DAILY?READINGS: Leviticus 8; Psalm 108; Mark 1:1-20
But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody. 1 Peter 4:15
If I swim with alligators and suffer wounds, I am not suffering as a believer, I am suffering as a fool! If I slip on ice and break my leg, I am not suffering as a believer or a fool, I am suffering as a victim. Here Peter suggests four other things that should never be equated with saintly suffering: a murderer who steals peoples’ lives; a thief who steals peoples’ things; an evildoer who steals peoples’ peace; and a busybody who steals peoples’ privacy. If I am held accountable for any of these, I am suffering as a sinner. There is shame if I suffer for these; but no shame if I suffer for Christ (v. 16). —Norman Craig Funston
Keep me ever close to Thee, blessèd Saviour, dear to me, With Thy cords of love so tender, bind and keep me close to Thee. —Fanny J. Crosby