Max Lucado Daily: We are Ambassadors
This is the promise of prayer! We can change God’s mind! God’s ultimate will is inflexible, but the implementation of his will is not. He doesn’t change in his character and purpose, but he does alter his strategy because of the appeals of his children. After all, Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:20, “we are ambassadors” for the king. Ambassadors speak with the authority of the throne. If an ambassador sends a request to the king, will the king listen? If you, God’s ambassador in this world, come to your King with a request, will he listen? By all means.
Your sphere of influence is your region. As you grow in faith, your district expands. We plead with God on other people’s behalf. Before amen—comes the power of a simple prayer. “Father, they need help!”
From Before Amen
Numbers 21
Arad Destroyed
When the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming along the road to Atharim, he attacked the Israelites and captured some of them. 2 Then Israel made this vow to the Lord: “If you will deliver these people into our hands, we will totally destroy[b] their cities.” 3 The Lord listened to Israel’s plea and gave the Canaanites over to them. They completely destroyed them and their towns; so the place was named Hormah.[c]
The Bronze Snake
4 They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea,[d] to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 5 they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”
6 Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 7 The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.
8 The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.
The Journey to Moab
10 The Israelites moved on and camped at Oboth. 11 Then they set out from Oboth and camped in Iye Abarim, in the wilderness that faces Moab toward the sunrise. 12 From there they moved on and camped in the Zered Valley. 13 They set out from there and camped alongside the Arnon, which is in the wilderness extending into Amorite territory. The Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites. 14 That is why the Book of the Wars of the Lord says:
“. . . Zahab[e] in Suphah and the ravines,
the Arnon 15 and[f] the slopes of the ravines
that lead to the settlement of Ar
and lie along the border of Moab.”
16 From there they continued on to Beer, the well where the Lord said to Moses, “Gather the people together and I will give them water.”
17 Then Israel sang this song:
“Spring up, O well!
Sing about it,
18 about the well that the princes dug,
that the nobles of the people sank—
the nobles with scepters and staffs.”
Then they went from the wilderness to Mattanah, 19 from Mattanah to Nahaliel, from Nahaliel to Bamoth, 20 and from Bamoth to the valley in Moab where the top of Pisgah overlooks the wasteland.
Defeat of Sihon and Og
21 Israel sent messengers to say to Sihon king of the Amorites:
22 “Let us pass through your country. We will not turn aside into any field or vineyard, or drink water from any well. We will travel along the King’s Highway until we have passed through your territory.”
23 But Sihon would not let Israel pass through his territory. He mustered his entire army and marched out into the wilderness against Israel. When he reached Jahaz, he fought with Israel. 24 Israel, however, put him to the sword and took over his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, but only as far as the Ammonites, because their border was fortified. 25 Israel captured all the cities of the Amorites and occupied them, including Heshbon and all its surrounding settlements. 26 Heshbon was the city of Sihon king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and had taken from him all his land as far as the Arnon.
27 That is why the poets say:
“Come to Heshbon and let it be rebuilt;
let Sihon’s city be restored.
28 “Fire went out from Heshbon,
a blaze from the city of Sihon.
It consumed Ar of Moab,
the citizens of Arnon’s heights.
29 Woe to you, Moab!
You are destroyed, people of Chemosh!
He has given up his sons as fugitives
and his daughters as captives
to Sihon king of the Amorites.
30 “But we have overthrown them;
Heshbon’s dominion has been destroyed all the way to Dibon.
We have demolished them as far as Nophah,
which extends to Medeba.”
31 So Israel settled in the land of the Amorites.
32 After Moses had sent spies to Jazer, the Israelites captured its surrounding settlements and drove out the Amorites who were there. 33 Then they turned and went up along the road toward Bashan, and Og king of Bashan and his whole army marched out to meet them in battle at Edrei.
34 The Lord said to Moses, “Do not be afraid of him, for I have delivered him into your hands, along with his whole army and his land. Do to him what you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon.”
35 So they struck him down, together with his sons and his whole army, leaving them no survivors. And they took possession of his land.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, November 24, 2014
Read: 1 Peter 1:3-9
The Hope of Eternal Life
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. 5 And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.
6 So be truly glad.[a] There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. 7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
8 You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. 9 The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls.
Footnotes:
1:6 Or So you are truly glad.
Insight
The apostle Peter wrote his letters to a church that was enduring persecution for their faith. Though the “various trials” they were experiencing (1 Peter 1:6) may not be the same type of trials we must endure, the source of the strength to endure is the same. We are not alone in our trials, and our endurance in them is not due to our inner strength. It is God Himself who strengthens us to endure. We are kept by the power of God (v.5), so that our faith praises, honors, and glorifies Christ (v.7).
Hope In Suffering
By Julie Ackerman Link
In this [living hope] you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials. —1 Peter 1:6
When I opened my Bible to read Jeremiah 1 through 4, the subhead ascribed to the book startled me: “Hope in Time of Weeping.” I almost cried. The timing was perfect, as I was walking through a season of weeping over the death of my mom.
I felt much the same way after hearing my pastor’s sermon the day before. The title was “Joy in Suffering,” taken from 1 Peter 1:3-9. He gave us an illustration from his own life: the one-year anniversary of his father’s death. The sermon was meaningful for many, but for me it was a gift from God. These and other events were indications backed up by His Word that God would not leave me alone in my grief.
Even though the way of sorrow is hard, God sends reminders of His enduring presence. To the Israelites expelled from the Promised Land due to disobedience, God made His presence known by sending prophets like Jeremiah to offer them hope—hope for reconciliation through repentance. And to those He leads through times of testing, He shows His presence through a community of believers who “love one another fervently with a pure heart” (1 Peter 1:22). These indications of God’s presence during trials on earth affirm God’s promise of the living hope awaiting us at the resurrection.
Does Jesus care when I’ve said goodbye
To the dearest on earth to me,
And my sad heart aches till it nearly breaks,
Is it aught to Him? Does He see? O yes, He cares! —Graeff
We need never be ashamed of our tears. —Dickens
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, November 24, 2014
Direction of Focus
Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters…, so our eyes look to the Lord our God… —Psalm 123:2
This verse is a description of total reliance on God. Just as the eyes of a servant are riveted on his master, our eyes should be directed to and focused on God. This is how knowledge of His countenance is gained and how God reveals Himself to us (see Isaiah 53:1). Our spiritual strength begins to be drained when we stop lifting our eyes to Him. Our stamina is sapped, not so much through external troubles surrounding us but through problems in our thinking. We wrongfully think, “I suppose I’ve been stretching myself a little too much, standing too tall and trying to look like God instead of being an ordinary humble person.” We have to realize that no effort can be too high.
For example, you came to a crisis in your life, took a stand for God, and even had the witness of the Spirit as a confirmation that what you did was right. But now, maybe weeks or years have gone by, and you are slowly coming to the conclusion— “Well, maybe what I did showed too much pride or was superficial. Was I taking a stand a bit too high for me?” Your “rational” friends come and say, “Don’t be silly. We knew when you first talked about this spiritual awakening that it was a passing impulse, that you couldn’t hold up under the strain. And anyway, God doesn’t expect you to endure.” You respond by saying, “Well, I suppose I was expecting too much.” That sounds humble to say, but it means that your reliance on God is gone, and you are now relying on worldly opinion. The danger comes when, no longer relying on God, you neglect to focus your eyes on Him. Only when God brings you to a sudden stop will you realize that you have been the loser. Whenever there is a spiritual drain in your life, correct it immediately. Realize that something has been coming between you and God, and change or remove it at once.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, November 24, 2014
Exclusive Use - #7271
Communicating across the miles these days is amazing and occasionally frustrating. Not too long ago, you would just call someone and if they weren't there you'd try later. And you'd have to do that from a land line. Well today, we've got smart phones, and laptops, and Face-Time, you can text, and leave a voice-mail, video chat.
It's helpful, but let's face it, sometimes it's frustrating. Now look, I admit, I'm Mr. Low Tech, so I'm amazed even by old school FAX machines. We use them every once in a while. You can transmit a letter or document on a phone line. Now I don't have to understand that, I just think it's great!
But there are glitches. Someone gave me a phone number once that I needed, so I dialed it and it rang. This high-pitched squeal suddenly hits my ear. I said, "What is wrong? What happened to the phone, is it out of order?" No, it was the number for this man's FAX line. You've probably had that happen. It's not a telephone line where you just make calls. No, you send FAXs on it. That's what it's for, that's all it's for. So I just got this squeal back. Like a lot of people, there's this one phone line that is totally for receiving FAXs. We have that in our office. It's not designed to have a conversation with guys like me. It won't work for phone calls. It's called a dedicated line; as I discovered with an ear full of squealing. A dedicated line is for only one purpose.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have WORD WITH YOU today about "Exclusive Use."
Our word for today from the Word of God; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, "Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God. You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your body." See, God says He purchased your life with the ultimate price-the life of His one and only Son. You're the property of God now.
When I was a kid, speakers always used to talk about dedicating your life. Well I got a new understanding of that since the advent of dedicated phone lines, FAX lines. It's designed to be used for only one purpose, like putting a reserve sign on a restaurant table. No one else can have this table. It can't be used for any other purpose than that to which it is dedicated.
God's Word is calling us here to dedicate our life to Jesus Christ on the basis of His total sacrifice for us. Revelation 5:9, "With Your blood, Jesus, you purchased men for God." My guess is you may have dedicated yourself to Jesus at least officially at some point in your life, but is that working out in your everyday life today? Who gets the best of your energy, the best of your time, the best of your love, the best of your resources? Well that's what you're really dedicated to. Not what your Christianese talk says.
A lot of people who were paid for by Jesus are actually dedicated to another purpose and to another owner. Like maybe you're dedicated to your business, your friends, your hormones. Maybe you've been taken over by your recreation, by TV, by sports, by your search for a mate. Maybe you're really controlled by the pain of the past or your anger, your bitterness, your ambition, your pride. Whatever it is, it didn't and it wouldn't die for you. Nobody loves you like Jesus. Nobody else can have your allegiance, your best.
You were created for the exclusive use of the One who purchased you with His blood to be used for what He wants to accomplish where you work, and where you go to school, and where you live, and what you do with your money, and what you own, and what you watch, what you listen to. I learned from a squealing phone that things just don't work right when they're not used for what they're supposed to be for.
Maybe there was a time when you dedicated your life to Jesus, but time has passed and now you're really reserved mostly for someone or something else aren't you? It isn't working, I know. The noise in your soul tells you you're supposed to be dedicated to your Lord Jesus Christ. This is your day to decide, or to decide again, who you are dedicated to.
Here's a suggestion: Make it the One who loves you the most; whose sacrifice was for you, who can do the most with your life, who you're going to be with forever. That would be Jesus.
Monday, November 24, 2014
Sunday, November 23, 2014
Numbers 20 , bible reading and devotionals.
Max Lucado Daily: He’s the Real Deal
God’s not a love-‘em-and-leave-‘em kind of God! When I was 7, I ran away from home. I’d had it with my dad and his rules. With my clothes in a paper bag, I headed out. What do I need a father for? Well, I didn’t go far. When it came down to it, hunger won me over!
Did my dad know what I’d done—what I thought? I suspect he did—dads always seem to, don’t they? But you know—my dad called himself my father even when I didn’t call myself his son. His commitment to me was greater than my commitment to him.
You can count on God to be in your corner—no matter what–He cares!
Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Matthew 7:7?
From Max On Life
Numbers 20
Water From the Rock
In the first month the whole Israelite community arrived at the Desert of Zin, and they stayed at Kadesh. There Miriam died and was buried.
2 Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron. 3 They quarreled with Moses and said, “If only we had died when our brothers fell dead before the Lord! 4 Why did you bring the Lord’s community into this wilderness, that we and our livestock should die here? 5 Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water to drink!”
6 Moses and Aaron went from the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting and fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. 7 The Lord said to Moses, 8 “Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.”
9 So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence, just as he commanded him. 10 He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” 11 Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.
12 But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.”
13 These were the waters of Meribah,[a] where the Israelites quarreled with the Lord and where he was proved holy among them.
Edom Denies Israel Passage
14 Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, saying:
“This is what your brother Israel says: You know about all the hardships that have come on us. 15 Our ancestors went down into Egypt, and we lived there many years. The Egyptians mistreated us and our ancestors, 16 but when we cried out to the Lord, he heard our cry and sent an angel and brought us out of Egypt.
“Now we are here at Kadesh, a town on the edge of your territory. 17 Please let us pass through your country. We will not go through any field or vineyard, or drink water from any well. We will travel along the King’s Highway and not turn to the right or to the left until we have passed through your territory.”
18 But Edom answered:
“You may not pass through here; if you try, we will march out and attack you with the sword.”
19 The Israelites replied:
“We will go along the main road, and if we or our livestock drink any of your water, we will pay for it. We only want to pass through on foot—nothing else.”
20 Again they answered:
“You may not pass through.”
Then Edom came out against them with a large and powerful army. 21 Since Edom refused to let them go through their territory, Israel turned away from them.
The Death of Aaron
22 The whole Israelite community set out from Kadesh and came to Mount Hor. 23 At Mount Hor, near the border of Edom, the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 24 “Aaron will be gathered to his people. He will not enter the land I give the Israelites, because both of you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah. 25 Get Aaron and his son Eleazar and take them up Mount Hor. 26 Remove Aaron’s garments and put them on his son Eleazar, for Aaron will be gathered to his people; he will die there.”
27 Moses did as the Lord commanded: They went up Mount Hor in the sight of the whole community. 28 Moses removed Aaron’s garments and put them on his son Eleazar. And Aaron died there on top of the mountain. Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain, 29 and when the whole community learned that Aaron had died, all the Israelites mourned for him thirty days.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, November 23, 2014
Read: Colossians 3:12-17
Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.
16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 17 And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.
Insight
Paul’s letter to the Colossians was one of four letters Paul wrote while being held as a prisoner in Rome. These four letters, commonly called “The Prison Epistles,” consist of Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. The church letters went to three different destinations in two different regions of the ancient world. Philippians was directed to the church at Philippi, a city in Macedonia (ancient northern Greece), while Ephesians and Colossians were written to two cities (Ephesus, Colosse) in Asia Minor (modern Turkey). The personal letter to Philemon was also delivered to Colosse, where Philemon is believed to have lived, being actively involved in the church there. These letters were probably intended to be circular letters that were read and passed along to other churches.
Outlasting Bitterness
By Randy Kilgore
If anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. —Colossians 3:13
During the Second World War, Corrie ten Boom’s family owned a watchmaking business in the Netherlands, and they actively worked to protect Jewish families. Eventually, the entire ten Boom family was sent to a concentration camp, where Corrie’s father died 10 days later. Her sister Betsie also died in the camp. While Betsie and Corrie were in the camp together, Betsie’s faith helped to strengthen Corrie’s.
That faith led Corrie to forgive even the ruthless men who served as guards during her concentration camp days. While hate and the desire for revenge continued to destroy many lives long after the concentration camps were gone, Corrie knew the truth: Hate hurts the hater more than the hated, no matter how justified it may seem.
Like Corrie, we each have the opportunity to love our enemy and choose forgiveness. Forgiveness doesn’t excuse the offense but when we forgive we show Christ to the world. “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” (Eph. 4:32).
God will help you let go of every angry grudge as you watch the Spirit build into you a place where others see the Savior.
The love of God within our hearts
Enables us to show
Forgiveness that is undeserved
So others too might know. —Sper
When we forgive someone, we look more like Jesus than at any other moment in our life.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, November 23, 2014
The Distraction of Contempt
Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us! For we are exceedingly filled with contempt. —Psalm 123:3
What we must beware of is not damage to our belief in God but damage to our Christian disposition or state of mind. “Take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously” (Malachi 2:16). Our state of mind is powerful in its effects. It can be the enemy that penetrates right into our soul and distracts our mind from God. There are certain attitudes we should never dare to indulge. If we do, we will find they have distracted us from faith in God. Until we get back into a quiet mood before Him, our faith is of no value, and our confidence in the flesh and in human ingenuity is what rules our lives.
Beware of “the cares of this world…” (Mark 4:19). They are the very things that produce the wrong attitudes in our soul. It is incredible what enormous power there is in simple things to distract our attention away from God. Refuse to be swamped by “the cares of this world.”
Another thing that distracts us is our passion for vindication. St. Augustine prayed, “O Lord, deliver me from this lust of always vindicating myself.” Such a need for constant vindication destroys our soul’s faith in God. Don’t say, “I must explain myself,” or, “I must get people to understand.” Our Lord never explained anything— He left the misunderstandings or misconceptions of others to correct themselves.
When we discern that other people are not growing spiritually and allow that discernment to turn to criticism, we block our fellowship with God. God never gives us discernment so that we may criticize, but that we may intercede.
God’s not a love-‘em-and-leave-‘em kind of God! When I was 7, I ran away from home. I’d had it with my dad and his rules. With my clothes in a paper bag, I headed out. What do I need a father for? Well, I didn’t go far. When it came down to it, hunger won me over!
Did my dad know what I’d done—what I thought? I suspect he did—dads always seem to, don’t they? But you know—my dad called himself my father even when I didn’t call myself his son. His commitment to me was greater than my commitment to him.
You can count on God to be in your corner—no matter what–He cares!
Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Matthew 7:7?
From Max On Life
Numbers 20
Water From the Rock
In the first month the whole Israelite community arrived at the Desert of Zin, and they stayed at Kadesh. There Miriam died and was buried.
2 Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron. 3 They quarreled with Moses and said, “If only we had died when our brothers fell dead before the Lord! 4 Why did you bring the Lord’s community into this wilderness, that we and our livestock should die here? 5 Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water to drink!”
6 Moses and Aaron went from the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting and fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. 7 The Lord said to Moses, 8 “Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.”
9 So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence, just as he commanded him. 10 He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” 11 Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.
12 But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.”
13 These were the waters of Meribah,[a] where the Israelites quarreled with the Lord and where he was proved holy among them.
Edom Denies Israel Passage
14 Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, saying:
“This is what your brother Israel says: You know about all the hardships that have come on us. 15 Our ancestors went down into Egypt, and we lived there many years. The Egyptians mistreated us and our ancestors, 16 but when we cried out to the Lord, he heard our cry and sent an angel and brought us out of Egypt.
“Now we are here at Kadesh, a town on the edge of your territory. 17 Please let us pass through your country. We will not go through any field or vineyard, or drink water from any well. We will travel along the King’s Highway and not turn to the right or to the left until we have passed through your territory.”
18 But Edom answered:
“You may not pass through here; if you try, we will march out and attack you with the sword.”
19 The Israelites replied:
“We will go along the main road, and if we or our livestock drink any of your water, we will pay for it. We only want to pass through on foot—nothing else.”
20 Again they answered:
“You may not pass through.”
Then Edom came out against them with a large and powerful army. 21 Since Edom refused to let them go through their territory, Israel turned away from them.
The Death of Aaron
22 The whole Israelite community set out from Kadesh and came to Mount Hor. 23 At Mount Hor, near the border of Edom, the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 24 “Aaron will be gathered to his people. He will not enter the land I give the Israelites, because both of you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah. 25 Get Aaron and his son Eleazar and take them up Mount Hor. 26 Remove Aaron’s garments and put them on his son Eleazar, for Aaron will be gathered to his people; he will die there.”
27 Moses did as the Lord commanded: They went up Mount Hor in the sight of the whole community. 28 Moses removed Aaron’s garments and put them on his son Eleazar. And Aaron died there on top of the mountain. Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain, 29 and when the whole community learned that Aaron had died, all the Israelites mourned for him thirty days.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, November 23, 2014
Read: Colossians 3:12-17
Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.
16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 17 And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.
Insight
Paul’s letter to the Colossians was one of four letters Paul wrote while being held as a prisoner in Rome. These four letters, commonly called “The Prison Epistles,” consist of Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. The church letters went to three different destinations in two different regions of the ancient world. Philippians was directed to the church at Philippi, a city in Macedonia (ancient northern Greece), while Ephesians and Colossians were written to two cities (Ephesus, Colosse) in Asia Minor (modern Turkey). The personal letter to Philemon was also delivered to Colosse, where Philemon is believed to have lived, being actively involved in the church there. These letters were probably intended to be circular letters that were read and passed along to other churches.
Outlasting Bitterness
By Randy Kilgore
If anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. —Colossians 3:13
During the Second World War, Corrie ten Boom’s family owned a watchmaking business in the Netherlands, and they actively worked to protect Jewish families. Eventually, the entire ten Boom family was sent to a concentration camp, where Corrie’s father died 10 days later. Her sister Betsie also died in the camp. While Betsie and Corrie were in the camp together, Betsie’s faith helped to strengthen Corrie’s.
That faith led Corrie to forgive even the ruthless men who served as guards during her concentration camp days. While hate and the desire for revenge continued to destroy many lives long after the concentration camps were gone, Corrie knew the truth: Hate hurts the hater more than the hated, no matter how justified it may seem.
Like Corrie, we each have the opportunity to love our enemy and choose forgiveness. Forgiveness doesn’t excuse the offense but when we forgive we show Christ to the world. “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” (Eph. 4:32).
God will help you let go of every angry grudge as you watch the Spirit build into you a place where others see the Savior.
The love of God within our hearts
Enables us to show
Forgiveness that is undeserved
So others too might know. —Sper
When we forgive someone, we look more like Jesus than at any other moment in our life.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, November 23, 2014
The Distraction of Contempt
Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us! For we are exceedingly filled with contempt. —Psalm 123:3
What we must beware of is not damage to our belief in God but damage to our Christian disposition or state of mind. “Take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously” (Malachi 2:16). Our state of mind is powerful in its effects. It can be the enemy that penetrates right into our soul and distracts our mind from God. There are certain attitudes we should never dare to indulge. If we do, we will find they have distracted us from faith in God. Until we get back into a quiet mood before Him, our faith is of no value, and our confidence in the flesh and in human ingenuity is what rules our lives.
Beware of “the cares of this world…” (Mark 4:19). They are the very things that produce the wrong attitudes in our soul. It is incredible what enormous power there is in simple things to distract our attention away from God. Refuse to be swamped by “the cares of this world.”
Another thing that distracts us is our passion for vindication. St. Augustine prayed, “O Lord, deliver me from this lust of always vindicating myself.” Such a need for constant vindication destroys our soul’s faith in God. Don’t say, “I must explain myself,” or, “I must get people to understand.” Our Lord never explained anything— He left the misunderstandings or misconceptions of others to correct themselves.
When we discern that other people are not growing spiritually and allow that discernment to turn to criticism, we block our fellowship with God. God never gives us discernment so that we may criticize, but that we may intercede.
Saturday, November 22, 2014
Mark 15:1-25 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: God is For You
Paul asks the question in Romans 8:31, "If God is for us, who can be against us?"
The question isn't simply, "Who can be against you?" You could answer that one. Who is against you? Disease, inflation, corruption, exhaustion. Calamities confront, and fears imprison. Were Paul's question, "Who can be against us?" we could list our foes much easier than we could fight them.
But God is for us. God is for us. God is for us! Your parents may have forgotten you, your teachers may have neglected you, your siblings may be ashamed of you; but within reach of your prayers is the maker of the oceans. God!
God is for you. Not "may be," not "has been," or "was," but God is! He is for you. Today. At this hour. At this minute. As you hear this, He is with you. God is for you!
From The Lucado Inspirational Reader
Mark 15:1-25
Jesus Before Pilate
Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So they bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.
2 “Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate.
“You have said so,” Jesus replied.
3 The chief priests accused him of many things. 4 So again Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.”
5 But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.
6 Now it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested. 7 A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising. 8 The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.
9 “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate, 10 knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.
12 “What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked them.
13 “Crucify him!” they shouted.
14 “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”
15 Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.
The Soldiers Mock Jesus
16 The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called together the whole company of soldiers. 17 They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. 18 And they began to call out to him, “Hail, king of the Jews!” 19 Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him. Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him. 20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.
The Crucifixion of Jesus
21 A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. 22 They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 23 Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. 24 And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.
25 It was nine in the morning when they crucified him.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, November 22, 2014
Read: Psalm 6
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by an eight-stringed instrument.[a]
O Lord, don’t rebuke me in your anger
or discipline me in your rage.
2 Have compassion on me, Lord, for I am weak.
Heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.
3 I am sick at heart.
How long, O Lord, until you restore me?
4 Return, O Lord, and rescue me.
Save me because of your unfailing love.
5 For the dead do not remember you.
Who can praise you from the grave?[b]
6 I am worn out from sobbing.
All night I flood my bed with weeping,
drenching it with my tears.
7 My vision is blurred by grief;
my eyes are worn out because of all my enemies.
8 Go away, all you who do evil,
for the Lord has heard my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my plea;
the Lord will answer my prayer.
10 May all my enemies be disgraced and terrified.
May they suddenly turn back in shame.
Footnotes:
6:Title Hebrew with stringed instruments; according to the sheminith.
6:5 Hebrew from Sheol?
Insight
This individual lament, a prayer of penitence, was written by David during a time of prolonged and severe distress (Ps. 6:2-3,5). His plight emboldened his enemies to launch a personal attack and to gloat over his misfortune (vv.7-8,10). David acknowledged that his trouble was a consequence of specific wrongdoings committed, and that God was angry and was disciplining him (v.1). Anguished by his lack of intimacy with God and exhausted by his sorrowing over his sins, in repentance David, on the basis of God’s mercies (vv.2,4), asked for forgiveness, favor, and restoration. David concluded his prayer with the assurance that those who truly repent will receive God’s mercy (vv.9-10).
The Warmth Of The Sun
By Bill Crowder
I am weary with my groaning; all night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears. —Psalm 6:6
On a November day in 1963, the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson and Mike Love wrote a song quite unlike the band’s typically upbeat tunes. It was a mournful song about love that’s been lost. Mike said later, “As hard as that kind of loss is, the one good that comes from it is having had the experience of being in love in the first place.” They titled it “The Warmth of the Sun.”
Sorrow serving as a catalyst for songwriting is nothing new. Some of David’s most moving psalms were penned in times of deep personal loss, including Psalm 6. Though we aren’t told the events that prompted its writing, the lyrics are filled with grief, “I am weary with my groaning; all night I make my bed swim, I drench my couch with my tears. My eye wastes away because of grief” (vv.6-7).
But that’s not where the song ends. David knew pain and loss, but he also knew God’s comfort. And so he wrote, “The Lord has heard my supplication; the Lord will receive my prayer” (v.9).
In his grief, David not only found a song, he also found reason to trust God, whose faithfulness bridges all of life’s hard seasons. In the warmth of His presence, our sorrows gain a hopeful perspective.
Heavenly Father, life can be so wonderful, but also
so hard. Help us to seek You in the good times as
well as the bad. Help us to always be mindful that
You are our sure hope in a world that doesn’t always seem to care.
A song of sadness can turn our hearts to the God whose joy for us is forever.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, November 22, 2014
Shallow and Profound
Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. —1 Corinthians 10:31
Beware of allowing yourself to think that the shallow aspects of life are not ordained by God; they are ordained by Him equally as much as the profound. We sometimes refuse to be shallow, not out of our deep devotion to God but because we wish to impress other people with the fact that we are not shallow. This is a sure sign of spiritual pride. We must be careful, for this is how contempt for others is produced in our lives. And it causes us to be a walking rebuke to other people because they are more shallow than we are. Beware of posing as a profound person— God became a baby.
To be shallow is not a sign of being sinful, nor is shallowness an indication that there is no depth to your life at all— the ocean has a shore. Even the shallow things of life, such as eating and drinking, walking and talking, are ordained by God. These are all things our Lord did. He did them as the Son of God, and He said, “A disciple is not above his teacher…” (Matthew 10:24).
We are safeguarded by the shallow things of life. We have to live the surface, commonsense life in a commonsense way. Then when God gives us the deeper things, they are obviously separated from the shallow concerns. Never show the depth of your life to anyone but God. We are so nauseatingly serious, so desperately interested in our own character and reputation, we refuse to behave like Christians in the shallow concerns of life.
Make a determination to take no one seriously except God. You may find that the first person you must be the most critical with, as being the greatest fraud you have ever known, is yourself.
Paul asks the question in Romans 8:31, "If God is for us, who can be against us?"
The question isn't simply, "Who can be against you?" You could answer that one. Who is against you? Disease, inflation, corruption, exhaustion. Calamities confront, and fears imprison. Were Paul's question, "Who can be against us?" we could list our foes much easier than we could fight them.
But God is for us. God is for us. God is for us! Your parents may have forgotten you, your teachers may have neglected you, your siblings may be ashamed of you; but within reach of your prayers is the maker of the oceans. God!
God is for you. Not "may be," not "has been," or "was," but God is! He is for you. Today. At this hour. At this minute. As you hear this, He is with you. God is for you!
From The Lucado Inspirational Reader
Mark 15:1-25
Jesus Before Pilate
Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So they bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.
2 “Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate.
“You have said so,” Jesus replied.
3 The chief priests accused him of many things. 4 So again Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.”
5 But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.
6 Now it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested. 7 A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising. 8 The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.
9 “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate, 10 knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.
12 “What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked them.
13 “Crucify him!” they shouted.
14 “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”
15 Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.
The Soldiers Mock Jesus
16 The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called together the whole company of soldiers. 17 They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. 18 And they began to call out to him, “Hail, king of the Jews!” 19 Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him. Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him. 20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.
The Crucifixion of Jesus
21 A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. 22 They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 23 Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. 24 And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.
25 It was nine in the morning when they crucified him.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, November 22, 2014
Read: Psalm 6
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by an eight-stringed instrument.[a]
O Lord, don’t rebuke me in your anger
or discipline me in your rage.
2 Have compassion on me, Lord, for I am weak.
Heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.
3 I am sick at heart.
How long, O Lord, until you restore me?
4 Return, O Lord, and rescue me.
Save me because of your unfailing love.
5 For the dead do not remember you.
Who can praise you from the grave?[b]
6 I am worn out from sobbing.
All night I flood my bed with weeping,
drenching it with my tears.
7 My vision is blurred by grief;
my eyes are worn out because of all my enemies.
8 Go away, all you who do evil,
for the Lord has heard my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my plea;
the Lord will answer my prayer.
10 May all my enemies be disgraced and terrified.
May they suddenly turn back in shame.
Footnotes:
6:Title Hebrew with stringed instruments; according to the sheminith.
6:5 Hebrew from Sheol?
Insight
This individual lament, a prayer of penitence, was written by David during a time of prolonged and severe distress (Ps. 6:2-3,5). His plight emboldened his enemies to launch a personal attack and to gloat over his misfortune (vv.7-8,10). David acknowledged that his trouble was a consequence of specific wrongdoings committed, and that God was angry and was disciplining him (v.1). Anguished by his lack of intimacy with God and exhausted by his sorrowing over his sins, in repentance David, on the basis of God’s mercies (vv.2,4), asked for forgiveness, favor, and restoration. David concluded his prayer with the assurance that those who truly repent will receive God’s mercy (vv.9-10).
The Warmth Of The Sun
By Bill Crowder
I am weary with my groaning; all night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears. —Psalm 6:6
On a November day in 1963, the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson and Mike Love wrote a song quite unlike the band’s typically upbeat tunes. It was a mournful song about love that’s been lost. Mike said later, “As hard as that kind of loss is, the one good that comes from it is having had the experience of being in love in the first place.” They titled it “The Warmth of the Sun.”
Sorrow serving as a catalyst for songwriting is nothing new. Some of David’s most moving psalms were penned in times of deep personal loss, including Psalm 6. Though we aren’t told the events that prompted its writing, the lyrics are filled with grief, “I am weary with my groaning; all night I make my bed swim, I drench my couch with my tears. My eye wastes away because of grief” (vv.6-7).
But that’s not where the song ends. David knew pain and loss, but he also knew God’s comfort. And so he wrote, “The Lord has heard my supplication; the Lord will receive my prayer” (v.9).
In his grief, David not only found a song, he also found reason to trust God, whose faithfulness bridges all of life’s hard seasons. In the warmth of His presence, our sorrows gain a hopeful perspective.
Heavenly Father, life can be so wonderful, but also
so hard. Help us to seek You in the good times as
well as the bad. Help us to always be mindful that
You are our sure hope in a world that doesn’t always seem to care.
A song of sadness can turn our hearts to the God whose joy for us is forever.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, November 22, 2014
Shallow and Profound
Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. —1 Corinthians 10:31
Beware of allowing yourself to think that the shallow aspects of life are not ordained by God; they are ordained by Him equally as much as the profound. We sometimes refuse to be shallow, not out of our deep devotion to God but because we wish to impress other people with the fact that we are not shallow. This is a sure sign of spiritual pride. We must be careful, for this is how contempt for others is produced in our lives. And it causes us to be a walking rebuke to other people because they are more shallow than we are. Beware of posing as a profound person— God became a baby.
To be shallow is not a sign of being sinful, nor is shallowness an indication that there is no depth to your life at all— the ocean has a shore. Even the shallow things of life, such as eating and drinking, walking and talking, are ordained by God. These are all things our Lord did. He did them as the Son of God, and He said, “A disciple is not above his teacher…” (Matthew 10:24).
We are safeguarded by the shallow things of life. We have to live the surface, commonsense life in a commonsense way. Then when God gives us the deeper things, they are obviously separated from the shallow concerns. Never show the depth of your life to anyone but God. We are so nauseatingly serious, so desperately interested in our own character and reputation, we refuse to behave like Christians in the shallow concerns of life.
Make a determination to take no one seriously except God. You may find that the first person you must be the most critical with, as being the greatest fraud you have ever known, is yourself.
Friday, November 21, 2014
Numbers 19, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: We are Ambassadors
This is the promise of prayer! We can change God's mind! God's ultimate will is inflexible, but the implementation of his will is not. He doesn't change in his character and purpose, but he does alter his strategy because of the appeals of his children. After all, Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:20, "we are ambassadors" for the king. Ambassadors speak with the authority of the throne. If an ambassador sends a request to the king, will the king listen? If you, God's ambassador in this world, come to your King with a request, will he listen? By all means.
Your sphere of influence is your region. As you grow in faith, your district expands. We plead with God on other people's behalf. Before amen-comes the power of a simple prayer. "Father, they need help!"
From Before Amen
Numbers 19
The Water of Cleansing
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron: 2 “This is a requirement of the law that the Lord has commanded: Tell the Israelites to bring you a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke. 3 Give it to Eleazar the priest; it is to be taken outside the camp and slaughtered in his presence. 4 Then Eleazar the priest is to take some of its blood on his finger and sprinkle it seven times toward the front of the tent of meeting. 5 While he watches, the heifer is to be burned—its hide, flesh, blood and intestines. 6 The priest is to take some cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet wool and throw them onto the burning heifer. 7 After that, the priest must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water. He may then come into the camp, but he will be ceremonially unclean till evening. 8 The man who burns it must also wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he too will be unclean till evening.
9 “A man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and put them in a ceremonially clean place outside the camp. They are to be kept by the Israelite community for use in the water of cleansing; it is for purification from sin. 10 The man who gathers up the ashes of the heifer must also wash his clothes, and he too will be unclean till evening. This will be a lasting ordinance both for the Israelites and for the foreigners residing among them.
11 “Whoever touches a human corpse will be unclean for seven days. 12 They must purify themselves with the water on the third day and on the seventh day; then they will be clean. But if they do not purify themselves on the third and seventh days, they will not be clean. 13 If they fail to purify themselves after touching a human corpse, they defile the Lord’s tabernacle. They must be cut off from Israel. Because the water of cleansing has not been sprinkled on them, they are unclean; their uncleanness remains on them.
14 “This is the law that applies when a person dies in a tent: Anyone who enters the tent and anyone who is in it will be unclean for seven days, 15 and every open container without a lid fastened on it will be unclean.
16 “Anyone out in the open who touches someone who has been killed with a sword or someone who has died a natural death, or anyone who touches a human bone or a grave, will be unclean for seven days.
17 “For the unclean person, put some ashes from the burned purification offering into a jar and pour fresh water over them. 18 Then a man who is ceremonially clean is to take some hyssop, dip it in the water and sprinkle the tent and all the furnishings and the people who were there. He must also sprinkle anyone who has touched a human bone or a grave or anyone who has been killed or anyone who has died a natural death. 19 The man who is clean is to sprinkle those who are unclean on the third and seventh days, and on the seventh day he is to purify them. Those who are being cleansed must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and that evening they will be clean. 20 But if those who are unclean do not purify themselves, they must be cut off from the community, because they have defiled the sanctuary of the Lord. The water of cleansing has not been sprinkled on them, and they are unclean. 21 This is a lasting ordinance for them.
“The man who sprinkles the water of cleansing must also wash his clothes, and anyone who touches the water of cleansing will be unclean till evening. 22 Anything that an unclean person touches becomes unclean, and anyone who touches it becomes unclean till evening.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, November 21, 2014
Read: Matthew 13:14-22
This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says,
‘When you hear what I say,
you will not understand.
When you see what I do,
you will not comprehend.
15 For the hearts of these people are hardened,
and their ears cannot hear,
and they have closed their eyes—
so their eyes cannot see,
and their ears cannot hear,
and their hearts cannot understand,
and they cannot turn to me
and let me heal them.’[a]
16 “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. 17 I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.
18 “Now listen to the explanation of the parable about the farmer planting seeds: 19 The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message about the Kingdom and don’t understand it. Then the evil one comes and snatches away the seed that was planted in their hearts. 20 The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. 21 But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word. 22 The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced.
Footnotes:
13:14-15 Isa 6:9-10 (Greek version).
Dealing With Distractions
By David C. McCasland
The cares of this world . . . choke the word. —Matthew 13:22
A restaurant owner in the village of Abu Ghosh, just outside Jerusalem, offered a 50-percent discount for patrons who turned off their cell phones. Jawdat Ibrahim believes that smartphones have shifted the focus of meals from companionship and conversation to surfing, texting, and business calls. “Technology is very good,” Ibrahim says. “But . . . when you are with your family and your friends, you can just wait for half an hour and enjoy the food and enjoy the company.”
How easily we can be distracted by many things, whether in our relationship with others or with the Lord.
Jesus told His followers that spiritual distraction begins with hearts that have grown dull, ears that are hard of hearing, and eyes that are closed (Matt. 13:15). Using the illustration of a farmer scattering seed, Jesus compared the seed that fell among thorns to a person who hears God’s Word but whose heart is focused on other things. “The cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful” (v.22).
There is great value in having times throughout each day when we turn off the distractions of mind and heart and focus on the Lord.
O Lord, help me to turn off all the
distractions around me and focus on You.
May my heart be good soil for the
seed of Your Word today.
Focusing on Christ puts everything else in perspective.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, November 21, 2014
“It is Finished!”
I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. —John 17:4
The death of Jesus Christ is the fulfillment in history of the very mind and intent of God. There is no place for seeing Jesus Christ as a martyr. His death was not something that happened to Him— something that might have been prevented. His death was the very reason He came.
Never build your case for forgiveness on the idea that God is our Father and He will forgive us because He loves us. That contradicts the revealed truth of God in Jesus Christ. It makes the Cross unnecessary, and the redemption “much ado about nothing.” God forgives sin only because of the death of Christ. God could forgive people in no other way than by the death of His Son, and Jesus is exalted as Savior because of His death. “We see Jesus…for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor…” (Hebrews 2:9). The greatest note of triumph ever sounded in the ears of a startled universe was that sounded on the Cross of Christ— “It is finished!” (John 19:30). That is the final word in the redemption of humankind.
Anything that lessens or completely obliterates the holiness of God, through a false view of His love, contradicts the truth of God as revealed by Jesus Christ. Never allow yourself to believe that Jesus Christ stands with us, and against God, out of pity and compassion, or that He became a curse for us out of sympathy for us. Jesus Christ became a curse for us by divine decree. Our part in realizing the tremendous meaning of His curse is the conviction of sin. Conviction is given to us as a gift of shame and repentance; it is the great mercy of God. Jesus Christ hates the sin in people, and Calvary is the measure of His hatred.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, November 21, 2014
Hard To Turn - #7270
My son had dreamed about an old Mustang for years and he saw one advertised for a great price so, he sold some of his baseball card collection, became the proud owner of a 1968 Mustang.
Now, he invited me to take a drive in it, so I got in and turned the key. It roared to life. Several birds nearby were upset by it, and I started up the driveway. It was okay at the top of the driveway, and then I found out what I didn't like about that very cool car-turning it. Okay let's face it, I'm spoiled! I've got power steering, I've had it for years! Now, you don't want to try to turn that Mustang. It's like a total body operation. You sort of wrap yourself around the steering wheel several times. It's kind of corkscrew turning. Now, I never asked to drive the Mustang much after that. Honestly, it was just too hard to turn.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Hard To Turn."
Our word for today from the Word of God - very sobering - comes from Isaiah 30:1-2. Some of us might be in this verse, listen carefully, "'Woe to the obstinate children,' declares the Lord, 'to those who carry out plans that are not mine, forming an alliance, but not by my Spirit, heaping sin upon sin; who go down to Egypt without consulting me; who look for help to Pharaoh's protection, to Egypt's shade for refuge.'" Well you can tell what God's talking about here; stubborn children. Too often I think, I've been one of those. How about you?
James Dobson, years ago, wrote a book about strong-willed children. Well, God could write a book about me like that. See, when I read verses like this I keep thinking about that Mustang and how God might be saying, "Ron, you are so hard to turn!" See, the people who are hard to turn are the ones who are most likely to miss God's best. We make up our mind what needs to be done, how it needs to be done, when it has to happen, and we start driving full speed in that direction.
But God says, "No, I want you to go this way" or "Wait! Not yet." Now it could be that you consulted the Lord at the beginning, and you got His direction, and you started going His way. And He's still directing you but all of the sudden you've gone off on your own. Or he made a turn and you did not make it with Him. So you're no longer on the road He was on. He's been trying to lead you every day but you decided you could make it happen. I think those are the people who are the most prone to missing God's best, those of us who are "make it happen" people instead of "let God do it" people. And you could be in a very dangerous position right now.
You know in Galatians 3:3 I find that Paul asks what I consider to be one of the most probing questions in the New Testament. He says, "After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?" Yeah you started out on the right road when you were just new at it, when it was a new thing you were desperately dependant, you were following Jesus very carefully but all the sudden now, you've taken charge and He can't turn you. Control freaks, many of us. And He might be, today, coming to you, trying to warn you to let go of that wheel or to take a turn that He's directing you to take. If you don't, you start using people, forcing it to happen. Or you blaze another trail, another schedule. You go after some desire of your own. Your plans are not of Him, you're not consulting Him and He says "Woe to those people." You are heaping sin upon sin, making one mistake after another.
Jesus said, "Follow me." I've followed people in a city that I didn't know where I was going and you know what I found out it takes to follow someone? It takes focus and flexibility. To totally focus on them and make sure you keep watching what they're doing because if they make a turn and you miss it, you're on the wrong road. And that means you've got to be flexible. Focus and flexibility; without that, you can't follow Jesus.
I want you to picture, you're driving down the road and you see a hitchhiker by the side of the road and you pull over, even though you don't usually do that, and you open the door and there's Jesus standing there by the passenger side. You say, "Jesus, would you please get in and ride with me." He'll say, "No, I won't." You say, "why not, Jesus?" He'll say, "Because I don't ride, I drive."
Who's driving right now? Make sure it's Jesus.
Thursday, November 20, 2014
Numbers 18, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Intercessory Prayer
What can you do? When the challenge is greater than you are. When you feel helpless and impotent. Where can you turn? In Luke 11:10 Jesus says, "Everyone who seeks me, finds me. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened." Intercessory prayer at its purest is your acknowledgement:
"I can't heal them, but, God, you can."
"I can't forgive them, but, God, you can."
"I can't help them, but, God, you can."
Before you say amen. . .this simple prayer gets God's attention: "Father you are good. They need help. I can't, but you can!" He never sleeps. He is never irritated. When you knock, he responds quickly and fairly!
Here's my challenge for you today! Sign on at BeforeAmen.com. Take the brief Prayer Strengths Assessment you'll find there. It only takes a minute. But it will encourage you and give you a building block for your growth in prayer.
From Before Amen
Numbers 18
Duties of Priests and Levites
Then the Lord said to Aaron: “You, your sons, and your relatives from the tribe of Levi will be held responsible for any offenses related to the sanctuary. But you and your sons alone will be held responsible for violations connected with the priesthood.
2 “Bring your relatives of the tribe of Levi—your ancestral tribe—to assist you and your sons as you perform the sacred duties in front of the Tabernacle of the Covenant.[e] 3 But as the Levites go about all their assigned duties at the Tabernacle, they must be careful not to go near any of the sacred objects or the altar. If they do, both you and they will die. 4 The Levites must join you in fulfilling their responsibilities for the care and maintenance of the Tabernacle,[f] but no unauthorized person may assist you.
5 “You yourselves must perform the sacred duties inside the sanctuary and at the altar. If you follow these instructions, the Lord’s anger will never again blaze against the people of Israel. 6 I myself have chosen your fellow Levites from among the Israelites to be your special assistants. They are a gift to you, dedicated to the Lord for service in the Tabernacle. 7 But you and your sons, the priests, must personally handle all the priestly rituals associated with the altar and with everything behind the inner curtain. I am giving you the priesthood as your special privilege of service. Any unauthorized person who comes too near the sanctuary will be put to death.”
Support for the Priests and Levites
8 The Lord gave these further instructions to Aaron: “I myself have put you in charge of all the holy offerings that are brought to me by the people of Israel. I have given all these consecrated offerings to you and your sons as your permanent share. 9 You are allotted the portion of the most holy offerings that is not burned on the fire. This portion of all the most holy offerings—including the grain offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings—will be most holy, and it belongs to you and your sons. 10 You must eat it as a most holy offering. All the males may eat of it, and you must treat it as most holy.
11 “All the sacred offerings and special offerings presented to me when the Israelites lift them up before the altar also belong to you. I have given them to you and to your sons and daughters as your permanent share. Any member of your family who is ceremonially clean may eat of these offerings.
12 “I also give you the harvest gifts brought by the people as offerings to the Lord—the best of the olive oil, new wine, and grain. 13 All the first crops of their land that the people present to the Lord belong to you. Any member of your family who is ceremonially clean may eat this food.
14 “Everything in Israel that is specially set apart for the Lord[g] also belongs to you.
15 “The firstborn of every mother, whether human or animal, that is offered to the Lord will be yours. But you must always redeem your firstborn sons and the firstborn of ceremonially unclean animals. 16 Redeem them when they are one month old. The redemption price is five pieces of silver[h] (as measured by the weight of the sanctuary shekel, which equals twenty gerahs).
17 “However, you may not redeem the firstborn of cattle, sheep, or goats. They are holy and have been set apart for the Lord. Sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as a special gift, a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 18 The meat of these animals will be yours, just like the breast and right thigh that are presented by lifting them up as a special offering before the altar. 19 Yes, I am giving you all these holy offerings that the people of Israel bring to the Lord. They are for you and your sons and daughters, to be eaten as your permanent share. This is an eternal and unbreakable covenant[i] between the Lord and you, and it also applies to your descendants.”
20 And the Lord said to Aaron, “You priests will receive no allotment of land or share of property among the people of Israel. I am your share and your allotment. 21 As for the tribe of Levi, your relatives, I will compensate them for their service in the Tabernacle. Instead of an allotment of land, I will give them the tithes from the entire land of Israel.
22 “From now on, no Israelites except priests or Levites may approach the Tabernacle. If they come too near, they will be judged guilty and will die. 23 Only the Levites may serve at the Tabernacle, and they will be held responsible for any offenses against it. This is a permanent law for you, to be observed from generation to generation. The Levites will receive no allotment of land among the Israelites, 24 because I have given them the Israelites’ tithes, which have been presented as sacred offerings to the Lord. This will be the Levites’ share. That is why I said they would receive no allotment of land among the Israelites.”
25 The Lord also told Moses, 26 “Give these instructions to the Levites: When you receive from the people of Israel the tithes I have assigned as your allotment, give a tenth of the tithes you receive—a tithe of the tithe—to the Lord as a sacred offering. 27 The Lord will consider this offering to be your harvest offering, as though it were the first grain from your own threshing floor or wine from your own winepress. 28 You must present one-tenth of the tithe received from the Israelites as a sacred offering to the Lord. This is the Lord’s sacred portion, and you must present it to Aaron the priest. 29 Be sure to give to the Lord the best portions of the gifts given to you.
30 “Also, give these instructions to the Levites: When you present the best part as your offering, it will be considered as though it came from your own threshing floor or winepress. 31 You Levites and your families may eat this food anywhere you wish, for it is your compensation for serving in the Tabernacle. 32 You will not be considered guilty for accepting the Lord’s tithes if you give the best portion to the priests. But be careful not to treat the holy gifts of the people of Israel as though they were common. If you do, you will die.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, November 20, 2014
Read: James 2:14-20
Faith without Good Deeds Is Dead
What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? 15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, 16 and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
17 So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.
18 Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
19 You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God.[a] Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. 20 How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?
Footnotes:
2:19 Some manuscripts read that God is one; see Deut 6:4.
Insight
There is disagreement among scholars as to the identity of the James who authored this letter. Some see him as the son of Alphaeus (Matt. 10:3; Mark 3:18). Long-held church tradition, however, identifies this James as the half-brother of Jesus (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3). In Galatians 1:19, Paul mentions seeing James, “the Lord’s brother,” in Jerusalem—and this has fueled the position that the James of the Jerusalem church and the James who wrote this letter was in fact “the Lord’s brother.” James became a person of great prominence in the early church, having received a personal audience with the risen Christ (1 Cor. 15:7) and having become one of the primary leaders of the church at Jerusalem (Acts 15:13-20).
Can You Help?
By Dave Branon
Bible in a Year:
Ezekiel 14-15; James 2
Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. —James 2:17
The administrators of the high school in Barrow, Alaska, were tired of seeing students get into trouble and drop out at a rate of 50 percent. To keep students interested, they started a football team, which offered them a chance to develop personal skills, teamwork, and learn life lessons. The problem with football in Barrow, which is farther north than Iceland, is that it’s hard to plant a grass field. So they competed on a gravel and dirt field.
Four thousand miles away in Florida, a woman named Cathy Parker heard about the football team and their dangerous field. Feeling that God was prompting her to help, and impressed by the positive changes she saw in the students, she went to work. About a year later, they dedicated their new field, complete with a beautiful artificial-turf playing surface. She had raised thousands of dollars to help some kids she didn’t even know.
This is not about football—or money. It is about remembering “to do good and to share” (Heb. 13:16). The apostle James reminds us that we demonstrate our faith by our actions (2:18). The needs in our world are varied and overwhelming but when we love our neighbor as ourselves, as Jesus said (Mark 12:31), we reach people with God’s love.
Open our eyes, dear Father, to those in need. Allow
us to find ways—monetarily and otherwise—to
help meet those needs. Help us to take the focus off
ourselves and place it on those who can use our assistance.
Open your heart to God to learn compassion and open your hand to give help.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, November 20, 2014
The Forgiveness of God
In Him we have…the forgiveness of sins… —Ephesians 1:7
Beware of the pleasant view of the fatherhood of God: God is so kind and loving that of course He will forgive us. That thought, based solely on emotion, cannot be found anywhere in the New Testament. The only basis on which God can forgive us is the tremendous tragedy of the Cross of Christ. To base our forgiveness on any other ground is unconscious blasphemy. The only ground on which God can forgive our sin and reinstate us to His favor is through the Cross of Christ. There is no other way! Forgiveness, which is so easy for us to accept, cost the agony at Calvary. We should never take the forgiveness of sin, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and our sanctification in simple faith, and then forget the enormous cost to God that made all of this ours.
Forgiveness is the divine miracle of grace. The cost to God was the Cross of Christ. To forgive sin, while remaining a holy God, this price had to be paid. Never accept a view of the fatherhood of God if it blots out the atonement. The revealed truth of God is that without the atonement He cannot forgive— He would contradict His nature if He did. The only way we can be forgiven is by being brought back to God through the atonement of the Cross. God’s forgiveness is possible only in the supernatural realm.
Compared with the miracle of the forgiveness of sin, the experience of sanctification is small. Sanctification is simply the wonderful expression or evidence of the forgiveness of sins in a human life. But the thing that awakens the deepest fountain of gratitude in a human being is that God has forgiven his sin. Paul never got away from this. Once you realize all that it cost God to forgive you, you will be held as in a vise, constrained by the love of God.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, November 20, 2014
Always A Way Out - #7269
You can feel it coming maybe five minutes before the TV program ends. They don't have enough time to get the hero out of this predicament, and you know those dreaded three words are about to appear on your screen; To Be Continued. You have a whole week to worry about how they're possibly going to rescue Dudley Do-right, or whatever his name is. If it's the end of the season you might have to wait until the whole beginning of the next season to see what happens. Of course, you can be sure, usually, that he will get out of it because, well, usually the hero always does.
When I was a kid I was a sucker for serials-not the kind you eat, the kind you see on a screen. It's the kind that's an adventure continued each week. Every episode left the hero in the clutches of disaster and what got you back was finding out how he got out of it. Of course, not all cliffhangers are on the screen. In fact, you have several every week don't you? And the tension is the same as in those continued stories. How are you going to get out of this predicament?
Well I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Always A Way Out."
Which brings us to our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Peter 1 and I'm reading verse 4, "God has given us His very great and precious promises so that through them you might participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires." Now it's talking about escape-well we were talking about how the hero gets out of his predicament. In this case you're the hero; what's the predicament?
Well, it talks about corruption in the world and escaping the trap of the corruption in the world. In that case you and I have several close calls a week. I mean, we live in a morally rotting world. That's what that word corruption means. Sin is normal, it's expected, it's common, it's even celebrated. It is so tempting to lie when lying is the way people around here are getting things done. It is so tempting to compromise. You know, you still look better than most of the people around you, more righteous. It's so tempting to fit in; to succumb to that old habit. So, the sign freezes over your tempting moment-To Be Continued. Now what's going to happen? Well, now the escape is spelled out. Listen, "His very great and precious promises." The answer to the pressure to sin is a promise of Almighty God.
That means you've got to know some of those promises in order to escape being taken over by this rotting world. Do you know some promises? It's time to learn some. They are what get you through. Like 1 Corinthians 10:13, that wonderful verse that says, "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man and God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted-beyond what you can bear. When you are tempted He will provide a way out so you can stand up under it." Now, that's a promise you ought to have in your heart so that when sins comes to the door, you send God's Word to answer it.
You need to be able to commit to memory a verse like 2 Corinthians 10:4-5, "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds;" How about James 4:7, "Resist the devil and he will fight with you." No, it doesn't say that! "Resist the Devil and he will flee from you;" James 1:12 promises, "If you will endure temptation, you will receive a crown of life." When somebody asks me to sign their Bible - which is for me, an awkward moment – but, I use it to put something in there that might encourage them. There's a quote from D. L. Moody I love to put in there, "Either this Book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this Book."
The promises are the life preserver of God. When a wave of temptation hits you, you repeat one of those promises of God. So you need to go to work building a memory bank of escape promises. Make them part of who you are, part of your personality. Next time you're cornered by the villain of a wrong desire reach for the rescue; the supernatural promise of a mighty God. Because just like on TV, there is always a way out.
What can you do? When the challenge is greater than you are. When you feel helpless and impotent. Where can you turn? In Luke 11:10 Jesus says, "Everyone who seeks me, finds me. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened." Intercessory prayer at its purest is your acknowledgement:
"I can't heal them, but, God, you can."
"I can't forgive them, but, God, you can."
"I can't help them, but, God, you can."
Before you say amen. . .this simple prayer gets God's attention: "Father you are good. They need help. I can't, but you can!" He never sleeps. He is never irritated. When you knock, he responds quickly and fairly!
Here's my challenge for you today! Sign on at BeforeAmen.com. Take the brief Prayer Strengths Assessment you'll find there. It only takes a minute. But it will encourage you and give you a building block for your growth in prayer.
From Before Amen
Numbers 18
Duties of Priests and Levites
Then the Lord said to Aaron: “You, your sons, and your relatives from the tribe of Levi will be held responsible for any offenses related to the sanctuary. But you and your sons alone will be held responsible for violations connected with the priesthood.
2 “Bring your relatives of the tribe of Levi—your ancestral tribe—to assist you and your sons as you perform the sacred duties in front of the Tabernacle of the Covenant.[e] 3 But as the Levites go about all their assigned duties at the Tabernacle, they must be careful not to go near any of the sacred objects or the altar. If they do, both you and they will die. 4 The Levites must join you in fulfilling their responsibilities for the care and maintenance of the Tabernacle,[f] but no unauthorized person may assist you.
5 “You yourselves must perform the sacred duties inside the sanctuary and at the altar. If you follow these instructions, the Lord’s anger will never again blaze against the people of Israel. 6 I myself have chosen your fellow Levites from among the Israelites to be your special assistants. They are a gift to you, dedicated to the Lord for service in the Tabernacle. 7 But you and your sons, the priests, must personally handle all the priestly rituals associated with the altar and with everything behind the inner curtain. I am giving you the priesthood as your special privilege of service. Any unauthorized person who comes too near the sanctuary will be put to death.”
Support for the Priests and Levites
8 The Lord gave these further instructions to Aaron: “I myself have put you in charge of all the holy offerings that are brought to me by the people of Israel. I have given all these consecrated offerings to you and your sons as your permanent share. 9 You are allotted the portion of the most holy offerings that is not burned on the fire. This portion of all the most holy offerings—including the grain offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings—will be most holy, and it belongs to you and your sons. 10 You must eat it as a most holy offering. All the males may eat of it, and you must treat it as most holy.
11 “All the sacred offerings and special offerings presented to me when the Israelites lift them up before the altar also belong to you. I have given them to you and to your sons and daughters as your permanent share. Any member of your family who is ceremonially clean may eat of these offerings.
12 “I also give you the harvest gifts brought by the people as offerings to the Lord—the best of the olive oil, new wine, and grain. 13 All the first crops of their land that the people present to the Lord belong to you. Any member of your family who is ceremonially clean may eat this food.
14 “Everything in Israel that is specially set apart for the Lord[g] also belongs to you.
15 “The firstborn of every mother, whether human or animal, that is offered to the Lord will be yours. But you must always redeem your firstborn sons and the firstborn of ceremonially unclean animals. 16 Redeem them when they are one month old. The redemption price is five pieces of silver[h] (as measured by the weight of the sanctuary shekel, which equals twenty gerahs).
17 “However, you may not redeem the firstborn of cattle, sheep, or goats. They are holy and have been set apart for the Lord. Sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as a special gift, a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 18 The meat of these animals will be yours, just like the breast and right thigh that are presented by lifting them up as a special offering before the altar. 19 Yes, I am giving you all these holy offerings that the people of Israel bring to the Lord. They are for you and your sons and daughters, to be eaten as your permanent share. This is an eternal and unbreakable covenant[i] between the Lord and you, and it also applies to your descendants.”
20 And the Lord said to Aaron, “You priests will receive no allotment of land or share of property among the people of Israel. I am your share and your allotment. 21 As for the tribe of Levi, your relatives, I will compensate them for their service in the Tabernacle. Instead of an allotment of land, I will give them the tithes from the entire land of Israel.
22 “From now on, no Israelites except priests or Levites may approach the Tabernacle. If they come too near, they will be judged guilty and will die. 23 Only the Levites may serve at the Tabernacle, and they will be held responsible for any offenses against it. This is a permanent law for you, to be observed from generation to generation. The Levites will receive no allotment of land among the Israelites, 24 because I have given them the Israelites’ tithes, which have been presented as sacred offerings to the Lord. This will be the Levites’ share. That is why I said they would receive no allotment of land among the Israelites.”
25 The Lord also told Moses, 26 “Give these instructions to the Levites: When you receive from the people of Israel the tithes I have assigned as your allotment, give a tenth of the tithes you receive—a tithe of the tithe—to the Lord as a sacred offering. 27 The Lord will consider this offering to be your harvest offering, as though it were the first grain from your own threshing floor or wine from your own winepress. 28 You must present one-tenth of the tithe received from the Israelites as a sacred offering to the Lord. This is the Lord’s sacred portion, and you must present it to Aaron the priest. 29 Be sure to give to the Lord the best portions of the gifts given to you.
30 “Also, give these instructions to the Levites: When you present the best part as your offering, it will be considered as though it came from your own threshing floor or winepress. 31 You Levites and your families may eat this food anywhere you wish, for it is your compensation for serving in the Tabernacle. 32 You will not be considered guilty for accepting the Lord’s tithes if you give the best portion to the priests. But be careful not to treat the holy gifts of the people of Israel as though they were common. If you do, you will die.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, November 20, 2014
Read: James 2:14-20
Faith without Good Deeds Is Dead
What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? 15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, 16 and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
17 So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.
18 Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
19 You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God.[a] Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. 20 How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?
Footnotes:
2:19 Some manuscripts read that God is one; see Deut 6:4.
Insight
There is disagreement among scholars as to the identity of the James who authored this letter. Some see him as the son of Alphaeus (Matt. 10:3; Mark 3:18). Long-held church tradition, however, identifies this James as the half-brother of Jesus (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3). In Galatians 1:19, Paul mentions seeing James, “the Lord’s brother,” in Jerusalem—and this has fueled the position that the James of the Jerusalem church and the James who wrote this letter was in fact “the Lord’s brother.” James became a person of great prominence in the early church, having received a personal audience with the risen Christ (1 Cor. 15:7) and having become one of the primary leaders of the church at Jerusalem (Acts 15:13-20).
Can You Help?
By Dave Branon
Bible in a Year:
Ezekiel 14-15; James 2
Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. —James 2:17
The administrators of the high school in Barrow, Alaska, were tired of seeing students get into trouble and drop out at a rate of 50 percent. To keep students interested, they started a football team, which offered them a chance to develop personal skills, teamwork, and learn life lessons. The problem with football in Barrow, which is farther north than Iceland, is that it’s hard to plant a grass field. So they competed on a gravel and dirt field.
Four thousand miles away in Florida, a woman named Cathy Parker heard about the football team and their dangerous field. Feeling that God was prompting her to help, and impressed by the positive changes she saw in the students, she went to work. About a year later, they dedicated their new field, complete with a beautiful artificial-turf playing surface. She had raised thousands of dollars to help some kids she didn’t even know.
This is not about football—or money. It is about remembering “to do good and to share” (Heb. 13:16). The apostle James reminds us that we demonstrate our faith by our actions (2:18). The needs in our world are varied and overwhelming but when we love our neighbor as ourselves, as Jesus said (Mark 12:31), we reach people with God’s love.
Open our eyes, dear Father, to those in need. Allow
us to find ways—monetarily and otherwise—to
help meet those needs. Help us to take the focus off
ourselves and place it on those who can use our assistance.
Open your heart to God to learn compassion and open your hand to give help.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, November 20, 2014
The Forgiveness of God
In Him we have…the forgiveness of sins… —Ephesians 1:7
Beware of the pleasant view of the fatherhood of God: God is so kind and loving that of course He will forgive us. That thought, based solely on emotion, cannot be found anywhere in the New Testament. The only basis on which God can forgive us is the tremendous tragedy of the Cross of Christ. To base our forgiveness on any other ground is unconscious blasphemy. The only ground on which God can forgive our sin and reinstate us to His favor is through the Cross of Christ. There is no other way! Forgiveness, which is so easy for us to accept, cost the agony at Calvary. We should never take the forgiveness of sin, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and our sanctification in simple faith, and then forget the enormous cost to God that made all of this ours.
Forgiveness is the divine miracle of grace. The cost to God was the Cross of Christ. To forgive sin, while remaining a holy God, this price had to be paid. Never accept a view of the fatherhood of God if it blots out the atonement. The revealed truth of God is that without the atonement He cannot forgive— He would contradict His nature if He did. The only way we can be forgiven is by being brought back to God through the atonement of the Cross. God’s forgiveness is possible only in the supernatural realm.
Compared with the miracle of the forgiveness of sin, the experience of sanctification is small. Sanctification is simply the wonderful expression or evidence of the forgiveness of sins in a human life. But the thing that awakens the deepest fountain of gratitude in a human being is that God has forgiven his sin. Paul never got away from this. Once you realize all that it cost God to forgive you, you will be held as in a vise, constrained by the love of God.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, November 20, 2014
Always A Way Out - #7269
You can feel it coming maybe five minutes before the TV program ends. They don't have enough time to get the hero out of this predicament, and you know those dreaded three words are about to appear on your screen; To Be Continued. You have a whole week to worry about how they're possibly going to rescue Dudley Do-right, or whatever his name is. If it's the end of the season you might have to wait until the whole beginning of the next season to see what happens. Of course, you can be sure, usually, that he will get out of it because, well, usually the hero always does.
When I was a kid I was a sucker for serials-not the kind you eat, the kind you see on a screen. It's the kind that's an adventure continued each week. Every episode left the hero in the clutches of disaster and what got you back was finding out how he got out of it. Of course, not all cliffhangers are on the screen. In fact, you have several every week don't you? And the tension is the same as in those continued stories. How are you going to get out of this predicament?
Well I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Always A Way Out."
Which brings us to our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Peter 1 and I'm reading verse 4, "God has given us His very great and precious promises so that through them you might participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires." Now it's talking about escape-well we were talking about how the hero gets out of his predicament. In this case you're the hero; what's the predicament?
Well, it talks about corruption in the world and escaping the trap of the corruption in the world. In that case you and I have several close calls a week. I mean, we live in a morally rotting world. That's what that word corruption means. Sin is normal, it's expected, it's common, it's even celebrated. It is so tempting to lie when lying is the way people around here are getting things done. It is so tempting to compromise. You know, you still look better than most of the people around you, more righteous. It's so tempting to fit in; to succumb to that old habit. So, the sign freezes over your tempting moment-To Be Continued. Now what's going to happen? Well, now the escape is spelled out. Listen, "His very great and precious promises." The answer to the pressure to sin is a promise of Almighty God.
That means you've got to know some of those promises in order to escape being taken over by this rotting world. Do you know some promises? It's time to learn some. They are what get you through. Like 1 Corinthians 10:13, that wonderful verse that says, "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man and God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted-beyond what you can bear. When you are tempted He will provide a way out so you can stand up under it." Now, that's a promise you ought to have in your heart so that when sins comes to the door, you send God's Word to answer it.
You need to be able to commit to memory a verse like 2 Corinthians 10:4-5, "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds;" How about James 4:7, "Resist the devil and he will fight with you." No, it doesn't say that! "Resist the Devil and he will flee from you;" James 1:12 promises, "If you will endure temptation, you will receive a crown of life." When somebody asks me to sign their Bible - which is for me, an awkward moment – but, I use it to put something in there that might encourage them. There's a quote from D. L. Moody I love to put in there, "Either this Book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this Book."
The promises are the life preserver of God. When a wave of temptation hits you, you repeat one of those promises of God. So you need to go to work building a memory bank of escape promises. Make them part of who you are, part of your personality. Next time you're cornered by the villain of a wrong desire reach for the rescue; the supernatural promise of a mighty God. Because just like on TV, there is always a way out.
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Numbers 17, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: A Guilt-Free You
If you are in Christ, your sin is gone. It was last seen on the back of your Sin Bearer as he headed out to Death Valley. When Jesus cried on the cross, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"-he entered the wilderness on your behalf. He carried your sin away.
Open yourself to the idea of a guilt-free you. This may be difficult. You have dragged around your past for so long you can't imagine yourself with it. Jesus sees a revision of your script. Give God your guilt! Pray this simple "pocket prayer."
"Father you are good. I need help. Forgive me. Place your guilt on the back of your Sin Bearer!
Before amen-comes the power of a simple prayer! My challenge to you? Every day for 4 weeks, pray 4 minutes-a simple prayer. Join me at BeforeAmen.com-it'll change your life forever!
From Before Amen
Numbers 17
The Budding of Aaron’s Staff
[a]Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel to bring you twelve wooden staffs, one from each leader of Israel’s ancestral tribes, and inscribe each leader’s name on his staff. 3 Inscribe Aaron’s name on the staff of the tribe of Levi, for there must be one staff for the leader of each ancestral tribe. 4 Place these staffs in the Tabernacle in front of the Ark containing the tablets of the Covenant,[b] where I meet with you. 5 Buds will sprout on the staff belonging to the man I choose. Then I will finally put an end to the people’s murmuring and complaining against you.”
6 So Moses gave the instructions to the people of Israel, and each of the twelve tribal leaders, including Aaron, brought Moses a staff. 7 Moses placed the staffs in the Lord’s presence in the Tabernacle of the Covenant.[c] 8 When he went into the Tabernacle of the Covenant the next day, he found that Aaron’s staff, representing the tribe of Levi, had sprouted, budded, blossomed, and produced ripe almonds!
9 When Moses brought all the staffs out from the Lord’s presence, he showed them to the people. Each man claimed his own staff. 10 And the Lord said to Moses: “Place Aaron’s staff permanently before the Ark of the Covenant[d] to serve as a warning to rebels. This should put an end to their complaints against me and prevent any further deaths.” 11 So Moses did as the Lord commanded him.
12 Then the people of Israel said to Moses, “Look, we are doomed! We are dead! We are ruined! 13 Everyone who even comes close to the Tabernacle of the Lord dies. Are we all doomed to die?”
17:1 Verses 17:1-13 are numbered 17:16-28 in Hebrew text.
17:4 Hebrew in the Tent of Meeting before the Testimony. The Hebrew word for “testimony” refers to the terms of the Lord’s covenant with Israel as written on stone tablets, which were kept in the Ark, and also to the covenant itself.
17:7 Or Tabernacle of the Testimony; also in 17:8.
17:10 Hebrew before the Testimony; see note on 17:4.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Read: Numbers 11:1-10
The People Complain to Moses
Soon the people began to complain about their hardship, and the Lord heard everything they said. Then the Lord’s anger blazed against them, and he sent a fire to rage among them, and he destroyed some of the people in the outskirts of the camp. 2 Then the people screamed to Moses for help, and when he prayed to the Lord, the fire stopped. 3 After that, the area was known as Taberah (which means “the place of burning”), because fire from the Lord had burned among them there.
4 Then the foreign rabble who were traveling with the Israelites began to crave the good things of Egypt. And the people of Israel also began to complain. “Oh, for some meat!” they exclaimed. 5 “We remember the fish we used to eat for free in Egypt. And we had all the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic we wanted. 6 But now our appetites are gone. All we ever see is this manna!”
7 The manna looked like small coriander seeds, and it was pale yellow like gum resin. 8 The people would go out and gather it from the ground. They made flour by grinding it with hand mills or pounding it in mortars. Then they boiled it in a pot and made it into flat cakes. These cakes tasted like pastries baked with olive oil. 9 The manna came down on the camp with the dew during the night.
10 Moses heard all the families standing in the doorways of their tents whining, and the Lord became extremely angry. Moses was also very aggravated.
Insight
When they faced difficulties, the Israelites often complained against Moses (see Ex. 16:2; 17:3; Num. 14:2; 16:41; 20:3). Their first complaint was made just 3 days out of Egypt (Ex. 15:22-24). Paul warned us not to follow their critical spirit (1 Cor. 10:1-10), for they were sinning against the Lord (Ex. 16:8).
Goodbye
By Marvin Williams
When the people complained, it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused. —Numbers 11:1
When Max Lucado participated in a half-Ironman triathlon, he experienced the negative power of complaint. He said, “After the 1.2-mile swim and the 56-mile bike ride, I didn’t have much energy left for the 13.1-mile run. Neither did the fellow jogging next to me. He said, ‘This stinks. This race is the dumbest decision I’ve ever made.’ I said, ‘Goodbye.’ ” Max knew that if he listened too long, he would start agreeing with him. So he said goodbye and kept running.
Among the Israelites, too many people listened too long to complaints and began to agree with them. This displeased God, and for good reason. God had delivered the Israelites from slavery, and agreed to live in their midst, but they still complained. Beyond the hardship of the desert, they were dissatisfied with God’s provision of manna. In their complaint, Israel forgot that the manna was a gift to them from God’s loving hand (Num. 11:6). Because complaining poisons the heart with ingratitude and can be a contagion, God had to judge it.
This is a sure way to say “goodbye” to complaining and ingratitude: Each day, let’s rehearse the faithfulness and goodness of God to us.
Lord, You have given us so much. Forgive us for our
short memories and bad attitudes. Help us to
remember and be grateful for all that You have
provided. And help us to tell others of the good things You have done for us.
Proclaiming God’s faithfulness silences discontentment.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
“When He Has Come”
When He has come, He will convict the world of sin… —John 16:8
Very few of us know anything about conviction of sin. We know the experience of being disturbed because we have done wrong things. But conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit blots out every relationship on earth and makes us aware of only one— “Against You, You only, have I sinned…” (Psalm 51:4). When a person is convicted of sin in this way, he knows with every bit of his conscience that God would not dare to forgive him. If God did forgive him, then this person would have a stronger sense of justice than God. God does forgive, but it cost the breaking of His heart with grief in the death of Christ to enable Him to do so. The great miracle of the grace of God is that He forgives sin, and it is the death of Jesus Christ alone that enables the divine nature to forgive and to remain true to itself in doing so. It is shallow nonsense to say that God forgives us because He is love. Once we have been convicted of sin, we will never say this again. The love of God means Calvary— nothing less! The love of God is spelled out on the Cross and nowhere else. The only basis for which God can forgive me is the Cross of Christ. It is there that His conscience is satisfied.
Forgiveness doesn’t merely mean that I am saved from hell and have been made ready for heaven (no one would accept forgiveness on that level). Forgiveness means that I am forgiven into a newly created relationship which identifies me with God in Christ. The miracle of redemption is that God turns me, the unholy one, into the standard of Himself, the Holy One. He does this by putting into me a new nature, the nature of Jesus Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
The Ticket Will Be There - #7268
If I'm going to fly somewhere I usually have my ticket well before the trip. And of course you get the e-tickets today but years ago there weren't e-tickets and boy I was looking for it in the mail and it hadn't come. I called them and they said, "Well, we have your reservation here. I'm sure everything will be fine." Thank you for that reassurance, but it does take a ticket to get on the plane. I was scheduled to leave on a Friday, Wednesday was a real important day. Well I checked the mail again. No ticket. I called again and they said, "It's on the way." Yeah great. I've had people say, "The check is in the mail" too. And it wasn't. So I wasn't quite sure. Well, I know you're really worried. Good news! It was there, ready for me, on Thursday afternoon. I was worried because I didn't have it in my hand. But the airline assured me I was okay all those days before, and I did get what I needed but I got it just when I needed it and no sooner.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Ticket Will Be There."
Our word for today from the Word of God, we are in Hebrews 4:16. This is such a great verse, I love it. "Let us then approach the Throne of Grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Okay let's go back through this verse and take it apart a little bit. It talks about, "Let's approach" what do we approach? That's the invitation. We're to approach what? "the Throne of Grace." Well what's grace? Well, I'm not going to give you a big sophisticated seminary definition. Let me give you the working definition out of my own life. God's grace is God's intervening love when you're on empty. Have you ever been there: out of ideas, out of strength, out of any way out of this, out of any means to pay for it, out of money?
Well, when you're on empty, grace, God's intervening love, with His resources. "Let us approach the Throne of Grace for God's intervening love when we're on empty." Now it says to "come with confidence." That word actually means to be outspoken with someone who's in a position of authority. I can go to God in an outspoken way and tell Him my need.
And then it promises grace to help in this particular unique moment of my need. That word "to help" is used only one other time in the Bible; the Greek form of it in the New Testament. It's in Acts 27 where they put supports underneath a ship to hold it together in a storm. So God's grace holds you together in your storm.
I have a friend right now who is facing a storm. His life has changed dramatically because his wife is battling against cancer. He said, "Ron, when I think about what might be ahead, I can't think about it, it's tough." We talked about how God gives His grace in 24-hour installments. See if you try to deal with next month's load before you get next month's grace, you'll sink. You're dealing with today's load, which will be perfectly matched with today's grace.
Corrie ten Boom courageously faced years in a Nazi concentration camp. Well she lost many people she loved and that was all because she helped harbor Jews in her home in Holland. Told her witness around the world for many years thereafter. Corrie said when she was a little girl, her Dad was tucking her into bed, and she said, "Daddy, I'm scared because some day if Jesus asks me to suffer or die for Him, I don't think I'd have the courage." He said, "Corrie, when I ask you to take the train with me from Harlem to Amsterdam, do I give you the ticket three weeks in advance?" And she said, "Well no, Daddy." "Do I give it to you a week in advance?" "No." He said, "Honey, when do I give you the ticket?" She said, "Well Daddy, you give me the ticket just before the train comes. That's when I need it." He said, "Honey, that's when God will give you what you need. You'll always have your ticket when the train comes."
So will you. You may be dreading what's ahead. You will have the Grace you need at the moment you need it. You say, "Well I've never had that much Grace before." You've never needed that much before. And He has it. Because His throne is a Throne of Grace. Because of the love of your savior, you will never have an assignment where the load is greater than His Grace. But you won't get it early. You'll have what you need, when you need it. Guaranteed. The ticket will be there.
If you are in Christ, your sin is gone. It was last seen on the back of your Sin Bearer as he headed out to Death Valley. When Jesus cried on the cross, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"-he entered the wilderness on your behalf. He carried your sin away.
Open yourself to the idea of a guilt-free you. This may be difficult. You have dragged around your past for so long you can't imagine yourself with it. Jesus sees a revision of your script. Give God your guilt! Pray this simple "pocket prayer."
"Father you are good. I need help. Forgive me. Place your guilt on the back of your Sin Bearer!
Before amen-comes the power of a simple prayer! My challenge to you? Every day for 4 weeks, pray 4 minutes-a simple prayer. Join me at BeforeAmen.com-it'll change your life forever!
From Before Amen
Numbers 17
The Budding of Aaron’s Staff
[a]Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel to bring you twelve wooden staffs, one from each leader of Israel’s ancestral tribes, and inscribe each leader’s name on his staff. 3 Inscribe Aaron’s name on the staff of the tribe of Levi, for there must be one staff for the leader of each ancestral tribe. 4 Place these staffs in the Tabernacle in front of the Ark containing the tablets of the Covenant,[b] where I meet with you. 5 Buds will sprout on the staff belonging to the man I choose. Then I will finally put an end to the people’s murmuring and complaining against you.”
6 So Moses gave the instructions to the people of Israel, and each of the twelve tribal leaders, including Aaron, brought Moses a staff. 7 Moses placed the staffs in the Lord’s presence in the Tabernacle of the Covenant.[c] 8 When he went into the Tabernacle of the Covenant the next day, he found that Aaron’s staff, representing the tribe of Levi, had sprouted, budded, blossomed, and produced ripe almonds!
9 When Moses brought all the staffs out from the Lord’s presence, he showed them to the people. Each man claimed his own staff. 10 And the Lord said to Moses: “Place Aaron’s staff permanently before the Ark of the Covenant[d] to serve as a warning to rebels. This should put an end to their complaints against me and prevent any further deaths.” 11 So Moses did as the Lord commanded him.
12 Then the people of Israel said to Moses, “Look, we are doomed! We are dead! We are ruined! 13 Everyone who even comes close to the Tabernacle of the Lord dies. Are we all doomed to die?”
17:1 Verses 17:1-13 are numbered 17:16-28 in Hebrew text.
17:4 Hebrew in the Tent of Meeting before the Testimony. The Hebrew word for “testimony” refers to the terms of the Lord’s covenant with Israel as written on stone tablets, which were kept in the Ark, and also to the covenant itself.
17:7 Or Tabernacle of the Testimony; also in 17:8.
17:10 Hebrew before the Testimony; see note on 17:4.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Read: Numbers 11:1-10
The People Complain to Moses
Soon the people began to complain about their hardship, and the Lord heard everything they said. Then the Lord’s anger blazed against them, and he sent a fire to rage among them, and he destroyed some of the people in the outskirts of the camp. 2 Then the people screamed to Moses for help, and when he prayed to the Lord, the fire stopped. 3 After that, the area was known as Taberah (which means “the place of burning”), because fire from the Lord had burned among them there.
4 Then the foreign rabble who were traveling with the Israelites began to crave the good things of Egypt. And the people of Israel also began to complain. “Oh, for some meat!” they exclaimed. 5 “We remember the fish we used to eat for free in Egypt. And we had all the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic we wanted. 6 But now our appetites are gone. All we ever see is this manna!”
7 The manna looked like small coriander seeds, and it was pale yellow like gum resin. 8 The people would go out and gather it from the ground. They made flour by grinding it with hand mills or pounding it in mortars. Then they boiled it in a pot and made it into flat cakes. These cakes tasted like pastries baked with olive oil. 9 The manna came down on the camp with the dew during the night.
10 Moses heard all the families standing in the doorways of their tents whining, and the Lord became extremely angry. Moses was also very aggravated.
Insight
When they faced difficulties, the Israelites often complained against Moses (see Ex. 16:2; 17:3; Num. 14:2; 16:41; 20:3). Their first complaint was made just 3 days out of Egypt (Ex. 15:22-24). Paul warned us not to follow their critical spirit (1 Cor. 10:1-10), for they were sinning against the Lord (Ex. 16:8).
Goodbye
By Marvin Williams
When the people complained, it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused. —Numbers 11:1
When Max Lucado participated in a half-Ironman triathlon, he experienced the negative power of complaint. He said, “After the 1.2-mile swim and the 56-mile bike ride, I didn’t have much energy left for the 13.1-mile run. Neither did the fellow jogging next to me. He said, ‘This stinks. This race is the dumbest decision I’ve ever made.’ I said, ‘Goodbye.’ ” Max knew that if he listened too long, he would start agreeing with him. So he said goodbye and kept running.
Among the Israelites, too many people listened too long to complaints and began to agree with them. This displeased God, and for good reason. God had delivered the Israelites from slavery, and agreed to live in their midst, but they still complained. Beyond the hardship of the desert, they were dissatisfied with God’s provision of manna. In their complaint, Israel forgot that the manna was a gift to them from God’s loving hand (Num. 11:6). Because complaining poisons the heart with ingratitude and can be a contagion, God had to judge it.
This is a sure way to say “goodbye” to complaining and ingratitude: Each day, let’s rehearse the faithfulness and goodness of God to us.
Lord, You have given us so much. Forgive us for our
short memories and bad attitudes. Help us to
remember and be grateful for all that You have
provided. And help us to tell others of the good things You have done for us.
Proclaiming God’s faithfulness silences discontentment.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
“When He Has Come”
When He has come, He will convict the world of sin… —John 16:8
Very few of us know anything about conviction of sin. We know the experience of being disturbed because we have done wrong things. But conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit blots out every relationship on earth and makes us aware of only one— “Against You, You only, have I sinned…” (Psalm 51:4). When a person is convicted of sin in this way, he knows with every bit of his conscience that God would not dare to forgive him. If God did forgive him, then this person would have a stronger sense of justice than God. God does forgive, but it cost the breaking of His heart with grief in the death of Christ to enable Him to do so. The great miracle of the grace of God is that He forgives sin, and it is the death of Jesus Christ alone that enables the divine nature to forgive and to remain true to itself in doing so. It is shallow nonsense to say that God forgives us because He is love. Once we have been convicted of sin, we will never say this again. The love of God means Calvary— nothing less! The love of God is spelled out on the Cross and nowhere else. The only basis for which God can forgive me is the Cross of Christ. It is there that His conscience is satisfied.
Forgiveness doesn’t merely mean that I am saved from hell and have been made ready for heaven (no one would accept forgiveness on that level). Forgiveness means that I am forgiven into a newly created relationship which identifies me with God in Christ. The miracle of redemption is that God turns me, the unholy one, into the standard of Himself, the Holy One. He does this by putting into me a new nature, the nature of Jesus Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
The Ticket Will Be There - #7268
If I'm going to fly somewhere I usually have my ticket well before the trip. And of course you get the e-tickets today but years ago there weren't e-tickets and boy I was looking for it in the mail and it hadn't come. I called them and they said, "Well, we have your reservation here. I'm sure everything will be fine." Thank you for that reassurance, but it does take a ticket to get on the plane. I was scheduled to leave on a Friday, Wednesday was a real important day. Well I checked the mail again. No ticket. I called again and they said, "It's on the way." Yeah great. I've had people say, "The check is in the mail" too. And it wasn't. So I wasn't quite sure. Well, I know you're really worried. Good news! It was there, ready for me, on Thursday afternoon. I was worried because I didn't have it in my hand. But the airline assured me I was okay all those days before, and I did get what I needed but I got it just when I needed it and no sooner.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Ticket Will Be There."
Our word for today from the Word of God, we are in Hebrews 4:16. This is such a great verse, I love it. "Let us then approach the Throne of Grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Okay let's go back through this verse and take it apart a little bit. It talks about, "Let's approach" what do we approach? That's the invitation. We're to approach what? "the Throne of Grace." Well what's grace? Well, I'm not going to give you a big sophisticated seminary definition. Let me give you the working definition out of my own life. God's grace is God's intervening love when you're on empty. Have you ever been there: out of ideas, out of strength, out of any way out of this, out of any means to pay for it, out of money?
Well, when you're on empty, grace, God's intervening love, with His resources. "Let us approach the Throne of Grace for God's intervening love when we're on empty." Now it says to "come with confidence." That word actually means to be outspoken with someone who's in a position of authority. I can go to God in an outspoken way and tell Him my need.
And then it promises grace to help in this particular unique moment of my need. That word "to help" is used only one other time in the Bible; the Greek form of it in the New Testament. It's in Acts 27 where they put supports underneath a ship to hold it together in a storm. So God's grace holds you together in your storm.
I have a friend right now who is facing a storm. His life has changed dramatically because his wife is battling against cancer. He said, "Ron, when I think about what might be ahead, I can't think about it, it's tough." We talked about how God gives His grace in 24-hour installments. See if you try to deal with next month's load before you get next month's grace, you'll sink. You're dealing with today's load, which will be perfectly matched with today's grace.
Corrie ten Boom courageously faced years in a Nazi concentration camp. Well she lost many people she loved and that was all because she helped harbor Jews in her home in Holland. Told her witness around the world for many years thereafter. Corrie said when she was a little girl, her Dad was tucking her into bed, and she said, "Daddy, I'm scared because some day if Jesus asks me to suffer or die for Him, I don't think I'd have the courage." He said, "Corrie, when I ask you to take the train with me from Harlem to Amsterdam, do I give you the ticket three weeks in advance?" And she said, "Well no, Daddy." "Do I give it to you a week in advance?" "No." He said, "Honey, when do I give you the ticket?" She said, "Well Daddy, you give me the ticket just before the train comes. That's when I need it." He said, "Honey, that's when God will give you what you need. You'll always have your ticket when the train comes."
So will you. You may be dreading what's ahead. You will have the Grace you need at the moment you need it. You say, "Well I've never had that much Grace before." You've never needed that much before. And He has it. Because His throne is a Throne of Grace. Because of the love of your savior, you will never have an assignment where the load is greater than His Grace. But you won't get it early. You'll have what you need, when you need it. Guaranteed. The ticket will be there.
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Mark 14:54-72, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: A Prayer of Confession
Confession isn't a punishment for sin; it's an isolation of sin so it can be exposed and extracted. Exactly what is it that you need forgiveness for? For being a bad person? That's too general. For losing your patience in the business meeting and calling your coworker a creep? There, you can confess that.
Be firm in a prayer of confession. Satan traffics in guilt and will not give up an addict without a fight. Exercise your authority as a child of God. Tell guilt where to get off. "I left you at the cross, you evil spirit. Stay there!"
Then for heaven's sake, stop tormenting yourself. Jesus is strong enough to carry your sin. Psalm 103:12 says, "He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west."
Before you say amen-comes the power of a simple prayer.
From Before Amen
Mark 14:54-72
Meanwhile, Peter followed him at a distance and went right into the high priest’s courtyard. There he sat with the guards, warming himself by the fire.
55 Inside, the leading priests and the entire high council[a] were trying to find evidence against Jesus, so they could put him to death. But they couldn’t find any. 56 Many false witnesses spoke against him, but they contradicted each other. 57 Finally, some men stood up and gave this false testimony: 58 “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this Temple made with human hands, and in three days I will build another, made without human hands.’” 59 But even then they didn’t get their stories straight!
60 Then the high priest stood up before the others and asked Jesus, “Well, aren’t you going to answer these charges? What do you have to say for yourself?” 61 But Jesus was silent and made no reply. Then the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”
62 Jesus said, “I am.[b] And you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God’s right hand[c] and coming on the clouds of heaven.[d]”
63 Then the high priest tore his clothing to show his horror and said, “Why do we need other witnesses? 64 You have all heard his blasphemy. What is your verdict?”
“Guilty!” they all cried. “He deserves to die!”
65 Then some of them began to spit at him, and they blindfolded him and beat him with their fists. “Prophesy to us,” they jeered. And the guards slapped him as they took him away.
Peter Denies Jesus
66 Meanwhile, Peter was in the courtyard below. One of the servant girls who worked for the high priest came by 67 and noticed Peter warming himself at the fire. She looked at him closely and said, “You were one of those with Jesus of Nazareth.[e]”
68 But Peter denied it. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, and he went out into the entryway. Just then, a rooster crowed.[f]
69 When the servant girl saw him standing there, she began telling the others, “This man is definitely one of them!” 70 But Peter denied it again.
A little later some of the other bystanders confronted Peter and said, “You must be one of them, because you are a Galilean.”
71 Peter swore, “A curse on me if I’m lying—I don’t know this man you’re talking about!” 72 And immediately the rooster crowed the second time.
Suddenly, Jesus’ words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny three times that you even know me.” And he broke down and wept.
Footnotes:
14:55 Greek the Sanhedrin.
14:62a Or The ‘I am’ is here; or I am the Lord. See Exod 3:14.
14:62b Greek seated at the right hand of the power. See Ps 110:1.
14:62c See Dan 7:13.
14:67 Or Jesus the Nazarene.
14:68 Some manuscripts do not include Just then, a rooster crowed.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Read: Hebrews 13:15-25
Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name. 16 And don’t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God.
17 Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit.
18 Pray for us, for our conscience is clear and we want to live honorably in everything we do. 19 And especially pray that I will be able to come back to you soon.
20 Now may the God of peace—
who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus,
the great Shepherd of the sheep,
and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood—
21 may he equip you with all you need
for doing his will.
May he produce in you,[a]
through the power of Jesus Christ,
every good thing that is pleasing to him.
All glory to him forever and ever! Amen.
22 I urge you, dear brothers and sisters,[b] to pay attention to what I have written in this brief exhortation.
23 I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been released from jail. If he comes here soon, I will bring him with me to see you.
24 Greet all your leaders and all the believers there.[c] The believers from Italy send you their greetings.
25 May God’s grace be with you all.
Footnotes:
13:21 Some manuscripts read in us.
13:22 Greek brothers.
13:24 Greek all of God’s holy people.
Insight
If we were left to our own devices and determination, even the brief instructions in today’s passage would be more than we could live up to. Fortunately, we are not left to ourselves. God works in us to make us complete (vv.20-21).
Rooted Love
By Joe Stowell
Do not forget to do good and to share. —Hebrews 13:16
When I think of all the wonders of God’s magnificent creation, I am especially awed by the giant sequoia tree. These amazing behemoths of the forest can grow to around 300 feet tall with a diameter that exceeds 20 feet. They can live over 3,000 years and are even fire resistant. In fact, forest fires pop the sequoia cones open, distributing their seeds on the forest floor that has been fertilized by the ashes. Perhaps the most amazing fact is that these trees can grow in just 3 feet of soil and withstand high winds. Their strength lies in the fact that their roots intertwine with other sequoias, providing mutual strength and shared resources.
God’s plan for us is like that. Our ability to stand tall in spite of the buffeting winds of life is directly related to the love and support we receive from God and one another. And then, as the writer of Hebrews says, we are to “do good and to share” (13:16). Think of how tough it would be to withstand adversity if someone were not sharing the roots of their strength with us.
There is great power in the entwining gifts of words of encouragement, prayers of intercession, weeping together, holding each other, and sometimes just sitting with one another sharing the presence of our love.
Lord, thank You for entwining Your strength
into my life. Lead me today to someone
who needs the love of shared strength from
resources that You have given to me.
Let the roots of God’s love in your life be entwined with others who need your support.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Winning into Freedom
If the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. —John 8:36
If there is even a trace of individual self-satisfaction left in us, it always says, “I can’t surrender,” or “I can’t be free.” But the spiritual part of our being never says “I can’t”; it simply soaks up everything around it. Our spirit hungers for more and more. It is the way we are built. We are designed with a great capacity for God, but sin, our own individuality, and wrong thinking keep us from getting to Him. God delivers us from sin— we have to deliver ourselves from our individuality. This means offering our natural life to God and sacrificing it to Him, so He may transform it into spiritual life through our obedience.
God pays no attention to our natural individuality in the development of our spiritual life. His plan runs right through our natural life. We must see to it that we aid and assist God, and not stand against Him by saying, “I can’t do that.” God will not discipline us; we must discipline ourselves. God will not bring our “arguments…and every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5)— we have to do it. Don’t say, “Oh, Lord, I suffer from wandering thoughts.” Don’t suffer from wandering thoughts. Stop listening to the tyranny of your individual natural life and win freedom into the spiritual life.
“If the Son makes you free….” Do not substitute Savior for Son in this passage. The Savior has set us free from sin, but this is the freedom that comes from being set free from myself by the Son. It is what Paul meant in Galatians 2:20 when he said, “I have been crucified with Christ….” His individuality had been broken and his spirit had been united with his Lord; not just merged into Him, but made one with Him. “…you shall be free indeed”— free to the very core of your being; free from the inside to the outside. We tend to rely on our own energy, instead of being energized by the power that comes from identification with Jesus.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
The Boss Is the Issue - #7267
You know, flying commercial airlines isn't as much fun as it used to be. I mean it's more of a hassle. A lot of people who have to fly seem to agree with that. There are overbooked flights, and long lines at security, and cancelled flights, and crowded flights, and equipment problems, and all kinds of frustrating delays. Now if you don't like something about the way the airline is performing, guess who usually gets all the grief? I've seen it happen in the airport over and over again. That poor ticket agent.
See, the ticket agent usually has nothing to do with causing the problem, but you can go to almost any airport, go to some desk and find an agent being besieged by people yelling, waving their arms, threatening, using various forms of unpleasant language. I want to say, "Hey, don't blame the agent! Take your complaints to someone in charge." The representative isn't the issue. You need to deal with the person in charge.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Boss Is the Issue."
Alright, our word for today from the Word of God comes from Matthew 16, beginning at verse 13. "Jesus asked His disciples, 'Who do people say the Son of Man is?' They replied, 'Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; still others say Jeremiah or one of the prophets.' 'But what about you,' He asked. 'Who do you say I am?' Then Peter replied, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'"
Now Jesus says here the issue is "Who do you say I am? See, the issue is Me." Well you know, the issue still is Jesus. The disciples kind of give the answer in the local Gallop Survey, "35% say You are John the Baptist, 22% say You are Elijah..." Well, finally Jesus closes in and says, "Who do you say I am?" See that's the real issue. A lot of people are dealing with the representative of Jesus rather than dealing with the boss.
Jim is the son of some friends of ours, and they said that he has been really wandering from the Lord. He said to them other day, "What if I had grown up in a different family? Maybe I'd be another religion. I'm not sure I believe any of this any more." And I said, "Would you tell him that Jesus would still be who He claims He is, wherever that guy grew up. You guys get out of the middle! Don't make your faith the issue with your son. Don't make parent's religion the issue. Don't let church be the issue. Let Jim know the issue isn't his parent's beliefs. It's a Savior who's been there for 2,000 years before His parents were born, before that church existed. Jesus is the issue and He's saying, 'Who do you say I am?'"
Some other friends came to us about their son, and he had said to them, "I don't know if I believe it any more." And I said, "Well don't let him get away with that. The 'It' in Christianity is a Him-it's Jesus. I don't believe Him any more. Don't look at Christians, don't look at the church, don't look at Christian leaders, or your background, or your friends. They're just His representatives. Jesus is the issue. He said "follow Me." The only reason not to be with Jesus is something about Jesus. I remember talking to a cabbie from another religion. He said to me, "If you could only study our book with our greatest scholars, you would believe." And I said to him, "But at the end of my life, I would still not have a Savior from my sin, and I would end my life at the grave of a dead prophet instead of a risen Savior."
Listen, don't let people become the issue. Don't let religion become the issue. Go back 2,000 years before all of these things existed and there on the middle cross is the Son of God paying the price for every sin you ever committed. If you're rejecting Christianity or rebelling in some way, don't deal with smoke screens. It's God's Son, who gave His life for you, who blew the doors off of death when He walked out of the grave, He's the issue. Not His representatives, not His agent. Would you go directly to the person in charge? The issue is Jesus.
This day, in spite of a back turned to Him for many years, He waits with open arms, to welcome you into His love, expressed and proven by the price He paid on a cross for you. I want you to know this Jesus. Not His religion, Jesus. If you want to belong to Him then I would love to point you in that direction. Would you go to our website ANewStory.com and find for yourself, this Jesus who's been transforming lives for 2,000 years, and who walked out of His grave, so He could walk into your life today?
Confession isn't a punishment for sin; it's an isolation of sin so it can be exposed and extracted. Exactly what is it that you need forgiveness for? For being a bad person? That's too general. For losing your patience in the business meeting and calling your coworker a creep? There, you can confess that.
Be firm in a prayer of confession. Satan traffics in guilt and will not give up an addict without a fight. Exercise your authority as a child of God. Tell guilt where to get off. "I left you at the cross, you evil spirit. Stay there!"
Then for heaven's sake, stop tormenting yourself. Jesus is strong enough to carry your sin. Psalm 103:12 says, "He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west."
Before you say amen-comes the power of a simple prayer.
From Before Amen
Mark 14:54-72
Meanwhile, Peter followed him at a distance and went right into the high priest’s courtyard. There he sat with the guards, warming himself by the fire.
55 Inside, the leading priests and the entire high council[a] were trying to find evidence against Jesus, so they could put him to death. But they couldn’t find any. 56 Many false witnesses spoke against him, but they contradicted each other. 57 Finally, some men stood up and gave this false testimony: 58 “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this Temple made with human hands, and in three days I will build another, made without human hands.’” 59 But even then they didn’t get their stories straight!
60 Then the high priest stood up before the others and asked Jesus, “Well, aren’t you going to answer these charges? What do you have to say for yourself?” 61 But Jesus was silent and made no reply. Then the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”
62 Jesus said, “I am.[b] And you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God’s right hand[c] and coming on the clouds of heaven.[d]”
63 Then the high priest tore his clothing to show his horror and said, “Why do we need other witnesses? 64 You have all heard his blasphemy. What is your verdict?”
“Guilty!” they all cried. “He deserves to die!”
65 Then some of them began to spit at him, and they blindfolded him and beat him with their fists. “Prophesy to us,” they jeered. And the guards slapped him as they took him away.
Peter Denies Jesus
66 Meanwhile, Peter was in the courtyard below. One of the servant girls who worked for the high priest came by 67 and noticed Peter warming himself at the fire. She looked at him closely and said, “You were one of those with Jesus of Nazareth.[e]”
68 But Peter denied it. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, and he went out into the entryway. Just then, a rooster crowed.[f]
69 When the servant girl saw him standing there, she began telling the others, “This man is definitely one of them!” 70 But Peter denied it again.
A little later some of the other bystanders confronted Peter and said, “You must be one of them, because you are a Galilean.”
71 Peter swore, “A curse on me if I’m lying—I don’t know this man you’re talking about!” 72 And immediately the rooster crowed the second time.
Suddenly, Jesus’ words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny three times that you even know me.” And he broke down and wept.
Footnotes:
14:55 Greek the Sanhedrin.
14:62a Or The ‘I am’ is here; or I am the Lord. See Exod 3:14.
14:62b Greek seated at the right hand of the power. See Ps 110:1.
14:62c See Dan 7:13.
14:67 Or Jesus the Nazarene.
14:68 Some manuscripts do not include Just then, a rooster crowed.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Read: Hebrews 13:15-25
Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name. 16 And don’t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God.
17 Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit.
18 Pray for us, for our conscience is clear and we want to live honorably in everything we do. 19 And especially pray that I will be able to come back to you soon.
20 Now may the God of peace—
who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus,
the great Shepherd of the sheep,
and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood—
21 may he equip you with all you need
for doing his will.
May he produce in you,[a]
through the power of Jesus Christ,
every good thing that is pleasing to him.
All glory to him forever and ever! Amen.
22 I urge you, dear brothers and sisters,[b] to pay attention to what I have written in this brief exhortation.
23 I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been released from jail. If he comes here soon, I will bring him with me to see you.
24 Greet all your leaders and all the believers there.[c] The believers from Italy send you their greetings.
25 May God’s grace be with you all.
Footnotes:
13:21 Some manuscripts read in us.
13:22 Greek brothers.
13:24 Greek all of God’s holy people.
Insight
If we were left to our own devices and determination, even the brief instructions in today’s passage would be more than we could live up to. Fortunately, we are not left to ourselves. God works in us to make us complete (vv.20-21).
Rooted Love
By Joe Stowell
Do not forget to do good and to share. —Hebrews 13:16
When I think of all the wonders of God’s magnificent creation, I am especially awed by the giant sequoia tree. These amazing behemoths of the forest can grow to around 300 feet tall with a diameter that exceeds 20 feet. They can live over 3,000 years and are even fire resistant. In fact, forest fires pop the sequoia cones open, distributing their seeds on the forest floor that has been fertilized by the ashes. Perhaps the most amazing fact is that these trees can grow in just 3 feet of soil and withstand high winds. Their strength lies in the fact that their roots intertwine with other sequoias, providing mutual strength and shared resources.
God’s plan for us is like that. Our ability to stand tall in spite of the buffeting winds of life is directly related to the love and support we receive from God and one another. And then, as the writer of Hebrews says, we are to “do good and to share” (13:16). Think of how tough it would be to withstand adversity if someone were not sharing the roots of their strength with us.
There is great power in the entwining gifts of words of encouragement, prayers of intercession, weeping together, holding each other, and sometimes just sitting with one another sharing the presence of our love.
Lord, thank You for entwining Your strength
into my life. Lead me today to someone
who needs the love of shared strength from
resources that You have given to me.
Let the roots of God’s love in your life be entwined with others who need your support.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Winning into Freedom
If the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. —John 8:36
If there is even a trace of individual self-satisfaction left in us, it always says, “I can’t surrender,” or “I can’t be free.” But the spiritual part of our being never says “I can’t”; it simply soaks up everything around it. Our spirit hungers for more and more. It is the way we are built. We are designed with a great capacity for God, but sin, our own individuality, and wrong thinking keep us from getting to Him. God delivers us from sin— we have to deliver ourselves from our individuality. This means offering our natural life to God and sacrificing it to Him, so He may transform it into spiritual life through our obedience.
God pays no attention to our natural individuality in the development of our spiritual life. His plan runs right through our natural life. We must see to it that we aid and assist God, and not stand against Him by saying, “I can’t do that.” God will not discipline us; we must discipline ourselves. God will not bring our “arguments…and every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5)— we have to do it. Don’t say, “Oh, Lord, I suffer from wandering thoughts.” Don’t suffer from wandering thoughts. Stop listening to the tyranny of your individual natural life and win freedom into the spiritual life.
“If the Son makes you free….” Do not substitute Savior for Son in this passage. The Savior has set us free from sin, but this is the freedom that comes from being set free from myself by the Son. It is what Paul meant in Galatians 2:20 when he said, “I have been crucified with Christ….” His individuality had been broken and his spirit had been united with his Lord; not just merged into Him, but made one with Him. “…you shall be free indeed”— free to the very core of your being; free from the inside to the outside. We tend to rely on our own energy, instead of being energized by the power that comes from identification with Jesus.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
The Boss Is the Issue - #7267
You know, flying commercial airlines isn't as much fun as it used to be. I mean it's more of a hassle. A lot of people who have to fly seem to agree with that. There are overbooked flights, and long lines at security, and cancelled flights, and crowded flights, and equipment problems, and all kinds of frustrating delays. Now if you don't like something about the way the airline is performing, guess who usually gets all the grief? I've seen it happen in the airport over and over again. That poor ticket agent.
See, the ticket agent usually has nothing to do with causing the problem, but you can go to almost any airport, go to some desk and find an agent being besieged by people yelling, waving their arms, threatening, using various forms of unpleasant language. I want to say, "Hey, don't blame the agent! Take your complaints to someone in charge." The representative isn't the issue. You need to deal with the person in charge.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Boss Is the Issue."
Alright, our word for today from the Word of God comes from Matthew 16, beginning at verse 13. "Jesus asked His disciples, 'Who do people say the Son of Man is?' They replied, 'Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; still others say Jeremiah or one of the prophets.' 'But what about you,' He asked. 'Who do you say I am?' Then Peter replied, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'"
Now Jesus says here the issue is "Who do you say I am? See, the issue is Me." Well you know, the issue still is Jesus. The disciples kind of give the answer in the local Gallop Survey, "35% say You are John the Baptist, 22% say You are Elijah..." Well, finally Jesus closes in and says, "Who do you say I am?" See that's the real issue. A lot of people are dealing with the representative of Jesus rather than dealing with the boss.
Jim is the son of some friends of ours, and they said that he has been really wandering from the Lord. He said to them other day, "What if I had grown up in a different family? Maybe I'd be another religion. I'm not sure I believe any of this any more." And I said, "Would you tell him that Jesus would still be who He claims He is, wherever that guy grew up. You guys get out of the middle! Don't make your faith the issue with your son. Don't make parent's religion the issue. Don't let church be the issue. Let Jim know the issue isn't his parent's beliefs. It's a Savior who's been there for 2,000 years before His parents were born, before that church existed. Jesus is the issue and He's saying, 'Who do you say I am?'"
Some other friends came to us about their son, and he had said to them, "I don't know if I believe it any more." And I said, "Well don't let him get away with that. The 'It' in Christianity is a Him-it's Jesus. I don't believe Him any more. Don't look at Christians, don't look at the church, don't look at Christian leaders, or your background, or your friends. They're just His representatives. Jesus is the issue. He said "follow Me." The only reason not to be with Jesus is something about Jesus. I remember talking to a cabbie from another religion. He said to me, "If you could only study our book with our greatest scholars, you would believe." And I said to him, "But at the end of my life, I would still not have a Savior from my sin, and I would end my life at the grave of a dead prophet instead of a risen Savior."
Listen, don't let people become the issue. Don't let religion become the issue. Go back 2,000 years before all of these things existed and there on the middle cross is the Son of God paying the price for every sin you ever committed. If you're rejecting Christianity or rebelling in some way, don't deal with smoke screens. It's God's Son, who gave His life for you, who blew the doors off of death when He walked out of the grave, He's the issue. Not His representatives, not His agent. Would you go directly to the person in charge? The issue is Jesus.
This day, in spite of a back turned to Him for many years, He waits with open arms, to welcome you into His love, expressed and proven by the price He paid on a cross for you. I want you to know this Jesus. Not His religion, Jesus. If you want to belong to Him then I would love to point you in that direction. Would you go to our website ANewStory.com and find for yourself, this Jesus who's been transforming lives for 2,000 years, and who walked out of His grave, so He could walk into your life today?
Monday, November 17, 2014
Numbers 16, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Give God Your Guilt
Is guilt having its way with you? If so, here is a promise from Isaiah 1:18: "No matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can take it out and make you as clean as freshly fallen snow." God can do what no one else can. He can extract every last mark from your soul.
Give God your guilt. Pray simply, "Father you are good. I need help. Forgive me. . ." Tell Jesus what you did. Do it as often as needed. One time, two times, ten times a day? By all means! Hold nothing back. No sin is too ancient or recent, too evil or insignificant.
Before amen-comes the power of a simple prayer. Sign on at BeforeAmen.com. Commit every day for 4 weeks, to pray 4 minutes. Then get ready to connect with God like never before!
From Before Amen
Numbers 16
Korah, Dathan and Abiram
Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and certain Reubenites—Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth—became insolent[h] 2 and rose up against Moses. With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council. 3 They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the Lord’s assembly?”
4 When Moses heard this, he fell facedown. 5 Then he said to Korah and all his followers: “In the morning the Lord will show who belongs to him and who is holy, and he will have that person come near him. The man he chooses he will cause to come near him. 6 You, Korah, and all your followers are to do this: Take censers 7 and tomorrow put burning coals and incense in them before the Lord. The man the Lord chooses will be the one who is holy. You Levites have gone too far!”
8 Moses also said to Korah, “Now listen, you Levites! 9 Isn’t it enough for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the Israelite community and brought you near himself to do the work at the Lord’s tabernacle and to stand before the community and minister to them? 10 He has brought you and all your fellow Levites near himself, but now you are trying to get the priesthood too. 11 It is against the Lord that you and all your followers have banded together. Who is Aaron that you should grumble against him?”
12 Then Moses summoned Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab. But they said, “We will not come! 13 Isn’t it enough that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to kill us in the wilderness? And now you also want to lord it over us! 14 Moreover, you haven’t brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey or given us an inheritance of fields and vineyards. Do you want to treat these men like slaves[i]? No, we will not come!”
15 Then Moses became very angry and said to the Lord, “Do not accept their offering. I have not taken so much as a donkey from them, nor have I wronged any of them.”
16 Moses said to Korah, “You and all your followers are to appear before the Lord tomorrow—you and they and Aaron. 17 Each man is to take his censer and put incense in it—250 censers in all—and present it before the Lord. You and Aaron are to present your censers also.” 18 So each of them took his censer, put burning coals and incense in it, and stood with Moses and Aaron at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 19 When Korah had gathered all his followers in opposition to them at the entrance to the tent of meeting, the glory of the Lord appeared to the entire assembly. 20 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 21 “Separate yourselves from this assembly so I can put an end to them at once.”
22 But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and cried out, “O God, the God who gives breath to all living things, will you be angry with the entire assembly when only one man sins?”
23 Then the Lord said to Moses, 24 “Say to the assembly, ‘Move away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram.’”
25 Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him. 26 He warned the assembly, “Move back from the tents of these wicked men! Do not touch anything belonging to them, or you will be swept away because of all their sins.” 27 So they moved away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram. Dathan and Abiram had come out and were standing with their wives, children and little ones at the entrances to their tents.
28 Then Moses said, “This is how you will know that the Lord has sent me to do all these things and that it was not my idea: 29 If these men die a natural death and suffer the fate of all mankind, then the Lord has not sent me. 30 But if the Lord brings about something totally new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the realm of the dead, then you will know that these men have treated the Lord with contempt.”
31 As soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart 32 and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, and all those associated with Korah, together with their possessions. 33 They went down alive into the realm of the dead, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community. 34 At their cries, all the Israelites around them fled, shouting, “The earth is going to swallow us too!”
35 And fire came out from the Lord and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense.
36 The Lord said to Moses, 37 “Tell Eleazar son of Aaron, the priest, to remove the censers from the charred remains and scatter the coals some distance away, for the censers are holy— 38 the censers of the men who sinned at the cost of their lives. Hammer the censers into sheets to overlay the altar, for they were presented before the Lord and have become holy. Let them be a sign to the Israelites.”
39 So Eleazar the priest collected the bronze censers brought by those who had been burned to death, and he had them hammered out to overlay the altar, 40 as the Lord directed him through Moses. This was to remind the Israelites that no one except a descendant of Aaron should come to burn incense before the Lord, or he would become like Korah and his followers.
41 The next day the whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. “You have killed the Lord’s people,” they said.
42 But when the assembly gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron and turned toward the tent of meeting, suddenly the cloud covered it and the glory of the Lord appeared. 43 Then Moses and Aaron went to the front of the tent of meeting, 44 and the Lord said to Moses, 45 “Get away from this assembly so I can put an end to them at once.” And they fell facedown.
46 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer and put incense in it, along with burning coals from the altar, and hurry to the assembly to make atonement for them. Wrath has come out from the Lord; the plague has started.” 47 So Aaron did as Moses said, and ran into the midst of the assembly. The plague had already started among the people, but Aaron offered the incense and made atonement for them. 48 He stood between the living and the dead, and the plague stopped. 49 But 14,700 people died from the plague, in addition to those who had died because of Korah. 50 Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance to the tent of meeting, for the plague had stopped.[j]
Numbers 16:1 Or Peleth—took men
Numbers 16:14 Or to deceive these men; Hebrew Will you gouge out the eyes of these men
Numbers 16:50 In Hebrew texts 16:36-50 is numbered 17:1-15.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, November 17, 2014
Read: Ephesians 6:10-18
The Whole Armor of God
A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we[a] are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. 15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.[b] 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.[c] 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.[d]
Footnotes:
6:12 Some manuscripts read you.
6:15 Or For shoes, put on the readiness to preach the Good News of peace with God.
6:16 Greek the evil one.
6:18 Greek all of God’s holy people.
Insight
The church at Ephesus, to whom the letter of Ephesians was written, was begun by the apostle Paul after he visited the city (Acts 18:18-21). Paul’s work there was followed by that of Apollos (vv.24-26), a man who had great passion but an incomplete understanding of the way of Christ. This prompted two of Paul’s colleagues, Aquila and Priscilla (v.26), to take Apollos under their wing and mentor him. This collaboration in ministry reveals how the work of the early church, so often focused on Paul’s work, was a true team effort.
Defeated Adversary
By Cindy Hess Kasper
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. —1 Peter 5:8
The roaring lion is the legendary “king of the jungle.” But the only lions many of us see are the lethargic felines that reside in zoos. Their days are filled with lots of rest, and their dinner is served to them without the lions having to lift a single paw.
In their natural habitat, however, lions aren’t always living a laid-back life. Their hunger tells them to go hunting, and in doing so they seek the young, weak, sick, or injured. Crouching in tall grasses, they slowly creep forward. Then with a sudden pounce, they clamp their jaws to the body of their victim.
Peter used “a roaring lion” as a metaphor for Satan. He is a confident predator, looking for easy prey to devour (1 Peter 5:8). In dealing with this adversary, God’s children must be vigilant at putting “on the whole armor of God” and thus they can “be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might” (Eph. 6:10-11).
The good news is that Satan is a defeated adversary. While he is a powerful foe, those who are protected by salvation, prayer, and the Word of God need not be paralyzed in fear at this roaring lion. We are “kept by the power of God” (1 Peter 1:5). James 4:7 assures us: “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”
Lord, we know that our enemy seeks to devour us.
Please protect us from him. We believe Your
Word that He who is in us is greater than he
who is in the world.
No evil can penetrate the armor of God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, November 17, 2014
The Eternal Goal
By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing…I will bless you… —Genesis 22:16-17
Abraham, at this point, has reached where he is in touch with the very nature of God. He now understands the reality of God.
My goal is God Himself…
At any cost, dear Lord, by any road.
“At any cost…by any road” means submitting to God’s way of bringing us to the goal.
There is no possibility of questioning God when He speaks, if He speaks to His own nature in me. Prompt obedience is the only result. When Jesus says, “Come,” I simply come; when He says, “Let go,” I let go; when He says, “Trust God in this matter,” I trust. This work of obedience is the evidence that the nature of God is in me.
God’s revelation of Himself to me is influenced by my character, not by God’s character.
’Tis because I am ordinary,
Thy ways so often look ordinary to me.
It is through the discipline of obedience that I get to the place where Abraham was and I see who God is. God will never be real to me until I come face to face with Him in Jesus Christ. Then I will know and can boldly proclaim, “In all the world, my God, there is none but Thee, there is none but Thee.”
The promises of God are of no value to us until, through obedience, we come to understand the nature of God. We may read some things in the Bible every day for a year and they may mean nothing to us. Then, because we have been obedient to God in some small detail, we suddenly see what God means and His nature is instantly opened up to us. “All the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen…” (2 Corinthians 1:20). Our “Yes” must be born of obedience; when by obedience we ratify a promise of God by saying, “Amen,” or, “So be it.” That promise becomes ours.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, November 17, 2014
A Soldier of Your Own - #7266
So who cares about the weather in Afghanistan, or Germany, or the Middle East, or Asia? Well...if you've got a soldier there, you care. All of the sudden you want to know what's going on, the news about that place is very important to you. You know, when you know and love someone, you're following all the news very closely from the part of the world that is now their home. It's amazing how your interests, how your involvement changes when you have a soldier of your own.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Soldier of Your Own."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Philippians 1, and we're reading the words of Paul; one of God's greatest warriors. We'll begin reading at verse 3. Now remember, this is written from prison, "I thank my God every time I remember you, and all my prayers for all of you. I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the Gospel, from the first day until now." Now verse 7, "It is right for me to feel this way about all of you since I have you in my heart whether I'm in chains or defending and confirming the Gospel. All of you share in God's grace with me."
Paul's great human source of strength in prison seems to be his brothers and sisters at the church in Philippi. In a sense, those Christians had attached themselves to a frontline warrior named Paul. They gave him prayer support. They gave him financial support. They gave him affection, encouragement, they cared about his work, they cared about his health, and they took an interest in the places he went. They had a soldier of their own! Do you?
See I believe God wants to lay on the heart of every believer, one of his frontline soldiers. So that you have someone for whom you feel some personal responsibility: missions, missionaries, who are reaching some corner of a lost world. And all of that that you hear about in missions messages and that's just a concept to you of missions and the great commission and going and making disciples of all nations, that all comes to life when you allow God to make you a personal partner with one of His warriors. What did Paul say? "I always pray with Joy because of your partnership in the Gospel." Who would call YOU a partner with them in the Gospel? See then it's not just pictures and missionary letters, and some detached general concern.
My wife and I have friends who are in various parts of the world representing Christ. We pray intensely for them. I think our kids grew up knowing the meaning of missions because missions had names for them. They were guests in our house. Those are the letters that we read in that stack of mail. We write letters to them.
See, each of us needs a deeply personal attachment to the cause of telling a dying world about Jesus. The Great Commission with a name on it. That's what happens when you partner with a missionary. That's what it means to know that you have someone like a Paul that's a missionary, that's on the frontlines. And if you are a Paul, if you are that missionary; you know what it means to have someone like those Philippian Christians. It's a source of strength when you need it most. I cannot tell you how much it has meant to us personally. In critical moments in ministry, in intense battles, in what seemed impossible situations, to know that there are people who said, "Ron, we pray for you every day." It is the greatest gift you could give me; it's the greatest gift you can give to anyone in God's work.
So, would you take some initiative to find a Paul that you could get involved with? God wants to do a divine matchup between a missionary who needs you and a missionary you need. You know what, we wake up to a part of the world when we have someone there that we love, when we have a soldier there. The Lord of the Harvest wants to give you a stake in some corner of this lost world because you've got a soldier of your own.
Is guilt having its way with you? If so, here is a promise from Isaiah 1:18: "No matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can take it out and make you as clean as freshly fallen snow." God can do what no one else can. He can extract every last mark from your soul.
Give God your guilt. Pray simply, "Father you are good. I need help. Forgive me. . ." Tell Jesus what you did. Do it as often as needed. One time, two times, ten times a day? By all means! Hold nothing back. No sin is too ancient or recent, too evil or insignificant.
Before amen-comes the power of a simple prayer. Sign on at BeforeAmen.com. Commit every day for 4 weeks, to pray 4 minutes. Then get ready to connect with God like never before!
From Before Amen
Numbers 16
Korah, Dathan and Abiram
Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and certain Reubenites—Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth—became insolent[h] 2 and rose up against Moses. With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council. 3 They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the Lord’s assembly?”
4 When Moses heard this, he fell facedown. 5 Then he said to Korah and all his followers: “In the morning the Lord will show who belongs to him and who is holy, and he will have that person come near him. The man he chooses he will cause to come near him. 6 You, Korah, and all your followers are to do this: Take censers 7 and tomorrow put burning coals and incense in them before the Lord. The man the Lord chooses will be the one who is holy. You Levites have gone too far!”
8 Moses also said to Korah, “Now listen, you Levites! 9 Isn’t it enough for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the Israelite community and brought you near himself to do the work at the Lord’s tabernacle and to stand before the community and minister to them? 10 He has brought you and all your fellow Levites near himself, but now you are trying to get the priesthood too. 11 It is against the Lord that you and all your followers have banded together. Who is Aaron that you should grumble against him?”
12 Then Moses summoned Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab. But they said, “We will not come! 13 Isn’t it enough that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to kill us in the wilderness? And now you also want to lord it over us! 14 Moreover, you haven’t brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey or given us an inheritance of fields and vineyards. Do you want to treat these men like slaves[i]? No, we will not come!”
15 Then Moses became very angry and said to the Lord, “Do not accept their offering. I have not taken so much as a donkey from them, nor have I wronged any of them.”
16 Moses said to Korah, “You and all your followers are to appear before the Lord tomorrow—you and they and Aaron. 17 Each man is to take his censer and put incense in it—250 censers in all—and present it before the Lord. You and Aaron are to present your censers also.” 18 So each of them took his censer, put burning coals and incense in it, and stood with Moses and Aaron at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 19 When Korah had gathered all his followers in opposition to them at the entrance to the tent of meeting, the glory of the Lord appeared to the entire assembly. 20 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 21 “Separate yourselves from this assembly so I can put an end to them at once.”
22 But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and cried out, “O God, the God who gives breath to all living things, will you be angry with the entire assembly when only one man sins?”
23 Then the Lord said to Moses, 24 “Say to the assembly, ‘Move away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram.’”
25 Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him. 26 He warned the assembly, “Move back from the tents of these wicked men! Do not touch anything belonging to them, or you will be swept away because of all their sins.” 27 So they moved away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram. Dathan and Abiram had come out and were standing with their wives, children and little ones at the entrances to their tents.
28 Then Moses said, “This is how you will know that the Lord has sent me to do all these things and that it was not my idea: 29 If these men die a natural death and suffer the fate of all mankind, then the Lord has not sent me. 30 But if the Lord brings about something totally new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the realm of the dead, then you will know that these men have treated the Lord with contempt.”
31 As soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart 32 and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, and all those associated with Korah, together with their possessions. 33 They went down alive into the realm of the dead, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community. 34 At their cries, all the Israelites around them fled, shouting, “The earth is going to swallow us too!”
35 And fire came out from the Lord and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense.
36 The Lord said to Moses, 37 “Tell Eleazar son of Aaron, the priest, to remove the censers from the charred remains and scatter the coals some distance away, for the censers are holy— 38 the censers of the men who sinned at the cost of their lives. Hammer the censers into sheets to overlay the altar, for they were presented before the Lord and have become holy. Let them be a sign to the Israelites.”
39 So Eleazar the priest collected the bronze censers brought by those who had been burned to death, and he had them hammered out to overlay the altar, 40 as the Lord directed him through Moses. This was to remind the Israelites that no one except a descendant of Aaron should come to burn incense before the Lord, or he would become like Korah and his followers.
41 The next day the whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. “You have killed the Lord’s people,” they said.
42 But when the assembly gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron and turned toward the tent of meeting, suddenly the cloud covered it and the glory of the Lord appeared. 43 Then Moses and Aaron went to the front of the tent of meeting, 44 and the Lord said to Moses, 45 “Get away from this assembly so I can put an end to them at once.” And they fell facedown.
46 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer and put incense in it, along with burning coals from the altar, and hurry to the assembly to make atonement for them. Wrath has come out from the Lord; the plague has started.” 47 So Aaron did as Moses said, and ran into the midst of the assembly. The plague had already started among the people, but Aaron offered the incense and made atonement for them. 48 He stood between the living and the dead, and the plague stopped. 49 But 14,700 people died from the plague, in addition to those who had died because of Korah. 50 Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance to the tent of meeting, for the plague had stopped.[j]
Numbers 16:1 Or Peleth—took men
Numbers 16:14 Or to deceive these men; Hebrew Will you gouge out the eyes of these men
Numbers 16:50 In Hebrew texts 16:36-50 is numbered 17:1-15.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, November 17, 2014
Read: Ephesians 6:10-18
The Whole Armor of God
A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we[a] are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. 15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.[b] 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.[c] 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.[d]
Footnotes:
6:12 Some manuscripts read you.
6:15 Or For shoes, put on the readiness to preach the Good News of peace with God.
6:16 Greek the evil one.
6:18 Greek all of God’s holy people.
Insight
The church at Ephesus, to whom the letter of Ephesians was written, was begun by the apostle Paul after he visited the city (Acts 18:18-21). Paul’s work there was followed by that of Apollos (vv.24-26), a man who had great passion but an incomplete understanding of the way of Christ. This prompted two of Paul’s colleagues, Aquila and Priscilla (v.26), to take Apollos under their wing and mentor him. This collaboration in ministry reveals how the work of the early church, so often focused on Paul’s work, was a true team effort.
Defeated Adversary
By Cindy Hess Kasper
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. —1 Peter 5:8
The roaring lion is the legendary “king of the jungle.” But the only lions many of us see are the lethargic felines that reside in zoos. Their days are filled with lots of rest, and their dinner is served to them without the lions having to lift a single paw.
In their natural habitat, however, lions aren’t always living a laid-back life. Their hunger tells them to go hunting, and in doing so they seek the young, weak, sick, or injured. Crouching in tall grasses, they slowly creep forward. Then with a sudden pounce, they clamp their jaws to the body of their victim.
Peter used “a roaring lion” as a metaphor for Satan. He is a confident predator, looking for easy prey to devour (1 Peter 5:8). In dealing with this adversary, God’s children must be vigilant at putting “on the whole armor of God” and thus they can “be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might” (Eph. 6:10-11).
The good news is that Satan is a defeated adversary. While he is a powerful foe, those who are protected by salvation, prayer, and the Word of God need not be paralyzed in fear at this roaring lion. We are “kept by the power of God” (1 Peter 1:5). James 4:7 assures us: “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”
Lord, we know that our enemy seeks to devour us.
Please protect us from him. We believe Your
Word that He who is in us is greater than he
who is in the world.
No evil can penetrate the armor of God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, November 17, 2014
The Eternal Goal
By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing…I will bless you… —Genesis 22:16-17
Abraham, at this point, has reached where he is in touch with the very nature of God. He now understands the reality of God.
My goal is God Himself…
At any cost, dear Lord, by any road.
“At any cost…by any road” means submitting to God’s way of bringing us to the goal.
There is no possibility of questioning God when He speaks, if He speaks to His own nature in me. Prompt obedience is the only result. When Jesus says, “Come,” I simply come; when He says, “Let go,” I let go; when He says, “Trust God in this matter,” I trust. This work of obedience is the evidence that the nature of God is in me.
God’s revelation of Himself to me is influenced by my character, not by God’s character.
’Tis because I am ordinary,
Thy ways so often look ordinary to me.
It is through the discipline of obedience that I get to the place where Abraham was and I see who God is. God will never be real to me until I come face to face with Him in Jesus Christ. Then I will know and can boldly proclaim, “In all the world, my God, there is none but Thee, there is none but Thee.”
The promises of God are of no value to us until, through obedience, we come to understand the nature of God. We may read some things in the Bible every day for a year and they may mean nothing to us. Then, because we have been obedient to God in some small detail, we suddenly see what God means and His nature is instantly opened up to us. “All the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen…” (2 Corinthians 1:20). Our “Yes” must be born of obedience; when by obedience we ratify a promise of God by saying, “Amen,” or, “So be it.” That promise becomes ours.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, November 17, 2014
A Soldier of Your Own - #7266
So who cares about the weather in Afghanistan, or Germany, or the Middle East, or Asia? Well...if you've got a soldier there, you care. All of the sudden you want to know what's going on, the news about that place is very important to you. You know, when you know and love someone, you're following all the news very closely from the part of the world that is now their home. It's amazing how your interests, how your involvement changes when you have a soldier of your own.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Soldier of Your Own."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Philippians 1, and we're reading the words of Paul; one of God's greatest warriors. We'll begin reading at verse 3. Now remember, this is written from prison, "I thank my God every time I remember you, and all my prayers for all of you. I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the Gospel, from the first day until now." Now verse 7, "It is right for me to feel this way about all of you since I have you in my heart whether I'm in chains or defending and confirming the Gospel. All of you share in God's grace with me."
Paul's great human source of strength in prison seems to be his brothers and sisters at the church in Philippi. In a sense, those Christians had attached themselves to a frontline warrior named Paul. They gave him prayer support. They gave him financial support. They gave him affection, encouragement, they cared about his work, they cared about his health, and they took an interest in the places he went. They had a soldier of their own! Do you?
See I believe God wants to lay on the heart of every believer, one of his frontline soldiers. So that you have someone for whom you feel some personal responsibility: missions, missionaries, who are reaching some corner of a lost world. And all of that that you hear about in missions messages and that's just a concept to you of missions and the great commission and going and making disciples of all nations, that all comes to life when you allow God to make you a personal partner with one of His warriors. What did Paul say? "I always pray with Joy because of your partnership in the Gospel." Who would call YOU a partner with them in the Gospel? See then it's not just pictures and missionary letters, and some detached general concern.
My wife and I have friends who are in various parts of the world representing Christ. We pray intensely for them. I think our kids grew up knowing the meaning of missions because missions had names for them. They were guests in our house. Those are the letters that we read in that stack of mail. We write letters to them.
See, each of us needs a deeply personal attachment to the cause of telling a dying world about Jesus. The Great Commission with a name on it. That's what happens when you partner with a missionary. That's what it means to know that you have someone like a Paul that's a missionary, that's on the frontlines. And if you are a Paul, if you are that missionary; you know what it means to have someone like those Philippian Christians. It's a source of strength when you need it most. I cannot tell you how much it has meant to us personally. In critical moments in ministry, in intense battles, in what seemed impossible situations, to know that there are people who said, "Ron, we pray for you every day." It is the greatest gift you could give me; it's the greatest gift you can give to anyone in God's work.
So, would you take some initiative to find a Paul that you could get involved with? God wants to do a divine matchup between a missionary who needs you and a missionary you need. You know what, we wake up to a part of the world when we have someone there that we love, when we have a soldier there. The Lord of the Harvest wants to give you a stake in some corner of this lost world because you've got a soldier of your own.
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