Passage of the Day: Reference of Today’s Chronological Bible Study: Leviticus, Chapters 24-25 … To study these chapters, go to this link -
Leviticus 25: 23-24 : … [Stewardship] … 23 “‘The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is Mine and you reside in My land as foreigners and strangers. 24 Throughout the land that you hold as a possession, you must provide for the redemption of the land.
My Journal for Today: In my reading/study of Leviticus, Chapters 24-25 this morning - about God’s instructions concerning stewardship and prudent management of God’s providence, verse 23 of Chapter 25 jumped out at me as a good highlight point for my meditation, … certainly speaking to my heart – with conviction - about stewardship.
STEWARDSHIP is a concept, which, from God’s instructions to His people in Leviticus, was obviously very important; but I’m afraid it’s a biblical idea which has very impotent application in our world today. Oh, I’m sure, if I were to ask the average Christian, “Do you believe God is in control and owns everything?” Most, if not a strong majority, would say, “Absolutely!” So, f I asked you, “What would you say?”
Is God the owner and in control of ALL THINGS in your life? And if we answered “YES” to that question, what is the evidence of our being effective stewards of God’s providence? And to that question, I would have to say that many of us would find it hard to come up with evidence of application in our lives.
We have a two year-old grandson right now; and when he’s playing with a toy, if you take it away from him, he will scream, … LOUDLY … ”MINE!!,” demanding that we give it back to him. It’s just in his nature that anything given to him is HIS and no one else’s. And that’s in our spiritual DNA as well, isn’t it?
If someone were to steal something from me, I would likely FEEL bad, …feeling that I LOST what was MINE. And I would FEEL that way because I FELT that I was the owner of that thing – whatever it was. I would not be FEELING badly because that thing, which was lost to me, was God’s and it had been misappropriated from my Lord. No, I would FEEL bad because I would likely FEEL that the thing which was stolen was MINE. So, at age 60+, my FEELINGS are really not that much different from our 2 year old grandson, are they? And I’m afraid that’s the situation with most Christians these days.
Stewardship – i.e., KNOWING that God owns it all and we are HIS managers – is not a concept that is in broad application in our world these days by Christians. In real life, we FEEL that we’re the owners of that house which has MY name on the deed, … not God’s. If someone steals something from me, I FEEL that the thief has stolen from ME, … not God. I don’t manage the resources which come into my life like they’re God’s. No, I FEEL the stuff in my life is MINE!
It is said that we could do a stewardship analysis in anyone’s life by taking a look at one’s calendar and their check-book records or online banking statement. If I were to audit your calendar, how much time would I find allotted to God’s priorities? If that audit included a look at your spending practices, how much would I find set aside to carry out God’s work or purposes and how much of your expenditures would I find for your own selfish desires? Am I meddling here?
So, as you read through Chapters 24-25 of Leviticus along with me today, are you doing a self-inventory of your stewardship of God’s providence? If you are, how’re you doing?
My Prayer Today: … Lord, I do so want to be a good steward of Your providence. Help me to let all that is MINE … be YOURS. Amen
Showing posts with label stewardship. Show all posts
Showing posts with label stewardship. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
August 31, 2008 … Seeking God’s Kingdom
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 33 … But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
My Journal for Today: Today’s pronouncement by Jesus in His Sermon on the Mount is a simple but powerful promise wrapped in a simple, but powerful, exhortation; and for those who look for equations and formulae for living, here is a formula for our receiving God’s providence to meet our needs. Paraphrased, Jesus states, “Christian, if you go after the things of My kingdom and My righteousness as your #1 priorities, I’ll make sure that you have everything you need.” However, I’m afraid we Christians all too often forget (or ignore) this powerful formula in our lives; and we go after our own priorities above those of God’s, and then we complain, thinking that we are entitled to God’s best.
The Apostle Paul, when you read about his exploits in Acts 20: 22 – 24, had his priorities straight according to the teachings of Jesus above. Historically, here was Paul, called to Jerusalem and facing many potentially life-threatening dangers; and Paul says in verse 24, “…I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me.” Now that’s putting God first; … and that is seeking the Kingdom of God even in the midst of life-threatening circumstances. This was exactly the attitude to which Jesus exhorted His followers above in today’s focus verse.
When we, as believers, finally internalize this teaching and command from Christ, we will set aside our selfishness, our greed, and our pride for worldly things. And we’ll jettison the lusts of the flesh as well; and like Paul, we’ll be driven to seek after God and His righteousness. My Pastor and friend, Dr. Ernie Frey, has called this attitude a “holy discontent.” And that’s an apt term to describe the continual tension between what we want and what we need. It’s the battle between our sin nature and our Holy Spirit converted heart; and it may be resolved somewhat as we go deeper into a more abiding and intimate relationship with Christ; but I’m afraid my interpretation of Scripture has us involved in such battles until we are with Jesus in heaven.
And so, we are continually confronted by the Holy and perfect truths of Romans 8: 28, 1st Corinthians 10: 13, 2nd Corinthians 12: 9, 2nd Peter 1: 3 - 4, as well as the great commission in Matthew 28: 19 – 20, where we are challenged to move forward for God’s kingdom, knowing and believing that God will give us all we need to do what He calls us to do. This is, and should be, our “holy discontent,” driving us ever onward, in spite of our selfish desires, to focus on God’s MAIN THING – know Him and doing His will.
An again, as Matt. 6: 33 declares, if we can keep the MAIN THING always the MAIN THING, Jesus promises HE will always provide us with what we need. So, on this last day of this month’s devotionals, no more need be said about God’s providence and our stewardship than that. We just need to believe it and live it as Jesus lived it; and He’ll take care of us in the process.
My Prayer Today: Lord, I seek You above all! Amen
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Blogger’s Note: Well, that’s my last devotional from John MacArthur for this month. Now it’s on to a different topic from Strength for Today in September. This will cover our relationship with God, the Holy Spirit. Personally, I can always go deeper in that relationship; so, I hope that you may be led to join me in this quest for enlightenment by God’s Spirit, Himself, as I seek to go deeper in my understanding of the One Who is my Advocate before the throne of God.
My Journal for Today: Today’s pronouncement by Jesus in His Sermon on the Mount is a simple but powerful promise wrapped in a simple, but powerful, exhortation; and for those who look for equations and formulae for living, here is a formula for our receiving God’s providence to meet our needs. Paraphrased, Jesus states, “Christian, if you go after the things of My kingdom and My righteousness as your #1 priorities, I’ll make sure that you have everything you need.” However, I’m afraid we Christians all too often forget (or ignore) this powerful formula in our lives; and we go after our own priorities above those of God’s, and then we complain, thinking that we are entitled to God’s best.
The Apostle Paul, when you read about his exploits in Acts 20: 22 – 24, had his priorities straight according to the teachings of Jesus above. Historically, here was Paul, called to Jerusalem and facing many potentially life-threatening dangers; and Paul says in verse 24, “…I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me.” Now that’s putting God first; … and that is seeking the Kingdom of God even in the midst of life-threatening circumstances. This was exactly the attitude to which Jesus exhorted His followers above in today’s focus verse.
When we, as believers, finally internalize this teaching and command from Christ, we will set aside our selfishness, our greed, and our pride for worldly things. And we’ll jettison the lusts of the flesh as well; and like Paul, we’ll be driven to seek after God and His righteousness. My Pastor and friend, Dr. Ernie Frey, has called this attitude a “holy discontent.” And that’s an apt term to describe the continual tension between what we want and what we need. It’s the battle between our sin nature and our Holy Spirit converted heart; and it may be resolved somewhat as we go deeper into a more abiding and intimate relationship with Christ; but I’m afraid my interpretation of Scripture has us involved in such battles until we are with Jesus in heaven.
And so, we are continually confronted by the Holy and perfect truths of Romans 8: 28, 1st Corinthians 10: 13, 2nd Corinthians 12: 9, 2nd Peter 1: 3 - 4, as well as the great commission in Matthew 28: 19 – 20, where we are challenged to move forward for God’s kingdom, knowing and believing that God will give us all we need to do what He calls us to do. This is, and should be, our “holy discontent,” driving us ever onward, in spite of our selfish desires, to focus on God’s MAIN THING – know Him and doing His will.
An again, as Matt. 6: 33 declares, if we can keep the MAIN THING always the MAIN THING, Jesus promises HE will always provide us with what we need. So, on this last day of this month’s devotionals, no more need be said about God’s providence and our stewardship than that. We just need to believe it and live it as Jesus lived it; and He’ll take care of us in the process.
My Prayer Today: Lord, I seek You above all! Amen
====================
Blogger’s Note: Well, that’s my last devotional from John MacArthur for this month. Now it’s on to a different topic from Strength for Today in September. This will cover our relationship with God, the Holy Spirit. Personally, I can always go deeper in that relationship; so, I hope that you may be led to join me in this quest for enlightenment by God’s Spirit, Himself, as I seek to go deeper in my understanding of the One Who is my Advocate before the throne of God.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
August 23, 2011 … Letting the Fog Lift
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 25 … “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?”
My Journal for Today: Take in the word picture of Jesus in today’s verse, where The Lord exhorts His followers to avoid worry; and then let me share with you the picture used by John MacArthur in his Strength for Today devotional entry for this date.
MacArthur paints the word picture of worry being like a fog. Fog is a shroud of cloudiness, created by just a little bit of water dispersed into billions of droplets which hangs in the atmosphere to block our vision, often in the wrong place and at the wrong time. And in much the same way, worry, which is usually born out of very little substance, often descends upon our hearts, clouding our minds and crippling or paralyzing our choices. … Can you identify?
Remembering the context of Matthew 6, i.e., the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus was teaching to people, most of whom didn’t know from whence their next meal would come. It would not have been uncommon for these people to have their minds clouded by worry over their next meal. So, the admonitions of Jesus in today’s passage would have been a hard saying for these people … probably much more so than for many affluent Americans, who so often worry about whether we have enough money or things to be secure or to “keep up with the Joneses.” How often do we let our anxiety about financial matters become a mind-paralyzing fog, causing us to grope for directions in life, especially these days when the world economy seems to be in free-fall?
That’s why MacArthur’s word picture of worry being a fog is so pertinent to our lives. We try to see through the fog of our own greed or obsessive security worries; and we can’t see where we need to go, … rather than following the advice of our Lord to walk step-by-step, following God’s will, which, if we let it, will lead us, like a fog horn of purpose/direction, out of the fog and into His light.
Our fog of greediness or insecurity is really a matter of whether we really believe the classic passage [which I hope you have memorized], Proverbs 3: 5 – 6: … 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.
Do we really believe this truth from God’s word, as well as that in another memorable verse from the Apostle Paul, Phil. 4: 19? Because if we do, there will be no fog of worry. We will know – that we will know that we will know – that God will provide … that we will always have what we need to live … that we can always follow God where He leads without fear. The question for us today is … do we believe these truths? And … do we live them?
My Prayer Today: I trust You, God; and I see clearly. Amen
My Journal for Today: Take in the word picture of Jesus in today’s verse, where The Lord exhorts His followers to avoid worry; and then let me share with you the picture used by John MacArthur in his Strength for Today devotional entry for this date.
MacArthur paints the word picture of worry being like a fog. Fog is a shroud of cloudiness, created by just a little bit of water dispersed into billions of droplets which hangs in the atmosphere to block our vision, often in the wrong place and at the wrong time. And in much the same way, worry, which is usually born out of very little substance, often descends upon our hearts, clouding our minds and crippling or paralyzing our choices. … Can you identify?
Remembering the context of Matthew 6, i.e., the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus was teaching to people, most of whom didn’t know from whence their next meal would come. It would not have been uncommon for these people to have their minds clouded by worry over their next meal. So, the admonitions of Jesus in today’s passage would have been a hard saying for these people … probably much more so than for many affluent Americans, who so often worry about whether we have enough money or things to be secure or to “keep up with the Joneses.” How often do we let our anxiety about financial matters become a mind-paralyzing fog, causing us to grope for directions in life, especially these days when the world economy seems to be in free-fall?
That’s why MacArthur’s word picture of worry being a fog is so pertinent to our lives. We try to see through the fog of our own greed or obsessive security worries; and we can’t see where we need to go, … rather than following the advice of our Lord to walk step-by-step, following God’s will, which, if we let it, will lead us, like a fog horn of purpose/direction, out of the fog and into His light.
Our fog of greediness or insecurity is really a matter of whether we really believe the classic passage [which I hope you have memorized], Proverbs 3: 5 – 6: … 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.
Do we really believe this truth from God’s word, as well as that in another memorable verse from the Apostle Paul, Phil. 4: 19? Because if we do, there will be no fog of worry. We will know – that we will know that we will know – that God will provide … that we will always have what we need to live … that we can always follow God where He leads without fear. The question for us today is … do we believe these truths? And … do we live them?
My Prayer Today: I trust You, God; and I see clearly. Amen
Monday, August 22, 2011
August 22, 2011 … Materialistic Christians
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 19 … “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.”
My Journal for Today: Today we return to where we started this month, in Matthew 6: 19, with Jesus’ command to avoid materialism. And I firmly believe, as confirmed by MacArthur in his devotional entry for this date, materialism has become one of the biggest cultural stumbling blocks to the spiritual well-being and growth of Christians in our culture today. And apparently from the directness of Jesus’ teaching, it was that way in His day (on earth) as well. What is it that some say, “The more we change, … the more we stay the same?”
It is certainly truth, as we’ve seen/discussed, … that having things or being blessed with wealth is NOT a sin. God gives from His providence so that we, His children, can enjoy His blessings (1st Tim. 6: 17) [from the Apostle Paul’s point of view, inspired by God’s Spirit].
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SCRIPTURE: 1st Tim. 6: 17 … Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.
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But in Paul’s admonition above, he warns God’s wealthy people not to put their hope in the uncertainty of temporal things. And James (in James 4: 4 – below) tells believers that friendship with worldliness is enmity toward God.
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SCRIPTURE: James 4: 4 … don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
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And finally, the Apostle John joins in this chorus of challenge, warns Christians not to fall in love with the world, which will lead to lusting, pride, and covetousness (see 1st John 2: 15 – 16, which I hope you have memorized). And anytime you read the same thing being said often, especially by several different Spirit-led authors of Scripture, it’s time to pay attention.
I strongly believe that material “blessings” are one of God’s greatest testing mechanisms for our faith. When we are materially blessed by our Lord, it becomes God’s test of how we will be able to manage God’s providence in the next life (see Luke 16: 10 – 12). So, we must praise God if He has blessed some of us from His bounty; and then we must immediately ask ourselves how we can best be God’s steward and use His blessings for HIS glory (in this, read and meditate on Matt. 25: 14 – 30).
My Prayer Today: O, Lord, may I use Your blessings for Your glory! Amen
My Journal for Today: Today we return to where we started this month, in Matthew 6: 19, with Jesus’ command to avoid materialism. And I firmly believe, as confirmed by MacArthur in his devotional entry for this date, materialism has become one of the biggest cultural stumbling blocks to the spiritual well-being and growth of Christians in our culture today. And apparently from the directness of Jesus’ teaching, it was that way in His day (on earth) as well. What is it that some say, “The more we change, … the more we stay the same?”
It is certainly truth, as we’ve seen/discussed, … that having things or being blessed with wealth is NOT a sin. God gives from His providence so that we, His children, can enjoy His blessings (1st Tim. 6: 17) [from the Apostle Paul’s point of view, inspired by God’s Spirit].
-----------------
SCRIPTURE: 1st Tim. 6: 17 … Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.
--------------------
But in Paul’s admonition above, he warns God’s wealthy people not to put their hope in the uncertainty of temporal things. And James (in James 4: 4 – below) tells believers that friendship with worldliness is enmity toward God.
-------------
SCRIPTURE: James 4: 4 … don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
----------------
And finally, the Apostle John joins in this chorus of challenge, warns Christians not to fall in love with the world, which will lead to lusting, pride, and covetousness (see 1st John 2: 15 – 16, which I hope you have memorized). And anytime you read the same thing being said often, especially by several different Spirit-led authors of Scripture, it’s time to pay attention.
I strongly believe that material “blessings” are one of God’s greatest testing mechanisms for our faith. When we are materially blessed by our Lord, it becomes God’s test of how we will be able to manage God’s providence in the next life (see Luke 16: 10 – 12). So, we must praise God if He has blessed some of us from His bounty; and then we must immediately ask ourselves how we can best be God’s steward and use His blessings for HIS glory (in this, read and meditate on Matt. 25: 14 – 30).
My Prayer Today: O, Lord, may I use Your blessings for Your glory! Amen
Friday, August 19, 2011
August 19, 2011 … Dare to be a Daniel
Passage of the Day: 1st Chronicles 29: 11 – 12 … 11 Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. 12 Wealth and honor come from You; You are the ruler of all things. In Your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.
My Journal for Today: Yesterday my fellow readers here and I looked at the truth and reality that God owns everything, a truth we must recognize as Christians if we are to be effective stewards of God’s providence. Today’s passage, one verse of which was quoted in yesterday’s devotional entry, reflects this as well.
However, as I am influenced by John MacArthur’s devotional for this date in Strength for Today, he helps me (us) by taking his readers back to the story of Daniel being cast into the lion’s den, described in Daniel 6 – linked for your study. Here we read of the extent of Daniel’s trust of God’s sovereignty, which was put to the ultimate test, a life-threatening set of circumstances, from which Daniel emerged a winner! MacArthur also quotes the author Jerry Bridges from his book Trusting God, who writes, “God … so directs and controls all events and actions of His creatures that they never act outside of His sovereign will. We must believe and cling to this … if we are to glorify God by trusting Him.”
These last few devotional entries are not long and involved, because the issues are fairly straight forward [I didn’t say “easy” to deal with; … but they are “straight forward”]. As MacArthur and Bridges intimate, honoring God in our stewardship is a matter of belief and trust – a matter of faith. Do I trust God as it says in Prov. 3: 5 – 6 … in ALL things … at ALL times; or do I hold back, relying on my own understanding, searching for reasons which satisfy my own mind when I don’t comprehend what is happening or when I’m out of control? MacArthur (and God’s word) challenges me (and you) to dare to be a Daniel when circumstances are overwhelming or incomprehensible.
How about it? Are we ready to trust our sovereign God today?!! Are we willing to be the stewards of the God who gave us all for His glory?
My Prayer Today: Help me, Lord, to be a Daniel and to trust You totally. Amen
My Journal for Today: Yesterday my fellow readers here and I looked at the truth and reality that God owns everything, a truth we must recognize as Christians if we are to be effective stewards of God’s providence. Today’s passage, one verse of which was quoted in yesterday’s devotional entry, reflects this as well.
However, as I am influenced by John MacArthur’s devotional for this date in Strength for Today, he helps me (us) by taking his readers back to the story of Daniel being cast into the lion’s den, described in Daniel 6 – linked for your study. Here we read of the extent of Daniel’s trust of God’s sovereignty, which was put to the ultimate test, a life-threatening set of circumstances, from which Daniel emerged a winner! MacArthur also quotes the author Jerry Bridges from his book Trusting God, who writes, “God … so directs and controls all events and actions of His creatures that they never act outside of His sovereign will. We must believe and cling to this … if we are to glorify God by trusting Him.”
These last few devotional entries are not long and involved, because the issues are fairly straight forward [I didn’t say “easy” to deal with; … but they are “straight forward”]. As MacArthur and Bridges intimate, honoring God in our stewardship is a matter of belief and trust – a matter of faith. Do I trust God as it says in Prov. 3: 5 – 6 … in ALL things … at ALL times; or do I hold back, relying on my own understanding, searching for reasons which satisfy my own mind when I don’t comprehend what is happening or when I’m out of control? MacArthur (and God’s word) challenges me (and you) to dare to be a Daniel when circumstances are overwhelming or incomprehensible.
How about it? Are we ready to trust our sovereign God today?!! Are we willing to be the stewards of the God who gave us all for His glory?
My Prayer Today: Help me, Lord, to be a Daniel and to trust You totally. Amen
Thursday, August 18, 2011
August 18, 2011 … Recognizing God’s Ownership
Passage of the Day: Psalm 24: 1 … The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; …
My Journal for Today: This will not be a long devotional entry today. The point is short and clear; and it’s made in today’s verse. The point: Godly and biblical stewardship begins and hinges upon the recognition that we, God’s creation, own NOTHING! It’s all God’s, pure and simple … for HIS use and HIS glory.
John MacArthur reminds his readers on this date in Strength for Today of the wonderful story of John Wesley, whom, upon hearing that his house had burned, replied, “No it hasn’t. I don’t own a house. The one I lived in belongs to the Lord.” Wesley recognized that God had given him that house and God would still provide for his needs.
This raises the questions … do we see God’s ownership and His providence in the way Wesley saw it? Or … do we take personal ownership of the stuff of life, which leads to personalized greed and the coveting of worldly things? … May I digress with the confession that all too often I seek to be the owner of “stuff” in my life; and because I feel that way, I seek to control that “stuff,” trying to protect MY [there I go again!] “stuff.” In my head I know the truth of today’s highlight scripture; but too often I don’t live it out – from the heart - in my life. How about you?
MacArthur very nicely summarizes where our hearts and minds should be focused, writing, “We should worship God as the owner of all things, thank Him for whatever He entrusts to us, and never allow our ‘possessions’ to be a cause to forget Him.” That was Kind David’s prayer when he said to God (in 1st Chron. 29: 11), “…everything in heaven and in earth is Yours.”
And that should be our attitude and continual prayer as well.
My Prayer Today: And that is my prayer this day, Lord; … it is all Yours! Amen
My Journal for Today: This will not be a long devotional entry today. The point is short and clear; and it’s made in today’s verse. The point: Godly and biblical stewardship begins and hinges upon the recognition that we, God’s creation, own NOTHING! It’s all God’s, pure and simple … for HIS use and HIS glory.
John MacArthur reminds his readers on this date in Strength for Today of the wonderful story of John Wesley, whom, upon hearing that his house had burned, replied, “No it hasn’t. I don’t own a house. The one I lived in belongs to the Lord.” Wesley recognized that God had given him that house and God would still provide for his needs.
This raises the questions … do we see God’s ownership and His providence in the way Wesley saw it? Or … do we take personal ownership of the stuff of life, which leads to personalized greed and the coveting of worldly things? … May I digress with the confession that all too often I seek to be the owner of “stuff” in my life; and because I feel that way, I seek to control that “stuff,” trying to protect MY [there I go again!] “stuff.” In my head I know the truth of today’s highlight scripture; but too often I don’t live it out – from the heart - in my life. How about you?
MacArthur very nicely summarizes where our hearts and minds should be focused, writing, “We should worship God as the owner of all things, thank Him for whatever He entrusts to us, and never allow our ‘possessions’ to be a cause to forget Him.” That was Kind David’s prayer when he said to God (in 1st Chron. 29: 11), “…everything in heaven and in earth is Yours.”
And that should be our attitude and continual prayer as well.
My Prayer Today: And that is my prayer this day, Lord; … it is all Yours! Amen
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
August 17, 2011 … Finding True Contentment
Passage of the Day: Philippians 1:21 … For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
My Journal for Today: Short verse ... powerful implications. The Apostle Paul says it – flat out – in today’s verse (copied above). To Paul, as it should be for all Christians, Christ was his all-in-all. And John MacArthur, in today’s devotional from Strength for Today, clearly states, “… true contentment is found only in Christ.”
However, it is unfortunately the case that many people, and even many Christians, have bought into the worldly view of life summarized by the bumper sticker … “The man who dies with the most toys wins!” And it’s time for all of us to stop and honestly see if that sticker applies, even remotely, to our lives; because, if it does, for us to live is fleshly gain and to die is cheapened by our greed.
The Apostle Paul went on (in Phil. 4: 11 – 12) to express God’s truth about contentment; and he did so from his own personal witness [writing while he was imprisoned!]. He declared that having things or not having things was (or is) not where contentment is found. Real contentment, to Paul, only comes from a deep and abiding relationship with Jesus, … THE Christ.
So, I come to this place in life with my own testimony of this truth, after many years in my past seeking contentment as the world would have it … looking for the accumulation of “stuff,” especially monetary accumulation to produce security and contentment. Now I can clearly, and very personally, support what Paul is saying in today’s verse … that my contentment has been found in a pursuit to know God through my relationship with Christ. I now know, as Paul witnessed, that only pursuing Christ can and will bring me contentment. And to this end, my pursuit will continue until I’m with my Lord in glory.
My Prayer Today: Thank You for teaching me that You are everything, Lord! Amen
My Journal for Today: Short verse ... powerful implications. The Apostle Paul says it – flat out – in today’s verse (copied above). To Paul, as it should be for all Christians, Christ was his all-in-all. And John MacArthur, in today’s devotional from Strength for Today, clearly states, “… true contentment is found only in Christ.”
However, it is unfortunately the case that many people, and even many Christians, have bought into the worldly view of life summarized by the bumper sticker … “The man who dies with the most toys wins!” And it’s time for all of us to stop and honestly see if that sticker applies, even remotely, to our lives; because, if it does, for us to live is fleshly gain and to die is cheapened by our greed.
The Apostle Paul went on (in Phil. 4: 11 – 12) to express God’s truth about contentment; and he did so from his own personal witness [writing while he was imprisoned!]. He declared that having things or not having things was (or is) not where contentment is found. Real contentment, to Paul, only comes from a deep and abiding relationship with Jesus, … THE Christ.
So, I come to this place in life with my own testimony of this truth, after many years in my past seeking contentment as the world would have it … looking for the accumulation of “stuff,” especially monetary accumulation to produce security and contentment. Now I can clearly, and very personally, support what Paul is saying in today’s verse … that my contentment has been found in a pursuit to know God through my relationship with Christ. I now know, as Paul witnessed, that only pursuing Christ can and will bring me contentment. And to this end, my pursuit will continue until I’m with my Lord in glory.
My Prayer Today: Thank You for teaching me that You are everything, Lord! Amen
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
August 16, 2011 … Serving Your Master
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 24 … "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”
My Journal for Today: Jesus’ teaching and exhortation in today’s passage is straight forward and logical. He says NOBODY can be a slave to two masters. The Greek word for “nobody” means ……… NOBODY!
Now, in today’s world, many people are into “multi-tasking;” and many people get quite good at this method of getting things done (even though this can be a recipe for “burnout,” which is another lesson entirely!). But handling two tasks simultaneously is not what Jesus is teaching about. When he uses to the concept “serve” in today’s teaching, He is referring to the Greek word “douleuo,” which clearly refers to being a “slave” to a master. And Jesus is saying that we cannot be a slave or servant (i.e., disciple) to Himself and to any other worldly or fleshly master, such as money (in this instance). For in bowing down and serving money or some worldly pleasure as our master, we are deferring our allegiance to Satan, the world, or self, which means that we cannot serve God at the same time.
The world and Satan, the world’s [temporary] master, demands that their followers be proud, to walk by sight, to seek the things of the world, and to be anxious over everything, having no power except that provided by Satan. But our Lord, God, demands Christians to be humble, to walk by faith, to seek the things of heaven, and to be anxious for nothing, having all power provided by our God. And as you can read, these two masters are separated by 180 degrees of difference in their demands. So, which will we choose?
Romans 6: 17 – 18 reminds us that Christians, who are now in Christ, were once slaves to sin; but now, anyone who has chosen to believe and make Christ as Lord, becomes a slave of righteousness. Hence, the Christian – the true Christian – will never comfortably be able to choose to be a slave to the pursuit of the world or selfish gain because God’s Spirit will never provide peace in such pursuits. When God’s Spirit is deeply rooted in the heart of any believer, that one becomes a sold-out bond slave to Christ; and any decisions that are made in the flesh or in the pursuit of Satan’s world will produce Holy Spirit generated reactions (i.e., conviction), ultimately leading one to surrender to The Master, Who always wants the best for His servants. But if a Christian chooses to be temporarily mastered by his own deceit-ridden heart, by the world, or by Satan, he can expect to live in the misery of conviction and chastisement from a God who loves that one enough not to let him stay directed toward a sin-directed master.
I know that the concept of being a SLAVE is not one that sits well with the western consciousness, especially in our culture of American individualism and post-modern relativism. But the irony is … we can never find true freedom or God’s peace without being a slave to God’s Truth (see John 8: 32); and Jesus is The Truth (see John 14: 6). So, we, as believers, must decide … do we serve (i.e., become slaves) of Christ; or do we serve Satan, the world, or the flesh?
It is our choice!
My Prayer Today: I serve You, Lord! Amen
My Journal for Today: Jesus’ teaching and exhortation in today’s passage is straight forward and logical. He says NOBODY can be a slave to two masters. The Greek word for “nobody” means ……… NOBODY!
Now, in today’s world, many people are into “multi-tasking;” and many people get quite good at this method of getting things done (even though this can be a recipe for “burnout,” which is another lesson entirely!). But handling two tasks simultaneously is not what Jesus is teaching about. When he uses to the concept “serve” in today’s teaching, He is referring to the Greek word “douleuo,” which clearly refers to being a “slave” to a master. And Jesus is saying that we cannot be a slave or servant (i.e., disciple) to Himself and to any other worldly or fleshly master, such as money (in this instance). For in bowing down and serving money or some worldly pleasure as our master, we are deferring our allegiance to Satan, the world, or self, which means that we cannot serve God at the same time.
The world and Satan, the world’s [temporary] master, demands that their followers be proud, to walk by sight, to seek the things of the world, and to be anxious over everything, having no power except that provided by Satan. But our Lord, God, demands Christians to be humble, to walk by faith, to seek the things of heaven, and to be anxious for nothing, having all power provided by our God. And as you can read, these two masters are separated by 180 degrees of difference in their demands. So, which will we choose?
Romans 6: 17 – 18 reminds us that Christians, who are now in Christ, were once slaves to sin; but now, anyone who has chosen to believe and make Christ as Lord, becomes a slave of righteousness. Hence, the Christian – the true Christian – will never comfortably be able to choose to be a slave to the pursuit of the world or selfish gain because God’s Spirit will never provide peace in such pursuits. When God’s Spirit is deeply rooted in the heart of any believer, that one becomes a sold-out bond slave to Christ; and any decisions that are made in the flesh or in the pursuit of Satan’s world will produce Holy Spirit generated reactions (i.e., conviction), ultimately leading one to surrender to The Master, Who always wants the best for His servants. But if a Christian chooses to be temporarily mastered by his own deceit-ridden heart, by the world, or by Satan, he can expect to live in the misery of conviction and chastisement from a God who loves that one enough not to let him stay directed toward a sin-directed master.
I know that the concept of being a SLAVE is not one that sits well with the western consciousness, especially in our culture of American individualism and post-modern relativism. But the irony is … we can never find true freedom or God’s peace without being a slave to God’s Truth (see John 8: 32); and Jesus is The Truth (see John 14: 6). So, we, as believers, must decide … do we serve (i.e., become slaves) of Christ; or do we serve Satan, the world, or the flesh?
It is our choice!
My Prayer Today: I serve You, Lord! Amen
Sunday, August 14, 2011
August 14, 2011 … Being Devoted to God
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 21 [see Scripture in bold/underlined] … 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
My Journal for Today: Personally, in this one highlighted verse for the day (see in bold and underlined above), I think Jesus gives Christians the best indicator of the health of our stewardship as believers. And also VERY personally, this is one of the real hard sayings from Jesus’ teachings for Christians to absorb and apply in our lives [especially yours truly!].
We certainly know, as Christians and from our knowledge of Romans 3: 23 and Jeremiah 17: 9 (great verses to have memorized), that we’re all sinful and have deceitful hearts. But praise God, when God’s Spirit comes to reside in the still naturally sinful heart of man upon conversion, supernatural change will take place in that heart over time [see 2nd Cor. 5: 17 and Phil. 1: 6]. This is the process of sanctification; and it becomes manifest in more and more Christlike behavior being seen in the life of the true Christian as that one develops a deeper and deeper relationship with the Savior. And as that believer begins to pursue God and surrender to His Spirit, one of the best measures of that sanctification would be the stewardship of that Christian. I think I’ve said it before, quoting a friend of mine, “Show me the check stubs and the calendar of a so-called “Christian,” and we’ll be able to see if he’s the real deal.”
So, as I do a self-check here, I’ll ask you, “What about your check stubs [or electronic financial data]; … what about your calendar?” If we had a close look at your spending habits, your giving, and your use of God’s resources (time and talents, as well as treasures), would your heart be on display as Jesus viewed what you treasure? I have to ask myself all the time, “Am I gladly (and the attitude is important as seen in 2nd Cor. 9: 6 - 7) using God’s money and the time He has given me for Godly ends; … or am I using His providence for myself?” Honest answers to these questions will tell us whether we are sowing what God would have us sow from our use of His providence … whether our heart is right as we use His treasures.
My Prayer Today: O help me, Lord, to give with single-minded devotion to You. Amen
My Journal for Today: Personally, in this one highlighted verse for the day (see in bold and underlined above), I think Jesus gives Christians the best indicator of the health of our stewardship as believers. And also VERY personally, this is one of the real hard sayings from Jesus’ teachings for Christians to absorb and apply in our lives [especially yours truly!].
We certainly know, as Christians and from our knowledge of Romans 3: 23 and Jeremiah 17: 9 (great verses to have memorized), that we’re all sinful and have deceitful hearts. But praise God, when God’s Spirit comes to reside in the still naturally sinful heart of man upon conversion, supernatural change will take place in that heart over time [see 2nd Cor. 5: 17 and Phil. 1: 6]. This is the process of sanctification; and it becomes manifest in more and more Christlike behavior being seen in the life of the true Christian as that one develops a deeper and deeper relationship with the Savior. And as that believer begins to pursue God and surrender to His Spirit, one of the best measures of that sanctification would be the stewardship of that Christian. I think I’ve said it before, quoting a friend of mine, “Show me the check stubs and the calendar of a so-called “Christian,” and we’ll be able to see if he’s the real deal.”
So, as I do a self-check here, I’ll ask you, “What about your check stubs [or electronic financial data]; … what about your calendar?” If we had a close look at your spending habits, your giving, and your use of God’s resources (time and talents, as well as treasures), would your heart be on display as Jesus viewed what you treasure? I have to ask myself all the time, “Am I gladly (and the attitude is important as seen in 2nd Cor. 9: 6 - 7) using God’s money and the time He has given me for Godly ends; … or am I using His providence for myself?” Honest answers to these questions will tell us whether we are sowing what God would have us sow from our use of His providence … whether our heart is right as we use His treasures.
My Prayer Today: O help me, Lord, to give with single-minded devotion to You. Amen
Saturday, August 13, 2011
August 13, 2011 … Giving Generously to the Lord
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 20 [see Scripture in bold/underlined ] … 19 Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
My Journal for Today: According to John MacArthur in Strength for Today, the early Church, as recorded in Acts 2, became a model for how believers were to “…store up treasures … in heaven …,” as Jesus was teaching in today’s passage.
As these early believers saw the needs of other fellow Christians, they were gladly willing to pool their resources and sacrifice generously to meet those needs. And according to the later discipleship teachings of both Peter (1st Pet. 1: 3-4) and Paul (1st Tim. 6: 18 – 19), that’s what kingdom giving was all about [and as it should for us now]. It is an investment of giving, gladly and generously, to honor God in the here-and-now. And for that investment of sacrifice, where a believer humbly gives with a generous attitude, it is God’s promise that treasures, abounding beyond our imagination, will be stored up in heaven to reward the generous Christian who was/is willing to sacrifice with gladness of heart in this life. Someone once told me, “God’s pay for His work in this life may not seem like much; but the fringe benefits are out of this world!”
And in the next life, upon reaping what we, as faithful followers of Christ, have sowed in this life, our bounty will be more gladly used to glorify the One – and the only One – Who is worthy to receive all honor and praise … our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
So, my dear ones who read this, in this life – our here and now life – we, who are benefactors of God’s infinite sacrifice on the Cross, must ask ourselves if we are handling God’s providence in such a way as to lay up treasures for His glory in the next life.
My Prayer Today: I can do more, Lord … so much more! Amen
My Journal for Today: According to John MacArthur in Strength for Today, the early Church, as recorded in Acts 2, became a model for how believers were to “…store up treasures … in heaven …,” as Jesus was teaching in today’s passage.
As these early believers saw the needs of other fellow Christians, they were gladly willing to pool their resources and sacrifice generously to meet those needs. And according to the later discipleship teachings of both Peter (1st Pet. 1: 3-4) and Paul (1st Tim. 6: 18 – 19), that’s what kingdom giving was all about [and as it should for us now]. It is an investment of giving, gladly and generously, to honor God in the here-and-now. And for that investment of sacrifice, where a believer humbly gives with a generous attitude, it is God’s promise that treasures, abounding beyond our imagination, will be stored up in heaven to reward the generous Christian who was/is willing to sacrifice with gladness of heart in this life. Someone once told me, “God’s pay for His work in this life may not seem like much; but the fringe benefits are out of this world!”
And in the next life, upon reaping what we, as faithful followers of Christ, have sowed in this life, our bounty will be more gladly used to glorify the One – and the only One – Who is worthy to receive all honor and praise … our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
So, my dear ones who read this, in this life – our here and now life – we, who are benefactors of God’s infinite sacrifice on the Cross, must ask ourselves if we are handling God’s providence in such a way as to lay up treasures for His glory in the next life.
My Prayer Today: I can do more, Lord … so much more! Amen
Friday, August 12, 2011
August 12, 2011 … Keeping the Treasure Safe
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 19 … Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
My Journal for Today: If you’ve been with me here, we’ve looked at this passage now from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount for several days in our look at stewardship of God-given resources. And in this passage, our Lord gives His followers (and that is us) God’s instruction on how to handle what we receive from Him – i.e., His providence.
In the times Jesus made this exhortation, worldly wealth was measured in commodities like those mentioned by Jesus: garments or fabrics, grain, and precious metals. Here Jesus warns that garments can be eaten by moths, … grain can be devoured by vermin, … and gold can be stolen by thieves. And of course, He is saying that nothing of this world is permanent/lasting. And even if one could protect their “stuff,” they would have to leave them behind at death.
That’s why our Lord goes on in the very next sentence (i.e., Matt. 6: 20) to tell us that the only absolutely permanent treasures we can lay up for ourselves are those things which will last in eternity; … and those, of course, are the souls and testimonies of the Saints.
Therefore, in his devotional entry from Strength for Today on this date, John MacArthur bluntly asks any believer, “What about you? Are you putting your treasures in a safe place?” And I would go on to ask myself (and you, by extension), “What am I [are we] doing to invest in eternity? How am I [are you] using what God has blessed me [us] with for His glory [i.e., … our time … our talents … our treasures]?”
Ouch! That hurts a bit! I’m growing into this; but my stewardship still needs attention. How about you?
My Prayer Today: Help me to be a good steward of Your bounty, Lord! Amen
My Journal for Today: If you’ve been with me here, we’ve looked at this passage now from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount for several days in our look at stewardship of God-given resources. And in this passage, our Lord gives His followers (and that is us) God’s instruction on how to handle what we receive from Him – i.e., His providence.
In the times Jesus made this exhortation, worldly wealth was measured in commodities like those mentioned by Jesus: garments or fabrics, grain, and precious metals. Here Jesus warns that garments can be eaten by moths, … grain can be devoured by vermin, … and gold can be stolen by thieves. And of course, He is saying that nothing of this world is permanent/lasting. And even if one could protect their “stuff,” they would have to leave them behind at death.
That’s why our Lord goes on in the very next sentence (i.e., Matt. 6: 20) to tell us that the only absolutely permanent treasures we can lay up for ourselves are those things which will last in eternity; … and those, of course, are the souls and testimonies of the Saints.
Therefore, in his devotional entry from Strength for Today on this date, John MacArthur bluntly asks any believer, “What about you? Are you putting your treasures in a safe place?” And I would go on to ask myself (and you, by extension), “What am I [are we] doing to invest in eternity? How am I [are you] using what God has blessed me [us] with for His glory [i.e., … our time … our talents … our treasures]?”
Ouch! That hurts a bit! I’m growing into this; but my stewardship still needs attention. How about you?
My Prayer Today: Help me to be a good steward of Your bounty, Lord! Amen
Thursday, August 11, 2011
August 11, 2011 … Living Unselfishly
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 19a [see Scripture - bold/underlined ] … 19a Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
My Journal for Today: You know, Jesus really does want His disciples to have contentment, peace, … and yes, even happiness. All of the Sermon on the Mount, from which today’s passage was taken, was Jesus teaching His followers about “kingdom living.” He wanted for us what His Apostle John wrote about in John 10: 10 … the Spiritually full or “abundant life.”
And Jesus came at this from many angles in the Sermon on the Mount; but as we see from these teachings, the kingdom life of spiritual prosperity comes with a price; and in the context of the stewardship of God’s providence (i.e., money or material things), our price is avoiding the one attitude that can allow our common enemy to steal/kill our kingdom existence; and that is covetousness (again, see John 10: 10).
Really what Jesus is warning His followers in today’s verse is how to avoid one of the most common forms of idolatry; and that is the love of money, which is certainly just as true today, or maybe more so, as it was in the 1st century. Stories abound of miserable millionaires. Some time ago I saw one such story on the TV about Aaron Spelling, the media mogul and mega-millionaire, who died living in a 123 room “castle” in Southern California. Only three people lived in that edifice, Spelling, his wife, and one “friend.” This so-called “friend” reported that in his later years Aaron Spelling was a miserable man, paranoid and isolated from even his own family. And we all know the weird, sad story of how Howard Hughes, one of the richest men in the world in his day, died a naked, paranoid recluse in a Los Vegas penthouse.
So, what is God’s prescription for the disease of greed? Well, today’s verse, Matt. 6: 19, is one of them; and the Apostle Paul clearly wrote another in 1st Cor. 10: 31, writing, "…whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." And for the past few days in my journal entries, I’ve referred to Jesus’ admonition from this same section of the Sermon on the Mount as He pointedly said, “ … seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things (His providence – your needs) will be added to you.”
That’s our price for the abundant life – the kingdom life; and it’s not too much to pay when we consider what we get in this sweet deal. By living in obedience to Christ and His word and seeking to use HIS providence for HIS glory, we get all that the abundant life produces, which includes peace and contentment, … and the best of all, … a closer walk with our Savior … with a whole lot more of His love than we could ever experience from seeking it through the avenue of selfishness.
What do you think? Good deal, huh?
My Prayer Today: It is a great deal, Lord! Amen
My Journal for Today: You know, Jesus really does want His disciples to have contentment, peace, … and yes, even happiness. All of the Sermon on the Mount, from which today’s passage was taken, was Jesus teaching His followers about “kingdom living.” He wanted for us what His Apostle John wrote about in John 10: 10 … the Spiritually full or “abundant life.”
And Jesus came at this from many angles in the Sermon on the Mount; but as we see from these teachings, the kingdom life of spiritual prosperity comes with a price; and in the context of the stewardship of God’s providence (i.e., money or material things), our price is avoiding the one attitude that can allow our common enemy to steal/kill our kingdom existence; and that is covetousness (again, see John 10: 10).
Really what Jesus is warning His followers in today’s verse is how to avoid one of the most common forms of idolatry; and that is the love of money, which is certainly just as true today, or maybe more so, as it was in the 1st century. Stories abound of miserable millionaires. Some time ago I saw one such story on the TV about Aaron Spelling, the media mogul and mega-millionaire, who died living in a 123 room “castle” in Southern California. Only three people lived in that edifice, Spelling, his wife, and one “friend.” This so-called “friend” reported that in his later years Aaron Spelling was a miserable man, paranoid and isolated from even his own family. And we all know the weird, sad story of how Howard Hughes, one of the richest men in the world in his day, died a naked, paranoid recluse in a Los Vegas penthouse.
So, what is God’s prescription for the disease of greed? Well, today’s verse, Matt. 6: 19, is one of them; and the Apostle Paul clearly wrote another in 1st Cor. 10: 31, writing, "…whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." And for the past few days in my journal entries, I’ve referred to Jesus’ admonition from this same section of the Sermon on the Mount as He pointedly said, “ … seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things (His providence – your needs) will be added to you.”
That’s our price for the abundant life – the kingdom life; and it’s not too much to pay when we consider what we get in this sweet deal. By living in obedience to Christ and His word and seeking to use HIS providence for HIS glory, we get all that the abundant life produces, which includes peace and contentment, … and the best of all, … a closer walk with our Savior … with a whole lot more of His love than we could ever experience from seeking it through the avenue of selfishness.
What do you think? Good deal, huh?
My Prayer Today: It is a great deal, Lord! Amen
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Godly Stewardship
Blogger's Note: I'll be posting two daily entries for my devotionals for the last two days. I had no internet access on the ship where we've been cruising.
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August 9, 2011 … Handling Possessions Properly
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 19a [see verse in bold ] … 19a Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
My Journal for Today: Today’s verse is Jesus speaking; and at times, as here, He can be very straight – even hard – when He teaches. He certainly didn’t mince words when He was teaching about something He considered basic to Christianity; and today’s truth is one of those “Christianity 101” principles.
From today’s verse, in his devotional for the date in Strength for Today, John MacArthur points out that Jesus uses the Greek construct for “store up” being ”theaurizete,” which would be a play on words. It would literally say, “Do not ‘treasure up’ treasures for yourself.” The word picture is of one creating a long, horizontal line or stack of any given treasure; and in such a picture, the Greeks assumed that such action implied a show of hoarding for all to see. It’s as if the person is saying, “Look at all I have here.” It also illustrates the lack of doing anything constructive with these God-given riches, but merely hoarding them, which we know Jesus strongly opposed (see Jesus’ parable of the Talents in Matt. 25: 14 – 30 and remember where this passage resides in the Bible – you’ll refer to it often since money is such a big part of life).
We also see Jesus teaching about such matters in His parable of the rich, young fool (see Luke 12: 16 – 21); and from these two teaching passages, we know that Christ expects the believer, His disciples, to make an active commitment of God’s grace from His providence toward God’s Kingdom (again we’re directed by the Matt. 6: 33, which I’m sure you have memorized by now).
Here’s the hard truth. We can never fulfill God’s will for the use of His providence if we are “stacking away” His treasures to impress others or only for our own security. Personally I feel more challenged by the latter than the former; but we certainly see hoarding and ostentatious show of wealth all around us. While I’ve been studying these lessons the last few days, my wife and I have been traveling in Europe on a Christian cruise through the Mediterranean; and it’s been both edifying and convicting, to get these lessons in the context of a lot of wealth being on parade around us while those of us who came on this cruise to fellowship and learn from God’s word have had to keep our Christian values in tow. And all the while the economy seems to be crashing down around us with the stock market plummeting right at the same time we’re cruising gently through these Mediterranean waters. It’s like a life lesson in realizing what is important and trusting that God is in control; and HE always promises. How we deal with an attitude of self protection to keep us secure financially is another matter, for which I’m under conviction by not trusting God enough for my needs.
We need to realize that such ill-begotten priorities, involving the handling of God’s grace, constitutes a slap in God’s face. By taking selfish charge of God’s resources and hoarding or showing off, we dampen God’s ability, through His grace, to use HIS bounty for HIS glory through HIS servants. We don’t know what the cost might be for such selfishness; but Ananias and Sapphira certainly found out [read Acts 5: 1 – 10]. They were struck dead by God for their hoarding of what God commanded them to give to His Kingdom. Meditate on 2nd Cor. 9: 6-7 and ask yourself what God would have you give – CHEERFULLY and not with a begrudging attitude – for His kingdom.
When God says to seek Him and honor His kingdom first (again, Matt. 6: 33), He means it! And He will provide what we need. May I never forget His admonition; and may I never be ungrateful for His mercy and grace.
My Prayer Today: I say again, Lord, … may I never forget that it’s all Yours. Amen
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August 10, 2011 … Being a Wise Manager
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 19a [see in bold/underlined] … 19a Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
My Journal for Today: In my recent devotional entries, the way I’ve been using God’s word to rail against greed and the love of money, one might get the idea that being wealthy or having material things is a bad thing in God’s eyes. NOT SO!!
As John MacArthur, in Strength for Today, reminds us in his entry for this date, both Old/New Testaments declare that any wealth or material providence for which we might have been blessed comes from God (see Deut. 8: 18 and 1st Cor. 4: 7 below).
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Deut. 8: 18 … But remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms His covenant, which He swore to your forefathers, as it is today.
1st Cor. 4: 7 … For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? …
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As God’s word says [above], “What do you have that you did not receive (from God)?” But beyond these pronouncements of truth about from whence our providence comes, Jesus in His parable of the Talents (Matt. 25: 14 – 30) teaches clearly that as His disciples, whether we have been given much or little, …we are ALL to be wise stewards of God’s providence and His blessings. So, it’s fine to HAVE [even great wealth] from God; but then, when His providence is put into our hands, we’re to use it for His glory.
MacArthur’s devotional on this date illustrates this for his readers with a true story of John Wesley, a Godly man who became quite wealthy in the 19th century by writing and publishing Christian hymns, many of which we still sing to this day. Wesley, by today’s standards, would be much like the Michael W. Smiths of today… financially blessed by the sale of Christian music, which then glorifies God. And both Wesley then and Smith now have used their providence for God as well. John Wesley not only used his musical talents for God’s Kingdom, but he is said to have had only 28 British pounds to his name at the time of his death, because he had carefully and selectively given away a fortune over his life in the service of the Lord.
No, … again, being wealthy is not a bad thing. Having “stuff” is not bad. In fact, it becomes a wonderful thing in God’s eyes when His providence is used to further His kingdom. Right now God has blessed me with an expensive computer, which has all the whistles and bells; but do I feel guilty about having such a fancy techno-tool, which has the potential to be involved in evil enterprise? No, because day-after-day, God has given me this tool to honor Him. Even as I type these devotional journal entries, this computer often plays lovely praise music, to which I listen during my prayer/praise/study times; and I sit here typing this devotional journal, using the word processor in this wonderful machine. A couple of years ago, my wife and I purchased a beautiful HDTV system from the providence of inheritance of my father’s passing. But before we purchased this expensive item, we prayed that the way we used that TV system would be for God’s glory (by the way we avoided worldly/fleshly viewing, concentrating on programming that would edify and relax our minds without involving us in ungodly viewing).
Certainly I am not the perfect witness in this arena. I still make selfish money decisions at times; but prayerfully God convicts me and I make course corrections along the way. And I pray that all who read this are seeking God’s will and direction when it comes to using the providence with which He has blessed us. To that end, may we all be vessels of His purpose.
My Prayer Today: Help me to use Your gifts, Lord, wisely for Your Kingdom. Amen
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August 9, 2011 … Handling Possessions Properly
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 19a [see verse in bold ] … 19a Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
My Journal for Today: Today’s verse is Jesus speaking; and at times, as here, He can be very straight – even hard – when He teaches. He certainly didn’t mince words when He was teaching about something He considered basic to Christianity; and today’s truth is one of those “Christianity 101” principles.
From today’s verse, in his devotional for the date in Strength for Today, John MacArthur points out that Jesus uses the Greek construct for “store up” being ”theaurizete,” which would be a play on words. It would literally say, “Do not ‘treasure up’ treasures for yourself.” The word picture is of one creating a long, horizontal line or stack of any given treasure; and in such a picture, the Greeks assumed that such action implied a show of hoarding for all to see. It’s as if the person is saying, “Look at all I have here.” It also illustrates the lack of doing anything constructive with these God-given riches, but merely hoarding them, which we know Jesus strongly opposed (see Jesus’ parable of the Talents in Matt. 25: 14 – 30 and remember where this passage resides in the Bible – you’ll refer to it often since money is such a big part of life).
We also see Jesus teaching about such matters in His parable of the rich, young fool (see Luke 12: 16 – 21); and from these two teaching passages, we know that Christ expects the believer, His disciples, to make an active commitment of God’s grace from His providence toward God’s Kingdom (again we’re directed by the Matt. 6: 33, which I’m sure you have memorized by now).
Here’s the hard truth. We can never fulfill God’s will for the use of His providence if we are “stacking away” His treasures to impress others or only for our own security. Personally I feel more challenged by the latter than the former; but we certainly see hoarding and ostentatious show of wealth all around us. While I’ve been studying these lessons the last few days, my wife and I have been traveling in Europe on a Christian cruise through the Mediterranean; and it’s been both edifying and convicting, to get these lessons in the context of a lot of wealth being on parade around us while those of us who came on this cruise to fellowship and learn from God’s word have had to keep our Christian values in tow. And all the while the economy seems to be crashing down around us with the stock market plummeting right at the same time we’re cruising gently through these Mediterranean waters. It’s like a life lesson in realizing what is important and trusting that God is in control; and HE always promises. How we deal with an attitude of self protection to keep us secure financially is another matter, for which I’m under conviction by not trusting God enough for my needs.
We need to realize that such ill-begotten priorities, involving the handling of God’s grace, constitutes a slap in God’s face. By taking selfish charge of God’s resources and hoarding or showing off, we dampen God’s ability, through His grace, to use HIS bounty for HIS glory through HIS servants. We don’t know what the cost might be for such selfishness; but Ananias and Sapphira certainly found out [read Acts 5: 1 – 10]. They were struck dead by God for their hoarding of what God commanded them to give to His Kingdom. Meditate on 2nd Cor. 9: 6-7 and ask yourself what God would have you give – CHEERFULLY and not with a begrudging attitude – for His kingdom.
When God says to seek Him and honor His kingdom first (again, Matt. 6: 33), He means it! And He will provide what we need. May I never forget His admonition; and may I never be ungrateful for His mercy and grace.
My Prayer Today: I say again, Lord, … may I never forget that it’s all Yours. Amen
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August 10, 2011 … Being a Wise Manager
Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 19a [see in bold/underlined] … 19a Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
My Journal for Today: In my recent devotional entries, the way I’ve been using God’s word to rail against greed and the love of money, one might get the idea that being wealthy or having material things is a bad thing in God’s eyes. NOT SO!!
As John MacArthur, in Strength for Today, reminds us in his entry for this date, both Old/New Testaments declare that any wealth or material providence for which we might have been blessed comes from God (see Deut. 8: 18 and 1st Cor. 4: 7 below).
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Deut. 8: 18 … But remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms His covenant, which He swore to your forefathers, as it is today.
1st Cor. 4: 7 … For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? …
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As God’s word says [above], “What do you have that you did not receive (from God)?” But beyond these pronouncements of truth about from whence our providence comes, Jesus in His parable of the Talents (Matt. 25: 14 – 30) teaches clearly that as His disciples, whether we have been given much or little, …we are ALL to be wise stewards of God’s providence and His blessings. So, it’s fine to HAVE [even great wealth] from God; but then, when His providence is put into our hands, we’re to use it for His glory.
MacArthur’s devotional on this date illustrates this for his readers with a true story of John Wesley, a Godly man who became quite wealthy in the 19th century by writing and publishing Christian hymns, many of which we still sing to this day. Wesley, by today’s standards, would be much like the Michael W. Smiths of today… financially blessed by the sale of Christian music, which then glorifies God. And both Wesley then and Smith now have used their providence for God as well. John Wesley not only used his musical talents for God’s Kingdom, but he is said to have had only 28 British pounds to his name at the time of his death, because he had carefully and selectively given away a fortune over his life in the service of the Lord.
No, … again, being wealthy is not a bad thing. Having “stuff” is not bad. In fact, it becomes a wonderful thing in God’s eyes when His providence is used to further His kingdom. Right now God has blessed me with an expensive computer, which has all the whistles and bells; but do I feel guilty about having such a fancy techno-tool, which has the potential to be involved in evil enterprise? No, because day-after-day, God has given me this tool to honor Him. Even as I type these devotional journal entries, this computer often plays lovely praise music, to which I listen during my prayer/praise/study times; and I sit here typing this devotional journal, using the word processor in this wonderful machine. A couple of years ago, my wife and I purchased a beautiful HDTV system from the providence of inheritance of my father’s passing. But before we purchased this expensive item, we prayed that the way we used that TV system would be for God’s glory (by the way we avoided worldly/fleshly viewing, concentrating on programming that would edify and relax our minds without involving us in ungodly viewing).
Certainly I am not the perfect witness in this arena. I still make selfish money decisions at times; but prayerfully God convicts me and I make course corrections along the way. And I pray that all who read this are seeking God’s will and direction when it comes to using the providence with which He has blessed us. To that end, may we all be vessels of His purpose.
My Prayer Today: Help me to use Your gifts, Lord, wisely for Your Kingdom. Amen
Friday, August 05, 2011
August 5, 2011 … Loving Money Focuses on the Temporal
Passage of the Day: 1st Timothy 6: 7 … 6 But godliness with contentment is great gain. 6 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.
My Journal for Today: You’ve heard it before … “You can’t take it with you!”
It’s a simple lesson, for sure; so this devotional entry will be short and sweet [well, maybe not-so-sweet]. But I’m almost sure that we’ve all experienced the desire to go for the most we can get in the here-and-now. Money-love very easily seduces non-believers and Christians alike into temporal concerns; and in doing so, believers can lose focus on our trust in God.
Today’s verse is a terse warning from Paul to Timothy (and, of course to all Christians), telling us that our concerns need to be on the eternal rather than on the temporal. And God’s word is replete with restatements of this concern (see Prov. 27: 24, Job 1: 21, and Eccl. 5: 15) as well as the direct teachings of Jesus (Mark 8: 26, Matt. 6: 19 – 21, and Luke 12: 15 – 21). And in this latter passage from Christ, the parable of the rich young fool, Jesus very pointedly teaches His followers that WE cannot know when we will be taken from this life and into our eternity. Therefore, He exhorts His disciples to cultivate and be ever vigilant with our attitude of trust in God … and to be in total surrender to God’s will and His providence.
God provides the temporal so that we can prepare for the eternal. In Christ we have our ALL-IN-ALL; and in Him we have our forever. [Oooh! That has to be a God-thought; because I made that up; and I’m not smart enough to think that one up!] … We really need say little else to emphasize this point.
My Prayer Today: Help me to trust You, Lord, for everything. Amen
My Journal for Today: You’ve heard it before … “You can’t take it with you!”
It’s a simple lesson, for sure; so this devotional entry will be short and sweet [well, maybe not-so-sweet]. But I’m almost sure that we’ve all experienced the desire to go for the most we can get in the here-and-now. Money-love very easily seduces non-believers and Christians alike into temporal concerns; and in doing so, believers can lose focus on our trust in God.
Today’s verse is a terse warning from Paul to Timothy (and, of course to all Christians), telling us that our concerns need to be on the eternal rather than on the temporal. And God’s word is replete with restatements of this concern (see Prov. 27: 24, Job 1: 21, and Eccl. 5: 15) as well as the direct teachings of Jesus (Mark 8: 26, Matt. 6: 19 – 21, and Luke 12: 15 – 21). And in this latter passage from Christ, the parable of the rich young fool, Jesus very pointedly teaches His followers that WE cannot know when we will be taken from this life and into our eternity. Therefore, He exhorts His disciples to cultivate and be ever vigilant with our attitude of trust in God … and to be in total surrender to God’s will and His providence.
God provides the temporal so that we can prepare for the eternal. In Christ we have our ALL-IN-ALL; and in Him we have our forever. [Oooh! That has to be a God-thought; because I made that up; and I’m not smart enough to think that one up!] … We really need say little else to emphasize this point.
My Prayer Today: Help me to trust You, Lord, for everything. Amen
Thursday, October 28, 2010
2010 – October 28 – An Uncomfortable Calling
Study from God’s Word… Luke 11: 37 - 13: 17 … Passage for Reflection: Luke 12: 32-34 … NIV [Jesus] 32"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
My Journal for Today: Ever hear the phrase, “... He wears his heart on his sleeve,” describing someone who easily and readily displays his emotions by his actions? Sure you have; but when it comes to our use of God’s providence (i.e., our finances), the issue Jesus strongly (and uncomfortably) points out in today’s reading is that we wear our spiritual heart on our sleeves when it comes to what we hold on to and what we do with God’s resources.
When we read Jesus’ exhortation, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also,...” does that resonate with our sensibilities? What about if we turn that challenge around and say, “For where our heart is, there your treasure will be also?” >>> OUCH!!!
You know, it’s been said that if you want to know if someone is really a Christian, look at two things: ... his calendar and his bank statement [i.e., checkbook, credit-card statement, and/or online banking statement]. And there is much convicting truth to that, isn’t there? The former shows how we’re using God-given time [and to some degree our talents]; and the latter exhibits how we’re using God’s treasure.
And as I’m reading today’s passages, mostly Jesus speaking to the Pharisees and those who were following Him around the countryside (at the time of the Sermon on the Mount), His words challenge me to look at my own financial decision making, which reflects my heart as a Christian. And I’m at the very least uncomfortable and maybe more accurately convicted to realize that I still hold pretty tightly to MY money. Even calling it “MY money,” if I were to do so (which, in this case I don’t) would tell someone where my heart would be, ... wouldn’t it? Because it’s not MY money, ... is it? It’s God’s - all of it; and ALL should be used for His glory, ... shouldn’t it?
Dr. Smith writes for those of us reading here today: ”How glibly we speak of ‘disposable income,’ the money we have left over after paying out for rent or mortgages, utilities, groceries, and other ‘necessary’ items. What part of that ‘disposable income’ goes to meet the needs of the poor, instead of expensive vacations, big-boy toys, and fashion items?” >>> Again ... ouch!!!
This hurts! But the question will be - at least for me - what am I going to do with this pain of conviction I’m feeling here this morning? Will I change the way I use GOD’S resources (i.e., HIS time, talent, and treasures); or will I continue to wear a self-driven heart on my sleeve for all to see. My choice; isn’t it? ... Yes, my choice!
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me to find and display YOUR heart by the way I use YOUR bounty. Amen
My Journal for Today: Ever hear the phrase, “... He wears his heart on his sleeve,” describing someone who easily and readily displays his emotions by his actions? Sure you have; but when it comes to our use of God’s providence (i.e., our finances), the issue Jesus strongly (and uncomfortably) points out in today’s reading is that we wear our spiritual heart on our sleeves when it comes to what we hold on to and what we do with God’s resources.
When we read Jesus’ exhortation, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also,...” does that resonate with our sensibilities? What about if we turn that challenge around and say, “For where our heart is, there your treasure will be also?” >>> OUCH!!!
You know, it’s been said that if you want to know if someone is really a Christian, look at two things: ... his calendar and his bank statement [i.e., checkbook, credit-card statement, and/or online banking statement]. And there is much convicting truth to that, isn’t there? The former shows how we’re using God-given time [and to some degree our talents]; and the latter exhibits how we’re using God’s treasure.
And as I’m reading today’s passages, mostly Jesus speaking to the Pharisees and those who were following Him around the countryside (at the time of the Sermon on the Mount), His words challenge me to look at my own financial decision making, which reflects my heart as a Christian. And I’m at the very least uncomfortable and maybe more accurately convicted to realize that I still hold pretty tightly to MY money. Even calling it “MY money,” if I were to do so (which, in this case I don’t) would tell someone where my heart would be, ... wouldn’t it? Because it’s not MY money, ... is it? It’s God’s - all of it; and ALL should be used for His glory, ... shouldn’t it?
Dr. Smith writes for those of us reading here today: ”How glibly we speak of ‘disposable income,’ the money we have left over after paying out for rent or mortgages, utilities, groceries, and other ‘necessary’ items. What part of that ‘disposable income’ goes to meet the needs of the poor, instead of expensive vacations, big-boy toys, and fashion items?” >>> Again ... ouch!!!
This hurts! But the question will be - at least for me - what am I going to do with this pain of conviction I’m feeling here this morning? Will I change the way I use GOD’S resources (i.e., HIS time, talent, and treasures); or will I continue to wear a self-driven heart on my sleeve for all to see. My choice; isn’t it? ... Yes, my choice!
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me to find and display YOUR heart by the way I use YOUR bounty. Amen
Friday, April 09, 2010
2010 – April 9 – A Matter of Priorities
Study from God’s Word…1st Chron. 16: 37-43; 2nd Sam. 8: 15-18 [1st Chron. 18: 14-17]; 2nd Sam. 9: 1-13; 2nd Sam. 7: 1-3 [1st Chron. 17: 1-2]; 2nd Sam. 7: 4-17 [1st Chron 17: 3-15]; 2nd Sam. 7: 18-29 [1st Chron. 17: 16-27]… Passage for Reflection: 1st Chronicles 17: 1 … NIV 1 After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, "Here I am, living in a palace of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under a tent."
My Journal for Today: Studying the interactions of King David, the Prophet Nathan, and The LORD in these passages today has interesting; and, at least for me, convicting implications on where our LORD resides and how we honor or dishonor Him in His residence, … i.e., His Temple.
In our readings today from 1st Chronicles and the parallel passages in 2nd Samuel, we read how God liked and affirmed David’s idea to build a Temple, a permanent residence for God, rather than where the LORD had been housed for so many years … i.e., in an ark in a tent as the people wandered in the wilderness. David wanted to honor God and give Him an elaborate and permanent residence, where the Ark and God’s place on earth could be established in a Tabernacle of Worship for God. And God apparently like the idea, though David himself was never allowed to build the Temple. We know, as we read ahead in God’s word, that this honor and task fell to David’s son, Solomon.
But our focus verse for today, 1st Chronicles 17: 1 (along with 2nd Sam. 7: 1), documents David’s conviction for not doing enough to honor God’s residence in the Ark of the Covenant, feeling that God’s residence should be honored with more than just the impermanence of a tent. And this raises my conviction from meditating on these passages.
My question is, simply stated: What do we do to honor God in His established residence, … i.e., His Temple, … our bodies? We do a lot to honor God with the collective family places for God’s worship and service, … i.e., the church structures and organizations we build and maintain. However, when it comes down to the bottom line of honoring God where HE has chosen to reside, I’m afraid we do not show our LORD the honor He is due by how we maintain His temple, … i.e., our bodies. And how do we know that our bodies are His temple? Well that one is laid out in God’s teaching, through Paul, in 1st Cor. 3: 16-17 and 1st Cor. 6: 19-20 two passages you hopefully know by heart or at least by reference to subject matter [links provided, however].
My friends, I don’t do enough to prioritize my life in a way that honors “God’s Temple” (i.e., my body) in the way it should be honored. That is the reason, this year, as I undertook the discipline to read through the entire Bible, to honor God with my time and my mental devotions, I also decided to document – DAILY – what I was doing to maintain the habits which allow me to steward God’s Temple, … my body. And each day, thus far through this year, I have documented, for an accountability partner and for a group, what I’m doing in daily disciplines involving eating, exercise, and the avoidance of sin patterns which pollute my body, … God’s Temple.
It was more than a New Year’s resolution this year. Like King David, I became convicted that I needed to do more to give God the residence He deserved in my life. So, every day this year, I’ve been recording how I do on certain body stewardship disciplines.
No, I’m not perfect on them; but thus far I’m doing much better during this year to be a more God-honoring steward of the Temple He has given me to maintain and manage for His glory. My prayer, below, will be that I will continue to do this for this year … and beyond.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me honor You more deeply by keeping Your Temple clean; and I pray You give me the enabled grace to honor you with how I maintain Your Temple, … my body. Amen
My Journal for Today: Studying the interactions of King David, the Prophet Nathan, and The LORD in these passages today has interesting; and, at least for me, convicting implications on where our LORD resides and how we honor or dishonor Him in His residence, … i.e., His Temple.
In our readings today from 1st Chronicles and the parallel passages in 2nd Samuel, we read how God liked and affirmed David’s idea to build a Temple, a permanent residence for God, rather than where the LORD had been housed for so many years … i.e., in an ark in a tent as the people wandered in the wilderness. David wanted to honor God and give Him an elaborate and permanent residence, where the Ark and God’s place on earth could be established in a Tabernacle of Worship for God. And God apparently like the idea, though David himself was never allowed to build the Temple. We know, as we read ahead in God’s word, that this honor and task fell to David’s son, Solomon.
But our focus verse for today, 1st Chronicles 17: 1 (along with 2nd Sam. 7: 1), documents David’s conviction for not doing enough to honor God’s residence in the Ark of the Covenant, feeling that God’s residence should be honored with more than just the impermanence of a tent. And this raises my conviction from meditating on these passages.
My question is, simply stated: What do we do to honor God in His established residence, … i.e., His Temple, … our bodies? We do a lot to honor God with the collective family places for God’s worship and service, … i.e., the church structures and organizations we build and maintain. However, when it comes down to the bottom line of honoring God where HE has chosen to reside, I’m afraid we do not show our LORD the honor He is due by how we maintain His temple, … i.e., our bodies. And how do we know that our bodies are His temple? Well that one is laid out in God’s teaching, through Paul, in 1st Cor. 3: 16-17 and 1st Cor. 6: 19-20 two passages you hopefully know by heart or at least by reference to subject matter [links provided, however].
My friends, I don’t do enough to prioritize my life in a way that honors “God’s Temple” (i.e., my body) in the way it should be honored. That is the reason, this year, as I undertook the discipline to read through the entire Bible, to honor God with my time and my mental devotions, I also decided to document – DAILY – what I was doing to maintain the habits which allow me to steward God’s Temple, … my body. And each day, thus far through this year, I have documented, for an accountability partner and for a group, what I’m doing in daily disciplines involving eating, exercise, and the avoidance of sin patterns which pollute my body, … God’s Temple.
It was more than a New Year’s resolution this year. Like King David, I became convicted that I needed to do more to give God the residence He deserved in my life. So, every day this year, I’ve been recording how I do on certain body stewardship disciplines.
No, I’m not perfect on them; but thus far I’m doing much better during this year to be a more God-honoring steward of the Temple He has given me to maintain and manage for His glory. My prayer, below, will be that I will continue to do this for this year … and beyond.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me honor You more deeply by keeping Your Temple clean; and I pray You give me the enabled grace to honor you with how I maintain Your Temple, … my body. Amen
Sunday, April 04, 2010
2010 – April 4 – The Difficult Virtue of Sharing
Blogger’s Note: HAPPY EASTER, one and all !!!
Study from God’s Word…1st Samuel 25: 1 – 1st Samuel 27: 7; 1st Chronicles 12: 1 – 7; 1st Samuel 27; 8 – 1st Samuel 29: 22; 1st Samuel 30: 1 - 31 … Passage for Reflection: 1st Samuel 25: 10 - 11 … NIV 10 Nabal answered David's servants, "Who is this David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants are breaking away from their masters these days. 11 Why should I take my bread and water, and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men coming from who knows where?"
My Journal for Today: As I was led to study today’s lesson from Dr. Smith, my devotional author from The Daily Bible Devotional, I think I would have missed the truth I needed to glean from today’s Old Testament passage if Dr. Smith had not helped me see it. And here it is.
So often in life we get to the place where we think that we OWN something God has placed in our charge. In this case the man, Nabal, got the idea that he owned the water David and his men were asking to share. And, as it was his human nature, Nabal balked at sharing the natural resources with David and his soldiers, men who had been their enemies in the past.
Have you ever been in a place where you had control of something God had put in your trust, perhaps something you had come to “own,” such as your financial resources; and you were given the opportunity to share those resources with others; but you balked, thinking, in your mind, that the money was yours rather than God’s.
Well, I’ve certainly been in that place; and I’m afraid it’s all too easy to get the idea that the money or physical resources are MINE, rather than me being God’s steward for the Lord to dole out to others as HE sees fit. My friend, so much of what we “have” is really not “ours.” It is God’s; and He alone should be the arbiter of how it is used.
Yes, it’s easy to bring a dish to a potluck when I can imagine that I’m going to get something to eat in return; but how easy is it to share what God has given me, i.e., to be God’s steward when I have no expectation of any return … just the knowledge that someone else is going to benefit from God’s generosity through me. It’s hard to let it go, isn’t it?
Today, I need to do an inventory on my heart; because God’s truth, spoken through Jesus, Himself, has bubbled up in my consciousness, when the Lord said [in Matt. 6: 19-21], 19"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Oh, I will pray this morning that today’s lesson helps me to remember that what I have, I have from God; and when HE gives me opportunity to share that treasure for those in need, my heart should release what is God’s anyway for His purposes and for His glory.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me to see and live that principle that it’s all Yours for You to use as You see fit. Amen
Study from God’s Word…1st Samuel 25: 1 – 1st Samuel 27: 7; 1st Chronicles 12: 1 – 7; 1st Samuel 27; 8 – 1st Samuel 29: 22; 1st Samuel 30: 1 - 31 … Passage for Reflection: 1st Samuel 25: 10 - 11 … NIV 10 Nabal answered David's servants, "Who is this David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants are breaking away from their masters these days. 11 Why should I take my bread and water, and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men coming from who knows where?"
My Journal for Today: As I was led to study today’s lesson from Dr. Smith, my devotional author from The Daily Bible Devotional, I think I would have missed the truth I needed to glean from today’s Old Testament passage if Dr. Smith had not helped me see it. And here it is.
So often in life we get to the place where we think that we OWN something God has placed in our charge. In this case the man, Nabal, got the idea that he owned the water David and his men were asking to share. And, as it was his human nature, Nabal balked at sharing the natural resources with David and his soldiers, men who had been their enemies in the past.
Have you ever been in a place where you had control of something God had put in your trust, perhaps something you had come to “own,” such as your financial resources; and you were given the opportunity to share those resources with others; but you balked, thinking, in your mind, that the money was yours rather than God’s.
Well, I’ve certainly been in that place; and I’m afraid it’s all too easy to get the idea that the money or physical resources are MINE, rather than me being God’s steward for the Lord to dole out to others as HE sees fit. My friend, so much of what we “have” is really not “ours.” It is God’s; and He alone should be the arbiter of how it is used.
Yes, it’s easy to bring a dish to a potluck when I can imagine that I’m going to get something to eat in return; but how easy is it to share what God has given me, i.e., to be God’s steward when I have no expectation of any return … just the knowledge that someone else is going to benefit from God’s generosity through me. It’s hard to let it go, isn’t it?
Today, I need to do an inventory on my heart; because God’s truth, spoken through Jesus, Himself, has bubbled up in my consciousness, when the Lord said [in Matt. 6: 19-21], 19"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Oh, I will pray this morning that today’s lesson helps me to remember that what I have, I have from God; and when HE gives me opportunity to share that treasure for those in need, my heart should release what is God’s anyway for His purposes and for His glory.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me to see and live that principle that it’s all Yours for You to use as You see fit. Amen
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
2010 – Day 40. Feb. 9 – Nothing But the Finest for God
Study from Numbers 16 – 18; Passage for Reflection: Numbers 18: 29 … NIV [God’s instructions to the Levites through Moses] You must present as the Lord’s portion the best and holiest part of everything given to you.
My Journal for Today: Tithing. It seems so legalist, … so arbitrary, … doesn’t it? It almost seems like God is modeling selfishness by wanting the first and the best as He commands us to give to Him. And then, He not only asks His children to give the best of their best to His Priesthood, He turns around and asks the Levites, His Priesthood, to give the very best from the Tithe as their tithe to God.
And if you’ve read along with me today, in Numbers 16, there is the story of how God handled those who rebelled and decided that God’s Priesthood had gone too far in their demands (which, of course, were only the commands of God passed along to His chosen people from Moses). Today, there are many Christians who have trouble with the concept of the “TITHE;” and I’m not going to get into that Old Covenant verses New Covenant theological debate here. But no matter who you are as a believer in Christ, there is no doubt that God has a lot to say in His word to His kids about stewardship, giving, and how we prioritize the handling of God’s providence.
You probably know – or I hope you do – what God’s word highlights about tithing, giving, and being a steward of His talents, time, or treasures. And if you cannot glean from God’s truth that He demands the first and the best from what He’s given to us as a marker of our devotion to Him, I think you need to do some serious study on this. Because when I read passages like those linked here ... Malachi 3: 7 – 10 … or Proverbs 3: 9 – 10 … or 2nd Cor. 9: 6 -7 … or [Jesus Himself teaching about stewardship] in Matt. 25: 14-30 and Matt. 6: 19 – 24, it seems so very obvious to me that what we do with what God has given us is how God measures our devotion to Him as our Lord.
So, a long time ago, my wife and I decided to quit debating about whether the “tithe” was an Old Testament or New Testament command on our lives. We decided to prioritize what God had given us, i.e., time, talents, and/or treasures; and without questioning or grumbling, to gratefully and joyfully give the first and the best portion of His providence back to Him. Now, I can almost feel the wheels turning in the minds of those who are reading here, some of you asking, “Well, Bill (and Elly), how do you do that … this business of tithing and giving of our time, talents, and treasures?” And I agree that this is a very important question which we all need to answer from God’s teaching and leading. My wife and I have studied on this, prayed about it, and we’ve decided how we go about giving back to God His first and His best from His providence. And I’m not about to try to legalistically say here’s THE ANSWER, the “Berry Patch” answer, to that challenging question for you.
No, you’re going to have to answer that one for yourself; but I will say that those verses I’ve prioritized above [see those linked, emboldened and underlined] would be a good place to start if you’re trying to answer this very important question related to Godly Stewardship. But … please [!!!] don’t put it off; because putting off how you give back to God will delay just how much God can or will pour Himself into your lives; and you don’t want to be delaying the dispersal of God’s grace in your life either because you’re ignorant of God’s plan for giving or because you’re simply not willing to cooperate with His plan.
So let’s all answer the question my devotional shepherd, F. LaGard Smith, challenges us with today. He writes, Of all that I give to God today, will it truly be the best and the holiest?”
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I pray that my life is truly a living sacrifice; and I pray that I’m always giving back without hesitation the first and the best You have given to me. Amen
My Journal for Today: Tithing. It seems so legalist, … so arbitrary, … doesn’t it? It almost seems like God is modeling selfishness by wanting the first and the best as He commands us to give to Him. And then, He not only asks His children to give the best of their best to His Priesthood, He turns around and asks the Levites, His Priesthood, to give the very best from the Tithe as their tithe to God.
And if you’ve read along with me today, in Numbers 16, there is the story of how God handled those who rebelled and decided that God’s Priesthood had gone too far in their demands (which, of course, were only the commands of God passed along to His chosen people from Moses). Today, there are many Christians who have trouble with the concept of the “TITHE;” and I’m not going to get into that Old Covenant verses New Covenant theological debate here. But no matter who you are as a believer in Christ, there is no doubt that God has a lot to say in His word to His kids about stewardship, giving, and how we prioritize the handling of God’s providence.
You probably know – or I hope you do – what God’s word highlights about tithing, giving, and being a steward of His talents, time, or treasures. And if you cannot glean from God’s truth that He demands the first and the best from what He’s given to us as a marker of our devotion to Him, I think you need to do some serious study on this. Because when I read passages like those linked here ... Malachi 3: 7 – 10 … or Proverbs 3: 9 – 10 … or 2nd Cor. 9: 6 -7 … or [Jesus Himself teaching about stewardship] in Matt. 25: 14-30 and Matt. 6: 19 – 24, it seems so very obvious to me that what we do with what God has given us is how God measures our devotion to Him as our Lord.
So, a long time ago, my wife and I decided to quit debating about whether the “tithe” was an Old Testament or New Testament command on our lives. We decided to prioritize what God had given us, i.e., time, talents, and/or treasures; and without questioning or grumbling, to gratefully and joyfully give the first and the best portion of His providence back to Him. Now, I can almost feel the wheels turning in the minds of those who are reading here, some of you asking, “Well, Bill (and Elly), how do you do that … this business of tithing and giving of our time, talents, and treasures?” And I agree that this is a very important question which we all need to answer from God’s teaching and leading. My wife and I have studied on this, prayed about it, and we’ve decided how we go about giving back to God His first and His best from His providence. And I’m not about to try to legalistically say here’s THE ANSWER, the “Berry Patch” answer, to that challenging question for you.
No, you’re going to have to answer that one for yourself; but I will say that those verses I’ve prioritized above [see those linked, emboldened and underlined] would be a good place to start if you’re trying to answer this very important question related to Godly Stewardship. But … please [!!!] don’t put it off; because putting off how you give back to God will delay just how much God can or will pour Himself into your lives; and you don’t want to be delaying the dispersal of God’s grace in your life either because you’re ignorant of God’s plan for giving or because you’re simply not willing to cooperate with His plan.
So let’s all answer the question my devotional shepherd, F. LaGard Smith, challenges us with today. He writes, Of all that I give to God today, will it truly be the best and the holiest?”
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I pray that my life is truly a living sacrifice; and I pray that I’m always giving back without hesitation the first and the best You have given to me. Amen
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
2009 – Day 348.Dec 15 – Holding Too Tightly
Blogger’s Note: For the remainder of December Pastor Swindoll will be looking at three brief character studies which give him the opportunity to make some closing points for the year. The first of these deals with the great patriarch, Abraham.
Passage for Study: Genesis 22: 1 – 2 … 1 Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”
And he said, “Here I am.”
2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
My Journal for Today: If you’re a Bible reading, Bible studying Christian, as I would pray we all are, especially those reading here, we know what happens after reading this passage. Pastor Swindoll has gone to Abraham for today’s devotional lesson. And perhaps you can identify with Swindoll’s main point today, as he writes, ”… Anything we hold dear, we must learn to hold loosely. … If we hold anything too tightly, it probably has us rather then our having it.” I definitely agree with Pastor Chuck that we do have a tendency to clutch too closely the things we adore the most.
And for those of us who’ve been blessed as parents to steward the growth and development of children, given to us by God, when they grow up and leave the nest, it can be difficult to let them go. And can you imagine what Abraham, who had been given one – and only one - son so late in life, must have thought when God put him through that horrible test of faith with Isaac? But we know just how much trust Abraham put in God by following exactly what God instructed him to do, just as he had done years earlier when God told him to pack up everything and go to a land Abram knew not (see Genesis 12).
What are you holding onto too tightly, not trusting your life and times to God? Is it your security, your money, your talents, or maybe your time? Maybe it’s even your child or children. Oh, how we have a tendency to grip tightly those things in our lives we’ve come to hold onto so dearly. But my friend, we have to decide, as did Abraham, if we can live under the exhortation of Proverbs 3: 5, … to … “Trust in the Lord with ALL our heart!” (emphasis added) God’s word doesn’t say MOST of our heart; does it? And all too often in my past I’ve held too tightly to stuff in my life, … things which became idols of possession rather than tools of stewardship for God’s glory. And even our kids can become that to us.
So, I take this lesson today under the conviction of my past attitudes and actions; and I point myself in a direction to LET GO AND LET GOD. Will we join Abraham and let go of even the things which mean the most to us? Will we have enough faith and trust in God to give everything which He’s given to us over to Him so that He can truly be THE LORD in our lives? That is my prayer here today.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, take it all. Take me. Test me if You must; but let all You’ve given to me be Yours … for Your glory. Amen
Passage for Study: Genesis 22: 1 – 2 … 1 Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”
And he said, “Here I am.”
2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
My Journal for Today: If you’re a Bible reading, Bible studying Christian, as I would pray we all are, especially those reading here, we know what happens after reading this passage. Pastor Swindoll has gone to Abraham for today’s devotional lesson. And perhaps you can identify with Swindoll’s main point today, as he writes, ”… Anything we hold dear, we must learn to hold loosely. … If we hold anything too tightly, it probably has us rather then our having it.” I definitely agree with Pastor Chuck that we do have a tendency to clutch too closely the things we adore the most.
And for those of us who’ve been blessed as parents to steward the growth and development of children, given to us by God, when they grow up and leave the nest, it can be difficult to let them go. And can you imagine what Abraham, who had been given one – and only one - son so late in life, must have thought when God put him through that horrible test of faith with Isaac? But we know just how much trust Abraham put in God by following exactly what God instructed him to do, just as he had done years earlier when God told him to pack up everything and go to a land Abram knew not (see Genesis 12).
What are you holding onto too tightly, not trusting your life and times to God? Is it your security, your money, your talents, or maybe your time? Maybe it’s even your child or children. Oh, how we have a tendency to grip tightly those things in our lives we’ve come to hold onto so dearly. But my friend, we have to decide, as did Abraham, if we can live under the exhortation of Proverbs 3: 5, … to … “Trust in the Lord with ALL our heart!” (emphasis added) God’s word doesn’t say MOST of our heart; does it? And all too often in my past I’ve held too tightly to stuff in my life, … things which became idols of possession rather than tools of stewardship for God’s glory. And even our kids can become that to us.
So, I take this lesson today under the conviction of my past attitudes and actions; and I point myself in a direction to LET GO AND LET GOD. Will we join Abraham and let go of even the things which mean the most to us? Will we have enough faith and trust in God to give everything which He’s given to us over to Him so that He can truly be THE LORD in our lives? That is my prayer here today.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, take it all. Take me. Test me if You must; but let all You’ve given to me be Yours … for Your glory. Amen
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