Matthew 27:1-26, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: THE SPIRIT IS A PERSON - July 4, 2025

Jesus doesn’t want us to think of the Holy Spirit as an it or a thing. The Spirit is a person. According to one study only four people in ten believe that the Spirit is a divine person. The rest of those surveyed either don’t have an opinion or choose to believe the Spirit is more like a power surge than a divine being who empowers and teaches us.

Can you join me in a pledge? “I hereby resolve never to call the Holy Spirit an it.” The Spirit is a person. And Jesus calls him the Paraclete. Now translators land on different, yet similar, translations for this Greek word: Comforter, Counselor, Advocate, Intercessor. But the central message is the same—we are not alone.

Help Is Here

Matthew 27:1-26

Thirty Silver Coins

1–2  27 In the first light of dawn, all the high priests and religious leaders met and put the finishing touches on their plot to kill Jesus. Then they tied him up and paraded him to Pilate, the governor.

3–4  Judas, the one who betrayed him, realized that Jesus was doomed. Overcome with remorse, he gave back the thirty silver coins to the high priests, saying, “I’ve sinned. I’ve betrayed an innocent man.”

They said, “What do we care? That’s your problem!”

5  Judas threw the silver coins into the Temple and left. Then he went out and hung himself.

6–10  The high priests picked up the silver pieces, but then didn’t know what to do with them. “It wouldn’t be right to give this—a payment for murder!—as an offering in the Temple.” They decided to get rid of it by buying the “Potter’s Field” and use it as a burial place for the homeless. That’s how the field got called “Murder Meadow,” a name that has stuck to this day. Then Jeremiah’s words became history:

They took the thirty silver pieces,

The price of the one priced by some sons of Israel,

And they purchased the potter’s field.

And so they unwittingly followed the divine instructions to the letter.

Pilate

11  Jesus was placed before the governor, who questioned him: “Are you the ‘King of the Jews’?”

Jesus said, “If you say so.”

12–14  But when the accusations rained down hot and heavy from the high priests and religious leaders, he said nothing. Pilate asked him, “Do you hear that long list of accusations? Aren’t you going to say something?” Jesus kept silence—not a word from his mouth. The governor was impressed, really impressed.

15–18  It was an old custom during the Feast for the governor to pardon a single prisoner named by the crowd. At the time, they had the infamous Jesus Barabbas in prison. With the crowd before him, Pilate said, “Which prisoner do you want me to pardon: Jesus Barabbas, or Jesus the so-called Christ?” He knew it was through sheer spite that they had turned Jesus over to him.

19  While court was still in session, Pilate’s wife sent him a message: “Don’t get mixed up in judging this noble man. I’ve just been through a long and troubled night because of a dream about him.”

20  Meanwhile, the high priests and religious leaders had talked the crowd into asking for the pardon of Barabbas and the execution of Jesus.

21  The governor asked, “Which of the two do you want me to pardon?”

They said, “Barabbas!”

22  “Then what do I do with Jesus, the so-called Christ?”

They all shouted, “Nail him to a cross!”

23  He objected, “But for what crime?”

But they yelled all the louder, “Nail him to a cross!”

24  When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere and that a riot was imminent, he took a basin of water and washed his hands in full sight of the crowd, saying, “I’m washing my hands of responsibility for this man’s death. From now on, it’s in your hands. You’re judge and jury.”

25  The crowd answered, “We’ll take the blame, we and our children after us.”

26  Then he pardoned Barabbas. But he had Jesus whipped, and then handed over for crucifixion.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Friday, July 04, 2025

by Dave Branon

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

1 John 5:6-13

  Jesus—the Divine Christ! He experienced a life-giving birth and a death-killing death. Not only birth from the womb, but baptismal birth of his ministry and sacrificial death. And all the while the Spirit is confirming the truth, the reality of God’s presence at Jesus’ baptism and crucifixion, bringing those occasions alive for us. A triple testimony: the Spirit, the Baptism, the Crucifixion. And the three in perfect agreement.

9–10  If we take human testimony at face value, how much more should we be reassured when God gives testimony as he does here, testifying concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God inwardly confirms God’s testimony. Whoever refuses to believe in effect calls God a liar, refusing to believe God’s own testimony regarding his Son.

11–12  This is the testimony in essence: God gave us eternal life; the life is in his Son. So, whoever has the Son, has life; whoever rejects the Son, rejects life.

The Reality, Not the Illusion

13–15  My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God’s Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion.

Today's Insights

John says, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13). This echoes the purpose of his gospel: “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:30-31). Faith in Christ not only saves us from judgment but gives us abundant and eternal life. John uses the word life more than forty times in his gospel, most dramatically in the shepherd parable: “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (10:10-11). Jesus gave up His life to make eternal life possible for us.

The Treasure Christ Offers

God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 1 John 5:11

Michael Sparks walked into a thrift store and bought a souvenir copy of the US Declaration of Independence for $2.48. Later, as he looked closely at his parchment copy, he felt there was something unusual about it. So he had it assessed by experts, who told him it was one of now thirty-six remaining copies of two hundred commissioned by John Quincy Adams in 1820. Sparks then sold his rare copy of the Declaration for $477,650!

While the acquisition of this treasure for such a small price is astounding, there’s a treasure that’s infinitely better. As a child, I found out about a priceless, matchless, and eternal treasure that didn’t cost me a cent. But I didn’t find it at a thrift store.

My parents revealed to me that a man named Jesus had purchased this gift by giving His life on the cross as a sacrifice for my sins. They then told me this gift was called salvation. It promised the treasure of an abundant “life . . . to the full” on earth (John 10:10) and an “eternal life . . . in [God’s] Son” with Jesus (1 John 5:11). I accepted that gift by faith.

It's amazing to find an earthly treasure at low cost, but that can’t compare with the eternal treasure Christ offers at no cost. This treasure offered to each person is received as we “believe in the name of the Son of God”—Jesus (v. 13).

Reflect & Pray

What does it mean for you to trust Jesus as your Savior? How can you tell others about this great treasure?

Thank You, Jesus, for paying the price for my salvation. It’s a treasure I could never purchase on my own.

Learn more about having a personal relationship with God.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Friday, July 04, 2025

One of God’s Great Don’ts

Do not fret—it leads only to evil. —Psalm 37:8

Fretting is wicked if you are a child of God. When you fret, you place concern for yourself at the center of your life. It’s one thing to tell yourself not to worry, and a very different thing to be unable to worry because your disposition won’t allow it. A disposition founded on Jesus Christ doesn’t worry because it rests in perfect confidence in the Father.

“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him” (Psalm 37:7 kjv). We think of resting in the Lord as easy. It is easy—that is, until the nest is upset, until we find ourselves living, as so many are today, in tumult and anguish. Can we hear God telling us “Don’t fret” then? If this “don’t” doesn’t work then, it will never work. This “don’t” must work in days of perplexity as well as in days of peace. It must work in your particular case, or it will work in no one’s case. Resting in the Lord doesn’t depend on external circumstances at all but on your relationship to him.

Fretting always ends in sin. We imagine that a little anxiety and worry are an indication of how wise we are; they are really an indication of how wicked we are. Fretting springs from a determination to get our own way. Our Lord never worried and he was never anxious, because he wasn’t out to realize his own ideas. He was out to realize his Father’s ideas: “I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me” (John 6:38).

All our worry is caused by calculating without God. Have you been propping up that stupid soul of yours with the idea that your circumstances are too much for God? Put your anxiousness away, and dwell in the shadow of the Almighty. Deliberately tell God that you will not worry. Pray to him, “Lord, I take you into my calculations as the biggest factor now.”

Job 28-29; Acts 13:1-25

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

To those who have had no agony Jesus says, “I have nothing for you; stand on your own feet, square your own shoulders. I have come for the man who knows he has a bigger handful than he can cope with, who knows there are forces he cannot touch; I will do everything for him if he will let Me. Only let a man grant he needs it, and I will do it for him.”

The Shadow of an Agony

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Friday, July 04, 2025

So Good To Be Clean - #10040

Our son had just arrived in the southwestern United States to begin his work with Native Americans there. In fact, his supervisor in his non-profit work was a Native American. And our son was eager to show that he was coming with a servant spirit, you know. He had a tremendous opportunity to do just that. His supervisor needed his help in cleaning out a septic system. The job began with our son's hands having to work in that sewage. But the job got more and more involved and so did his body. Before he was finished, he was in that septic sewage up to his waist! Needless to say, he never felt more disgusting in his life. And then came the shower; that long, wonderful, heavenly shower! He said "Dad, I have never felt so dirty in all my life, and it never felt so good to be clean!"

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "So Good To Be Clean."

Getting really clean after you've felt really dirty is a great feeling; one that you might be ready for - on the inside. So many of us carry the awful burden of the mistakes we've made. We've got guilt and regrets that weigh us down, maybe for some destructive choices we've made or some compromises or some sin we wish we could go back and erase. Sometimes it can feel disgusting like all that dirt that covered our son that day. We wonder if there's any way to get really clean, to finally be free of the weight of it all, the dirt, the guilt, the shame.

When Mark Twain was asked what were the two most important words in the English language, he said. "Not guilty." But when we know we are guilty, how can we ever experience the freedom of those two glorious words?

There is wonderful, cleansing news today. Yes, it's in our word for today from the Word of God in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. God is talking to people who've got a past. He mentions "the sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, homosexual offenders, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, slanderers, swindlers." And He delivers the bad news that those kind of people will never make it to heaven. It sounds hopeless until God turns on His cleansing shower in the next verse.

He says, "And that is what some of you were." Did you get that? Were? You mean I can be free from the guilt and shame of the past? How? Well, He says, "But you were washed, you were sanctified (which means you were made special), you were justified (that means you were made right with God) in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."

The liberating message God has for you and me is this: whatever you've done, whatever you've become doesn't ever have to matter again. Jesus Christ offers you the shower of a lifetime, to forgive every sin you've ever committed, to declare you "not guilty," to open the doors of heaven to you as a new, spiritually clean person.

The forgiveness Jesus died to give you becomes yours when you tell Jesus that you're trusting Him to be your Rescuer from your sin. And at that moment the shower of God washes you completely clean for the first time in your life - and clean forever.

Don't you want that? The past erased from God's Book? It happens when you say, "Jesus, I'm yours. You died for my sin. I'm putting all my trust in You and what You did on that cross." I pray you'll go to that cross and get forgiven today. Listen, if you go to our website you will have all the information you need from God's Word to be sure you belong to Him. That website is ANewStory.com.

So many people have told me how they felt when they made this choice for Jesus. They've said, "It's like a huge weight was lifted off my back." That can happen to you right now, right where you are. And you can know how good it feels to finally be clean.

Exodus 18, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: DON’T NEGLECT THE SPIRIT - July 3, 2025

Some time ago I realized my car’s gas tank was nearly empty. I spotted a convenience store and parked next to a pump. I placed the nozzle in my tank, swiped my card, and began filling up my car. I then went into the store and bought a soda. I chatted with the store clerk. I went back to my car and washed the windshield. I was barely back on the road when I happened to look at my gas gauge. It was on empty! Knowing my attention span, I probably forgot to squeeze the lever. I did everything except the one thing I needed to do.

Have you done the same? Have you neglected the Holy Spirit? The Spirit of God longs to give you his great power. Challenges come with life, but they need not define your life. Help is here.

Help Is Here

Exodus 18

 Jethro, priest of Midian and father-in-law to Moses, heard the report of all that God had done for Moses and Israel his people, the news that God had delivered Israel from Egypt. Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, had taken in Zipporah, Moses’ wife who had been sent back home, and her two sons. The name of the one was Gershom (Sojourner) for he had said, “I’m a sojourner in a foreign land”; the name of the other was Eliezer (God’s-Help) because “The God of my father is my help and saved me from death by Pharaoh.”

5–6  Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought Moses his sons and his wife there in the wilderness where he was camped at the mountain of God. He had sent a message ahead to Moses: “I, your father-in-law, am coming to you with your wife and two sons.”

7–8  Moses went out to welcome his father-in-law. He bowed to him and kissed him. Each asked the other how things had been with him. Then they went into the tent. Moses told his father-in-law the story of all that God had done to Pharaoh and Egypt in helping Israel, all the trouble they had experienced on the journey, and how God had delivered them.

9–11  Jethro was delighted in all the good that God had done for Israel in delivering them from Egyptian oppression. Jethro said, “Blessed be God who has delivered you from the power of Egypt and Pharaoh, who has delivered his people from the oppression of Egypt. Now I know that God is greater than all gods because he’s done this to all those who treated Israel arrogantly.”

12  Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought a Whole-Burnt-Offering and sacrifices to God. And Aaron, along with all the elders of Israel, came and ate the meal with Moses’ father-in-law in the presence of God.

13–14  The next day Moses took his place to judge the people. People were standing before him all day long, from morning to night. When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, “What’s going on here? Why are you doing all this, and all by yourself, letting everybody line up before you from morning to night?”

15–16  Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me with questions about God. When something comes up, they come to me. I judge between a man and his neighbor and teach them God’s laws and instructions.”

17–23  Moses’ father-in-law said, “This is no way to go about it. You’ll burn out, and the people right along with you. This is way too much for you—you can’t do this alone. Now listen to me. Let me tell you how to do this so that God will be in this with you. Be there for the people before God, but let the matters of concern be presented to God. Your job is to teach them the rules and instructions, to show them how to live, what to do. And then you need to keep a sharp eye out for competent men—men who fear God, men of integrity, men who are incorruptible—and appoint them as leaders over groups organized by the thousand, by the hundred, by fifty, and by ten. They’ll be responsible for the everyday work of judging among the people. They’ll bring the hard cases to you, but in the routine cases they’ll be the judges. They will share your load and that will make it easier for you. If you handle the work this way, you’ll have the strength to carry out whatever God commands you, and the people in their settings will flourish also.”

24–27  Moses listened to the counsel of his father-in-law and did everything he said. Moses picked competent men from all Israel and set them as leaders over the people who were organized by the thousand, by the hundred, by fifty, and by ten. They took over the everyday work of judging among the people. They brought the hard cases to Moses, but in the routine cases they were the judges. Then Moses said good-bye to his father-in-law who went home to his own country.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Thursday, July 03, 2025

by Xochitl Dixon

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Psalm 63

A David Psalm, When He Was out in the Judean Wilderness

1  63 God—you’re my God!

I can’t get enough of you!

I’ve worked up such hunger and thirst for God,

traveling across dry and weary deserts.

2–4  So here I am in the place of worship, eyes open,

drinking in your strength and glory.

In your generous love I am really living at last!

My lips brim praises like fountains.

I bless you every time I take a breath;

My arms wave like banners of praise to you.

5–8  I eat my fill of prime rib and gravy;

I smack my lips. It’s time to shout praises!

If I’m sleepless at midnight,

I spend the hours in grateful reflection.

Because you’ve always stood up for me,

I’m free to run and play.

I hold on to you for dear life,

and you hold me steady as a post.

9–11  Those who are out to get me are marked for doom,

marked for death, bound for hell.

They’ll die violent deaths;

jackals will tear them limb from limb.

But the king is glad in God;

his true friends spread the joy,

While small-minded gossips

are gagged for good.

Today's Insights

The heading of Psalm 63 tells us that David wrote it “when he was in the Desert of Judah.” This indicates that he was either fleeing from Saul (1 Samuel 23:14; 24:1) or from his son Absalom (2 Samuel 15:13-37). It’s more likely that he was fleeing from Absalom because in Psalm 63:11, David addressed himself as “king,” and he wasn’t yet king when Saul pursued him. In the arid desert, David thirsted for God (v. 1), affirming that God is his sustenance (vv. 7-8). With his life threatened, he turned to God instead of his army to rescue and protect him (vv. 9-11). His experience with God’s power and love (vv. 2-3) enabled him to trust Him, praise Him, and rejoice in Him (vv. 4-5, 11). Like David, as we earnestly seek God (v. 1), gratefully celebrate His love (vv. 2-5), passionately remember His faithfulness (vv. 6-8), and triumphantly rejoice in Him (vv. 9-11), our lives can point others to Him.

Jesus—Our Everything

Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. Psalm 63:3

With the referee’s final gesture, wrestler Kennedy Blades became a 2024 Olympian. She pressed her palms together, lifted her hands and eyes to the heavens, and praised God. A reporter asked about her growth over the past three years. The elite athlete didn’t even mention her physical training. “I’ve just gotten super close to Jesus,” she said. Professing Christ as King, she proclaimed that He’s coming again and encouraged others to believe in Him. “It’s Him,” she said. “That’s the main reason why I was able to accomplish such a big thing.” In other interviews, she faithfully declared that Jesus is everything to her and the reason for everything good in her life.

This passion for living a God-centered life reflects David’s confessions in Psalm 63. Acknowledging his desperation for his creator, he said, “I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you” (v. 1). David had “seen” God and “beheld” His “power” and “glory” (v. 2). He declared God’s steadfast love as “better than life” (v. 3). Then, he prayed: “Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. I cling to you; your right hand upholds me” (vv. 7-8). God was clearly everything to David.

Our lives can be beacons that point others to a life-saving relationship with God when Jesus becomes our reason, our everything.

Reflect & Pray

In what ways does your life reflect that Christ is your reason, your everything? What do you need to surrender to acknowledge that He’s your king?

Dear Jesus, please help me truly live like You’re my reason, my everything.

Feeling tired? Learn how to find rest in God.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Thursday, July 03, 2025

The Concentration of Personal Sin

“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips.” — Isaiah 6:5

When the Lord appeared to Isaiah in a vision, Isaiah was convicted by a sense of his sinfulness (Isaiah 6:1—5). This conviction wasn’t vague or indefinite; the Lord revealed to Isaiah the exact nature of his sin, showing him that he was “a man of unclean lips.”

A sure sign that I am in the presence of God is this lack of vagueness about sin. I realize I am a sinner not in a general sense but in a particular sense. I understand that there is a concentration of sin in a specific area of my life. It’s easy to say, “Oh, yes, I know I am a sinner.” But I can’t get away with a vague statement like this when I am with God.

Everyone, from the greatest and the least of saints to the greatest and the least of sinners, experiences this awareness of the concentration of sin when they come into God’s presence. When we are on the first rung of the ladder of spiritual experience, we may not know exactly where we’ve gone wrong. The Spirit of God will show us. He will point out a definite sin, fixing our minds upon it, as he fixed Isaiah’s mind upon his “unclean lips.” If we will yield to his conviction on this point, he will take us to a deeper level of conviction, leading us all the way down to the great disposition of sin that lies underneath.

Once we’ve been convicted of our sin, God will purify us of it, sending his cleansing fire to the precise place the sin is concentrated: “He touched my mouth and said, ‘See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for’” (v. 7). This is always the way God deals with us when we are consciously in his presence.

Job 25-27; Acts 12

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.

Not Knowing Whither, 901 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Thursday, July 03, 2025

The Count-Onables - #10039

My friend, Brian, told me that he had spent most of the day in the bathroom. No, he wasn't sick, he didn't have the flu. He was installing marble. That's what he does for a living. And he told me that he was cutting slabs of marble to size, and his weapon for this job was a diamond saw - a saw with a diamond blade that cuts right through marble. He said, "You know, this saw is amazing. You can touch your finger to that blade and it won't cut you." And he went on to explain that a diamond blade is not the sharpest blade there is, it's just the hardest blade there is. It's so hard that it cuts through what sharp cannot.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Count-Onables."

Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Corinthians 4, beginning at verse 2. It's a statement of what God values. You'll notice that it's pretty different from what most humans value. "Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must be found faithful." Verse 5 talks about reward time. "Therefore, judge nothing before your appointed time comes; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is seen in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God."

Now, what does God reward? Success? No. It says faithfulness. We live in a world that values charisma and the bottom line. "Hey, how well did you do? What kind of results did you get?" We live in a world that values beauty, awards, and accomplishments. God says, though, that the winning trait is none of those. To Him the winning trait is faithfulness. In His opinion that's what matters. You know, it's not unlike that diamond saw. It can cut through marble because it's tough; it's hard; it just keeps coming. Nothing can stand up to its persistent, insistent advance.

Now, maybe you feel that you're just not sharp enough to really be used by your Lord. You say, "Well, I don't have the training. I don't have the skill. I don't have the personality. I don't speak very well.

I'm not that great looking. I'm just kind of average." But if God lays the burden on you, He wants you to be His tool. He isn't asking you to be successful; He's asking you to be faithful, to just keep coming: persistent, consistent, and insistent.

Be a person who can be counted on. Be the one who stays with a responsibility even while others come and go; the one who works, whether they feel like it or not; someone who does whatever he does with all his heart; the person who keeps their commitments and keeps their word.

So often the sharp blades, the ones with the great gift and the great charisma...oh, they cut for a while, and then they lose their edge and they break and they move on. But God's diamond blades are the ones who usually get the job done; they just keep coming faithfully. And what will it be that Jesus says on reward day? "Well done, good and faithful servant."

There are few things on earth that will not eventually yield to faithfulness. So, let God use you as His diamond blade to cut through marble for Him.

Exodus 17, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: THE PROMISED POWER - July 2, 2025

Jesus would not let his followers begin their ministries unless they knew the Holy Spirit. By this point the disciples had spent three years in training. They had seen the empty tomb, they had touched his resurrected body, they had spent forty days listening to the resurrected Christ teach about the kingdom. But they needed more.

Jesus told them, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8 NKJV).

The Holy Spirit comes with power. Power to make good choices, to keep promises, to silence the inner voices of fear and failure. Power to get busy about the right things in the right way. Power! This is what Jesus promised then, and this is what Jesus promises still.

Help Is Here

Exodus 17

Directed by God, the whole company of Israel moved on by stages from the Wilderness of Sin. They set camp at Rephidim. And there wasn’t a drop of water for the people to drink. The people took Moses to task: “Give us water to drink.” But Moses said, “Why pester me? Why are you testing God?”

3  But the people were thirsty for water there. They complained to Moses, “Why did you take us from Egypt and drag us out here with our children and animals to die of thirst?”

4  Moses cried out in prayer to God, “What can I do with these people? Any minute now they’ll kill me!”

5–6  God said to Moses, “Go on out ahead of the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel. Take the staff you used to strike the Nile. And go. I’m going to be present before you there on the rock at Horeb. You are to strike the rock. Water will gush out of it and the people will drink.”

6–7  Moses did what he said, with the elders of Israel right there watching. He named the place Massah (Testing-Place) and Meribah (Quarreling) because of the quarreling of the Israelites and because of their testing of God when they said, “Is God here with us, or not?”

8–9  Amalek came and fought Israel at Rephidim. Moses ordered Joshua: “Select some men for us and go out and fight Amalek. Tomorrow I will take my stand on top of the hill holding God’s staff.”

10–13  Joshua did what Moses ordered in order to fight Amalek. And Moses, Aaron, and Hur went to the top of the hill. It turned out that whenever Moses raised his hands, Israel was winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, Amalek was winning. But Moses’ hands got tired. So they got a stone and set it under him. He sat on it and Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on each side. So his hands remained steady until the sun went down. Joshua defeated Amalek and its army in battle.

14  God said to Moses, “Write this up as a reminder to Joshua, to keep it before him, because I will most certainly wipe the very memory of Amalek off the face of the Earth.”

15–16  Moses built an altar and named it “God My Banner.” He said,

Salute God’s rule!

God at war with Amalek

Always and forever!

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Wednesday, July 02, 2025

by 

Karen Pimpo

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

2 Corinthians 3:7-18

Lifting the Veil

7–8  The Government of Death, its constitution chiseled on stone tablets, had a dazzling inaugural. Moses’ face as he delivered the tablets was so bright that day (even though it would fade soon enough) that the people of Israel could no more look right at him than stare into the sun. How much more dazzling, then, the Government of Living Spirit?

9–11  If the Government of Condemnation was impressive, how about this Government of Affirmation? Bright as that old government was, it would look downright dull alongside this new one. If that makeshift arrangement impressed us, how much more this brightly shining government installed for eternity?

12–15  With that kind of hope to excite us, nothing holds us back. Unlike Moses, we have nothing to hide. Everything is out in the open with us. He wore a veil so the children of Israel wouldn’t notice that the glory was fading away—and they didn’t notice. They didn’t notice it then and they don’t notice it now, don’t notice that there’s nothing left behind that veil. Even today when the proclamations of that old, bankrupt government are read out, they can’t see through it. Only Christ can get rid of the veil so they can see for themselves that there’s nothing there.

16–18  Whenever, though, they turn to face God as Moses did, God removes the veil and there they are—face-to-face! They suddenly recognize that God is a living, personal presence, not a piece of chiseled stone. And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him.

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Today's Insights

The “ministry” that Moses performed was “engraved in letters on stone” (a reference to the tablets of the law), yet it “brought death” (2 Corinthians 3:7). Despite this, it “came with glory”—a glory that was startlingly evident on Moses’ face. Paul says the ministry of the Holy Spirit is far more glorious (vv. 10-11) and belongs to those who have the hope of Christ. The glory that appeared on Moses’ face was “transitory” (v. 11)—it faded away. The glory believers in Jesus enjoy is “ever-increasing” because it “comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (v. 18).

From Glory to Glory

We . . . are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory. 2 Corinthians 3:18

Living in a coastal town, Valerie loved warm weather, wildlife photography, and being in the water. Above all, she loved watching the sunrise over the ocean. Every morning, she woke up before dawn to catch a view of the water. Val estimated that despite cloudy weather or travel, she still managed to see more than three hundred waterfront sunrises each year. She never tired of watching them. In her eyes, the sunrise held a glory she didn’t want to miss.

In Exodus 34, we read about Moses’ radiant face literally reflecting his glorious encounter with “the Lord” (vv. 29-35). Paul said that since Jesus came, there’s an even more glorious ministry than what Moses experienced (2 Corinthians 3:7-8). It’s the ministry of the Spirit, which brings righteousness (vv. 8-9). God’s plan of salvation has permanent glory, surpassing anything that came before (v. 10), and we get to participate in it. The apostle said, “We all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory” (v. 18). That ever-increasing glory is not dependent on how well we perform but on the Holy Spirit. We, like the clouds at sunrise, just reflect a little more and a little better each day the glorious work that He’s doing.

Reflect & Pray

When is it more difficult to see the work of the Holy Spirit in your life? How do you know He’s still there?

Dear God, You’re doing a glorious work within me! Thank You for transforming me into Your image.

Watch this video to learn how the fruit of the spirit make us more like Jesus.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Wednesday, July 02, 2025

The Conditions of Discipleship

If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. —Luke 14:26, see also 27, 33

If the closest relationships of my life clash with the claims of Jesus Christ, Jesus says my choice must be instant obedience to him. Discipleship means passionate devotion to a person—to our Lord, Jesus Christ. There is a difference between devotion to a person and devotion to a cause. Our Lord never proclaimed a cause; he proclaimed that we should be personally devoted to him. To be a disciple is to be a devoted love-slave of the Lord.

Many of us who call ourselves Christians aren’t devoted to Jesus Christ. We may admire Jesus Christ, we may respect and reverence him, but we do not love him. The only lover of Jesus Christ is the Holy Spirit, and the only way anyone on earth can possess passionate love for Jesus is if the Holy Spirit imparts it to them; it is the Spirit who puts the love of God in our hearts. When the Holy Spirit sees a chance of glorifying Jesus through you, he will take your heart, your nerves, your whole personality, and make you simply blaze and glow with devotion to the Lord.

What does this devotion look like? The life of the devoted Christian is marked by the moral originality that comes from abandonment to God. This spontaneous obedience to the Spirit leaves the Christian disciple open to a charge that was leveled against Jesus Christ: the charge of inconsistency. But Jesus Christ was always consistent to God. As Christians, we must be consistent to the life of the Son of God inside us, not to our creeds and ideologies. People pour themselves into creeds. God has to blast them out of their prejudices before they can become devoted to Jesus Christ.

Job 22-24; Acts 11

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

It is impossible to read too much, but always keep before you why you read. Remember that “the need to receive, recognize, and rely on the Holy Spirit” is before all else.

Approved Unto God, 11 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Wednesday, July 02, 2025

Lost No More - #10038

Our church's youth group had just been out whitewater rafting all day. I had been invited to wrap up the day with an inspirational talk. And when I arrived at the rafting facility they were using, I was expecting to see just the youth group. As it turned out, this recreational company had 1,500 people on the river that day. They were all from all these different groups! So, I wandered around looking lost until someone from our church found me. And that night we had a wonderful get-together under the trees.

Now, I didn't know that one girl at the back was there, and she had not planned to be there at all. She was a Girl Scout who had been there for the day with her troop. And they had somehow gone off and left her all alone. And she saw this group of teenagers meeting, so she wandered over to check it out. And she stayed...and she listened...and at the end, she was one of the young people who indicated they wanted to begin a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. That's cool!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Lost No More."

That was one very happy Girl Scout, even before she found a ride home. In a very real sense, she got left so she could get found...spiritually. Actually, that could be what's happening in your life right now.

You're probably not a Girl Scout, and you're not stuck out in the woods, but it could be that you have been left, or you're feeling lost. A person you were counting on bailed out or maybe even died. Or something that has been one of your life anchors isn't there any more. You've been left out or left behind or left high and dry. And you're not sure which way home is. Because so much in life is temporary, it's only a matter of time before we all experience the pain of being left or being lost.

Which makes our word for today from the Word of God especially important. It's Jesus' personal mission statement in Luke 19:10 - "The Son of Man (that's Jesus) came to seek and to save what was lost." Now He's talking about you and me. That Girl Scout at that camp that night was lost, separated from the people who could get her home.

Well, that's the picture the Bible paints of you and me. Oh, sure, on the outside we look like we've got it all together. But inside, there's a lot of loneliness, a lot of hurt, and a lot of unanswered questions. We are, in Jesus' words, "lost" because we're separated from the one Person who can get us home - who is home for our searching heart...our Creator. In God's own words, "Your sins have separated you from your God" (Isaiah 59:2).

See, we have broken God's laws and we're paying the price. It's a wall between Him and us - a wall that's there forever if we die with it still there. A wall that Jesus died on a cross to remove by paying the death penalty for all the sinning we ever did. But He has a hard time getting us to realize that He's the only one who can finally fill that hole in our heart. Maybe that's why God has allowed you to be left or to be lost - so you'd finally realize no earth-love is going to be enough. I have to tell you honestly, it isn't until our earth-anchors let us down and leave us stranded, that we finally realize we were made for Jesus and we were paid for by Jesus.

And now this Savior has come looking for you. He said He would "seek and save what was lost." That tug you feel in your heart? That's Jesus Himself, knocking on the door of your heart. Your relationship with Him can begin right where you are if you'll just tell Him that you're trusting Him to be your Savior from your sin. All the disappointments have been so you could finally find the one love that will never let you down, never leave you, and never die on you.

You tell Him, "Jesus, I'm putting all my faith in what You did on the cross, paying for my sin. I believe You walked out of your grave; you're alive. Come into my life today." Tell Him that, where you are. And please go to our website, and there I've laid out very simply the things that can help you know, from God's Word, that you belong to Jesus. It's ANewStory.com.

Jesus has allowed you to be left, to be lost...so you could get found. By the One who went all the way to a cross to bring you home.

Genesis 40 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Bring Your Children to Jesus

Lamentations 2:19 says, "Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord.  Lift your hands toward Him for the life of your young children."

Dads- we can be loyal advocates, stubborn intercessors. We can take our parenting fears to Christ. In fact, if we don't, we'll take our fears out on our kids. Fear turns some parents into paranoid prison guards.

On the other hand, fear can also create permissive parents. High on hugs and low on discipline. Permissive parents. Paranoid parents. How can we avoid the extremes? We pray. Prayer is the saucer into which parental fears are poured to cool. When you send them off for the day, do so with a blessing. When you tell them good night, cover them in prayer. Pray that your children have a profound sense of place in this world and a heavenly place in the next.

From Dad Time

Genesis  40

The Cupbearer and the Baker

Some time later, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt offended their master, the king of Egypt. 2 Pharaoh was angry with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, 3 and put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the same prison where Joseph was confined. 4 The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he attended them.

After they had been in custody for some time, 5 each of the two men—the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were being held in prison—had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own.

6 When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected. 7 So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were in custody with him in his master’s house, “Why do you look so sad today?”

8 “We both had dreams,” they answered, “but there is no one to interpret them.”

Then Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.”

9 So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream. He said to him, “In my dream I saw a vine in front of me, 10 and on the vine were three branches. As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters ripened into grapes. 11 Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup and put the cup in his hand.”

12 “This is what it means,” Joseph said to him. “The three branches are three days. 13 Within three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your position, and you will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand, just as you used to do when you were his cupbearer. 14 But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. 15 I was forcibly carried off from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon.”

16 When the chief baker saw that Joseph had given a favorable interpretation, he said to Joseph, “I too had a dream: On my head were three baskets of bread.[a] 17 In the top basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”

18 “This is what it means,” Joseph said. “The three baskets are three days. 19 Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head and impale your body on a pole. And the birds will eat away your flesh.”

20 Now the third day was Pharaoh’s birthday, and he gave a feast for all his officials. He lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker in the presence of his officials: 21 He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, so that he once again put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand— 22 but he impaled the chief baker, just as Joseph had said to them in his interpretation.

23 The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him.

Footnotes:

    Genesis 40:16 Or three wicker baskets

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   

Read: Matthew 27:32-44

The Crucifixion of Jesus

As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. 33 They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 34 There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. 35 When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. 36 And sitting down, they kept watch over him there. 37 Above his head they placed the written charge against him: this is jesus, the king of the jews.

38 Two rebels were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” 41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. 42 “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44 In the same way the rebels who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

Insight

In Mark 15:21, Simon of Cyrene (see Matt. 27:32) is described as the “father of Alexander and Rufus.” Some scholars believe this otherwise unnecessary detail strongly implies that both Rufus and Alexander had come to faith in Christ (perhaps due to their father’s testimony) and, as a result, were well known among the early followers of Christ.

Who Is This Man?

By Dave Branon

Our Lord . . . was . . . declared to be the Son of God . . . by the resurrection from the dead. —Romans 1:3-4

When Kelly Steinhaus visited Harvard Square to ask college students what they thought of Jesus, the answers were respectful of Him. One said He was “a person who took care of people.” Another said, “He sounds like a cool guy.” Others rejected Him outright: “He was just a guy. I don’t think He was the Savior.” And “I do not accept any faith system that says, ‘I am the only way to God.’” Some people thoughtfully question who Jesus is and some reject Him.

As Jesus faced death 2,000 years ago, many people mocked the idea that He was anyone special. “They put up over His head the accusation written against Him: ‘THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS’ ” (Matt. 27:37). Those who said, “You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself!” (v.40) were doubting His power. The religious people even said, “He saved others; Himself He cannot save” (v.42).

In His death, Jesus may have seemed powerless. But when we read the whole story, we see that He gave His life willingly. He proved Himself to be the Son of God and limitless in power as He burst forth from the tomb. Grasp the value of His death and behold the power of His resurrection. He’s the Savior of the world!

Up from the grave He arose,

With a mighty triumph o’er His foes;

He arose a Victor from the dark domain,

And He lives forever with His saints to reign. —Lowry

Jesus’ resurrection spelled the death of death.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Tuesday, July 01, 2014

The Inevitable Penalty

You will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny —Matthew 5:26

There is no heaven that has a little corner of hell in it. God is determined to make you pure, holy, and right, and He will not allow you to escape from the scrutiny of the Holy Spirit for even one moment. He urged you to come to judgment immediately when He convicted you, but you did not obey. Then the inevitable process began to work, bringing its inevitable penalty. Now you have been “thrown into prison, [and] . . . you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny” (5:25-26). Yet you ask, “Is this a God of mercy and love?” When seen from God’s perspective, it is a glorious ministry of love. God is going to bring you out pure, spotless, and undefiled, but He wants you to recognize the nature you were exhibiting— the nature of demanding your right to yourself. The moment you are willing for God to change your nature, His recreating forces will begin to work. And the moment you realize that God’s purpose is to get you into the right relationship with Himself and then with others, He will reach to the very limits of the universe to help you take the right road. Decide to do it right now, saying, “Yes, Lord, I will write that letter,” or, “I will be reconciled to that person now.”

These sermons of Jesus Christ are meant for your will and your conscience, not for your head. If you dispute these verses from the Sermon on the Mount with your head, you will dull the appeal to your heart.

If you find yourself asking, “I wonder why I’m not growing spiritually with God?”— then ask yourself if you are paying your debts from God’s standpoint. Do now what you will have to do someday. Every moral question or call comes with an “ought” behind it— the knowledge of knowing what we ought to do.

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

The Longer It Waits, The Harder It Gets - #7167

The idea of teamwork in a marriage isn't really that tough. For example, my wife prepares a meal, which is better than me preparing it because the Bible says, "Blessed are the merciful." So, what do I do? I clear the table and I rinse the dishes. I also eat, but that's not such a bad deal.

Now, around my house I have a title. I'm known as the "mad cleaning man." So I might clear your plate while you're still in mid bite. So you need to keep an eye on that. I like to get my job done! I've been told over the years, "Oh listen, leave the dishes. Don't worry about them now. Come on in the living room with us. The dishes will wait." Well that's true, but that's a terrible idea. I've never known the dishes to rinse themselves and I've never known them to put themselves away. But it is a wise discipline to rinse the dirty dish immediately.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Longer It Waits, The Harder It Gets."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Ephesians 4, and starting with verse 26. "In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the Devil a foothold." Well, there's a biblical clock here on strained relationships. That clock runs out at sundown every day basically. We really shouldn't be hanging on to our anger after the end of the day.

There are those old Western movies, and sometimes the marshal would say, "You better be out of here by sundown!" Well, that's what we're supposed to be saying to any anger, or resentment, bitterness or conflict that comes up. "Get out of here by sundown!" There's a good reason for this. You know those food remnants on dirty dishes which I was talking about? If you deal with them right away they're soft and easy to remove; just kind of scrape them a little bit and they fall right off. But you know what happens if you wait with a dirty plate. You do it two days from now, it turns hard and you've got to scrape and work and it's just tough to remove those little food things there, because they weren't cleaned up right after you ate.

Is that why we call unresolved anger "hard feelings"? That's when the Devil gets an opportunity to enter a marriage, or a parent-child relationship, or a friendship, or a church. I think at the core of most every marriage breakup there was probably an issue that once was small, but it wasn't dealt with when it was small. At the core of broken parent-child relationships or a hurting friendship, or a divided church, there are people who didn't clean up their anger when it first appeared; when it was still small, when it was relatively soft. And it's led to a terrible outcome. The Devil got his place and is using it like crazy now.

Maybe there's a strained relationship in your life right now. Could that be why God wanted us talking about this today? There have been too many sunsets, too many bad feelings you let hang on. It will never be smaller than it is today. I know that it's bigger than it used to be, but this is the smallest it's ever going to be. It will never be easier to address that conflict, that resentment, that anger than it is right now, no matter how hard that might seem. It's only going to get harder. It will only get more costly. You're just going to turn darker and darker inside.

Today is always your best opportunity to go to that person and do whatever it takes to repair things. Apologize if you need to, confront if you need to, pray together, talk it through. You just can't afford the hard spot in your heart that develops from anger that you stuff inside. Anger never stays the same size. Bitterness never stays the same size. It always grows.

Take it from a veteran dish-rinser, there's nothing to gain in waiting. The longer you wait, the harder it gets.

Genesis 39 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Succeed at Home First

Quiet heroes dot the landscape of our society. They don't make the headlines, but they do sew the hemlines and check the outlines and stand on the sidelines. You won't find their names on the Nobel Prize short list, but you'll find their names on the carpool, and Bible teacher lists. They are parents!  Heroes!  Their kids call them mom. Dad.  And these moms and dads, more valuable than all the executives and lawmakers, quietly hold the world together.

Be numbered among them. Read books to your kids. Play ball while you can and they want you to. Make it your aim to watch every game they play, read every story they write, hear every recital in which they perform. Children spell love with four letters:  T-I-M-E. Not just quality time, but hang time, downtime, anytime, all the time! Cherish the children who share your name. Succeed at home first!

From Dad Time

Genesis 39

Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife

Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.

2 The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. 3 When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, 4 Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. 5 From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. 6 So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate.

Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, 7 and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!”

8 But he refused. “With me in charge,” he told her, “my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. 9 No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” 10 And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her.

11 One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. 12 She caught him by his cloak and said, “Come to bed with me!” But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house.

13 When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house, 14 she called her household servants. “Look,” she said to them, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed. 15 When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”

16 She kept his cloak beside her until his master came home. 17 Then she told him this story: “That Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me. 18 But as soon as I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”

19 When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is how your slave treated me,” he burned with anger. 20 Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined.

But while Joseph was there in the prison, 21 the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 22 So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. 23 The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   

Read: 1 John 1

The Incarnation of the Word of Life

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our[a] joy complete.

Light and Darkness, Sin and Forgiveness

5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin.

8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

Footnotes:

    1 John 1:4 Some manuscripts your

    1 John 1:7 Or every

Insight

In today’s reading we see how God has provided a gracious means of cleansing us from our personal sins and reestablishing fellowship with God. It comes through confession of sin and redirecting our choices to the path of obedience (1 John 1:9).

The Big Comeback

By Bill Crowder

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. —1 John 1:9

Chad Pennington is a former American football player who has suffered multiple career-threatening injuries. Twice, his injuries forced him to endure surgery, months of physical therapy, and weeks of training to get back onto the field. Yet, both times he not only returned to playing but he also excelled at such a high level that he was named Comeback Player of the Year in the National Football League. For Pennington, his efforts were an expression of his determination to return to football.

Spiritually, when sin and failure break our relationship with God and sideline our service, determination alone is not what restores us to rightness with God and usefulness in His kingdom. When we are sidelined because of sin, the path to a comeback is confession as well. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

For us to be able to recover from our spiritual failings, we are absolutely dependent on the One who gave Himself for us. And that gives us hope. Christ, who died for us, loves us with an everlasting love and will respond with grace as we confess our faults to Him. Through confession, we can find His gracious restoration—the greatest of all comebacks.

Just as I am, without one plea,

But that Thy blood was shed for me,

And that Thou bidd’st me come to Thee,

O Lamb of God, I come, I come. —Elliott

Confession is the path that leads to restoration.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Monday, June 30, 2014

Do It Now!

Agree with your adversary quickly . . . —Matthew 5:25

In this verse, Jesus Christ laid down a very important principle by saying, “Do what you know you must do— now. Do it quickly. If you don’t, an inevitable process will begin to work ’till you have paid the last penny’ (Matthew 5:26) in pain, agony, and distress.” God’s laws are unchangeable and there is no escape from them. The teachings of Jesus always penetrate right to the heart of our being.

Wanting to make sure that my adversary gives me all my rights is a natural thing. But Jesus says that it is a matter of inescapable and eternal importance to me that I pay my adversary what I owe him. From our Lord’s standpoint it doesn’t matter whether I am cheated or not, but what does matter is that I don’t cheat someone else. Am I insisting on having my own rights, or am I paying what I owe from Jesus Christ’s standpoint?

Do it quickly— bring yourself to judgment now. In moral and spiritual matters, you must act immediately. If you don’t, the inevitable, relentless process will begin to work. God is determined to have His child as pure, clean, and white as driven snow, and as long as there is disobedience in any point of His teaching, He will allow His Spirit to use whatever process it may take to bring us to obedience. The fact that we insist on proving that we are right is almost always a clear indication that we have some point of disobedience. No wonder the Spirit of God so strongly urges us to stay steadfastly in the light! (see John 3:19-21).

“Agree with your adversary quickly . . . .” Have you suddenly reached a certain place in your relationship with someone, only to find that you have anger in your heart? Confess it quickly— make it right before God. Be reconciled to that person— do it now!

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

The Life or Death Verb - #7166

Pete came to me with this very unusual request when we were freshmen in college together. He asked me who I thought were the five best girls to date in our class. (Just call me Dr. Love.) Well, I gave him my top five list; four of whom I had been out with on my mad "date them all" freshman rush.

The one on the list that I hadn't dated was this beautiful perky brunette. Well, after I gave Pete that list, I began to ask myself an obvious question, "Why haven't I dated her?" So I did, and I did it again, and again. In fact I still am. By the time we graduated, we were engaged to be married. Now, Pete was a New Englander, so he was a man of few words. He wrote only six words next to his picture in my senior yearbook: You believe in your product...Pete. Oh, yes I did! See, she and I got married one week later.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Life or Death Verb."

Now, my friend summed it up pretty well; I really believed in this girl. Not just intellectually. I mean, I believed in her with everything I had. Believe as in committing your whole life to. When it comes to God and where we spend the next hundred billion years, believe is the decisive action word. It's the life-or-death verb. Not in the official or intellectual sense like, "Pete, I believe this girl is a great catch for somebody." No, no! "I'm trusting my life to her."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Acts 16:30-31. A man is asking the great missionary, Paul, this timeless question, "What must I do to be saved?" Well, the answer is so clear and so unmistakable, "Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved." Now obviously saved is a life-or-death word. Just ask the people who were saved from the rubble of the World Trade Center on December 11, 2001, or someone who was saved by an emergency medical team. If the rescuer saved you, you lived. If he didn't, you died.

Now, the kind of saving the Bible talks about is being rescued from the death penalty we are all under with God. Why? Well, the Bible says "all of us have wandered like sheep. We have turned each one to his own way." That's my way instead of God's way. And that is ultimate rebellion against the ultimate authority of the One who gave me my life to live for Him.

The death we suffer in this life is trying to make it without God's love, without God's peace, without God's purpose for our days. And if we die still away from Him, the penalty is what Jesus called hell. But that's where believing in Jesus comes in, because He's the only Rescuer, the only Savior that can keep you from dying spiritually. Because He died on the cross to bear all the guilt and the penalty of the sins we've committed. That's how much He loves you. But you've got to believe in the Lord Jesus if you're going to be saved.

You say, "Well, I believe in Jesus." But did you know you can have Him in your head but not in your heart? The Bible says in Romans 10:10, "It is with your heart that you believe and are justified." That means made right with God. Believe, like committing yourself in total trust to the One who died in your place.

Now, here's a question on which your eternity could depend, "Has there ever been a time in your life when you've told Jesus, 'I'm pinning all my hopes on You and what You did on the cross to rescue me from my sin.'" If there's never been a time like that, you're not saved. You're in eternal danger.

But that could change in the next few minutes if you would just reach out to this Savior that you've known about but never really known. If you want to know Him for sure, would you go to our website, ANewStory.com. It's time to make the Savior your Savior.

One day I walked into a church not married. I walked out married, because I believed in someone. You need a day like that; a day to commit yourself to the One who loves you the most-Jesus Christ. A day like today.

Matthew 21:1-22, bible reading and devotionals.

MaxLucado.com: Come and Drink

On  my list of things I wish I’d learned earlier, this truth hovers near the top.  Grace came my way packaged in a church.  Congregations and their leaders changed me.  But then the churches struggled, even divided.  Mature men acted less than that.  The box ripped, the faucet clogged, and my heart, for a time, sank.

Not a moment too soon, I heard the invitation of the still-running fountain.  “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.“  God describes himself as “the fountain of living water.”  (John 7:37-38).

Thank him for the faucets, but don’t trust them to nourish you.  Thank him for the boxes in which his gifts come, but don’t fail to open them.  And most of all, don’t fail to read the note:

Dear child of mine.  Are you thirsty?  Come and drink.  I delight in you.  I will never fail or forsake you!

From Come Thirsty

Matthew 21:1-22

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King

As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”

4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

5 “Say to Daughter Zion,
    ‘See, your king comes to you,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
    and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”[a]
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. 8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,

“Hosanna[b] to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”[c]
“Hosanna[d] in the highest heaven!”
10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”

11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Jesus at the Temple
12 Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13 “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’[e] but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’[f]”

14 The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.

16 “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.

“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,

“‘From the lips of children and infants
    you, Lord, have called forth your praise’[g]?”
17 And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.

Jesus Curses a Fig Tree
18 Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. 19 Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.

20 When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” they asked.

21 Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. 22 If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

Footnotes:

Matthew 21:5 Zech. 9:9
Matthew 21:9 A Hebrew expression meaning “Save!” which became an exclamation of praise; also in verse 15
Matthew 21:9 Psalm 118:25,26
Matthew 21:9 A Hebrew expression meaning “Save!” which became an exclamation of praise; also in verse 15
Matthew 21:13 Isaiah 56:7
Matthew 21:13 Jer. 7:11
Matthew 21:16 Psalm 8:2 (see Septuagint)


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: 2 Peter 1:2-11

 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

Confirming One’s Calling and Election
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.

10 Therefore, my brothers and sisters,[a] make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Footnotes:

2 Peter 1:10 The Greek word for brothers and sisters (adelphoi) refers here to believers, both men and women, as part of God’s family.

Insight
God has given us everything we need for living a holy life (2 Peter 1:3). Therefore, Peter exhorts us to respond diligently to these great promises and abundant provisions of divine power (vv.4-5) by making every effort to grow in faith, graciousness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, devotedness, kindness, and love (vv.5-7).

Focus On The Process
By David C. McCasland

If these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. —2 Peter 1:8

In William Zinsser’s book On Writing Well, he says that many writers suffer from “the tyranny of the final product.” They are so concerned with selling their article or book, they neglect learning the process of how to think, plan, and organize. A jumbled manuscript, Zinsser believes, is produced when “the writer, his eye on the finish line, never gave enough thought to how to run the race.”

Author and minister A. W. Tozer applies that principle to our spiritual lives. In his book The Root of the Righteous, Tozer describes our tendency to be “concerned only with the fruit . . . [and] ignore the root out of which the fruit sprang.”

The apostle Peter reminded first-century believers that Christlike living and effective service result from a process. He urged them to grow in eight areas of spiritual development: faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love (2 Peter 1:5-7). If you possess these qualities in increasing measure, Peter said, “you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (v.8).

God calls us to a wonderful process of learning to know Him, with the assurance that it will lead to productive service in His name and for His honor.

Lord, so often we want complete and perfect
solutions here and now. But You work graciously in
Your good time. Let Your goodness and patience and
virtue shine through us so that we may bless others.
The Christian life is a process in which we learn complete dependence on God.


My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, June 29, 2014

The Strictest Discipline

If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell —Matthew 5:30
Jesus did not say that everyone must cut off his right hand, but that “if your right hand causes you to sin” in your walk with Him, then it is better to “cut it off.” There are many things that are perfectly legitimate, but if you are going to concentrate on God you cannot do them. Your right hand is one of the best things you have, but Jesus says that if it hinders you in following His precepts, then “cut it off.” The principle taught here is the strictest discipline or lesson that ever hit humankind.

When God changes you through regeneration, giving you new life through spiritual rebirth, your life initially has the characteristic of being maimed. There are a hundred and one things that you dare not do— things that would be sin for you, and would be recognized as sin by those who really know you. But the unspiritual people around you will say, “What’s so wrong with doing that? How absurd you are!” There has never yet been a saint who has not lived a maimed life initially. Yet it is better to enter into life maimed but lovely in God’s sight than to appear lovely to man’s eyes but lame to God’s. At first, Jesus Christ through His Spirit has to restrain you from doing a great many things that may be perfectly right for everyone else but not right for you. Yet, see that you don’t use your restrictions to criticize someone else.

The Christian life is a maimed life initially, but in Matthew 5:48 Jesus gave us the picture of a perfectly well-rounded life— “You shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

Genesis 38, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Suitcases of Guilt

Do you carry a load of guilt?  So many do. If our spiritual baggage were visible, you know what you’d see? Suitcases of guilt, bulging with binges, blowups, and compromises. The kid with the baggy jeans and nose ring? He’d give anything to retract the words he said to his mother. But he can’t. So he tows them along. The woman in the business suit that looks like she could run for Senator?  She can’t run at all. Not hauling that carpet bag wherever she goes. So what do we do?

In Psalm 23:3 David said it like this, “He leads me in the paths of righteousness.” The path of righteousness is a narrow, winding trail up a steep hill.  At the top is a cross. At the base of the cross are bags, countless bags full of innumerable sins. Calvary is the compost pile for guilt.  Would you like to leave yours there as well?

From Traveling Light

Genesis 38

Judah and Tamar

 At that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hirah. 2 There Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite man named Shua. He married her and made love to her; 3 she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, who was named Er. 4 She conceived again and gave birth to a son and named him Onan. 5 She gave birth to still another son and named him Shelah. It was at Kezib that she gave birth to him.

6 Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 7 But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death.

8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to raise up offspring for your brother.” 9 But Onan knew that the child would not be his; so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from providing offspring for his brother. 10 What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death also.

11 Judah then said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Live as a widow in your father’s household until my son Shelah grows up.” For he thought, “He may die too, just like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s household.

12 After a long time Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Judah had recovered from his grief, he went up to Timnah, to the men who were shearing his sheep, and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went with him.

13 When Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is on his way to Timnah to shear his sheep,” 14 she took off her widow’s clothes, covered herself with a veil to disguise herself, and then sat down at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. For she saw that, though Shelah had now grown up, she had not been given to him as his wife.

15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. 16 Not realizing that she was his daughter-in-law, he went over to her by the roadside and said, “Come now, let me sleep with you.”

“And what will you give me to sleep with you?” she asked.

17 “I’ll send you a young goat from my flock,” he said.

“Will you give me something as a pledge until you send it?” she asked.

18 He said, “What pledge should I give you?”

“Your seal and its cord, and the staff in your hand,” she answered. So he gave them to her and slept with her, and she became pregnant by him. 19 After she left, she took off her veil and put on her widow’s clothes again.

20 Meanwhile Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite in order to get his pledge back from the woman, but he did not find her. 21 He asked the men who lived there, “Where is the shrine prostitute who was beside the road at Enaim?”

“There hasn’t been any shrine prostitute here,” they said.

22 So he went back to Judah and said, “I didn’t find her. Besides, the men who lived there said, ‘There hasn’t been any shrine prostitute here.’”

23 Then Judah said, “Let her keep what she has, or we will become a laughingstock. After all, I did send her this young goat, but you didn’t find her.”

24 About three months later Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar is guilty of prostitution, and as a result she is now pregnant.”

Judah said, “Bring her out and have her burned to death!”

25 As she was being brought out, she sent a message to her father-in-law. “I am pregnant by the man who owns these,” she said. And she added, “See if you recognize whose seal and cord and staff these are.”

26 Judah recognized them and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not sleep with her again.

27 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. 28 As she was giving birth, one of them put out his hand; so the midwife took a scarlet thread and tied it on his wrist and said, “This one came out first.” 29 But when he drew back his hand, his brother came out, and she said, “So this is how you have broken out!” And he was named Perez.[i] 30 Then his brother, who had the scarlet thread on his wrist, came out. And he was named Zerah.[j]


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Colossians 4:2-6

Further Instructions
2 Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. 3 And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. 4 Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. 5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Insight
The Bible Knowledge Commentary says of Colosse, home of the church receiving this letter: “Colosse was in the Lycus Valley, about 100 miles east of Ephesus in Asia Minor. Its name is possibly derived from Colossus, a large statue, which in turn may have been named for the unusual shape of stony deposits there. Colosse is about 12 miles from Hierapolis and Laodicea, the other two cities of that valley. . . . The area was rich in mineral deposits and was also subject to frequent earthquakes. Rich pasturelands were nearby. Several references in Colossians indicate that Paul had not visited the city (Col. 1:7; 2:1; 4:12).”

Make It Attractive
By Dave Branon

Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. —Colossians 4:5

The story is told of a young boy who, during a bygone era, was aboard a passenger train attempting to make money selling apples. He made his way through the train car, saying, “Apples! Would you like to buy an apple?” When he got to the rear of the car, he still had a bagful of apples and no money.

A gentleman who noticed his plight took him aside and asked to see one of the apples. He proceeded to go to the front of the train, polish it conspicuously with a napkin, and then walk down the aisle eating the apple and commenting on how delicious and refreshing it was. Then he told the boy to try again. This time, he sold every apple. The difference? The apples had been made attractive to the potential customers.

This story can remind us of one way we can interest others in the gospel of Jesus Christ: Make it attractive to them—show them the difference it has made in our own lives. That is best done by following the words of Paul in Colossians 4:5. “Be wise,” he said, “in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity” (niv). If we show kindness, love, and compassion to others, those who observe us will wonder why, and that may give us an opening to tell them about the beauty of God’s love for them.

Dear God, You have given us so much by providing
our salvation. Help us to make the gospel
attractive to others by the way we shine
Jesus’ light on those we encounter each day.
The beauty of a changed life can attract others to the One who makes us beautiful.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, June 28, 2014

Held by the Grip of God

I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me —Philippians 3:12
Never choose to be a worker for God, but once God has placed His call on you, woe be to you if you “turn aside to the right hand or to the left” (Deuteronomy 5:32). We are not here to work for God because we have chosen to do so, but because God has “laid hold of” us. And once He has done so, we never have this thought, “Well, I’m really not suited for this.” What you are to preach is also determined by God, not by your own natural leanings or desires. Keep your soul steadfastly related to God, and remember that you are called not simply to convey your testimony but also to preach the gospel. Every Christian must testify to the truth of God, but when it comes to the call to preach, there must be the agonizing grip of God’s hand on you— your life is in the grip of God for that very purpose. How many of us are held like that?

Never water down the Word of God, but preach it in its undiluted sternness. There must be unflinching faithfulness to the Word of God, but when you come to personal dealings with others, remember who you are— you are not some special being created in heaven, but a sinner saved by grace.

“Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do. . . I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).

Genesis 37, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Parents’ Number One Assignment

Proverbs 22:6 says, “Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.”

Straight teeth, straight A’s, or straight posture cannot hold a candle compared to placing a child on the straight spiritual path. The highest privilege and purpose you have as a parent is to lead your child in the way of Christ. The towering questions for Christian parents are these:

Do my kids know Christ?

Have they tasted His grace and found comfort at His cross?

Do they know their death is defeated and their hearts are empowered?

Parents, assignment number one is discipleship. Help your child walk in the way of the Master. What a phenomenal privilege is yours! Imagine the joy you will feel when you stand before Christ, flanked by your wife and children—when your child says, “Thanks, Dad.  Thanks for telling me about Christ.”

From Dad Time

Genesis 37

Joseph’s Dreams

Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan.

2 This is the account of Jacob’s family line.

Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them.

3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate[f] robe for him. 4 When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.

5 Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. 6 He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: 7 We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.”

8 His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said.

9 Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. “Listen,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”

10 When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?” 11 His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.

Joseph Sold by His Brothers

12 Now his brothers had gone to graze their father’s flocks near Shechem, 13 and Israel said to Joseph, “As you know, your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem. Come, I am going to send you to them.”

“Very well,” he replied.

14 So he said to him, “Go and see if all is well with your brothers and with the flocks, and bring word back to me.” Then he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron.

When Joseph arrived at Shechem, 15 a man found him wandering around in the fields and asked him, “What are you looking for?”

16 He replied, “I’m looking for my brothers. Can you tell me where they are grazing their flocks?”

17 “They have moved on from here,” the man answered. “I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to Dothan.’”

So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. 18 But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him.

19 “Here comes that dreamer!” they said to each other. 20 “Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we’ll see what comes of his dreams.”

21 When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands. “Let’s not take his life,” he said. 22 “Don’t shed any blood. Throw him into this cistern here in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him.” Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back to his father.

23 So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe—the ornate robe he was wearing— 24 and they took him and threw him into the cistern. The cistern was empty; there was no water in it.

25 As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm and myrrh, and they were on their way to take them down to Egypt.

26 Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? 27 Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.” His brothers agreed.

28 So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels[g] of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.

29 When Reuben returned to the cistern and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes. 30 He went back to his brothers and said, “The boy isn’t there! Where can I turn now?”

31 Then they got Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. 32 They took the ornate robe back to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son’s robe.”

33 He recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! Some ferocious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces.”

34 Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days. 35 All his sons and daughters came to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said, “I will continue to mourn until I join my son in the grave.” So his father wept for him.

36 Meanwhile, the Midianites[h] sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Read: Romans 13:8-10

Love Fulfills the Law

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,”[a] and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”[b] 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Footnotes:

Romans 13:9 Exodus 20:13-15,17; Deut. 5:17-19,21

Romans 13:9 Lev. 19:18

Insight

Paul’s words in today’s passage remind us of Jesus’ words to the young teacher of the law who asked what he needed to do to inherit eternal life (Luke 10:25-29). Love for God and neighbor is the epitome, fulfillment, and intention of all the laws of the Old Testament. In Luke, Jesus went on to say who our neighbor is and what love for that person should look like (vv.30-37). Paul does a similar thing for the people at the church in Rome. After telling them to love their neighbor in chapter 13, he goes on to tell them in chapter 14 to consider the effect their actions will have on their neighbor. Love is to guide all our actions.

Do No Harm

By Dennis Fisher

Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. —Romans 13:10

Many consider the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates as the father of Western medicine. He understood the importance of following moral principles in the practice of medicine, and is credited with writing the Hippocratic Oath, which still serves as an ethical guide for today’s medical doctors. One key concept of the oath is “to do no harm.” It implies that a physician will do only what he thinks will benefit his patients.

The principle of doing no harm extends to our relationships with others in everyday life. In fact, benevolence is central to New Testament teaching about loving others. In reflecting on the law of God, Paul sees that love is the intent behind many biblical commands: “Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law” (Rom. 13:10).

Each day as we follow Jesus Christ our Savior, we are faced with choices that will affect the lives of others. When we choose a course of action, we should ask ourselves, “Does this reflect Christ’s concern for others, or am I only concerned for myself?” Such a sensitivity demonstrates the love of Christ that seeks to heal the broken and help those in need.

Lord, I admit that it is easy to be consumed with my

own wants and needs. Thank You that You showed

us how to be concerned for others too. Help me

to follow Your example in caring for others.

Caring for the burdens of others helps us to forget about our own.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Friday, June 27, 2014

The Overshadowing of God’s Personal Deliverance

. . . I am with you to deliver you,’ says the Lord —Jeremiah 1:8

God promised Jeremiah that He would deliver him personally— “. . . your life shall be as a prize to you . . .” (Jeremiah 39:18). That is all God promises His children. Wherever God sends us, He will guard our lives. Our personal property and possessions are to be a matter of indifference to us, and our hold on these things should be very loose. If this is not the case, we will have panic, heartache, and distress. Having the proper outlook is evidence of the deeply rooted belief in the overshadowing of God’s personal deliverance.

The Sermon on the Mount indicates that when we are on a mission for Jesus Christ, there is no time to stand up for ourselves. Jesus says, in effect, “Don’t worry about whether or not you are being treated justly.” Looking for justice is actually a sign that we have been diverted from our devotion to Him. Never look for justice in this world, but never cease to give it. If we look for justice, we will only begin to complain and to indulge ourselves in the discontent of self-pity, as if to say, “Why should I be treated like this?” If we are devoted to Jesus Christ, we have nothing to do with what we encounter, whether it is just or unjust. In essence, Jesus says, “Continue steadily on with what I have told you to do, and I will guard your life. If you try to guard it yourself, you remove yourself from My deliverance.” Even the most devout among us become atheistic in this regard— we do not believe Him. We put our common sense on the throne and then attach God’s name to it. We do lean to our own understanding, instead of trusting God with all our hearts (see Proverbs 3:5-6).

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

When They're Out of Your Hands - #7165

Friday, June 27, 2014

All eyes were on Mom. That would be my wife. See, we had just taken our daughter to college 800 miles from home. Her two younger brothers were also with us. Overall, we were pretty impressed at the way the college seemed to think of everything that might concern a parent. Actually, it seemed like they had all the bases covered.

So we started traveling home, and as I said, all eyes were on Mom. See, all three of the male Hutchcrafts expected Mom to cry when we said our final goodbye to her only daughter. My wife and daughter were very close; were then and still are. Well, we drove away and she didn't cry. We headed home and she didn't cry. No tears! Finally, after a while, I guess in frustration, the boys asked, "Why aren't you crying, Mom?" Typical teenage boys! I loved her answer.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "When They're Out of Your Hands."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Isaiah 54:13 . Oh, by the way, when my wife was asked why she didn't cry, she said, "Well, I only cry when I feel as if I'm leaving one of my children in a situation where they're not in good hands. Now, my daughter's in good hands. She's fine, so I'm fine." Well, as a parent, she was saying she could relax if she knew her child was in good hands.

Well, that's the spirit of Isaiah 54:13 . Listen to this verse, "All your children will be taught of the Lord, and great will be the peace of your children." Isn't that great? If you belong to Christ, then your children are being watched over by Him. He echoes that in Isaiah 40:11 when it says, "He tends His flock like a shepherd. He gathers His lambs (that's your children) in His arms and carries them close to His heart."

See, Jesus goes where you cannot go with your kids. You wish you could, but He can. He provides for them what you cannot. He protects them when your arms can't reach that far. He brings them home when you don't even know where they are. You know what that means? You can let your children go. You can release them to the Lord.

So many parents are so afraid for their children that they over-manage their lives. They nag, they criticize, they smother them, second guess them and push them. And you can literally push a child into the very behavior you're trying to get them to avoid. Children who are over-pursued by a parent often become rebels to escape the pressure.

As a parent, my assignment is to hold up a mirror to my child so they can see the unique person God has created, and to see the weaknesses that could sink them. My mission is to discipline my child fairly and consistently so that they learn where life's boundaries are. And to present a relationship with Christ that is positive, exciting and practical as modeled in my everyday responses to situations. Gradually, to let them move toward independence; practicing freedom while they're still with me in growing increments. That was how my wife and I tried to make our home run.

You can only do that if you believe Isaiah 54:13 that "all your children will be taught by the Lord and great will be the peace of your children." Why not claim that promise for a child you love, for a grandchild you love? Pray it for them every day. And then, like my wife on the day she said goodbye to her daughter at college, you will have a very strange but very real sense of inner peace.

You'll know that your son or daughter is not in the hands of a school, or an employer, or a group of friends, or some hostile environment. Not when you trust that promise we gave you today. You can relax when you know you've left your child in the hands of God himself, because those are the hands you can totally trust.