Shifting the Blame (and other devotionals)

Romans 8:3

(3) For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,
New King James Version   

The context of Romans 8 is somewhat different than the context in Hebrews 8, but the principle Paul deals with is similar. Flesh in Romans 8:3 refers to people. The problem with the Old Covenant was not with its laws, but with one of the parties who made the covenant—"them" (Hebrews 8:8). Obviously, he refers to the people who made the covenant. They would not keep its terms!

This is confirmed by the Old Testament record, which shows that Israel never kept the Old Covenant except for brief periods of time. This is why there are so many references in the Old Testament to their being stiff-necked, being fornicators or adulterers, or filled with iniquity.

It was not that Israel could not keep the terms of the covenant but that they would not. God's intent in making the Old Covenant was limited. Israel should have been able to keep its terms. To think otherwise is to accuse God of being unfair in His proposition and having taken advantage of Israel's ignorance. Human nature is always looking for ways to shift blame.

We must be careful, or we might be guilty of doing the same thing under the New Covenant. We could say that it is too hard, and use our complaint as a justification for our failures and bad attitudes. Jesus anticipated this.

In the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25, He gives five talents to one, two talents to another, and one talent to a third. The response of the person to whom He gave one talent is, "I knew that You were a hard man, and that You reap where you do not sow. And therefore I hid it" (Matthew 25:24-25). He is saying, "God, You were too hard!" He essentially shifts the blame to God. Jesus understood that human nature never changes: It always wants to shift the blame!

~John W. Ritenbaugh~

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His name is the Word of God. (Revelation 19:13)

There is one all-governing fact which runs right through the ages. It is that Christ is in all the thoughts and ways of God. That is a statement that is comprehensive. Through all the ages, in all the thoughts of God, and in all the ways of God, Christ is central, Christ is supreme. Everything relates to Him, and everything connects with Him; Christ is the end, for Christ was the beginning. If we could stand by the side of God and see through God’s eyes, and become governed by God’s mentality, we should recognize that God has but one thought and that one thought is influencing Him in every one of His dealings with men, with nations, and with the world throughout all the ages. That one thought centers in His Son, Jesus Christ, and therefore the very essence of revelation, and the very heart of spiritual enlightenment is that you see Christ in all those thoughts and ways of God as they are expressed in His Word and in His activities.

If you ask: "What is revelation, what is it to have spiritual enlightenment?" The answer is this: that you are able to see in a living and ever-growing way God’s thoughts as centered in Christ. We could put that in another way, and say that you are growingly able to see Christ and His place and His meaning in this universe, that this universe is interpreted and explained in the light of Christ, and that everything in our own lives in God’s dealings with us, is connected with Christ in some way. If that is true universally, and if that is true sovereignly and providentially; if that is true not only in the whole history of things in this universe, but true in a special way in human life, it is true, perhaps, in the most essential way in the Word of God as the expression of God’s thought. So that revelation, spiritual illumination, is to see Christ in all the Word of God; not truths, not doctrines, but Christ.... The question then, that we ever need to ask, is: In what way does this or that lead us to Christ? In what way does this mean an increase of Christ, a knowledge of Him in a living and experimental way? We are looking for what is of Christ.

~T. Austin-Sparks~
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Fear or Faith? 

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.” 
John 11:25 

Recommended Reading Hebrews 2:14-15

The World Health Organization says that, in 2012, an estimated 56 million people died around the world from all causes. Doing the math that means approximately 153,425 died every day, or 106 people every minute. That’s more than one person per second dying. If you are wearing a watch, or can look at a clock that counts off the seconds, spend a few moments watching the seconds tick away and considering the reality of what all human beings face.

We know death is a reality; we know death is on the horizon. It is an unalterable fact of our existence. Usually, people are afraid of theunknown in life; knowledge is supposed to dispel fear. But when it comes to death, many people are afraid of the known. Even though death is known, many people still fear it because they don’t know what happens “on the other side.” Fortunately, we have the words of One who has been to death and back, One who conquered death. He promised that all who believe in Him would die physically but would live eternally.

Make sure today that your fear of death has been replaced by faith in Jesus’ promises.
~David Jeremiah~
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Flying the Flag of Joy
by Chuck Swindoll

Proverbs 15:13, 15

Solomon left us many statements about the value of joy in his book of Proverbs. Yesterday we read: "A joyful heart is good medicine, / But a broken spirit dries up the bones" (Proverbs 17:22). Take a quick look at a couple more: "A joyful heart makes a cheerful face, / But when the heart is sad, the spirit is broken" (15:13); and "a cheerful heart has a continual feast" (15:15).

There is no more effective testimony of a changed life than a winsome spirit. The joy that oozes from that kind of person is contagious. Christians talk a lot about love and faith and hope, but we often fail to emphasize the value of joy. How strange! Especially since it appears next to the top of the list in the fruit of the Spirit, remember?

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control" (Galatians 5:22–23).

If God handed out ribbons to those who bear the right fruit, those who demonstrate love on a regular basis would win the blue . . . and those who model joy would wear the red. Laughter that pours out of a joyful heart is one of the most delightful of all sounds on earth. God loves it!

As someone once said, "Joy is the flag flying high above the castle of the heart, announcing that the King is in residence there." (Read that again.)

So, let's lighten up. Let's allow ourselves to rest and relax more often during spontaneous segments of each day, filling those moments with a little fun. Let's stop suppressing our laughter (remember those "hips" from yesterday's devotional!). Let's remind ourselves that a healthy and well-exercised sense of humor is as much a mark of spirituality as being faithful in prayer and being committed to the truths of Scripture.

It's time to unwrap that flag, raise it to the top of the mast, and fly it high!

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Search the Scriptures!

(George Everard, "A Talk about the Family Bible" 1878)

The word Bible signifies Book; and when we call it the Bible, we mean that it is the Book of books--thebest Book, the wisest Book, the Book that will do us the most good of any in the world!

If all the other books in the world were destroyed, however great and irreparable the loss--if men still had the Bible, they would be far better off than if this were destroyed and all other books remained.

It is the Book that alone can tell . . .
  how sin can be forgiven,
  how temptation can be overcome,
  how trouble and sorrow can be met,
  how tears can be wiped away, and
  how death can be the gate of everlasting life.

It is indeed the best companion . . .
  for days of trial,
  for the day of sickness, and
  for the hour when we must part from all below!

Oh what a treasure is a well-read Bible! It is . . .
  a mine of gold,
  a hive full of honey,
  a field covered with a rich harvest. 
It is a tree of life, of which every twig bears precious fruit. 
It is an ocean full of pearls. 
It is a river full of the purest water of life. 
It is a sun whose beams warm and cheer the heart. 
It is a bright star that can guide the pilgrim through the darkest night. 
It is a granary stored with the finest of the wheat. 
It is a medicine-chest, from which we may find a remedy for every malady of the soul. 
It is a Mount Pisgah, from which we can view the promised land of Canaan. 
All this and much more, is the Bible to those who love to search it and explore the depths of heavenly wisdom which it contains.

Dear reader, whatever you forget, never, never forget to read something out of this precious Book day by day.The Scriptures warn against . . .
  the fear of man,
  the allurements of worldly pleasures,
  the snare of pride, and
  the temptation of doubt and unbelief.

Search the Scriptures! Whatever you have done hitherto, begin now to search them daily as for hidden treasures! 
Go deep into this precious mine. 
Ponder what you read. 
Compare one part with another. 
Compare the commands and precepts with your own daily life. 
Bring its promises to bear on your heart and temptations.

When we read the Scriptures, we should pay good heed to it. There are depths and heights in many of the simplest verses, that we can never reach. Therefore we ought to turn them over again and again in our minds. We must mark, learn, and inwardly digest them. A few verses or even a single verse well thought over, and still better, well prayed over--will bring more profit and help than many chapters listlessly or carelessly read!

Be Not Anxious (and other devotionls)

Be not anxious - Luke 12:11

So often through this discourse the Lord refers to anxiety. "Be not anxious how or what ye shall answer" (Luke 12:2). "Which of you by being anxious can add?" (Luke 12:25). "Why are ye anxious?" (Luke 12:26). There must have been a great strain on the crowds who listened to Him; and there was every likelihood of the strain becoming even greater for His disciples as the years passed on. So, also, the characteristic of our age is anxious strain.

But the heart of Jesus was always at peace. His life was calm amid the storms of life; as the coral-island, with its fronded palms and lagoons of still water, is peaceful amid the storm-tossed ocean, because of the protection of its reef. The surf breaks there, but does not intrude further. The secrets of Jesus were the perpetual presence of God in His soul, and His never-faltering faith in the loving, careful providence of God in all the experiences of His checkered life.

Can we not have this? We may if we are willing to pay the price. If we will resign or surrender our will utterly to Him; if we will tear down every vail that might hide His face, and throw open our whole being to His indwelling and use; if we will cease scheming, planning, devising, and fall back on the absolute care and arrangements of God; if we will learn to reckon on God as absolutely as on any resourceful human friend; if we will dare to believe that God holds Himself responsible for the sustenance and equipment for duty of all who absolutely seek His glory - then.

"Our lives shall be full of sunshine,
And the cares that infest the day
Shall fold up their tents like the Arabs,
And as silently steal away."

~F. B. Meyer~

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 What is Double Minded? Part 1

"he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways." James 1:8

James tells us not to be double-minded because we will be unstable in all our ways. No one wants to be unstable, so how can we prevent ourselves from being double-minded?

First, we have to define what it means to be double-minded. Thinking through decisions and weighing out the cost/benefit ratio is not being double-minded. That, instead, is called "counting the cost." In every decision we make, we need to count the cost; it is important to gather information and know the options first. This process can take some time, and for some of us, it takes too long when our thoughts become consumed by our choices. It is important to include the Lord during the "count the cost" process because if we have missed something, the Lord will bring to mind what we need to remember. But there is only so much information we can gather and there is only so much time that can be allotted for each decision. Continuing to extend the process; leads to second guessing (or being double-minded). Set a time limit to gather information and then make a decision. No looking back and no regrets. It is better to make a wrong decision than to make no decision. God can work together anything for good and we learn from every decision, the right and the wrong ones.

Another way to prevent double-mindedness is by asking the Lord for wisdom. Your goal should be to make a choice that will bless the Lord as well as be best for you. At the outset, do not jump to conclusions of what you think is best in pleasing Him. When I have done this in the past, I usually ended up being wrong. For some odd reason, I tend to believe that whatever is best for God is not what is best for me. WRONG! Or I want to believe that what is best for me has to be best for God—wrong again. Be open, be willing, and be in the Word. When we ask for wisdom, we are really asking for God to make His choices known to us. We have to be willing to listen. The only way I have learned to be willing to listen is by understanding that God's ways are best for me, regardless of what those "ways" may look like. He is a God of love and purpose, and His purposes are filled with love. We can trust Him. Pray and believe in faith that God hears you. James tells us to not doubt that it is God answering. Pray for faith to do what He has led you to do, despite your doubts.

~Daily Disciples Devotional~

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He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

The LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. - Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. - As by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

After that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. - There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

The LORD our Righteousness.

II COR. 5:21. Isa. 53:6. I Pet. 2:24. Rom. 5:19. Tit. 3:4 7. Rom. 8:1. Jer. 23:6.

EVENING

I will be as the dew unto Israel.

The meekness and gentleness of Christ.

A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he began to say unto thern, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth.

And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter, and Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And Peter went out and wept bitterly.

He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.

HOS. 14:5. II Cor. 10:1. Isa. 42:3. Luke 4:18,19,21,22. Luke 22:61,62. Isa. 40:11.

~Samuel Bagster~

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The Names of Christ

Philippians 2:5-11

The Bible ascribes many different names to Jesus, all of which provide great insight into His character and person. Here are some from John’s gospel that I find particularly revealing:

The Good Shepherd (10:11) protects his sheep at all cost from predators. They know His voice and follow Him.

The Door (vv. 7-9) is the only way to enter heaven. Whoever enters through the “gate” of Christ will be saved.

The Vine (15:1-10) is the source of our spiritual life. When we stay intimately connected to Jesus, we bear fruit. If we do not remain in Him, we wither.

The Bread of Life (6:25-35) the only one who can truly satisfy our hearts. Jesus feeds our souls with sustenance that never leaves us wanting for more.

The Light of the World (9:5) shines His light through our countenance as a ministry and testimony to a dark world.

The Way (14:6) to happiness, peace, joy, and eternal life is Jesus Christ.

The Truth (14:6) of His revelation, as recorded in the New Testament, is the reason we can know as much as we do about God.

The Life (14:6) Jesus imparts to believers is powerful, effective, and fruitful, not only in eternity but here on earth as well.

In biblical times, Israelites would choose a baby’s name based on the child’s characteristics or a hope or prayer of the parent. The names given to Jesus tell a great deal about His ministry on earth 2,000 years ago. The scriptural names describing Him reveal who He was and is and will be for eternity.

~Charles Stanley~

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Gift of Strength; Peace to Bless
"The LORD will give strength unto His people; the LORD will bless His people with peace"   (Psalm 29:11).

David had just heard the voice of the LORD in a thunderstorm and had seen His power in the hurricane whose path he had described; and now, in the cool calm after the storm, that overwhelming power by which heaven and earth are shaken is promised to be the strength of the chosen. He who wings the unerring bolt will give to His redeemed the wings of eagles; He who shakes the earth with His voice will terrify the enemies of His saints and give His children peace. Why are we weak when we have divine strength to flee to? Why are we troubled when the LORD's own peace is ours? Jesus, the mighty God, is our strength; let us put Him on and go forth to our service. Jesus, our blessed LORD, is also our peace; let us repose in Him this day and end our fears. What a blessing to have Him for our strength and peace both now and forever! That same God who rides upon the storm in days of tempest will also rule the hurricane of our tribulation and send us, before long, days of peace. We shall have strength for storms and songs for fair weather. Let us begin to sing at once unto God, our strength and our peace. Away, dark thoughts! Up, faith and hope!

~Charles Spurgeon~

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Key #4 to Effective Prayer - Consistent with God's Will
By Janet Conley 

In order for your prayers to be effective, they need to be in line with God's Word and will. That is the fourth key to effective prayer.

This means you must have knowledge of God's Word.  In John 15:7, Jesus says,

"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you."

If you abide in God and His words abide in you, your desires will line up with His will.  How important it is for us to know the Word of God!

As Hebrews 4 reminds us, the Word of God is living and active and powerful. It is spirit; it is life. It's not just pages on a piece of paper. And as you are in the Word of God, I believe the Holy Spirit will paint heaven's pictures, heaven's thoughts, and heaven's ideas on the canvas of your heart and your mind.

As you read the Word of God, you will have confidence in your prayers because you will have God's heart. And when you have God's heart, He is going to answer your prayers because that is what He desires.

I also want to point you to 1 John 5:14 which says,

Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.

His will, of course, is His Word.  So if you ask anything according to His Word, He will hear you. And if you know that He hears whatever you ask, you know you have the petitions you have asked of Him. 

This means you and I need to know what the Bible says so that our prayers will be answered. Effective prayers are those that are in line with God's Word and will.

~Bayless Conley~