Month: January 2014

 

DAILY?READINGS: Gen. 15-16; Job 18-19; Matt. 8:28 to 9:17

And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.     John 17:3
That I may know him.     Philippians 3:10

The Christian life is more than just a stagnant assent to a code of rules or a belief in some ancient, stale dogma. It is the fresh and vital knowledge of a real person and experiencing a living relationship with Him. It is fluid and dynamic, pragmatic and exciting and it is eternal. What an awesome God! Do you know Him?    —Sid Halsband

‘Tis eternal life to know Him;
O how He loves!
O how He loves!
Think, O think how much we owe Him;
O how He loves! —M. Nunn

 

DAILY?READINGS: Gen. 13-14; Job 16-17; Matt. 8:1-27

And having an high priest over the house of God.    Hebrews 10:21
For that Sabbath day was an high day.    John 19:31

The religious Jews were more interested in their high day than in the great High Priest they were rejecting and crucifying. The day was more sacred to them than God Himself. We need to take care that we do not “observe days, and months, and times, and years,” (Gal. 4:10) which only make us “holier than thou” (Isa. 65:5). We should simply draw near, knowing our High Priest is all we need.    —Tom Steere

No bone of thee was broken, Thou spotless paschal Lamb!
Of life and peace a token to us who know Thy name;
The Head, for all the members, the curse, the vengeance bore,
And God, our God remembers His people’s sins no more.
—Robert C. Chapman

 

DAILY?READINGS: Gen. 11:27 to 12:20; Job 15; Matt. 7:7-29

Thy word is truth.    John 17:17

Europe and the Americas were once called “Christian”. But increasingly this part of the world is rejecting the Bible as a source of moral and spiritual truth. People claim morals are subjective. It is up to the individual to determine what is right. Tolerance is the new morality, the first and great commandment. And so we see lives and homes being destroyed by dissolute behaviour, infidelity and divorce. God’s commandments are always for our good. It is time for Christians to stand for God’s truth, to proclaim the Gospel boldly and to stand for moral truth. And one must begin at home. Are you walking in the truth, obeying God’s truth? Begin today.    —Donald Norbie

Holy Lord God! I love Thy truth, nor dare Thy least commandment slight;
Yet pierced by sin, the serpent’s tooth, I mourn the anguish of the bite.
—William Cowper

 

DAILY?READINGS: Gen. 10 to 11:26; Job 13-14; Matt. 6:19 to 7:6

Thy mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens; and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds.    Psalm 36:5

When the rain clouds of trouble hang heavily above our head, when the thunderheads of crisis threaten, when the fogs of gloom and despair obscure all but the next step, God’s faithfulness is over and around us still. Whatever clouds may be overshadowing your life, God’s steadfast love will reach even to them.    ­—Marilyn MacMullen

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread,
Are big with mercy and shall break;
In blessings on your head.
—William Cowper

 

DAILY?READINGS: Gen. 8:20 to 9:29; Job 11-12; Matt. 6:1-18

…they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.    Acts 2:41
Many of them which heard the word believed; and the number of the men was about five thousand.    Acts 4:4

Three thousand souls saved! Five thousand souls saved! The surprise is that the men leading this evangelical surge were scathingly referred to as “ignorant and unlearned men”. Where then was the secret to their power? Surely it was that they were “filled with the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:4). Perhaps one of our failures today is that we depend more on our programs and techniques to the exclusion of the Holy Spirit. May we all covet to be filled with the Holy Spirit.    —W. H. Burnett

O fill me with Thy fullness, Lord, until my very heart o’erflow,
In kindly thought and glowing word, Thy love to tell, Thy praise to show.
—Frances Ridley Havergal

 

DAILY?READINGS: Gen. 7:11 to 8:19; Job 9-10; Matt. 5:21-48

We will not hide them from their children, showing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.    Psalm 78:4

As children of God we have a responsibility to show our children and grandchildren the greatness of God. “One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts” (Ps. 145:4). We do it so that they might set their hope in God and keep His commandments. Our nation’s rampant ungodliness is evidence that we have not faithfully done this. May we ever seek to tell what great things God has done.    —D. Pickup

Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your blessings, see what God hath done;
Count your blessings, name them one by one;
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done. —J. Oatman, Jr.

 

DAILY?READINGS: Genesis 6 to 7:10; Job 8; Matthew 5:1-20

And they departed quickly from the sepulcher with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word…behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him.    Matthew 28:8-9

Excitedly, joyful disciples ran from the empty tomb. They must tell their fearful colleagues, occupying an upper room in Jerusalem, the wonderful news. It was then they met their equally rejoicing Saviour.  With their eyes aflame, and His the same, they were overwhelmed with delight as they held their Lord. When we first see our Saviour, will our reaction be similar to theirs? Will we joyfully worship Him? In anticipation of that day, let us worship and adore Him today. —Arnot P. McIntee

O the blessed joy of meeting; all the desert past!
O the wondrous words of greeting, He shall speak at last! —P. Gerhardt

 

DAILY?READINGS: Genesis 4-5; Job 6-7; Matthew 4

The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein.    Psalm 111:2

The Cavendish Laboratory is a world famous research centre of experimental physics based at the University of Cambridge. Above its main entrance are inscribed the words of today’s verse. What a fitting tribute, that where the best of human intellect seeks to understand the secrets of physical phenomena, due recognition is given to the power and wisdom of the Creator.    ­—Brian Powlesland

O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the works thy hands hath made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.
—Stuart K. Hine

 

DAILY?READINGS: Genesis 3; Job 4-5; Matthew 3

And exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.    Jude 3

Jude was deeply concerned about the problems facing the believers of his day. His warnings to them are given with force and authority. At the root of their problems was a drift from truth that had become an open denial of God’s Word. Foundational truth was paramount to Jude and it ought to be to you and me. Someone has well said, “I looked for the church and I found it in the world and I looked for the world and I found it in the church.” The only cure for such a situation is renewed obedience to the Scriptures. May God preserve us in this day of departure!     —James Comte

Revive Thy work, O Lord! Disturb the sleep of death:
Quicken the smouldering embers, Lord, by Thine almighty breath.
—Albert Midlane

 

DAILY?READINGS: Gen. 2:4-25; Job 2:11 to 3:26; Matt. 2

Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.     1 Corinthians 9:24

With each new year comes the desire for a fresh start. Past goals are evaluated and new goals are set. Here are two biblical standards to guide our priorities in this new year before us. First of all, our goals must be honouring to God’s name (Col. 3:17). Secondly, our goals must be set before the Lord in prayer to see whether they are His will for us (Phil. 4:6). If these criteria cannot be met, the goal is not worth our effort.    —Sam Thorpe

Marching on, marching on,
For Christ count everything but loss!
And to crown Him King, we’ll toil and sing,
Beneath the banner of the cross!
—D. W. Whittle