VIDEO Have No Fear!

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1

When we walk into a new situation in life, there is often some fear in our heart. Whether it’s the first day of school in a new town or the first day at a new job, venturing into the unknown can make us feel anxious and fearful. It is only when we begin to build relationships and adjust to our surroundings that the fear subsides. The unfamiliar becomes familiar.

Investing in our relationship with the Lord has the same effect. When we spend time with our Heavenly Father, the fears in our life subside. When we study His Word, we see how He protected His children from their enemies and worked miracles on their behalf. We become confident in His unchanging love and care for us.

Our God is all-powerful. He is with us no matter where we are or what we are experiencing. He alone makes the unfamiliar familiar and changes our fear into peace.

Allow these truths to settle into your heart and mind so that when fear comes, you can be confident knowing who your God is.

If the Lord be with us, we have no cause of fear. John Newton

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Psalm 27 • One thing have I asked of the Lord

Sustainer of Blessings

Remember the Lord your God. Deuteronomy 8:18

On January 15, 1919, a huge molasses tank burst in Boston. A fifteen-foot wave of more than two million gallons of molasses careened through the street at over 30 mph, sweeping away railcars, buildings, people, and animals. Molasses might seem harmless enough, but that day it was deadly: 21 people lost their lives with more than 150 injured.

Sometimes even good things—like molasses—can overwhelm us unexpectedly. Before the Israelites entered the land God promised them, Moses  warned the people to be careful not to take credit for the good things they’d receive: “When you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase . . . , then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God.” They weren’t to attribute this wealth to their own strength or capabilities. Instead, Moses said, “Remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth” (Deuteronomy 8:12–14, 17–18).  

All good things—including physical health and the skills needed to earn a living—are blessings from the hand of our loving God. Even when we’ve worked hard, it’s He who sustains us. Oh, to hold our blessings with open hands, that we may gratefully praise God for His kindness to us!

By:  James Banks

Reflect & Pray

What kindnesses from God are you thankful for today? Who can you help with a blessing you’ve received?

Thank You, Father, for sustaining me every moment. Please help me to recognize Your kindness, so I may share it with others.

For further study, read Compassion: Learning to Love Like Jesus.

Go to the Ant

God tells us in His Word that we can learn much from His creation Proverbs 6:6-8

God is a masterful Creator. He has integrated many of His principles into the fabric of nature so we can learn about Him by observing His handiwork (Psalm 19:1-6). If you desire wisdom, look outdoors for His lessons. 

Of course, the outdoors sometimes comes inside. If you have ever battled ants in your kitchen or pantry, wisdom probably isn’t the first trait you’d attribute to them—you would likely choose a description more like determination. But to the lazy person, God points out these tiny creatures as an example of wise living. Simply consider how many characteristics of the ant would be smart for people to adopt: preparation, cooperation, perseverance, diligence, unity, and the list goes on. So, interacting with righteous men isn’t the only way to acquire wisdom. God also wants us to observe the lowly ant, which He designed to work in community. 

There’s much to learn from the created world. Our quest for wisdom is to be rooted in Scripture and covered in prayer. But don’t overlook the many lessons unfolding right outside the front door. Ask God for eyes that truly see (Mark 8:18). Then take every chance to grow in understanding so your capacity to live by His principles will be strengthened. 

God’s Everlasting Covenants

“And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.” (Genesis 17:7)

The phrase “everlasting covenant” (or “perpetual covenant”) is used no less than 16 times in the Old Testament, plus once in the New Testament. It always refers to a covenant promise of God to man, made in grace, for only He can make an everlasting promise.

The first everlasting covenant was made with Noah (Genesis 9:16), a promise never to send a worldwide flood again, sealed with the sign of the rainbow.

The second is recorded in today’s verse and was God’s promise to Abraham and his descendants. The promise was to give them “the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession” (Genesis 17:8), and the seal was to be the rite of circumcision.

Many of the “everlasting covenant” promises have to do with Israel. Some were stated unconditionally, but others were “broken” because of man’s rebellion against God’s covenant terms. One of the latter was the covenant of the Sabbath. “Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath…for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed” (Exodus 31:16-17).

The last reference is the most important of all: “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen” (Hebrews 13:20-21). HMM

“Keep Thy Heart”

Matthew 15:1-20

ONE is amazed at the Pharisees and scribes who could look over all the mighty works and teachings of our Lord and fasten upon such a petty matter as the fact that His disciples did not wash their hands according to traditional regulations (Matt. 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23). Yet we still have with us those who value set customs above the inner realities, to whom sacrifice is more important than mercy. Our Lord described both classes with His quotation from Isaiah 29:13: “This people draweth nigh unto Me with their mouth, and honoreth Me with their lips; but their heart is far from Me.”

Jesus recognized a clean heart above clean hands. He reproved them for their “corban” custom by which they dedicated gifts to God and therefore escaped giving them to the needy. It was well to vow gifts to God, but it had degenerated into a clever excuse for not helping the ones in need—a pretext for evading responsibility.

It is not what goeth into a man but what proceeds from him—his thoughts and acts, which reveal his heart, these defile him. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. Therefore, “keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

Such teaching offended the Pharisees, but Jesus said, “Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.” It reminds us of the Old Testament statement: “Ephraim is joined to idols: let him alone” (Hos. 4:17). Our Lord made no effort to rescue these Pharisees; He regarded them as hopelessly set against Him. They had committed the sin against the Holy Ghost.

Well does formal and religious America need to ponder our Lord’s position as to outward ritual and inward reality. Throughout the Word, God cries against it: through Isaiah (1:11-17), Hosea (6:6), Amos (5:21-24). Jesus followed the prophets with their own words, hurling them against an entrenched religiousness that could become excited over a slight disregard for precedent but could not see the truth of the Son of God.

Today, sticklers for the niceties of tradition still strain out the gnat and swallow the camel, are careful to observe seasons and ordinances and minute church restrictions; but their heart is far from God. Jesus, however, would break a precedent and smash a tradition anytime to get at a needy life. Sabbath regulations were less important than a withered hand.

There are even Christians who have bordered on medieval asceticism by denying themselves wholesome and normal enjoyment and regulating each detail with meticulous care until they have fallen into the error of the Colossians, “Touch not, taste note, handle not.” One is not more holy by being less human. It is the state of the heart that matters most, for evil comes from within. It does no good to cleanse the hands with water if the heart has not been cleansed by the blood.

“Thy testimonies are very sure.”

Genesis 21:1-21

Genesis 21:2

The Lord’s promises are always fulfilled to the hour.

Genesis 21:3

Or laughter, for both parents had laughed for joy. The best laughing in all the world is that which arises from fulfilled promises; then is our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing.

Genesis 21:4

Abraham’s laughter was no worldly merriment, but a joy which led him to be obedient to the Lord’s will. This is solid pleasure.

Genesis 21:5-6

When the promise is realised by any of us, others ought to share our joy. Let us tell the saints what the Lord has done for us, that they may rejoice also.

Genesis 21:9

Children are too apt to do this; but how wrong it is for the elder to tease and grieve the younger. God notices it and is displeased.

Genesis 21:10-13

It was hard for Ishmael to be sent from home, but God ordered it for the best, even for him.

Genesis 21:16

Had she forgotten the Lord who appeared to her before? So it seems. Our forgetfulness of former mercy is the root of present despair.

Genesis 21:17

God takes pity on boys and girls, and hears their little prayers as well as those of their fathers and mothers. Dear children, do you pray?

Genesis 21:21

Thus God who ordered Hagar and her son to be sent away, took good care of them in the desert: he will therefore watch over us if we commit ourselves to his care.

Our Lord is rich and merciful,

Our God is very kind;

O come to him, come now to him,

With a believing mind.

The Lord is great and full of might,

Our God is ever nigh:

O trust in him, trust now in him,

And have security.

Teach the Bible with High Moral Obligation

…Yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. Romans 6:13

Much that passes for New Testament Christianity is little more than objective truth sweetened with song, and made palatable by religious entertainment.

I take the risk of being misunderstood when I say that probably no other portion of the Scriptures can compare with the Pauline Epistles when it comes to making artificial saints. Peter warned that the unlearned and unstable would wrest Paul’s writings to their own destruction, and we have only to visit the average Bible conference and listen to a few lectures to know what he meant!

The ominous thing is that the Pauline doctrines may be taught with complete faithfulness to the letter of the text without making the hearers one whit better. The teacher may and often does so teach the truth as to leave the hearers without a sense of moral obligation.

One reason for the divorce between truth and life may be lack of the Spirit’s illumination. Another surely is the teacher’s unwillingness to get himself into trouble. Any man with fair pulpit gifts can get on with the average congregation if he just “feeds” them and lets them alone. Give them plenty of objective truth and never hint that they are wrong and should be set right, and they will be content!

But the man who preaches truth and applies it to the lives of his hearers will feel the nails and the thorns. He will lead a hard life—but a glorious one!

VIDEO Fear Is a Liar

Do not fear. Deuteronomy 1:21

We all encounter circumstances in our life which cause us to experience fear. These could be mental, physical, or spiritual struggles. The characters in the Bible were no exception. They, too, experienced fear. Think of the disciples rowing on the Sea of Galilee or David battling against Goliath. Fear and the courage to conquer it are mentioned often in God’s Word. But it is important to remember the role of faith in conquering fear.

Joshua and Caleb were men of faith. When they and the other spies left Kadesh Barnea to enter the land of Canaan and inspect the land that God had given them, their cohorts were afraid. But not Joshua and Caleb. They didn’t let fear keep them from God’s plan for the people to enter the Promised Land. Nor did they let fear convince them to disobey His commands. While others rebelled against God, Joshua and Caleb remained steadfast in their faith in God and His promises. And they were eventually blessed because of it.

Deuteronomy 1:21, 30 says, “Do not fear or be discouraged…. The Lord your God…He will fight for you.” Reflect upon the promises found in God’s Word; they will enable you to conquer all your fears.

The only known antidote to fear is faith. Woodrow Kroll

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Deuteronomy 1 – Skip Heitzig

Running on Empty

They will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31

“I just don’t think I can do this anymore,” my friend said through her tears as she discussed the overwhelming sense of hopelessness she faced as a nurse in a global health crisis. “I know that God has called me to nursing, but I’m overwhelmed and emotionally drained,” she confessed. Seeing that a cloud of exhaustion had come over her, I responded, “I know you feel helpless right now, but ask God to give you the direction you’re seeking and the strength to persevere.” At that moment, she decided to intentionally seek God through prayer. Soon after, my friend was invigorated with a new sense of purpose. Not only was she emboldened to continue nursing, but God also gave her the strength to serve even more people by traveling to hospitals around the country.

As believers in Jesus, we can always look to God for help and encouragement when we feel overburdened because “He will not grow tired or weary” (Isaiah 40:28). The prophet Isaiah states that our Father in heaven “gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (v. 29). Though God’s strength is everlasting, He knows that we’ll inevitably have days when we’re physically and emotionally consumed (v. 30). But when we look to God for our strength instead of trying to sprint through life’s challenges alone, He’ll restore and renew us and give us the resolve to press on in faith.

By:  Kimya Loder

Reflect & Pray

When have you tried to handle overwhelming situations alone? How might you look to God for help?

Dear God, thank You for helping me when the challenges of life seem unbearable.

For further study, read Why Doesn’t God Answer Me? Trusting in Times of Doubt and Trial.

How to Acquire Wisdom

The immense rewards of wisdom make pursuing it well worth the effort Proverbs 2:1-7

Knowledge may be a prized commodity in the world, but what the Lord values is wisdom (Proverbs 8:11). He wants us to see life from His viewpoint and evaluate everything according to biblical principles. 

So how do we gain wisdom? The obvious answer is that we must pursue it. Too often, however, people who say they want to be wise do little to actually make that happen. 

The first place to look for wisdom is the Bible. There, we are told to pay attention to God’s life-giving words and hold His commands in our heart (Proverbs 4:20-22). Another source of wisdom is the counsel of godly men and women (Proverbs 12:15); God brings fellow believers into our life to offer biblical advice, encouragement, or reproof. In fact, according to that same verse, those who ignore the words of a righteous person are labeled “fool.” So surround yourself with other followers of Christ who pursue what the Lord values. 

Our heavenly Father ensures that those who seek wisdom will find it (Prov. 8:12, Proverbs 8:17). Diligent believers will discover they possess abundant treasure: In addition to godly insight, they’ll have knowledge, discernment, and prudence—rare riches in the modern world and indispensable tools for furthering God’s kingdom.