Tag Archives: nature

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Snug As A Bug In A Rug!

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Psalm 91:9-16

I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; for You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety. —Psalm 4:8

When I was a child, my family lived in a house my father built in the cedar breaks west of Duncanville, Texas. Our house had a small kitchen-dinette area, two bedrooms, and a great room with a large stone fireplace in which we burned 2-foot-long cedar logs. That fireplace was the center of warmth in our home.

There were five people in our family: my father and mother, my sister, my cousin, and me. Since we had only two bedrooms, I slept year-round on a porch with canvas screens that rolled down to the floor. Summers were delightful; winters were cold.

I remember dashing from the warmth of the living room onto the porch, tiptoeing across the frost-covered plank floor in my bare feet, leaping into bed and burrowing under a great mountain of blankets. Then, when hail, sleet, or snow lashed our house and the wind howled through the eaves like a pack of wolves, I snuggled down in sheltered rest. “Snug as a bug in a rug,” my mother used to say. I doubt that any child ever felt so warm and secure.

Now I know the greatest security of all: God Himself. I can “lie down in peace, and sleep” (Ps. 4:8), knowing that He is my shelter from the stinging storms of life. Enveloped in the warmth of His love, I’m snug as a bug in a rug. —David Roper

Leaning, leaning,

Safe and secure from all alarms;

Leaning, leaning,

Leaning on the everlasting arms. —Hoffman

No one is more secure than those who are in God’s hands.

Bible in a year: Hosea 9-11; Revelation 3

Insight

Psalm 91 celebrates the safety and security of those who trust in God, who have made the Lord (the Most High) their refuge, fortress, and dwelling place (vv.2,9). The psalmist affirms that our God is powerful and faithful and therefore trustworthy (vv.1-8). He also testifies of God’s protection and deliverance in a dangerous and destructive world (vv.9-16). In the New Testament, Satan misquoted verses 11-12 to tempt Jesus to test God’s protection by jumping from the top of the temple (Matt. 4:6). In response, Jesus says that God’s promise is for those who love and obey Him (Ps. 91:14-15) and not for those who presume upon God’s grace (Matt. 4:7).

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Both Near and Far from Home

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In his poem Journey of the Magi, T.S. Eliot imagines the reminiscent thoughts of one of the Magi who journeyed from afar to witness the birth of Christ. Using the voice of a king far from home, Eliot portrays the weight in the soul of one who has confronted the human Christ, the king who points us home. The poem powerfully concludes:

“Birth or Death? There was a birth, certainly,

We had evidence and no doubt I had seen birth and death.

But had thought they were different, this Birth was

hard and bitter agony for us, like Death, our death.

We returned to our palaces, these Kingdoms,

But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation,

with an alien people clutching their gods.

I should be glad of another death.”

Coming in contact with the Christ, proclaims Eliot, setting one’s eyes on the child who was born to die is like dying ourselves, in a sense, and forever changing our sense of ‘home.’ Though the poem seems to strike a somber note, it is a very note echoed triumphantly throughout New Testament Scripture. The apostle Paul readily utilized the words and imagery of death to describe life in Christ, the interplay of both home and homelessness. “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” Jesus uttered similarly, “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”(1)

In the season of Advent, Christians profess to be a people watching and waiting—in hope, in lament, in need—remembering and anticipating with those who first watched God step into the world through the mean estate of a dirty stable. We remember those who first set their eyes on the child who was born to die, becoming, in a sense, as Christ was on that first night, homeless and out of place. We remember that we, too, are far from home, longing for a home we know in part. Having truly seen the person of Christ, the Christian sees all the more clearly the reality of a world in need of justice, reconciliation, mercy, and healing. And we are, as Eliot describes, “no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation, with an alien people clutching their gods.” The message of Advent awakens a sense that we are both near and far from home, reminding a dark world that a light has indeed been born in our midst, reminding a broken world that we are waiting for the return of this one who shows us what it means to be truly human and whole again.

In one of the most comforting conversations between Jesus and the disciples, Jesus gives a description of this place, which we have seen in part, and he assures us of an invitation to be fully inside. “In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”(2) Compounding this hope, his words are followed by one of his most quoted promises. As Thomas replied, “But Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.”

We find in Christ himself the curious interplay of home and homelessness. This one who so loved creation that he joins us within it is not only the herald of our homelessness but the harbinger of our home. He curiously proclaims this very kingdom among us and he mercifully offers himself as the way inside. Thus, G.K. Chesterton describes our own mysterious place of being both near and far from home:

“For men are homesick in their homes,

and strangers under the sun…

but our homes are under miraculous skies

where the Yule tale was begun.”

The story of Christ’s birth is a certain message of hope and home—with the much needed room for lament over all that is presently missing and the desperately needed foretastes of a table where we will one day come together in healed communion with ourselves, our neighbors, and God. He who took on the fullness of humanity became homeless that we might come fully home. He curiously proclaims a kingdom at home among us and mercifully continues to prepare us for a place within it. Let every heart prepare him room!

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

(1) cf. Galatians 2:20, Matthew 10:39.

(2) John 14:2-4.

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – God’s Ways are Everlasting

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They have dealt faithlessly with the Lord.  Hosea 5:7

Believer, here is a sad truth! You are the beloved of the Lord, redeemed by blood, called by grace, preserved in Christ Jesus, accepted in the Beloved, on your way to heaven, and yet you “have dealt faithlessly” with God, your best friend; faithlessly with Jesus, to whom you belong; faithlessly with the Holy Spirit, by whom you have been born again to life eternal! How faithless you have been in the matter of vows and promises. Do you remember your love in the early days, that happy time, the springtime of your spiritual life? How closely you held to your Master then, saying, “He will never charge me with indifference; my feet will never grow slow in the way of His service; I will not allow my heart to wander after other loves; in Him is blessing I could ever enjoy. I give up everything for my Lord Jesus’ sake.” Has it been so? Sadly if conscience speaks, it will say, “He who promised so much has performed so little. Prayer has frequently been slurred—it has been short but not sweet, brief but not fervent.

Communion with Christ has been forgotten. Instead of a heavenly mind, there have been earthly preoccupations, foolish vanities, and evil thoughts. Instead of service, there has been disobedience, instead of fervency lukewarmness, instead of patience petulance, instead of faith self-reliance; and as a soldier of the cross there has been cowardice, disobedience, and desertion, to a very shameful degree.”

“They have dealt faithlessly.” Faithless to Jesus! What words shall be used in denouncing this? Words are cheap: Let our penitent thoughts condemn the sin that is so surely in us. Faithless to Your sacrifice, O Jesus! Forgive us, and let us not sin again! How shameful to be faithless to Him who never forgets us, but who to this day stands with our names engraven on His breastplate before the eternal throne.

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The family reading plan for December 12, 2014 * Haggai 1 * John 2

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

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The blood

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“When I see the blood, I will pass over you.” Exodus 12:13

Suggested Further Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:12-22

The blood of Jesus Christ is blood that has been accepted. Christ died—he was buried; but neither heaven nor earth could tell whether God had accepted the ransom. There was wanted God’s seal upon the great Magna Carta of man’s salvation, and that seal was put, in that hour when God summoned the angel, and commanded him to descend from heaven and roll away the stone. Christ was put in the prison house of the grave, as a hostage for his people. Until God had signed the warrant for acquittal of all his people, Christ must abide in the bonds of death. He did not attempt to break his prison; he did not come out illegally, by wrenching down the bars of his dungeon; he waited: he folded up the napkin, laying it by itself: he laid the grave-clothes in a separate place; he waited, waited patiently, and at last down from the skies, like the flash of a meteor, the angel descended, touched the stone and rolled it away; and when Christ came out, rising from the dead in the glory of his Father’s power, then was the seal put upon the great charter of our redemption. The blood was accepted, and sin was forgiven. And now, soul, it is not possible for God to reject you, if you come this day to him, pleading the blood of Christ. God cannot—and here we speak with reverence too—the everlasting God cannot reject a sinner who pleads the blood of Christ: for if he did so, it would be to deny himself, and to contradict all his former acts. He has accepted blood, and he will accept it.

For meditation: Are you still stuck at the point of asking “What proves the resurrection”? Or have you advanced to consider what the resurrection proves (Romans 4:25; Acts 17:31)?

Sermon no. 228

12 December (1858)

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – A More Excellent Name

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“He has inherited a more excellent name than they. For to which of the angels did He ever say, ‘Thou art My Son, today I have begotten Thee’? And again, ‘I will be a Father to Him, and He shall be a Son to Me’?” (Heb. 1:4-5).

Jesus is better than the angels because Christ was more than a messenger—He was a Son.

In our culture, the names we pick for our children don’t have much connection with the child’s character. But in the Bible, God chose specific names that related to some character quality of the individuals who bore them.

The writer of Hebrews was well aware of that when He asked this rhetorical question: “To which of the angels did [God] ever say, ‘Thou art My Son, today I have begotten Thee’? and again, ‘I will be a Father to Him, and He shall be a Son to Me’?” quoting Psalm 2:7 and 2 Samuel 7:14. Of course, the answer is no angel.

The title Son refers to Jesus Christ in His incarnation. Though His sonship was anticipated in the Old Testament (Prov. 30:4), He did not become a Son until He was begotten into time. Prior to that He was eternal God with God. Presenting Jesus as the Son is God’s analogy to help us understand the relationship between the First and Second Persons of the Trinity.

Christ became a Son in two different ways. First, He was not a Son until He came into the world through the virgin birth (Luke 1:35; 3:22). But second, His sonship came to full bloom in His resurrection (Rom. 1:3-4).

The Old Testament prophesied that Christ would come as a Son. In the New Testament He came as a Son in His virgin birth and was declared to be the Son by His resurrection from the dead. Don’t ever get trapped into the heresy of those who claim that Jesus Christ is eternally subservient to God. For a temporary period of time, He set aside what was rightfully His and humbled Himself to become a Son for our sakes.

Suggestion for Prayer

  • Thank God for His amazing plan to redeem man through the incarnation of the Second Person of the Trinity.
  • Praise Him that He became Man to redeem you.

For Further Study

Read Acts 13:33 and Romans 1:3-4 noting the reason that Christ can be considered God’s Son.

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Enter His Rest

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And He raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together [giving us joint seating with Him] in the heavenly sphere [by virtue of our being] in Christ Jesus.  —Ephesians 2:6

There are many places in the Bible where Jesus, after the Resurrection, is described as being seated. We might think standing would be more powerful. But being seated has special significance.

Under the Law, when a priest entered the Holy of Holies to make sacrifices for the people’s sins, he could not sit. He had to keep moving and working the entire time. If the bells on his robe stopped ringing, that meant that he had done something wrong and had fallen over dead.

That is why it is so awesome that Jesus ascended into heaven and sat down as our high priest. He entered the rest of God. As joint heirs with Christ, we can sit too. We no longer have to work and strive to atone for our sins. Choose to rest in His presence tonight.

 

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – A Place of Rest

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“So there is a full complete rest still waiting for the people of God. Christ has already entered there. He is resting from His work, just as God did after the creation. Let us do our best to go into that place of rest, too, being careful not to disobey God as the children of Israel did, thus failing to get in” (Hebrews 4:9-11).

A Christian leader was asked: “How do you handle the incredible pressure of your schedule – speaking, writing, giving leadership to a great movement that touches the lives of millions of people around the world? How do you do it? You must carry a tremendous load!”

The inquirer was surprised at the response. “No, quite honestly I don’t carry the load. I’m not under any pressure. I made a great discovery, probably the greatest discovery that a Christian can make. In the Christian life there is a place of rest which one enters by faith and obedience. No matter how great the pressure, or how terrible the testing, the supernatural resources of God sustain, empower, bless and encourage us and our Lord carries the load and fights for us.”

Though few Christians ever enter into this rest, it is available to all believers. When the Israelites were on their way to the promised land, God had already prepared the hearts of the inhabitants, filling them with fear. There is reason to believe that they would have capitulated readily. But when the twelve spies returned after forty days of checking out the land, ten of them reported, “There are giants in the land, and we felt like grasshoppers in their sight.” Only Joshua and Caleb said, “Let’s go in and take the land. God has withdrawn His blessing from the people and He will fight for us.”

But three million Israelites agreed with the majority report, and as a result, wandered in the wilderness for forty years. Why did it take so long for them to enter the land God had already given them? Because, as recorded in verse 2, they failed to mix the promises of God with faith.

Why does the average Christian not enter into a place of rest with God – that supernatural life which produces an abundance of fruit? Because he fails to mix the promises of God with faith. That is what this book, Promises, is all about – to remind us daily of our heritage as children of God and to show us how we can draw upon the mighty, inexhaustible resources of deity to live the supernatural life. Are you experiencing the life of the Spirit? Have you entered into God’s rest? If not, you can begin to do so now.

Bible Reading: 2 Thessalonians 1:3-12

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: As an act of faith and obedience, I will enter that place of rest and I will encourage every believer with whom I have contact today to join me in the adventure.

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; G.C. – Becoming

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If the adage “you are what you eat” is true, why don’t salad eaters have lettuce for hair or meat eaters have bacon for brains? The reality is a little more complicated. Modern psychology calls it “change blindness” – the tendency of people not to see small changes over time. A salad eater may indeed wake up one day to find a slimmer waistline, and the bacon eater may notice a slight heart palpation after that same time. The change happened, but the process wasn’t really noticed.

They went after false idols and became false.

II Kings 17:15

In the Bible, the ancient Israelite nation was crumbling under persecution after God’s people had given up their faith and began to follow pagan practices. You might think after they had seen the Lord miraculously defeat a mighty Pharaoh and deliver them from slavery, they would never forget their powerful God; but that does not account for change blindness. Life was hard for the Israelites, living among people that did not acknowledge their God. Instead of challenging the situation as the Lord had instructed, they stayed silent. Slowly, over time, they became just like their enemies.

Today, pray for faithful believers in the nation to stay strong, standing for God’s purposes. Have faith that, over time, America will become what you pray for.

Recommended Reading: Philippians 3:8-21

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Our Backup Plan

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Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

—Jude 1:21

When police officers are in trouble, what do they do? They call for backup. That is what believers need to do as well. When we are being hassled or tempted, we need to call for backup. We are to stand strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

James 4:7 says, “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” Notice it doesn’t say that we are to submit to God and carry on extended conversations with the Devil. We want to keep our distance from the enemy, being careful never to yield to his suggestions.

Disobedient and persistent waywardness provides the Enemy a foothold from which he can attack and influence the Christian. So flee temptation and don’t leave a forwarding address. Keep your distance from the things that could drag you down.

We must learn from the example of the Israelites who, in spite of their privileges and exposure to miracles, did not keep themselves in the love of God. As a result, they faced judgment.

We must learn from the example of the fallen angels who, even though they once worshiped God in heaven, they rebelled against Him and became demons in hell.

We must learn from the example of the people living in Sodom and Gomorrah who, in spite of the fact that they were exposed to the preaching and ministry of Abraham, Lot, and even Melchizedek, they rebelled against God.

These all failed to keep themselves in the love of God. So let’s make sure we are taking every step to do that.

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Too Busy to Notice

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One’s imagination is kindled thinking about the conversation of the innkeeper and his family. Did anyone mention the arrival of the young couple the night before? Did anyone ask about the pregnancy of the girl on the donkey? The innkeeper and his family were so busy. The day was upon them. The day’s bread had to be made. The morning’s chores had to be done. There was too much to do to imagine that the impossible had occurred. God had entered the world as a baby.

Meanwhile the city hummed. Merchants were unaware that God had visited their planet. The innkeeper would never believe that he’d just sent God into the cold. Those who missed His Majesty’s arrival—missed it not because of evil acts or malice; no, they missed it simply because they weren’t looking. Not much has changed in the last two thousand years, has it?

From In the Manger

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – A Constant Friend

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Proverbs 6:6

Isn’t it funny what God can use to teach us the most fundamental things? The book of Proverbs tells us that if we want to be wise, we should look at a tiny ant! If we can learn wisdom from the way ants operate, where else might we find some key lessons?

Let me share an example from my own life. For years and years, I had a dog—a German schnauzer whose name was Rommel. Every afternoon as I pulled my car into the driveway, there came Rommel to greet me. Many times, he would seem to stand at attention at the top of the drive, as if he were saying, “Welcome home, sir. Everything is under control here!”

Now, sometimes I had to correct Rommel for something he had done or for the occasional accident around the house. However, no matter what I did—whether it was disciplining my dog or not giving him enough attention from time to time—he never seemed to love me any less. Rommel was always happy to see me, and he always wanted to be with me.

One day while I was playing with my pet, the Lord impressed a truth upon my heart. I looked at that dog and said, “Rommel, no matter what I do, you always love me. I’d like to be that kind of friend.”

This realization taught me something about Jesus. He never changes and His love never waivers, no matter what I do or how I treat Him. He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. And His love is always constant. If a dog can exemplify this simple truth, we should aim for nothing less.

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Snake In A Box

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Isaiah 11:1-9

The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD. —Isaiah 11:9

At a nature center, I watched my friend’s rosy-cheeked toddler pat the side of a large glass box. Inside the box, a bull snake named Billy slithered slowly, eyeing the little girl. Billy’s body was as thick as my forearm and he sported brown and yellow markings. Although I knew Billy could not escape from his container, seeing a menacing-looking creature so close to a small child made me shudder.

The Bible speaks of a time in the future when fierce animals will fail to threaten each other or human beings. “The wolf . . . shall dwell with the lamb” and “the nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole” (Isa. 11:6,8). All the inhabitants of the world will experience total harmony and peace.

The Lord will establish this safe environment when He restores the world with His wisdom, might, and knowledge. At that time, He will judge the world with righteousness and justice (11:4). And everyone will acknowledge His greatness: “The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD” (11:9).

We live in a broken world. Unfairness and discord, fear and pain are a very real part of our daily lives. But one day God will change everything, and “the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings” (Mal. 4:2). Then Jesus will rule the world in righteousness. —Jennifer Benson Schuldt

Be still, my soul: the hour is hast’ning on

When we shall be forever with the Lord.

When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,

Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored. —von Schlegel

Leave final justice in the hands of a just God.

Bible in a year: Hosea 5-8; Revelation 2

Insight

The future and everlasting kingdom of God will be one of peace and harmony. Many of the prophets looked forward to this day with great anticipation. In today’s passage, Isaiah describes this kingdom by picturing animals that would normally prey on each other at peace together. This will be a time of peace because the Messiah will rule (v.9).

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – God at Terminal Five

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I wrote one of the last sections of the book Why Suffering? on a plane flight from London to New York.(1) As I came through security at Heathrow Airport, I had about an hour until my departure, and I had it in mind to find a quiet spot and make a start on the writing I had planned.

As I began to walk toward the departure gates, a small sign for the “Multi-Faith Prayer Room” caught my eye, and instantaneously—though I have never before had an urge to visit an airport prayer room—I felt this conviction that there was someone in that room whom I was supposed to talk with. It was as if someone had just told me, “There is someone waiting to speak with you there,” even though I had not audibly heard those words.

d an about-face and walked a good distance away from my departure gate to the arrivals terminal where the prayer room was located. When I walked in, there was one man in the room, sitting in a corner on the floor. He appeared to be about my age. When he saw me looking around the prayer room, he asked, “Are you religious?” We began speaking about what it means to be religious, and he soon shared with me that he was going through the worst suffering of his life.

Mohammed fought back tears as he shared about what no one would ever want to go through. He expressed that he never talks about such things with anyone, but that he just needed to get it out. He told me that he used to pray five times a day, but that now the suffering is too much; he opens his mouth to pray and nothing comes out. Finally, Mohammed challenged me, “If God exists, why is there so much suffering? And where is he amidst it all?”

Now I understood why we were supposed to meet. I told Mohammed that the one person of whom he finally asked “Why suffering?” was currently writing a book by that very title, and in fact was walking in the opposite direction toward the departure gates when God turned him around and led him to this specific room to share that God does care and that he is present.

Sometimes God is most present when our suffering can make God seem most absent. Sometimes when we are in the fog and are unable to see much on our own, we need people by our side to show us where they see God in our lives. Sometimes we mistake God’s respectfulness for absence. Understandably there are times when we want God to be more obvious. But God desires to reveal himself clearly to those who desire him, without revealing himself forcibly to those who do not. God wants us to follow him not because he is overpowering, but because we trust him.

Mohammed was in a place where he couldn’t see God. But God was with him. Mohammed was in a place of tough questions. God crossed his path with someone who could appreciate those questions. Mohammed was in a place where he couldn’t pray. God provided someone to pray with him.

As we parted, Mohammed and I shared an extended hug that spoke deep understanding, deep appreciation, and deep friendship. We had spoken and prayed together at length about what it is to believe in, and to love, and to live with Jesus—the God who knows suffering himself, and who is never absent in our suffering. “He is not far from any one of us” (Acts 17:27), even if sometimes we need others to step with us in the direction that leads to relationship with him.

Vince Vitale is a member of the speaking team at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Oxford, England.

(1) For more, see Why Suffering?: Finding Meaning and Comfort When Life Doesn’t Make Sense, co-authored with Ravi Zacharias. Vince Vitale wrote his PhD on the problem of suffering. He now teaches at Wycliffe Hall of Oxford University and is Senior Tutor at The Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics.

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – Servants of the Lord

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You are serving the Lord Christ.  Colossians 3:24

To what special group was this word spoken? To kings who proudly boast a divine right? No! Too often they serve themselves or Satan and forget God who patiently permits them to wear their majestic crowns for a little while. Is the apostle speaking to those so-called “right reverend fathers in God,” the bishops or “the venerable archdeacons”? No; in fact, Paul knew nothing of these man-made titles. This word was not spoken even to pastors and teachers or to the wealthy and highly regarded among believers, but to servants and to slaves.

Among the toiling multitudes—the journeymen, the day laborers, the domestic servants, the drudges of the kitchen—the apostle found, as we still find, some of the Lord’s chosen, and he says to them, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” This saying grants significance to the weary routine of earthly employments and sheds a halo around the most humble occupations.

To wash feet may be servile, but to wash His feet is royal work. To untie sandals is poor employment, but to unloose the Master’s shoe is a princely privilege. The shop, the barn, the kitchen, and the workbench become temples when men and women do all to the glory of God! Then divine service does not take place for a few hours and in a few places, but all life becomes holiness to the Lord, and every place and thing as consecrated as the tabernacle and its contents.

Teach me, my God and King, in all things Thee to see;

And what I do in anything to do it as to Thee.

All may of Thee partake, nothing can be so mean,

Which with this tincture, for Thy sake, will not grow bright and clean.

A servant with this clause makes drudgery divine;

Who sweeps a room, as for Thy laws, makes that and the action fine.

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The family reading plan for December 11, 2014 * Zephaniah 3 * John 1

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

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The Minister’s farewell

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“Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.” Acts 20:26-27

Suggested Further Reading: Titus 2:7-15

I have seen the young believer, just saved from sin, happy in his early Christian career, and walking humbly with his God. But evil has crept in, disguised in the mantle of truth. The finger of partial blindness was laid upon his eyes, and only one doctrine could be seen. Sovereignty was seen, but not responsibility. The minister once beloved was hated; he who had been honest to preach God’s word, was accounted as the offscouring of all things. And what became the effect? The very reverse of good and gracious. Bigotry replaced love; bitterness lived where once there had been a loveliness of character. I could point you to innumerable instances where harping upon any one particular doctrine, has driven men to excess of bigotry and bitterness. And when a man has once come there, he is ready enough for sin of any kind to which the devil may please to tempt him. There is a necessity that the whole gospel should be preached, or else the spirits, even of Christians, will become marred and maimed. I have known men diligent for Christ, labouring to win souls with both hands; and suddenly they have espoused one particular doctrine and not the whole truth and they have subsided into lethargy. On the other hand where men have only taken the practical side of truth, and left out the doctrinal, too many professors have run over into legality; have talked as if they were to be saved by works, and have almost forgotten that grace by which they were called. They are like the Galatians, they have been bewitched by what they have heard. The believer in Christ, if he is to be kept pure, simple, holy, charitable, Christ-like, is only to be kept so by a preaching of the whole truth as it is in Jesus.

For meditation: Doctrine should lead to practice; practice should spring from doctrine (Romans 12:1; Ephesians 4:1). Do you seek to hear and apply the whole counsel of God in your life (James 1:22)?

note: This was Spurgeon’s farewell sermon at the Royal Surrey Gardens Music Hall.

Sermon no. 289

11 December (1859)

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Christ Is Superior to Angels

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“Having become . . . much better than the angels” (Heb. 1:4).

Through a deft use of the Old Testament, the writer proves that Christ is the mediator of a greater covenant.

Man is a wonderful and amazing creation—higher than plants, animals, and any other material creation in this world. But there are created beings even higher than man—angels.

Hebrews 2:9 shows this to be the case because when Jesus became a man, He was “made for a little while lower than the angels.” After the fall of the rebellious angels under Lucifer, the angels in heaven were no longer subject to sin. These angels are holy, powerful, and wise. They are special beings created by God before He created man.

The Jewish people understood the exalted position of angels because they knew that the Old Covenant was brought to men and maintained by angelic mediation. Galatians 3:19 says, “Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed should come to whom the promise had been made.”

Because of this high regard for angels by his readers, the writer of Hebrews was faced with a problem. If he was to show that Christ was the mediator of a better covenant, he would have to prove that Christ is better than angels. To do so, he used seven Old Testament passages to verify his claim.

If he had tried to prove from Christian writings that Christ is a better mediator, his unbelieving Jewish readers would have said, “We don’t accept these writings as being from God.” So in effect he wisely replies, “Open up your own Scriptures and I’ll prove my claim from them.” It results in a powerful and irresistible argument.

For the next several days, we’ll see in what ways Christ is superior to angels and how He could mediate a better covenant for us.

Suggestion for Prayer; Because much of our understanding of the New Testament is based on the writings of the Old Testament, thank God for how He has brought His complete Word to us intact throughout the centuries.

For Further Study; Read Galatians 3:8, Romans 9:15, and Matthew 4:4.

  • What Old Testament verses to those passages quote?
  • What truth does each of them verify?
Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Start Something

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[Let your] love be sincere (a real thing); hate what is evil [loathe all ungodliness, turn in horror from wickedness], but hold fast to that which is good. Love one another with brotherly affection [as members of one family], giving precedence and showing honor to one another. Never lag in zeal and in earnest endeavor; be aglow and burning with the Spirit, serving the Lord. —Romans 12:9–11

If all of us started having a godly attitude, it would catch hold and spread like a virus. Wouldn’t it be great if we could spread a good virus?

Imagine the whispers: “Have you heard? There’s something wonderful going around. Have you caught it? It is running rampant all over the place. Everywhere you look, people have a new attitude!”

Let’s start something today! Let’s decide to think like Christ. Let’s decide to love everyone we meet today, and pass the word so that everybody catches on to it.

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Teach You Much

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“But when the Father sends the Comforter instead of Me – and by the Comforter I mean the Holy Spirit – He will teach you much, as well as remind you of everything I myself have told you” (John 14:26).

Some years ago, at one of our week-long Lay Institutes for Evangelism, attended by more than 4,000 trainees, I gave a message on how to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

Afterward, a missionary who had just retired after 20 years of service in Africa came to see me. He was very excited as he came to share how, during that meeting, he had finally found what he had sought throughout his entire Christian life.

“Today, as you spoke,” he said, “I was filled with the Spirit. For 20 years I have tried to serve God on the mission field, but I have served Him in the energy of the flesh and have had very little results. Now, though I have retired and returned to America, I want to go back to Africa.

“This time, I want to concentrate on working just with missionaries, because I know from experience that many of them are still searching for what I have sought all these years. The most important message I can take to them is how they can be filled with the Holy Spirit by faith.

“I want to teach them what you taught me so that they, in turn, will be able to teach the Africans how they too can be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Dr. J. Edwin Orr, a leading authority on spiritual revival, describes the Holy Spirit as “the Commander-in-Chief of the Army of Christ. He is the Lord of the harvest, supreme in revival, evangelism and missionary endeavor.”

“Without His consent, plans are bound to fail. It behooves us as Christians to fit our tactical operations into the plan of His strategy, which is the reviving of the church and the evangelization of the world.”

Bible Reading: John 14:13-17

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: I will look to God’s indwelling Holy Spirit for the spiritual lessons I need to learn today and claim His power to serve the Lord Jesus Christ supernaturally.

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; C.P.- Love Preoccupation

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Peter had a vision that seemed contrary to God’s Word itself. When a spread of potential detestable foods was set before him and he heard a voice, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat,” Peter’s revulsion was so stark he argued with God. “By no means, Lord; for nothing common or unclean has ever entered my mouth.” The Lord replied, “What God has made clean, do not call common.” (Acts 11:7-9) Peter was soon to find out that this wasn’t all about food, but people.

He exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose.

Acts 11:23

God made it clear in the following days that His salvation was not only intended for the Jewish people, but for everyone. God’s purpose is to love people and unite with them so that, as Jesus prayed, “the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” (John 17:26)

This holiday season, express your thanks for God’s loving gift of salvation in Christ. Remember that love is greater than food, gifts and all those details that can preoccupy you this time of the year. Pray, too, for the nation’s citizens and leaders to develop hearts that love God and love others.

Recommended Reading: John 17:20-26

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – A Vision of Heaven  

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God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. —Revelation 21:4

Have you ever tried to explain something to someone and couldn’t quite find the words? Have you ever tried to describe something complex to a child? For God to describe heaven to us in a way we could understand would be like trying to describe the beauty of Hawaii to a three-month-old child. We’re not able to comprehend, in our finite human understanding, all the infinite glories of heaven.

In fact, the apostle Paul, who had the unique experience of dying and actually going to heaven, said that he heard things so astounding that they couldn’t be told (see 2 Corinthians 12:2-4). Paul was essentially saying that he couldn’t put his experience into words.

Heaven is beyond our comprehension. While there aren’t many verses in the Bible that tell us about it, Scripture does tell us a few things. It says that in heaven there will be no night. There will be no fear. There will be no suffering or death. All of the pain and disabilities that we face in this life will be gone in heaven.

But the glory of heaven is even more than having new bodies—and even more than the absence of darkness and sorrow and pain and death. The fact that Jesus Christ will be there is better than all the beauty and all the answers to all our questions.

Your eyes will see the king in his beauty and view a land that stretches afar. (Isaiah 33:17, NIV)

Today’s devotional is an excerpt from Every Day with Jesus by Greg Laurie, 2013