Max Lucado Daily: God's No-Tolerance Policy
Hypocrisy turns people against God, so he has a no-tolerance policy. Let's take hypocrisy as seriously as God does. For starters, expect no credit for good deeds. None! If no one notices, you aren't disappointed. If someone does, you give the credit to God. If no one knew of the good you do, would you still do it? If not, you're doing it to be seen by people.
Give financial gifts in secret. We like to be seen earning money. And we like to be seen giving it. Matthew 6:3 says, "So when you give to someone in need, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing."
Don't fake spirituality. Nothing nauseates more than a fake, "Praise the Lord," or a shallow "Hallelujah" or an insincere "Glory be to God."
Bottom line: Don't make a theater production out of your faith!
From Max on Life
Psalm 18
A David Song, Which He Sang to God After Being Saved from All His Enemies and from Saul
18 1-2 I love you, God—
you make me strong.
God is bedrock under my feet,
the castle in which I live,
my rescuing knight.
My God—the high crag
where I run for dear life,
hiding behind the boulders,
safe in the granite hideout.
3 I sing to God, the Praise-Lofty,
and find myself safe and saved.
4-5 The hangman’s noose was tight at my throat;
devil waters rushed over me.
Hell’s ropes cinched me tight;
death traps barred every exit.
6 A hostile world! I call to God,
I cry to God to help me.
From his palace he hears my call;
my cry brings me right into his presence—
a private audience!
7-15 Earth wobbles and lurches;
huge mountains shake like leaves,
Quake like aspen leaves
because of his rage.
His nostrils flare, bellowing smoke;
his mouth spits fire.
Tongues of fire dart in and out;
he lowers the sky.
He steps down;
under his feet an abyss opens up.
He’s riding a winged creature,
swift on wind-wings.
Now he’s wrapped himself
in a trenchcoat of black-cloud darkness.
But his cloud-brightness bursts through,
spraying hailstones and fireballs.
Then God thundered out of heaven;
the High God gave a great shout,
spraying hailstones and fireballs.
God shoots his arrows—pandemonium!
He hurls his lightnings—a rout!
The secret sources of ocean are exposed,
the hidden depths of earth lie uncovered
The moment you roar in protest,
let loose your hurricane anger.
16-19 But me he caught—reached all the way
from sky to sea; he pulled me out
Of that ocean of hate, that enemy chaos,
the void in which I was drowning.
They hit me when I was down,
but God stuck by me.
He stood me up on a wide-open field;
I stood there saved—surprised to be loved!
20-24 God made my life complete
when I placed all the pieces before him.
When I got my act together,
he gave me a fresh start.
Now I’m alert to God’s ways;
I don’t take God for granted.
Every day I review the ways he works;
I try not to miss a trick.
I feel put back together,
and I’m watching my step.
God rewrote the text of my life
when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes.
25-27 The good people taste your goodness,
The whole people taste your health,
The true people taste your truth,
The bad ones can’t figure you out.
You take the side of the down-and-out,
But the stuck-up you take down a peg.
28-29 Suddenly, God, you floodlight my life;
I’m blazing with glory, God’s glory!
I smash the bands of marauders,
I vault the highest fences.
30 What a God! His road
stretches straight and smooth.
Every God-direction is road-tested.
Everyone who runs toward him
Makes it.
31-42 Is there any god like God?
Are we not at bedrock?
Is not this the God who armed me,
then aimed me in the right direction?
Now I run like a deer;
I’m king of the mountain.
He shows me how to fight;
I can bend a bronze bow!
You protect me with salvation-armor;
you hold me up with a firm hand,
caress me with your gentle ways.
You cleared the ground under me
so my footing was firm.
When I chased my enemies I caught them;
I didn’t let go till they were dead men.
I nailed them; they were down for good;
then I walked all over them.
You armed me well for this fight,
you smashed the upstarts.
You made my enemies turn tail,
and I wiped out the haters.
They cried “uncle”
but Uncle didn’t come;
They yelled for God
and got no for an answer.
I ground them to dust; they gusted in the wind.
I threw them out, like garbage in the gutter.
43-45 You rescued me from a squabbling people;
you made me a leader of nations.
People I’d never heard of served me;
the moment they got wind of me they listened.
The foreign devils gave up; they came
on their bellies, crawling from their hideouts.
46-48 Live, God! Blessings from my Rock,
my free and freeing God, towering!
This God set things right for me
and shut up the people who talked back.
He rescued me from enemy anger,
he pulled me from the grip of upstarts,
He saved me from the bullies.
49-50 That’s why I’m thanking you, God,
all over the world.
That’s why I’m singing songs
that rhyme your name.
God’s king takes the trophy;
God’s chosen is beloved.
I mean David and all his children—
always.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, February 03, 2019
Today's Scripture: Jeremiah 5:18–23
“Even then, as bad as it will be”—God’s Decree!—“it will not be the end of the world for you. And when people ask, ‘Why did our God do all this to us?’ you must say to them, ‘It’s tit for tat. Just as you left me and served foreign gods in your own country, so now you must serve foreigners in their own country.’
20-25 “Tell the house of Jacob this,
put out this bulletin in Judah:
Listen to this,
you scatterbrains, airheads,
With eyes that see but don’t really look,
and ears that hear but don’t really listen.
Why don’t you honor me?
Why aren’t you in awe before me?
Yes, me, who made the shorelines
to contain the ocean waters.
I drew a line in the sand
that cannot be crossed.
Waves roll in but cannot get through;
breakers crash but that’s the end of them.
But this people—what a people!
Uncontrollable, untameable runaways.
It never occurs to them to say,
‘How can we honor our God with our lives,
The God who gives rain in both spring and autumn
and maintains the rhythm of the seasons,
Who sets aside time each year for harvest
and keeps everything running smoothly for us?’
Of course you don’t! Your bad behavior blinds you to all this.
Your sins keep my blessings at a distance.
Insight
The metaphor of eyes that don’t see and ears that don’t hear (Jeremiah 5:21) is used in Scripture to describe spiritual dullness. In Moses’s final words to Israel, he said, “The Lord has not given you a mind that understands or eyes that see or ears that hear” (Deuteronomy 29:4). John uses the phrase “Whoever has ears” repeatedly in Revelation (2:11, 29; 3:6, 13, 22). Three of the gospels record Jesus’s parable of the sower, where He says, “Whoever has ears [to hear], let them hear” (Matthew 13:9; Mark 4:9; Luke 8:8). Jesus told His disciples, “Blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear” (Matthew 13:16). The disciples often didn’t understand their Teacher, but they regularly turned to Him for insight. In Matthew 15:15, for instance, Peter asks Christ to explain a parable to them. Seeking God for guidance is integral to having ears to hear and eyes to see. By: Tim Gustafson
Ears Were Made for Listening
Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear. Jeremiah 5:21
Actress Diane Kruger was offered a role that would make her a household name. But it required her to play a young wife and mother experiencing the loss of her husband and child, and she had never personally suffered loss to such a degree. She didn’t know if she could be believable. But she accepted, and in order to prepare, she began attending support meetings for people walking through the valley of extreme grief.
Initially she offered suggestions and thoughts when those in the group shared their stories. She, like most of us, wanted to be helpful. But gradually she stopped talking, and simply started listening. It was only then she began truly learning to walk a mile in their shoes. And her realization came by using her ears.
Jeremiah’s indictment against the people was that they refused to use their “ears” to hear the Lord’s voice. The prophet did not mince words, calling them “foolish and senseless people” (Jeremiah 5:21). God is constantly at work in our lives communicating words of love, instruction, encouragement, and caution. The Father’s desire is that you and I learn and mature, and we have each been given the tools, such as ears, to do so. The question then is, will we use them to hear the heart of our Father? By John Blase
Today's Reflection
Father, I believe You are always speaking. Forgive my stubborn tendency to think I have all the answers. Open my ears that I may hear.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, February 03, 2019
The Compelling Force of the Call
Woe is me if I do not preach the gospel! —1 Corinthians 9:16
Beware of refusing to hear the call of God. Everyone who is saved is called to testify to the fact of his salvation. That, however, is not the same as the call to preach, but is merely an illustration which can be used in preaching. In this verse, Paul was referring to the stinging pains produced in him by the compelling force of the call to preach the gospel. Never try to apply what Paul said regarding the call to preach to those souls who are being called to God for salvation. There is nothing easier than getting saved, because it is solely God’s sovereign work— “Look to Me, and be saved…” (Isaiah 45:22). Our Lord never requires the same conditions for discipleship that he requires for salvation. We are condemned to salvation through the Cross of Christ. But discipleship has an option with it— “If anyone…” (Luke 14:26).
Paul’s words have to do with our being made servants of Jesus Christ, and our permission is never asked as to what we will do or where we will go. God makes us as broken bread and poured-out wine to please Himself. To be “separated to the gospel” means being able to hear the call of God (Romans 1:1). Once someone begins to hear that call, a suffering worthy of the name of Christ is produced. Suddenly, every ambition, every desire of life, and every outlook is completely blotted out and extinguished. Only one thing remains— “…separated to the gospel…” Woe be to the soul who tries to head in any other direction once that call has come to him. The Bible Training College exists so that each of you may know whether or not God has a man or woman here who truly cares about proclaiming His gospel and to see if God grips you for this purpose. Beware of competing calls once the call of God grips you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We must keep ourselves in touch, not with theories, but with people, and never get out of touch with human beings, if we are going to use the word of God skilfully amongst them. Workmen of God, 1341 L
Sunday, February 3, 2019
Saturday, February 2, 2019
John 6:22-40 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Appeal to the Heart
Remember the church at Corinth? A problem on every pew? Territorially selfish. Morally shameless. Theologically reckless. How do you help a congregation like that? You can correct them. Paul did. You can instruct them, which Paul did. You can reason with them; Paul did. But at some point you stop talking to the head and start appealing to the heart. And Paul did that.
I Corinthians 13:4-7 says, "Love. . .bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."
He saw only one solution-love! Don't we need the same prescription today? Someday there will be a community where everyone behaves and no one complains. But it won't be this side of heaven. So what do we do? We reason. We confront. We teach. But most of all, we love.
From Max on Life
John 6:22-40
The next day the crowd that was left behind realized that there had been only one boat, and that Jesus had not gotten into it with his disciples. They had seen them go off without him. By now boats from Tiberias had pulled up near where they had eaten the bread blessed by the Master. So when the crowd realized he was gone and wasn’t coming back, they piled into the Tiberias boats and headed for Capernaum, looking for Jesus.
25 When they found him back across the sea, they said, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
26 Jesus answered, “You’ve come looking for me not because you saw God in my actions but because I fed you, filled your stomachs—and for free.
27 “Don’t waste your energy striving for perishable food like that. Work for the food that sticks with you, food that nourishes your lasting life, food the Son of Man provides. He and what he does are guaranteed by God the Father to last.”
28 To that they said, “Well, what do we do then to get in on God’s works?”
29 Jesus said, “Throw your lot in with the One that God has sent. That kind of a commitment gets you in on God’s works.”
30-31 They waffled: “Why don’t you give us a clue about who you are, just a hint of what’s going on? When we see what’s up, we’ll commit ourselves. Show us what you can do. Moses fed our ancestors with bread in the desert. It says so in the Scriptures: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
32-33 Jesus responded, “The real significance of that Scripture is not that Moses gave you bread from heaven but that my Father is right now offering you bread from heaven, the real bread. The Bread of God came down out of heaven and is giving life to the world.”
34 They jumped at that: “Master, give us this bread, now and forever!”
35-38 Jesus said, “I am the Bread of Life. The person who aligns with me hungers no more and thirsts no more, ever. I have told you this explicitly because even though you have seen me in action, you don’t really believe me. Every person the Father gives me eventually comes running to me. And once that person is with me, I hold on and don’t let go. I came down from heaven not to follow my own whim but to accomplish the will of the One who sent me.
39-40 “This, in a nutshell, is that will: that everything handed over to me by the Father be completed—not a single detail missed—and at the wrap-up of time I have everything and everyone put together, upright and whole. This is what my Father wants: that anyone who sees the Son and trusts who he is and what he does and then aligns with him will enter real life, eternal life. My part is to put them on their feet alive and whole at the completion of time.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, February 02, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Joel 2:18-27
At that, God went into action to get his land back.
He took pity on his people.
God answered and spoke to his people,
“Look, listen—I’m sending a gift:
Grain and wine and olive oil.
The fast is over—eat your fill!
I won’t expose you any longer
to contempt among the pagans.
I’ll head off the final enemy coming out of the north
and dump them in a wasteland.
Half of them will end up in the Dead Sea,
the other half in the Mediterranean.
There they’ll rot, a stench to high heaven.
The bigger the enemy, the stronger the stench!”
21-24 Fear not, Earth! Be glad and celebrate!
God has done great things.
Fear not, wild animals!
The fields and meadows are greening up.
The trees are bearing fruit again:
a bumper crop of fig trees and vines!
Children of Zion, celebrate!
Be glad in your God.
He’s giving you a teacher
to train you how to live right—
Teaching, like rain out of heaven, showers of words
to refresh and nourish your soul, just as he used to do.
And plenty of food for your body—silos full of grain,
casks of wine and barrels of olive oil.
25-27 “I’ll make up for the years of the locust,
the great locust devastation—
Locusts savage, locusts deadly,
fierce locusts, locusts of doom,
That great locust invasion
I sent your way.
You’ll eat your fill of good food.
You’ll be full of praises to your God,
The God who has set you back on your heels in wonder.
Never again will my people be despised.
You’ll know without question
that I’m in the thick of life with Israel,
That I’m your God, yes, your God,
the one and only real God.
Never again will my people be despised.
Insight
The blessings of restoration Joel lists in 2:20-27 are the weal (benefits) that follow the woe (curses, punishments) listed in chapter one. This interchange is common in Scripture and especially in the prophetic books of the Old Testament. Whenever the prophets call out the sins of the people, they list the coming punishment. But weal always follows woe. After the punishment has been exercised and the people repent, the blessings come and the land and the people are restored. By: J.R. Hudberg
Restored
I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten. Joel 2:25
A 2003 infestation of Mormon crickets caused more than $25 million in lost crops. The crickets came in such numbers that people couldn’t so much as take a step without finding one underfoot. The grasshopper-like insect, named for attacking the crops of the Utah pioneers in 1848, can eat an astounding thirty-eight pounds of plant material in their lifetimes, despite being merely two to three inches long. The impact of infestations on famers’ livelihoods—and the overall economy of a state or country—can be devastating.
The Old Testament prophet Joel described a horde of similar insects ravaging the entire nation of Judah as a consequence for their collective disobedience. He foretold an invasion of locusts (a metaphor for a foreign army, in the minds of some Bible scholars) like nothing previous generations had seen (Joel 1:2). The locusts would lay waste to everything in their path, driving the people into famine and poverty. If, however, the people would turn from their sinful ways and ask God for forgiveness, Joel says the Lord would “repay [them] for the years the locusts have eaten” (2:25).
We too can learn from Judah’s lesson: like insects, our wrongdoings eat away at the fruitful, fragrant life God intended for us. When we turn toward Him, and away from our past choices, He promises to remove our shame and restore us to an abundant life in Him. By Kirsten Holmberg
Today's Reflection
What can you ask God’s forgiveness for today?
To learn more about Joel and other Old Testament prophets, see the free course at christianuniversity.org/OT128.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, February 02, 2019
The Compelling Force of the Call
Woe is me if I do not preach the gospel! —1 Corinthians 9:16
Beware of refusing to hear the call of God. Everyone who is saved is called to testify to the fact of his salvation. That, however, is not the same as the call to preach, but is merely an illustration which can be used in preaching. In this verse, Paul was referring to the stinging pains produced in him by the compelling force of the call to preach the gospel. Never try to apply what Paul said regarding the call to preach to those souls who are being called to God for salvation. There is nothing easier than getting saved, because it is solely God’s sovereign work— “Look to Me, and be saved…” (Isaiah 45:22). Our Lord never requires the same conditions for discipleship that he requires for salvation. We are condemned to salvation through the Cross of Christ. But discipleship has an option with it— “If anyone…” (Luke 14:26).
Paul’s words have to do with our being made servants of Jesus Christ, and our permission is never asked as to what we will do or where we will go. God makes us as broken bread and poured-out wine to please Himself. To be “separated to the gospel” means being able to hear the call of God (Romans 1:1). Once someone begins to hear that call, a suffering worthy of the name of Christ is produced. Suddenly, every ambition, every desire of life, and every outlook is completely blotted out and extinguished. Only one thing remains— “…separated to the gospel…” Woe be to the soul who tries to head in any other direction once that call has come to him. The Bible Training College exists so that each of you may know whether or not God has a man or woman here who truly cares about proclaiming His gospel and to see if God grips you for this purpose. Beware of competing calls once the call of God grips you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
It is in the middle that human choices are made; the beginning and the end remain with God. The decrees of God are birth and death, and in between those limits man makes his own distress or joy. Shade of His Hand, 1223 L
Remember the church at Corinth? A problem on every pew? Territorially selfish. Morally shameless. Theologically reckless. How do you help a congregation like that? You can correct them. Paul did. You can instruct them, which Paul did. You can reason with them; Paul did. But at some point you stop talking to the head and start appealing to the heart. And Paul did that.
I Corinthians 13:4-7 says, "Love. . .bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."
He saw only one solution-love! Don't we need the same prescription today? Someday there will be a community where everyone behaves and no one complains. But it won't be this side of heaven. So what do we do? We reason. We confront. We teach. But most of all, we love.
From Max on Life
John 6:22-40
The next day the crowd that was left behind realized that there had been only one boat, and that Jesus had not gotten into it with his disciples. They had seen them go off without him. By now boats from Tiberias had pulled up near where they had eaten the bread blessed by the Master. So when the crowd realized he was gone and wasn’t coming back, they piled into the Tiberias boats and headed for Capernaum, looking for Jesus.
25 When they found him back across the sea, they said, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
26 Jesus answered, “You’ve come looking for me not because you saw God in my actions but because I fed you, filled your stomachs—and for free.
27 “Don’t waste your energy striving for perishable food like that. Work for the food that sticks with you, food that nourishes your lasting life, food the Son of Man provides. He and what he does are guaranteed by God the Father to last.”
28 To that they said, “Well, what do we do then to get in on God’s works?”
29 Jesus said, “Throw your lot in with the One that God has sent. That kind of a commitment gets you in on God’s works.”
30-31 They waffled: “Why don’t you give us a clue about who you are, just a hint of what’s going on? When we see what’s up, we’ll commit ourselves. Show us what you can do. Moses fed our ancestors with bread in the desert. It says so in the Scriptures: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
32-33 Jesus responded, “The real significance of that Scripture is not that Moses gave you bread from heaven but that my Father is right now offering you bread from heaven, the real bread. The Bread of God came down out of heaven and is giving life to the world.”
34 They jumped at that: “Master, give us this bread, now and forever!”
35-38 Jesus said, “I am the Bread of Life. The person who aligns with me hungers no more and thirsts no more, ever. I have told you this explicitly because even though you have seen me in action, you don’t really believe me. Every person the Father gives me eventually comes running to me. And once that person is with me, I hold on and don’t let go. I came down from heaven not to follow my own whim but to accomplish the will of the One who sent me.
39-40 “This, in a nutshell, is that will: that everything handed over to me by the Father be completed—not a single detail missed—and at the wrap-up of time I have everything and everyone put together, upright and whole. This is what my Father wants: that anyone who sees the Son and trusts who he is and what he does and then aligns with him will enter real life, eternal life. My part is to put them on their feet alive and whole at the completion of time.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, February 02, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Joel 2:18-27
At that, God went into action to get his land back.
He took pity on his people.
God answered and spoke to his people,
“Look, listen—I’m sending a gift:
Grain and wine and olive oil.
The fast is over—eat your fill!
I won’t expose you any longer
to contempt among the pagans.
I’ll head off the final enemy coming out of the north
and dump them in a wasteland.
Half of them will end up in the Dead Sea,
the other half in the Mediterranean.
There they’ll rot, a stench to high heaven.
The bigger the enemy, the stronger the stench!”
21-24 Fear not, Earth! Be glad and celebrate!
God has done great things.
Fear not, wild animals!
The fields and meadows are greening up.
The trees are bearing fruit again:
a bumper crop of fig trees and vines!
Children of Zion, celebrate!
Be glad in your God.
He’s giving you a teacher
to train you how to live right—
Teaching, like rain out of heaven, showers of words
to refresh and nourish your soul, just as he used to do.
And plenty of food for your body—silos full of grain,
casks of wine and barrels of olive oil.
25-27 “I’ll make up for the years of the locust,
the great locust devastation—
Locusts savage, locusts deadly,
fierce locusts, locusts of doom,
That great locust invasion
I sent your way.
You’ll eat your fill of good food.
You’ll be full of praises to your God,
The God who has set you back on your heels in wonder.
Never again will my people be despised.
You’ll know without question
that I’m in the thick of life with Israel,
That I’m your God, yes, your God,
the one and only real God.
Never again will my people be despised.
Insight
The blessings of restoration Joel lists in 2:20-27 are the weal (benefits) that follow the woe (curses, punishments) listed in chapter one. This interchange is common in Scripture and especially in the prophetic books of the Old Testament. Whenever the prophets call out the sins of the people, they list the coming punishment. But weal always follows woe. After the punishment has been exercised and the people repent, the blessings come and the land and the people are restored. By: J.R. Hudberg
Restored
I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten. Joel 2:25
A 2003 infestation of Mormon crickets caused more than $25 million in lost crops. The crickets came in such numbers that people couldn’t so much as take a step without finding one underfoot. The grasshopper-like insect, named for attacking the crops of the Utah pioneers in 1848, can eat an astounding thirty-eight pounds of plant material in their lifetimes, despite being merely two to three inches long. The impact of infestations on famers’ livelihoods—and the overall economy of a state or country—can be devastating.
The Old Testament prophet Joel described a horde of similar insects ravaging the entire nation of Judah as a consequence for their collective disobedience. He foretold an invasion of locusts (a metaphor for a foreign army, in the minds of some Bible scholars) like nothing previous generations had seen (Joel 1:2). The locusts would lay waste to everything in their path, driving the people into famine and poverty. If, however, the people would turn from their sinful ways and ask God for forgiveness, Joel says the Lord would “repay [them] for the years the locusts have eaten” (2:25).
We too can learn from Judah’s lesson: like insects, our wrongdoings eat away at the fruitful, fragrant life God intended for us. When we turn toward Him, and away from our past choices, He promises to remove our shame and restore us to an abundant life in Him. By Kirsten Holmberg
Today's Reflection
What can you ask God’s forgiveness for today?
To learn more about Joel and other Old Testament prophets, see the free course at christianuniversity.org/OT128.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, February 02, 2019
The Compelling Force of the Call
Woe is me if I do not preach the gospel! —1 Corinthians 9:16
Beware of refusing to hear the call of God. Everyone who is saved is called to testify to the fact of his salvation. That, however, is not the same as the call to preach, but is merely an illustration which can be used in preaching. In this verse, Paul was referring to the stinging pains produced in him by the compelling force of the call to preach the gospel. Never try to apply what Paul said regarding the call to preach to those souls who are being called to God for salvation. There is nothing easier than getting saved, because it is solely God’s sovereign work— “Look to Me, and be saved…” (Isaiah 45:22). Our Lord never requires the same conditions for discipleship that he requires for salvation. We are condemned to salvation through the Cross of Christ. But discipleship has an option with it— “If anyone…” (Luke 14:26).
Paul’s words have to do with our being made servants of Jesus Christ, and our permission is never asked as to what we will do or where we will go. God makes us as broken bread and poured-out wine to please Himself. To be “separated to the gospel” means being able to hear the call of God (Romans 1:1). Once someone begins to hear that call, a suffering worthy of the name of Christ is produced. Suddenly, every ambition, every desire of life, and every outlook is completely blotted out and extinguished. Only one thing remains— “…separated to the gospel…” Woe be to the soul who tries to head in any other direction once that call has come to him. The Bible Training College exists so that each of you may know whether or not God has a man or woman here who truly cares about proclaiming His gospel and to see if God grips you for this purpose. Beware of competing calls once the call of God grips you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
It is in the middle that human choices are made; the beginning and the end remain with God. The decrees of God are birth and death, and in between those limits man makes his own distress or joy. Shade of His Hand, 1223 L
Friday, February 1, 2019
John 6:1-21, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: IF YOU HAVE A HEART LIKE HIS
What if for one day—24 hours—Jesus were to become you? Imagine. Your heart gets the day off, and your life is led by the heart of Christ. His priorities govern your actions. His passions drive your decisions. His love directs your behavior.
Would people notice a change? And how would you feel? What effect would this have on your stress level? Would you still do what you had planned to do? Obligations…appointments…would anything change?
God’s plan for you is nothing short of a new heart. Ephesians 4:23-24 says, “But you were taught to be made new in your hearts, to become a new person. That new person is made to be like God—made to be truly good and holy.” God loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to be just like Jesus.
Read more Just Like Jesus
John 6:1-21
After this, Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee (some call it Tiberias). A huge crowd followed him, attracted by the miracles they had seen him do among the sick. When he got to the other side, he climbed a hill and sat down, surrounded by his disciples. It was nearly time for the Feast of Passover, kept annually by the Jews.
5-6 When Jesus looked out and saw that a large crowd had arrived, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread to feed these people?” He said this to stretch Philip’s faith. He already knew what he was going to do.
7 Philip answered, “Two hundred silver pieces wouldn’t be enough to buy bread for each person to get a piece.”
8-9 One of the disciples—it was Andrew, brother to Simon Peter—said, “There’s a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But that’s a drop in the bucket for a crowd like this.”
10-11 Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.” There was a nice carpet of green grass in this place. They sat down, about five thousand of them. Then Jesus took the bread and, having given thanks, gave it to those who were seated. He did the same with the fish. All ate as much as they wanted.
12-13 When the people had eaten their fill, he said to his disciples, “Gather the leftovers so nothing is wasted.” They went to work and filled twelve large baskets with leftovers from the five barley loaves.
14-15 The people realized that God was at work among them in what Jesus had just done. They said, “This is the Prophet for sure, God’s Prophet right here in Galilee!” Jesus saw that in their enthusiasm, they were about to grab him and make him king, so he slipped off and went back up the mountain to be by himself.
16-21 In the evening his disciples went down to the sea, got in the boat, and headed back across the water to Capernaum. It had grown quite dark and Jesus had not yet returned. A huge wind blew up, churning the sea. They were maybe three or four miles out when they saw Jesus walking on the sea, quite near the boat. They were scared senseless, but he reassured them, “It’s me. It’s all right. Don’t be afraid.” So they took him on board. In no time they reached land—the exact spot they were headed to.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, February 01, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
1 Peter 4:7-11
Everything in the world is about to be wrapped up, so take nothing for granted. Stay wide-awake in prayer. Most of all, love each other as if your life depended on it. Love makes up for practically anything. Be quick to give a meal to the hungry, a bed to the homeless—cheerfully. Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it: if words, let it be God’s words; if help, let it be God’s hearty help. That way, God’s bright presence will be evident in everything through Jesus, and he’ll get all the credit as the One mighty in everything—encores to the end of time. Oh, yes!
Insight
You might think today’s reading is merely a list of commands Peter expects his readers to embrace. However, the statements in verse 11 are written in the form of urging or encouragement. This is evident by the beginning phrase “if anyone.” The challenges to those who speak (teach and preach) and to those who serve describe how these things are to be done—with confidence. The one who speaks is to speak with assurance that the message reflects the heart and mind of God, and the one who serves does so knowing that God’s strength will supply all that is needed for the task at hand. The result of such reliance? “That in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.”
For further study, see Knowing God Through 1 Peter at discoveryseries.org/sb242.
By: Bill Crowder
Deeper Love
God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8
When they first met, Edwin Stanton snubbed US president Abraham Lincoln personally and professionally—even referring to him as a “long-armed creature.” But Lincoln appreciated Stanton’s abilities and chose to forgive him, eventually appointing Stanton to a vital cabinet position during the Civil War. Stanton later grew to love Lincoln as a friend. It was Stanton who sat by Lincoln’s bed throughout the night after the president was shot at Ford’s Theater and whispered through tears on his passing, “Now he belongs to the ages.”
Reconciliation is a beautiful thing. The apostle Peter pointed followers of Jesus there when he wrote, “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8). Peter’s words cause me to wonder if he was thinking of his own denial of Jesus (Luke 22:54–62) and the forgiveness Jesus offered him (and us) through the cross.
The deep love Jesus demonstrated through His death on the cross frees us from the debt for our sins and opens the way for our reconciliation with God (Colossians 1:19–20). His forgiveness empowers us to forgive others as we realize we can’t forgive in our own strength and ask Him to help us. When we love others because our Savior loves them and forgive because He has forgiven us, God gives us strength to let go of the past and walk forward with Him into beautiful new places of grace. By James Banks
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, February 01, 2019
The Call of God
Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel… —1 Corinthians 1:17
Paul states here that the call of God is to preach the gospel. But remember what Paul means by “the gospel,” namely, the reality of redemption in our Lord Jesus Christ. We are inclined to make sanctification the goal of our preaching. Paul refers to personal experiences only by way of illustration, never as the end of the matter. We are not commissioned to preach salvation or sanctification— we are commissioned to lift up Jesus Christ (see John 12:32). It is an injustice to say that Jesus Christ labored in redemption to make me a saint. Jesus Christ labored in redemption to redeem the whole world and to place it perfectly whole and restored before the throne of God. The fact that we can experience redemption illustrates the power of its reality, but that experience is a byproduct and not the goal of redemption. If God were human, how sick and tired He would be of the constant requests we make for our salvation and for our sanctification. We burden His energies from morning till night asking for things for ourselves or for something from which we want to be delivered! When we finally touch the underlying foundation of the reality of the gospel of God, we will never bother Him anymore with little personal complaints.
The one passion of Paul’s life was to proclaim the gospel of God. He welcomed heartbreak, disillusionment, and tribulation for only one reason— these things kept him unmovable in his devotion to the gospel of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Jesus Christ is always unyielding to my claim to my right to myself. The one essential element in all our Lord’s teaching about discipleship is abandon, no calculation, no trace of self-interest.
Disciples Indeed
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, February 01, 2019
Letting Go Of the Wheel - #8365
Well, my wife said she knew we were in serious danger when I started rubbing my right leg – while driving, that is. See, I'm a marathon driver and I really like to drive. So Karen and I found ourselves in situations where I was starting to drive past my prime alertness. First sign of sleepiness – rubbing my leg. It must have been some kind of involuntary reflex. So she'd ask if I'd like her to drive. Of course not. Second sign – I'd start doing calisthenics to stay alert. And she would ask if I'd like her to drive. Silly girl; no way. Next sign of impending disaster – I would turn on the most obnoxious radio station I could find. Again, she would suggest that she drive and I'd answer, "I'm fine!" Then I roll down the window – even with the wind chill being, let's say, 30 below. Then, a little more insistent, Karen would say, "Honey, please let me drive." Finally – just before we became a National Safety Council statistic – I'd pull over to the side of the road and relinquish the wheel. You know what? I was out cold before Karen could even pull out on the highway again.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Letting Go Of The Wheel."
My wife sometimes had a hard time getting me to let go of the wheel. God knows that feeling – maybe with you too. Because, you see, some of us hang onto control for as long as we can, not realizing that we are heading for a crash if we don't let go. And we're missing miracles that God wants to do in our lives because we refuse to relinquish control.
You see that in flesh-and-blood in our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Kings 5:1. Naaman is Syria's greatest general. He's described in these words: "a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy." He has a problem totally beyond his control. Well, his Jewish servant girl suggests that he go to the prophet Elisha in Israel to be healed by God. It's interesting how Naaman goes about it.
Listen to this: "So Naaman left, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousands shekels of gold" – you get the idea – he's going to use his wealth to buy himself a cure. Then he decides to use his connections to get well – he goes right to the top. He goes right to the king of Israel. The king says he can't help him and he sends Naaman where he should have gone in the first place – to Elisha. Okay, here comes the motorcade. "So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha's house. Elisha sent a messenger to him..." Now imagine how that went over. The prophet won't even come out and see the mighty general; he delegates it to his servant. This is not going well so far.
Finally, the method of getting cured is not what Naaman wants or expects – to dip himself seven times in the muddy waters of the Jordan River. He almost leaves, still dying of leprosy. But he finally humbles himself, immerses himself in the river, and the Bible says, "his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy." Here's Naaman's exciting testimony to Elisha: "Now I know there is no God in all the world except in Israel...I will never again make sacrifices to any other god but the Lord."
There's a lot of Naaman in a lot of us. We want to hold on to the wheel, do it our way, maintain control. We want to contribute to the solution. We want to maintain our pride. But there's no miracle there – not until God has squeezed the last drop of you out of solving this, so you will know, as never before, His power and His love. God's answer is going to require your humility, not your help, and probably come from a source you wouldn't plan on or expect. So, the sooner you release control, the sooner God will respond and the sooner the cure will be yours.
You've been stubbornly hanging onto that wheel. God's been asking over and over, "Isn't it time you let Me drive? You'll crash if you don't." Isn't it time you pull over and finally let the Lord have the wheel?
What if for one day—24 hours—Jesus were to become you? Imagine. Your heart gets the day off, and your life is led by the heart of Christ. His priorities govern your actions. His passions drive your decisions. His love directs your behavior.
Would people notice a change? And how would you feel? What effect would this have on your stress level? Would you still do what you had planned to do? Obligations…appointments…would anything change?
God’s plan for you is nothing short of a new heart. Ephesians 4:23-24 says, “But you were taught to be made new in your hearts, to become a new person. That new person is made to be like God—made to be truly good and holy.” God loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to be just like Jesus.
Read more Just Like Jesus
John 6:1-21
After this, Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee (some call it Tiberias). A huge crowd followed him, attracted by the miracles they had seen him do among the sick. When he got to the other side, he climbed a hill and sat down, surrounded by his disciples. It was nearly time for the Feast of Passover, kept annually by the Jews.
5-6 When Jesus looked out and saw that a large crowd had arrived, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread to feed these people?” He said this to stretch Philip’s faith. He already knew what he was going to do.
7 Philip answered, “Two hundred silver pieces wouldn’t be enough to buy bread for each person to get a piece.”
8-9 One of the disciples—it was Andrew, brother to Simon Peter—said, “There’s a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But that’s a drop in the bucket for a crowd like this.”
10-11 Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.” There was a nice carpet of green grass in this place. They sat down, about five thousand of them. Then Jesus took the bread and, having given thanks, gave it to those who were seated. He did the same with the fish. All ate as much as they wanted.
12-13 When the people had eaten their fill, he said to his disciples, “Gather the leftovers so nothing is wasted.” They went to work and filled twelve large baskets with leftovers from the five barley loaves.
14-15 The people realized that God was at work among them in what Jesus had just done. They said, “This is the Prophet for sure, God’s Prophet right here in Galilee!” Jesus saw that in their enthusiasm, they were about to grab him and make him king, so he slipped off and went back up the mountain to be by himself.
16-21 In the evening his disciples went down to the sea, got in the boat, and headed back across the water to Capernaum. It had grown quite dark and Jesus had not yet returned. A huge wind blew up, churning the sea. They were maybe three or four miles out when they saw Jesus walking on the sea, quite near the boat. They were scared senseless, but he reassured them, “It’s me. It’s all right. Don’t be afraid.” So they took him on board. In no time they reached land—the exact spot they were headed to.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, February 01, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
1 Peter 4:7-11
Everything in the world is about to be wrapped up, so take nothing for granted. Stay wide-awake in prayer. Most of all, love each other as if your life depended on it. Love makes up for practically anything. Be quick to give a meal to the hungry, a bed to the homeless—cheerfully. Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it: if words, let it be God’s words; if help, let it be God’s hearty help. That way, God’s bright presence will be evident in everything through Jesus, and he’ll get all the credit as the One mighty in everything—encores to the end of time. Oh, yes!
Insight
You might think today’s reading is merely a list of commands Peter expects his readers to embrace. However, the statements in verse 11 are written in the form of urging or encouragement. This is evident by the beginning phrase “if anyone.” The challenges to those who speak (teach and preach) and to those who serve describe how these things are to be done—with confidence. The one who speaks is to speak with assurance that the message reflects the heart and mind of God, and the one who serves does so knowing that God’s strength will supply all that is needed for the task at hand. The result of such reliance? “That in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.”
For further study, see Knowing God Through 1 Peter at discoveryseries.org/sb242.
By: Bill Crowder
Deeper Love
God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8
When they first met, Edwin Stanton snubbed US president Abraham Lincoln personally and professionally—even referring to him as a “long-armed creature.” But Lincoln appreciated Stanton’s abilities and chose to forgive him, eventually appointing Stanton to a vital cabinet position during the Civil War. Stanton later grew to love Lincoln as a friend. It was Stanton who sat by Lincoln’s bed throughout the night after the president was shot at Ford’s Theater and whispered through tears on his passing, “Now he belongs to the ages.”
Reconciliation is a beautiful thing. The apostle Peter pointed followers of Jesus there when he wrote, “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8). Peter’s words cause me to wonder if he was thinking of his own denial of Jesus (Luke 22:54–62) and the forgiveness Jesus offered him (and us) through the cross.
The deep love Jesus demonstrated through His death on the cross frees us from the debt for our sins and opens the way for our reconciliation with God (Colossians 1:19–20). His forgiveness empowers us to forgive others as we realize we can’t forgive in our own strength and ask Him to help us. When we love others because our Savior loves them and forgive because He has forgiven us, God gives us strength to let go of the past and walk forward with Him into beautiful new places of grace. By James Banks
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, February 01, 2019
The Call of God
Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel… —1 Corinthians 1:17
Paul states here that the call of God is to preach the gospel. But remember what Paul means by “the gospel,” namely, the reality of redemption in our Lord Jesus Christ. We are inclined to make sanctification the goal of our preaching. Paul refers to personal experiences only by way of illustration, never as the end of the matter. We are not commissioned to preach salvation or sanctification— we are commissioned to lift up Jesus Christ (see John 12:32). It is an injustice to say that Jesus Christ labored in redemption to make me a saint. Jesus Christ labored in redemption to redeem the whole world and to place it perfectly whole and restored before the throne of God. The fact that we can experience redemption illustrates the power of its reality, but that experience is a byproduct and not the goal of redemption. If God were human, how sick and tired He would be of the constant requests we make for our salvation and for our sanctification. We burden His energies from morning till night asking for things for ourselves or for something from which we want to be delivered! When we finally touch the underlying foundation of the reality of the gospel of God, we will never bother Him anymore with little personal complaints.
The one passion of Paul’s life was to proclaim the gospel of God. He welcomed heartbreak, disillusionment, and tribulation for only one reason— these things kept him unmovable in his devotion to the gospel of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Jesus Christ is always unyielding to my claim to my right to myself. The one essential element in all our Lord’s teaching about discipleship is abandon, no calculation, no trace of self-interest.
Disciples Indeed
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, February 01, 2019
Letting Go Of the Wheel - #8365
Well, my wife said she knew we were in serious danger when I started rubbing my right leg – while driving, that is. See, I'm a marathon driver and I really like to drive. So Karen and I found ourselves in situations where I was starting to drive past my prime alertness. First sign of sleepiness – rubbing my leg. It must have been some kind of involuntary reflex. So she'd ask if I'd like her to drive. Of course not. Second sign – I'd start doing calisthenics to stay alert. And she would ask if I'd like her to drive. Silly girl; no way. Next sign of impending disaster – I would turn on the most obnoxious radio station I could find. Again, she would suggest that she drive and I'd answer, "I'm fine!" Then I roll down the window – even with the wind chill being, let's say, 30 below. Then, a little more insistent, Karen would say, "Honey, please let me drive." Finally – just before we became a National Safety Council statistic – I'd pull over to the side of the road and relinquish the wheel. You know what? I was out cold before Karen could even pull out on the highway again.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Letting Go Of The Wheel."
My wife sometimes had a hard time getting me to let go of the wheel. God knows that feeling – maybe with you too. Because, you see, some of us hang onto control for as long as we can, not realizing that we are heading for a crash if we don't let go. And we're missing miracles that God wants to do in our lives because we refuse to relinquish control.
You see that in flesh-and-blood in our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Kings 5:1. Naaman is Syria's greatest general. He's described in these words: "a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy." He has a problem totally beyond his control. Well, his Jewish servant girl suggests that he go to the prophet Elisha in Israel to be healed by God. It's interesting how Naaman goes about it.
Listen to this: "So Naaman left, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousands shekels of gold" – you get the idea – he's going to use his wealth to buy himself a cure. Then he decides to use his connections to get well – he goes right to the top. He goes right to the king of Israel. The king says he can't help him and he sends Naaman where he should have gone in the first place – to Elisha. Okay, here comes the motorcade. "So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha's house. Elisha sent a messenger to him..." Now imagine how that went over. The prophet won't even come out and see the mighty general; he delegates it to his servant. This is not going well so far.
Finally, the method of getting cured is not what Naaman wants or expects – to dip himself seven times in the muddy waters of the Jordan River. He almost leaves, still dying of leprosy. But he finally humbles himself, immerses himself in the river, and the Bible says, "his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy." Here's Naaman's exciting testimony to Elisha: "Now I know there is no God in all the world except in Israel...I will never again make sacrifices to any other god but the Lord."
There's a lot of Naaman in a lot of us. We want to hold on to the wheel, do it our way, maintain control. We want to contribute to the solution. We want to maintain our pride. But there's no miracle there – not until God has squeezed the last drop of you out of solving this, so you will know, as never before, His power and His love. God's answer is going to require your humility, not your help, and probably come from a source you wouldn't plan on or expect. So, the sooner you release control, the sooner God will respond and the sooner the cure will be yours.
You've been stubbornly hanging onto that wheel. God's been asking over and over, "Isn't it time you let Me drive? You'll crash if you don't." Isn't it time you pull over and finally let the Lord have the wheel?
Thursday, January 31, 2019
Psalm 70 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: FEAR OF THE LORD
Boxes bring wonderful order to our world. But when it comes to defining Christ, no box works. People prefer a god they can manage, control, and predict. Matthew 17:6 says Peter, James and John witnessed the transfiguration of Christ, and “they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid.” This is the fear of the Lord.
How long since you felt this fear? Since a glimpse of him that left you speechless and breathless? If it’s been a while, that explains your fears. A big God translates into big courage. A packageable Jesus may fit well on a shelf but does nothing for your fears.
We need to know the transfigured Christ. The longer we live in him, the greater he becomes in us. It is not that he changes but that we do. Agree with the words of David in Psalm 27:1, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?”
Read more Fearless
Psalm 70
A David Prayer
70 1-3 God! Please hurry to my rescue!
God, come quickly to my side!
Those who are out to get me—
let them fall all over themselves.
Those who relish my downfall—
send them down a blind alley.
Give them a taste of their own medicine,
those gossips off clucking their tongues.
4 Let those on the hunt for you
sing and celebrate.
Let all who love your saving way
say over and over, “God is mighty!”
5 But I’ve lost it. I’m wasted.
God—quickly, quickly!
Quick to my side, quick to my rescue!
God, don’t lose a minute.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, January 31, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:Galatians 4:1-7
Let me show you the implications of this. As long as the heir is a minor, he has no advantage over the slave. Though legally he owns the entire inheritance, he is subject to tutors and administrators until whatever date the father has set for emancipation. That is the way it is with us: When we were minors, we were just like slaves ordered around by simple instructions (the tutors and administrators of this world), with no say in the conduct of our own lives.
4-7 But when the time arrived that was set by God the Father, God sent his Son, born among us of a woman, born under the conditions of the law so that he might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the law. Thus we have been set free to experience our rightful heritage. You can tell for sure that you are now fully adopted as his own children because God sent the Spirit of his Son into our lives crying out, “Papa! Father!” Doesn’t that privilege of intimate conversation with God make it plain that you are not a slave, but a child? And if you are a child, you’re also an heir, with complete access to the inheritance.
Insight
Used only five times in the New Testament (and only by Paul), the word translated “adoption to sonship” (Galatians 4:5) is packed with meaning. Huiothesia is a compound Greek word from huios (“son”) and thesia (“placing”). Adoption took place when a child (almost exclusively males in the ancient world) was placed in a family that lacked a suitable heir. With adoption came privileges, rights, and responsibilities of family membership. Paul used the term “adoption,” but the concept of family membership is also present in John’s writing: “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! . . . Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:1–2). By: Arthur Jackson
Adopted
God sent his Son . . . that we might receive adoption to sonship. Galatians 4:4–5
I’m glad when a philanthropist builds an orphanage for homeless children. I’m thrilled when that person gives even more and adopts one of them. Most orphans would be delighted merely to have a patron. But then to learn the sponsor isn’t content merely to help me but also wants me. How must that feel?
If you’re a child of God you already know, because it’s happened to you. We couldn’t complain if God had merely loved us enough to send His Son that we might “not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). It would be enough for us. But not for God. He “sent his Son . . . to redeem” us, not as an end in itself, but “that we might receive adoption to sonship” (Galatians 4:4–5).
The apostle Paul refers to us as “sons” because in his day it was common for sons to inherit their father’s wealth. His point is that now everyone who puts their faith in Jesus, whether man or woman, becomes a “son” of God with equal and full rights of inheritance (v. 7).
God does not merely want to save you. He wants you. He has adopted you into His family, given you His name (Revelation 3:12), and proudly calls you His child. You could not possibly be loved more, or by anyone more important. You aren’t merely blessed by God. You are the child of God. Your Father loves you. By Mike Wittmer
Today's Reflection
Father, what a privilege to call You this! Thank You for saving me, and for wanting me.
Welcome to Mike Wittmer! Meet all our authors at odb.org/all-authors.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, January 31, 2019
Do You See Your Calling?
…separated to the gospel of God… —Romans 1:1
Our calling is not primarily to be holy men and women, but to be proclaimers of the gospel of God. The one all-important thing is that the gospel of God should be recognized as the abiding reality. Reality is not human goodness, or holiness, or heaven, or hell— it is redemption. The need to perceive this is the most vital need of the Christian worker today. As workers, we have to get used to the revelation that redemption is the only reality. Personal holiness is an effect of redemption, not the cause of it. If we place our faith in human goodness we will go under when testing comes.
Paul did not say that he separated himself, but “when it pleased God, who separated me…” (Galatians 1:15). Paul was not overly interested in his own character. And as long as our eyes are focused on our own personal holiness, we will never even get close to the full reality of redemption. Christian workers fail because they place their desire for their own holiness above their desire to know God. “Don’t ask me to be confronted with the strong reality of redemption on behalf of the filth of human life surrounding me today; what I want is anything God can do for me to make me more desirable in my own eyes.” To talk that way is a sign that the reality of the gospel of God has not begun to touch me. There is no reckless abandon to God in that. God cannot deliver me while my interest is merely in my own character. Paul was not conscious of himself. He was recklessly abandoned, totally surrendered, and separated by God for one purpose— to proclaim the gospel of God (see Romans 9:3).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
When a man’s heart is right with God the mysterious utterances of the Bible are spirit and life to him. Spiritual truth is discernible only to a pure heart, not to a keen intellect. It is not a question of profundity of intellect, but of purity of heart. Bringing Sons Unto Glory, 231 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, January 31, 2019
Safety When Your World Is Collapsing - #8364
He was just a teenager and his village had just collapsed all around him. He was one of countless thousands who were affected by a massive earthquake that hit Turkey. In an interview with National Geographic Magazine, this young man offered an amazingly insightful perspective on what he had just witnessed. He said, "I accept this as a geologic event, but it can be taken as a warning. In seconds, billionaires can become penniless. So you must have values you cannot lose." Wow!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Safety When Your World Is Collapsing."
In a sense, we all live in an earthquake zone. There are times when everything in your world is shaken by forces you can't control. It might be one of those times in your life right now. And like that young man in Turkey observed after so much collapsed so quickly, life's quakes remind us how losable things are, how breakable, how vulnerable we are. In fact, "vulnerable" might be a word that describes how you're feeling right now.
Then, I think you'll find from our word for today from the Word of God something pretty encouraging. In Proverbs 18:10, God says, "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe." Safe; it's a good word. It's hard to feel that when a relationship you've counted on is collapsing all around you, when there are suddenly serious questions about your health or your job or someone you love, or when things or people you've counted on just can't be counted on anymore. But "safe"? That's what the Lord offers you in a relationship with Him. It's what that earthquake victim talked about-something "you cannot lose" he said.
I'll never forget the night one of our Native American team members told her heart-rending story to all the young people of a Native village. Tearfully, she told about a life of violation. She had been raped as a little girl. She'd been sexually abused over a period of years, and she'd been hurt by alcoholic parents. By the time she got to her teenage years, she tried to find some relief from her pain in alcohol and sexual relationships. But those things only added to her despair. But then she told about giving the broken pieces of her life to Jesus Christ and asking Him to be her Savior from her sin. I just about lost it when she concluded this way, "Now that I belong to Jesus, I feel safe for the first time in my life."
When you run into the strong tower of a relationship with Jesus, you finally are safe. He's the relationship you were made for; the anchor you've been looking for in a world where everything else is so losable. You'll never lose Jesus, because His love for you is unconditional. He proved it by blood when He died on the cross to pay for every sin you've ever committed. In God's own words, "God demonstrated His own love for us in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).
If you're ready to finally surrender the self-government of your life, then you're ready to start living for the One you were designed to live for. And Jesus is waiting for you with open arms to welcome you into His unlosable love.
If you're not sure you have a relationship with Him and you want to, you've got to tell Him. Maybe in words something like this: "Jesus, I know I was created by you and I was created for You. I've lived pretty much for me. And I know your Bible says that there's a death penalty for hijacking my life from You, and I deserve to pay that. But I believe You loved me so much that You paid for it. You paid for my sin when you died on the cross. Now I know you're alive because You walked out of your grave. And Jesus, today I'm turning my back on running my life. I resign that, and beginning today I put all my trust in You. Jesus, I'm Yours."
Our website is for you in a moment like this. It's a crossroads website. It's called ANewStory.com, and if you go there, there'll be some information there that will encourage you and assure you that you belong to Jesus now.
There's no quake in your life that can pry you from the loving hands of Jesus Christ. When you belong to Him, for the first time in your life, you are really safe.
Boxes bring wonderful order to our world. But when it comes to defining Christ, no box works. People prefer a god they can manage, control, and predict. Matthew 17:6 says Peter, James and John witnessed the transfiguration of Christ, and “they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid.” This is the fear of the Lord.
How long since you felt this fear? Since a glimpse of him that left you speechless and breathless? If it’s been a while, that explains your fears. A big God translates into big courage. A packageable Jesus may fit well on a shelf but does nothing for your fears.
We need to know the transfigured Christ. The longer we live in him, the greater he becomes in us. It is not that he changes but that we do. Agree with the words of David in Psalm 27:1, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?”
Read more Fearless
Psalm 70
A David Prayer
70 1-3 God! Please hurry to my rescue!
God, come quickly to my side!
Those who are out to get me—
let them fall all over themselves.
Those who relish my downfall—
send them down a blind alley.
Give them a taste of their own medicine,
those gossips off clucking their tongues.
4 Let those on the hunt for you
sing and celebrate.
Let all who love your saving way
say over and over, “God is mighty!”
5 But I’ve lost it. I’m wasted.
God—quickly, quickly!
Quick to my side, quick to my rescue!
God, don’t lose a minute.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, January 31, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:Galatians 4:1-7
Let me show you the implications of this. As long as the heir is a minor, he has no advantage over the slave. Though legally he owns the entire inheritance, he is subject to tutors and administrators until whatever date the father has set for emancipation. That is the way it is with us: When we were minors, we were just like slaves ordered around by simple instructions (the tutors and administrators of this world), with no say in the conduct of our own lives.
4-7 But when the time arrived that was set by God the Father, God sent his Son, born among us of a woman, born under the conditions of the law so that he might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the law. Thus we have been set free to experience our rightful heritage. You can tell for sure that you are now fully adopted as his own children because God sent the Spirit of his Son into our lives crying out, “Papa! Father!” Doesn’t that privilege of intimate conversation with God make it plain that you are not a slave, but a child? And if you are a child, you’re also an heir, with complete access to the inheritance.
Insight
Used only five times in the New Testament (and only by Paul), the word translated “adoption to sonship” (Galatians 4:5) is packed with meaning. Huiothesia is a compound Greek word from huios (“son”) and thesia (“placing”). Adoption took place when a child (almost exclusively males in the ancient world) was placed in a family that lacked a suitable heir. With adoption came privileges, rights, and responsibilities of family membership. Paul used the term “adoption,” but the concept of family membership is also present in John’s writing: “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! . . . Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:1–2). By: Arthur Jackson
Adopted
God sent his Son . . . that we might receive adoption to sonship. Galatians 4:4–5
I’m glad when a philanthropist builds an orphanage for homeless children. I’m thrilled when that person gives even more and adopts one of them. Most orphans would be delighted merely to have a patron. But then to learn the sponsor isn’t content merely to help me but also wants me. How must that feel?
If you’re a child of God you already know, because it’s happened to you. We couldn’t complain if God had merely loved us enough to send His Son that we might “not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). It would be enough for us. But not for God. He “sent his Son . . . to redeem” us, not as an end in itself, but “that we might receive adoption to sonship” (Galatians 4:4–5).
The apostle Paul refers to us as “sons” because in his day it was common for sons to inherit their father’s wealth. His point is that now everyone who puts their faith in Jesus, whether man or woman, becomes a “son” of God with equal and full rights of inheritance (v. 7).
God does not merely want to save you. He wants you. He has adopted you into His family, given you His name (Revelation 3:12), and proudly calls you His child. You could not possibly be loved more, or by anyone more important. You aren’t merely blessed by God. You are the child of God. Your Father loves you. By Mike Wittmer
Today's Reflection
Father, what a privilege to call You this! Thank You for saving me, and for wanting me.
Welcome to Mike Wittmer! Meet all our authors at odb.org/all-authors.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, January 31, 2019
Do You See Your Calling?
…separated to the gospel of God… —Romans 1:1
Our calling is not primarily to be holy men and women, but to be proclaimers of the gospel of God. The one all-important thing is that the gospel of God should be recognized as the abiding reality. Reality is not human goodness, or holiness, or heaven, or hell— it is redemption. The need to perceive this is the most vital need of the Christian worker today. As workers, we have to get used to the revelation that redemption is the only reality. Personal holiness is an effect of redemption, not the cause of it. If we place our faith in human goodness we will go under when testing comes.
Paul did not say that he separated himself, but “when it pleased God, who separated me…” (Galatians 1:15). Paul was not overly interested in his own character. And as long as our eyes are focused on our own personal holiness, we will never even get close to the full reality of redemption. Christian workers fail because they place their desire for their own holiness above their desire to know God. “Don’t ask me to be confronted with the strong reality of redemption on behalf of the filth of human life surrounding me today; what I want is anything God can do for me to make me more desirable in my own eyes.” To talk that way is a sign that the reality of the gospel of God has not begun to touch me. There is no reckless abandon to God in that. God cannot deliver me while my interest is merely in my own character. Paul was not conscious of himself. He was recklessly abandoned, totally surrendered, and separated by God for one purpose— to proclaim the gospel of God (see Romans 9:3).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
When a man’s heart is right with God the mysterious utterances of the Bible are spirit and life to him. Spiritual truth is discernible only to a pure heart, not to a keen intellect. It is not a question of profundity of intellect, but of purity of heart. Bringing Sons Unto Glory, 231 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, January 31, 2019
Safety When Your World Is Collapsing - #8364
He was just a teenager and his village had just collapsed all around him. He was one of countless thousands who were affected by a massive earthquake that hit Turkey. In an interview with National Geographic Magazine, this young man offered an amazingly insightful perspective on what he had just witnessed. He said, "I accept this as a geologic event, but it can be taken as a warning. In seconds, billionaires can become penniless. So you must have values you cannot lose." Wow!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Safety When Your World Is Collapsing."
In a sense, we all live in an earthquake zone. There are times when everything in your world is shaken by forces you can't control. It might be one of those times in your life right now. And like that young man in Turkey observed after so much collapsed so quickly, life's quakes remind us how losable things are, how breakable, how vulnerable we are. In fact, "vulnerable" might be a word that describes how you're feeling right now.
Then, I think you'll find from our word for today from the Word of God something pretty encouraging. In Proverbs 18:10, God says, "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe." Safe; it's a good word. It's hard to feel that when a relationship you've counted on is collapsing all around you, when there are suddenly serious questions about your health or your job or someone you love, or when things or people you've counted on just can't be counted on anymore. But "safe"? That's what the Lord offers you in a relationship with Him. It's what that earthquake victim talked about-something "you cannot lose" he said.
I'll never forget the night one of our Native American team members told her heart-rending story to all the young people of a Native village. Tearfully, she told about a life of violation. She had been raped as a little girl. She'd been sexually abused over a period of years, and she'd been hurt by alcoholic parents. By the time she got to her teenage years, she tried to find some relief from her pain in alcohol and sexual relationships. But those things only added to her despair. But then she told about giving the broken pieces of her life to Jesus Christ and asking Him to be her Savior from her sin. I just about lost it when she concluded this way, "Now that I belong to Jesus, I feel safe for the first time in my life."
When you run into the strong tower of a relationship with Jesus, you finally are safe. He's the relationship you were made for; the anchor you've been looking for in a world where everything else is so losable. You'll never lose Jesus, because His love for you is unconditional. He proved it by blood when He died on the cross to pay for every sin you've ever committed. In God's own words, "God demonstrated His own love for us in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).
If you're ready to finally surrender the self-government of your life, then you're ready to start living for the One you were designed to live for. And Jesus is waiting for you with open arms to welcome you into His unlosable love.
If you're not sure you have a relationship with Him and you want to, you've got to tell Him. Maybe in words something like this: "Jesus, I know I was created by you and I was created for You. I've lived pretty much for me. And I know your Bible says that there's a death penalty for hijacking my life from You, and I deserve to pay that. But I believe You loved me so much that You paid for it. You paid for my sin when you died on the cross. Now I know you're alive because You walked out of your grave. And Jesus, today I'm turning my back on running my life. I resign that, and beginning today I put all my trust in You. Jesus, I'm Yours."
Our website is for you in a moment like this. It's a crossroads website. It's called ANewStory.com, and if you go there, there'll be some information there that will encourage you and assure you that you belong to Jesus now.
There's no quake in your life that can pry you from the loving hands of Jesus Christ. When you belong to Him, for the first time in your life, you are really safe.
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Psalm 64, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: FEAR OF GLOBAL CALAMITY
Life is a dangerous endeavor. And Christ tells us that things will get worse. We can expect heretical teachers. Stick to one question— is this person directing listeners to Jesus? If so, pray for that individual. If not, get out.
We can expect calamity. Christians will suffer the most. “Voice of the Martyrs” contends that more Christ-followers have been killed for their faith in the last century than all previous centuries combined. Even America suffers from increasing anger toward Christians.
Don’t give up. Jesus equipped his followers with farsighted courage. He said, “But he who stands firm to the end shall be saved” (Matthew 24:13). All things, big and small, flow out of the purpose of God and serve his good will. Though the world may collapse, the work of Christ will endure.
Read more Fearless
Psalm 64
A David Psalm
Listen and help, O God.
I’m reduced to a whine
And a whimper, obsessed
with feelings of doomsday.
2-6 Don’t let them find me—
the conspirators out to get me,
Using their tongues as weapons,
flinging poison words,
poison-tipped arrow-words.
They shoot from ambush,
shoot without warning,
not caring who they hit.
They keep fit doing calisthenics
of evil purpose,
They keep lists of the traps
they’ve secretly set.
They say to each other,
“No one can catch us,
no one can detect our perfect crime.”
The Detective detects the mystery
in the dark of the cellar heart.
7-8 The God of the Arrow shoots!
They double up in pain,
Fall flat on their faces
in full view of the grinning crowd.
9-10 Everyone sees it. God’s
work is the talk of the town.
Be glad, good people! Fly to God!
Good-hearted people, make praise your habit.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Job 37:14-24
“Job, are you listening? Have you noticed all this?
Stop in your tracks! Take in God’s miracle-wonders!
Do you have any idea how God does it all,
how he makes bright lightning from dark storms,
How he piles up the cumulus clouds—
all these miracle-wonders of a perfect Mind?
Why, you don’t even know how to keep cool
on a sweltering hot day,
So how could you even dream
of making a dent in that hot-tin-roof sky?
19-22 “If you’re so smart, give us a lesson in how to address God.
We’re in the dark and can’t figure it out.
Do you think I’m dumb enough to challenge God?
Wouldn’t that just be asking for trouble?
No one in his right mind stares straight at the sun
on a clear and cloudless day.
As gold comes from the northern mountains,
so a terrible beauty streams from God.
23-24 “Mighty God! Far beyond our reach!
Unsurpassable in power and justice!
It’s unthinkable that he’d treat anyone unfairly.
So bow to him in deep reverence, one and all!
If you’re wise, you’ll most certainly worship him.”
Insight
After three rounds of heated discussion, Job and his friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar (Job 2:11) are at an impasse in their debate of theodicy—the question of why a good God permits evil. Elihu, being a much younger man, had waited for his turn to speak and now gives his insights (chs. 32–37). Elihu was a Buzite (32:2). Buz was a son of Nahor, Abraham’s brother (Genesis 22:20–21), which makes Elihu a descendant of one of Abraham’s nephews. Concluding his rebuke in this fourth and final speech, Elihu highlights God’s power and majesty (chs. 36–37). He asks Job to “consider God’s wonders” (37:14) in controlling His creation, challenging Job to explain how God sovereignly controls the meteorological elements—the clouds, lightning, winds, skies, and sun (vv. 15–24). Elihu tells Job to fear and revere such a great God (v. 24).
By: K. T. Sim
Algae and Diatoms
Stop and consider God’s wonders. Job 37:14
“What’s a diatom?” I asked my friend. I was leaning over her shoulder looking at pictures on her cell phone she had taken through a microscope. “Oh, it’s like algae, but it’s harder to see. Sometimes you need a drop of oil on the lens or they have to be dead to see them,” she explained. I sat amazed as she scrolled through the pictures. I couldn’t stop thinking about the intricate detail God put into life that we can only see with a microscope!
God’s creation and works are endless. In the book of Job, one of Job’s friends, Elihu, points this out to Job as he struggles through his loss. Elihu challenges his friend, “Listen to this, Job; stop and consider God’s wonders. Do you know how God controls the clouds and makes his lightning flash? Do you know how the clouds hang poised, those wonders of him who has perfect knowledge?” (Job 37:14–16). We, as humans, can’t begin to understand the complexity of God and His creation.
Even the parts of creation we can’t see reflect God’s glory and power. His glory surrounds us. No matter what we’re going through, God is working, even when we can’t see it and don’t understand. Let’s praise Him today, for “He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted” (Job 5:9). By Julie Schwab
Today's Reflection
Lord, thank You for the detail You put into creation and for being at work even when we can’t see it.
Welcome to Julie Schwab! Meet all our authors at odb.org/all-authors.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
The Dilemma of Obedience
Samuel was afraid to tell Eli the vision. —1 Samuel 3:15
God never speaks to us in dramatic ways, but in ways that are easy to misunderstand. Then we say, “I wonder if that is God’s voice?” Isaiah said that the Lord spoke to him “with a strong hand,” that is, by the pressure of his circumstances (Isaiah 8:11). Without the sovereign hand of God Himself, nothing touches our lives. Do we discern His hand at work, or do we see things as mere occurrences?
Get into the habit of saying, “Speak, Lord,” and life will become a romance (1 Samuel 3:9). Every time circumstances press in on you, say, “Speak, Lord,” and make time to listen. Chastening is more than a means of discipline— it is meant to bring me to the point of saying, “Speak, Lord.” Think back to a time when God spoke to you. Do you remember what He said? Was it Luke 11:13, or was it 1 Thessalonians 5:23? As we listen, our ears become more sensitive, and like Jesus, we will hear God all the time.
Should I tell my “Eli” what God has shown to me? This is where the dilemma of obedience hits us. We disobey God by becoming amateur providences and thinking, “I must shield ‘Eli,’ ” who represents the best people we know. God did not tell Samuel to tell Eli— he had to decide that for himself. God’s message to you may hurt your “Eli,” but trying to prevent suffering in another’s life will prove to be an obstruction between your soul and God. It is at your own risk that you prevent someone’s right hand being cut off or right eye being plucked out (see Matthew 5:29-30).
Never ask another person’s advice about anything God makes you decide before Him. If you ask advice, you will almost always side with Satan. “…I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood…” (Galatians 1:16).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
When a man’s heart is right with God the mysterious utterances of the Bible are spirit and life to him. Spiritual truth is discernible only to a pure heart, not to a keen intellect. It is not a question of profundity of intellect, but of purity of heart. Bringing Sons Unto Glory, 231 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Why Our Lives Come Out Flat - #8363
Oh, those firstborn children. Somewhere inside their brain is this tattoo: "I can do it myself." Wait. I'm a firstborn. So is our daughter. And when she decided at the age of five that she was going to bake a cake, she, of course, didn't need any help. Her "I'm going to bake a cake" moment was a good news/bad news announcement for me. Good news: my little girl is growing up. Bad news: I have to eat it. We heard a lot of banging of pans in the kitchen and ultimately the smells of something baking. Maybe this was going to work after all. Minutes later, my little girl came into the living room, almost tripping over her lower lip. She was sad. She explained: "Daddy, it came out flat." Then she brought in her first cake. Or maybe I should say pancake. It was that flat. That's when Sr. Baking Advisor, Mom, entered the picture to see what our daughter could learn from the cake that fell flat. She'd put in the milk, the eggs, the flour. But she just forgot one ingredient-the baking powder-the anti-flat ingredient in a cake.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Why Our Lives Come Out Flat."
Our daughter's cake came out flat for one reason. There was one important ingredient missing. Just like the lives of so many of us who are followers of Christ. We've got a lot of right ingredients: we praise the Lord, we serve the Lord, we love the Lord, we study God's Word, we pray. But there's still this feeling there's got to be more. Our faith is real, it's important to us, but our lives feel so flat. There's something missing.
There is, in fact, a missing ingredient in many Christian lives and Christian churches. It's not missing in the lives and the teaching of the most powerful believers in history-those first Christians of the Book of Acts. From the record of their full and world-rocking lives comes this recipe for getting all God has. It's in Acts 3:19, our word for today from the Word of God. "Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord."
Notice the order the ingredients come in. First, repent. Then, your sins are removed. Then, heaven's floodgates open and God sends the refreshing that He's wanted you to have all along. But He can't send it through the sin that's clogging your pipeline to heaven. Mark summarizes Jesus' first recorded sermon this way: "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!" So, Jesus launches His public ministry by preaching repentance.
But today you can listen to hundreds of sermons, read hundreds of Christian books, meet with hundreds of Christian counselors, hear hundreds of Christian songs and never hear about repentance. It really is the missing ingredient in our lives. And because of that, we're missing so much that a holy God wants to give us.
Repentance begins by realizing that what you're doing is sin, and it's ugly. It's breaking the heart of the One who died for you. He died so you don't have to act like this. It's like realizing your car is headed in the wrong direction to get where you want to go. You have to do three things: you admit you're going the wrong way first of all. Then you've got to stop going the wrong way, and then you need to turn around and start heading the right direction. It's not just feeling sorry for your sin. The Bible says "godly sorrow leads to repentance" (2 Corinthians 7:10). Repentance is being so sorry for your sin that you set up your life to not do it anymore!
And maybe with all your worship and your work for the Lord, you've been missing the one ingredient that unlocks all God has for you-repentance. There's sin in the line between you and Him. But, you know, that could change today with your heartfelt repenting at the feet of the One who died for that sin. Because as long as you're missing repentance, you'll be missing God's best, and things are just going to keep coming out flat.
Life is a dangerous endeavor. And Christ tells us that things will get worse. We can expect heretical teachers. Stick to one question— is this person directing listeners to Jesus? If so, pray for that individual. If not, get out.
We can expect calamity. Christians will suffer the most. “Voice of the Martyrs” contends that more Christ-followers have been killed for their faith in the last century than all previous centuries combined. Even America suffers from increasing anger toward Christians.
Don’t give up. Jesus equipped his followers with farsighted courage. He said, “But he who stands firm to the end shall be saved” (Matthew 24:13). All things, big and small, flow out of the purpose of God and serve his good will. Though the world may collapse, the work of Christ will endure.
Read more Fearless
Psalm 64
A David Psalm
Listen and help, O God.
I’m reduced to a whine
And a whimper, obsessed
with feelings of doomsday.
2-6 Don’t let them find me—
the conspirators out to get me,
Using their tongues as weapons,
flinging poison words,
poison-tipped arrow-words.
They shoot from ambush,
shoot without warning,
not caring who they hit.
They keep fit doing calisthenics
of evil purpose,
They keep lists of the traps
they’ve secretly set.
They say to each other,
“No one can catch us,
no one can detect our perfect crime.”
The Detective detects the mystery
in the dark of the cellar heart.
7-8 The God of the Arrow shoots!
They double up in pain,
Fall flat on their faces
in full view of the grinning crowd.
9-10 Everyone sees it. God’s
work is the talk of the town.
Be glad, good people! Fly to God!
Good-hearted people, make praise your habit.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Job 37:14-24
“Job, are you listening? Have you noticed all this?
Stop in your tracks! Take in God’s miracle-wonders!
Do you have any idea how God does it all,
how he makes bright lightning from dark storms,
How he piles up the cumulus clouds—
all these miracle-wonders of a perfect Mind?
Why, you don’t even know how to keep cool
on a sweltering hot day,
So how could you even dream
of making a dent in that hot-tin-roof sky?
19-22 “If you’re so smart, give us a lesson in how to address God.
We’re in the dark and can’t figure it out.
Do you think I’m dumb enough to challenge God?
Wouldn’t that just be asking for trouble?
No one in his right mind stares straight at the sun
on a clear and cloudless day.
As gold comes from the northern mountains,
so a terrible beauty streams from God.
23-24 “Mighty God! Far beyond our reach!
Unsurpassable in power and justice!
It’s unthinkable that he’d treat anyone unfairly.
So bow to him in deep reverence, one and all!
If you’re wise, you’ll most certainly worship him.”
Insight
After three rounds of heated discussion, Job and his friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar (Job 2:11) are at an impasse in their debate of theodicy—the question of why a good God permits evil. Elihu, being a much younger man, had waited for his turn to speak and now gives his insights (chs. 32–37). Elihu was a Buzite (32:2). Buz was a son of Nahor, Abraham’s brother (Genesis 22:20–21), which makes Elihu a descendant of one of Abraham’s nephews. Concluding his rebuke in this fourth and final speech, Elihu highlights God’s power and majesty (chs. 36–37). He asks Job to “consider God’s wonders” (37:14) in controlling His creation, challenging Job to explain how God sovereignly controls the meteorological elements—the clouds, lightning, winds, skies, and sun (vv. 15–24). Elihu tells Job to fear and revere such a great God (v. 24).
By: K. T. Sim
Algae and Diatoms
Stop and consider God’s wonders. Job 37:14
“What’s a diatom?” I asked my friend. I was leaning over her shoulder looking at pictures on her cell phone she had taken through a microscope. “Oh, it’s like algae, but it’s harder to see. Sometimes you need a drop of oil on the lens or they have to be dead to see them,” she explained. I sat amazed as she scrolled through the pictures. I couldn’t stop thinking about the intricate detail God put into life that we can only see with a microscope!
God’s creation and works are endless. In the book of Job, one of Job’s friends, Elihu, points this out to Job as he struggles through his loss. Elihu challenges his friend, “Listen to this, Job; stop and consider God’s wonders. Do you know how God controls the clouds and makes his lightning flash? Do you know how the clouds hang poised, those wonders of him who has perfect knowledge?” (Job 37:14–16). We, as humans, can’t begin to understand the complexity of God and His creation.
Even the parts of creation we can’t see reflect God’s glory and power. His glory surrounds us. No matter what we’re going through, God is working, even when we can’t see it and don’t understand. Let’s praise Him today, for “He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted” (Job 5:9). By Julie Schwab
Today's Reflection
Lord, thank You for the detail You put into creation and for being at work even when we can’t see it.
Welcome to Julie Schwab! Meet all our authors at odb.org/all-authors.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
The Dilemma of Obedience
Samuel was afraid to tell Eli the vision. —1 Samuel 3:15
God never speaks to us in dramatic ways, but in ways that are easy to misunderstand. Then we say, “I wonder if that is God’s voice?” Isaiah said that the Lord spoke to him “with a strong hand,” that is, by the pressure of his circumstances (Isaiah 8:11). Without the sovereign hand of God Himself, nothing touches our lives. Do we discern His hand at work, or do we see things as mere occurrences?
Get into the habit of saying, “Speak, Lord,” and life will become a romance (1 Samuel 3:9). Every time circumstances press in on you, say, “Speak, Lord,” and make time to listen. Chastening is more than a means of discipline— it is meant to bring me to the point of saying, “Speak, Lord.” Think back to a time when God spoke to you. Do you remember what He said? Was it Luke 11:13, or was it 1 Thessalonians 5:23? As we listen, our ears become more sensitive, and like Jesus, we will hear God all the time.
Should I tell my “Eli” what God has shown to me? This is where the dilemma of obedience hits us. We disobey God by becoming amateur providences and thinking, “I must shield ‘Eli,’ ” who represents the best people we know. God did not tell Samuel to tell Eli— he had to decide that for himself. God’s message to you may hurt your “Eli,” but trying to prevent suffering in another’s life will prove to be an obstruction between your soul and God. It is at your own risk that you prevent someone’s right hand being cut off or right eye being plucked out (see Matthew 5:29-30).
Never ask another person’s advice about anything God makes you decide before Him. If you ask advice, you will almost always side with Satan. “…I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood…” (Galatians 1:16).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
When a man’s heart is right with God the mysterious utterances of the Bible are spirit and life to him. Spiritual truth is discernible only to a pure heart, not to a keen intellect. It is not a question of profundity of intellect, but of purity of heart. Bringing Sons Unto Glory, 231 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Why Our Lives Come Out Flat - #8363
Oh, those firstborn children. Somewhere inside their brain is this tattoo: "I can do it myself." Wait. I'm a firstborn. So is our daughter. And when she decided at the age of five that she was going to bake a cake, she, of course, didn't need any help. Her "I'm going to bake a cake" moment was a good news/bad news announcement for me. Good news: my little girl is growing up. Bad news: I have to eat it. We heard a lot of banging of pans in the kitchen and ultimately the smells of something baking. Maybe this was going to work after all. Minutes later, my little girl came into the living room, almost tripping over her lower lip. She was sad. She explained: "Daddy, it came out flat." Then she brought in her first cake. Or maybe I should say pancake. It was that flat. That's when Sr. Baking Advisor, Mom, entered the picture to see what our daughter could learn from the cake that fell flat. She'd put in the milk, the eggs, the flour. But she just forgot one ingredient-the baking powder-the anti-flat ingredient in a cake.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Why Our Lives Come Out Flat."
Our daughter's cake came out flat for one reason. There was one important ingredient missing. Just like the lives of so many of us who are followers of Christ. We've got a lot of right ingredients: we praise the Lord, we serve the Lord, we love the Lord, we study God's Word, we pray. But there's still this feeling there's got to be more. Our faith is real, it's important to us, but our lives feel so flat. There's something missing.
There is, in fact, a missing ingredient in many Christian lives and Christian churches. It's not missing in the lives and the teaching of the most powerful believers in history-those first Christians of the Book of Acts. From the record of their full and world-rocking lives comes this recipe for getting all God has. It's in Acts 3:19, our word for today from the Word of God. "Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord."
Notice the order the ingredients come in. First, repent. Then, your sins are removed. Then, heaven's floodgates open and God sends the refreshing that He's wanted you to have all along. But He can't send it through the sin that's clogging your pipeline to heaven. Mark summarizes Jesus' first recorded sermon this way: "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!" So, Jesus launches His public ministry by preaching repentance.
But today you can listen to hundreds of sermons, read hundreds of Christian books, meet with hundreds of Christian counselors, hear hundreds of Christian songs and never hear about repentance. It really is the missing ingredient in our lives. And because of that, we're missing so much that a holy God wants to give us.
Repentance begins by realizing that what you're doing is sin, and it's ugly. It's breaking the heart of the One who died for you. He died so you don't have to act like this. It's like realizing your car is headed in the wrong direction to get where you want to go. You have to do three things: you admit you're going the wrong way first of all. Then you've got to stop going the wrong way, and then you need to turn around and start heading the right direction. It's not just feeling sorry for your sin. The Bible says "godly sorrow leads to repentance" (2 Corinthians 7:10). Repentance is being so sorry for your sin that you set up your life to not do it anymore!
And maybe with all your worship and your work for the Lord, you've been missing the one ingredient that unlocks all God has for you-repentance. There's sin in the line between you and Him. But, you know, that could change today with your heartfelt repenting at the feet of the One who died for that sin. Because as long as you're missing repentance, you'll be missing God's best, and things are just going to keep coming out flat.
Tuesday, January 29, 2019
John 5:25-47, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: FEAR THAT GOD IS NOT NEAR
The valley of the shadow of doubt. The fear that God isn’t near. The fear that “why?” has no answer. In Luke 24:38, Jesus appeared to the disciples after his resurrection and he asked them, “Why are you frightened? He offered them two practical answers– touch my body and ponder my story.
We still can, you know. We can brush up against the church; and when we do, we touch the body of Christ. He dissipates doubts through fellowship. When you interlock your understanding with mine, and we share our discoveries, Jesus speaks. And when he speaks, he shares his story. God’s go-to therapy for doubters is his own Word. Could the chasm between doubt and faith be spanned with Scripture and fellowship? Find out for yourself.
Read more Fearless
John 5:25-47
“It’s urgent that you get this right: The time has arrived—I mean right now!—when dead men and women will hear the voice of the Son of God and, hearing, will come alive. Just as the Father has life in himself, he has conferred on the Son life in himself. And he has given him the authority, simply because he is the Son of Man, to decide and carry out matters of Judgment.
28-29 “Don’t act so surprised at all this. The time is coming when everyone dead and buried will hear his voice. Those who have lived the right way will walk out into a resurrection Life; those who have lived the wrong way, into a resurrection Judgment.
30-33 “I can’t do a solitary thing on my own: I listen, then I decide. You can trust my decision because I’m not out to get my own way but only to carry out orders. If I were simply speaking on my own account, it would be an empty, self-serving witness. But an independent witness confirms me, the most reliable Witness of all. Furthermore, you all saw and heard John, and he gave expert and reliable testimony about me, didn’t he?
34-38 “But my purpose is not to get your vote, and not to appeal to mere human testimony. I’m speaking to you this way so that you will be saved. John was a torch, blazing and bright, and you were glad enough to dance for an hour or so in his bright light. But the witness that really confirms me far exceeds John’s witness. It’s the work the Father gave me to complete. These very tasks, as I go about completing them, confirm that the Father, in fact, sent me. The Father who sent me, confirmed me. And you missed it. You never heard his voice, you never saw his appearance. There is nothing left in your memory of his Message because you do not take his Messenger seriously.
39-40 “You have your heads in your Bibles constantly because you think you’ll find eternal life there. But you miss the forest for the trees. These Scriptures are all about me! And here I am, standing right before you, and you aren’t willing to receive from me the life you say you want.
41-44 “I’m not interested in crowd approval. And do you know why? Because I know you and your crowds. I know that love, especially God’s love, is not on your working agenda. I came with the authority of my Father, and you either dismiss me or avoid me. If another came, acting self-important, you would welcome him with open arms. How do you expect to get anywhere with God when you spend all your time jockeying for position with each other, ranking your rivals and ignoring God?
45-47 “But don’t think I’m going to accuse you before my Father. Moses, in whom you put so much stock, is your accuser. If you believed, really believed, what Moses said, you would believe me. He wrote of me. If you won’t take seriously what he wrote, how can I expect you to take seriously what I speak?”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, January 29, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Isaiah 64:1-8
Oh, that you would rip open the heavens and descend,
make the mountains shudder at your presence—
As when a forest catches fire,
as when fire makes a pot to boil—
To shock your enemies into facing you,
make the nations shake in their boots!
You did terrible things we never expected,
descended and made the mountains shudder at your presence.
Since before time began
no one has ever imagined,
No ear heard, no eye seen, a God like you
who works for those who wait for him.
You meet those who happily do what is right,
who keep a good memory of the way you work.
But how angry you’ve been with us!
We’ve sinned and kept at it so long!
Is there any hope for us? Can we be saved?
We’re all sin-infected, sin-contaminated.
Our best efforts are grease-stained rags.
We dry up like autumn leaves—
sin-dried, we’re blown off by the wind.
No one prays to you
or makes the effort to reach out to you
Because you’ve turned away from us,
left us to stew in our sins.
8-12 Still, God, you are our Father.
We’re the clay and you’re our potter:
All of us are what you made us.
Don’t be too angry with us, O God.
Don’t keep a permanent account of wrongdoing.
Keep in mind, please, we are your people—all of us.
Your holy cities are all ghost towns:
Zion’s a ghost town,
Jerusalem’s a field of weeds.
Our holy and beautiful Temple,
which our ancestors filled with your praises,
Was burned down by fire,
all our lovely parks and gardens in ruins.
In the face of all this,
are you going to sit there unmoved, God?
Aren’t you going to say something?
Haven’t you made us miserable long enough?
Insight
The prophecies of Isaiah express the heart of a loving Father for a family that had lost its way (Isaiah 1:1–3). In visions spanning decades of warning, invasion, and exile, the prophet urges his people to remember that no eye has ever seen and no ear has heard of any other God who can rescue those who wait on Him (64:4). Centuries later, the apostle Paul recalls Isaiah’s words—with a slight twist. He describes a God whose saving power is unlike anything that has ever been seen or heard. Reflecting on the crucifixion of Jesus (1 Corinthians 2:2, 8), Paul reminds us that only by the Spirit of God can we believe in a God good enough to die for us (vv. 7–16). By: Mart DeHaan
Rip the Heavens
Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down. Isaiah 64:1
In a recent conversation, where a friend shared with me that she’d abandoned her faith, I heard a familiar complaint: How can I believe in a God who doesn’t ever seem to do anything? This gut-wrenching question appears for most of us at one point or another, as we read of violence in the news and as we carry our own heartbreak. My friend’s distress revealed her intense need for God to act on her behalf, a longing we’ve all likely felt.
Israel knew this terrain well. The Babylonian Empire overwhelmed Israel, crushing them with an iron fist and turning Jerusalem into smoldering rubble. The prophet Isaiah put words to the people’s dark doubt: Where is the God who’s supposed to rescue us? (Isaiah 63:11–15). And yet from precisely this place, Isaiah offered a bold prayer: God, “rend the heavens and come down” (64:1). Isaiah’s pain and sorrow drove him not to pull away from God, but to seek to draw closer to Him.
Our doubts and troubles offer a strange gift: they reveal how lost we are and how much we need God to move toward us. We see now the remarkable, improbable story. In Jesus, God did rip the heavens and come to us. Christ surrendered His own ripped and broken body so that He could overwhelm us with His love. In Jesus, God is very near. By Winn Collier
Today's Reflection
What questions or doubts do you have to talk with God about?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, January 29, 2019
How Could Someone Be So Ignorant!
Who are You, Lord? —Acts 26:15
“The Lord spoke thus to me with a strong hand…” (Isaiah 8:11). There is no escape when our Lord speaks. He always comes using His authority and taking hold of our understanding. Has the voice of God come to you directly? If it has, you cannot mistake the intimate insistence with which it has spoken to you. God speaks in the language you know best— not through your ears, but through your circumstances.
God has to destroy our determined confidence in our own convictions. We say, “I know that this is what I should do” — and suddenly the voice of God speaks in a way that overwhelms us by revealing the depths of our ignorance. We show our ignorance of Him in the very way we decide to serve Him. We serve Jesus in a spirit that is not His, and hurt Him by our defense of Him. We push His claims in the spirit of the devil; our words sound all right, but the spirit is that of an enemy. “He…rebuked them, and said, ‘You do not know what manner of spirit you are of’ ” (Luke 9:55). The spirit of our Lord in His followers is described in 1 Corinthians 13.
Have I been persecuting Jesus by an eager determination to serve Him in my own way? If I feel I have done my duty, yet have hurt Him in the process, I can be sure that this was not my duty. My way will not be to foster a meek and quiet spirit, only the spirit of self-satisfaction. We presume that whatever is unpleasant is our duty! Is that anything like the spirit of our Lord— “I delight to do Your will, O my God…” (Psalm 40:8).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The message of the prophets is that although they have forsaken God, it has not altered God. The Apostle Paul emphasizes the same truth, that God remains God even when we are unfaithful (see 2 Timothy 2:13). Never interpret God as changing with our changes. He never does; there is no variableness in Him. Notes on Ezekiel, 1477 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, January 29, 2019
On the Right Track, but Missing Something - #8362
We were waiting at a stoplight just across the street from some railroad tracks. The gates by the track were up and no lights were flashing. There was no train coming. But just beyond the railroad crossing was one of those little rail inspection vehicles, fitted with these wheels that allow them to ride on the tracks. On the side it said "Union Pacific." But believe me, this was no train. Suddenly, we heard this obnoxious and continuous honking on a horn that sounded like a train horn. The little vehicle wanted to proceed through the railroad crossing, and he was nowhere big enough to trigger the gates or the lights so the traffic would stop. So the operator just kept leaning on the horn as he passed through the intersection, hoping we would all stop for him as we would for a train. We did stop, but we weren't fooled. This was no train. This was a train wannabe!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "On the Right Track, but Missing Something."
That little guy wore the label a train carries, he sounded like a train, he traveled on the same track as a train, but he was no train. He made me think of a lot of people who are rolling along on the Jesus-track. They carry the label. They call themselves a Christian. They know all the words. Sure, they sound like a Christian. And they're active in church and Christian activities, so they're on the same track as a Christian. But they're missing one thing-the only thing that really matters. They're missing Jesus. Maybe someone who's listening right now is that person. It could be you.
How can I say that there are people who look and sound and act like a Christian but have somehow missed Jesus? Because that's what God says in the Bible. In our word for today from the Word of God in Matthew 7, beginning with verse 21, there's a scene from the Final Judgment and it is pretty sobering for us religious folks. Jesus says, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven."
Wait a minute. These are obviously people who know all the Christian words. Then it says, "Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?'" These are folks who are doing lots of Christian things. Surely they're going to heaven.
Then Jesus makes this shocking statement: "Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me...'" Those are words I pray you will never hear from the lips of Jesus on that day when it's too late to change it, "I never knew you." Why? Because they only knew about Jesus. There's one base they missed, that they didn't touch, giving themselves to the Jesus they knew so much about. Lots of Christianity, but missing Christ.
Jesus said that only those who "do the will of My Father" will go to heaven. John 6:40 tells us what that will is: "My Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life." It's not looking to church, or Christianity, or Christian beliefs, or Christian activities, or a Christian family that give you eternal life. It's abandoning any other hope of heaven and pinning all your hopes on the man who died for your sin and rose again to give you life that never ends.
The life-or-death question for you is this: "Has there ever been a time when I actually gave myself to Jesus in total faith?" If you don't know you did that, you probably didn't. And you probably shouldn't wait any longer to do it before your heart turns hard or your time runs out.
Just tell Him, "Jesus, I want to really belong to you. Your death for me is my only hope, and I am yours beginning today." When you do that, in God's own words, you "cross over from death to life" (John 5:24).
Look, you can check out the Scriptures that will help you know for sure you belong to Him. Go to our website ANewStory.com. This is the day Jesus moves from your head to your heart and your new story begins.
Once you know you've begun your relationship with Jesus, you'll never have to fear Him saying, "I never knew you." No, He will wrap you in His arms, and instead He'll say, "Welcome home."
Monday, January 28, 2019
2 Samuel 20, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: FEAR OF WHAT IS NEXT
Life comes with surprises. On our list of fears, the fear of what’s next demands a prominent position. In John 14:27, on the eve of his death Jesus promised his followers, “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”
Heaven’s message is clear– when everything else changes, God’s presence never does. As Jesus sends you into new seasons, you journey in the company of the Holy Spirit. So make friends with whatever’s next. Embrace it. Change is not only a part of life; change is a necessary part of God’s strategy. To use us to change the world, God makes reassignments.
Read more Fearless
2 Samuel 20
Just then a good-for-nothing named Sheba son of Bicri the Benjaminite blew a blast on the ram’s horn trumpet, calling out,
We’ve got nothing to do with David,
there’s no future for us with the son of Jesse!
Let’s get out of here, Israel—head for your tents!
2-3 So all the men of Israel deserted David and followed Sheba son of Bicri. But the men of Judah stayed committed, sticking with their king all the way from the Jordan to Jerusalem. When David arrived home in Jerusalem, the king took the ten concubines he had left to watch the palace and placed them in seclusion, under guard. He provided for their needs but didn’t visit them. They were virtual prisoners until they died, widows as long as they lived.
4-10 The king ordered Amasa, “Muster the men of Judah for me in three days; then report in.” Amasa went to carry out his orders, but he was late reporting back. So David told Abishai, “Sheba son of Bicri is going to hurt us even worse than Absalom did. Take your master’s servants and hunt him down before he gets holed up in some fortress city where we can’t get to him.” So under Abishai’s command, all the best men—Joab’s men and the Kerethites and Pelethites—left Jerusalem to hunt down Sheba son of Bicri. They were near the boulder at Gibeon when Amasa came their way. Joab was wearing a tunic with a sheathed sword strapped on his waist, but the sword slipped out and fell to the ground. Joab greeted Amasa, “How are you, brother?” and took Amasa’s beard in his right hand as if to kiss him. Amasa didn’t notice the sword in Joab’s other hand. Joab stuck him in the belly and his guts spilled to the ground. A second blow wasn’t needed; he was dead. Then Joab and his brother Abishai continued to chase Sheba son of Bicri.
11-14 One of Joab’s soldiers took up his post over the body and called out, “Everyone who sides with Joab and supports David, follow Joab!” Amasa was lying in a pool of blood in the middle of the road; the man realized that the whole army was going to stop and take a look, so he pulled Amasa’s corpse off the road into the field and threw a blanket over him so it wouldn’t collect spectators. As soon as he’d gotten him off the road, the traffic flowed normally, following Joab in the chase after Sheba son of Bicri. Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel as far as Abel Beth Maacah; all the Bicrites clustered and followed him into the city.
15 Joab’s army arrived and laid siege to Sheba in Abel Beth Maacah. They built a siege-ramp up against the city’s fortification. The plan was to knock down the wall.
16-17 But a shrewd woman called out from the city, “Listen, everybody! Please tell Joab to come close so I can talk to him.” When he had come, the woman said, “Are you Joab?”
He said, “I am.”
“Then,” she said, “listen to what I have to say.”
He said, “I’m listening.”
18-19 “There’s an old saying in these parts: ‘If it’s answers you want, come to Abel and get it straight.’ We’re a peaceful people here, and reliable. And here you are, trying to tear down one of Israel’s mother cities. Why would you want to mess with God’s legacy like that?”
20-21 Joab protested, “Believe me, you’ve got me all wrong. I’m not here to hurt anyone or destroy anything—not on your life! But a man from the hill country of Ephraim, Sheba son of Bicri by name, revolted against King David; hand him over, him only, and we’ll get out of here.”
The woman told Joab, “Sounds good. His head will be tossed to you from the wall.”
22 The woman presented her strategy to the whole city and they did it: They cut off the head of Sheba son of Bicri and tossed it down to Joab. He then blew a blast on the ram’s horn trumpet and the soldiers all went home. Joab returned to the king in Jerusalem.
23-26 Joab was again commander of the whole army of Israel. Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and Pelethites; Adoniram over the work crews; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was clerk; Sheva was historian; Zadok and Abiathar were priests; Ira the Jairite was David’s chaplain.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, January 28, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Psalm 94:2
God, put an end to evil;
avenging God, show your colors!
Judge of the earth, take your stand;
throw the book at the arrogant.
Who stood up for me against the wicked?
Who took my side against evil workers?
If God hadn’t been there for me,
I never would have made it.
The minute I said, “I’m slipping, I’m falling,”
your love, God, took hold and held me fast.
When I was upset and beside myself,
you calmed me down and cheered me up.
20-23 Can Misrule have anything in common with you?
Can Troublemaker pretend to be on your side?
They ganged up on good people,
plotted behind the backs of the innocent.
But God became my hideout,
God was my high mountain retreat,
Then boomeranged their evil back on them:
for their evil ways he wiped them out,
our God cleaned them out for good.
Insight
There are many prayers recorded in the Bible, but the book of Psalms is dedicated to followers of God actively talking to God. The psalms are full of the raw emotions of God’s people. Sorrow, joy, confusion, anger, desperation, praise, and lament can be read from beginning to end. We often turn to them when we need encouragement to share our deepest and truest feelings with God. The psalms not only teach us about God, but perhaps primarily we see how the people of ancient Israel, both individually and corporately, approached Him. While there were prescribed rites and rituals that happened in the temple, the psalms show us God as a personal God who relates to individuals with specific and personal concerns. By: J.R. Hudberg
The Mood Mender
When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.
Psalm 94:19
As I waited at the train station for my weekly commute, negative thoughts crowded my mind like commuters lining up to board a train—stress over debt, unkind remarks said to me, helplessness in the face of a recent injustice done to a family member. By the time the train arrived, I was in a terrible mood.
On the train, another thought came to mind: write a note to God, giving Him my lament. Soon after I finished pouring out my complaints in my journal, I pulled out my phone and listened to the praise songs in my library. Before I knew it, my bad mood had completely changed.
Little did I know that I was following a pattern set by the writer of Psalm 94. The psalmist first poured out his complaints: “Rise up, Judge of the earth; pay back to the proud what they deserve. . . . Who will rise up for me against the wicked? Who will take a stand for me against evildoers?” (Psalm 94:2, 16.) He didn’t hold anything back as he talked to God about injustice done to widows and orphans. Once he’d made his lament to God, the psalm transitioned into praise: “But the Lord has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge” (v. 22).
God invites us to take our laments to Him. He can turn our fear, sadness, and helplessness into praise.
By Linda Washington
Today's Reflection
Lord, I pour out my heart to You. Take my hurts and my anger, and grant me Your peace.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, January 28, 2019
How Could Someone So Persecute Jesus!
Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? —Acts 26:14
Are you determined to have your own way in living for God? We will never be free from this trap until we are brought into the experience of the baptism of “the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11). Stubbornness and self-will will always stab Jesus Christ. It may hurt no one else, but it wounds His Spirit. Whenever we are obstinate and self-willed and set on our own ambitions, we are hurting Jesus. Every time we stand on our own rights and insist that this is what we intend to do, we are persecuting Him. Whenever we rely on self-respect, we systematically disturb and grieve His Spirit. And when we finally understand that it is Jesus we have been persecuting all this time, it is the most crushing revelation ever.
Is the Word of God tremendously penetrating and sharp in me as I hand it on to you, or does my life betray the things I profess to teach? I may teach sanctification and yet exhibit the spirit of Satan, the very spirit that persecutes Jesus Christ. The Spirit of Jesus is conscious of only one thing— a perfect oneness with the Father. And He tells us, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29). All I do should be based on a perfect oneness with Him, not on a self-willed determination to be godly. This will mean that others may use me, go around me, or completely ignore me, but if I will submit to it for His sake, I will prevent Jesus Christ from being persecuted.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Much of the misery in our Christian life comes not because the devil tackles us, but because we have never understood the simple laws of our make-up. We have to treat the body as the servant of Jesus Christ: when the body says “Sit,” and He says “Go,” go! When the body says “Eat,” and He says “Fast,” fast! When the body says “Yawn,” and He says “Pray,” pray! Biblical Ethics, 107 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, January 28, 2019
Flowers In The Snow - #8361
It was early February and we had just gotten several inches of snow – the wet, heavy kind. As you probably know, February is about the time that cabin fever starts to set in for those of us who have something called winter, and we're really ready for the cold to be over. Well, sometimes it isn't at that point; it could last for a few more weeks. But I saw something so amazing that day of the February snow that I went for my camera to take pictures of it. On the south side of our shed, I saw something just barely peeking out from the snow. It was the shoots of our yellow daffodils! I brushed off the snow and captured it on film – the promise of a coming spring in the middle of a very wintry day!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Flowers In The Snow."
Winter isn't just a season on the calendar. It's a season in our lives, too; a recurring season – those stretches (sometimes long stretches) when it's dark more than usual, when life seems cold and even bitter sometimes. If it's winter for you right now, you need to take a walk to the other side where there might be some flowers in the snow. No, your winter isn't over, but God wants you to know that it won't last forever either. Though the signs may be faint and few, there's a spring on its way!
Jesus talks to us about our winters in our word for today from the Word of God. In John 16, beginning with verse 20. He's preparing His disciples for the cold and bitter season they're about to head into as He goes to the cross and ultimately leaves them to return to heaven. But what He says to them about their winter is also true of yours. He says: "You will grieve..." Now, I'm glad He said that. There's no denying of the hurt that we have in our heart. "You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy (or your winter will turn to spring!). A woman giving birth has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy...So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy."
There it is. It may be winter now, but spring is coming. Hope is the knowledge that it won't always be this way! The broken heart will start to heal. God's new things will start to fill up your life, the prayers will be answered, this trial will pass, and God will turn your pain into a mighty ministry in other people's lives. Somehow, as Romans 15:13 says, "the God of hope (will) fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."
And my guess is that even in the middle of your winter, there are, somewhere in your life, a few flowers peeking through the snow. They're harbingers of hope. Ask God for eyes to see some of the little hints of the good things He's planning for you. Part of God's strategy for hope says this: "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." Or maybe "flowers in the snow."
Don't succumb to the darkness. Don't succumb to the coldness of the winter you're in right now. While it's cold all around you, God is quietly, invisibly preparing the seeds of the spring ahead. But you've got to be faithful in your winter. Look for those little signs of the better season coming.
No, your winter isn't over, but your winter isn't forever either. We can learn a lot about the seasons of our life by God's seasons of the year. I've lived a lot of winters, and I've never seen a winter that wasn't followed by a spring.
Life comes with surprises. On our list of fears, the fear of what’s next demands a prominent position. In John 14:27, on the eve of his death Jesus promised his followers, “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”
Heaven’s message is clear– when everything else changes, God’s presence never does. As Jesus sends you into new seasons, you journey in the company of the Holy Spirit. So make friends with whatever’s next. Embrace it. Change is not only a part of life; change is a necessary part of God’s strategy. To use us to change the world, God makes reassignments.
Read more Fearless
2 Samuel 20
Just then a good-for-nothing named Sheba son of Bicri the Benjaminite blew a blast on the ram’s horn trumpet, calling out,
We’ve got nothing to do with David,
there’s no future for us with the son of Jesse!
Let’s get out of here, Israel—head for your tents!
2-3 So all the men of Israel deserted David and followed Sheba son of Bicri. But the men of Judah stayed committed, sticking with their king all the way from the Jordan to Jerusalem. When David arrived home in Jerusalem, the king took the ten concubines he had left to watch the palace and placed them in seclusion, under guard. He provided for their needs but didn’t visit them. They were virtual prisoners until they died, widows as long as they lived.
4-10 The king ordered Amasa, “Muster the men of Judah for me in three days; then report in.” Amasa went to carry out his orders, but he was late reporting back. So David told Abishai, “Sheba son of Bicri is going to hurt us even worse than Absalom did. Take your master’s servants and hunt him down before he gets holed up in some fortress city where we can’t get to him.” So under Abishai’s command, all the best men—Joab’s men and the Kerethites and Pelethites—left Jerusalem to hunt down Sheba son of Bicri. They were near the boulder at Gibeon when Amasa came their way. Joab was wearing a tunic with a sheathed sword strapped on his waist, but the sword slipped out and fell to the ground. Joab greeted Amasa, “How are you, brother?” and took Amasa’s beard in his right hand as if to kiss him. Amasa didn’t notice the sword in Joab’s other hand. Joab stuck him in the belly and his guts spilled to the ground. A second blow wasn’t needed; he was dead. Then Joab and his brother Abishai continued to chase Sheba son of Bicri.
11-14 One of Joab’s soldiers took up his post over the body and called out, “Everyone who sides with Joab and supports David, follow Joab!” Amasa was lying in a pool of blood in the middle of the road; the man realized that the whole army was going to stop and take a look, so he pulled Amasa’s corpse off the road into the field and threw a blanket over him so it wouldn’t collect spectators. As soon as he’d gotten him off the road, the traffic flowed normally, following Joab in the chase after Sheba son of Bicri. Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel as far as Abel Beth Maacah; all the Bicrites clustered and followed him into the city.
15 Joab’s army arrived and laid siege to Sheba in Abel Beth Maacah. They built a siege-ramp up against the city’s fortification. The plan was to knock down the wall.
16-17 But a shrewd woman called out from the city, “Listen, everybody! Please tell Joab to come close so I can talk to him.” When he had come, the woman said, “Are you Joab?”
He said, “I am.”
“Then,” she said, “listen to what I have to say.”
He said, “I’m listening.”
18-19 “There’s an old saying in these parts: ‘If it’s answers you want, come to Abel and get it straight.’ We’re a peaceful people here, and reliable. And here you are, trying to tear down one of Israel’s mother cities. Why would you want to mess with God’s legacy like that?”
20-21 Joab protested, “Believe me, you’ve got me all wrong. I’m not here to hurt anyone or destroy anything—not on your life! But a man from the hill country of Ephraim, Sheba son of Bicri by name, revolted against King David; hand him over, him only, and we’ll get out of here.”
The woman told Joab, “Sounds good. His head will be tossed to you from the wall.”
22 The woman presented her strategy to the whole city and they did it: They cut off the head of Sheba son of Bicri and tossed it down to Joab. He then blew a blast on the ram’s horn trumpet and the soldiers all went home. Joab returned to the king in Jerusalem.
23-26 Joab was again commander of the whole army of Israel. Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and Pelethites; Adoniram over the work crews; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was clerk; Sheva was historian; Zadok and Abiathar were priests; Ira the Jairite was David’s chaplain.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, January 28, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Psalm 94:2
God, put an end to evil;
avenging God, show your colors!
Judge of the earth, take your stand;
throw the book at the arrogant.
Who stood up for me against the wicked?
Who took my side against evil workers?
If God hadn’t been there for me,
I never would have made it.
The minute I said, “I’m slipping, I’m falling,”
your love, God, took hold and held me fast.
When I was upset and beside myself,
you calmed me down and cheered me up.
20-23 Can Misrule have anything in common with you?
Can Troublemaker pretend to be on your side?
They ganged up on good people,
plotted behind the backs of the innocent.
But God became my hideout,
God was my high mountain retreat,
Then boomeranged their evil back on them:
for their evil ways he wiped them out,
our God cleaned them out for good.
Insight
There are many prayers recorded in the Bible, but the book of Psalms is dedicated to followers of God actively talking to God. The psalms are full of the raw emotions of God’s people. Sorrow, joy, confusion, anger, desperation, praise, and lament can be read from beginning to end. We often turn to them when we need encouragement to share our deepest and truest feelings with God. The psalms not only teach us about God, but perhaps primarily we see how the people of ancient Israel, both individually and corporately, approached Him. While there were prescribed rites and rituals that happened in the temple, the psalms show us God as a personal God who relates to individuals with specific and personal concerns. By: J.R. Hudberg
The Mood Mender
When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.
Psalm 94:19
As I waited at the train station for my weekly commute, negative thoughts crowded my mind like commuters lining up to board a train—stress over debt, unkind remarks said to me, helplessness in the face of a recent injustice done to a family member. By the time the train arrived, I was in a terrible mood.
On the train, another thought came to mind: write a note to God, giving Him my lament. Soon after I finished pouring out my complaints in my journal, I pulled out my phone and listened to the praise songs in my library. Before I knew it, my bad mood had completely changed.
Little did I know that I was following a pattern set by the writer of Psalm 94. The psalmist first poured out his complaints: “Rise up, Judge of the earth; pay back to the proud what they deserve. . . . Who will rise up for me against the wicked? Who will take a stand for me against evildoers?” (Psalm 94:2, 16.) He didn’t hold anything back as he talked to God about injustice done to widows and orphans. Once he’d made his lament to God, the psalm transitioned into praise: “But the Lord has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge” (v. 22).
God invites us to take our laments to Him. He can turn our fear, sadness, and helplessness into praise.
By Linda Washington
Today's Reflection
Lord, I pour out my heart to You. Take my hurts and my anger, and grant me Your peace.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, January 28, 2019
How Could Someone So Persecute Jesus!
Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? —Acts 26:14
Are you determined to have your own way in living for God? We will never be free from this trap until we are brought into the experience of the baptism of “the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11). Stubbornness and self-will will always stab Jesus Christ. It may hurt no one else, but it wounds His Spirit. Whenever we are obstinate and self-willed and set on our own ambitions, we are hurting Jesus. Every time we stand on our own rights and insist that this is what we intend to do, we are persecuting Him. Whenever we rely on self-respect, we systematically disturb and grieve His Spirit. And when we finally understand that it is Jesus we have been persecuting all this time, it is the most crushing revelation ever.
Is the Word of God tremendously penetrating and sharp in me as I hand it on to you, or does my life betray the things I profess to teach? I may teach sanctification and yet exhibit the spirit of Satan, the very spirit that persecutes Jesus Christ. The Spirit of Jesus is conscious of only one thing— a perfect oneness with the Father. And He tells us, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29). All I do should be based on a perfect oneness with Him, not on a self-willed determination to be godly. This will mean that others may use me, go around me, or completely ignore me, but if I will submit to it for His sake, I will prevent Jesus Christ from being persecuted.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Much of the misery in our Christian life comes not because the devil tackles us, but because we have never understood the simple laws of our make-up. We have to treat the body as the servant of Jesus Christ: when the body says “Sit,” and He says “Go,” go! When the body says “Eat,” and He says “Fast,” fast! When the body says “Yawn,” and He says “Pray,” pray! Biblical Ethics, 107 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, January 28, 2019
Flowers In The Snow - #8361
It was early February and we had just gotten several inches of snow – the wet, heavy kind. As you probably know, February is about the time that cabin fever starts to set in for those of us who have something called winter, and we're really ready for the cold to be over. Well, sometimes it isn't at that point; it could last for a few more weeks. But I saw something so amazing that day of the February snow that I went for my camera to take pictures of it. On the south side of our shed, I saw something just barely peeking out from the snow. It was the shoots of our yellow daffodils! I brushed off the snow and captured it on film – the promise of a coming spring in the middle of a very wintry day!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Flowers In The Snow."
Winter isn't just a season on the calendar. It's a season in our lives, too; a recurring season – those stretches (sometimes long stretches) when it's dark more than usual, when life seems cold and even bitter sometimes. If it's winter for you right now, you need to take a walk to the other side where there might be some flowers in the snow. No, your winter isn't over, but God wants you to know that it won't last forever either. Though the signs may be faint and few, there's a spring on its way!
Jesus talks to us about our winters in our word for today from the Word of God. In John 16, beginning with verse 20. He's preparing His disciples for the cold and bitter season they're about to head into as He goes to the cross and ultimately leaves them to return to heaven. But what He says to them about their winter is also true of yours. He says: "You will grieve..." Now, I'm glad He said that. There's no denying of the hurt that we have in our heart. "You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy (or your winter will turn to spring!). A woman giving birth has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy...So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy."
There it is. It may be winter now, but spring is coming. Hope is the knowledge that it won't always be this way! The broken heart will start to heal. God's new things will start to fill up your life, the prayers will be answered, this trial will pass, and God will turn your pain into a mighty ministry in other people's lives. Somehow, as Romans 15:13 says, "the God of hope (will) fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."
And my guess is that even in the middle of your winter, there are, somewhere in your life, a few flowers peeking through the snow. They're harbingers of hope. Ask God for eyes to see some of the little hints of the good things He's planning for you. Part of God's strategy for hope says this: "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." Or maybe "flowers in the snow."
Don't succumb to the darkness. Don't succumb to the coldness of the winter you're in right now. While it's cold all around you, God is quietly, invisibly preparing the seeds of the spring ahead. But you've got to be faithful in your winter. Look for those little signs of the better season coming.
No, your winter isn't over, but your winter isn't forever either. We can learn a lot about the seasons of our life by God's seasons of the year. I've lived a lot of winters, and I've never seen a winter that wasn't followed by a spring.
Sunday, January 27, 2019
2 Samuel 19, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: God Heals, Not Prayer
God heals, not prayer. A matter of semantics? No. If you think the power is in the prayer and not the One who hears the prayer, you fault the pray-er for unanswered prayer. "If I had prayed more, better, differently. . ."
The power of prayer is in the One who hears it, not the one who makes it. So if you are waiting on God to answer your prayer, don't despair. We need to remember that many of God's saints endured a time of unanswered prayer. Peter was in a storm before he walked on water. Lazarus was in a grave before he came out of it, the demoniac was possessed before he was a preacher, and the paralytic was on a stretcher before he was in your Bible.
We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him. Please don't interpret the presence of your disease as the absence of God's love. I pray he heals you. And he will-ultimately! Till then- keep praying.
From Max on Life
2 Samuel 19
David’s Grief for Absalom
Joab was told that David was weeping and lamenting over Absalom. The day’s victory turned into a day of mourning as word passed through the army, “David is grieving over his son.” The army straggled back to the city that day demoralized, dragging their tails. And the king held his face in his hands and lamented loudly,
O my son Absalom,
Absalom my dear, dear son!
5-7 But in private Joab rebuked the king: “Now you’ve done it—knocked the wind out of your loyal servants who have just saved your life, to say nothing of the lives of your sons and daughters, wives and concubines. What is this—loving those who hate you and hating those who love you? Your actions give a clear message: officers and soldiers mean nothing to you. You know that if Absalom were alive right now, we’d all be dead—would that make you happy? Get hold of yourself; get out there and put some heart into your servants! I swear to God that if you don’t go to them they’ll desert; not a soldier will be left here by nightfall. And that will be the worst thing that has happened yet.”
8 So the king came out and took his place at the city gate. Soon everyone knew: “Oh, look! The king has come out to receive us.” And his whole army came and presented itself to the king. But the Israelites had fled the field of battle and gone home.
9-10 Meanwhile, the whole populace was now complaining to its leaders, “Wasn’t it the king who saved us time and again from our enemies, and rescued us from the Philistines? And now he has had to flee the country on account of Absalom. And now this Absalom whom we made king is dead in battle. So what are you waiting for? Why don’t you bring the king back?”
11-13 When David heard what was being said, he sent word to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, “Ask the elders of Judah, ‘Why are you so laggard in bringing the king back home? You’re my brothers! You’re my own flesh and blood! So why are you the last ones to bring the king back home?’ And tell Amasa, ‘You, too, are my flesh and blood. As God is my witness, I’m making you the permanent commander of the army in place of Joab.’”
14 He captured the hearts of everyone in Judah. They were unanimous in sending for the king: “Come back, you and all your servants.”
15-18 So the king returned. He arrived at the Jordan just as Judah reached Gilgal on their way to welcome the king and escort him across the Jordan. Even Shimei son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, hurried down to join the men of Judah so he could welcome the king, a thousand Benjaminites with him. And Ziba, Saul’s steward, with his fifteen sons and twenty servants, waded across the Jordan to meet the king and brought his entourage across, doing whatever they could to make the king comfortable.
18-20 Shimei son of Gera bowed deeply in homage to the king as soon as he was across the Jordan and said, “Don’t think badly of me, my master! Overlook my irresponsible outburst on the day my master the king left Jerusalem—don’t hold it against me! I know I sinned, but look at me now—the first of all the tribe of Joseph to come down and welcome back my master the king!”
21 Abishai son of Zeruiah interrupted, “Enough of this! Shouldn’t we kill him outright? Why, he cursed God’s anointed!”
22 But David said, “What is it with you sons of Zeruiah? Why do you insist on being so contentious? Nobody is going to be killed today. I am again king over Israel!”
23 Then the king turned to Shimei, “You’re not going to die.” And the king gave him his word.
24-25 Next Mephibosheth grandson of Saul arrived from Jerusalem to welcome the king. He hadn’t combed his hair or trimmed his beard or washed his clothes from the day the king left until the day he returned safe and sound. The king said, “And why didn’t you come with me, Mephibosheth?”
26-28 “My master the king,” he said, “my servant betrayed me. I told him to saddle my donkey so I could ride it and go with the king, for, as you know, I am lame. And then he lied to you about me. But my master the king has been like one of God’s angels: he knew what was right and did it. Wasn’t everyone in my father’s house doomed? But you took me in and gave me a place at your table. What more could I ever expect or ask?”
29 “That’s enough,” said the king. “Say no more. Here’s my decision: You and Ziba divide the property between you.”
30 Mephibosheth said, “Oh, let him have it all! All I care about is that my master the king is home safe and sound!”
31-32 Barzillai the Gileadite had come down from Rogelim. He crossed the Jordan with the king to give him a good send-off. Barzillai was a very old man—eighty years old! He had supplied the king’s needs all the while he was in Mahanaim since he was very wealthy.
33 “Join me in Jerusalem,” the king said to Barzillai. “Let me take care of you.”
34-37 But Barzillai declined the offer, “How long do you think I’d live if I went with the king to Jerusalem? I’m eighty years old and not much good anymore to anyone. Can’t taste food; can’t hear music. So why add to the burdens of my master the king? I’ll just go a little way across the Jordan with the king. But why would the king need to make a great thing of that? Let me go back and die in my hometown and be buried with my father and mother. But my servant Kimham here; let him go with you in my place. But treat him well!”
38 The king said, “That’s settled; Kimham goes with me. And I will treat him well! If you think of anything else, I’ll do that for you, too.”
39-40 The army crossed the Jordan but the king stayed. The king kissed and blessed Barzillai, who then returned home. Then the king, Kimham with him, crossed over at Gilgal.
40-41 The whole army of Judah and half the army of Israel processed with the king. The men of Israel came to the king and said, “Why have our brothers, the men of Judah, taken over as if they owned the king, escorting the king and his family and close associates across the Jordan?”
42 The men of Judah retorted, “Because the king is related to us, that’s why! But why make a scene? You don’t see us getting treated special because of it, do you?”
43 The men of Israel shot back, “We have ten shares in the king to your one. Besides we’re the firstborn—so why are we having to play second fiddle? It was our idea to bring him back.”
But the men of Judah took a harder line than the men of Israel.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, January 27, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Esther 4:5-14
Esther’s maids and eunuchs came and told her. The queen was stunned. She sent fresh clothes to Mordecai so he could take off his sackcloth but he wouldn’t accept them. Esther called for Hathach, one of the royal eunuchs whom the king had assigned to wait on her, and told him to go to Mordecai and get the full story of what was happening. So Hathach went to Mordecai in the town square in front of the King’s Gate. Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him. He also told him the exact amount of money that Haman had promised to deposit in the royal bank to finance the massacre of the Jews. Mordecai also gave him a copy of the bulletin that had been posted in Susa ordering the massacre so he could show it to Esther when he reported back with instructions to go to the king and intercede and plead with him for her people.
9-11 Hathach came back and told Esther everything Mordecai had said. Esther talked it over with Hathach and then sent him back to Mordecai with this message: “Everyone who works for the king here, and even the people out in the provinces, knows that there is a single fate for every man or woman who approaches the king without being invited: death. The one exception is if the king extends his gold scepter; then he or she may live. And it’s been thirty days now since I’ve been invited to come to the king.”
12-14 When Hathach told Mordecai what Esther had said, Mordecai sent her this message: “Don’t think that just because you live in the king’s house you’re the one Jew who will get out of this alive. If you persist in staying silent at a time like this, help and deliverance will arrive for the Jews from someplace else; but you and your family will be wiped out. Who knows? Maybe you were made queen for just such a time as this.”
Insight
Since God isn’t mentioned in the book of Esther, some question why it’s included in the Bible. One view is that in Esther we see God providentially working behind the scenes, as in today’s passage. Without explicitly stating it, by his words to Esther (4:13–14) Mordecai shows he believes in God and His ordering of world events. If Esther doesn’t speak up, God will provide deliverance by some other means. By: Alyson Kieda
Righteous Among the Nations
For such a time as this. Esther 4:14
At Yad Vashem, the Holocaust museum in Israel, my husband and I went to the Righteous Among the Nations garden that honors the men and women who risked their lives to save Jewish people during the Holocaust. While looking at the memorial, we met a group from the Netherlands. One woman was there to see her grandparents’ names listed on the large plaques. Intrigued, we asked about her family’s story.
Members of a resistance network, the woman’s grandparents Rev. Pieter and Adriana Müller took in a two-year-old Jewish boy and passed him off as the youngest of their eight children from 1943–1945.
Moved by the story, we asked, “Did the little boy survive?” An older gentleman in the group stepped forward and proclaimed, “I am that boy!”
The bravery of many to act on behalf of the Jewish people reminds me of Queen Esther. The queen may have thought she could escape King Xerxes’s decree to annihilate the Jews around 475 bc because she had concealed her ethnicity. However, she was convinced to act—even under the threat of death—when her cousin begged her to not remain silent about her Jewish heritage because she had been placed in her position “for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14).
We may never be asked to make such a dramatic decision. However, we will likely face the choice to speak out against an injustice or remain silent; to provide assistance to someone in trouble or turn away. May God grant us courage.
By Lisa Samra
Today's Reflection
Are there those you need to speak up for? Ask God about the timing.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, January 27, 2019
Look Again and Think
Do not worry about your life… —Matthew 6:25
A warning which needs to be repeated is that “the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches,” and the lust for other things, will choke out the life of God in us (Matthew 13:22). We are never free from the recurring waves of this invasion. If the frontline of attack is not about clothes and food, it may be about money or the lack of money; or friends or lack of friends; or the line may be drawn over difficult circumstances. It is one steady invasion, and these things will come in like a flood, unless we allow the Spirit of God to raise up the banner against it.
“I say to you, do not worry about your life….” Our Lord says to be careful only about one thing— our relationship to Him. But our common sense shouts loudly and says, “That is absurd, I must consider how I am going to live, and I must consider what I am going to eat and drink.” Jesus says you must not. Beware of allowing yourself to think that He says this while not understanding your circumstances. Jesus Christ knows our circumstances better than we do, and He says we must not think about these things to the point where they become the primary concern of our life. Whenever there are competing concerns in your life, be sure you always put your relationship to God first.
“Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:34). How much trouble has begun to threaten you today? What kind of mean little demons have been looking into your life and saying, “What are your plans for next month— or next summer?” Jesus tells us not to worry about any of these things. Look again and think. Keep your mind on the “much more” of your heavenly Father (Matthew 6:30).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We are not to preach the doing of good things; good deeds are not to be preached, they are to be performed.
So Send I You
God heals, not prayer. A matter of semantics? No. If you think the power is in the prayer and not the One who hears the prayer, you fault the pray-er for unanswered prayer. "If I had prayed more, better, differently. . ."
The power of prayer is in the One who hears it, not the one who makes it. So if you are waiting on God to answer your prayer, don't despair. We need to remember that many of God's saints endured a time of unanswered prayer. Peter was in a storm before he walked on water. Lazarus was in a grave before he came out of it, the demoniac was possessed before he was a preacher, and the paralytic was on a stretcher before he was in your Bible.
We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him. Please don't interpret the presence of your disease as the absence of God's love. I pray he heals you. And he will-ultimately! Till then- keep praying.
From Max on Life
2 Samuel 19
David’s Grief for Absalom
Joab was told that David was weeping and lamenting over Absalom. The day’s victory turned into a day of mourning as word passed through the army, “David is grieving over his son.” The army straggled back to the city that day demoralized, dragging their tails. And the king held his face in his hands and lamented loudly,
O my son Absalom,
Absalom my dear, dear son!
5-7 But in private Joab rebuked the king: “Now you’ve done it—knocked the wind out of your loyal servants who have just saved your life, to say nothing of the lives of your sons and daughters, wives and concubines. What is this—loving those who hate you and hating those who love you? Your actions give a clear message: officers and soldiers mean nothing to you. You know that if Absalom were alive right now, we’d all be dead—would that make you happy? Get hold of yourself; get out there and put some heart into your servants! I swear to God that if you don’t go to them they’ll desert; not a soldier will be left here by nightfall. And that will be the worst thing that has happened yet.”
8 So the king came out and took his place at the city gate. Soon everyone knew: “Oh, look! The king has come out to receive us.” And his whole army came and presented itself to the king. But the Israelites had fled the field of battle and gone home.
9-10 Meanwhile, the whole populace was now complaining to its leaders, “Wasn’t it the king who saved us time and again from our enemies, and rescued us from the Philistines? And now he has had to flee the country on account of Absalom. And now this Absalom whom we made king is dead in battle. So what are you waiting for? Why don’t you bring the king back?”
11-13 When David heard what was being said, he sent word to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, “Ask the elders of Judah, ‘Why are you so laggard in bringing the king back home? You’re my brothers! You’re my own flesh and blood! So why are you the last ones to bring the king back home?’ And tell Amasa, ‘You, too, are my flesh and blood. As God is my witness, I’m making you the permanent commander of the army in place of Joab.’”
14 He captured the hearts of everyone in Judah. They were unanimous in sending for the king: “Come back, you and all your servants.”
15-18 So the king returned. He arrived at the Jordan just as Judah reached Gilgal on their way to welcome the king and escort him across the Jordan. Even Shimei son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, hurried down to join the men of Judah so he could welcome the king, a thousand Benjaminites with him. And Ziba, Saul’s steward, with his fifteen sons and twenty servants, waded across the Jordan to meet the king and brought his entourage across, doing whatever they could to make the king comfortable.
18-20 Shimei son of Gera bowed deeply in homage to the king as soon as he was across the Jordan and said, “Don’t think badly of me, my master! Overlook my irresponsible outburst on the day my master the king left Jerusalem—don’t hold it against me! I know I sinned, but look at me now—the first of all the tribe of Joseph to come down and welcome back my master the king!”
21 Abishai son of Zeruiah interrupted, “Enough of this! Shouldn’t we kill him outright? Why, he cursed God’s anointed!”
22 But David said, “What is it with you sons of Zeruiah? Why do you insist on being so contentious? Nobody is going to be killed today. I am again king over Israel!”
23 Then the king turned to Shimei, “You’re not going to die.” And the king gave him his word.
24-25 Next Mephibosheth grandson of Saul arrived from Jerusalem to welcome the king. He hadn’t combed his hair or trimmed his beard or washed his clothes from the day the king left until the day he returned safe and sound. The king said, “And why didn’t you come with me, Mephibosheth?”
26-28 “My master the king,” he said, “my servant betrayed me. I told him to saddle my donkey so I could ride it and go with the king, for, as you know, I am lame. And then he lied to you about me. But my master the king has been like one of God’s angels: he knew what was right and did it. Wasn’t everyone in my father’s house doomed? But you took me in and gave me a place at your table. What more could I ever expect or ask?”
29 “That’s enough,” said the king. “Say no more. Here’s my decision: You and Ziba divide the property between you.”
30 Mephibosheth said, “Oh, let him have it all! All I care about is that my master the king is home safe and sound!”
31-32 Barzillai the Gileadite had come down from Rogelim. He crossed the Jordan with the king to give him a good send-off. Barzillai was a very old man—eighty years old! He had supplied the king’s needs all the while he was in Mahanaim since he was very wealthy.
33 “Join me in Jerusalem,” the king said to Barzillai. “Let me take care of you.”
34-37 But Barzillai declined the offer, “How long do you think I’d live if I went with the king to Jerusalem? I’m eighty years old and not much good anymore to anyone. Can’t taste food; can’t hear music. So why add to the burdens of my master the king? I’ll just go a little way across the Jordan with the king. But why would the king need to make a great thing of that? Let me go back and die in my hometown and be buried with my father and mother. But my servant Kimham here; let him go with you in my place. But treat him well!”
38 The king said, “That’s settled; Kimham goes with me. And I will treat him well! If you think of anything else, I’ll do that for you, too.”
39-40 The army crossed the Jordan but the king stayed. The king kissed and blessed Barzillai, who then returned home. Then the king, Kimham with him, crossed over at Gilgal.
40-41 The whole army of Judah and half the army of Israel processed with the king. The men of Israel came to the king and said, “Why have our brothers, the men of Judah, taken over as if they owned the king, escorting the king and his family and close associates across the Jordan?”
42 The men of Judah retorted, “Because the king is related to us, that’s why! But why make a scene? You don’t see us getting treated special because of it, do you?”
43 The men of Israel shot back, “We have ten shares in the king to your one. Besides we’re the firstborn—so why are we having to play second fiddle? It was our idea to bring him back.”
But the men of Judah took a harder line than the men of Israel.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, January 27, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight: Esther 4:5-14
Esther’s maids and eunuchs came and told her. The queen was stunned. She sent fresh clothes to Mordecai so he could take off his sackcloth but he wouldn’t accept them. Esther called for Hathach, one of the royal eunuchs whom the king had assigned to wait on her, and told him to go to Mordecai and get the full story of what was happening. So Hathach went to Mordecai in the town square in front of the King’s Gate. Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him. He also told him the exact amount of money that Haman had promised to deposit in the royal bank to finance the massacre of the Jews. Mordecai also gave him a copy of the bulletin that had been posted in Susa ordering the massacre so he could show it to Esther when he reported back with instructions to go to the king and intercede and plead with him for her people.
9-11 Hathach came back and told Esther everything Mordecai had said. Esther talked it over with Hathach and then sent him back to Mordecai with this message: “Everyone who works for the king here, and even the people out in the provinces, knows that there is a single fate for every man or woman who approaches the king without being invited: death. The one exception is if the king extends his gold scepter; then he or she may live. And it’s been thirty days now since I’ve been invited to come to the king.”
12-14 When Hathach told Mordecai what Esther had said, Mordecai sent her this message: “Don’t think that just because you live in the king’s house you’re the one Jew who will get out of this alive. If you persist in staying silent at a time like this, help and deliverance will arrive for the Jews from someplace else; but you and your family will be wiped out. Who knows? Maybe you were made queen for just such a time as this.”
Insight
Since God isn’t mentioned in the book of Esther, some question why it’s included in the Bible. One view is that in Esther we see God providentially working behind the scenes, as in today’s passage. Without explicitly stating it, by his words to Esther (4:13–14) Mordecai shows he believes in God and His ordering of world events. If Esther doesn’t speak up, God will provide deliverance by some other means. By: Alyson Kieda
Righteous Among the Nations
For such a time as this. Esther 4:14
At Yad Vashem, the Holocaust museum in Israel, my husband and I went to the Righteous Among the Nations garden that honors the men and women who risked their lives to save Jewish people during the Holocaust. While looking at the memorial, we met a group from the Netherlands. One woman was there to see her grandparents’ names listed on the large plaques. Intrigued, we asked about her family’s story.
Members of a resistance network, the woman’s grandparents Rev. Pieter and Adriana Müller took in a two-year-old Jewish boy and passed him off as the youngest of their eight children from 1943–1945.
Moved by the story, we asked, “Did the little boy survive?” An older gentleman in the group stepped forward and proclaimed, “I am that boy!”
The bravery of many to act on behalf of the Jewish people reminds me of Queen Esther. The queen may have thought she could escape King Xerxes’s decree to annihilate the Jews around 475 bc because she had concealed her ethnicity. However, she was convinced to act—even under the threat of death—when her cousin begged her to not remain silent about her Jewish heritage because she had been placed in her position “for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14).
We may never be asked to make such a dramatic decision. However, we will likely face the choice to speak out against an injustice or remain silent; to provide assistance to someone in trouble or turn away. May God grant us courage.
By Lisa Samra
Today's Reflection
Are there those you need to speak up for? Ask God about the timing.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, January 27, 2019
Look Again and Think
Do not worry about your life… —Matthew 6:25
A warning which needs to be repeated is that “the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches,” and the lust for other things, will choke out the life of God in us (Matthew 13:22). We are never free from the recurring waves of this invasion. If the frontline of attack is not about clothes and food, it may be about money or the lack of money; or friends or lack of friends; or the line may be drawn over difficult circumstances. It is one steady invasion, and these things will come in like a flood, unless we allow the Spirit of God to raise up the banner against it.
“I say to you, do not worry about your life….” Our Lord says to be careful only about one thing— our relationship to Him. But our common sense shouts loudly and says, “That is absurd, I must consider how I am going to live, and I must consider what I am going to eat and drink.” Jesus says you must not. Beware of allowing yourself to think that He says this while not understanding your circumstances. Jesus Christ knows our circumstances better than we do, and He says we must not think about these things to the point where they become the primary concern of our life. Whenever there are competing concerns in your life, be sure you always put your relationship to God first.
“Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:34). How much trouble has begun to threaten you today? What kind of mean little demons have been looking into your life and saying, “What are your plans for next month— or next summer?” Jesus tells us not to worry about any of these things. Look again and think. Keep your mind on the “much more” of your heavenly Father (Matthew 6:30).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We are not to preach the doing of good things; good deeds are not to be preached, they are to be performed.
So Send I You
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