|
Post by Les on Aug 18, 2021 20:28:01 GMT
God Knows Your Story By: Cindy Hess Kasper
Click here for the Audio Message
Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Psalm 139:23
Today's Scripture & Insight: Psalm 139:1–6, 23–24 As I drove home after lunch with my best friend, I thanked God out loud for her. She knows me and loves me in spite of things I don’t love about myself. She’s one of a small circle of people who accept me as I am—my quirks, habits, and screw-ups. Still, there are parts of my story I resist sharing even with her and others that I love—times where I’ve clearly not been the hero, times I’ve been judgmental or unkind or unloving.
But God does know my whole story. He’s the One I can freely talk to even if I’m reluctant to talk with others.
The familiar words of Psalm 139 describe the intimacy we enjoy with our Sovereign King. He knows us completely! (v. 1). He’s “familiar with all [our] ways” (v. 3). He invites us to come to Him with our confusion, our anxious thoughts, and our struggles with temptation. When we’re willing to yield completely to Him, He reaches out to restore and rewrite the parts of our story that make us sad because we’ve wandered from Him.
God knows us better than anyone else ever can, and still . . . He loves us! When we daily surrender ourselves to Him and seek to know Him more fully, He can change our story for His glory. He’s the Author who’s continuing to write it.
Reflect & Pray What assurance do you have that God will always love you unconditionally? How can you make yielding to Him a daily practice?
Precious Father, thank You for loving me as Your child despite the times I’ve disappointed You. Help me to yield all of myself to You in full assurance that You’re faithfully walking beside me.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT Psalm 139 echoes three different types of psalms: praise, lament, and wisdom. However, one key theme throughout is indicated by verses at the beginning and end of the psalm: God searches us, and He knows us (vv. 1, 23). The word used for “search” is a term that could be used in a legal case when someone is cross-examined; in other words, it involves God’s diligent probing. The word used for “know” means to know someone intimately and personally. It’s a word that’s sometimes used to refer to sexual relations. Used here, it shows that God knows the depths of our very being, which is pointed out by the psalmist who notes that God knit us together (v. 13). When the psalmist invites God to search his heart and “anxious thoughts” (v. 23), however, he’s vulnerably asking Him to know him on an even deeper level.
Julie Schwab
Psalm 139:1-6 King James Version 139 O lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.
2 Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
3 Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether.
5 Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
Psalm 139:23-24 King James Version 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 20, 2021 19:57:52 GMT
Peace in the Chaos By: Julie Schwab
Click here for the Audio Message
[Our] help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. Psalm 121:2
Today's Scripture & Insight: Psalm 121 Something that sounded like firecrackers roused Joanne from sleep. Glass shattered. Wishing she didn’t live alone, she got up to see what was going on. The dark streets were empty and the house seemed to be okay—then she saw the broken mirror.
Investigators found a bullet only a half-inch from the gas line. If it had struck the line, she probably wouldn’t have made it out alive. Later they discovered it was a stray bullet from nearby apartments, but Joanne was afraid to be at home. She prayed for peace, and once the glass was cleaned up, her heart calmed.
Psalm 121 is a reminder for us to look to God in times of trouble. Here, we see that we can have peace and calm because our “help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (v. 2). The God who created the universe helps and watches over us (v. 3)—even while we sleep—but He Himself never sleeps (v. 4). He watches over us day and night (v. 6), “both now and forevermore” (v. 8).
No matter what kind of situations we find ourselves in, God sees. And He’s waiting for us to turn to Him. When we do, our circumstances may not always change, but He’s promised His peace in the midst of it all.
Reflect & Pray When have you experienced God’s peace in a troubling situation? How have you seen Him help others?
Loving God, thank You for Your peace. Please continue to calm my heart in the areas of my life that feel chaotic.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT Three times a year, all male Israelites were to come to the temple in Jerusalem to observe the three annual national feasts (Deuteronomy 16:16): Passover (Unleavened Bread), Pentecost (Weeks), and Tabernacles. As the pilgrims walked the mountain paths to Jerusalem, they sang from an anthology of fifteen songs known as the “Pilgrim Psalms,” characteristically titled “A song of ascents” in the superscription.
Psalm 121, known as “The Traveler’s Psalm,” is a prayer for journeying mercies, addressing safety and security concerns as we journey through life. This psalm is dominated by the Hebrew verb šāmar, rendered watches/watch (vv. 3, 4, 5, 7, 8) or keep (v. 7), meaning “to preserve, to guard, to watch carefully over.” Even as the psalmist speaks of unknown dangers, he confidently affirms that God—our Helper (vv. 1–3) and Keeper (vv. 4–8)—will continually watch over us.
K. T. Sim
Psalm 121 King James Version 121 I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
2 My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.
3 He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
4 Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
6 The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
8 The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 21, 2021 20:46:45 GMT
Carried Through the Storm By: Alyson Kieda
Click here for the Audio Message
He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed.
Psalm 107:29 COMMENT JOURNAL SHARE Today's Scripture & Insight:
Psalm 107:1–3, 23–32 During Scottish missionary Alexander Duff’s first voyage to India in 1830, he was shipwrecked in a storm off the coast of South Africa. He and his fellow passengers made it to a small, desolate island; and a short time later, one of the crew found a copy of a Bible belonging to Duff washed ashore on the beach. When the book dried, Duff read Psalm 107 to his fellow survivors, and they took courage. Finally, after a rescue and yet another shipwreck, Duff arrived in India.
Psalm 107 lists some of the ways God delivered the Israelites. Duff and his shipmates no doubt identified with and took comfort in the words: “He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven” (vv. 29–30). And, like the Israelites, they too “[gave] thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind” (v. 31).
We see a parallel to Psalm 107:28–30 in the New Testament (Matthew 8:23–27; Mark 4:35–41). Jesus and His disciples were in a boat at sea when a violent storm began. His disciples cried out in fear, and Jesus—God in flesh—calmed the sea. We too can take courage! Our powerful God and Savior hears and responds to our cries and comforts us in the midst of our storms.
Reflect & Pray When have you cried out to God in a “storm”? What was the result?
Thank You, God, for not leaving me to face the storms on my own. I need You!
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT The Hebrew word yâm, translated “sea” in Psalm 107:23, occurs nearly four hundred times in the Old Testament. The root word from which yâm is derived means “to roar.” As is the case in Psalm 107:23, on many occasions the word is used of bodies of water—seas, rivers, lakes, etc. Biblical uses of the word sea, however, also aptly picture chaos—roaring, troublesome, untamed waters (see Psalm 46:2–3). Wycliffe Bible Encyclopedia comments: “To the land-loving Hebrews the sea was a dangerous and stormy place, and it furnished an apt simile for the troubled restless soul of the sinner (Isaiah 57:20) and for the rebellious, seething nations of the world (Daniel 7:2; Matthew 13:47; Revelation 13:1).” With such an understanding, some Bible scholars interpret the phrase “there was no longer any sea” in Revelation 21:1 to mean the absence of “restless godlessness.”
Arthur Jackson
Psalm 107:1-3 King James Version 107 O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;
3 And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.
Psalm 107:23-32 King James Version 23 They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters;
24 These see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep.
25 For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.
26 They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end.
28 Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses.
29 He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
30 Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.
31 Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!
32 Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 22, 2021 20:36:28 GMT
Not Seeking Revenge By: Sheridan Voysey
Click here for the Audio Message
[Saul said], “The Lord delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me.” 1 Samuel 24:18
Today's Scripture & Insight: 1 Samuel 24:1–4, 14–18 The farmer climbed into his truck and began his morning inspection of the crops. On reaching the farthest edge of the property, his blood began to boil. Someone had used the farm’s seclusion to illegally dump their trash—again.
As he filled the truck with the bags of food scraps, the farmer found an envelope. On it was printed the offender’s address. Here was an opportunity too good to ignore. That night he drove to the offender’s house and filled his garden with not just the dumped trash but his own!
Revenge is sweet, some say, but is it right? In 1 Samuel 24, David and his men were hiding in a cave to escape a murderous King Saul. When Saul wandered into the same cave to relieve himself, David’s men saw a too-good-to-ignore opportunity for David to get revenge (vv. 3–4). But David went against this desire to get even. “The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master,” he said (v. 6). When Saul discovered that David chose to spare his life, he was incredulous. “You are more righteous than I,” he exclaimed (vv. 17–18).
As we or our loved ones face injustice, opportunities to take revenge on offenders may well come. Will we give in to these desires, as the farmer did, or go against them, like David? Will we choose righteousness over revenge?
Reflect & Pray When have you most felt like getting even with someone? How can David’s response guide you as you seek justice for yourself and others?
Jesus, lover of our enemies, may I seek justice Your way.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT Threatened by David’s successes (1 Samuel 18:5–9, 30) and resentful of God’s blessings upon him, Saul tried to kill him (vv. 10–12; 19:2, 9–11). Pursued by Saul, David escaped to the mountainous stronghold of En Gedi (23:26–29). In this episode, David had the opportunity to kill Saul, but refrained because Saul was “the Lord’s anointed” (24:6). Later, David had yet another opportunity, but he chose not to for the same reason. Since Saul was “the Lord’s anointed,” only God Himself had the authority to take his life (26:9–11). David wouldn’t take revenge, but left room for God’s judgment (see Romans 12:19).
K. T. Sim
1 Samuel 24:1-4 King James Version 24 And it came to pass, when Saul was returned from following the Philistines, that it was told him, saying, Behold, David is in the wilderness of Engedi.
2 Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats.
3 And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave; and Saul went in to cover his feet: and David and his men remained in the sides of the cave.
4 And the men of David said unto him, Behold the day of which the Lord said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul's robe privily.
1 Samuel 24:14-18 King James Version 14 After whom is the king of Israel come out? after whom dost thou pursue? after a dead dog, after a flea.
15 The Lord therefore be judge, and judge between me and thee, and see, and plead my cause, and deliver me out of thine hand.
16 And it came to pass, when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice, and wept.
17 And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil.
18 And thou hast shewed this day how that thou hast dealt well with me: forasmuch as when the Lord had delivered me into thine hand, thou killedst me not.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 23, 2021 20:42:36 GMT
Loving Your Enemy By: Mike Wittmer
Click here for the Audio Message
You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria. Acts 1:8
Today's Scripture & Insight: Acts 1:1–8 I ducked into a room before she saw me. I was ashamed of hiding, but I didn’t want to deal with her right then—or ever. I longed to tell her off, to put her in her place. Though I'd been annoyed by her past behavior, it’s likely I had irritated her even more!
The Jews and Samaritans also shared a mutually irritating relationship. Being a people of mixed origin and worshiping their own gods, the Samaritans—in the eyes of the Jews—had spoiled the Jewish bloodline and faith, erecting a rival religion on Mount Gerizim (John 4:20). In fact, the Jews so despised Samaritans they would walk the long way around rather than take the direct route through their country.
Jesus revealed a better way. He brought salvation for all people, including Samaritans. So He ventured into the heart of Samaria to bring living water to a sinful woman and her town (vv. 4–42). His last words to His disciples were to follow His example. They must share His good news with everyone, beginning in Jerusalem and dispersing through Samaria until they reached “the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Samaria was more than the next geographical sequence. It was the most painful part of the mission. The disciples had to overcome lifetimes of prejudice to love people they didn’t like.
Does Jesus matter more to us than our grievances? There’s only one way to be sure. Love your “Samaritan.”
Reflect & Pray How can you begin to show love to those who aren’t very loving? When have you been loving to a difficult person and then found them softening?
Father, may the waves of Your love crash over me, producing a torrent that streams to others through me.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT After conquering the Northern Kingdom of Israel, the Assyrians adopted a policy of racial assimilation. They deported the Jews to Assyria and brought in other people groups to repopulate Samaria and marry the remaining Jews still in the land. This new group, the Samaritans, eventually devised their own religion, a hybrid of Judaism and paganism (2 Kings 17:22–41) with a temple of their own on Mount Gerizim (see John 4:20–23), creating deep-seated hostility between the two peoples (Ezra 4:1–3; Luke 9:51–55; John 4:9). In the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, when reaching the Jews was His priority, He told His disciples not to go to the gentile or Samaritan towns to preach (Matthew 10:5–6). Before He ascended into heaven, Jesus specifically commanded His disciples to “be [his] witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
K. T. Sim
Acts 1:1-8 King James Version 1 The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,
2 Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen:
3 To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God:
4 And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.
5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.
6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 24, 2021 20:30:09 GMT
God’s Provision By: Poh Fang Chia
Click here for the Audio Message
See how the flowers of the field grow. . . . Will he not much more clothe you? Matthew 6:28, 30
Today's Scripture & Insight: Genesis 1:11–13, 29–30 We trekked deeper and deeper into the forest, venturing farther and farther away from the village at Yunnan Province, China. After an hour or so, we heard the deafening roar of the water. Quickening our steps, we soon reached a clearing and were greeted by a beautiful view of a curtain of white water cascading over the gray rocks. Spectacular!
Our hiking companions, who lived in the village we had left an hour earlier, decided that we should have a picnic. Great idea, but where was the food? We hadn’t brought any. My friends disappeared into the surrounding forest and returned with an assortment of fruits and vegetables and even some fish. The shuixiangcai looked strange with its small purple flowers, but tasted heavenly!
I was reminded that creation declares God’s extravagant provision. We can see proof of His generosity in “all sorts of seed-bearing plants, and trees with seed-bearing fruit” (Genesis 1:12 nlt). God has made and given us for food “every seed-bearing plant . . . and every tree that has fruit with seed in it” (v. 29).
Do you sometimes find it hard to trust God to meet your needs? Why not take a walk in nature? Let what you see remind you of Jesus’ assuring words: “Do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ . . . Your heavenly Father knows that you need [all these things]” (Matthew 6:31–32).
Reflect & Pray How has God provided for you in the past? How can you continue to lean on His provision in the present?
Loving Father, You’re a generous provider. Help me to trust You to meet my needs.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT In addition to the creation accounts in Genesis 1 and 2, we find several passages in Scripture that portray God as Creator and Provider. Psalm 8 points to God’s hand in creation and His care for humanity: “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?” (vv. 3–4). In Job 38–39, God names many of the creatures and other wonders He’s created and His provision for them. Psalm 104 pictures God stretching “out the heavens like a tent” (v. 2) and declares, “All creatures look to you to give them their food at the proper time” (v. 27). The New Testament describes Jesus as the Creator (John 1:1–3; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Colossians 1:15–17).
Alyson Kieda
Genesis 1:11-13 King James Version 11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.
Genesis 1:29-30 King James Version 29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 26, 2021 19:29:44 GMT
Heeding the Warnings By: Dave Branon
Click here for the Audio Message
Whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven. Matthew 10:33
Today's Scripture & Insight: Matthew 10:1–7, 32–33 When a pickpocket tried to pilfer my property while I was on vacation in another country, it wasn’t a surprise. I’d read warnings about the danger of subway thieves, so I knew what to do to protect my wallet. But I never expected it to happen.
Fortunately, the young man who grabbed my wallet had slippery fingers, so it fell to the floor where I could retrieve it. But the incident reminded me that I should have heeded the warnings.
We don’t like to dwell on warnings because we think they’ll get in the way of enjoying life, but it’s imperative to pay attention to them. For instance, Jesus gave us a clear warning while sending out His disciples to proclaim God’s coming kingdom (Matthew 10:7). He said, “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven” (vv. 32–33).
We have a choice. In love, God provided a Savior and a plan for us to be in His presence for eternity. But if we turn away from God and choose to reject His message of salvation and the real life He offers for both now and forever, we lose out on the opportunity to be with Him.
May we trust in Jesus, the One who chose to save us from being eternally separated from the One who loves and made us.
Reflect & Pray Why is rejecting Jesus such a serious thing? How have you chosen to respond to His call?
Heavenly Father, thank You for providing salvation through Jesus. And thank You for sending warnings to remind me of the importance of putting my faith in Him.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT As with other lists of Jesus’ disciples in the Gospels (Mark 3:16–19; Luke 6:14–16), in Matthew’s account (Matthew 10:1–4), Simon Peter appears first and Judas Iscariot (the betrayer) last. Among these special agents who became the foundation stones for the church (Ephesians 2:20) were Matthew the tax collector (Matthew 10:3) and Simon the Zealot (v. 4). Under normal circumstances, these two wouldn’t likely be part of the same group. The tax collectors were Israelites who were employed by the Roman government to collect taxes from their own countrymen. They had a reputation for extortion and because of their constant contact with gentiles were considered ceremonially unclean. On the other hand, before being called by Jesus, Simon the Zealot (as the term Zealot indicates), was in some way associated with a group of devoted Jewish patriots who were resistant to Roman rule and even resorted to violence. Both were on Jesus’ core team.
Arthur Jackson
Matthew 10:1-7 King James Version 10 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;
3 Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;
4 Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
5 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:
6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Matthew 10:32-33 King James Version 32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 27, 2021 21:03:37 GMT
The Ultimate Healer By: Jennifer Benson Schuldt
Click here for the Audio Message
[Hezekiah] broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made. 2 Kings 18:4
Today's Scripture & Insight: Numbers 21:4–9; 2 Kings 18:4–7 When a medical treatment began to provide relief for a family member’s severe food allergies, I became so excited that I talked about it all the time. I described the intense process and extolled the doctor who had created the program. Finally, some friends commented, “We think God should always get the credit for healing.” Their statement made me pause. Had I taken my eyes off the Ultimate Healer and made the healing into an idol?
The nation of Israel fell into a similar trap when they began to burn incense to a bronze snake which God had used to heal them. They’d been performing this act of worship until Hezekiah identified it as idolatry and “broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made” (2 Kings 18:4).
Several centuries earlier, a group of venomous snakes had invaded the Israelite camp. The snakes bit the people and many died (Numbers 21:6). Although spiritual rebellion had caused the problem, the people cried out to God for help. Showing mercy, He directed Moses to sculpt a bronze snake, fasten it to a pole, and hold it up for everyone to see. When the people looked at it, they were healed (vv. 4–9).
Think of God’s gifts to you. Have any of them become objects of praise instead of evidence of His mercy and grace? Only our holy God—the source of every good gift (James 1:17)—is worthy of worship.
Reflect & Pray How has God shown you His goodness through other people? Why is it so easy to give people credit for what God has done in your life?
Dear God, I worship You as the all-powerful God who hears my prayers. Thank You for sustaining my life and caring for me.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT Second Kings 18:3–7 describes how Hezekiah “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord” by destroying idols. The Israelites had transferred worship from the Creator to something created by worshiping the bronze snake, the symbol of miraculous healing at God’s hand (v. 4). The episode of the golden calf is another blatant example of idolatry (Exodus 32). Romans 1:25 spells it out for us: “They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised.”
Alyson Kieda
Numbers 21:4-9 King James Version 4 And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.
5 And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.
6 And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.
7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
8 And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.
2 Kings 18:4-7 King James Version 4 He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.
5 He trusted in the Lord God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him.
6 For he clave to the Lord, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which the Lord commanded Moses.
7 And the Lord was with him; and he prospered whithersoever he went forth: and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 28, 2021 21:06:39 GMT
A Great Ending By: Xochitl Dixon
Click here for the Audio Message
Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. Revelation 22:12
Today's Scripture & Insight: Revelation 22:12–21 My husband and son surfed television channels looking for a movie to watch and discovered that their favorite movies were already in progress. As they enjoyed watching the final scenes, the search became a game. They managed to find eight of their favorite flicks. Frustrated, I asked why they wouldn’t just choose a movie to watch from the beginning. My husband laughed. “Who doesn’t love a great ending?”
I had to admit I too look forward to the endings of my favorite books or movies. I’ve even skimmed through my Bible and focused on my favorite parts or the stories that seem more palatable and easier to understand. But the Holy Spirit uses all of God’s reliable and life-applicable words to transform us and affirm that His story will end well for believers in Jesus.
Christ declares Himself to be “the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 22:13). He proclaims that His people will inherit eternal life (v. 14) and warns those who dare to add or subtract from “the words of the prophecy of this scroll” (vv. 18–19).
We may not know or understand everything in the Bible, but we do know Jesus is coming again. He’ll keep His word. He’ll demolish sin, right every wrong, make all things new, and reign as our loving King forever. Now, that’s a great ending that leads to our new beginning!
Reflect & Pray How does the certainty of knowing Jesus is coming again help you live for Him today? What excites you the most about Christ’s promised return?
Come, Lord Jesus! Come!
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT Revelation 21–22 speaks of the beginning of our life with Christ in the eternal state. As Jesus ushers in the new heavens and earth, He reminds us that He’s “the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (22:13; see also 21:6). This was the same proclamation John heard at the beginning of his vision (1:8, 17). In revealing Himself as “the First and the Last,” Jesus is saying that He’s God. For God Himself has declared, “I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God” (Isaiah 44:6; see also 41:4; 48:12).
K. T. Sim
Revelation 22:12-21 King James Version 12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 30, 2021 20:55:02 GMT
Mercy and Grace By: James Banks
Click here for the Audio Message
[Josiah] began to seek the God of his father David. 2 Chronicles 34:3
Today's Scripture & Insight: 2 Chronicles 34:1–8 A stately sunflower stood on its own in the center of a lonely stretch of national highway, just a few feet from the fast lane. As I drove past, I wondered how it had grown there with no other sunflowers visible for miles. Only God could create a plant so hardy it could thrive so close to the roadway in the gray gravel lining the median. There it was, thriving, swaying gently in the breeze and cheerfully greeting travelers as they hurried by.
The Old Testament tells the story of a faithful king of Judah who also showed up unexpectedly. His father and grandfather had enthusiastically served other gods; but after Josiah had been in power for eight years, “while he was still young, he began to seek the God of his father David” (2 Chronicles 34:3). He sent workmen to “repair the temple of the Lord” (v. 8), and as they did they discovered the Book of the Law (the first five books of the Old Testament; v. 14). God then inspired Josiah to lead the entire nation of Judah to return to the faith of their ancestors, and they served the Lord “as long as [Josiah] lived” (v. 33).
Our God is the master of unanticipated mercies. He’s able to cause great good to spring up unexpectedly out of the hard gravel of life’s most unfavorable circumstances. Watch Him closely. He may do it again today.
Reflect & Pray What mercies have you seen from God that you never anticipated? How does the thought that He’s able to bring about unexpected good give you hope today?
Heavenly Father, I praise You for never changing. Your mercies are “new every morning!” (Lamentations 3:23). Help me to look forward to what You have for me today.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT Second Chronicles 34–35 build on the account given in 2 Kings 22–23; however, additional details are included in 2 Chronicles. For example, 2 Kings 22 shows Josiah’s actions as primarily taking place during the eighteenth year of his reign, but 2 Chronicles 34 details the breakdown of events between the eighth, twelfth, and eighteenth years. The varying details don’t indicate inaccuracies; rather, they present a more complete picture of the Bible with each book including a different emphasis: 2 Kings focuses on Josiah as a king whereas 2 Chronicles uses his story to present the importance of the Passover.
Julie Schwab
2 Chronicles 34:1-8 King James Version 34 Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem one and thirty years.
2 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of David his father, and declined neither to the right hand, nor to the left.
3 For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the God of David his father: and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images.
4 And they brake down the altars of Baalim in his presence; and the images, that were on high above them, he cut down; and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images, he brake in pieces, and made dust of them, and strowed it upon the graves of them that had sacrificed unto them.
5 And he burnt the bones of the priests upon their altars, and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem.
6 And so did he in the cities of Manasseh, and Ephraim, and Simeon, even unto Naphtali, with their mattocks round about.
7 And when he had broken down the altars and the groves, and had beaten the graven images into powder, and cut down all the idols throughout all the land of Israel, he returned to Jerusalem.
8 Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land, and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah the governor of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz the recorder, to repair the house of the Lord his God.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Aug 31, 2021 20:21:56 GMT
Sharing Jesus By: Amy Boucher Pye
Click here for the Audio Message
Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Isaiah 12:4
Today's Scripture & Insight: Isaiah 12 Shortly after Dwight Moody (1837–99) came to faith in Christ, the evangelist resolved not to let a day pass without sharing God’s good news with at least one person. On busy days, he’d sometimes forget his resolution until late. One night, he was in bed before he remembered. As he stepped outside, he thought, No one will be out in this pouring rain. Just then he saw a man walking down the street. Moody rushed over and asked to stand under his umbrella to avoid the rain. When granted permission, he asked, “Have you any shelter in the time of storm? Could I tell you about Jesus?”
Moody embodied a readiness to share how God saves us from the consequences of our sins. He obeyed God’s instructions to the Israelites to proclaim His name and “make known among the nations what he has done” (Isaiah 12:4). Not only were God’s people called to “proclaim that his name is exalted” (v. 4), but they were also to share how He had “become [their] salvation” (v. 2). Centuries later, our call remains to tell the wonders of Jesus becoming a man, dying on the cross, and rising again.
Perhaps we heard about God’s love when, as Moody did, someone left their comfort zone to talk with us about Jesus. And we too, each in our own way, can let someone know about the One who saves.
Reflect & Pray What has God done in your life that you can share with another? How has He equipped you to present the good news?
Jesus, thank You for setting me free from my sins. Help me to be ready to tell others of Your good news.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT Isaiah 11 speaks of the Messiah who will deliver and save His people. With this deliverance and salvation in view, Isaiah 12 gives us two songs of praise that celebrate God’s grace and mercy (vv. 1–3) and proclaim the greatness and majesty of our Savior (vv. 4–6). Our salvation demands a response of personal praise and proclamation. We thank God for who He is and for what He’s done. And we’re instructed that the story of salvation must be told to the nations (v. 4). We’re called to “go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation” (Mark 16:15). And as we go, we echo the words of hymn writer Ernest Nichol, “We’ve a story to tell to the nations, that shall turn their hearts to the right, a story of truth and mercy, a story of peace and light.”
K. T. Sim
Isaiah 12 King James Version 12 And in that day thou shalt say, O Lord, I will praise thee: though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortedst me.
2 Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.
3 Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.
4 And in that day shall ye say, Praise the Lord, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted.
5 Sing unto the Lord; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth.
6 Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Sept 7, 2021 20:08:14 GMT
Complete in Christ By: Sheridan Voysey
Click here for the Audio Message
So you also are complete through your union with Christ. Colossians 2:10 nlt
Today's Scripture & Insight: Colossians 2:6–15 In a popular film, an actor plays a success-driven sports agent whose marriage begins to crumble. Attempting to win back his wife, Dorothy, he looks into her eyes and says, “You complete me.” It’s a heart-warming message that echoes a tale in Greek philosophy. According to that myth, each of us is a “half” that must find our “other half” to become whole.
The belief that a romantic partner “completes” us is now part of popular culture. But is it true? I talk to many married couples who still feel incomplete because they haven’t been able to have children and others who’ve had kids but feel something else is missing. Ultimately, no human can fully complete us.
The apostle Paul gives another solution. “For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. So you also are complete through your union with Christ” (Colossians 2:9–10 nlt). Jesus doesn’t just forgive us and liberate us, He also completes us by bringing the life of God into our lives (vv. 13–15).
Marriage is good, but it can’t make us whole. Only Jesus can do that. Instead of expecting a person, career, or anything else to complete us, let’s accept God’s invitation to let His fullness fill our lives more and more.
Reflect & Pray How have you sought spiritual fulfillment through people instead of God? How does Jesus’ completing you change your view of marriage and singleness?
Jesus, thank You for making me complete through Your death, resurrection, forgiveness, and restoration.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT The idea of living our lives in Christ is prominent throughout today’s Scripture reading (Colossians 2:6–15). In fact, the words “in him” (“with him”; “in Christ”) appear several times. In verse 6, believers in Jesus are told to “live your lives in him,” indicating that He’s the One we need to imitate, and our identity is found in Him. Verse 7 continues with the idea of being “rooted and built up in him.” The verb rooted is a metaphor for receiving our sustenance from Jesus continually, as a plant takes in its nourishment at the roots. Verses 9–11 each begin with terminology that refers to being “in Christ.” These verses explain why Jesus is central to the forgiveness of our sins, emphasizing His death and resurrection as well as our role in dying with Him (to our sin) and rising with Him.
Julie Schwab
Colossians 2:6-15 King James Version 6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.
8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;
15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Sept 8, 2021 19:53:20 GMT
Send Me By: Francis Neil G. Jalando-on
Click here for the Audio Message
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send?” . . . I said, “Here am I. Send me!” Isaiah 6:8
Today's Scripture & Insight: Isaiah 6:1–8 When Swedish missionary Eric Lund felt called by God to go to Spain to do mission work in the late 1890s, he immediately obeyed. He saw little success there, but persevered in his conviction of God’s calling. One day, he met a Filipino man, Braulio Manikan, and shared the gospel with him. Together, Lund and Manikan translated the Bible into a local Philippine language, and later they started the first Baptist mission station in the Philippines. Many would turn to Jesus—all because Lund, like the prophet Isaiah, responded to God’s call.
In Isaiah 6:8, God asked for a willing person to go to Israel to declare His judgment for the present and hope for the future. Isaiah volunteered boldly: “Here am I. Send me!” He didn’t think he was qualified, for he’d confessed earlier: “I am a man of unclean lips” (v. 5). But he responded willingly because he’d witnessed God’s holiness, recognized his own sinfulness, and received His cleansing (vv. 1–7).
Is God calling you to do something for Him? Are you holding back? If so, remember all God has done through Jesus’ death and resurrection. He’s given us the Holy Spirit to help and guide us (John 14:26; 15:26–27), and He’ll prepare us to answer His call. Like Isaiah, may we respond, “Send me!”
Reflect & Pray Is God calling you to do something for Him? What’s hindering you from responding?
Jesus, thank You for calling and enabling me to serve You. Help me to see this as a privilege and to serve You willingly.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT Isaiah 6:1–13 tells of the call of Isaiah to a long and difficult prophetic ministry (740–685 bc). Isaiah, whose name means “Yahweh saves,” prophesied to the Southern Kingdom of Judah through the reigns of Uzziah and Jotham (both godly kings), Ahaz (one of Judah’s worst kings), and Hezekiah (a king committed to reforms) over some fifty-five years (Isaiah 1:1). He was a contemporary of the prophets Hosea, Amos, and Micah. Assyria was the superpower at this time, threatening to invade Israel and Judah. According to tradition, Isaiah was related to Uzziah, explaining his easy access to the royal courts (7:3; 38:1; 39:3), and he suffered martyrdom when he was sawn in two by King Manasseh (possibly referred to in Hebrews 11:37). Besides this book of prophecies, Isaiah also wrote the biographies of King Uzziah and King Hezekiah (see 2 Chronicles 26:22; 32:32). Both books are no longer in existence.
K. T. Sim
Isaiah 6:1-8 King James Version 6 In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.
2 Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.
3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.
4 And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.
5 Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.
6 Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar:
7 And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.
8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Sept 10, 2021 19:40:43 GMT
Like a Symphony By: Glenn Packiam
Click here for the Audio Message
Make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Philippians 2:2
Today's Scripture & Insight: Philippians 2:1–11 I surprised my wife with concert tickets to listen to a performer she’d always wanted to see. The gifted singer was accompanied by the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, and the setting was the matchless venue at Red Rocks—an open-air amphitheater built between two 300-foot rock formations at more than 6,000 feet above sea level. The orchestra played a number of well-loved classical songs and folk tunes. Their final number was a fresh treatment of the classic hymn “Amazing Grace.” The beautiful, harmonized arrangement took our breath away!
There’s something beautiful about harmony—individual instruments playing together in a way that creates a bigger and more layered sonic landscape. The apostle Paul pointed to the beauty of harmony when he told the Philippians to be “like-minded,” have “the same love,” and be “one in spirit and . . . mind” (Philippians 2:2). He wasn’t asking them to become identical but to embrace the humble attitude and self-giving love of Jesus. The gospel, as Paul well knew and taught, doesn’t erase our distinctions, but it can eliminate our divisions.
It’s also interesting that many scholars believe Paul’s words here (vv. 6–11) are a prelude to an early hymn. Here’s the point: When we allow the Holy Spirit to work through our distinct lives and contexts, making us more like Jesus, together we become a symphony that reverberates with a humble Christlike love.
Reflect & Pray Who could use some encouragement from you today? How could you put the interests of others above your own, just as Jesus did for us?
Dear Jesus, thank You for saving me. May Your Spirit transform me into Your image. In my attitude and actions, help me to take on Your humility and sacrificial love. May it result in a greater unity with other believers in my life.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT When Paul asked readers in Philippi to consider the humility of Jesus (Philippians 2:5–8), he used a word that describes the attitude of those willing to be counted among servants. More importantly, he wanted them to remember that those who live in the spirit of Jesus do so in the awareness that He first humbled Himself for us. It wasn’t a new thought. Long before, the prophet Isaiah had described a mysterious “Servant” as being despised, rejected, and familiar with pain and suffering. Before alluding to this person’s true honor and glory, the prophet went on to anticipate that He’d be held in such low esteem that people would find it hard to even look at Him (Isaiah 53:3). So too now, those who lower themselves for the good of others in the spirit of Jesus express the humility of our Savior who is “in very nature God” (Philippians 2:6).
Mart DeHaan
Philippians 2:1-11 King James Version 2 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies,
2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.
4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.
5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
|
|
|
Post by Les on Sept 11, 2021 20:01:38 GMT
From Wisdom to Joy By: Patricia Raybon
Click here for the Audio Message
[Wisdom] will guide you down delightful paths. Proverbs 3:17 nlt
Today's Scripture & Insight: Proverbs 3:13–18 The phone rang and I picked it up without delay. Calling was the oldest member of our church family—a vibrant, hard-working woman who was nearly one hundred years old. Putting the final touches on her latest book, she asked me some writing questions to help her cross the finish line. As always, however, I soon was asking her questions—about life, work, love, family. Her many lessons from a long life sparkled with wisdom. She told me, “Pace yourself.” And soon we were laughing about times she’d forgotten to do that—her wonderful stories all seasoned with true joy.
Wisdom leads to joy, the Bible teaches. “Joyful is the person who finds wisdom, the one who gains understanding” (Proverbs 3:13 nlt). We find that this path—from wisdom to joy—is a biblical virtue, indeed. “For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy” (Proverbs 2:10 nlt). “God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy to those who please him” (Ecclesiastes 2:26 nlt). Wisdom “will guide you down delightful paths,” adds Proverbs 3:17 (nlt).
Reflecting on the matters of life, author C. S. Lewis declared that “joy is the serious business of heaven.” The path there, however, is paved with wisdom. My church friend, who lived to be 107, would agree. She walked a wise, joyful pace to the King.
Reflect & Pray What paths have you taken in trying to find joy? How can wisdom lead you to joy?
When I might take a rocky road, loving God, please point me back to Your path of wisdom and joy.
Learn more about joy here.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT The book of Proverbs begins, “The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel” (Proverbs 1:1). Solomon is noted throughout the Scriptures as a man of great wisdom. Jesus Himself noted Solomon’s wisdom (Matthew 12:42). Two things, however, need to be understood about this wisdom. First, the wisdom of Solomon wasn’t Solomon’s—it was given to him by God in response to the king’s prayer (1 Kings 3:5–13). James reminds us that this same wisdom is available to all of us and that God will grant our requests (James 1:5). Second, this wisdom can be abandoned—as Solomon clearly did. His life of wisdom became the ultimate example of foolishness as he turned from God to follow idols (1 Kings 11:4). As James 3:13–18 reminds us, the wisdom we choose to live by is foundational to our walk of faith.
Bill Crowder
Proverbs 3:13-18 King James Version 13 Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.
14 For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her.
16 Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour.
17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.
18 She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.
|
|