will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has something to do with the law of his God.”
6 So these administrators and satraps went as a group to the king and said: “May King Darius live forever! 7 The royal administrators, prefects, satraps, advisers and governors have all agreed that the king should issue an edict and enforce the decree that anyone who prays to any god or human being during the next thirty days, except to you, Your Majesty, shall be thrown into the lions’ den. 8 Now, Your Majesty, issue the decree and put it in writing so that it cannot be altered—in accordance with the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed.” 9 So King Darius put the decree in writing.
10 Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. 11 Then these men went as a group and found Daniel praying and asking God for help. 12 So they went to the king and spoke to him about his royal decree: “Did you not publish a decree that during the next thirty days anyone who prays to any god or human being except to you, Your Majesty, would be thrown into the lions’ den?”
The king answered, “The decree stands—in accordance with the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed.”
13 Then they said to the king, “Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, Your Majesty, or to the decree you put in writing. He still prays three times a day.” 14 When the king heard this, he was greatly distressed; he was determined to rescue Daniel and made every effort until sundown to save him.
15 Then the men went as a group to King Darius and said to him, “Remember, Your Majesty, that according to the law of the Medes and Persians no decree or edict that the king issues can be changed.”
16 So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!”
17 A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel’s situation might not be changed. 18 Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night without eating and without any entertainment being brought to him. And he could not sleep.
19 At the first light of dawn, the king got up and hurried to the lions’ den. 20 When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?”
21 Daniel answered, “May the king live forever! 22 My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty.”
23 The king was overjoyed and gave orders to lift Daniel out of the den. And when Daniel was lifted from the den, no wound was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.
24 At the king’s command, the men who had falsely accused Daniel were brought in and thrown into the lions’ den, along with their wives and children. And before they reached the floor of the den, the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.
25 Then King Darius wrote to all the nations and peoples of every language in all the earth:
“May you prosper greatly!
26 “I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel.
“For he is the living God
and he endures forever;
his kingdom will not be destroyed,
his dominion will never end.
27 He rescues and he saves;
he performs signs and wonders
in the heavens and on the earth.
He has rescued Daniel
from the power of the lions.”
28 So Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus[k] the Persian.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Isaiah 6:1-6
Isaiah’s Commission
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory.”
4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
5 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.
Seeing God In Familiar Places
September 17, 2013 — by Joe Stowell
The whole earth is full of His glory! —Isaiah 6:3
Because of where I live, I’m treated to spectacular displays of the magnificent, creative glory of God. Recently, on a drive through the woods, I was struck with a breath-taking display of deep rich reds and a variety of yellows that decorated the trees of autumn—all artfully arranged against the backdrop of a brilliant blue sky.
And soon, as the temperatures plummet and winter blows in, I’ll be reminded that no two snowflakes are ever the same as they pile on top of one another to create a rolling landscape of pristine white drifts. After that will come the miracle of spring, when that which seemed hopelessly dead bursts into life with buds and blossoms that will grace the meadows with a multiplicity of colors.
Wherever we look in the world around us, we see evidence that “the whole earth is full of His glory!” (Isa. 6:3). What is amazing is that the creation that surrounds us is damaged by sin (see Rom. 8:18-22), yet God has seen fit to grace our fallen landscape with these loving brushstrokes of His creative hand. It serves as a daily reminder that the beauty of His grace covers our sin and that His love for that which is fallen is always available to us.
Lord, may we be ever mindful of Your grace and love
in all that surrounds us. Thank You for making Yourself
visible through the beauty of Your creation. Teach us
to look beyond the beauty to see Your hand at work.
Never pass up an opportunity to enjoy nature’s beauty—it’s the handwriting of God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 17, 2013
Is There Good in Temptation?
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man . . . —1 Corinthians 10:13
The word temptation has come to mean something bad to us today, but we tend to use the word in the wrong way. Temptation itself is not sin; it is something we are bound to face simply by virtue of being human. Not to be tempted would mean that we were already so shameful that we would be beneath contempt. Yet many of us suffer from temptations we should never have to suffer, simply because we have refused to allow God to lift us to a higher level where we would face temptations of another kind.
A person’s inner nature, what he possesses in the inner, spiritual part of his being, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the true nature of the person being tempted and reveals the possibilities of his nature. Every person actually determines or sets the level of his own temptation, because temptation will come to him in accordance with the level of his controlling, inner nature.
Temptation comes to me, suggesting a possible shortcut to the realization of my highest goal— it does not direct me toward what I understand to be evil, but toward what I understand to be good. Temptation is something that confuses me for a while, and I don’t know whether something is right or wrong. When I yield to it, I have made lust a god, and the temptation itself becomes the proof that it was only my own fear that prevented me from falling into the sin earlier.
Temptation is not something we can escape; in fact, it is essential to the well-rounded life of a person. Beware of thinking that you are tempted as no one else–what you go through is the common inheritance of the human race, not something that no one has ever before endured. God does not save us from temptations–He sustains us in the midst of them (see Hebrews 2:18 and Hebrews 4:15-16).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Storm Chaser - Chased By the Storm - #6962
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
I saw the movie "Twister." It was hair-raising! Even for a guy with not much hair to raise. But I kept telling myself, "It's just a story. Special effects."
Well, what happened to the Weather Channel's Mike Bettes while chasing the storm in El Reno, Oklahoma wasn't some computer-generated fantasy. The tornado they were chasing took an unexpected turn, picked up their vehicle and threw it some 200 yards.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Storm Chaser - Chased By the Storm."
The vehicle was flattened. Thankfully, Mike and his crew weren't; some scratches, a couple of broken bones - but amazingly alive. And now they were thinking about some things that are pretty easy to forget, which doesn't surprise me. I know the times that I've been hit hard and thrown around. They've been my wake-up calls: The medical crisis, the betrayal, the accident, and the funeral. And in those terrifying moments inside a tornado - airborne - Mike Bettes said, "My life flashed before me; the faces of people."
When we're thinking clearly - like when we could lose it all - we know what our life really is. It's the people. Unfortunately, they often get crowded out while we're consumed with our projects, our possessions, our pleasure, chasing our goal; forgetting the people.
I was especially touched by one thing that storm-tossed storm chaser said about his near-death experience, "I just saw my wife's face." That's the face I should always see in all my big choices. Unobscured by all the other people I need to help or I want to impress, she's the only one I've promised to love, cherish, protect, and listen to 'til death do us part. She shouldn't have to wait in line while I take time for everybody else.
After his unnerving brush with death, Mike Bettes said he's rethinking his tornado strategy. He said they got too close to the danger. That's been tragically underscored by later news that three of those who died that day were storm chasers. When a storm is shaking our world, it's time to rethink if we're pushing the limits and wandering into some danger zone. Like that "innocent" flirtation at work that could blow up a family.
The growing debt that's got us precariously balanced on the edge of a financial cliff. Or our web of deceit that will one day entrap the deceiver.
"Tornado" moments are times to reassess, to ask questions you'd never otherwise ask about the relationships you're neglecting, the risks you're taking, the priorities you're living by, and the future you're facing. One storm-chasing survivor said, "It makes you think about your mortality." That's a good thing to think about. The things that will matter after you're gone should matter while you're here. So you live for things that will outlast you.
Our word for today from the Word of God is in James 4:14. It says, "your life...is a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes." Which tells me I should be looking past my short little journey here to what's beyond my last heartbeat - eternity, which we need to be ready for; which we're not. God's told us what's on the other side. The Bible says, "Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment" (Hebrews 9:27). For everything we've ever done that was wrong in God's eyes. Which leaves me no hope of heaven, except one. If I know somehow I won't face God's judgment. And, thank God, I know my sin has been erased by a sinless God because His Son, Jesus, took my judgment when He died on that cross. In the Bible's words, "We have been made right in God's sight by the blood of Christ" (Romans 5:9 - NLT).
My life here is a mist, but not my life after that. The Bible says, "There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1 - NLT). You know what? I do. There is no greater peace than knowing you are ready for eternity whenever it comes.
If you'd like to be sure about heaven - and know you're ready for eternity - I invite you to join me at ANewStory.com and find out how to be sure you belong to Jesus, and how to be sure of your eternal destination.
Depression can buckle the knees of the best of us, and a pastor's wife is no exception. Years ago my wife, Denalyn, battled depression. Every day was gray. Her life was loud and busy-two kids in elementary school, a third in kindergarten, and a husband who didn't know how to get off the airplane and stay home.
The days took their toll. But Denalyn was never one to play games. On a given Sunday when the depression was suffocating, she armed herself with honesty and went to church. If people ask me how I'm doing, I'm going to tell them. She answered each, "How are you" with a candid, "Not well. I'm depressed. Will you pray for me?" Casual chats became long conversations. Brief hellos became heartfelt moments of ministry. She found God's presence amidst God's people! He's waiting on you, my friend. And He will get through this!
From You'll Get Through This
Daniel 6
Daniel in the Den of Lions
6 [j]It pleased Darius to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom, 2 with three administrators over them, one of whom was Daniel. The satraps were made accountable to them so that the king might not suffer loss. 3 Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. 4 At this, the administrators and the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent. 5 Finally these men said, “We will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has something to do with the law of his God.”
6 So these administrators and satraps went as a group to the king and said: “May King Darius live forever! 7 The royal administrators, prefects, satraps, advisers and governors have all agreed that the king should issue an edict and enforce the decree that anyone who prays to any god or human being during the next thirty days, except to you, Your Majesty, shall be thrown into the lions’ den. 8 Now, Your Majesty, issue the decree and put it in writing so that it cannot be altered—in accordance with the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed.” 9 So King Darius put the decree in writing.
10 Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. 11 Then these men went as a group and found Daniel praying and asking God for help. 12 So they went to the king and spoke to him about his royal decree: “Did you not publish a decree that during the next thirty days anyone who prays to any god or human being except to you, Your Majesty, would be thrown into the lions’ den?”
The king answered, “The decree stands—in accordance with the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed.”
13 Then they said to the king, “Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, Your Majesty, or to the decree you put in writing. He still prays three times a day.” 14 When the king heard this, he was greatly distressed; he was determined to rescue Daniel and made every effort until sundown to save him.
15 Then the men went as a group to King Darius and said to him, “Remember, Your Majesty, that according to the law of the Medes and Persians no decree or edict that the king issues can be changed.”
16 So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!”
17 A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel’s situation might not be changed. 18 Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night without eating and without any entertainment being brought to him. And he could not sleep.
19 At the first light of dawn, the king got up and hurried to the lions’ den. 20 When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?”
21 Daniel answered, “May the king live forever! 22 My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty.”
23 The king was overjoyed and gave orders to lift Daniel out of the den. And when Daniel was lifted from the den, no wound was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.
24 At the king’s command, the men who had falsely accused Daniel were brought in and thrown into the lions’ den, along with their wives and children. And before they reached the floor of the den, the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.
25 Then King Darius wrote to all the nations and peoples of every language in all the earth:
“May you prosper greatly!
26 “I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel.
“For he is the living God
and he endures forever;
his kingdom will not be destroyed,
his dominion will never end.
27 He rescues and he saves;
he performs signs and wonders
in the heavens and on the earth.
He has rescued Daniel
from the power of the lions.”
28 So Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus[k] the Persian.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Isaiah 6:1-6
Isaiah’s Commission
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory.”
4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
5 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.
Seeing God In Familiar Places
September 17, 2013 — by Joe Stowell
The whole earth is full of His glory! —Isaiah 6:3
Because of where I live, I’m treated to spectacular displays of the magnificent, creative glory of God. Recently, on a drive through the woods, I was struck with a breath-taking display of deep rich reds and a variety of yellows that decorated the trees of autumn—all artfully arranged against the backdrop of a brilliant blue sky.
And soon, as the temperatures plummet and winter blows in, I’ll be reminded that no two snowflakes are ever the same as they pile on top of one another to create a rolling landscape of pristine white drifts. After that will come the miracle of spring, when that which seemed hopelessly dead bursts into life with buds and blossoms that will grace the meadows with a multiplicity of colors.
Wherever we look in the world around us, we see evidence that “the whole earth is full of His glory!” (Isa. 6:3). What is amazing is that the creation that surrounds us is damaged by sin (see Rom. 8:18-22), yet God has seen fit to grace our fallen landscape with these loving brushstrokes of His creative hand. It serves as a daily reminder that the beauty of His grace covers our sin and that His love for that which is fallen is always available to us.
Lord, may we be ever mindful of Your grace and love
in all that surrounds us. Thank You for making Yourself
visible through the beauty of Your creation. Teach us
to look beyond the beauty to see Your hand at work.
Never pass up an opportunity to enjoy nature’s beauty—it’s the handwriting of God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 17, 2013
Is There Good in Temptation?
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man . . . —1 Corinthians 10:13
The word temptation has come to mean something bad to us today, but we tend to use the word in the wrong way. Temptation itself is not sin; it is something we are bound to face simply by virtue of being human. Not to be tempted would mean that we were already so shameful that we would be beneath contempt. Yet many of us suffer from temptations we should never have to suffer, simply because we have refused to allow God to lift us to a higher level where we would face temptations of another kind.
A person’s inner nature, what he possesses in the inner, spiritual part of his being, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the true nature of the person being tempted and reveals the possibilities of his nature. Every person actually determines or sets the level of his own temptation, because temptation will come to him in accordance with the level of his controlling, inner nature.
Temptation comes to me, suggesting a possible shortcut to the realization of my highest goal— it does not direct me toward what I understand to be evil, but toward what I understand to be good. Temptation is something that confuses me for a while, and I don’t know whether something is right or wrong. When I yield to it, I have made lust a god, and the temptation itself becomes the proof that it was only my own fear that prevented me from falling into the sin earlier.
Temptation is not something we can escape; in fact, it is essential to the well-rounded life of a person. Beware of thinking that you are tempted as no one else–what you go through is the common inheritance of the human race, not something that no one has ever before endured. God does not save us from temptations–He sustains us in the midst of them (see Hebrews 2:18 and Hebrews 4:15-16).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Storm Chaser - Chased By the Storm - #6962
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
I saw the movie "Twister." It was hair-raising! Even for a guy with not much hair to raise. But I kept telling myself, "It's just a story. Special effects."
Well, what happened to the Weather Channel's Mike Bettes while chasing the storm in El Reno, Oklahoma wasn't some computer-generated fantasy. The tornado they were chasing took an unexpected turn, picked up their vehicle and threw it some 200 yards.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Storm Chaser - Chased By the Storm."
The vehicle was flattened. Thankfully, Mike and his crew weren't; some scratches, a couple of broken bones - but amazingly alive. And now they were thinking about some things that are pretty easy to forget, which doesn't surprise me. I know the times that I've been hit hard and thrown around. They've been my wake-up calls: The medical crisis, the betrayal, the accident, and the funeral. And in those terrifying moments inside a tornado - airborne - Mike Bettes said, "My life flashed before me; the faces of people."
When we're thinking clearly - like when we could lose it all - we know what our life really is. It's the people. Unfortunately, they often get crowded out while we're consumed with our projects, our possessions, our pleasure, chasing our goal; forgetting the people.
I was especially touched by one thing that storm-tossed storm chaser said about his near-death experience, "I just saw my wife's face." That's the face I should always see in all my big choices. Unobscured by all the other people I need to help or I want to impress, she's the only one I've promised to love, cherish, protect, and listen to 'til death do us part. She shouldn't have to wait in line while I take time for everybody else.
After his unnerving brush with death, Mike Bettes said he's rethinking his tornado strategy. He said they got too close to the danger. That's been tragically underscored by later news that three of those who died that day were storm chasers. When a storm is shaking our world, it's time to rethink if we're pushing the limits and wandering into some danger zone. Like that "innocent" flirtation at work that could blow up a family.
The growing debt that's got us precariously balanced on the edge of a financial cliff. Or our web of deceit that will one day entrap the deceiver.
"Tornado" moments are times to reassess, to ask questions you'd never otherwise ask about the relationships you're neglecting, the risks you're taking, the priorities you're living by, and the future you're facing. One storm-chasing survivor said, "It makes you think about your mortality." That's a good thing to think about. The things that will matter after you're gone should matter while you're here. So you live for things that will outlast you.
Our word for today from the Word of God is in James 4:14. It says, "your life...is a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes." Which tells me I should be looking past my short little journey here to what's beyond my last heartbeat - eternity, which we need to be ready for; which we're not. God's told us what's on the other side. The Bible says, "Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment" (Hebrews 9:27). For everything we've ever done that was wrong in God's eyes. Which leaves me no hope of heaven, except one. If I know somehow I won't face God's judgment. And, thank God, I know my sin has been erased by a sinless God because His Son, Jesus, took my judgment when He died on that cross. In the Bible's words, "We have been made right in God's sight by the blood of Christ" (Romans 5:9 - NLT).
My life here is a mist, but not my life after that. The Bible says, "There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1 - NLT). You know what? I do. There is no greater peace than knowing you are ready for eternity whenever it comes.
If you'd like to be sure about heaven - and know you're ready for eternity - I invite you to join me at ANewStory.com and find out how to be sure you belong to Jesus, and how to be sure of your eternal destination.
Monday, September 16, 2013
Daniel 5, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Lean on God's People
Whatever it is that's troubling you, you'll get through this! Cancel your escape to the Himalayas. Forget the deserted island. This is no time to be a hermit. Pray! Lean on God's people. Be a barnacle on the boat of God's church.
Matthew 18:20 says, "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."
Don't quit. And don't hide! Would the sick avoid the hospital? The hungry avoid the food pantry? Would the discouraged abandon God's Hope Distribution Center? Only at great risk. God is waiting on you, my friend. He is with you. Your family may have left. Your supporters may be gone. Your counselor may be silent. But God has not budged. His promise in Genesis 28:15 still stands,"I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go!"
You will get through this!
From You'll Get Through This
Daniel 5
New International Version (NIV)
The Writing on the Wall
5 King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine with them. 2 While Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that Nebuchadnezzar his father[a] had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them. 3 So they brought in the gold goblets that had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. 4 As they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone.
5 Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall, near the lampstand in the royal palace. The king watched the hand as it wrote. 6 His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his legs became weak and his knees were knocking.
7 The king summoned the enchanters, astrologers[b] and diviners. Then he said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing and tells me what it means will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around his neck, and he will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”
8 Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or tell the king what it meant. 9 So King Belshazzar became even more terrified and his face grew more pale. His nobles were baffled.
10 The queen,[c] hearing the voices of the king and his nobles, came into the banquet hall. “May the king live forever!” she said. “Don’t be alarmed! Don’t look so pale! 11 There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. In the time of your father he was found to have insight and intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods. Your father, King Nebuchadnezzar, appointed him chief of the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners. 12 He did this because Daniel, whom the king called Belteshazzar, was found to have a keen mind and knowledge and understanding, and also the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles and solve difficult problems. Call for Daniel, and he will tell you what the writing means.”
13 So Daniel was brought before the king, and the king said to him, “Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father the king brought from Judah? 14 I have heard that the spirit of the gods is in you and that you have insight, intelligence and outstanding wisdom. 15 The wise men and enchanters were brought before me to read this writing and tell me what it means, but they could not explain it. 16 Now I have heard that you are able to give interpretations and to solve difficult problems. If you can read this writing and tell me what it means, you will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around your neck, and you will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”
17 Then Daniel answered the king, “You may keep your gifts for yourself and give your rewards to someone else. Nevertheless, I will read the writing for the king and tell him what it means.
18 “Your Majesty, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. 19 Because of the high position he gave him, all the nations and peoples of every language dreaded and feared him. Those the king wanted to put to death, he put to death; those he wanted to spare, he spared; those he wanted to promote, he promoted; and those he wanted to humble, he humbled. 20 But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. 21 He was driven away from people and given the mind of an animal; he lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like the ox; and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and sets over them anyone he wishes.
22 “But you, Belshazzar, his son,[d] have not humbled yourself, though you knew all this. 23 Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways. 24 Therefore he sent the hand that wrote the inscription.
25 “This is the inscription that was written:
mene, mene, tekel, parsin
26 “Here is what these words mean:
Mene[e]: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end.
27 Tekel[f]: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.
28 Peres[g]: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
29 Then at Belshazzar’s command, Daniel was clothed in purple, a gold chain was placed around his neck, and he was proclaimed the third highest ruler in the kingdom.
30 That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians,[h] was slain, 31 and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two.[i]
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Psalm 37:23-40
The Lord makes firm the steps
of the one who delights in him;
24 though he may stumble, he will not fall,
for the Lord upholds him with his hand.
25 I was young and now I am old,
yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
or their children begging bread.
26 They are always generous and lend freely;
their children will be a blessing.[a]
27 Turn from evil and do good;
then you will dwell in the land forever.
28 For the Lord loves the just
and will not forsake his faithful ones.
Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed[b];
the offspring of the wicked will perish.
29 The righteous will inherit the land
and dwell in it forever.
30 The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
and their tongues speak what is just.
31 The law of their God is in their hearts;
their feet do not slip.
32 The wicked lie in wait for the righteous,
intent on putting them to death;
33 but the Lord will not leave them in the power of the wicked
or let them be condemned when brought to trial.
34 Hope in the Lord
and keep his way.
He will exalt you to inherit the land;
when the wicked are destroyed, you will see it.
35 I have seen a wicked and ruthless man
flourishing like a luxuriant native tree,
36 but he soon passed away and was no more;
though I looked for him, he could not be found.
37 Consider the blameless, observe the upright;
a future awaits those who seek peace.[c]
38 But all sinners will be destroyed;
there will be no future[d] for the wicked.
39 The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord;
he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.
Footnotes:
Psalm 37:26 Or freely; / the names of their children will be used in blessings (see Gen. 48:20); or freely; / others will see that their children are blessed
Psalm 37:28 See Septuagint; Hebrew They will be protected forever
Psalm 37:37 Or upright; / those who seek peace will have posterity
Psalm 37:38 Or posterity
God’s Will
September 16, 2013 — by David H. Roper
The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. —Psalm 37:23
We’re often looking for God’s will—especially when we’re in a difficult situation. We wonder, What will happen to me here? Should I stay or does God want me somewhere else? The only way to know for sure is to do what He asks you to do right now—the duty of the present moment—and wait for God to reveal the next step.
As you obey what you know, you will be strengthened to take the next step and the next. Step by step, one step at a time. That’s how we learn to walk with God.
But you say, “Suppose I take the first step. What will happen next?” That’s God’s business. Your task and mine is to obey this day and leave the future to Him. The psalmist says our steps are “ordered by the Lord” (37:23). This day’s direction is all we need. Tomorrow’s instruction is of no use to us at all. George MacDonald said, “We do not understand the next page of God’s lesson book; we see only the one before us. Nor shall we be allowed to turn the leaf until we have learned its lesson.”
If we concern ourselves with God’s will and obey each day the directions and warnings He gives, if we walk by faith and step out in the path of obedience, we will find that God will lead us through this day. As Jesus put it, “Tomorrow will worry about its own things” (Matt. 6:34).
God knows each winding way I take,
And every sorrow, pain, and ache;
His children He will not forsake—
He knows and loves His own. —Bosch
Blessed is the person who finds out which way God is moving and then goes in that direction.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 16, 2013
Praying to God in Secret
When you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place . . . —Matthew 6:6
The primary thought in the area of religion is— keep your eyes on God, not on people. Your motivation should not be the desire to be known as a praying person. Find an inner room in which to pray where no one even knows you are praying, shut the door, and talk to God in secret. Have no motivation other than to know your Father in heaven. It is impossible to carry on your life as a disciple without definite times of secret prayer.
“When you pray, do not use vain repetitions . . .” (Matthew 6:7). God does not hear us because we pray earnestly— He hears us solely on the basis of redemption. God is never impressed by our earnestness. Prayer is not simply getting things from God— that is only the most elementary kind of prayer. Prayer is coming into perfect fellowship and oneness with God. If the Son of God has been formed in us through regeneration (see Galatians 4:19), then He will continue to press on beyond our common sense and will change our attitude about the things for which we pray.
“Everyone who asks receives . . .” (Matthew 7:8). We pray religious nonsense without even involving our will, and then we say that God did not answer— but in reality we have never asked for anything. Jesus said, “. . . you will ask what you desire. . .” (John 15:7). Asking means that our will must be involved. Whenever Jesus talked about prayer, He spoke with wonderful childlike simplicity. Then we respond with our critical attitude, saying, “Yes, but even Jesus said that we must ask.” But remember that we have to ask things of God that are in keeping with the God whom Jesus Christ revealed.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Love Has X-Ray Vision - #6961
Monday, September 16, 2013
I don't like to perform a wedding unless I can first have several premarital counseling sessions with the couple. I remember when I told my youngest son (he was very young at that time) that I was going to be performing a wedding ceremony for one of the women on our staff. But the way I said it was this: "Hey, guess what? I'm going to be marrying Margaret." He burst into tears. He said, "What about Mommy?"
So I've cleaned up my vocabulary a little bit, but I won't perform a wedding unless I can first counsel that couple. I'll tell you why. You need to get some of the stars out of their eyes. "I love him!" "I love her!" Well, that's great, but most pre-married couples need an emotional optometrist who can help them take a little more honest look at this person that they really do love. So I try to give them some emotional glasses to see who is really there. I think those sessions are a "must" and in fact I even give some tests to show the differences in expectations and in their perceptions of each other. Why? Well, because of the truth of three time-tested words, "Love is (fill in the blank) blind." No it isn't! Not really.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Love Has X-Ray Vision."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Philippians 1:9-10. This is a great prayer here! In fact, I think it's a prayer we ought to just pray right out of scripture on behalf of some people we care about. Here it is: "And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight." It doesn't sound like love is blind there does it? "And I want to pray this so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ."
Now, the word that's used here is agape love. Of the several Greek words that could be used, this is the one for divine love; it's the highest form. He says, "I pray that your agape will abound more and more." And he said that agape love is insightful. It's not just blindly accepting of everything. This applies to all your relationships, not just romantic relationships.
Then he gives here some solid guidelines for all the important choices that you are making at this stage of your life. He says that this knowledgeable love will make you able to discern. It really means to test. Test what? Well, I want you to have the kind of love, God is saying here, that's able to check out what is best.
The Greek word that's used here is one that literally means to carry through. What's worth carrying through life? I want you to be able to discern that. It's often translated "more valuable" in the Bible. When you put it together it seems to say this, "Authentic love checks out every choice and chooses what's really worth the most."
That kind of thinking settled it for my oldest son one day when he was trying to spend all of his allowance on junk food at the store. But he didn't, and when he left he said, "Dad, I decided I'd spend on what lasts." That's what this is talking about. Some people have us believe that love is this syrupy, naive, acceptance of everyone and everything. But actually, that was pretty tough, because it keeps asking, "What's really best in this situation? What will last?" Not, "What's more comfortable, what's more fun, what's more acceptable, or what's more materially profitable?" No, what's more eternally valuable?
You can have that discernment in your daily choices the same way the first-century believers did. You've got to pray for it. Ask for it often. Like Superman, you can have x-ray vision, but to see the things that are really valuable. God can give you powerful inner eyes when you open up to His discerning love. Love isn't blind; it has x-ray vision.
Whatever it is that's troubling you, you'll get through this! Cancel your escape to the Himalayas. Forget the deserted island. This is no time to be a hermit. Pray! Lean on God's people. Be a barnacle on the boat of God's church.
Matthew 18:20 says, "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."
Don't quit. And don't hide! Would the sick avoid the hospital? The hungry avoid the food pantry? Would the discouraged abandon God's Hope Distribution Center? Only at great risk. God is waiting on you, my friend. He is with you. Your family may have left. Your supporters may be gone. Your counselor may be silent. But God has not budged. His promise in Genesis 28:15 still stands,"I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go!"
You will get through this!
From You'll Get Through This
Daniel 5
New International Version (NIV)
The Writing on the Wall
5 King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine with them. 2 While Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that Nebuchadnezzar his father[a] had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them. 3 So they brought in the gold goblets that had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. 4 As they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone.
5 Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall, near the lampstand in the royal palace. The king watched the hand as it wrote. 6 His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his legs became weak and his knees were knocking.
7 The king summoned the enchanters, astrologers[b] and diviners. Then he said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing and tells me what it means will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around his neck, and he will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”
8 Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or tell the king what it meant. 9 So King Belshazzar became even more terrified and his face grew more pale. His nobles were baffled.
10 The queen,[c] hearing the voices of the king and his nobles, came into the banquet hall. “May the king live forever!” she said. “Don’t be alarmed! Don’t look so pale! 11 There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. In the time of your father he was found to have insight and intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods. Your father, King Nebuchadnezzar, appointed him chief of the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners. 12 He did this because Daniel, whom the king called Belteshazzar, was found to have a keen mind and knowledge and understanding, and also the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles and solve difficult problems. Call for Daniel, and he will tell you what the writing means.”
13 So Daniel was brought before the king, and the king said to him, “Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father the king brought from Judah? 14 I have heard that the spirit of the gods is in you and that you have insight, intelligence and outstanding wisdom. 15 The wise men and enchanters were brought before me to read this writing and tell me what it means, but they could not explain it. 16 Now I have heard that you are able to give interpretations and to solve difficult problems. If you can read this writing and tell me what it means, you will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around your neck, and you will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”
17 Then Daniel answered the king, “You may keep your gifts for yourself and give your rewards to someone else. Nevertheless, I will read the writing for the king and tell him what it means.
18 “Your Majesty, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. 19 Because of the high position he gave him, all the nations and peoples of every language dreaded and feared him. Those the king wanted to put to death, he put to death; those he wanted to spare, he spared; those he wanted to promote, he promoted; and those he wanted to humble, he humbled. 20 But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. 21 He was driven away from people and given the mind of an animal; he lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like the ox; and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and sets over them anyone he wishes.
22 “But you, Belshazzar, his son,[d] have not humbled yourself, though you knew all this. 23 Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways. 24 Therefore he sent the hand that wrote the inscription.
25 “This is the inscription that was written:
mene, mene, tekel, parsin
26 “Here is what these words mean:
Mene[e]: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end.
27 Tekel[f]: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.
28 Peres[g]: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
29 Then at Belshazzar’s command, Daniel was clothed in purple, a gold chain was placed around his neck, and he was proclaimed the third highest ruler in the kingdom.
30 That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians,[h] was slain, 31 and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two.[i]
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Psalm 37:23-40
The Lord makes firm the steps
of the one who delights in him;
24 though he may stumble, he will not fall,
for the Lord upholds him with his hand.
25 I was young and now I am old,
yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
or their children begging bread.
26 They are always generous and lend freely;
their children will be a blessing.[a]
27 Turn from evil and do good;
then you will dwell in the land forever.
28 For the Lord loves the just
and will not forsake his faithful ones.
Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed[b];
the offspring of the wicked will perish.
29 The righteous will inherit the land
and dwell in it forever.
30 The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
and their tongues speak what is just.
31 The law of their God is in their hearts;
their feet do not slip.
32 The wicked lie in wait for the righteous,
intent on putting them to death;
33 but the Lord will not leave them in the power of the wicked
or let them be condemned when brought to trial.
34 Hope in the Lord
and keep his way.
He will exalt you to inherit the land;
when the wicked are destroyed, you will see it.
35 I have seen a wicked and ruthless man
flourishing like a luxuriant native tree,
36 but he soon passed away and was no more;
though I looked for him, he could not be found.
37 Consider the blameless, observe the upright;
a future awaits those who seek peace.[c]
38 But all sinners will be destroyed;
there will be no future[d] for the wicked.
39 The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord;
he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.
Footnotes:
Psalm 37:26 Or freely; / the names of their children will be used in blessings (see Gen. 48:20); or freely; / others will see that their children are blessed
Psalm 37:28 See Septuagint; Hebrew They will be protected forever
Psalm 37:37 Or upright; / those who seek peace will have posterity
Psalm 37:38 Or posterity
God’s Will
September 16, 2013 — by David H. Roper
The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. —Psalm 37:23
We’re often looking for God’s will—especially when we’re in a difficult situation. We wonder, What will happen to me here? Should I stay or does God want me somewhere else? The only way to know for sure is to do what He asks you to do right now—the duty of the present moment—and wait for God to reveal the next step.
As you obey what you know, you will be strengthened to take the next step and the next. Step by step, one step at a time. That’s how we learn to walk with God.
But you say, “Suppose I take the first step. What will happen next?” That’s God’s business. Your task and mine is to obey this day and leave the future to Him. The psalmist says our steps are “ordered by the Lord” (37:23). This day’s direction is all we need. Tomorrow’s instruction is of no use to us at all. George MacDonald said, “We do not understand the next page of God’s lesson book; we see only the one before us. Nor shall we be allowed to turn the leaf until we have learned its lesson.”
If we concern ourselves with God’s will and obey each day the directions and warnings He gives, if we walk by faith and step out in the path of obedience, we will find that God will lead us through this day. As Jesus put it, “Tomorrow will worry about its own things” (Matt. 6:34).
God knows each winding way I take,
And every sorrow, pain, and ache;
His children He will not forsake—
He knows and loves His own. —Bosch
Blessed is the person who finds out which way God is moving and then goes in that direction.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 16, 2013
Praying to God in Secret
When you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place . . . —Matthew 6:6
The primary thought in the area of religion is— keep your eyes on God, not on people. Your motivation should not be the desire to be known as a praying person. Find an inner room in which to pray where no one even knows you are praying, shut the door, and talk to God in secret. Have no motivation other than to know your Father in heaven. It is impossible to carry on your life as a disciple without definite times of secret prayer.
“When you pray, do not use vain repetitions . . .” (Matthew 6:7). God does not hear us because we pray earnestly— He hears us solely on the basis of redemption. God is never impressed by our earnestness. Prayer is not simply getting things from God— that is only the most elementary kind of prayer. Prayer is coming into perfect fellowship and oneness with God. If the Son of God has been formed in us through regeneration (see Galatians 4:19), then He will continue to press on beyond our common sense and will change our attitude about the things for which we pray.
“Everyone who asks receives . . .” (Matthew 7:8). We pray religious nonsense without even involving our will, and then we say that God did not answer— but in reality we have never asked for anything. Jesus said, “. . . you will ask what you desire. . .” (John 15:7). Asking means that our will must be involved. Whenever Jesus talked about prayer, He spoke with wonderful childlike simplicity. Then we respond with our critical attitude, saying, “Yes, but even Jesus said that we must ask.” But remember that we have to ask things of God that are in keeping with the God whom Jesus Christ revealed.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Love Has X-Ray Vision - #6961
Monday, September 16, 2013
I don't like to perform a wedding unless I can first have several premarital counseling sessions with the couple. I remember when I told my youngest son (he was very young at that time) that I was going to be performing a wedding ceremony for one of the women on our staff. But the way I said it was this: "Hey, guess what? I'm going to be marrying Margaret." He burst into tears. He said, "What about Mommy?"
So I've cleaned up my vocabulary a little bit, but I won't perform a wedding unless I can first counsel that couple. I'll tell you why. You need to get some of the stars out of their eyes. "I love him!" "I love her!" Well, that's great, but most pre-married couples need an emotional optometrist who can help them take a little more honest look at this person that they really do love. So I try to give them some emotional glasses to see who is really there. I think those sessions are a "must" and in fact I even give some tests to show the differences in expectations and in their perceptions of each other. Why? Well, because of the truth of three time-tested words, "Love is (fill in the blank) blind." No it isn't! Not really.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Love Has X-Ray Vision."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Philippians 1:9-10. This is a great prayer here! In fact, I think it's a prayer we ought to just pray right out of scripture on behalf of some people we care about. Here it is: "And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight." It doesn't sound like love is blind there does it? "And I want to pray this so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ."
Now, the word that's used here is agape love. Of the several Greek words that could be used, this is the one for divine love; it's the highest form. He says, "I pray that your agape will abound more and more." And he said that agape love is insightful. It's not just blindly accepting of everything. This applies to all your relationships, not just romantic relationships.
Then he gives here some solid guidelines for all the important choices that you are making at this stage of your life. He says that this knowledgeable love will make you able to discern. It really means to test. Test what? Well, I want you to have the kind of love, God is saying here, that's able to check out what is best.
The Greek word that's used here is one that literally means to carry through. What's worth carrying through life? I want you to be able to discern that. It's often translated "more valuable" in the Bible. When you put it together it seems to say this, "Authentic love checks out every choice and chooses what's really worth the most."
That kind of thinking settled it for my oldest son one day when he was trying to spend all of his allowance on junk food at the store. But he didn't, and when he left he said, "Dad, I decided I'd spend on what lasts." That's what this is talking about. Some people have us believe that love is this syrupy, naive, acceptance of everyone and everything. But actually, that was pretty tough, because it keeps asking, "What's really best in this situation? What will last?" Not, "What's more comfortable, what's more fun, what's more acceptable, or what's more materially profitable?" No, what's more eternally valuable?
You can have that discernment in your daily choices the same way the first-century believers did. You've got to pray for it. Ask for it often. Like Superman, you can have x-ray vision, but to see the things that are really valuable. God can give you powerful inner eyes when you open up to His discerning love. Love isn't blind; it has x-ray vision.
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Titus 2 bible reading and devotionals.
bible reading and devotionals.
Max Lucado Daily: He Knows
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” John 1:14 NIV
The one to whom we pray knows our feelings. He knows our temptation. He has felt discouraged. He has been hungry and sleepy and tired . . . He nods in understanding when we pray in anger . . . He smiles when we confess our weariness . . .
He, too, knew the drone of the humdrum and the weariness that comes with long days . . . God became flesh and dwelt among us.
Titus 2
New International Version (NIV)
Doing Good for the Sake of the Gospel
2 You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine. 2 Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance.
3 Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. 4 Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.
6 Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. 7 In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness 8 and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.
9 Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them, 10 and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.
11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. 12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
15 These, then, are the things you should teach. Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not let anyone despise you.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Matthew 5:3-16
New International Version (NIV)
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Salt and Light
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
A Life That Shined
September 15, 2013 — by David C. McCasland
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. —Matthew 5:16
According to the International Basketball Federation, basketball is the world’s second-most popular sport, with an estimated 450 million followers in countries around the globe. In the US, the annual NCAA tournament in March often brings mention of legendary coach John Wooden. During his 27 years at UCLA, Wooden’s teams won an unprecedented 10 National Championship titles. Yet, today, John Wooden, who died in 2010, is remembered not just for what he accomplished but for the person he was.
 |
| John Wooden |
Wooden lived out his Christian faith and his genuine concern for others in an environment often obsessed with winning. In his autobiography, They Call Me Coach, he wrote, “I always tried to make it clear that basketball is not the ultimate. It is of small importance in comparison to the total life we live. There is only one kind of life that truly wins, and that is the one that places faith in the hands of the Savior. Until that is done, we are on an aimless course that runs in circles and goes nowhere.”
John Wooden honored God in all he did, and his example challenges us to do the same. Jesus said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:16).
Show me the way, Lord, let my light shine
As an example of good to mankind;
Help them to see the patterns of Thee,
Shining in beauty, lived out in me. —Neuer
Let your light shine—whether you’re a candle in a corner or a lighthouse on a hill.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 15, 2013
What To Renounce
We have renounced the hidden things of shame . . . —2 Corinthians 4:2
Have you “renounced the hidden things of shame” in your life—the things that your sense of honor or pride will not allow to come into the light? You can easily hide them. Is there a thought in your heart about anyone that you would not like to be brought into the light? Then renounce it as soon as it comes to mind—renounce everything in its entirety until there is no hidden dishonesty or craftiness about you at all. Envy, jealousy, and strife don’t necessarily arise from your old nature of sin, but from the flesh which was used for these kinds of things in the past (see Romans 6:19 and 1 Peter 4:1-3). You must maintain continual watchfulness so that nothing arises in your life that would cause you shame.
“. . . not walking in craftiness. . .” (2 Corinthians 4:2). This means not resorting to something simply to make your own point. This is a terrible trap. You know that God will allow you to work in only one way—the way of truth. Then be careful never to catch people through the other way—the way of deceit. If you act deceitfully, God’s blight and ruin will be upon you. What may be craftiness for you, may not be for others—God has called you to a higher standard. Never dull your sense of being your utmost for His highest—your best for His glory. For you, doing certain things would mean craftiness coming into your life for a purpose other than what is the highest and best, and it would dull the motivation that God has given you. Many people have turned back because they are afraid to look at things from God’s perspective. The greatest spiritual crisis comes when a person has to move a little farther on in his faith than the beliefs he has already accepted.
Saturday, September 14, 2013
Daniel 4, bible reading and devotions.
Max Lucado: An Advocate
Not all guilt is bad. God uses appropriate doses of guilt to awaken us to sin!
God’s guilt brings enough regret to change us! Satan’s guilt brings enough regret to enslave us. Don’t let him lock his shackles on you.
Colossians 3:3 reminds us, “your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
When he looks at you, he sees Jesus first. In the Chinese language the word for “righteousness” is a combination of two characters, the figure of a lamb and a person. The lamb is on top, covering the person. Whenever God looks down at you, this is what he sees: The perfect Lamb of God covering you.
It boils down to this choice: Do you trust your Advocate—God or your Accuser—Satan? Give no heed to Satan’s voice. You have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous!
From GRACE
Daniel 4
Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream of a Tree
To the nations and peoples of every language, who live in all the earth:
May you prosper greatly!
2 It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me.
3 How great are his signs,
how mighty his wonders!
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;
his dominion endures from generation to generation.
4 I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at home in my palace, contented and prosperous. 5 I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying in bed, the images and visions that passed through my mind terrified me. 6 So I commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be brought before me to interpret the dream for me. 7 When the magicians, enchanters, astrologers[e] and diviners came, I told them the dream, but they could not interpret it for me. 8 Finally, Daniel came into my presence and I told him the dream. (He is called Belteshazzar, after the name of my god, and the spirit of the holy gods is in him.)
9 I said, “Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and no mystery is too difficult for you. Here is my dream; interpret it for me. 10 These are the visions I saw while lying in bed: I looked, and there before me stood a tree in the middle of the land. Its height was enormous. 11 The tree grew large and strong and its top touched the sky; it was visible to the ends of the earth. 12 Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit abundant, and on it was food for all. Under it the wild animals found shelter, and the birds lived in its branches; from it every creature was fed.
13 “In the visions I saw while lying in bed, I looked, and there before me was a holy one, a messenger,[f] coming down from heaven. 14 He called in a loud voice: ‘Cut down the tree and trim off its branches; strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the animals flee from under it and the birds from its branches. 15 But let the stump and its roots, bound with iron and bronze, remain in the ground, in the grass of the field.
“‘Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live with the animals among the plants of the earth. 16 Let his mind be changed from that of a man and let him be given the mind of an animal, till seven times[g] pass by for him.
17 “‘The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of people.’
18 “This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, had. Now, Belteshazzar, tell me what it means, for none of the wise men in my kingdom can interpret it for me. But you can, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.”
Daniel Interprets the Dream
19 Then Daniel (also called Belteshazzar) was greatly perplexed for a time, and his thoughts terrified him. So the king said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its meaning alarm you.”
Belteshazzar answered, “My lord, if only the dream applied to your enemies and its meaning to your adversaries! 20 The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, with its top touching the sky, visible to the whole earth, 21 with beautiful leaves and abundant fruit, providing food for all, giving shelter to the wild animals, and having nesting places in its branches for the birds— 22 Your Majesty, you are that tree! You have become great and strong; your greatness has grown until it reaches the sky, and your dominion extends to distant parts of the earth.
23 “Your Majesty saw a holy one, a messenger, coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump, bound with iron and bronze, in the grass of the field, while its roots remain in the ground. Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven; let him live with the wild animals, until seven times pass by for him.’
24 “This is the interpretation, Your Majesty, and this is the decree the Most High has issued against my lord the king: 25 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox and be drenched with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes. 26 The command to leave the stump of the tree with its roots means that your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge that Heaven rules. 27 Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue.”
The Dream Is Fulfilled
28 All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?”
31 Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. 32 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.”
33 Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like the ox. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird.
34 At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever.
His dominion is an eternal dominion;
his kingdom endures from generation to generation.
35 All the peoples of the earth
are regarded as nothing.
He does as he pleases
with the powers of heaven
and the peoples of the earth.
No one can hold back his hand
or say to him: “What have you done?”
36 At the same time that my sanity was restored, my honor and splendor were returned to me for the glory of my kingdom. My advisers and nobles sought me out, and I was restored to my throne and became even greater than before. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.
Footnotes:
Daniel 3:1 That is, about 90 feet high and 9 feet wide or about 27 meters high and 2.7 meters wide
Daniel 3:8 Or Chaldeans
Daniel 3:17 Or If the God we serve is able to deliver us, then he will deliver us from the blazing furnace and
Daniel 4:1 In Aramaic texts 4:1-3 is numbered 3:31-33, and 4:4-37 is numbered 4:1-34.
Daniel 4:7 Or Chaldeans
Daniel 4:13 Or watchman; also in verses 17 and 23
Daniel 4:16 Or years; also in verses 23, 25 and 32
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Luke 22:54-62
Peter Disowns Jesus
54 Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. 55 And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. 56 A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.”
57 But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said.
58 A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.”
“Man, I am not!” Peter replied.
59 About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.”
60 Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. 61 The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” 62 And he went outside and wept bitterly.
Unfailing Mercy
September 14, 2013 — by Bill Crowder
Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. . . . Great is Your faithfulness. —Lamentations 3:22-23
As I strolled through Chicago’s O’Hare airport, something caught my eye—a hat worn by someone racing through the concourse. What caught my attention was the message it conveyed in just two words: “Deny Everything.” I wondered what it meant. Don’t ever admit to guilt? Or deny yourself the pleasures and luxuries of life? I scratched my head at the mystery of those two simple words, “Deny Everything.”
One of Jesus’ followers, Simon Peter, did some denying. In a critical moment, he denied three times that He even knew Jesus! (Luke 22:57, 58,60). His fear-filled act of denial caused him such guilt and heartache that, broken by his spiritual failure, he could only go out and weep bitterly (v.62).
But Peter’s denial of Christ, like our own moments of spiritual denial, could never diminish the compassion of God. The prophet Jeremiah wrote, “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness” (Lam. 3:22-23). We can take heart that even when we fail, our faithful God comes to us in mercy and compassion that never fails!
Thank You, Father, for Your new and never-
failing mercies. Forgive me for the times I deny
You and fail others, and teach me to run to
You for Your overflowing compassion.
Being imperfect emphasizes our dependence on God’s mercy.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 14, 2013
Arguments or Obedience
. . . the simplicity that is in Christ. —2 Corinthians 11:3
Simplicity is the secret to seeing things clearly. A saint does not think clearly until a long time passes, but a saint ought to see clearly without any difficulty. You cannot think through spiritual confusion to make things clear; to make things clear, you must obey. In intellectual matters you can think things out, but in spiritual matters you will only think yourself into further wandering thoughts and more confusion. If there is something in your life upon which God has put His pressure, then obey Him in that matter. Bring all your “arguments and . . . every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” regarding the matter, and everything will become as clear as daylight to you (2 Corinthians 10:5). Your reasoning capacity will come later, but reasoning is not how we see. We see like children, and when we try to be wise we see nothing (see Matthew 11:25).
Even the very smallest thing that we allow in our lives that is not under the control of the Holy Spirit is completely sufficient to account for spiritual confusion, and spending all of our time thinking about it will still never make it clear. Spiritual confusion can only be conquered through obedience. As soon as we obey, we have discernment. This is humiliating, because when we are confused we know that the reason lies in the state of our mind. But when our natural power of sight is devoted and submitted in obedience to the Holy Spirit, it becomes the very power by which we perceive God’s will, and our entire life is kept in simplicity.
Not all guilt is bad. God uses appropriate doses of guilt to awaken us to sin!
God’s guilt brings enough regret to change us! Satan’s guilt brings enough regret to enslave us. Don’t let him lock his shackles on you.
Colossians 3:3 reminds us, “your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
When he looks at you, he sees Jesus first. In the Chinese language the word for “righteousness” is a combination of two characters, the figure of a lamb and a person. The lamb is on top, covering the person. Whenever God looks down at you, this is what he sees: The perfect Lamb of God covering you.
It boils down to this choice: Do you trust your Advocate—God or your Accuser—Satan? Give no heed to Satan’s voice. You have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous!
From GRACE
Daniel 4
Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream of a Tree
To the nations and peoples of every language, who live in all the earth:
May you prosper greatly!
2 It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me.
3 How great are his signs,
how mighty his wonders!
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;
his dominion endures from generation to generation.
4 I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at home in my palace, contented and prosperous. 5 I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying in bed, the images and visions that passed through my mind terrified me. 6 So I commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be brought before me to interpret the dream for me. 7 When the magicians, enchanters, astrologers[e] and diviners came, I told them the dream, but they could not interpret it for me. 8 Finally, Daniel came into my presence and I told him the dream. (He is called Belteshazzar, after the name of my god, and the spirit of the holy gods is in him.)
9 I said, “Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and no mystery is too difficult for you. Here is my dream; interpret it for me. 10 These are the visions I saw while lying in bed: I looked, and there before me stood a tree in the middle of the land. Its height was enormous. 11 The tree grew large and strong and its top touched the sky; it was visible to the ends of the earth. 12 Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit abundant, and on it was food for all. Under it the wild animals found shelter, and the birds lived in its branches; from it every creature was fed.
13 “In the visions I saw while lying in bed, I looked, and there before me was a holy one, a messenger,[f] coming down from heaven. 14 He called in a loud voice: ‘Cut down the tree and trim off its branches; strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the animals flee from under it and the birds from its branches. 15 But let the stump and its roots, bound with iron and bronze, remain in the ground, in the grass of the field.
“‘Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live with the animals among the plants of the earth. 16 Let his mind be changed from that of a man and let him be given the mind of an animal, till seven times[g] pass by for him.
17 “‘The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of people.’
18 “This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, had. Now, Belteshazzar, tell me what it means, for none of the wise men in my kingdom can interpret it for me. But you can, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.”
Daniel Interprets the Dream
19 Then Daniel (also called Belteshazzar) was greatly perplexed for a time, and his thoughts terrified him. So the king said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its meaning alarm you.”
Belteshazzar answered, “My lord, if only the dream applied to your enemies and its meaning to your adversaries! 20 The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, with its top touching the sky, visible to the whole earth, 21 with beautiful leaves and abundant fruit, providing food for all, giving shelter to the wild animals, and having nesting places in its branches for the birds— 22 Your Majesty, you are that tree! You have become great and strong; your greatness has grown until it reaches the sky, and your dominion extends to distant parts of the earth.
23 “Your Majesty saw a holy one, a messenger, coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump, bound with iron and bronze, in the grass of the field, while its roots remain in the ground. Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven; let him live with the wild animals, until seven times pass by for him.’
24 “This is the interpretation, Your Majesty, and this is the decree the Most High has issued against my lord the king: 25 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox and be drenched with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes. 26 The command to leave the stump of the tree with its roots means that your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge that Heaven rules. 27 Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue.”
The Dream Is Fulfilled
28 All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?”
31 Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. 32 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.”
33 Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like the ox. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird.
34 At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever.
His dominion is an eternal dominion;
his kingdom endures from generation to generation.
35 All the peoples of the earth
are regarded as nothing.
He does as he pleases
with the powers of heaven
and the peoples of the earth.
No one can hold back his hand
or say to him: “What have you done?”
36 At the same time that my sanity was restored, my honor and splendor were returned to me for the glory of my kingdom. My advisers and nobles sought me out, and I was restored to my throne and became even greater than before. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.
Footnotes:
Daniel 3:1 That is, about 90 feet high and 9 feet wide or about 27 meters high and 2.7 meters wide
Daniel 3:8 Or Chaldeans
Daniel 3:17 Or If the God we serve is able to deliver us, then he will deliver us from the blazing furnace and
Daniel 4:1 In Aramaic texts 4:1-3 is numbered 3:31-33, and 4:4-37 is numbered 4:1-34.
Daniel 4:7 Or Chaldeans
Daniel 4:13 Or watchman; also in verses 17 and 23
Daniel 4:16 Or years; also in verses 23, 25 and 32
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Luke 22:54-62
Peter Disowns Jesus
54 Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. 55 And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. 56 A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.”
57 But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said.
58 A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.”
“Man, I am not!” Peter replied.
59 About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.”
60 Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. 61 The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” 62 And he went outside and wept bitterly.
Unfailing Mercy
September 14, 2013 — by Bill Crowder
Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. . . . Great is Your faithfulness. —Lamentations 3:22-23
As I strolled through Chicago’s O’Hare airport, something caught my eye—a hat worn by someone racing through the concourse. What caught my attention was the message it conveyed in just two words: “Deny Everything.” I wondered what it meant. Don’t ever admit to guilt? Or deny yourself the pleasures and luxuries of life? I scratched my head at the mystery of those two simple words, “Deny Everything.”
One of Jesus’ followers, Simon Peter, did some denying. In a critical moment, he denied three times that He even knew Jesus! (Luke 22:57, 58,60). His fear-filled act of denial caused him such guilt and heartache that, broken by his spiritual failure, he could only go out and weep bitterly (v.62).
But Peter’s denial of Christ, like our own moments of spiritual denial, could never diminish the compassion of God. The prophet Jeremiah wrote, “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness” (Lam. 3:22-23). We can take heart that even when we fail, our faithful God comes to us in mercy and compassion that never fails!
Thank You, Father, for Your new and never-
failing mercies. Forgive me for the times I deny
You and fail others, and teach me to run to
You for Your overflowing compassion.
Being imperfect emphasizes our dependence on God’s mercy.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 14, 2013
Arguments or Obedience
. . . the simplicity that is in Christ. —2 Corinthians 11:3
Simplicity is the secret to seeing things clearly. A saint does not think clearly until a long time passes, but a saint ought to see clearly without any difficulty. You cannot think through spiritual confusion to make things clear; to make things clear, you must obey. In intellectual matters you can think things out, but in spiritual matters you will only think yourself into further wandering thoughts and more confusion. If there is something in your life upon which God has put His pressure, then obey Him in that matter. Bring all your “arguments and . . . every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” regarding the matter, and everything will become as clear as daylight to you (2 Corinthians 10:5). Your reasoning capacity will come later, but reasoning is not how we see. We see like children, and when we try to be wise we see nothing (see Matthew 11:25).
Even the very smallest thing that we allow in our lives that is not under the control of the Holy Spirit is completely sufficient to account for spiritual confusion, and spending all of our time thinking about it will still never make it clear. Spiritual confusion can only be conquered through obedience. As soon as we obey, we have discernment. This is humiliating, because when we are confused we know that the reason lies in the state of our mind. But when our natural power of sight is devoted and submitted in obedience to the Holy Spirit, it becomes the very power by which we perceive God’s will, and our entire life is kept in simplicity.
Friday, September 13, 2013
Daniel 3, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: God Surrounds Us
God surrounds us like the Pacific surrounds an ocean floor pebble. He is everywhere: above, below, on all sides. We choose our response—rock or sponge? Resist or receive? Everything within you says, harden your heart. Run from God, resist God, blame God.
But be careful. Hard hearts never heal. Spongy ones do! Open every pore of your soul to God’s presence. Here’s how. Lay claim to the nearness of God. He says in Hebrews 13:5, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Grip this promise like the parachute it is. Repeat it over and over until it trumps the voices of fear. The Lord God is with you, and He is mighty to save. Cling to His character. Quarry from your Bible a list of the deep qualities of God and press them into your heart. He is sovereign. You will get through this!
From You’ll Get Through This
New International Version (NIV)
The Image of Gold and the Blazing Furnace
3 King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, sixty cubits high and six cubits wide,[a] and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. 2 He then summoned the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials to come to the dedication of the image he had set up. 3 So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials assembled for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, and they stood before it.
4 Then the herald loudly proclaimed, “Nations and peoples of every language, this is what you are commanded to do: 5 As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. 6 Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”
7 Therefore, as soon as they heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp and all kinds of music, all the nations and peoples of every language fell down and worshiped the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
8 At this time some astrologers[b] came forward and denounced the Jews. 9 They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “May the king live forever! 10 Your Majesty has issued a decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the image of gold, 11 and that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing furnace. 12 But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up.”
13 Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, 14 and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?”
16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us[c] from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual 20 and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. 21 So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. 22 The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, 23 and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.
24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”
They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”
25 He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
26 Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”
So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, 27 and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.
28 Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. 29 Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”
30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Chronicles 17:1-10
New International Version (NIV)
Jehoshaphat King of Judah
17 Jehoshaphat his son succeeded him as king and strengthened himself against Israel. 2 He stationed troops in all the fortified cities of Judah and put garrisons in Judah and in the towns of Ephraim that his father Asa had captured.
3 The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he followed the ways of his father David before him. He did not consult the Baals 4 but sought the God of his father and followed his commands rather than the practices of Israel. 5 The Lord established the kingdom under his control; and all Judah brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, so that he had great wealth and honor. 6 His heart was devoted to the ways of the Lord; furthermore, he removed the high places and the Asherah poles from Judah.
7 In the third year of his reign he sent his officials Ben-Hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel and Micaiah to teach in the towns of Judah. 8 With them were certain Levites—Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah and Tob-Adonijah—and the priests Elishama and Jehoram. 9 They taught throughout Judah, taking with them the Book of the Law of the Lord; they went around to all the towns of Judah and taught the people.
10 The fear of the Lord fell on all the kingdoms of the lands surrounding Judah, so that they did not go to war against Jehoshaphat.
A Father To Follow
September 13, 2013 — by Jennifer Benson Schuldt
[Jehoshaphat] sought the God of his father, and walked in His commandments. —2 Chronicles 17:4
When I think of my father, I think of this saying: “He didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and he let me watch him do it.” During my youth, I watched my dad walk with God. He participated in Sunday morning church services, taught an adult Bible-study class, helped with counting the offering, and served as a deacon. Outside of church, he faithfully defended the gospel and read his Bible. I saw him express his love for the Lord through outward actions.
Asa, king of Judah, modeled devotion to God for a season in his life (2 Chron. 14:2). He removed the idols from his kingdom, restored the altar of the Lord, and led the people into a covenant with God (15:8-12). Asa’s son Jehoshaphat carried on this legacy by seeking “the God of his father and walk[ing] in His commandments” (17:4). Jehoshaphat purged the land of idol worship (v.6) and sent out priests and Levites to teach God’s law in all of the cities of Judah (vv.7-9).
Jehoshaphat’s reign resembled that of his father; he faithfully honored Asa’s godly example. Yet even more important, Jehoshaphat’s “heart took delight in the ways of the Lord” (v.6). Today, if you’re looking for a father to follow, remember your heavenly Father and take delight in His ways.
We magnify our Father God
With songs of thoughtful praise;
As grateful children we confess
How perfect are His ways. —Ball
We honor God’s name when we call Him our Father and live like His Son.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 13, 2013
After Surrender— Then What?
I have finished the work which You have given Me to do —John 17:4
True surrender is not simply surrender of our external life but surrender of our will— and once that is done, surrender is complete. The greatest crisis we ever face is the surrender of our will. Yet God never forces a person’s will into surrender, and He never begs. He patiently waits until that person willingly yields to Him. And once that battle has been fought, it never needs to be fought again.
Surrender for Deliverance. “Come to Me . . . and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). It is only after we have begun to experience what salvation really means that we surrender our will to Jesus for rest. Whatever is causing us a sense of uncertainty is actually a call to our will— “Come to Me.” And it is a voluntary coming.
Surrender for Devotion. “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself . . . ” (Matthew 16:24). The surrender here is of my self to Jesus, with His rest at the heart of my being. He says, “If you want to be My disciple, you must give up your right to yourself to Me.” And once this is done, the remainder of your life will exhibit nothing but the evidence of this surrender, and you never need to be concerned again with what the future may hold for you. Whatever your circumstances may be, Jesus is totally sufficient (see 2 Corinthians 12:9 and (Philippians 4:19).
Surrender for Death. “. . . another will gird you . . .” (John 21:18 ; also see John21:19). Have you learned what it means to be girded for death? Beware of some surrender that you make to God in an ecstatic moment in your life, because you are apt to take it back again. True surrender is a matter of being “united together [with Jesus] in the likeness of His death” (Romans 6:5) until nothing ever appeals to you that did not appeal to Him.
And after you surrender— then what? Your entire life should be characterized by an eagerness to maintain unbroken fellowship and oneness with God.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Nip Factor - #6960
Friday, September 13, 2013
Our dog, Missy, had just ridden with us on a 1600 mile round trip to Chicago and back. That was the first for her. It was a first for me to do it, too, with a dog and we both survived! Miracles still happen. Missy had been through a lot of upheavals in her routine as a result of that trip, and she'd had an exhausting two days. I can't believe now I was empathizing with our dog!
Well, anyway, all of this might explain her uncharacteristic behavior when we returned home. She just hunkered down all day long underneath this white cabinet in the kitchen. There was barely enough room for her under there, but no one could coax her out. She was a grump! She didn't come out to eat. Now the two people she responded to the most got down there and tried to speak "doggy" to her. Nothing. Finally, her primary caregiver reached her hand under there and promptly got it nipped by a dog who never did that. This was an animal with an attitude!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Nip Factor."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Corinthians chapter 13. You may recognize this as being maybe the greatest description of what love really is like in all the Bible. And in a world that's pretty confused about love, 1 Corinthians 13 is more relevant than ever. As you listen, would you think about the people you love and measure how you're treating them by these words from God?
Here's verse 4, "Love (and you could say my love for whoever) is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs." See, love is not a feeling. It's not words. It's not the official status of certain people. It's an act or way of treating people; certain ways that I'd like to underscore from these verses. If you love someone it means you treat them with patience, you treat them kindly, and you look for what you can do for them, not what they can do for you. And your love doesn't get easily angered; it doesn't nip at people. Are you listening, Missy?
I think that too often we're all like the dog. We're exhausted, we're feeling low, we're thinking of ourselves a lot. Inwardly we've crawled under the cabinet, and instead of responding, we bite, we snarl, we punish people for needing us when we're low. But love is better than that. Just look at the One whose life we're trying to copy.
Look at Jesus, experiencing the greatest agony any human has ever experienced as He hangs on a cross, bearing in His soul all the hell of all of us. Is He lashing out? Is He demanding to be left alone in His pain? No, He's reaching out. Jesus - He's patient, He's kind, He's not rude, He's not self-seeking, and He's not easily angered on the cross. He's caring about the need of the man on the next cross, the needs of His mother. He's forgiving those who nailed Him there. I want to be like that, don't you?
I know that my tired times, my stressed out times, my hurting times, a lot of times they don't bring out the best in me. I've nipped at too many people I'm supposed to love in times like that. But those are the times when love shows its true colors, when it's sacrificial, when you give it at a time when you feel like giving out, when you love with that much feeling behind it.
So maybe you'd like to join me in making Jesus Lord of your ugly times. You say, "Lord, when I'm like this I'm often not like You. Please re-train me Lord. Help me to draw deeply on Your grace and Your love right now. Give me a victory in this time when I feel just like I want to focus on me. Empower me to love people in the times that I would normally be plain old ugly."
Remember, you will experience Christ's love and Christ's power on a new level as He overrules your tendency to snarl or to bite. The people around you don't need a wound from you, they need supernatural love.
God surrounds us like the Pacific surrounds an ocean floor pebble. He is everywhere: above, below, on all sides. We choose our response—rock or sponge? Resist or receive? Everything within you says, harden your heart. Run from God, resist God, blame God.
But be careful. Hard hearts never heal. Spongy ones do! Open every pore of your soul to God’s presence. Here’s how. Lay claim to the nearness of God. He says in Hebrews 13:5, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Grip this promise like the parachute it is. Repeat it over and over until it trumps the voices of fear. The Lord God is with you, and He is mighty to save. Cling to His character. Quarry from your Bible a list of the deep qualities of God and press them into your heart. He is sovereign. You will get through this!
From You’ll Get Through This
New International Version (NIV)
The Image of Gold and the Blazing Furnace
3 King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, sixty cubits high and six cubits wide,[a] and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. 2 He then summoned the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials to come to the dedication of the image he had set up. 3 So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials assembled for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, and they stood before it.
4 Then the herald loudly proclaimed, “Nations and peoples of every language, this is what you are commanded to do: 5 As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. 6 Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”
7 Therefore, as soon as they heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp and all kinds of music, all the nations and peoples of every language fell down and worshiped the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
8 At this time some astrologers[b] came forward and denounced the Jews. 9 They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “May the king live forever! 10 Your Majesty has issued a decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the image of gold, 11 and that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing furnace. 12 But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up.”
13 Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, 14 and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?”
16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us[c] from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual 20 and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. 21 So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. 22 The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, 23 and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.
24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”
They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”
25 He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
26 Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”
So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, 27 and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.
28 Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. 29 Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”
30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Chronicles 17:1-10
New International Version (NIV)
Jehoshaphat King of Judah
17 Jehoshaphat his son succeeded him as king and strengthened himself against Israel. 2 He stationed troops in all the fortified cities of Judah and put garrisons in Judah and in the towns of Ephraim that his father Asa had captured.
3 The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he followed the ways of his father David before him. He did not consult the Baals 4 but sought the God of his father and followed his commands rather than the practices of Israel. 5 The Lord established the kingdom under his control; and all Judah brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, so that he had great wealth and honor. 6 His heart was devoted to the ways of the Lord; furthermore, he removed the high places and the Asherah poles from Judah.
7 In the third year of his reign he sent his officials Ben-Hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel and Micaiah to teach in the towns of Judah. 8 With them were certain Levites—Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah and Tob-Adonijah—and the priests Elishama and Jehoram. 9 They taught throughout Judah, taking with them the Book of the Law of the Lord; they went around to all the towns of Judah and taught the people.
10 The fear of the Lord fell on all the kingdoms of the lands surrounding Judah, so that they did not go to war against Jehoshaphat.
A Father To Follow
September 13, 2013 — by Jennifer Benson Schuldt
[Jehoshaphat] sought the God of his father, and walked in His commandments. —2 Chronicles 17:4
When I think of my father, I think of this saying: “He didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and he let me watch him do it.” During my youth, I watched my dad walk with God. He participated in Sunday morning church services, taught an adult Bible-study class, helped with counting the offering, and served as a deacon. Outside of church, he faithfully defended the gospel and read his Bible. I saw him express his love for the Lord through outward actions.
Asa, king of Judah, modeled devotion to God for a season in his life (2 Chron. 14:2). He removed the idols from his kingdom, restored the altar of the Lord, and led the people into a covenant with God (15:8-12). Asa’s son Jehoshaphat carried on this legacy by seeking “the God of his father and walk[ing] in His commandments” (17:4). Jehoshaphat purged the land of idol worship (v.6) and sent out priests and Levites to teach God’s law in all of the cities of Judah (vv.7-9).
Jehoshaphat’s reign resembled that of his father; he faithfully honored Asa’s godly example. Yet even more important, Jehoshaphat’s “heart took delight in the ways of the Lord” (v.6). Today, if you’re looking for a father to follow, remember your heavenly Father and take delight in His ways.
We magnify our Father God
With songs of thoughtful praise;
As grateful children we confess
How perfect are His ways. —Ball
We honor God’s name when we call Him our Father and live like His Son.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 13, 2013
After Surrender— Then What?
I have finished the work which You have given Me to do —John 17:4
True surrender is not simply surrender of our external life but surrender of our will— and once that is done, surrender is complete. The greatest crisis we ever face is the surrender of our will. Yet God never forces a person’s will into surrender, and He never begs. He patiently waits until that person willingly yields to Him. And once that battle has been fought, it never needs to be fought again.
Surrender for Deliverance. “Come to Me . . . and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). It is only after we have begun to experience what salvation really means that we surrender our will to Jesus for rest. Whatever is causing us a sense of uncertainty is actually a call to our will— “Come to Me.” And it is a voluntary coming.
Surrender for Devotion. “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself . . . ” (Matthew 16:24). The surrender here is of my self to Jesus, with His rest at the heart of my being. He says, “If you want to be My disciple, you must give up your right to yourself to Me.” And once this is done, the remainder of your life will exhibit nothing but the evidence of this surrender, and you never need to be concerned again with what the future may hold for you. Whatever your circumstances may be, Jesus is totally sufficient (see 2 Corinthians 12:9 and (Philippians 4:19).
Surrender for Death. “. . . another will gird you . . .” (John 21:18 ; also see John21:19). Have you learned what it means to be girded for death? Beware of some surrender that you make to God in an ecstatic moment in your life, because you are apt to take it back again. True surrender is a matter of being “united together [with Jesus] in the likeness of His death” (Romans 6:5) until nothing ever appeals to you that did not appeal to Him.
And after you surrender— then what? Your entire life should be characterized by an eagerness to maintain unbroken fellowship and oneness with God.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Nip Factor - #6960
Friday, September 13, 2013
Our dog, Missy, had just ridden with us on a 1600 mile round trip to Chicago and back. That was the first for her. It was a first for me to do it, too, with a dog and we both survived! Miracles still happen. Missy had been through a lot of upheavals in her routine as a result of that trip, and she'd had an exhausting two days. I can't believe now I was empathizing with our dog!
Well, anyway, all of this might explain her uncharacteristic behavior when we returned home. She just hunkered down all day long underneath this white cabinet in the kitchen. There was barely enough room for her under there, but no one could coax her out. She was a grump! She didn't come out to eat. Now the two people she responded to the most got down there and tried to speak "doggy" to her. Nothing. Finally, her primary caregiver reached her hand under there and promptly got it nipped by a dog who never did that. This was an animal with an attitude!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Nip Factor."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Corinthians chapter 13. You may recognize this as being maybe the greatest description of what love really is like in all the Bible. And in a world that's pretty confused about love, 1 Corinthians 13 is more relevant than ever. As you listen, would you think about the people you love and measure how you're treating them by these words from God?
Here's verse 4, "Love (and you could say my love for whoever) is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs." See, love is not a feeling. It's not words. It's not the official status of certain people. It's an act or way of treating people; certain ways that I'd like to underscore from these verses. If you love someone it means you treat them with patience, you treat them kindly, and you look for what you can do for them, not what they can do for you. And your love doesn't get easily angered; it doesn't nip at people. Are you listening, Missy?
I think that too often we're all like the dog. We're exhausted, we're feeling low, we're thinking of ourselves a lot. Inwardly we've crawled under the cabinet, and instead of responding, we bite, we snarl, we punish people for needing us when we're low. But love is better than that. Just look at the One whose life we're trying to copy.
Look at Jesus, experiencing the greatest agony any human has ever experienced as He hangs on a cross, bearing in His soul all the hell of all of us. Is He lashing out? Is He demanding to be left alone in His pain? No, He's reaching out. Jesus - He's patient, He's kind, He's not rude, He's not self-seeking, and He's not easily angered on the cross. He's caring about the need of the man on the next cross, the needs of His mother. He's forgiving those who nailed Him there. I want to be like that, don't you?
I know that my tired times, my stressed out times, my hurting times, a lot of times they don't bring out the best in me. I've nipped at too many people I'm supposed to love in times like that. But those are the times when love shows its true colors, when it's sacrificial, when you give it at a time when you feel like giving out, when you love with that much feeling behind it.
So maybe you'd like to join me in making Jesus Lord of your ugly times. You say, "Lord, when I'm like this I'm often not like You. Please re-train me Lord. Help me to draw deeply on Your grace and Your love right now. Give me a victory in this time when I feel just like I want to focus on me. Empower me to love people in the times that I would normally be plain old ugly."
Remember, you will experience Christ's love and Christ's power on a new level as He overrules your tendency to snarl or to bite. The people around you don't need a wound from you, they need supernatural love.
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Titus 1, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: He is Not Far From Us ·
You will never go where God is not! Envision the next few hours—where will you be? In a school? God indwells the classroom. On the highway? His presence lingers among the traffic. In the hospital operating room, the executive board-room, the in-laws’ living room? God will be there.
Acts 17:27 says, “He is not far from each of us.” Each of us. God doesn’t play favorites. From the masses on city streets to isolated villagers in valleys and jungles, all people can enjoy God’s presence.
But many don’t! They plod through life as if there is no God to love them. As if the only strength is their own. As if the only solution will come from within, not above. They live God-less lives. The psalmist determined, “When I am afraid, I will trust in You, God.” (Psalm 56:3). Put your hope in God. You will get through this!
From You’ll Get Through This
Titus 1
New International Version (NIV)
1 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness— 2 in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, 3 and which now at his appointed season he has brought to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior,
4 To Titus, my true son in our common faith:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
Appointing Elders Who Love What Is Good
5 The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint[a] elders in every town, as I directed you. 6 An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe[b] and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. 7 Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. 8 Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. 9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
Rebuking Those Who Fail to Do Good
10 For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. 11 They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12 One of Crete’s own prophets has said it: “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.”[c] 13 This saying is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the merely human commands of those who reject the truth. 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16 They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
Footnotes:
Titus 1:5 Or ordain
Titus 1:6 Or children are trustworthy
Titus 1:12 From the Cretan philosopher Epimenides
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Chronicles 16:6-13
Then King Asa brought all the men of Judah, and they carried away from Ramah the stones and timber Baasha had been using. With them he built up Geba and Mizpah.
7 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him: “Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. 8 Were not the Cushites[a] and Libyans a mighty army with great numbers of chariots and horsemen[b]? Yet when you relied on the Lord, he delivered them into your hand. 9 For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”
10 Asa was angry with the seer because of this; he was so enraged that he put him in prison. At the same time Asa brutally oppressed some of the people.
11 The events of Asa’s reign, from beginning to end, are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. 12 In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the Lord, but only from the physicians. 13 Then in the forty-first year of his reign Asa died and rested with his ancestors.
Footnotes:
2 Chronicles 16:8 That is, people from the upper Nile region
2 Chronicles 16:8 Or charioteers
Beneficial Power
September 12, 2013 — by Joe Stowell
The eyes of the Lord run to and fro . . . , to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. —2 Chronicles 16:9
Boxing and strong-man competitions have a unique aspect to them. In the events, the athletes compete individually for the purpose of demonstrating their superior strength. It’s like arm wrestling—you do it to prove that you are the strongest person in the room.
One aspect of God’s glory is His almighty power. But how does He show His strength? He doesn’t do it by rearranging the galaxies before our very eyes, changing the color of the sun at a whim, or freezing a lightning bolt as a trophy to His strength. Instead, in His love and compassion for needy people like ourselves, God has chosen to “show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him” (2 Chron. 16:9).
The pattern is consistent throughout Scripture. From the dividing of the Red Sea, to the marvel of manna in the wilderness, to the miraculous virgin birth, and ultimately to the power of the resurrection, our Almighty God has chosen to demonstrate His strength to bless, preserve, and protect His people.
Be assured that He delights in showing Himself strong in the challenges of our life. And when He proves His power on our behalf, let’s remember to give Him the glory!
Lord, thank You for choosing to expend Your
divine power on the needs of my life. When my
strength is weak, teach me to trust that Your mighty
arm is able to guard, protect, and deliver!
All of God’s promises are backed by His wisdom, love, and power.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 12, 2013
Going Through Spiritual Confusion
Jesus answered and said, ’You do not know what you ask’ —Matthew 20:22
There are times in your spiritual life when there is confusion, and the way out of it is not simply to say that you should not be confused. It is not a matter of right and wrong, but a matter of God taking you through a way that you temporarily do not understand. And it is only by going through the spiritual confusion that you will come to the understanding of what God wants for you.
The Shrouding of His Friendship (see Luke 11:5-8). Jesus gave the illustration here of a man who appears not to care for his friend. He was saying, in effect, that is how the heavenly Father will appear to you at times. You will think that He is an unkind friend, but remember?He is not. The time will come when everything will be explained. There seems to be a cloud on the friendship of the heart, and often even love itself has to wait in pain and tears for the blessing of fuller fellowship and oneness. When God appears to be completely shrouded, will you hang on with confidence in Him?
The Shadow on His Fatherhood (see Luke 11:11-13). Jesus said that there are times when your Father will appear as if He were an unnatural father?as if He were callous and indifferent— but remember, He is not. “Everyone who asks receives . . .” (Luke 11:10). If all you see is a shadow on the face of the Father right now, hang on to the fact that He will ultimately give you clear understanding and will fully justify Himself in everything that He has allowed into your life.
The Strangeness of His Faithfulness (see Luke 18:1-8). “When the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8). Will He find the kind of faith that counts on Him in spite of the confusion? Stand firm in faith, believing that what Jesus said is true, although in the meantime you do not understand what God is doing. He has bigger issues at stake than the particular things you are asking of Him right now.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Voice Majors - #6959
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Let's talk about a goat. "You wouldn't kid us, would you Ron?" No, I'm serious, and that's terrible. It's not a goat I've ever met. I mean, I lived in the New York area most of my life. Where would I meet a goat? But there's this college student who told me about this goat that he met in Israel on a college-sponsored trip. Now, Bill and his buddies were hiking in this desert-like area that's between Jerusalem and Jericho. It's the area actually where Jesus said that man was attacked by thieves. You know the one who was helped by the Good Samaritan?
Well, these students saw some New Testament looking shepherds. I mean they're dressed in their robes that you might see like in a Christmas play at church. And they were herding their flock of goats across this wadi and up an embankment. Somehow one little goat strayed off and got left behind. Bill and his friends heard this goat bleating mournfully, so Bill went over and picked up the frightened animal, held him in his arms, and he talked to this kid and tried to settle it down. At that point, one of the shepherds appeared on top of the embankment and he was looking for his missing goat of course. And the shepherd just called out. The instant that animal heard that voice, he bolted out of Bill's arms and up the embankment to his shepherd.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Voice Majors."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from John chapter 10. I'm going to begin reading at verse 3, "The watchman opens the gate for the shepherd, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice."
Well, obviously, these verses came to life for me in a new way when that college student told me his story. Frankly, I think I'd rather be a sheep than a goat symbolically,
but the principle is the same. They are so tuned in to their shepherd's voice, they run to follow him. Well now, that's how Jesus says our relationship with Him is supposed to be. One of the most haunting questions of the Christian experience is this, "How can I know what God's will is?" That's a valid concern. God does have a customized plan for your life, and you sure don't want to miss it.
When we're faced with a decision, we often struggle, don't we, with how we can know God's will? Well, the answer is by knowing His voice. My job as a disciple of Jesus isn't to figure out some cosmic jigsaw puzzle called God's Will. My job is to get good at listening to and responding to my Shepherd's voice; to be a God's will person. That means I can't just try to discern God's voice when I get to some macro decision I have to make. I'll never recognize His leading if I haven't been responding to Him every day in a lot of smaller decisions.
Here's how to become a God's will person. You begin your day with your Bible in your lap and you say, "Lord, I want to hear your voice. Speak to me about something for this day." Then you read with a listening heart, looking for a word that is just for you just for this day. So God will say, "I want to have A Word With You today about..." and there it is. And then you write it down in a journal whatever your heart heard your Master say, maybe in the form of a prayer back to Him. And then you talk to your Shepherd, reiterating what you heard Him say and then committing yourself to do it today. See, that's a micro will of God; a 24-hour will of God.
Then when it's time for a major life decision, you'll be the right person at the right place at the right time. But you got there by a thousand daily little obediences; listening to His voice. See, the macro will of God is the sum total of a thousand micro wills that you get on a daily basis. You'll walk into His will naturally. In a sense, you won't have to find God's will. God's will is going to find you.
Like that little goat, you just have to accumulate experience in hearing your Shepherd's voice in your heart, each day, all through the day. And then when He calls, you'll leap His direction, because all of us Shepherd-needing folks are trained by one vital skill. We all need to be voice majors; majoring in recognizing the voice of our Jesus.
You will never go where God is not! Envision the next few hours—where will you be? In a school? God indwells the classroom. On the highway? His presence lingers among the traffic. In the hospital operating room, the executive board-room, the in-laws’ living room? God will be there.
Acts 17:27 says, “He is not far from each of us.” Each of us. God doesn’t play favorites. From the masses on city streets to isolated villagers in valleys and jungles, all people can enjoy God’s presence.
But many don’t! They plod through life as if there is no God to love them. As if the only strength is their own. As if the only solution will come from within, not above. They live God-less lives. The psalmist determined, “When I am afraid, I will trust in You, God.” (Psalm 56:3). Put your hope in God. You will get through this!
From You’ll Get Through This
Titus 1
New International Version (NIV)
1 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness— 2 in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, 3 and which now at his appointed season he has brought to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior,
4 To Titus, my true son in our common faith:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
Appointing Elders Who Love What Is Good
5 The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint[a] elders in every town, as I directed you. 6 An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe[b] and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. 7 Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. 8 Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. 9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
Rebuking Those Who Fail to Do Good
10 For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. 11 They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12 One of Crete’s own prophets has said it: “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.”[c] 13 This saying is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the merely human commands of those who reject the truth. 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16 They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
Footnotes:
Titus 1:5 Or ordain
Titus 1:6 Or children are trustworthy
Titus 1:12 From the Cretan philosopher Epimenides
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Chronicles 16:6-13
Then King Asa brought all the men of Judah, and they carried away from Ramah the stones and timber Baasha had been using. With them he built up Geba and Mizpah.
7 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him: “Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. 8 Were not the Cushites[a] and Libyans a mighty army with great numbers of chariots and horsemen[b]? Yet when you relied on the Lord, he delivered them into your hand. 9 For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”
10 Asa was angry with the seer because of this; he was so enraged that he put him in prison. At the same time Asa brutally oppressed some of the people.
11 The events of Asa’s reign, from beginning to end, are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. 12 In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the Lord, but only from the physicians. 13 Then in the forty-first year of his reign Asa died and rested with his ancestors.
Footnotes:
2 Chronicles 16:8 That is, people from the upper Nile region
2 Chronicles 16:8 Or charioteers
Beneficial Power
September 12, 2013 — by Joe Stowell
The eyes of the Lord run to and fro . . . , to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. —2 Chronicles 16:9
Boxing and strong-man competitions have a unique aspect to them. In the events, the athletes compete individually for the purpose of demonstrating their superior strength. It’s like arm wrestling—you do it to prove that you are the strongest person in the room.
One aspect of God’s glory is His almighty power. But how does He show His strength? He doesn’t do it by rearranging the galaxies before our very eyes, changing the color of the sun at a whim, or freezing a lightning bolt as a trophy to His strength. Instead, in His love and compassion for needy people like ourselves, God has chosen to “show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him” (2 Chron. 16:9).
The pattern is consistent throughout Scripture. From the dividing of the Red Sea, to the marvel of manna in the wilderness, to the miraculous virgin birth, and ultimately to the power of the resurrection, our Almighty God has chosen to demonstrate His strength to bless, preserve, and protect His people.
Be assured that He delights in showing Himself strong in the challenges of our life. And when He proves His power on our behalf, let’s remember to give Him the glory!
Lord, thank You for choosing to expend Your
divine power on the needs of my life. When my
strength is weak, teach me to trust that Your mighty
arm is able to guard, protect, and deliver!
All of God’s promises are backed by His wisdom, love, and power.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
September 12, 2013
Going Through Spiritual Confusion
Jesus answered and said, ’You do not know what you ask’ —Matthew 20:22
There are times in your spiritual life when there is confusion, and the way out of it is not simply to say that you should not be confused. It is not a matter of right and wrong, but a matter of God taking you through a way that you temporarily do not understand. And it is only by going through the spiritual confusion that you will come to the understanding of what God wants for you.
The Shrouding of His Friendship (see Luke 11:5-8). Jesus gave the illustration here of a man who appears not to care for his friend. He was saying, in effect, that is how the heavenly Father will appear to you at times. You will think that He is an unkind friend, but remember?He is not. The time will come when everything will be explained. There seems to be a cloud on the friendship of the heart, and often even love itself has to wait in pain and tears for the blessing of fuller fellowship and oneness. When God appears to be completely shrouded, will you hang on with confidence in Him?
The Shadow on His Fatherhood (see Luke 11:11-13). Jesus said that there are times when your Father will appear as if He were an unnatural father?as if He were callous and indifferent— but remember, He is not. “Everyone who asks receives . . .” (Luke 11:10). If all you see is a shadow on the face of the Father right now, hang on to the fact that He will ultimately give you clear understanding and will fully justify Himself in everything that He has allowed into your life.
The Strangeness of His Faithfulness (see Luke 18:1-8). “When the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8). Will He find the kind of faith that counts on Him in spite of the confusion? Stand firm in faith, believing that what Jesus said is true, although in the meantime you do not understand what God is doing. He has bigger issues at stake than the particular things you are asking of Him right now.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Voice Majors - #6959
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Let's talk about a goat. "You wouldn't kid us, would you Ron?" No, I'm serious, and that's terrible. It's not a goat I've ever met. I mean, I lived in the New York area most of my life. Where would I meet a goat? But there's this college student who told me about this goat that he met in Israel on a college-sponsored trip. Now, Bill and his buddies were hiking in this desert-like area that's between Jerusalem and Jericho. It's the area actually where Jesus said that man was attacked by thieves. You know the one who was helped by the Good Samaritan?
Well, these students saw some New Testament looking shepherds. I mean they're dressed in their robes that you might see like in a Christmas play at church. And they were herding their flock of goats across this wadi and up an embankment. Somehow one little goat strayed off and got left behind. Bill and his friends heard this goat bleating mournfully, so Bill went over and picked up the frightened animal, held him in his arms, and he talked to this kid and tried to settle it down. At that point, one of the shepherds appeared on top of the embankment and he was looking for his missing goat of course. And the shepherd just called out. The instant that animal heard that voice, he bolted out of Bill's arms and up the embankment to his shepherd.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Voice Majors."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from John chapter 10. I'm going to begin reading at verse 3, "The watchman opens the gate for the shepherd, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice."
Well, obviously, these verses came to life for me in a new way when that college student told me his story. Frankly, I think I'd rather be a sheep than a goat symbolically,
but the principle is the same. They are so tuned in to their shepherd's voice, they run to follow him. Well now, that's how Jesus says our relationship with Him is supposed to be. One of the most haunting questions of the Christian experience is this, "How can I know what God's will is?" That's a valid concern. God does have a customized plan for your life, and you sure don't want to miss it.
When we're faced with a decision, we often struggle, don't we, with how we can know God's will? Well, the answer is by knowing His voice. My job as a disciple of Jesus isn't to figure out some cosmic jigsaw puzzle called God's Will. My job is to get good at listening to and responding to my Shepherd's voice; to be a God's will person. That means I can't just try to discern God's voice when I get to some macro decision I have to make. I'll never recognize His leading if I haven't been responding to Him every day in a lot of smaller decisions.
Here's how to become a God's will person. You begin your day with your Bible in your lap and you say, "Lord, I want to hear your voice. Speak to me about something for this day." Then you read with a listening heart, looking for a word that is just for you just for this day. So God will say, "I want to have A Word With You today about..." and there it is. And then you write it down in a journal whatever your heart heard your Master say, maybe in the form of a prayer back to Him. And then you talk to your Shepherd, reiterating what you heard Him say and then committing yourself to do it today. See, that's a micro will of God; a 24-hour will of God.
Then when it's time for a major life decision, you'll be the right person at the right place at the right time. But you got there by a thousand daily little obediences; listening to His voice. See, the macro will of God is the sum total of a thousand micro wills that you get on a daily basis. You'll walk into His will naturally. In a sense, you won't have to find God's will. God's will is going to find you.
Like that little goat, you just have to accumulate experience in hearing your Shepherd's voice in your heart, each day, all through the day. And then when He calls, you'll leap His direction, because all of us Shepherd-needing folks are trained by one vital skill. We all need to be voice majors; majoring in recognizing the voice of our Jesus.
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