Psalm 145:17-21

If you could have anything in the world, what would it be? Your answer reveals a lot about who you are. The psalmist writes, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart” (Ps. 37:4). There is nothing wrong with desires–they motivate us to achieve great things. But not all of our yearnings come from God.

Consider your aspirations and what they say about who you are:

Do you hope for a position of authority in order to be in control? Longing for personal advancement in order to manipulate others reveals a lack of integrity, whereas a godly person craves righteousness.

Do you dream about wealth and fame? Perhaps there’s a void in your spirit that you’re trying to fill. But only God can meet the insatiable needs of the human heart.

Are you afraid to ask the Lord for what you want? Maybe you think He won’t listen, but God tells us to approach His throne with boldness and confidence (Heb. 4:16).

If the Lord doesn’t respond affirmatively to your prayers, ask Him to make your desires conform to His will. Whatever you do, don’t take matters into your own hands and go after what you want. There is always a high price to pay for rebelling against God.

God cares for us bountifully, but that doesn’t mean we can expect Him to deliver whatever we want, whenever we want it. Only when our dreams align with His plan for our lives does He fulfill them. The thoughts that preoccupy us are an accurate barometer of the state of our relationship with Christ

 When a man wearing sunglasses approached the cash register of a Midwestern pharmacy and told the employees he was going to rob them, the pharmacist couldn’t believe his ears. Stepping forward, he thwarted the plans of the would-be burglar and prevented the crime before it came to fruition. But he didn’t scare the thief off by threat or weapon. In fact, the pharmacist did not even attempt to dissuade him from the theft. The man was stopped dead in his tracks because the pharmacist knew his name. Recognizing his voice, the pharmacist called him by name and asked if the robbery was a joke. The man immediately spun around and ran out of the store, boarding a nearby city bus.

It is easy to enter into certain situations with a false sense of anonymity. Shielded under the veil of obscurity, the pharmacy break-in seemed somehow easier to carry out. The man walked into the pharmacy thinking he would carry out a faceless robbery, when in fact the pharmacist knew his name, his address, and enough of his character to suspect it was a joke. Had someone not recognized him, he might have followed through with the crime.

The Christian story presents the startling thought that God knows your name. Whether living with the suspicion that some flaws, some fears, some thoughts, or some worries can stay hidden, how might it change if you imagine God calling out your name in the midst of it? Would you be startled at the sound of your name, jarred to attention by the only sovereign one in the room? At times, like the pharmacy burglar, we may instinctively feel like running, finding ourselves suddenly exposed where we once thought we were safely hidden. But really, what point is there in running away from someone who knows your name?

At one time in my life the words of Psalm 139 seemed a harsh reminder that my fleeing from God was unsuccessful. David’s prayer seemed to leap out, a stubborn confession of my own inability to hide:

“O LORD, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD. You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me…Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” (139:1-7).

But there was always one verse in this psalm I unconsciously ignored. Speaking personally of God’s omniscience in his own life, David said, “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain” (139:6).  There are many reasons in life that one might instinctively attempt to run from God. Often times, the thought of remaining in the presence of a holy God who knows your name is far too much to bear. The thought of it always made me feel scolded. David, too, seemed familiar with the terror of being caught in sin and called out by name. And yet, he also knew the beautiful mystery of being in the presence of one who would never stop calling his name, though he made his bed in the depths or settled on the far side of the sea.

That God knows your name means that God will not stop looking for you even though you hide. Though you turn away, God will not abstain from loving you. The Father will not stop striving to bring you back into arms that long to gather us: “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.”(1) Such knowledge is indeed too lofty for us to attain.

Jill Carattini is managing editor of A Slice of Infinity at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Atlanta, Georgia. 

(1) See John 10:14-15.

Morning “Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.” / Luke 5:4

We learn from this narrative, the necessity of human agency. The draught of
fishes was miraculous, yet neither the fisherman nor his boat, nor his fishing
tackle were ignored; but all were used to take the fishes. So in the saving of
souls, God worketh by means; and while the present economy of grace shall
stand, God will be pleased by the foolishness of preaching to save them that
believe. When God worketh without instruments, doubtless he is glorified; but
he hath himself selected the plan of instrumentality as being that by which he
is most magnified in the earth. Means of themselves are utterly unavailing.
“Master, we have toiled all the night and have taken nothing.” What was the
reason of this? Were they not fishermen plying their special calling? Verily,
they were no raw hands; they understood the work. Had they gone about the toil
unskilfully? No. Had they lacked industry? No, they had toiled. Had they
lacked perseverance? No, they had toiled all the night. Was there a deficiency
of fish in the sea? Certainly not, for as soon as the Master came, they swam
to the net in shoals. What, then, is the reason? Is it because there is no
power in the means of themselves apart from the presence of Jesus? “Without
him we can do nothing.” But with Christ we can do all things. Christ’s
presence confers success. Jesus sat in Peter’s boat, and his will, by a
mysterious influence, drew the fish to the net. When Jesus is lifted up in his
Church, his presence is the Church’s power–the shout of a king is in the
midst of her. “I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto me.” Let us go out
this morning on our work of soul fishing, looking up in faith, and around us
in solemn anxiety. Let us toil till night comes, and we shall not labour in
vain, for he who bids us let down the net, will fill it with fishes.

Evening  “Praying in the Holy Ghost.” / Jude 20

Mark the grand characteristic of true prayer–“In the Holy Ghost.” The seed of
acceptable devotion must come from heaven’s storehouse. Only the prayer which
comes from God can go to God. We must shoot the Lord’s arrows back to him.
That desire which he writes upon our heart will move his heart and bring down
a blessing, but the desires of the flesh have no power with him.

Praying in the Holy Ghost is praying in fervency. Cold prayers ask the Lord
not to hear them. Those who do not plead with fervency, plead not at all. As
well speak of lukewarm fire as of lukewarm prayer–it is essential that it be
red hot. It is praying perseveringly. The true suppliant gathers force as he
proceeds, and grows more fervent when God delays to answer. The longer the
gate is closed, the more vehemently does he use the knocker, and the longer
the angel lingers the more resolved is he that he will never let him go
without the blessing. Beautiful in God’s sight is tearful, agonizing,
unconquerable importunity. It means praying humbly, for the Holy Spirit never
puffs us up with pride. It is his office to convince of sin, and so to bow us
down in contrition and brokenness of spirit. We shall never sing Gloria in
excelsis except we pray to God De profundis: out of the depths must we cry, or
we shall never behold glory in the highest. It is loving prayer. Prayer should
be perfumed with love, saturated with love–love to our fellow saints, and
love to Christ. Moreover, it must be a prayer full of faith. A man prevails
only as he believes. The Holy Spirit is the author of faith, and strengthens
it, so that we pray believing God’s promise. O that this blessed combination
of excellent graces, priceless and sweet as the spices of the merchant, might
be fragrant within us because the Holy Ghost is in our hearts! Most blessed
Comforter, exert thy mighty power within us, helping our infirmities in
prayer.

Pray in the Holy Spirit.    Jude 1:20

 Note the key characteristic of true prayer—”in the Holy Spirit.” The seed of acceptable devotion must come from heaven’s storehouse. Only the prayer that comes from God can go to God. We must shoot the Lord’s arrows back to Him. The desire that He writes upon our heart will move His heart and bring down a blessing, but the desires of the flesh have no power with Him.

Praying in the Holy Spirit is praying in fervency. Cold prayers ask the Lord not to hear them. Those who do not plead with fervency do not plead at all. We might as well talk of lukewarm fire as of lukewarm prayer—it is essential that it be red-hot. It is praying perseveringly. The true petitioner gathers force as he proceeds and grows more fervent when God delays to answer. The longer the gate is closed, the louder the knocking becomes; and the longer the angel lingers, the more determined he becomes to never let him go without the blessing. In God’s sight tearful, agonizing, unconquerable importunity is commendable. It means praying humbly, for the Holy Spirit never puffs us up with pride. It is His part to convince of sin and to cause us to bow down in contrition and brokenness of spirit.

We will never sing Gloria in excelsis except when we pray to God de profundis: Out of the depths must we cry, or we will never behold glory in the highest. It is loving prayer. Prayer should be perfumed with love, saturated with love—love for our fellow believers and love for Christ. Moreover, it must be a prayer full of faith. A man prevails only to the extent that he believes. The Holy Spirit is the author of faith and strengthens it, so that we pray believing God’s promise. Now our prayer is that this blessed combination of excellent graces, as priceless and sweet as rare spices, might be fragrant within us because the Holy Spirit is in our hearts! Blessed Comforter, exert Your mighty power within us, helping our weaknesses in prayer.

Family Reading Plan    Ezekiel 41  Psalm 93

Colossians 1:9-14

If you’ve ever been confused about how to intercede for someone, Paul’s prayer in Colossians is appropriate for every person and every situation. Because it fits perfectly with God’s will, you can ask these requests with great confidence–both for yourself and for others:

To be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Not only do we need to know God’s plan for our lives; we also require discernment to distinguish His guiding voice from our own self-directed notions.

To walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, pleasing Him in all respects. Our lives should be patterned after the One we follow, with the goal of bringing Him glory and delight.

To bear fruit in every good work. Instead of being wrapped up in our own jobs, possessions, pleasures, and plans, we should be contributing to others’ lives.

To increase in the knowledge of God. By reading His Word, applying it to our lives, and observing His ways, we’ll gain a deeper understanding of the Lord.

To be strengthened with His power in order to remain steadfast. The Christian life can be lived only with the Holy Spirit’s power.

To joyously give thanks for all He’s done for you. Believers should be characterized by joy and gratitude.

Too often we focus our requests on important temporal needs but miss seeing the deeper spiritual work God wants to do. Imagine how effective your prayers will be if you’ll shift the emphasis of your petitions to the Lord’s desires. He’ll transform you and the people for whom you intercede.

An important manuscript long thought lost was rediscovered hiding in a Pennsylvania seminary on a forgotten archival shelf. The recovered manuscript was a working score for a piano version of Ludwig van Beethoven’s “Grosse Fuge,” which means “grand fugue.” Apparently, grand is an understatement. The work is known as a monument of classical music and described by historians as a “symphonic poem” or a “leviathan”—an achievement on the scale of the finale of his Ninth Symphony. The work is one of the last pieces Beethoven composed, during the period when he was completely deaf. The markings throughout the manuscript are in the composer’s own hand.

In fact, such markings are a particular trademark of Beethoven, who was known for near obsessive editing. Unlike Mozart, who typically produced large scores in nearly finished form, Beethoven’s mind was so full of ideas that it was never made up. Never satisfied, he honed his ideas brutally.

A look at the recovered score portrays exactly that. Groups of measures throughout the 80-page manuscript are furiously canceled out with cross-marks. Remnants of red sealing wax, used to adhere long corrections to an already scuffed up page, remain like scars. There are smudges where he rubbed away ink while it was still wet and abrasions where he erased notes with a needle. Dated changes and omissions are scattered throughout the score, many of these markings dating to the final months before his death in 1827.

I believe there is something encouraging about the labored work of a genius. Beethoven wrestled notes onto the page. For him composing music was a messy, physical process. Ink was splattered, wax burned, erasers wore holes in the paper. What started as a clean page became a muddled, textured mess of a masterpiece ever in progress.

At times when I read the words of 2 Corinthians 5:17 I am jarred by the finality of it: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Upon calling on Christ as Lord, the Christian has been made into something new. Before she have even tried to live well, before she has even labored as a disciple, the marred and muddied scene of her hearts has been made clean and new. The Father has handed us the masterpiece of his Son and told us that when He looks at us He sees perfection.

Though I stand amazed at this grace, it is also easy for me to stumble at the thought of it. I imagine God handing me a clean paper and asking me to hold it in a world full of ink and dirt. And I immediately wish I would have been more careful. I picture the white page given to me and think of all of the smudges and eraser marks I’ve added to it, some of them from lessons learned the hard way, others merely from bumping into life as I walk along.

If truth be told, life is far messier than we would like it to be. People get angry and depressed and sick. We struggle with remaining hopeful in the dark and seeing through bouts of self-deception. Our lives don’t turn out how we planned them, and the roads we choose aren’t as straight as we would like them to be. Even so, the Christian’s hope is that God is faithful through the mess. “For we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).

Someone has called Beethoven’s masterpieces works of “three-dimensional” art. There is a texture and a character to his manuscripts that display an artist who went beyond merely writing the notes, but stretched himself, and the page itself, to make a symphony. All the more, life in Christ is fleshed out of us. Our scuffs and blotches are wrought with the work of one who descends into the mess of life to shape us. Like a composer willing to labor over his pages, the potter’s hands are not afraid to get dirty. Our lives, which may be glued with corrections and shaped with notations, can be marked with the signs of the master ever at work.

Jill Carattini is managing editor of A Slice of Infinity at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Atlanta, Georgia.

 Morning “He arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty

days and forty nights.” / 1 Kings 19:8

 All the strength supplied to us by our gracious God is meant for service, not

for wantonness or boasting. When the prophet Elijah found the cake baked on

the coals, and the cruse of water placed at his head, as he lay under the

juniper tree, he was no gentleman to be gratified with dainty fare that he

might stretch himself at his ease; far otherwise, he was commissioned to go

forty days and forty nights in the strength of it, journeying towards Horeb,

the mount of God. When the Master invited the disciples to “Come and dine”

with him, after the feast was concluded he said to Peter, “Feed my sheep”;

further adding, “Follow me.” Even thus it is with us; we eat the bread of

heaven, that we may expend our strength in the Master’s service. We come to

the passover, and eat of the paschal lamb with loins girt, and staff in hand,

so as to start off at once when we have satisfied our hunger. Some Christians

are for living on Christ, but are not so anxious to live for Christ. Earth

should be a preparation for heaven; and heaven is the place where saints feast

most and work most. They sit down at the table of our Lord, and they serve him

day and night in his temple. They eat of heavenly food and render perfect

service. Believer, in the strength you daily gain from Christ labour for him.

Some of us have yet to learn much concerning the design of our Lord in giving

us his grace. We are not to retain the precious grains of truth as the

Egyptian mummy held the wheat for ages, without giving it an opportunity to

grow: we must sow it and water it. Why does the Lord send down the rain upon

the thirsty earth, and give the genial sunshine? Is it not that these may all

help the fruits of the earth to yield food for man? Even so the Lord feeds and

refreshes our souls that we may afterwards use our renewed strength in the

promotion of his glory.

Evening “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.” / Mark 16:16

 Mr. MacDonald asked the inhabitants of the island of St. Kilda how a man must

be saved. An old man replied, “We shall be saved if we repent, and forsake our

sins, and turn to God.” “Yes,” said a middle-aged female, “and with a true

heart too.” “Aye,” rejoined a third, “and with prayer”; and, added a fourth,

“It must be the prayer of the heart.” “And we must be diligent too,” said a

fifth, “in keeping the commandments.” Thus, each having contributed his mite,

feeling that a very decent creed had been made up, they all looked and

listened for the preacher’s approbation, but they had aroused his deepest

pity. The carnal mind always maps out for itself a way in which self can work

and become great, but the Lord’s way is quite the reverse. Believing and being

baptized are no matters of merit to be gloried in–they are so simple that

boasting is excluded, and free grace bears the palm. It may be that the reader

is unsaved–what is the reason? Do you think the way of salvation as laid down

in the text to be dubious? How can that be when God has pledged his own word

for its certainty? Do you think it too easy? Why, then, do you not attend to

it? Its ease leaves those without excuse who neglect it. To believe is simply

to trust, to depend, to rely upon Christ Jesus. To be baptized is to submit to

the ordinance which our Lord fulfilled at Jordan, to which the converted ones

submitted at Pentecost, to which the jailer yielded obedience the very night

of his conversion. The outward sign saves not, but it sets forth to us our

death, burial, and resurrection with Jesus, and, like the Lord’s Supper, is

not to be neglected. Reader, do you believe in Jesus? Then, dear friend,

dismiss your fears, you shall be saved. Are you still an unbeliever, then

remember there is but one door, and if you will not enter by it you will

perish in your sins.

Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.    Mark 16:16

 Mr. MacDonald asked the inhabitants of the island of St. Kilda how a man must be saved. An old man replied, “We will be saved if we repent and forsake our sins and turn to God.” “Yes,” said a middle-aged woman, “and with a true heart too.” “Yes,” rejoined a third, “and with prayer”; and a fourth added, “It must be the prayer of the heart.” “And we must be diligent too,” said a fifth, “in keeping the commandments.” When each of them made their contribution, feeling that a very decent creed had been made up, they all looked and listened for the preacher’s approval, but they had aroused his deepest pity.

The secular mind always maps out for itself a way in which self can work and become great, but the Lord’s way is quite the reverse. Believing and being baptized are not matters of merit to be gloried in—they are so simple that boasting is excluded. It may be that the reader is unsaved—what is the reason? Do you think the way of salvation as laid down in the text is dubious? How can that be when God has pledged His own word for its certainty? Do you think it too easy? Why, then, do you not obey it?

Those who neglect it are without excuse. To believe is simply to trust, to depend, to rely upon Christ Jesus. To be baptized is to submit to the ordinance that our Lord fulfilled at Jordan, to which the converted ones submitted at Pentecost, to which the jailer yielded obedience on the very night of his conversion. The outward sign does not save, but it portrays our death, burial, and resurrection with Jesus and, like the Lord’s Supper, is not to be neglected. Reader, do you believe in Jesus? Then, dear friend, dismiss your fears—you will be saved. Are you still an unbeliever? Then remember there is only one door, and if you will not enter by it you will perish in your sins.

Family Reading Plan  Ezekiel 38  Psalm 89

1 John 5:14-15

Since praying is such a common practice for believers, over time it’s easy to fall into habits that result in a lifeless and empty prayer life. Instead of a dynamic conversation with thoughtful requests and active listening for God’s response, our prayers can seem more like grocery lists. Because communication with the Lord is such a vital part of the Christian life, we occasionally need to step back and examine how we’re doing.

Begin by asking yourself these questions:

How effective are my prayers? Is God answering my petitions, or does it seem as if they never go past the ceiling?

Who am I praying for? Are most of my requests for myself or others?

What am I asking the Lord to do? Have I looked in the Word to see what He wants, or am I trying to get Him to intervene according to my plans and desires?

When do I pray? Is it only during emergencies or when I need something?

If you discovered any selfishness in your answers, you’re not alone. Most of us struggle to enter God’s presence with our eyes focused on Him instead of our needs. But the only way we’ll be able to pray with impact is to fill our minds with Scripture so we can find out what the Lord wants to do.

Your prayer life can become effective and dynamic if you’ll approach the Lord with a clean heart (Ps. 66:18), align your requests with His will, and believe He will do what He says (Mark 11:24). Then you’ll be able to pray with absolute confidence knowing that He will hear and answer your petitions.

“Day after day pours forth speech,” says the psalmist of nature’s glory. “Night after night reveals his greatness.”

As a Scot, I grew up with a love of the countryside. My parents would take us on drives to Loch Lomond, to places like the Trossacks (a beautiful hill and moor area) and many more. These early encounters evoked something that I did not (as a non-believer then) understand. It was the power of beauty itself to speak, not in an audible voice of course, but in some very real sense.

Recently, I drove from Florida to Georgia as the verdant green and array of colors were exploding. I’d be captivated by trees blooming in all their glory, wisps of white, pink, and other shades all mingling in a medley of splendor, and then surprised by bursts of red (which I learned were Azaleas). It was all quite wonderful! Now lest you think I am some strange, European romantic, I have to say that this “noticing” is a result of the patient, constant, and enthusiastic education granted me by my wife.

She has always loved flowers. In my early days of “serious” ministry and dedication to God, I often wondered how one could be sidetracked by such trivia, such commonalities. Yes, flowers and things pointed out were nice when a passing glance was permitted, but they were not important in my mind. They were not the real thing, the serious thing, the main show!

Perhaps it was age, or more likely a divine breakthrough, but one day I began to notice. These things were splendid; they were so unique. They had such detail, so much grandeur, and they evoked delight and joy. C.S. Lewis describes a childhood encounter with a miniature garden that his brother had made in a tin box. He describes the sense of longing, the experience of what he called joy, though fleeting, which was profound and real. Though he didn’t know what to call it then, Lewis was gradually awakened to the power and role of beauty, an influence he would employ to great effect in his writings.

Similarly, John Calvin reminded the world that God has given his creatures two books: the book of nature and the word of God. For the Christian, they are not equal in authority or revelatory power, and yet it is a serious neglect to focus on one at the exclusion of the other.

In today’s world, many are sincerely inspired by nature. They love long walks, visits to the country, and absorbing the beauties of the world around. They often make nature an end in itself. They celebrate its magnificence, but are left to see it all as a random outcome of chance and necessity. Some Christians, through neglect, do much the same thing. A number of years ago, some monks in an Austrian monastery had gotten used to overlooking a particular painting that hung in their hallways. One day a visitor looked in astonishment and realized it was a Reubens, the prolific seventeenth-century Flemish Baroque painter. A connection was suddenly made between a work of art and its renowned artist. It caused a sensation, an awakening, not the least of which to its value, which was now known.

The psalmist, the Celts, and many others across the centuries learned to see God’s hand in nature and to celebrate God’s goodness and provision from it. Take a few moments today to look at the birds, contemplate the trees, enjoy a walk, and smell the flowers. Perhaps you may just experience a glimmer of God’s glory, too.

Stuart McAllister is vice president of training and special projects at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Atlanta, Georgia. 

Morning   “At evening time it shall be light.” / Zechariah 14:7

Oftentimes we look forward with forebodings to the time of old age, forgetful

that at eventide it shall be light. To many saints, old age is the choicest

season in their lives. A balmier air fans the mariner’s cheek as he nears the

shore of immortality, fewer waves ruffle his sea, quiet reigns, deep, still

and solemn. From the altar of age the flashes of the fire of youth are gone,

but the more real flame of earnest feeling remains. The pilgrims have reached

the land Beulah, that happy country, whose days are as the days of heaven upon

earth. Angels visit it, celestial gales blow over it, flowers of paradise grow

in it, and the air is filled with seraphic music. Some dwell here for years,

and others come to it but a few hours before their departure, but it is an

Eden on earth. We may well long for the time when we shall recline in its

shady groves and be satisfied with hope until the time of fruition comes. The

setting sun seems larger than when aloft in the sky, and a splendour of glory

tinges all the clouds which surround his going down. Pain breaks not the calm

of the sweet twilight of age, for strength made perfect in weakness bears up

with patience under it all. Ripe fruits of choice experience are gathered as

the rare repast of life’s evening, and the soul prepares itself for rest.

The Lord’s people shall also enjoy light in the hour of death. Unbelief

laments; the shadows fall, the night is coming, existence is ending. Ah no,

crieth faith, the night is far spent, the true day is at hand. Light is come,

the light of immortality, the light of a Father’s countenance. Gather up thy

feet in the bed, see the waiting bands of spirits! Angels waft thee away.

Farewell, beloved one, thou art gone, thou wavest thine hand. Ah, now it is

light. The pearly gates are open, the golden streets shine in the jasper

light. We cover our eyes, but thou beholdest the unseen; adieu, brother, thou

hast light at even-tide, such as we have not yet.

Evening    “If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the

righteous.” / 1 John 2:1

“If any man sin, we have an advocate.” Yes, though we sin, we have him still.

John does not say, “If any man sin he has forfeited his advocate,” but “we

have an advocate,” sinners though we are. All the sin that a believer ever

did, or can be allowed to commit, cannot destroy his interest in the Lord

Jesus Christ, as his advocate. The name here given to our Lord is suggestive.

“Jesus.” Ah! then he is an advocate such as we need, for Jesus is the name of

one whose business and delight it is to save. “They shall call his name Jesus,

for he shall save his people from their sins.” His sweetest name implies his

success. Next, it is “Jesus Christ”–Christos, the anointed. This shows his

authority to plead. The Christ has a right to plead, for he is the Father’s

own appointed advocate and elected priest. If he were of our choosing he might

fail, but if God hath laid help upon one that is mighty, we may safely lay our

trouble where God has laid his help. He is Christ, and therefore authorized;

he is Christ, and therefore qualified, for the anointing has fully fitted him

for his work. He can plead so as to move the heart of God and prevail. What

words of tenderness, what sentences of persuasion will the anointed use when

he stands up to plead for me! One more letter of his name remains, “Jesus

Christ the righteous.” This is not only his character but his plea. It is his

character, and if the Righteous One be my advocate, then my cause is good, or

he would not have espoused it. It is his plea, for he meets the charge of

unrighteousness against me by the plea that he is righteous. He declares

himself my substitute and puts his obedience to my account. My soul, thou hast

a friend well fitted to be thine advocate, he cannot but succeed; leave

thyself entirely in his hands.

But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.   1 John 2:1

“If anyone does sin, we have an advocate.” Yes, though we sin, we have Him still. John does not say, “If anyone sins, they have forfeited their advocate,” but “we have an advocate,” even though we are sinners. All the sin that a believer ever did or can be allowed to commit cannot destroy his interest in the Lord Jesus Christ as his advocate. The name given here to our Lord is suggestive. “Jesus.” He is the kind of advocate we need, for Jesus is the name of one whose business and delight it is to save. “You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”1 His sweetest name implies His success.

Next, it is “Jesus Christ”—Christos, the anointed. This shows His authority to plead. Christ has a right to plead, for He is the Father’s own appointed advocate and elected priest. If He were our choice He might fail, but if God has laid help on one who is mighty, we may safely place our trouble where God has laid His help. He is Christ, and therefore authorized; He is Christ, and therefore qualified, for the anointing has fitted Him fully for His work. He can plead in such a way as to move the heart of God and prevail. What words of tenderness, what sentences of persuasion will the anointed use when He stands up to plead for me!

One more aspect of His name remains: “Jesus Christ the righteous.” This is not only His character but His plea. It is His character, and if the Righteous One is my advocate, then my cause is good or He would not have represented it. It is His plea, for He meets the charge of unrighteousness against me by the plea that He is righteous. He declares Himself my substitute and puts His obedience to my account. My soul, you have a friend perfectly fitted to be your advocate—He cannot but succeed; leave yourself entirely in His hands.

1Matthew 1:21

Family Reading Plan      Ezekiel 37       Psalm 88

Psalm 143:5-12

What do you think about when you wake up? Are your thoughts instantly focused on the day ahead, or are they centered on the Lord? Although most of us have busy lives that consume much of our time and attention, the most important and time-saving part of each day is that spent in quiet solitude with God.

Yet many believers feel so rushed that they don’t think there’s time for the Lord. They immediately jump onto the treadmill of life and then wonder why they’re so frustrated, confused, and dissatisfied. Even if their desire is to follow God, they don’t know where He’s going since they haven’t stopped to get directions for the day. There’s also a disconnect because they’ve ignored their relationship with Him. No one can have intimacy with Christ without daily communication.

Perhaps the problem is our own human logic. We think spending time reading the Bible and praying each morning will result in having less time and lower productivity. However, when we seek Christ’s direction and wisdom for the day and invite Him to control our lives, He’ll accomplish more through us than we can do by ourselves. He’ll give us wisdom for good decisions, increase our strength and energy, and free us from time-wasting anxiety.

Are you too busy for the Lord? If so, you’re denying yourself the blessing of an intimate relationship with Christ. When you make time for Him, He’ll fill you with peace and joy, guide your decisions, grant you wisdom, empower you to obey, make you more productive, and comfort you with His love.

Reading an online newspaper the other day, I ended up, as I often do, on the religion pages. My attention was first caught by a long list of various world religions, followed by the descriptions of the beliefs and practices of each one. Interestingly, I thought, atheism was among the many religions listed. And yet in describing the beliefs of atheists, the first sentence declared, “Atheism is not a belief.” Can a belief-system accurately be defined as the absence of belief? Its very inclusion as a belief-system among alternative belief-systems seemed to negate its first belief.

In a very real sense, atheism is a belief. Though it contends disbelief in God, it is rightfully placed among the many belief-systems that inform life. Moreover, as the atheistic worldview offers certain perspectives about the world, like Christianity or Hinduism, it requires certain faith assumptions: that the world exists in ordered, knowable nature, that our senses and intellect are reliable in discovering truth, that there is a uniformity to nature extending from past to future. At the foundation of every worldview, a number of interconnected beliefs are held in faith. The question then becomes, which faith provides the most coherent foundation for understanding the world?

As one author points to the tensions of incoherence in the atheist’s insistence of reason as the foundation of non-belief, “[R]easons require that this universe be a reasonable one that presupposes there is order, logic, design, and truth. But order, logic, design, and truth can only exist and be known if there is an unchangeable objective source and standard of such things….Like all non-theistic worldviews, Darwinism borrows from the theistic worldview in order to make its own view intelligible.”(1) In other words, the very foundation of atheistic faith allows for an unstable structure of interpretation.

Either arrogantly or boldly, Jesus proposes himself as a foundation. “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand” (Matthew 7:24-26). It may sound to some archaic or egotistical. But to hear a psychologist speak of moral accountability as a necessary qualifier in understanding human behavior, or a cultural analyst proclaim the effectiveness of setting aside one day out of the workweek for rest is to hear vital remnants of this bold and arrogant foundation, whose thought and life surrounds us.(2)

At the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. there is a large wooden altar from a synagogue that was vandalized by Nazi soldiers who had come to remove the Jewish citizens of the city. Across the altar is a single phrase of Hebrew carved deeply into the wood. Though it bears the hack marks of axes that attempted to delete the words, the phrase is still decipherable. It simply reads: Know before Whom you stand.

We can attempt to eradicate the name of God; we can begin without Christ at the foundation of our belief systems. But it will never negate his presence.

Jill Carattini is managing editor of A Slice of Infinity at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Atlanta, Georgia.

(1) Norman Geisler and Frank Turek, I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2004), 130.

(2) Cf. Hobart Mowrer, “Sin, the Lesser of Two Evils,” American Psychologist, 15 (1960): 301-304) and Douglas Rushkoff, “Remember the Sabbath: An Argument in Favor of a Day Off,” December 1999.

 Morning    “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who

shall be heirs of salvation?” / Hebrews 1:14

Angels are the unseen attendants of the saints of God; they bear us up in

their hands, lest we dash our foot against a stone. Loyalty to their Lord

leads them to take a deep interest in the children of his love; they rejoice

over the return of the prodigal to his father’s house below, and they welcome

the advent of the believer to the King’s palace above. In olden times the sons

of God were favoured with their visible appearance, and at this day, although

unseen by us, heaven is still opened, and the angels of God ascend and descend

upon the Son of man, that they may visit the heirs of salvation. Seraphim

still fly with live coals from off the altar to touch the lips of men greatly

beloved. If our eyes could be opened, we should see horses of fire and

chariots of fire about the servants of the Lord; for we have come to an

innumerable company of angels, who are all watchers and protectors of the

seed-royal. Spenser’s line is no poetic fiction, where he sings–

 “How oft do they with golden pinions cleave

 The flitting skies, like flying pursuivant

 Against foul fiends to aid us militant!”

 To what dignity are the chosen elevated when the brilliant courtiers of heaven

become their willing servitors! Into what communion are we raised since we

have intercourse with spotless celestials! How well are we defended since all

the twenty- thousand chariots of God are armed for our deliverance! To whom do

we owe all this? Let the Lord Jesus Christ be forever endeared to us, for

through him we are made to sit in heavenly places far above principalities and

powers. He it is whose camp is round about them that fear him; he is the true

Michael whose foot is upon the dragon. All hail, Jesus! thou Angel of

Jehovah’s presence, to thee this family offers its morning vows.

Evening   “He himself hath suffered being tempted.” / Hebrews 2:18

It is a common-place thought, and yet it tastes like nectar to the weary

heart–Jesus was tempted as I am. You have heard that truth many times: have

you grasped it? He was tempted to the very same sins into which we fall. Do

not dissociate Jesus from our common manhood. It is a dark room which you are

going through, but Jesus went through it before. It is a sharp fight which you

are waging, but Jesus has stood foot to foot with the same enemy. Let us be of

good cheer, Christ has borne the load before us, and the blood-stained

footsteps of the King of glory may be seen along the road which we traverse at

this hour. There is something sweeter yet–Jesus was tempted, but Jesus never

sinned. Then, my soul, it is not needful for thee to sin, for Jesus was a man,

and if one man endured these temptations and sinned not, then in his power his

members may also cease from sin. Some beginners in the divine life think that

they cannot be tempted without sinning, but they mistake; there is no sin in

being tempted, but there is sin in yielding to temptation. Herein is comfort

for the sorely tempted ones. There is still more to encourage them if they

reflect that the Lord Jesus, though tempted, gloriously triumphed, and as he

overcame, so surely shall his followers also, for Jesus is the representative

man for his people; the Head has triumphed, and the members share in the

victory. Fears are needless, for Christ is with us, armed for our defence. Our

place of safety is the bosom of the Saviour. Perhaps we are tempted just now,

in order to drive us nearer to him. Blessed be any wind that blows us into the

port of our Saviour’s love! Happy wounds, which make us seek the beloved

Physician. Ye tempted ones, come to your tempted Saviour, for he can be

touched with a feeling of your infirmities, and will succour every tried and

tempted one.

He himself has suffered when tempted.   Hebrews 2:18

 It is a common thought, and yet it tastes like honey to the weary heart—Jesus was tempted as I am. You have heard that truth many times, but have you grasped it? He was tempted by the very same sins into which we fall. Do not separate Jesus from our common humanity. If you are going through a dark room, remember Jesus went through it before you. If you are engaged in a sore fight, remember that Jesus has stood foot to foot with the same enemy. Let us be encouraged—Christ has borne the load before us, and the blood-stained footsteps of the King of glory can be seen along the road that we travel at this hour.

There is something sweeter yet—Jesus was tempted, but Jesus never sinned. My soul, it is not necessary for you to sin, for Jesus was a man, and if one man endured these temptations without sin, then in His power His followers may also flee from sin. Some new believers think that they cannot be tempted without sinning, but they are mistaken; there is no sin in being tempted, but there is sin in yielding to temptation. Here is comfort for those who are greatly tempted. There is still more to encourage them if they recall that the Lord Jesus, though tempted, gloriously triumphed; and as He overcame, so may His followers also, for Jesus is the representative man for His people.

The Head has triumphed, and the members share in the victory. Fears are unnecessary, for Christ is with us, armed for our defense. Our place of safety is the embrace of the Savior. Perhaps we are tempted just now in order to drive us nearer to Him. Blessed be any wind that blows us into the harbor of our Savior’s love! Happy the wounds that make us seek the beloved Physician. Tempted ones, come to your tempted Savior, for He can sympathize with your weaknesses and will comfort every tried and tempted one.

Family Reading Plan    Ezekiel 36  Psalm 86

 Nehemiah 2:1-10

After Nehemiah heard about the desperate condition of the Jews who had returned from exile to Jerusalem, his heart was burdened (Neh. 1:3-4). By getting his attention in this way, the Lord could reveal what He wanted Nehemiah was to do. Scripture doesn’t spell out the man’s reaction on realizing that he was to be a part of the solution, but we can imagine a sense of inadequacy probably engulfed him. How could he possibly help? He wasn’t even near Jerusalem, and as a servant of the king, he didn’t have the freedom to pack up and leave.

But whenever God puts a burden on our hearts, He will open a door to accomplish His will. In this case, the Lord used Nehemiah’s sad expression and desperate prayer to prepare a pagan king to send him on his mission.

How do you respond when you sense the Lord is calling you to a task that seems beyond your abilities? Do you list all the reasons you can’t possibly do it? God already knows everything about you and the situation. He’s not asking your permission to proceed; rather, He is calling you to move forward with faith and obedience. He didn’t make an error in choosing you for the task, but you will make a huge mistake if you refuse to do it.

God will equip you for whatever He calls you to do. Because the Holy Spirit dwells within every believer, we have all we need to fulfill the Lord’s mission. Instead of letting inadequacy hinder you from obeying, let it drive you to your knees so you can arise with renewed insight and power

“The story I have to tell is the history of the next two centuries….For a long time now our whole civilization has been driving, with a tortured intensity growing from decade to decade, as if towards a catastrophe: restlessly, violently, tempestuously, like a mighty river desiring the end of its journey, without pausing to reflect, indeed fearful of reflection….Where we live, soon nobody will be able to exist.”(1)

Friedrich Nietzsche penned these words as he looked out onto a world devoid of God. His vision casts a bleak view of humanity and paints a frightening portrait of atheism. Nietzsche’s vision directly contrasts with the optimistic musings of a world without God penned by John Lennon:

Imagine there’s no heaven

It’s easy if you try

No hell below us

Above us only sky

Imagine all the people

Living for today

Imagine there’s no countries

It isn’t hard to do

Nothing to kill or die for

And no religion too

Imagine all the people

Living life in peace.(2)

In fact, the twentieth century told a far different tale than a life of present bliss and peace without God. Under atheistic regimes like Stalin in Russia or Pol Pot in Cambodia millions of people were slaughtered. Indeed, Nietzsche offers a healthy critique of the optimistic atheism of Lennon or the more recent British slogan that there is probably no God so we should stop worrying about it and enjoy life. In reality, there is great cause for worry if Nietzsche’s picture of a world without God is allowed full sway. That world is a very grim place filled with darkness, amorality, and despair.

Nietzsche’s vision in and of itself helps the theist formulate a healthy offensive to the typical onslaught of the atheist’s critique of religion. But it also provides an impetus to ask additional questions of those who see a positive view of atheism. If there is no God, for example, “the big questions” remain unanswered. Where did everything come from and why is there something rather than nothing? Why is there conscious, intelligent life on this planet and is there any meaning? Does human history lead anywhere or is it all in vain since death is merely the end? How does one come to understand good and evil, right and wrong? If these concepts are merely social constructions or human opinions, where does one look to determine morality?

Second, without belief in God we not only have a crisis of morality, we have a crisis of meaning. Without God, as Nietzsche articulated, meaning becomes nothing more than one’s own self-interests, pleasures, or tastes. Without God, the world is just stuff, thrown out into space and time, going nowhere, meaning nothing.

In addition, the problems of evil and suffering are in no way solved without God. Where does one find hope for the redemption of suffering and evil? Suffering is just as tragic, if not more so, without God because there is no hope of greater meaning. Without God it is neither redemptive nor redeemable, since no interventions in this life or reparations in an afterlife are possible. It might be true that there is no God to blame now, but neither is there a God to reach out to for strength, transcendent meaning, or comfort. There is only madness and confusion in the face of suffering and evil.

Moreover, without God or any sort of transcendent standard, how can atheists critique religions or religious people in the first place? Whose voice will be heard? Whose tastes or preferences will be honored? Without God, human tastes and opinions have no more weight than we give them, and who are we to give them meaning anyway? Societies might make things “illegal” and impose penalties or consequences, but human cultures have at various times legally or socially disapproved of everything from believing in God to believing the world revolves around the sun, from slavery to interracial marriage, from polygamy to monogamy. Human taste or opinion, societal laws or culture are hardly dependable arbiters of truth.

Finally, if there is no God, we don’t make sense. How does one explain human longings and desire for the transcendent? How do we explain human questions for meaning and purpose or inner thoughts of unfulfillment or emptiness? Why do humans hunger for the spiritual? How can we understand these questions if nothing exists beyond the material world? How do we get laws out of luck or predictable processes out of brute chance? If all that makes us different from animals is learning and altruism, why do the brutish still widely outnumber the wise in our world?

Nietzsche argued that the death of God would bring the upheaval of all morality and meaning and not its preservation. At these questions, atheists who see the possibility of morality, meaning, and hope without God are reminded of their own prophetic heritage.

Margaret Manning is a member of the speaking and writing team at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Seattle, Washington. 

(1) As quoted by Erich Heller in The Importance of Nietzsche (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1988), 5.

(2) John Lennon, Imagine (September, 1971).

Morning   “The hope which is laid up for you in heaven.” / Colossians 1:5

Our hope in Christ for the future is the mainspring and the mainstay of our
joy here. It will animate our hearts to think often of heaven, for all that we
can desire is promised there. Here we are weary and toilworn, but yonder is
the land of rest where the sweat of labour shall no more bedew the worker’s
brow, and fatigue shall be forever banished. To those who are weary and spent,
the word “rest” is full of heaven. We are always in the field of battle; we
are so tempted within, and so molested by foes without, that we have little or
no peace; but in heaven we shall enjoy the victory, when the banner shall be
waved aloft in triumph, and the sword shall be sheathed, and we shall hear our
Captain say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” We have suffered
bereavement after bereavement, but we are going to the land of the immortal
where graves are unknown things. Here sin is a constant grief to us, but there
we shall be perfectly holy, for there shall by no means enter into that
kingdom anything which defileth. Hemlock springs not up in the furrows of
celestial fields. Oh! is it not joy, that you are not to be in banishment
forever, that you are not to dwell eternally in this wilderness, but shall
soon inherit Canaan? Nevertheless let it never be said of us, that we are
dreaming about the future and forgetting the present, let the future sanctify
the present to highest uses. Through the Spirit of God the hope of heaven is
the most potent force for the product of virtue; it is a fountain of joyous
effort, it is the corner stone of cheerful holiness. The man who has this hope
in him goes about his work with vigour, for the joy of the Lord is his
strength. He fights against temptation with ardour, for the hope of the next
world repels the fiery darts of the adversary. He can labour without present
reward, for he looks for a reward in the world to come.

Evening “A man greatly beloved.” / Daniel 10:11

Child of God, do you hesitate to appropriate this title? Ah! has your unbelief
made you forget that you are greatly beloved too? Must you not have been
greatly beloved, to have been bought with the precious blood of Christ, as of
a lamb without blemish and without spot? When God smote his only begotten Son
for you, what was this but being greatly beloved? You lived in sin, and rioted
in it, must you not have been greatly beloved for God to have borne so
patiently with you? You were called by grace and led to a Saviour, and made a
child of God and an heir of heaven. All this proves, does it not, a very great
and superabounding love? Since that time, whether your path has been rough
with troubles, or smooth with mercies, it has been full of proofs that you are
a man greatly beloved. If the Lord has chastened you, yet not in anger; if he
has made you poor, yet in grace you have been rich. The more unworthy you feel
yourself to be, the more evidence have you that nothing but unspeakable love
could have led the Lord Jesus to save such a soul as yours. The more demerit
you feel, the clearer is the display of the abounding love of God in having
chosen you, and called you, and made you an heir of bliss. Now, if there be
such love between God and us let us live in the influence and sweetness of it,
and use the privilege of our position. Do not let us approach our Lord as
though we were strangers, or as though he were unwilling to hear us–for we
are greatly beloved by our loving Father. “He that spared not his own Son, but
delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all
things?” Come boldly, O believer, for despite the whisperings of Satan and the
doubtings of thine own heart, thou art greatly beloved. Meditate on the
exceeding greatness and faithfulness of divine love this evening, and so go to
thy bed in peace.

Man greatly loved.    Daniel 10:11

Child of God, do you hesitate to appropriate this title? Has your unbelief made you forget that you are also greatly loved? Surely you must have been greatly loved, to have been bought with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot? When God crushed His only Son for you, what was this but being greatly loved? You lived in sin and rioted in it; surely you were greatly loved for God to have been so patient with you. You were called by grace and led to a Savior and made a child of God and an heir of heaven. Doesn’t this all prove a very great and superabounding love?

Since that time, whether your path has been rough with troubles or smooth with mercies, it has been full of proofs that you are greatly loved. If the Lord has chastened you, it was not in anger; if He has made you poor, still in grace you have been rich. The more unworthy you feel yourself to be, the more evidence you have that nothing but unspeakable love could have led the Lord Jesus to save a soul like yours. The more disapproval you feel, the clearer is the display of God’s abounding love in choosing you and calling you and making you an heir of heaven.

Now, if such love exists between God and us, let us live in the influence and sweetness of it and use the privilege of our position. We should not approach our Lord as though we were strangers or as though He were unwilling to hear us—for we are greatly loved by our loving Father. “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”1 Come boldly, believer, for despite the whispers of Satan and the doubts of your own heart, you are greatly loved. Meditate on the exceeding greatness and faithfulness of divine love this evening, and then go to your bed in peace.

1Romans 8:32

Family Reading Plan    Ezekiel 35    Psalm 85