Category: Uncategorised

Nehemiah 5:1-19; Haggai 2:1-23; Revelation 10:1-11

So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter in law, with her. Ruth 1:22

Do you ever feel that your contribution to the work of God is small and insignificant? I do. Then I think of Ruth. She was a foreigner, poor, and in a strange land. She spent her days hunting for grain that had fallen on the ground after harvest. Not a very glamorous life, nor was she someone that would be thought important. Yet through a divine chain of events, she became a link in the lineage of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. What an honour for a lowly gleaner. He has plans for me too. —Debbie Douglas

Jesus bids us shine, with a clear, pure light,
Like a little candle burning in the night;
In this world of darkness we must shine,
You in your small corner, and I in mine. —Susan Warner

Nehemiah 4:1-23; Haggai 1:1-15; Revelation 9:1-21

Awake, O sword…against the man that is my fellow. Zech. 13:7

“My fellow” could be rendered, “my nearest one”. The equality between the Father and the Son is absolute and mutually delightful. For us to enjoy this relationship, “my nearest one” became “the man”, morally perfect and fully pleasing to the Father in every act, thought, motive, and word. Every one of our sins—first to last, was ever present in God’s mind. Human wickedness and rebellion constantly affronted His holiness. In one event at Calvary, righteous anger against both sin and sins awoke as Christ hung on the cross. All because God loves you and me. Who can comprehend such grace? —David W. Oliver

Jehovah bade His sword awake; O Christ, it woke ‘gainst Thee!
Thy blood the flaming blade must slake; Thy heart its sheath must be.  —A. Cousin

Nehemiah 3:1-32; Daniel 12:1-13; Revelation 8:1-13

Who hath declared this from ancient time?…have not I the Lord? And there is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me. Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. Isaiah 45:21-22

There is only one God. He is Lord (Jehovah), the trustworthy, covenant keeping God who delights to reveal Himself. He is God (Elohim), a trinity, holy and unique, separate from His creation. He is a just God (El), the Almighty who exercises His power in perfect righteousness. There is only one Saviour, the Lord Jesus (Jehovah saves) who died to save us. Have you received Him? —George Ferrier

His plea echoes from eternity throughout the earth,
“look to Him and be saved.”—George Ferrier

Nehemiah 1:1-2:20; Daniel 11:21-45; Revelation 7:1-17

Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple. Psalm 65:4

How wonderful! That we might approach God and find satisfaction as we dwell in His courts. We know we have this privilege only in and through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 1:2). How remarkable to have full access to the God of heaven at any time of day or night. We can bring our needs to Him and thank Him for the blessings He bestows! —G. Frear

Lord, in Thy presence, silent I would be,
That in the inmost, I to Thee may come;
I would not in my own way pray to Thee,
But let Thy prayer in me, my prayer become. —W. Lee

Ezra 10:1-44; Daniel 11:1-20; Revelation 6:1-17

I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness. John 12:46 NKJV

When one comes to know the Lord Jesus as their Saviour it is as if blinders have been removed from their eyes. The light of the glorious Gospel has dawned and they cannot get enough of God’s Word. That gives those who are preachers of God’s Word incentive to keep on preaching and to missionaries to never to give up and to all of us to be faithful witnesses. We never know whom God has arranged to hear His Gospel that day. —Rosemary J. Richardson

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind but now I see. —John Newton

Ezra 9:1-15; Daniel 10:1-21; Revelation 5:1-14

And thus shall ye eat it (the Passover lamb); with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand. Ex. 12:11

Plague after plague swept through the land of Egypt. When this, the last plague, arrived—the death of the firstborn—God instructed His people, as shown in our subject verse, to be ready to leave that very night for their “promised land”. We live in similar times. Catastrophe after catastrophe, plague after plague is sweeping our world, and mankind with all its resources, is completely impotent to deal with them. Under these circumstances, we, like the children of Israel on the Passover night, must be on “high-alert” to leave at a moment’s notice to meet the Lord in the air, and be escorted to our “promised land”, Heaven. —Willie H. Burnett

Midst the darkness, storm and sorrow, one bright gleam I see,
Well I know the blessed morrow, Christ will come for me. —P. Gerhardt

Ezra 8:1-36; Daniel 9:1-27; Revelation 4:1-11

The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee. Numbers 6:25

The word “shine” can also be rendered “to enlighten, show favour, or smile with approval”. We are reminded here that His face is ever toward us. We live in His presence. We cannot flee from His gaze. May our lives be so lived that it will bring a “smile of approval” to our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Truly a smile of His grace.  —Sam Thorpe

Ever lift Thy face upon me,
As I work and wait for Thee;
Resting ‘neath Thy smile, Lord Jesus,
Earth’s dark shadows flee.  —J. S. Pigott

Ezra 7:1-28; Daniel 8:1-27; Revelation 3:7-22

For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations. Psalm 100:5

There are certain people whose compassion and genuine love for God and His people encourage us immensely. They remind us that in times of great darkness, God’s love will always shine through. For several years I have had the joy of doing daily Scripture copywork with women from all around the world. Writing out truths from God’s precious Word has had a great impact on my life. The Bible is a treasure overflowing with riches we can share with people we encounter every day and surely its central truth is that Jesus loves us with an everlasting love (Jer. 31:3). —Pam Hagey

He gave His life, what more could He give? O how He loves you and me.
What He did there brought hope from despair. O how He loves you and me.  —Kurt Kaiser

Ezra 6:1-22; Daniel 7:1-28; Revelation 2:18-3:6

On the morrow after the sabbath. Leviticus 23:11, 15, 16

While the sabbath was an integral part of the feast days of Israel (Lev. 23) those feasts that feature typically in the new covenant were observed on “the morrow after the sabbath” (Lev. 23:11, 15)— Sunday. Thus, the Feast of Firstfruits, a type of Christ in His Resurrection (I Cor. 15:22) and the Feast of Pentecost, the Church born on Pentecost (Acts 2:1) were observed on this day. For the Church, there is no more observance of the Sabbath (Col. 2:16). All Christians have the Lord’s Day to look forward to as they remember the Lord in His death at the Lord’s Supper. Are you observing this day? —K. C. Ung

Gathered at Thy table, Lord; here the bread and wine are spread.
Thou, our High Priest, present here; we, by Thee, are richly fed.  —Anonymous

Ezra 5:1-17; Daniel 6:1-28; Revelation 2:1-17

Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father’s house…for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him. Psalm 45:10-11

After speaking of the two advents of Christ, the focus of this Messianic psalm turns to the King’s consort and her preparation to be His bride. She is to be marked by obedience to, occupation with, and obeisance before the One who is her Lord. Such loving submission will see her, as she appears with the King in glory, “to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints” (Rev. 19:8 NKJV). —Phil Coulson

Thou too shalt reign!
He will not wear His crown of joy alone;
And earth His royal bride shall see,
Beside Him on the throne. —Edward Denny