Give Thanks / NKJV 365

 

Give Thanks

(Heb. yadah) (105:1; 122:4; 136:1) Strong’s #3034

Surprisingly in Hebrew, there is not a verb that means “to thank” in the way the English word thank is used as a common expression of gratitude between people. The meaning of the Hebrew word is “to make public acknowledgment,” and its association with the Hebrew noun yad, meaning “hand,” suggests hands outstretched towards God. The word is used regularly in the Bible to depict public commendation of God’s person and attributes and the public testimony to what He has done for His people; this is the core meaning of praise. Old Testament believers such as Leah (Gen. 29:35), David (2 Chr. 7:6), the psalmists (7:17; 42:5; 118:21), and the prophets (Is. 25:1; Jer. 33:11) all gave thanks, praising the Lord for His mercy towards them.

Taken from NKJV Study Bible

“Oh give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭105:1‬

It Was Always God’s Plan / Greg Laurie

 It Was Always God’s Plan

“But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children” (Galatians 4:4-5 NLT).

We’re on the verge of celebrating Christmas, and we’ll talk a lot about the Baby born in the manger and the beauty of the Incarnation. But the purpose of the Incarnation was so there would be the death of Jesus and, ultimately, the resurrection of Jesus.

Jesus came to Earth to die for the sins of the world. Yet His disciples didn’t get that because it was lost in translation. Their hope and belief was that He would establish an earthly kingdom then and there. Their hope and belief was that He would drive out the Romans who were occupying the land.

After Jesus fed the five thousand, His most popular miracle at the time, the people wanted to make Jesus king by force so that He would bring Rome’s occupation to an end. They didn’t understand that it wasn’t the reason He had come to this earth.

It was always God’s plan for Christ to die. Revelation 13:8 calls Him “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (NKJV). What does that mean? It means that before there was a planet called Earth and a garden called Eden, before there was a couple known as Adam and Eve who ate of the forbidden fruit, God knew that humanity would blow it.

Adam and Eve’s sin didn’t come as a surprise or shock to God. He knew it would happen. So He already had a plan. His Son would to come to this earth and be born in a manger, live a perfect life, and die on the cross for the sins of the world.

Of course, one day Jesus Christ will come back and establish His kingdom. One day He will rule as King of kings and Lord of lords. But before Christ would wear a crown, He would first have to die on a cross and then rise from the dead.

Leave Vengeance to God / Chuck Swindoll

 Leave Vengeance to God

by Pastor Chuck SwindollScriptures: Psalm 54:4–5

David could have written a whole book of poems lamenting the host of enemies surrounding him. Enemies in Saul's court. Enemies among the priests. Enemies in the surrounding territories. Enemies everywhere! But in Psalm 54, he devotes only three lines (54:1–3) to naming his problem people. He, instead, quickly turned his mind's eye to focus on his divine advocate.

The Defender

Behold, God is my helper;
The LORD is the sustainer of my soul.
He will recompense the evil to my foes;
Destroy them in Your faithfulness. (54:4–5)

The English term "helper" is terribly weak, but we don't have a better term to translate the Hebrew word ezer, which carries the idea of rescue. An ezer provides indispensable help, without which a person would be hopelessly doomed. For David, the Lord is the one who supplies what he lacks to survive his enemies' attacks.

He goes on to call the Lord his "sustainer." The Hebrew term is based on the idea of leaning on a support. Think of steel beams supporting a building; without these sustaining, foundational elements, the whole structure would collapse.

The fifth verse promises the evil planned against David will return upon those who planned it. Their wrong is fated to backfire. This realization helps David maintain his integrity. Because the Lord has promised to carry out justice on David's behalf, David can concentrate on doing what's right instead of plotting revenge. So it is with the believer who maintains his integrity while under the attack of difficult people! The evil planned against us will return upon the attacker, thanks to our Defender! Thanks to His faithfulness, our attackers will be held accountable.

As I first read verse 5 of Psalm 54, it seemed awfully severe. Surely it doesn't mean what it says, I thought. Surely God won't actually destroy the enemy, I said to myself. How wrong I was! I looked up the term "destroy" in the Hebrew text. Do you know what it actually means? Are you ready for a shock? It is taken from the Hebrew verb tzamath, which means "to exterminate"! In fact, the verb appears in a Hebrew construction that denotes cause; literally, "to cause to annihilate"! In other words, David declares, by faith, that God will cause those who have become his enemies to be totally, completely, thoroughly removed! But I remind you that David doesn't do the removing; God does.

It is so easy to play God when we're under pressure, isn't it? Romans 12:17–19 warns us against doing that:

Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord.

Living beyond the daily grind of difficult people requires our leaving the vengeance to the One who can handle it best.

December 4 / Daily Blessings

 Daily Blessings

“For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.” - Ps 109:22

The needy is a character who is not merely poor, empty, and naked before God, but who is feelingly in need of spiritual blessings applied to his soul. Some people can rest on temptations, and take temptations as evidences. Others can build on doubts and fears, and rest on doubts and fears as evidences. Some can take powerful past convictions, or present convictions, and lean on them as evidences. Others can look to a profession of religion, and take that as an evidence. But a living soul must have heavenly blessings communicated immediately to his heart and conscience from the mouth of God. He must have deliverance manifested to his soul as a reality; he must have the blood of Jesus sprinkled on his conscience with divine power, to purge it from filth and dead works; he must have his eyes anointed with eye-salve to see Jesus; yes, his soul pants to be led up into sweet communion with Jesus; he needs to be taken spiritually into fellowship with Christ, that he may see him with the eyes of his soul, that he may look upon him whom he has pierced, mourn over him, and for him, and with him, and have some sweet, spiritual, and supernatural manifestation of his dying love to his soul.

A nominal Christ will never do for a needy sinner, but it must be Christ made spiritually known by the power of the Holy Spirit, sweetly revealed and coming into his heart with all his blessed efficacy, and shining into his soul like the sun in his strength, beaming forth blessed rays of grace and mercy. Nothing but this will ever satisfy a soul that has life in it.

Set Apart / Streams

Set Apart

He went up into a mountain apart - Matt 14:23

One of the blessings of the old-time Sabbath was its calm, its restfulness, its holy peace. There is a strange strength conceived in solitude. Crows go in flocks and wolves in packs, but the lion and the eagle are solitaires.

Strength is not in bluster and noise. Strength is in quietness. The lake must be calm if the heavens are to be reflected on its surface. Our Lord loved the people, but how often we read of His going away from them for a brief season. He tried every little while to withdraw from the crowd. He was always stealing away at evening to the hills. Most of His ministry was carried on in the towns and cities by the seashore, but He loved the hills the best, and oftentimes when night fell He would plunge into their peaceful depths.

The one thing needed above all others today is that we shall go apart with our Lord, and sit at His feet in the sacred privacy of His blessed presence. Oh, for the lost art of meditation! Oh, for the culture of the secret place! Oh, for the tonic of waiting upon God! —Selected

“It is well to live in the valley sweet,  

Where the work of the world is done,  

Where the reapers sing in the fields of wheat,  

As they toil till the set of sun.  

But beyond the meadows, the hills I see  

Where the noises of traffic cease,  

And I follow a Voice that calleth to me  

From the hilltop regions of peace.  

“Aye, to live is sweet in the valley fair,  

And to toil till the set of sun;  

But my spirit yearns for the hilltop’s air  

When the day and its work are done.  

For a Presence breathes o’er the silent hills,  

And its sweetness is living yet;  

The same deep calm all the hillside fills,  

As breathed over Olivet.”  

“Every life that would be strong must have its Holy of Holies into which only God enters.”

 

Gifts for Those We Love / Max Lucado

 

Gifts for Those We Love

Click below to listen to today's devotional

GIFTS FOR THOSE WE LOVE - December 3, 2021

Oh, the things we do to give gifts to those we love. But we would do it all again. The fact is, we do it all again. Every Christmas, every birthday, and every so often we find ourselves in foreign territory. Grownups are in toy stores, wives are in the hunting department, husbands are in the purse department. And we do the most unusual things. We assemble bicycles at midnight. We hide the new tires with mag wheels under the stairs. One fellow I heard about rented a movie theater so he and his wife could see their wedding pictures on their anniversary.

And we’d do it all again. Having pressed the grapes of service, we drink life’s sweetest wine—the wine of giving. We are at our best when we are giving. In fact, we are most like God when we are giving.

“Not by Might nor by Power” / Oswald Chambers

 

“Not by Might nor by Power” My speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power… 1 CORINTHIANS 2:4 If in preaching the gospel you substitute your knowledge of the way of salvation for confidence in the power of the gospel, you hinder people from getting to reality. Take care to see while you proclaim your knowledge of the way of salvation, that you yourself are rooted and grounded by faith in God. Never rely on the clearness of your presentation, but as you give your explanation make sure that you are relying on the Holy Spirit. Rely on the certainty of God’s redemptive power, and He will create His own life in people. Once you are rooted in reality, nothing can shake you. If your faith is in experiences, anything that happens is likely to upset that faith. But nothing can ever change God or the reality of redemption. Base your faith on that, and you are as eternally secure as God Himself. Once you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, you will never be moved again. That is the meaning of sanctification. God disapproves of our human efforts to cling to the concept that sanctification is merely an experience, while forgetting that even our sanctification must also be sanctified (see John 17:19). I must deliberately give my sanctified life to God for His service, so that He can use me as His hands and His feet.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS Re-state to yourself what you believe, then do away with as much of it as possible, and get back to the bedrock of the Cross of Christ.

The Uniqueness of Christ / Charles Stanley

 The Uniqueness of Christ

Matthew 16

When Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” they replied, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” But Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:13-16).

What set Jesus apart as the Messiah?

• His birth: He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born, as prophesied, in Bethlehem to a virgin. Though angels announced His arrival and He reigns over all creation, Jesus entered our world in a lowly manner so He could be identified with the meek and the poor.
• His wisdom: At age 12, He spent three days with rabbis, asking questions that showed his uncommon understanding.
• His baptism: Though He didn’t need cleansing, Jesus asked John to baptize Him so He could identify with sinners and demonstrate His love to them.
• His temptation: Satan tempted Him relentlessly for 40 days, yet He did not sin.
• His ministry: He challenged man-made religious traditions. And by healing people—regardless of nationality—raising the dead, and forgiving sins, He revealed that God wants to be involved personally in our lives. Leading Pharisees wanted Him dead, but the Father protected His life until the crucifixion.

Many people deny Christ’s deity, calling Him simply a “prophet” or “good teacher.” But Jesus was never merely human. As complex as it is for us to comprehend, He was fully God and fully man. This is the unique way in which our heavenly Father chose to demonstrate His eternal love for us.

Was There Really a Virgin Birth? / Adrian Rogers

 Was There Really a Virgin Birth?                                  

Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14

There are people who sneer at the idea of a virgin birth. “Ha!” they say, “How could this happen?” The angel said to Mary, “With God nothing shall be impossible.” 

Do you believe that? If you have trouble with the virgin birth, your real trouble is with God. Be reasonable. If God could make the first man without a father or mother, don’t you think He could bring His Son into this world in a virgin birth? 

If you don’t believe in the virgin birth, you have some character problems. 

• The character of Mary. If Mary had a child out of wedlock, then Mary was an impure woman. 
• The character of Jesus. If Jesus had not been born of a virgin, he would have been the son of Adam, and in Adam all die. Jesus Christ would have had the same human proclivities you and I have, who are by nature the children of wrath.
• The character of the Word of God is flawed, because the Word of God clearly, plainly teaches it.

Think about this today: Your salvation is inextricably interwoven with the virgin birth. No virgin birth, no deity. No deity, no sinless life. No sinless life, no sacrificial death. No sacrificial death, no salvation. No salvation, you’re going to hell. Jesus came to earth that we might go to Heaven; born of a virgin that we might be born again. Thank God for the virgin birth.

True Identity / ODB

 

True Identity See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! 1 John 3:1 READ 1 John 2:28–3:10 As my friend reviewed the pictures I took of her, she pointed out the physical characteristics she saw as imperfections. I asked her to look closer. “I see a beautiful and beloved daughter of the Almighty King of Kings,” I said. “I see a compassionate lover of God and others, whose genuine kindness, generosity, and faithfulness have made a difference in so many lives.” When I noticed the tears brimming her eyes, I said, “I think you need a tiara!” Later that afternoon, we picked out the perfect crown for my friend so she would never forget her true identity. When we come to know Jesus personally, He crowns us with love and calls us His children (1 John 3:1). He gives us the power to persevere in faith so that “we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming” (2:28). Though He accepts us as we are, His love purifies us and transforms us into His likeness (3:2–3). He helps us recognize our need for Him and repent as we rejoice in the power to turn away from sin (vv. 7–9). We can live in faithful obedience and love (v. 10), with His truth hidden in our hearts and His Spirit present in our lives. My friend didn’t really need a tiara or any other trinket that day. But we both needed the reminder of our worth as God’s beloved children. By Xochitl Dixon What personal faults and past failings have you allowed to determine your identity? How can knowing you’re loved, chosen, and crowned as God’s child help you live in righteousness and love? Loving God, thank You for reminding me that who I am is based on whose I am—Yours, simply Yours. Learn more about your own identity.

SCRIPTURE INSIGHT First John 2:28–3:10 contains two intertwined themes: beingchildren of God and acting like His children. In 2:29, John writes that “everyone who does what is right has been born of [God].” In 3:10, the idea is framed in the negative: anyone “[not doing] what is right is not God’s child.” In between these two verses, John builds on the idea of our actions corresponding to our identity in Christ. Jesus proclaimed the same truth when He said that a tree is known by its fruit (Luke 6:43–45). J.R. Hudberg

Free from the Slightest Flaw / Alistair Begg

 

Free from the Slightest Flaw 

There is no flaw in you. 

Song of Songs 4:7

Having pronounced His Church positively full of beauty, our Lord confirms His praise by a precious negative: “There is no flaw in you.” As if the thought occurred to the Bridegroom that the complaining world would insinuate that He had only highlighted her good parts and had purposely not mentioned those features that were deformed or defiled, in summary He declares her universally and entirely beautiful and utterly devoid of flaws.

A spot can easily be removed and is the very least thing that can disfigure beauty, but even from this little blemish the believer is delivered in his Lord’s sight. If He had said there is no hideous scar, no horrible deformity, no deadly ulcer, we might even then have marveled; but when He testifies that she is free from the slightest flaw, all these other forms of defilement are included, and the depth of wonder is increased.

If He had simply promised to remove all flaws later on, we would still have eternal reason for joy; but when He speaks of it as already done, it fills us with a deep sense of satisfaction and delight. My soul, here is spiritual food for you; digest it properly, and be satisfied with the royal provision.

Christ Jesus has no quarrel with His spouse. She often wanders from Him and grieves His Holy Spirit, but He does not allow her faults to affect His love.

He sometimes rebukes, but it is always in a tender manner, with the kindest of intentions: It is “my love” even then. There is no remembrance of our follies. He does not cherish ill thoughts of us, but He pardons and loves equally after the offense as before it.

If Jesus were as mindful of injuries as we are, how could He commune with us? Too often a believer will put himself out of humor with the Lord for some slight turn in providence, but our precious Husband knows our silly hearts too well to take any offense at our ill manners.

Let Us Give Thanks / NKJV 365

 

Let Us Give Thanks

Rather than expressing gratitude for the good gifts we have received from God, we often act as if we have a right to far more. We complain about the privileges God gives and covet what belongs to others (compare James 4:1–3).

The Psalms combat our selfishness by calling us to thank the Lord by . . .

* Rehearsing what God has mercifully done for us (Ps. 107, 136).

* Challenging us to express gratitude for what we have (92:1).

* Reminding us of the source of our possessions (Ps. 104).

By illustrating the dangers of ingratitude, Psalm 106 urges us not to minimize the importance of offering God our heartfelt thanks. It reviews Israel’s history of faithlessness, from unbelief in Egypt to idolatry in the Promised Land. The psalm ends with a plea for God to save His people so that they will give Him thanks. We can avoid great pain and loss in this life by thanking the One who gives us life and every good gift (James 1:17).

Taken from The Modern Life Study Bible

“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭136:1‬ ‭

All He Requires / Billy Graham

 

All He Requires

If you are a young man or young woman hooked on dissent or despair, ready to split, then lend me your attention. My answer concerns your dreams, and the element in your make-up called “faith.” All that God requires of anyone in taking his first step toward Him and toward total self-fulfillment is faith—faith in His Word, that teaches that God loves you and that you were alienated from Him by sin, that Jesus Christ died on the cross for you, that when you make a personal surrender to Him as Lord and Savior, He can transform you from the inside out.

Daily Prayer

Your Word, heavenly Father, brings me hope and redemption through Jesus Christ—thrusts through the despondencies of life and says You love me!

“Jesus *said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?””

‭‭John‬ ‭11:40‬

Far Better / Greg Laurie

Far Better

“I’m torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me” (Philippians 1:23 NLT).

I don’t know why, but I can still remember the lyrics to the theme song for The Beverly Hillbillies. In the sitcom, the main character, Jed Clampett, was a poor widower who became a millionaire and moved to Beverly Hills. Jed and his family went from a not-so-great place to a wonderful mansion.

In the same way, when believers die, we move from tents (our earthly bodies) to mansions. The apostle Paul wrote, “I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me” (Philippians 1:23 NLT). Heaven is so much better than Earth.

We’ll go from broken, aging, sinful bodies to new bodies that God ultimately will give us. And we’ll go into His presence. That means no more Devil, no more temptations, and no more sinful inclinations.

Not only that, but when we go to Heaven, it’s immediate. The moment you take your last breath on Earth, you’ll take your next breath in Heaven. Again, Paul wrote, “We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8 NKJV).

Also, in Heaven all of our questions will be answered. We all have questions for God, don’t we? One day God will reveal it all because the Bible tells us, “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity” (1 Corinthians 13:12 NLT).

But most importantly, when we go to Heaven, we’ll go to be with Christ. Only the Christian can say, like Paul, “To live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21NKJV). We don’t have to fear death because Jesus conquered death at the cross and the empty tomb. At the cross, He defeated sin; and at the empty tomb, He defeated death.