From: [email protected] daily devotional
Evening...
Isaiah 54:12 I will make thy windows of agates.
The church is most instructively symbolized by a building erected by heavenly
power, and designed by divine skill. Such a spiritual house must not be dark,
for the Israelites had light in their dwellings; there must therefore be
windows to let the light in and to allow the inhabitants to gaze abroad. These
windows are precious as agates: the ways in which the church beholds her Lord
and heaven, and spiritual truth in general, are to be had in the highest
esteem. Agates are not the most transparent of gems, they are but semi-pellucid
at the best:
"Our knowledge of that life is small,
Our eye of faith is dim."
Faith is one of these precious agate windows, but alas! it is often so misty
and beclouded, that we see but darkly, and mistake much that we do see. Yet if
we cannot gaze through windows of diamonds and know even as we are known, it is
a glorious thing to behold the altogether lovely One, even though the glass be
hazy as the agate. Experience is another of these dim but precious windows,
yielding to us a subdued religious light, in which we see the sufferings of the
Man of Sorrows, through our own afflictions. Our weak eyes could not endure
windows of transparent glass to let in the Master's glory, but when they are
dimmed with weeping, the beams of the Sun of Righteousness are tempered, and
shine through the windows of agate with a soft radiance inexpressibly soothing
to tempted souls. Sanctification, as it conforms us to our Lord, is another
agate window. Only as we become heavenly can we comprehend heavenly things. The
pure in heart see a pure God. Those who are like Jesus see Him as He is.
Because we are so little like Him, the window is but agate; because we are
somewhat like Him, it is agate. We thank God for what we have, and long for
more. When shall we see God and Jesus, and heaven and truth, face to face?
Morning...
Psalm 84:7 They go from strength to strength.
They go from strength to strength. There are various renderings of these
words, but all of them contain the idea of progress. Our own good translation
of the authorized version is enough for us this morning. "They go from strength
to strength." That is, they grow stronger and stronger. Usually, if we are
walking, we go from strength to weakness; we start fresh and in good order for
our journey, but by-and-by the road is rough, and the sun is hot, we sit down
by the wayside, and then again painfully pursue our weary way. But the
Christian pilgrim having obtained fresh supplies of grace, is as vigorous after
years of toilsome travel and struggle as when he first set out. He may not be
quite so elate and buoyant, nor perhaps quite so hot and hasty in his zeal as
he once was, but he is much stronger in all that constitutes real power, and
travels, if more slowly, far more surely. Some gray-haired veterans have been
as firm in their grasp of truth, and as zealous in diffusing it, as they were
in their younger days; but, alas, it must be confessed it is often otherwise,
for the love of many waxes cold and iniquity abounds, but this is their own sin
and not the fault of the promise which still holds good: "The youths shall
faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but they that wait
upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as
eagles, they shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint."
Fretful spirits sit down and trouble themselves about the future. "Alas!" say
they, "we go from affliction to affliction." Very true, O thou of little faith,
but then thou goest from strength to strength also. Thou shalt never find a
bundle of affliction which has not bound up in the midst of it sufficient
grace. God will give the strength of ripe manhood with the burden allotted to
full-grown shoulders.
a..
b..
2 Timothy 4:3-4
(New King James Version)
(3) For the time will come when they will not endure sound
doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears,
they will heap up for themselves teachers; (4) and they will turn their ears
away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Paul's description of people having "itching ears" is
picturesque. The Greek word, knethomai, literally means "to itch, rub, scratch,
or tickle." This figure of speech implies that they have an itch that must be
scratched, or as William Barclay puts it, "they have ears which have to be
continually titillated with novelties" (The Letters to Timothy, Titus, and
Philemon, p. 202). Such people open their ears to any teacher who will relieve
their particular "itch" regardless of how it measures against the truth.
The solution to this resides in proper discernment based on
God's infallible Word. This judgment must be based on His whole counsel. John
writes, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether
they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world" (I
John 4:1). Christ commends the Ephesian church for this:
I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that
you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are
apostles and are not, and have found them liars. (Revelation 2:2)
Paul says it most simply, "Test all things; hold fast what
is good" (I Thessalonians 5:21).
It is our Christian duty to evaluate the "causes" we
endorse. Are they truly of God, or are they itches we want scratched? Have we
allowed the world to influence our thinking, or are we on solid biblical
footing? Have we held our ground against Satan, or have we given in to his
relentless onslaught?
Our effort now should be presenting ourselves "blameless at
the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (verse 23), for God is not concerned with
scratching our itches but transforming us into the image of His Son. That is
our only cause!
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
From Scratching Our Itches
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daily devotional
Evening...
Isaiah 54:11 And lay thy foundations with sapphires.
Not only that which is seen of the church of God, but that which is unseen,
is fair and precious. Foundations are out of sight, and so long as they are
firm it is not expected that they should be valuable; but in Jehovah's work
everything is of a piece, nothing slurred, nothing mean. The deep foundations
of the work of grace are as sapphires for preciousness, no human mind is able
to measure their glory. We build upon the covenant of grace, which is firmer
than adamant, and as enduring as jewels upon which age spends itself in vain.
Sapphire foundations are eternal, and the covenant abides throughout the
lifetime of the Almighty. Another foundation is the person of the Lord Jesus,
which is clear and spotless, everlasting and beautiful as the sapphire;
blending in one the deep blue of earth's ever rolling ocean and the azure of
its all embracing sky. Once might our Lord have been likened to the ruby as He
stood covered with His own blood, but now we see Him radiant with the soft blue
of love, love abounding, deep, eternal. Our eternal hopes are built upon the
justice and the faithfulness of God, which are clear and cloudless as the
sapphire. We are not saved by a compromise, by mercy defeating justice, or law
suspending its operations; no, we defy the eagle's eye to detect a flaw in the
groundwork of our confidence-our foundation is of sapphire, and will endure the
fire. The Lord Himself has laid the foundation of His people's hopes. It is
matter for grave enquiry whether our hopes are built upon such a basis. Good
works and ceremonies are not a foundation of sapphires, but of wood, hay, and
stubble; neither are they laid by God, but by our own conceit. Foundations will
all be tried ere long: woe unto him whose lofty tower shall come down with a
crash, because based on a quicksand. He who is built on sapphires may await
storm or fire with equanimity, for he shall abide the test.
Morning...
Matthew 11:28 Come unto me.
The cry of the Christian religion is the gentle word, "Come." The Jewish law
harshly said, "Go, take heed unto thy steps as to the path in which thou shalt
walk. Break the commandments, and thou shalt perish; keep them, and thou shalt
live." The law was a dispensation of terror, which drove men before it as with
a scourge; the gospel draws with bands of love. Jesus is the good Shepherd
going before His sheep, bidding them follow Him, and ever leading them onwards
with the sweet word, "Come." The law repels, the gospel attracts. The law shows
the distance which there is between God and man; the gospel bridges that awful
chasm, and brings the sinner across it. From the first moment of your spiritual
life until you are ushered into glory, the language of Christ to you will be,
"Come, come unto me." As a mother puts out her finger to her little child and
woos it to walk by saying, "Come," even so does Jesus. He will always be ahead
of you, bidding you follow Him as the soldier follows his captain. He will
always go before you to pave your way, and clear your path, and you shall hear
His animating voice calling you after Him all through life; while in the solemn
hour of death, His sweet words with which He shall usher you into the heavenly
world shall be-"Come, ye blessed of my Father." Nay, further, this is not only
Christ's cry to you, but, if you be a believer, this is your cry to
Christ-"Come! come!" You will be longing for His second advent; you will be
saying, "Come quickly, even so come Lord Jesus." You will be panting for nearer
and closer communion with Him. As His voice to you is "Come," your response to
Him will be, "Come, Lord, and abide with me. Come, and occupy alone the throne
of my heart; reign there without a rival, and consecrate me entirely to Thy
service."
Malachi 3:13-17
(13) " Your words have been harsh against Me,"
Says the LORD,
" Yet you say,
' What have we spoken against You?'
(14) You have said,
' It is useless to serve God;
What profit is it that we have kept His ordinance,
And that we have walked as mourners
Before the LORD of hosts?
(15) So now we call the proud blessed,
For those who do wickedness are raised up;
They even tempt God and go free.'" (16) Then those who feared the
LORD spoke to one another,
And the LORD listened and heard them;
So a book of remembrance was written before Him
For those who fear the LORD
And who meditate on His name.
(17) " They shall be Mine," says the LORD of hosts,
" On the day that I make them My jewels.
And I will spare them
As a man spares his own son who serves him."
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Verses 13-15 contain a complaint of the people about the difficulty
of God's way. They see things within the nation that are unfair. Those who are
really assertive and aggressive, those with a lot of carnal drive and energy,
are getting ahead. "What good is it to be godly?" they ask. God replies to them
with a promise in verses 16-17. He does not say that He would end the injustice
right then.
God shows that His ear is on our conversations. Psalm 139 tells us
that His Spirit goes everywhere! He is aware. He is not really judgmental, but
He is aware of what is happening, and He wants to encourage us to grow.
This instruction is intended for the church at the time of the end,
to encourage those who are genuinely trying to be faithful to God yet who feel
frustrated and doubtful because of what they see going on around them. So God
replies with this encouragement to those who speak on His name. This refers to
those who have the Word of God in their minds and hearts and are speaking to
one another about the wonderful fellowship with God we have been drawn into.
They are tying God into all aspects of their lives.
God says He is making a book of remembrance, and He will reward
these people for their faithfulness. It is obvious that what these people are
meditating on and talking about is God's name and what is contained within
their hearts, and it is good. This reveals a major purpose for the Sabbath: to
get God's Word into our hearts, minds, and consciences. He is a part of our
lives, and we need to think about Him being a part of them. Do we see God? That
is what this is about. Do we see Him as a part of our lives? Do we see Him as a
part of our futures? When we do, then we find ourselves talking about it.
John W. Ritenbaugh
From The Fourth Commandment (Part 5)
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