Monthly Archives: December 2015

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – The Certainty of Judgment

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“If the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” (Heb. 2:2-3).

There is certain judgment for everyone who does not receive Christ as Savior and Lord.

Today the majority believes that God is a God of love and grace, but not of justice. One brief look at Hebrews 2:2-3 ought to convince anyone otherwise. The writer’s point is this: Since the Old Testament makes it clear that transgression and disobedience met with severe and just punishment, how much more so will equal or greater punishment be rendered under the New Testament, which was revealed by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself?

Both the Old and New Testaments confirm that angels were instrumental in bringing the law (Deut. 33:2; Acts 7:38). The law the angels spoke, primarily the Ten Commandments, was steadfast. That meant if someone broke the law, the law would break the lawbreaker. The law was inviolable; punishment for breaking it was certain.

“Every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense” (v. 2). Transgression refers to stepping across a line—a willful, purposeful sin. Disobedience, however, refers to imperfect hearing—the sin of shutting one’s ears to the commands, warnings, and invitations of God. It is a sin of neglect or omission, doing nothing when something should be done.

Hebrews 2:2 also puts to rest the notion that God is not fair. The writer says every sin received a “just recompense.” God, by His very nature, is just. Every punishment He meted out to those who defied Him was a deterrent to the sin He wanted to stop.

God severely punished the nation of Israel because they knew better. That leads to the important principle that punishment is always related to how much truth one knows but rejects. The person who knows the gospel, who has intellectually understood it and believed it, yet drifts away will experience the severest punishment of all.

Suggestion for Prayer

Ask God to give you an even greater appreciation of the punishment He has saved you from to motivate you to pursue the lost more vigorously.

For Further Study

Read Matthew 11:20-24, 12:38-42, and Luke 12:47-48 to discover Christ’s attitude toward those who know the truth yet rebel against it.

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – God Loves You Even When You Make Mistakes

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But God shows and clearly proves His [own] love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) died for us. —Romans 5:8

Have you ever wondered if you are good enough for God to love you? Unfortunately, many people believe God loves them only as long as they don’t make mistakes.

Perhaps it was this outlook that caused the psalmist to ask, What is man that You are mindful of him? (Psalm 8:4). Yet the Bible tells us we are God’s creation, the work of His hands, and He loves each one of us unconditionally.

Let’s face it: Jesus didn’t die for you because you were great and wonderful; He died for you because He loves you. God loves you, and He wants you to believe it and receive His love all the time—even when you make mistakes.

Power Thought: God’s love for me is unconditional.

From the book the book Power Thoughts Devotional by Joyce Meyer.

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – The Holy Spirit Promised

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“But when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power to testify about Me with great effect, to the people in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth, about my death and resurrection” (Acts 1:8).

Evangelists were gathered in Amsterdam, Holland, from more than 130 countries around the world to attend the International Conference for Itinerant Evangelists sponsored by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. On the third night of this historic event I was asked to bring the address on “How to be Filled With the Holy Spirit.” Just before I was to speak, a note from Billy Graham was handed to me. It said, “I consider this one of the most important addresses of the entire conference.”

According to the hundreds of thousands of surveys which our ministry has taken all over the world, 95 percent of the professing believers do not understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit. This includes a majority of pastors, evangelists and missionaries. In fact, if I had only one message to give to the Christian world, it would be how to be filled with the Holy Spirit and how to walk moment by moment in the fullness of His power. Indeed if I had to choose between introducing a non-believer to Christ or helping a defeated, fruitless, impotent Christian to understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit and share his faith in Christ with others, I would choose the latter because inevitably the end result would be far greater in terms of the number of people who would be introduced to Christ. The one great need of the Body of Christ today that transcends all other needs is to be awakened to the person and ministry of the Holy Spirit, to be empowered and controlled by Him, to allow Him to exalt and honor our Lord Jesus Christ in and through us, for that is the purpose of His coming. “He (the Holy Spirit) shall praise Me and bring Me great honor by showing you My glory” (John 16:14).

On hundreds of occasions throughout the world I have spoken on this subject and always, when the invitation is given, a good percentage indicate their desire to be filled with the Spirit. The Scripture promises, “Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled.” Do you hunger and thirst after righteousness? If so, you are a candidate for the fullness of God’s Spirit. You can by faith appropriate His fullness right now by claiming His promise that God will release His power through you in order that you may be an effective witness for the Lord Jesus Christ.

Bible Reading: Romans 15:15-21

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Today I will claim by faith the fullness of God’s Spirit in order to live the supernatural life and to be a more fruitful witness for the Lord Jesus Christ. I know that it is the Holy Spirit who will enable me to live that exciting, supernatural life.

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; J.R.  – No Coincidences

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If you’re searching for coincidence, lady luck, or twists of fate, you can buy a lottery ticket for two dollars. Tomorrow, you are almost guaranteed to be two dollars poorer. If you should beat the ridiculous odds and win, you’ve probably just purchased a lifetime of anguish. If you doubt this, just investigate the lives of the “winners” within a few short years down the road from the jackpot.

Who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?

Esther 4:14

But those who invest in serving God find the odds of success increase considerably. In fact, they are 100 percent! There simply are no “coincidences” in His perfect plans. Throughout history, God has placed people in just the right place at just the right time. Consider the Good Samaritan (Luke 10) or the Woman at the Well (John 4) In today’s scripture, a series of incredible “coincidences” lands Esther in the right place at the right time to save the entire Jewish race.

As you pray for America today, ask God to lead you to some lost, lonely people who find it hard to believe that God could love them – especially at Christmas time. You are here “for such a time as this.”

Recommended Reading: Isaiah 46:8-13

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – A Divine Birth Announcement

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Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. . . . Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.”—Luke 2:8, 10

If you are a parent, then you can remember the first people you called after you became one. You gave them the weight and length of the baby and the actual time when he or she was born. You shared the news with those who were closest to you.

When God announced the birth of His Son, whom did He tell first? It seems likely that he would have started with Caesar Augustus. He could have sent the angel Gabriel to appear in Caesar’s court and announce, “Check this out, buddy. You are not God! The Savior of the world has arrived!”

Or He might have had Gabriel appear to the religious leaders and say, “Wake up! The Messiah has been born! The One you talk about, the One you pray for—He is here!”

But that didn’t happen. Instead, God first announced the birth of Jesus to shepherds. We tend to romanticize the shepherds along with everyone else in the Christmas story, but we don’t understand who they were. In this culture, shepherds lived at the bottom of the social ladder. Shepherds were so despised that their testimonies were not even allowed in a court of law. Shepherds did the work that no one else wanted to do. They worked hard, but they were perceived as unclean because they could not observe the ceremonial hand washings. They were the outcasts, the nobodies.

The only people less-regarded than shepherds were those who were suffering from leprosy. Yet God decided to announce His news to some shepherds in the fields as they kept watch over their flocks at night. This was the modus operandi of Jesus, from birth to death. He always appealed to the outcast, to the common, to the ordinary. And that should give hope to ordinary people like us.

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Received–Not Earned

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What if prospective parents approached an adoption agency with these questions?

We just have a question or two before we come in and sign the adoption papers. Will he be a good child? Healthy always? Oh, and can he fix his own meals? Do his own laundry?

Can you  imagine prospective parents saying that? No adoption agency would put up with it. They’d respond with Wait a minute. You don’t understand. You don’t adopt this child because of what he has; you adopt him because of what he needs. He needs a home.

The same is true with God. John 3:17 says, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” He doesn’t adopt us because of what we have. He doesn’t give us His name because of our intelligence, or our wallet or good attitude. Adoption is something we receive—not something we earn!

From Grace for the Moment

Night Light - James & Shirley Dobson

Night Light for Couples – On Target

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“Get a new heart and a new spirit.” Ezekiel 18:31

Maybe you heard the story about the day Lisa finally had enough. Her husband, Greg, loved to shoot. An expert marksman, he traveled widely to compete against other enthusiasts, and occasionally he brought home a trophy. But Lisa had no interest in marksmanship. In fact, she didn’t like guns—period. To make matters worse, she missed her husband terribly while he was away pursuing his hobby.

One day it dawned on her that their relationship was in trouble. That was the day Lisa finally had enough. Lisa asked Greg to teach her how to shoot a rifle, then joined him in his travels. Soon she decided to compete at the shooting events. To Lisa’s surprise, she liked firing a rifle. And to her husband’s surprise, Lisa was a very good shot. She even started bringing home more trophies than he did. But of the prizes they brought home, one stood out above all the rest: Their marriage seemed reborn. The time they spent together at their newfound common interest helped them develop a closeness that simply hadn’t existed before.

Lisa’s story is a good reminder that what seems like an obstacle might really be an opportunity. Creative, committed couples discover this secret everyday. Just ask a husband who’s learned to love ballroom dancing or a wife who’s gotten hooked on fly fishing. That’s because the best times always seem to come in pairs.

Just between us…

  • When was the last time we tried a new activity together?
  • Did you enjoy it? Why or why not?
  • Are there activities keeping us apart that we could do together?

Dear God, we ask for fresh determination to explore new interests and activities together. Where our marriage would be strengthened by playing together, help us let go of the old habits and assumptions that keep us apart. Amen.

From Night Light For Couples, by Dr. James & Shirley Dobson

 

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – God’s Loving Desire for You

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1 Timothy 2:1-8

In today’s reading, Paul is talking about worship and prayer. But he uses them to present an even greater truth: God’s loving desire for us. It can be easy to become complacent in our faith. We may even start to think that we are somehow deserving of God’s love. But God’s love for us—His coming as a man to die for our sins—is about who He is, not who we are.

God desires that all men be saved (1 Tim. 2:4). Salvation involves not only the Lord’s work of deliverance from eternal death but also His endowment of eternal life. When He looks at our hearts, He sees nothing that motivates Him to save us—we have no righteousness or goodness in us.

Instead, our Father chooses to save us because He loves us (Eph. 2:4). His children are trophies of His grace, to which He can point for the benefit of all the generations to come (Eph. 2:7). We human beings are unique in our ability to experience the grace of God.

In living out the Lord’s mercy on us, we also perform His work. Consequently, men and women may see the goodness of God and give glory to Him. That’s why we’re charged with being lights here on earth to reflect our Father (Matt. 5:14).

This week, as you prepare to celebrate the birth of our Savior, consider the love He has for you—a reality strong enough to compel Him to die in your place. Everything in the heart of God reaches out to pour love upon humanity—be open to receive it.

Bible in One Year: Hebrews 10-11

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Pax Romana

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Read: Isaiah 9:1-7

Bible in a Year: Micah 1-3; Revelation 11

To us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. —Isaiah 9:6

No one can afford the price of war. One website reports 64 nations are currently involved in armed conflicts. When and how will they end? We want peace, but not at the expense of justice.

Jesus was born during a time of “peace,” but it came at the cost of heavy-handed oppression. The Pax Romana (“Roman Peace”) existed only because Rome squashed all dissent.

Seven centuries before that time of relative peace, hostile armies prepared to invade Jerusalem. From the shadow of war, God made a remarkable pronouncement. “On those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned,” the prophet declared (Isa. 9:2). “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given . . . . Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end” (vv. 6-7). Matthew tells us that Isaiah’s prophecy found fulfillment in the Christ-child (Matt. 1:22-23; see also Isa. 7:14).

We adore the tiny baby in the manger scene. Yet that helpless babe is also the Lord Almighty, “the Lord of Heaven’s Armies” (Isa. 13:13 nlt). He will one day “reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness” (9:7). Such a regime will be no oppressive Pax Romana. It will be the reign of the Prince of Peace. —Tim Gustafson

Father, we can never sufficiently thank You that Your Son came to bring us peace with You through His death and resurrection. Thank You that He will rule in both peace and righteousness.

The Lamb of God is also the Lion of Judah.

INSIGHT: The encouraging words of the prophet Isaiah about a time of peace are all contingent on one specific event. Isaiah 9:1-5 describes a time not simply of rest from war and conflict but a time when the apparel of battle—clothes stained with blood—will be burned (v. 5). The land will be blessed and at peace because of the birth of the Child described in verses 6-7. Jesus brings real and lasting peace both to our world and to our hearts and minds.

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – Love Beyond Doubt

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I have loved you with an everlasting love.

Jeremiah 31:3

Sometimes the Lord Jesus tells His Church His love thoughts. “He does not consider it sufficient to declare them behind her back, but in her very presence He says, ‘Behold, you are beautiful, my love.’1 It is true, this is not His ordinary method. He is a wise lover and knows when to hold back the intimation of love and when to declare it; but there are times when He will make no secret of it, times when He will put it beyond all dispute in the souls of His people” (R. Erskine’s Sermons).

The Holy Spirit is often pleased, in a most gracious manner, to witness with our spirits to the love of Jesus. He takes the things of Christ and reveals them to us. No voice is heard from the clouds, and no vision is seen in the night, but we have a testimony more certain than either of these.

If an angel should fly from heaven and inform the believer personally of the Savior’s love for him, the evidence would not be one bit more satisfactory than that which is born in the heart by the Holy Spirit.

Ask the Lord’s people who have lived the nearest to the gates of heaven, and they will tell you that they have had seasons when the love of Christ toward them has been a fact so clear and sure that they could no more doubt it than they could question their own existence.

Yes, dear believer, you and I have had times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, and then our faith has soared to the heights of assurance. We have had confidence to lean our heads upon the shoulder of our Lord, and we have not questioned our Master’s affection for us. The dark question, “Lord, is it I that will betray You?” has been put far from us. He has kissed us with the kisses of His mouth and killed our doubts by the closeness of His embrace. His love has been sweeter than wine to our souls.

1) Song of Solomon 1:15

Family Bible Reading Plan

  • 2 Chronicles 24
  • Revelation 11

Devotional material is taken from “Morning and Evening,” written by C.H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg.

 

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The first Christmas carol

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“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Luke 2:14

Suggested Further Reading: Romans 14:5-9

I wish everybody that keeps Christmas this year, would keep it as the angels kept it. There are many persons who, when they talk about keeping Christmas, mean by that the cutting of the bands of their religion for one day in the year, as if Christ were the Lord of misrule, as if the birth of Christ should be celebrated like the orgies of Bacchus. There are some very religious people, that on Christmas would never forget to go to church in the morning; they believe Christmas to be nearly as holy as Sunday, for they reverence the tradition of the elders. Yet their way of spending the rest of the day is very remarkable; for if they see their way straight up stairs to their bed at night, it must be by accident. They would not consider they had kept Christmas in a proper manner, if they did not verge on gluttony and drunkenness. There are many who think Christmas cannot possibly be kept, except there be a great shout of merriment and mirth in the house, and added to that the boisterousness of sin. Now, my brethren, although we, as successors of the Puritans, will not keep the day in any religious sense whatever, attaching nothing more to it than to any other day: believing that every day may be a Christmas for ought we know, and wishing to make every day Christmas, if we can, yet we must try to set an example to others how to behave on that day; and specially since the angels gave glory to God: let us do the same. Once more the angels said, “Peace to men”: let us labour if we can to make peace next Christmas day.

For meditation: The unconverted cannot understand why Christians do not join them in their wild Christmas celebrations (1 Peter 4:3-4); those who celebrate the event without being able to give a sensible reason for doing so, are providing us with wonderful opportunities to give a reason for the hope that is within us (1 Peter 3:15).

Sermon no. 168

20 December (1857)

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Throwing out the Anchor

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“For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it” (Heb. 2:1).

God’s Word is the anchor that will prevent people from drifting past the harbor of salvation.

While English explorer William Edward Parry and his crew were exploring the Arctic Ocean, they needed to go further north to continue their chartings. So they calculated their location by the stars and began a treacherous march.

After many hours they stopped, exhausted. After taking their bearings, they discovered they were now further south than when they started! They had been walking on an ice floe that was traveling faster south than they were walking north.

That is similar to the situation people who continue rejecting Christ find themselves in. Therefore Hebrews 2:1 says, “We must pay closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.”

Why would anyone knowingly reject Christ? He came into the world as God incarnate, died on a cross to forgive our sins, paid our penalty, showed us divine love, and gives us blessing and joy beyond imagination.

The Greek words translated “pay much closer attention to” and “drift away from” both have a nautical usage. The first means “to tie up a ship” and the second can be used of a ship that has been carelessly allowed to drift past the harbor because the sailor forgot to attend to the steerage or chart the wind, tides, and current. Hebrews 2:1 could be translated: “We must diligently anchor our lives to the things we have been taught, lest the ship of life drift past the harbor of salvation and be lost forever.”

Most people don’t deliberately turn their backs on God; they almost imperceptibly slip past the harbor of salvation and are broken on the rocks of destruction. Be sure you warn those you know who might be slipping past that harbor.

Suggestion for Prayer

Ask God to strengthen your resolve when you know you need to confront someone regarding his or her relationship with the Lord.

For Further Study

Memorize Proverbs 4:20-22 as your own reminder of how important it is to hold on to God’s Word.

 

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Be Kind to Those Who Aren’t Kind to You

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And be kind to one another . . . —Ephesians 4:32 (NKJV)

Christmas is the season of good cheer, but it often becomes a season of stress . . . so much shopping, wrapping, cooking, baking, and visiting. Before you know it, people are losing patience, snapping at one another. It’s easy to become unkind.

I’ll never forget something my daughter told me a long time ago. She said that her goal was to learn to love or to treat with kindness, goodness, and mercy every single person she encountered who was unkind or ugly to her. She said, “That’s my goal. I want to submit to God in my emotions and the way that I handle myself so that when I’m out in public and someone mistreats me, I respond with kindness.”

She said, “One of the things that God has shown me that really helps is when someone is grouchy toward me, I can get angry and frustrated or I can think: I don’t know what this person is going through. Maybe right now her back hurts terribly. Maybe this grumpy man is carrying a financial burden that feels too heavy for him. Maybe that woman’s husband has just been told he’s losing his job at the end of the week.”

We don’t know what’s going on in people’s lives.

Kindness will cause you to slow down and give people some space and some grace. Life was not meant to be the way it is today. We were not meant to live at the fast pace at which we live, with thousands of things coming at us at once.

I think we’ve lost sight of some important things in life and that we need to put kindness back on our priority lists!

Love Others Today: “Help me, Lord, to be especially kind to people who are not kind to me.”

From the book Love Out Loud by Joyce Meyer.

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Practicing Patience

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“You need to keep on patiently doing God’s will if you want Him to do for you all that He has promised” (Hebrews 10:36).

During a Bible study on this passage, Ted made this contribution: “Spiritually,” he said, “I’m a sprinter, not a long distance runner.”

Numerous Christians would identify with that for there is little patience, persistence, and tenacity among believers. When adversity comes, many of us are prone to give up and lose our wind. That is the reason James says in his first chapter, verses 2-4, “Dear brothers, is your life full of difficulties and temptations? Then be happy, for when the way is rough, your patience has a chance to grow. So let it grow, and don’t try to squirm out of your problems. For when your patience is finally in bloom, then you will be ready for anything, strong in character, full and complete.”

You will note the emphasis on patience. All of us are faced with problems, testings, temptations, adversities and trials in varying degrees. We can determine, by our attitudes and actions, whether or not our tragedies will turn to triumph. Our heartache and sorrow can become joy and rejoicing simply by our patience, which is the ability to relax in the confidence that God rules in the affairs of men and nations. Everything is under His control. And as we walk in faith and obedience, we will be a part of His wonderful and perfect plan.

But the question may be asked, how can we increase this rare trait or gift of patience that unlocks the door to supernatural living? The answer is simple. It is found in Galatians 5:22-23 in the listing of the fruit of the Spirit, for one of the nine characteristics mentioned is patience or longsuffering.

Are you patient with your husband, wife, parents, children, neighbors and those with whom you work in the office? Or do you find yourself critical and complaining – more prone to judge than to bless?

As we more and more yield ourselves to God’s indwelling Holy Spirit, the fruit of patience is increased, along with all the other fruit.

Bible Reading: Hebrews 6:12-15

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: I will invite the Holy Spirit to control and empower my life moment by moment, day by day, knowing that the fruit of the Spirit, including patience, will increase and mature in my life.

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; H.L.M. – Rescued

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It was the day after Christmas in West Virginia. Temperatures were below freezing with snow on the ground. A puppy with only one eye and not yet weaned from her mother was dumped on the side of a country road. When a passing driver noticed this tiny form wriggling around in the snow, he stopped and scooped the puppy up into his hand. The warmth of the car and the kindness of her rescuer was certainly a gift from God for this little dog.

He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son.

Colossians 1:13

Soon a lady named Stacey saw the puppy on a pet adoption website. She and her husband travelled 18 hours to meet and adopt the dog – and they welcomed the one-eyed wonder into their home. She has brightened their lives ever since!

God reached out and came in person in order to scoop you up and rescue you from your sin. As you prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ, remember today…and every day… to thank Him for the priceless gift of salvation. Pray that all of America’s leaders will embrace a relationship with Jesus this Christmas season.

Recommended Reading: Ephesians 1:3-8

Night Light - James & Shirley Dobson

Night Light for Couples –Willing to Fail

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“Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still.” Proverbs 9:9

You may have heard about a remarkable man who encountered continual disappointment yet wasn’t afraid to risk failing again. Between 1831 and 1858 he suffered two business failures, the death of his fiancée, and a mental breakdown. This man also failed in his attempts at public office: He bid unsuccessfully for positions as state legislator, speaker of the state legislature, presidential elector, state land officer, congressional representative, U.S. Senator (twice), and U.S. vice president.

Was he a hopeless loser? History indicates otherwise. In 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected president of the United States. He led the nation through the dark days of the Civil War, preserved the union, and issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Many historians consider him the greatest of all U.S. presidents.

Successful people such as Abraham Lincoln usually experience failure along the way, but they keep taking risks—and they learn from their mistakes. Are you willing to fail in order to learn and grow?

Just between us…

  • David was a great king, yet he fell into sin. What did he learn from his sin? (See Psalm 51.)
  • What have you learned from past failures?
  • When you fail, do I hold it against you, or do I help you try again?
  • How does God want us to respond to failure?

Lord, we ask tonight that You affirm Your work in our lives and that You put Your hand of blessing and safekeeping on all our endeavors. When we try and fail, help us to get up and try again. Amen.

From Night Light For Couples, by Dr. James & Shirley Dobson

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Resting in Jesus

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Isaiah 26:2-4

Though Christmastime is a time of celebration, it can be filled with worry and busyness. Family trouble, loneliness, and financial struggle are some common sources of stress. Allowing ourselves to dwell on such things invites anxiety to overwhelm us.

The Lord has a better way. Jesus assured us that, though we would certainly face difficulties in life, we could rest in Him (John 16:33). But we can’t trust someone we don’t know. For this reason, we should first seek to find out who He is.

Truths from Scripture are a good place to start. Our God is Lord and Master. He is omnipresent, omniscient, faithful, and powerful. He loves unconditionally and offers forgiveness to all who trust His Son as Lord and Savior. He adopts believers as His own children and wants the very best for every Christian’s life—so much so that He chastises us when we disobey Him. And He desires that we love Him above everyone and everything.

Knowing these facts is only the beginning. As in any relationship, time together fosters closeness. We can read the Bible, pray, meditate on God’s Word, and listen quietly for His Spirit to speak to our hearts. What’s more, watching how God works in the lives of others helps us become better acquainted with His ways. Jesus is trustworthy, and He offers us rest in the midst of a troubled world. He wants us to lay our burdens upon Him and experience His peace.

Do you know this amazing God? Carve out time in your busy schedule to be in His presence every day so you can know Him better and better.

Bible in One Year: Hebrews 7-9

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — The Seventh Stanza

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Read: Luke 2:8-14

Bible in a Year: Jonah 1-4; Revelation 10

Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. —Luke 2:11

In the summer of 1861, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s wife, Frances, died tragically in a fire. That first Christmas without her, he wrote in his diary, “How inexpressibly sad are the holidays.” The next year was no better, as he recorded, “ ‘A merry Christmas,’ say the children, but that is no more for me.”

In 1863, as the American Civil War was dragging on, Longfellow’s son joined the army against his father’s wishes and was critically injured. On Christmas Day that year, as church bells announced the arrival of another painful Christmas, Longfellow picked up his pen and began to write, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.”

The poem begins pleasantly, lyrically, but then takes a dark turn. The violent imagery of the pivotal fourth verse ill suits a Christmas carol. “Accursed” cannons “thundered,” mocking the message of peace. By the fifth and sixth verses, Longfellow’s desolation is nearly complete. “It was as if an earthquake rent the hearth-stones of a continent,” he wrote. The poet nearly gave up: “And in despair I bowed my head; ‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said.”

But then, from the depths of that bleak Christmas day, Longfellow heard the irrepressible sound of hope. And he wrote this seventh stanza.

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep! The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with peace on earth, good-will to men!”

The war raged on and so did memories of his personal tragedies, but it could not stop Christmas. The Messiah is born! He promises, “I am making everything new!” (Rev. 21:5). —Tim Gustafson

Immanuel—God with us!

INSIGHT: It is likely that the shepherds in Luke 2 were not just ordinary shepherds. Because the shepherds’ fields of Bethlehem were so close to Jerusalem, many scholars believe that these were temple shepherds who raised the sheep that would be used at the temple sacrifice. If so, this announcement becomes an anticipation of the proclamation of John the Baptist when he first saw Jesus: “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). These sheep destined for sacrifice would be replaced by God’s perfect Lamb—His one and only Son.

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – A Holy Calm

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The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord. Proverbs 16:33

If the decision about the lot is the Lord’s, whose is the arrangement of our whole life? If the simple casting of a lot is guided by Him, how much more the events of our entire life-especially when we are told by our blessed Savior, “Even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”1 It would bring a holy calm over your mind, dear friend, if you were to constantly remember this. It would relieve your mind from anxiety and enable you to walk in patience, quietness, and cheerfulness as a Christian should. When a man is anxious he cannot pray with faith; when he is troubled about the world, he cannot serve his Master, for his thoughts are serving himself.

If you would “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness,”2 all things would then be added to you. You are meddling with Christ’s business and neglecting your own when you fret about your lot and circumstances. You have been trying to do the providing and forgetting to do the obeying. Be wise and pay attention to the obeying, and let Christ manage the providing. Come and survey your Father’s storehouse, and ask whether He will allow you to starve while He has so great an abundance in store.

Look at His heart of mercy; see if that can ever prove unkind! Look at His unsearchable wisdom; see if that will ever be at fault. Above all, look to Jesus Christ your Intercessor, and ask yourself, while He pleads, can your Father deal ungraciously with you? If He remembers even sparrows, will He forget one of the least of His poor children? “Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.”3

My soul, rest happy in your low estate,

Nor hope nor wish to be esteem’d or great;

To take the impress of the Will Divine,

Be that your glory, and those riches thine.

1) Matthew 10:30-31

2) Matthew 6:33

3) Psalm 55:22

Family Bible Reading Plan

  • 2 Chronicles 22, 23
  • Revelation 10

Devotional material is taken from “Morning and Evening,” written by C.H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg.

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Love

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“We love him, because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:19

Suggested Further Reading: 1 John 3:14-18

We have known many Christians who have forgotten much of their love to Christ when they have risen in the world. “Ah!” said a woman, who desired to do much for Christ in poverty, and who had had a great sum left her, “I cannot do as much as I used to do.” “But how is that?” said one. Said she, “When I had a meagre purse I had an overflowing heart, and now I have an overflowing purse I have only a meagre heart.” It is a sad temptation for some men to get rich. They were content to go to the meeting-house and mix with the ignoble congregation, while they had but little; they have grown rich, there is a Turkey carpet in the drawing-room, they have arrangements now too splendid to permit them to invite the poor of the flock, as once they did, and Christ Jesus is not so fashionable as to allow them to introduce any religious topic when they meet with their new friends. Besides this, they say they are now obliged to pay this visit and that visit, and they must spend so much time upon attire, and in maintaining their station and respectability, they cannot find time to pray as they did. The house of God has to be neglected for the party, and Christ has less of their heart than ever he had. “Is this thy kindness to thy friend?” And hast thou risen so high that thou art ashamed of Christ? And art thou grown so rich, that Christ in his poverty is despised? Alas! Poor wealth! Alas! Base wealth! Alas! Vile wealth! It would be well for thee if it should be all swept away, if a descent to poverty should be a restoration to the ardency of thine affection.

For meditation: If success in the world goes to our hearts it can do others much good (1 Timothy 6:17-19); if it goes to our heads it can do us much harm (1 Timothy 6:9-10).

Sermon no. 229

19 December (1858)