Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Crowns of Honor by Bill Crowder (Our Daily Bread)

The soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head. —John 19:2 (Our Daily Bread)

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John 19:1-8

New International Version (NIV)

Jesus Sentenced to Be Crucified

19 Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. ²The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe ³and went up to him again and again, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they slapped him in the face.

⁴Once more Pilate came out and said to the Jews gathered there, “Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him.” ⁵When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!”
⁶As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify! Crucify!”
But Pilate answered, “You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him.”
⁷The Jewish leaders insisted, “We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God.”
⁸When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid,

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Crowns Of Honor

By Bill Crowder

from: http://odb.org/?tz=08

The Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom are stored securely and protected within the Tower of London under 24-hour guard. Each year, millions visit the display area to “ooh and aah” over these ornate treasures. The Crown Jewels symbolize the power of the kingdom, as well as the prestige and position of those who use them.

Part of the Crown Jewels are the crowns themselves. There are three different types: the coronation crown, which is worn when an individual is crowned monarch; the state crown (or coronet), which is worn for various functions; and the consort crown worn by the wife of a reigning king. Different crowns serve different purposes.

The King of heaven, who was worthy of the greatest crown and the highest honor, wore a very different crown. In the hours of humiliation and suffering that Christ experienced before He was crucified, “the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe” (John 19:2). That day, the crown, which is normally a symbol of royalty and honor, was turned into a tool of mockery and hate. Yet our Savior willingly wore that crown for us, bearing our sin and shame.

The One who deserved the best of all crowns took the worst for us.

Crown Him the Lord of life:
Who triumphed o’er the grave;
Who rose victorious in the strife
For those He came to save. —Bridges/Thring

Without the cross, there could be no crown.

Bible Reading

D-Day by Davide C. McCasland (Our Daily Bread)

Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve . . . . But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. —Joshua 24:15 (Our Daily Bread)

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Joshua 24:2

New International Version (NIV)

²Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your ancestors, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other gods.

Joshua 24:13-18

New International Version (NIV)

¹³So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.’
¹⁴“Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. ¹⁵But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”
¹⁶Then the people answered, “Far be it from us to forsake the Lord to serve other gods! ¹⁷It was the Lord our God himself who brought us and our parents up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we traveled. ¹⁸And the Lord drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the Lord, because he is our God.”

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D-Day

By David C. McCasland

from: http://odb.org/?tz=08

Recently I asked my older sister, Mary Ann, if she remembered when our family moved into the house where we lived for many years. She replied, “You were about 9 months old, and I remember that Mother and Daddy stayed up all night packing boxes and listening to the radio. It was June 6, 1944, and they were listening to live coverage of the Normandy Invasion.”

Today marks the 70th anniversary of what has become known as D-Day—a military term for the day on which a planned operation will begin. Over the years, D-Day has also come to mean a moment of decision or commitment in our personal lives.

At one point in ancient Israel, their leader Joshua, now an old man, challenged the people to another kind of D-Day. After years of struggle to possess their inheritance in the land God had promised them, Joshua urged them to faithfully serve the One who had been so faithful to them (Josh. 24). “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve,” he said. “But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (v.15).

The day we decide to follow the Savior is the greatest turning point in our life. And each day after, we can joyfully renew our commitment to serve Him.

Lord, what a privilege it is to say “yes” to You each
day. Thank You for loving me and forgiving me.
Guide me in all my choices today and
help me to serve You faithfully.

Life’s biggest decision is what you do with Jesus.

Bible Reading

Room and Board by Dennis Fisher (Our Daily Bread)

I go to prepare a place for you. —John 14:2 (Our Daily Bread)

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John 14:1-11

New International Version (NIV)

Jesus Comforts His Disciples

14 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God^[a]; believe also in me. ²My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? ³And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. ⁴You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Jesus the Way to the Father

⁵Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”
⁶Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷If you really know me, you will know^[b] my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
⁸Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”
⁹Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? ¹⁰Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. ¹¹Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves.

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Room And Board

By Dennis Fisher

from: http://odb.org/?tz=08

On a recent trip to England, my wife and I visited Anne Hathaway’s Cottage in Stratford-upon-Avon. The house is more than 400 years old, and it was the childhood and family home of William Shakespeare’s wife.

The tour guide drew our attention to a table made with wide boards. One side was used for eating meals and the other for chopping food. In English life, different expressions grew from this usage as the word board became associated with food, housing, honesty, and authority. An inn would offer “room and board”—that is, sleeping and eating accommodations. In taverns where customers played cards, they were told to keep their hands “above board” to make sure they weren’t cheating. And in the home, the father was given a special chair at the head of the table where he was called “chairman of the board.”

As I reflected on this, I thought about how Jesus is our “room and board.” He is our source of spiritual nourishment (John 6:35,54); He empowers us to live a life of integrity (14:21); He is our loving Master (Phil. 2:11); and He is even now preparing our eternal home. He promised: “I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2; see also 14:1-4,23). His grace has provided our everlasting room and board.

Christ meets our needs now and for eternity.

Bible Reading

The View From The End by Jennifer Benson Schuldt (Our Daily Bread)

All things work together for good to those who love God. —Romans 8:28 (Our Daily Bread)

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Deuteronomy 8:1-3

New International Version (NIV)

Do Not Forget the Lord

8 Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land the Lord promised on oath to your ancestors. ²Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. ³He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.

Deuteronomy 8:11-16

New International Version (NIV)

¹¹Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. ¹²Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, ¹³and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, ¹⁴then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. ¹⁵He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. ¹⁶He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known, to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you.

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The View From The End

By Jennifer Benson Schuldt

from: http://odb.org/

Over the course of one year, Richard LeMieux’s lucrative publishing business collapsed. Soon, his wealth disappeared, and he became depressed. Eventually, LeMieux began to abuse alcohol and his family deserted him. At the lowest point in his life, he was homeless, broken, and destitute. However, it was during this time that he turned to God. He later wrote a book about what he learned.

The Israelites learned some valuable spiritual lessons when God allowed them to endure homelessness, uncertainty, and danger. Their hardships humbled them (Deut. 8:1-18).

They learned that God would provide for their needs. When they were hungry, He gave them manna. When they were thirsty, He gave them water from a rock. God taught them that, despite difficult times, He could bless them (v.1). Finally, the Israelites learned that adversity is not a sign of abandonment. Moses reminded them that God had been leading throughout their 40 years in the wilderness (v.2).

When we encounter desperate times, we can look for the spiritual lessons embedded in our difficulties—lessons that can help us rely on the One who causes all things to work together for our good and for His glory (Rom. 8:28).

Dear God, please give me the faith
to believe that You can bring good out of
any situation. Help me to see what You
want to show me during adversity.

The clearest view of everything that happens comes from heaven.

Bible Reading

The Careful Walk by Dave Branon (Our Daily Bread)

See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise. —Ephesians 5:15 (Our Daily Bread)

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Ephesians 5:1-17

New International Version (NIV)

5 ¹Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children ²and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
³But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. ⁴Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. ⁵For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.^[a] ⁶Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. ⁷Therefore do not be partners with them.
⁸For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light ⁹(for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) ¹⁰and find out what pleases the Lord. ¹¹Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. ¹²It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. ¹³But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. ¹⁴This is why it is said:

“Wake up, sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”

¹⁵Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. ¹⁷Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.

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The Careful Walk

By Dave Branon

from: http://odb.org/?tz=08

One of my favorite places to visit in Jamaica is Ocho Rios, home of Dunn’s River Falls—a spectacle that never ceases to amaze. Water cascades down a long series of rocks as it makes its way to the Caribbean Sea. Adventurers can climb the falls, scrambling over rounded rocks on an invigorating trek to the top. The flowing water, the potentially slippery surface, and the steep angles make the going slow and a bit treacherous.

To make it safely to the top, climbers must watch every step. If a person is not careful, he or she could fall on the journey. The keys to a successful climb are concentration and caution.

I can’t think of a better picture of what Paul is saying in Ephesians 5:15 when he says, “walk circumspectly.” We should “be very careful . . . how [we] live” (niv). Clearly, with all of life’s possible dangers coming our way as we climb through life, it is vital that we take each step with Jesus wisely and cautiously. A fool, the passage says, lives carelessly; a wise person watches each step so he does not stumble or fall.

Our goal of being “imitators of God” (v.1) is met, Paul says, as we walk carefully in love (vv.2,15). Through the Holy Spirit’s guidance, we can walk in a way that honors God.

Consistency! How much we need
To walk a measured pace,
To live the life of which we speak,
Until we see Christ’s face. —Anon.

As we trust God to rule our hearts our feet can walk His way.

Bible Reading

As White As Snow by Jennifer Benson Schuldt (Our Daily Bread)

Your sins . . . shall be as white as snow. —Isaiah 1:18 (Our Daily Bread)

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Isaiah 1:1-4

New International Version (NIV)

1 The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

A Rebellious Nation

²Hear me, you heavens! Listen, earth!
    For the Lord has spoken:
“I reared children and brought them up,
    but they have rebelled against me.
³The ox knows its master,
    the donkey its owner’s manger,
but Israel does not know,
    my people do not understand.”

⁴Woe to the sinful nation,
    a people whose guilt is great,
a brood of evildoers,
    children given to corruption!
They have forsaken the Lord;
    they have spurned the Holy One of Israel
    and turned their backs on him.

Isaiah 1:12-18

New International Version (NIV)

¹²When you come to appear before me,
    who has asked this of you,
    this trampling of my courts?
¹³Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
    Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—
    I cannot bear your worthless assemblies.
¹⁴Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals
    I hate with all my being.
They have become a burden to me;
    I am weary of bearing them.
¹⁵When you spread out your hands in prayer,
    I hide my eyes from you;
even when you offer many prayers,
    I am not listening.

Your hands are full of blood!

¹⁶Wash and make yourselves clean.
    Take your evil deeds out of my sight;
    stop doing wrong.
¹⁷Learn to do right; seek justice.
    Defend the oppressed.^[a]
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
    plead the case of the widow.

¹⁸“Come now, let us settle the matter,”
    says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
    they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
    they shall be like wool.

New International Version (NIV)

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As White As Snow

By Jennifer Benson Schuldt

from: http://odb.org/?tz=08

Iwas driving my son home from school one day when snow began to fall. The cottony fluff came down steadily and quickly. Eventually, we slowed to a stop, boxed in by traffic. From inside our vehicle, we watched a transformation take place. Dark patches of soil turned white. Snow softened the sharp outlines of buildings; it coated the cars around us, and accumulated on every tree in sight.

That snowfall reminded me of a spiritual truth: Just as that snow covered everything in sight, God’s grace covers our sin. But grace doesn’t just cover sin, grace erases sin. Through the prophet Isaiah, God appealed to the Israelites, saying, “Come now, and let us reason together . . . though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow” (Isa. 1:18). When God made this promise, His children had a painful problem with sin. God compared them to a physical body plagued with “wounds and welts and open sores, not cleansed or bandaged or soothed with oil” (v.6 niv).

As bad as their sin was, God was willing to extend His grace to them. As His children today, we have the same assurance. Sin may stain our lives, but when we repent and confess it, we have “the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of [God’s] grace” (Eph. 1:7).

Lord, give me courage to confess,
To bare my sinful heart to Thee;
Forgiving love You long to show
And from my sin to set me free. —D. DeHaan

The weight of sin is balanced only by the blood of Christ.

Bible Reading

Jordyn's Journey by Dennis Fisher (Our Daily Bread)

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. —Philippians 4:13 (Our Daily Bread)

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Philippians 4:10-13

New International Version (NIV)

Thanks for Their Gifts

¹⁰I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. ¹¹I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. ¹²I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. ¹³I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

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Jordyn’s Journey

By Dennis Fisher

from: http://odb.org/?tz=08

Jordyn Castor was born blind. But this doesn’t hold her back from living a full and productive life. The documentary Can You See How I See? tells her story. She excels at school and with a little help she enjoys biking and downhill skiing.

Of her sight, Jordyn says: “If I could give my blindness back, I wouldn’t do it. I think God made all of us the way we are for a reason . . . and I think my blindness is part of what I am going to do with my life.” She is now a university student majoring in computer technology. Her dream is to assist in developing new computer software that will help the blind.

How can Jordyn maintain such a positive outlook on life? As a Christ-follower, she understands that God is in control of the circumstances of life. This gives her confidence to pursue opportunities that others might not have believed possible. Certainly, Jordyn’s life illustrates this truth from Philippians: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (4:13).

No matter what our strengths or weaknesses might be, God’s providential hand can give us what we need to make a difference for Him in our world. Rely on His strength to help you as you take a step of faith.

“I will strengthen,” so take courage,
Child of God, so weak and frail;
God has said so, and it must be,
For His promise cannot fail! —Anon.

God’s call to a task includes His strength to complete it.

Bible Reading

The Pointer

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Crowns of Honor by Bill Crowder (Our Daily Bread)

John 19:1-8

Jesus Sentenced to Be Crucified

Crowns Of Honor

Friday, June 6, 2014

D-Day by Davide C. McCasland (Our Daily Bread)

Joshua 24:2

Joshua 24:13-18

D-Day

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Room and Board by Dennis Fisher (Our Daily Bread)

John 14:1-11

Jesus Comforts His Disciples

Jesus the Way to the Father

Room And Board

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

The View From The End by Jennifer Benson Schuldt (Our Daily Bread)

Deuteronomy 8:1-3

Do Not Forget the Lord

Deuteronomy 8:11-16

The View From The End

Monday, June 2, 2014

The Careful Walk by Dave Branon (Our Daily Bread)

Ephesians 5:1-17

The Careful Walk

Saturday, May 31, 2014

As White As Snow by Jennifer Benson Schuldt (Our Daily Bread)

Isaiah 1:1-4

A Rebellious Nation

Isaiah 1:12-18

As White As Snow

Friday, May 30, 2014

Jordyn's Journey by Dennis Fisher (Our Daily Bread)

Philippians 4:10-13

Thanks for Their Gifts

Jordyn’s Journey