The Key to Radical Love

“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:11–12)

One of the questions I posed while preaching on loving our enemies from Matthew 5:44 was, How do you love the people who kidnap you and then kill you?

How can we do this? Where does the power to love like this come from? Just think how astonishing this is when it appears in the real world! Could anything show the truth and power and reality of Christ more than this?

I believe Jesus gives us the key to this radical, self-sacrificing love, described in Matthew 5:44, earlier in the very same chapter.

In Matthew 5:11–12, he is again talking about being persecuted, just like he was when he said in Matthew 5:44, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” What is remarkable about these verses is that Jesus says that you are able not only to endure the mistreatment of the enemy, but rejoice in it. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you. . . . Rejoice and be glad.”

This seems even more beyond our reach than praying for our enemies or doing good to them. If I could do this humanly impossible thing — namely, rejoice in being persecuted — then it would be possible to love my persecutors. If the miracle of joy in the midst of the horror of injustice and pain and loss could happen, then the miracle of love for the perpetrators could happen too.

Jesus gives the key to joy in these verses. He says, “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.” The key to joy is faith in God’s future grace — that is, being satisfied in all that God promises to be for you. He says, “Rejoice, for your reward is great in heaven.” Our joy in persecution is the joy of heaven streaming back into this moment of horror and setting us free to love. So, this joy is the freeing power to love our enemies when they persecute us.

If that is true, then the command to love is implicitly also a command to set our minds on things that are above — all that God promises to be for us — not on things that are on the earth (Colossians 3:2).

The command to love our enemy is a command to find our hope and our deepest soul-satisfaction in God and his great reward — his future grace. The key to radical love is faith in future grace. We must be persuaded in the midst of our agony that the love of God is “better than life” (Psalm 63:3). Loving your enemy doesn’t earn you the reward of heaven. Treasuring the reward of heaven empowers you to love your enemy.

John Piper 

Communicating Heart to Heart

“No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.” JOHN 15:15

 

PONDER THIS

In marriage, there must be a lasting commitment, but there must also be loving communication. Many marriages get into difficulty because the husband and the wife don’t learn how to communicate. Again, let’s go back to the analogy of Christ and the Church. Does Jesus Christ communicate with the Church? Yes, He does. He’s given us His Word. He speaks to us. He has sent His Spirit into our hearts. He whispers to our being that we belong to Him. We have the most intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, who said, “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing.” He has given His Spirit to share His heart and life with us. Most husbands and wives who fail in their marriages have not learned to communicate.

What are some ways you’ve seen communication as an obstacle in your own marriage or marriages of those close to you?

What would it look like to communicate with those around you in the manner Jesus communicates with you?

PRACTICE THIS

Make a list of ways Jesus communicates with you. Consider how you might follow some of these same principles in communicating with others.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

April 21

Mark 8:14-21

[14] Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. [15] And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” [16] And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. [17] And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? [18] Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? [19] When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” [20] “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” [21] And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

1 Corinthians 14:1-25

[1] Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy. [2] For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries in the Spirit. [3] On the other hand, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation. [4] The one who speaks in a tongue builds up himself, but the one who prophesies builds up the church. [5] Now I want you all to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues, unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up.

[6] Now, brothers, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? [7] If even lifeless instruments, such as the flute or the harp, do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is played? [8] And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle? [9] So with yourselves, if with your tongue you utter speech that is not intelligible, how will anyone know what is said? For you will be speaking into the air. [10] There are doubtless many different languages in the world, and none is without meaning, [11] but if I do not know the meaning of the language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me. [12] So with yourselves, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church.

[13] Therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret. [14] For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful. [15] What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also. [16] Otherwise, if you give thanks with your spirit, how can anyone in the position of an outsider say “Amen” to your thanksgiving when he does not know what you are saying? [17] For you may be giving thanks well enough, but the other person is not being built up. [18] I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. [19] Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue.

[20] Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature. [21] In the Law it is written, “By people of strange tongues and by the lips of foreigners will I speak to this people, and even then they will not listen to me, says the Lord.” [22] Thus tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers, while prophecy is a sign not for unbelievers but for believers. [23] If, therefore, the whole church comes together and all speak in tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are out of your minds? [24] But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, [25] the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you.

Psalm 90

A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.

    [1] Lord, you have been our dwelling place

        in all generations. 

    [2] Before the mountains were brought forth,

        or ever you had formed the earth and the world,

        from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

    [3] You return man to dust

        and say, “Return, O children of man!” 

    [4] For a thousand years in your sight

        are but as yesterday when it is past,

        or as a watch in the night.

    [5] You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream,

        like grass that is renewed in the morning: 

    [6] in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;

        in the evening it fades and withers.

    [7] For we are brought to an end by your anger;

        by your wrath we are dismayed. 

    [8] You have set our iniquities before you,

        our secret sins in the light of your presence.

    [9] For all our days pass away under your wrath;

        we bring our years to an end like a sigh. 

    [10] The years of our life are seventy,

        or even by reason of strength eighty;

    yet their span is but toil and trouble;

        they are soon gone, and we fly away. 

    [11] Who considers the power of your anger,

        and your wrath according to the fear of you?

    [12] So teach us to number our days

        that we may get a heart of wisdom. 

    [13] Return, O LORD! How long?

        Have pity on your servants! 

    [14] Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,

        that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. 

    [15] Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,

        and for as many years as we have seen evil. 

    [16] Let your work be shown to your servants,

        and your glorious power to their children. 

    [17] Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,

        and establish the work of our hands upon us;

        yes, establish the work of our hands!

Judges 19

[1] In those days, when there was no king in Israel, a certain Levite was sojourning in the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, who took to himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. [2] And his concubine was unfaithful to him, and she went away from him to her father’s house at Bethlehem in Judah, and was there some four months. [3] Then her husband arose and went after her, to speak kindly to her and bring her back. He had with him his servant and a couple of donkeys. And she brought him into her father’s house. And when the girl’s father saw him, he came with joy to meet him. [4] And his father-in-law, the girl’s father, made him stay, and he remained with him three days. So they ate and drank and spent the night there. [5] And on the fourth day they arose early in the morning, and he prepared to go, but the girl’s father said to his son-in-law, “Strengthen your heart with a morsel of bread, and after that you may go.” [6] So the two of them sat and ate and drank together. And the girl’s father said to the man, “Be pleased to spend the night, and let your heart be merry.” [7] And when the man rose up to go, his father-in-law pressed him, till he spent the night there again. [8] And on the fifth day he arose early in the morning to depart. And the girl’s father said, “Strengthen your heart and wait until the day declines.” So they ate, both of them. [9] And when the man and his concubine and his servant rose up to depart, his father-in-law, the girl’s father, said to him, “Behold, now the day has waned toward evening. Please, spend the night. Behold, the day draws to its close. Lodge here and let your heart be merry, and tomorrow you shall arise early in the morning for your journey, and go home.”

[10] But the man would not spend the night. He rose up and departed and arrived opposite Jebus (that is, Jerusalem). He had with him a couple of saddled donkeys, and his concubine was with him. [11] When they were near Jebus, the day was nearly over, and the servant said to his master, “Come now, let us turn aside to this city of the Jebusites and spend the night in it.” [12] And his master said to him, “We will not turn aside into the city of foreigners, who do not belong to the people of Israel, but we will pass on to Gibeah.” [13] And he said to his young man, “Come and let us draw near to one of these places and spend the night at Gibeah or at Ramah.” [14] So they passed on and went their way. And the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin, [15] and they turned aside there, to go in and spend the night at Gibeah. And he went in and sat down in the open square of the city, for no one took them into his house to spend the night.

[16] And behold, an old man was coming from his work in the field at evening. The man was from the hill country of Ephraim, and he was sojourning in Gibeah. The men of the place were Benjaminites. [17] And he lifted up his eyes and saw the traveler in the open square of the city. And the old man said, “Where are you going? And where do you come from?” [18] And he said to him, “We are passing from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, from which I come. I went to Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to the house of the LORD, but no one has taken me into his house. [19] We have straw and feed for our donkeys, with bread and wine for me and your female servant and the young man with your servants. There is no lack of anything.” [20] And the old man said, “Peace be to you; I will care for all your wants. Only, do not spend the night in the square.” [21] So he brought him into his house and gave the donkeys feed. And they washed their feet, and ate and drank.

[22] As they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, worthless fellows, surrounded the house, beating on the door. And they said to the old man, the master of the house, “Bring out the man who came into your house, that we may know him.” [23] And the man, the master of the house, went out to them and said to them, “No, my brothers, do not act so wickedly; since this man has come into my house, do not do this vile thing. [24] Behold, here are my virgin daughter and his concubine. Let me bring them out now. Violate them and do with them what seems good to you, but against this man do not do this outrageous thing.” [25] But the men would not listen to him. So the man seized his concubine and made her go out to them. And they knew her and abused her all night until the morning. And as the dawn began to break, they let her go. [26] And as morning appeared, the woman came and fell down at the door of the man’s house where her master was, until it was light.

[27] And her master rose up in the morning, and when he opened the doors of the house and went out to go on his way, behold, there was his concubine lying at the door of the house, with her hands on the threshold. [28] He said to her, “Get up, let us be going.” But there was no answer. Then he put her on the donkey, and the man rose up and went away to his home. [29] And when he entered his house, he took a knife, and taking hold of his concubine he divided her, limb by limb, into twelve pieces, and sent her throughout all the territory of Israel. [30] And all who saw it said, “Such a thing has never happened or been seen from the day that the people of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt until this day; consider it, take counsel, and speak.”

Afraid to Stray

Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind! (Psalm 31:19)

Consider two important truths in Psalm 31:19.

1. The goodness of the Lord

There is a peculiar goodness of God. That is, there is not only God’s general goodness that he shows to all people, making his sun rise on the evil and the good (Matthew 5:45), but also a peculiar goodness, as the psalm says, for “those who fear” him.

This goodness is abundant beyond measure. It is boundless. It lasts forever. It is all-encompassing. There is only goodness for those who fear him. Everything works together for their good (Romans 8:28). Even their pains are filled with profit according to Romans 5:3–5.

But those who do not fear him receive a temporary goodness. Romans 2:4–5 describes it like this: “Do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.” Kindness. Forbearance. Patience. Goodness. But it does not meet with the fear of the Lord, but hardness.

That’s the first truth: the goodness of the Lord.

2. The fear of the Lord

The fear of the Lord is the fear of straying from him. Therefore, it expresses itself in taking refuge in God. That’s why two conditions are mentioned in Psalm 31:19 — fearing the Lord and taking refuge in him. “Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have 1) stored up for those who fear you and 2) worked for those who take refuge in you!”

They seem to be opposites. Fear seems to drive away and taking refuge seems to draw in. But when we see that this fear is a fear of running away — a fear of straying from him — then they work together.

There is a real trembling in the heart of the saints. “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12). But it is the trembling one feels in the arms of a Father who has just plucked his child from the undertow of the ocean. It is the trembling at the terrible prospect of thinking we don’t need a Father.

So, cherish the goodness of the Lord. Fear straying from him. Flee from every sin and take refuge in him. “Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you!”

John Piper 

When Your Spouse Isn’t Perfect

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” GENESIS 2:24

 
PONDER THIS

The Bible says a husband is to love his wife as Christ loved the Church. Is Jesus Christ committed to the Church? Or, when we fail, does Jesus say, “So long. I want a divorce from you. I no longer want to be your Lord, your Savior”? No! The Lord stays with us, and He has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). Praise God for that.

You want me to tell you what a perfect husband is? A perfect husband is a man who does not demand a perfect wife. You want me to tell you what a perfect wife is? One who does not demand a perfect husband. Have you ever thought that your spouse’s failures may be God’s gift to you to help you develop character? His or her lateness may be God’s gift to help develop your patience. God knows what He’s doing. None of us is perfect. What a shame to let 90 percent of a good marriage go down the tubes because of a 10 percent problem. There needs to be a lifetime commitment. To be joined in today’s text means to be glued together, welded together. You are one flesh.

How has Christ loved you? How can this be applied to marriage?
If you are married, what are the areas in which you might have an impossibly high standard for your spouse? What needs to change?

PRACTICE THIS

If you are married, have a conversation with your spouse about the ways you might have held an unrealistic expectation and discuss changes you want to pursue moving forward in God’s grace.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

April 20

Mark 8:1-13

[1] In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, he called his disciples to him and said to them, [2] “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. [3] And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.” [4] And his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?” [5] And he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven.” [6] And he directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. [7] And they had a few small fish. And having blessed them, he said that these also should be set before them. [8] And they ate and were satisfied. And they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. [9] And there were about four thousand people. And he sent them away. [10] And immediately he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.

[11] The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. [12] And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” [13] And he left them, got into the boat again, and went to the other side.

1 Corinthians 13

[1] If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. [2] And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. [3] If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

[4] Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant [5] or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; [6] it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. [7] Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

[8] Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. [9] For we know in part and we prophesy in part, [10] but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. [11] When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. [12] For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

[13] So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Psalm 89:19-52

    [19] Of old you spoke in a vision to your godly one, and said:

        “I have granted help to one who is mighty;

        I have exalted one chosen from the people. 

    [20] I have found David, my servant;

        with my holy oil I have anointed him, 

    [21] so that my hand shall be established with him;

        my arm also shall strengthen him. 

    [22] The enemy shall not outwit him;

        the wicked shall not humble him. 

    [23] I will crush his foes before him

        and strike down those who hate him. 

    [24] My faithfulness and my steadfast love shall be with him,

        and in my name shall his horn be exalted. 

    [25] I will set his hand on the sea

        and his right hand on the rivers. 

    [26] He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father,

        my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’ 

    [27] And I will make him the firstborn,

        the highest of the kings of the earth. 

    [28] My steadfast love I will keep for him forever,

        and my covenant will stand firm for him. 

    [29] I will establish his offspring forever

        and his throne as the days of the heavens. 

    [30] If his children forsake my law

        and do not walk according to my rules, 

    [31] if they violate my statutes

        and do not keep my commandments, 

    [32] then I will punish their transgression with the rod

        and their iniquity with stripes, 

    [33] but I will not remove from him my steadfast love

        or be false to my faithfulness. 

    [34] I will not violate my covenant

        or alter the word that went forth from my lips. 

    [35] Once for all I have sworn by my holiness;

        I will not lie to David. 

    [36] His offspring shall endure forever,

        his throne as long as the sun before me. 

    [37] Like the moon it shall be established forever,

        a faithful witness in the skies.” Selah

    [38] But now you have cast off and rejected;

        you are full of wrath against your anointed. 

    [39] You have renounced the covenant with your servant;

        you have defiled his crown in the dust. 

    [40] You have breached all his walls;

        you have laid his strongholds in ruins. 

    [41] All who pass by plunder him;

        he has become the scorn of his neighbors. 

    [42] You have exalted the right hand of his foes;

        you have made all his enemies rejoice. 

    [43] You have also turned back the edge of his sword,

        and you have not made him stand in battle. 

    [44] You have made his splendor to cease

        and cast his throne to the ground. 

    [45] You have cut short the days of his youth;

        you have covered him with shame. Selah

    [46] How long, O LORD? Will you hide yourself forever?

        How long will your wrath burn like fire? 

    [47] Remember how short my time is!

        For what vanity you have created all the children of man! 

    [48] What man can live and never see death?

        Who can deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? Selah

    [49] Lord, where is your steadfast love of old,

        which by your faithfulness you swore to David? 

    [50] Remember, O Lord, how your servants are mocked,

        and how I bear in my heart the insults of all the many nations, 

    [51] with which your enemies mock, O LORD,

        with which they mock the footsteps of your anointed.

    [52] Blessed be the LORD forever!

    Amen and Amen.

Judges 17

[1] There was a man of the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Micah. [2] And he said to his mother, “The 1,100 pieces of silver that were taken from you, about which you uttered a curse, and also spoke it in my ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it.” And his mother said, “Blessed be my son by the LORD.” [3] And he restored the 1,100 pieces of silver to his mother. And his mother said, “I dedicate the silver to the LORD from my hand for my son, to make a carved image and a metal image. Now therefore I will restore it to you.” [4] So when he restored the money to his mother, his mother took 200 pieces of silver and gave it to the silversmith, who made it into a carved image and a metal image. And it was in the house of Micah. [5] And the man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and household gods, and ordained one of his sons, who became his priest. [6] In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

[7] Now there was a young man of Bethlehem in Judah, of the family of Judah, who was a Levite, and he sojourned there. [8] And the man departed from the town of Bethlehem in Judah to sojourn where he could find a place. And as he journeyed, he came to the hill country of Ephraim to the house of Micah. [9] And Micah said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he said to him, “I am a Levite of Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to sojourn where I may find a place.” [10] And Micah said to him, “Stay with me, and be to me a father and a priest, and I will give you ten pieces of silver a year and a suit of clothes and your living.” And the Levite went in. [11] And the Levite was content to dwell with the man, and the young man became to him like one of his sons. [12] And Micah ordained the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah. [13] Then Micah said, “Now I know that the LORD will prosper me, because I have a Levite as priest.”

Judges 18

[1] In those days there was no king in Israel. And in those days the tribe of the people of Dan was seeking for itself an inheritance to dwell in, for until then no inheritance among the tribes of Israel had fallen to them. [2] So the people of Dan sent five able men from the whole number of their tribe, from Zorah and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land and to explore it. And they said to them, “Go and explore the land.” And they came to the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there. [3] When they were by the house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young Levite. And they turned aside and said to him, “Who brought you here? What are you doing in this place? What is your business here?” [4] And he said to them, “This is how Micah dealt with me: he has hired me, and I have become his priest.” [5] And they said to him, “Inquire of God, please, that we may know whether the journey on which we are setting out will succeed.” [6] And the priest said to them, “Go in peace. The journey on which you go is under the eye of the LORD.”

[7] Then the five men departed and came to Laish and saw the people who were there, how they lived in security, after the manner of the Sidonians, quiet and unsuspecting, lacking nothing that is in the earth and possessing wealth, and how they were far from the Sidonians and had no dealings with anyone. [8] And when they came to their brothers at Zorah and Eshtaol, their brothers said to them, “What do you report?” [9] They said, “Arise, and let us go up against them, for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good. And will you do nothing? Do not be slow to go, to enter in and possess the land. [10] As soon as you go, you will come to an unsuspecting people. The land is spacious, for God has given it into your hands, a place where there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.”

[11] So 600 men of the tribe of Dan, armed with weapons of war, set out from Zorah and Eshtaol, [12] and went up and encamped at Kiriath-jearim in Judah. On this account that place is called Mahaneh-dan to this day; behold, it is west of Kiriath-jearim. [13] And they passed on from there to the hill country of Ephraim, and came to the house of Micah.

[14] Then the five men who had gone to scout out the country of Laish said to their brothers, “Do you know that in these houses there are an ephod, household gods, a carved image, and a metal image? Now therefore consider what you will do.” [15] And they turned aside there and came to the house of the young Levite, at the home of Micah, and asked him about his welfare. [16] Now the 600 men of the Danites, armed with their weapons of war, stood by the entrance of the gate. [17] And the five men who had gone to scout out the land went up and entered and took the carved image, the ephod, the household gods, and the metal image, while the priest stood by the entrance of the gate with the 600 men armed with weapons of war. [18] And when these went into Micah’s house and took the carved image, the ephod, the household gods, and the metal image, the priest said to them, “What are you doing?” [19] And they said to him, “Keep quiet; put your hand on your mouth and come with us and be to us a father and a priest. Is it better for you to be priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and clan in Israel?” [20] And the priest’s heart was glad. He took the ephod and the household gods and the carved image and went along with the people.

[21] So they turned and departed, putting the little ones and the livestock and the goods in front of them. [22] When they had gone a distance from the home of Micah, the men who were in the houses near Micah’s house were called out, and they overtook the people of Dan. [23] And they shouted to the people of Dan, who turned around and said to Micah, “What is the matter with you, that you come with such a company?” [24] And he said, “You take my gods that I made and the priest, and go away, and what have I left? How then do you ask me, ‘What is the matter with you?’” [25] And the people of Dan said to him, “Do not let your voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows fall upon you, and you lose your life with the lives of your household.” [26] Then the people of Dan went their way. And when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his home.

[27] But the people of Dan took what Micah had made, and the priest who belonged to him, and they came to Laish, to a people quiet and unsuspecting, and struck them with the edge of the sword and burned the city with fire. [28] And there was no deliverer because it was far from Sidon, and they had no dealings with anyone. It was in the valley that belongs to Beth-rehob. Then they rebuilt the city and lived in it. [29] And they named the city Dan, after the name of Dan their ancestor, who was born to Israel; but the name of the city was Laish at the first. [30] And the people of Dan set up the carved image for themselves, and Jonathan the son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land. [31] So they set up Micah’s carved image that he made, as long as the house of God was at Shiloh.

A Future for Failures

“Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty. For the Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself.” (1 Samuel 12:20–22)

When the Israelites have been brought to fear and they repent of their sin of demanding that Samuel give them a king to be like the other nations, then comes the good news: “Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil.” Do you hear how backward that sounds — how wonderfully backward? You might expect him to say, “Fear, for you have done all this evil.” That’s a good reason to fear: you have done the great evil of demanding another king besides God! But that’s not what Samuel says. “Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil.”

He goes on, “Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty.”

This is the gospel: Even though you have sinned greatly, and terribly dishonored the Lord, even though you now have a king which it was a sin to demand, even though there is no undoing that sin or its painful consequences that are yet to come, nevertheless there is a future and a hope. There is mercy.

Fear not! Fear not!

Then comes the great ground — the basis and foundation — of the gospel in 1 Samuel 12:22. Why don’t you need to fear, even though you have done all this evil? “For the Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself.”

The ground of the gospel is God’s commitment to his own name. Did you hear it? Don’t fear, though you have sinned, “The Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name’s sake.” This should have two effects on you: heart-breaking humility and toe-tapping happiness. Humility because your worth is not the foundation of your salvation. Happiness because your salvation is as sure as God’s allegiance to his own name. It can’t get more sure.

John Piper 

Finding Jesus in All the Scriptures

And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.” LUKE 24:27

 

PONDER THIS

If you read the Bible and you don’t find Jesus, you’ve missed the point. Go back. Standing somewhere in the shadows, you’ll find Jesus. He’ll be there in prophecy. He’ll be there in precept. He’ll be there in parable. He’ll be there in poetry. He Himself challenged the people of His day when He was talking about the Old Testament, “Search the Scriptures…these are they which testify of Me” (John 5:39). I’ve been preaching long enough to know the Bible becomes a wonderful book to you when you find Jesus in it. Whether it’s the Old Testament or the New Testament, you’ll find Jesus there. There’s no lasting joy without Jesus. He’s the one you need. God has engineered it that you’re not going to have joy without Jesus, and you’re not going to know Jesus apart from the Scriptures.

How have you come to know Jesus more through the Scriptures?

What are some “unlikely places” you’ve found Jesus in the Bible?

PRACTICE THIS

Read Luke 24:13-32. Reflect on the way Jesus revealed Himself to these disciples through the Scriptures.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

April 19

Mark 7:24-37

[24] And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And he entered a house and did not want anyone to know, yet he could not be hidden. [25] But immediately a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard of him and came and fell down at his feet. [26] Now the woman was a Gentile, a Syrophoenician by birth. And she begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. [27] And he said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” [28] But she answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” [29] And he said to her, “For this statement you may go your way; the demon has left your daughter.” [30] And she went home and found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.

[31] Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. [32] And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him. [33] And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. [34] And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” [35] And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. [36] And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. [37] And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

1 Corinthians 12:14-31

[14] For the body does not consist of one member but of many. [15] If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. [16] And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. [17] If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? [18] But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. [19] If all were a single member, where would the body be? [20] As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

[21] The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” [22] On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, [23] and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, [24] which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, [25] that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. [26] If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

[27] Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. [28] And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. [29] Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? [30] Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? [31] But earnestly desire the higher gifts. 

And I will show you a still more excellent way. 

Psalm 89:1-18

A Maskil of Ethan the Ezrahite.

    [1] I will sing of the steadfast love of the LORD, forever;

        with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations. 

    [2] For I said, “Steadfast love will be built up forever;

        in the heavens you will establish your faithfulness.” 

    [3] You have said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one;

        I have sworn to David my servant: 

    [4] ‘I will establish your offspring forever,

        and build your throne for all generations.’” Selah

    [5] Let the heavens praise your wonders, O LORD,

        your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones! 

    [6] For who in the skies can be compared to the LORD?

        Who among the heavenly beings is like the LORD, 

    [7] a God greatly to be feared in the council of the holy ones,

        and awesome above all who are around him? 

    [8] O LORD God of hosts,

        who is mighty as you are, O LORD,

        with your faithfulness all around you? 

    [9] You rule the raging of the sea;

        when its waves rise, you still them. 

    [10] You crushed Rahab like a carcass;

        you scattered your enemies with your mighty arm. 

    [11] The heavens are yours; the earth also is yours;

        the world and all that is in it, you have founded them. 

    [12] The north and the south, you have created them;

        Tabor and Hermon joyously praise your name. 

    [13] You have a mighty arm;

        strong is your hand, high your right hand. 

    [14] Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;

        steadfast love and faithfulness go before you. 

    [15] Blessed are the people who know the festal shout,

        who walk, O LORD, in the light of your face, 

    [16] who exult in your name all the day

        and in your righteousness are exalted. 

    [17] For you are the glory of their strength;

        by your favor our horn is exalted. 

    [18] For our shield belongs to the LORD,

        our king to the Holy One of Israel.

Judges 16

[1] Samson went to Gaza, and there he saw a prostitute, and he went in to her. [2] The Gazites were told, “Samson has come here.” And they surrounded the place and set an ambush for him all night at the gate of the city. They kept quiet all night, saying, “Let us wait till the light of the morning; then we will kill him.” [3] But Samson lay till midnight, and at midnight he arose and took hold of the doors of the gate of the city and the two posts, and pulled them up, bar and all, and put them on his shoulders and carried them to the top of the hill that is in front of Hebron.

[4] After this he loved a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. [5] And the lords of the Philistines came up to her and said to her, “Seduce him, and see where his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind him to humble him. And we will each give you 1,100 pieces of silver.” [6] So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me where your great strength lies, and how you might be bound, that one could subdue you.”

[7] Samson said to her, “If they bind me with seven fresh bowstrings that have not been dried, then I shall become weak and be like any other man.” [8] Then the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh bowstrings that had not been dried, and she bound him with them. [9] Now she had men lying in ambush in an inner chamber. And she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he snapped the bowstrings, as a thread of flax snaps when it touches the fire. So the secret of his strength was not known.

[10] Then Delilah said to Samson, “Behold, you have mocked me and told me lies. Please tell me how you might be bound.” [11] And he said to her, “If they bind me with new ropes that have not been used, then I shall become weak and be like any other man.” [12] So Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And the men lying in ambush were in an inner chamber. But he snapped the ropes off his arms like a thread.

[13] Then Delilah said to Samson, “Until now you have mocked me and told me lies. Tell me how you might be bound.” And he said to her, “If you weave the seven locks of my head with the web and fasten it tight with the pin, then I shall become weak and be like any other man.” [14] So while he slept, Delilah took the seven locks of his head and wove them into the web. And she made them tight with the pin and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he awoke from his sleep and pulled away the pin, the loom, and the web.

[15] And she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and you have not told me where your great strength lies.” [16] And when she pressed him hard with her words day after day, and urged him, his soul was vexed to death. [17] And he told her all his heart, and said to her, “A razor has never come upon my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If my head is shaved, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak and be like any other man.”

[18] When Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called the lords of the Philistines, saying, “Come up again, for he has told me all his heart.” Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hands. [19] She made him sleep on her knees. And she called a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him. [20] And she said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the LORD had left him. [21] And the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes and brought him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze shackles. And he ground at the mill in the prison. [22] But the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.

[23] Now the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice, and they said, “Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hand.” [24] And when the people saw him, they praised their god. For they said, “Our god has given our enemy into our hand, the ravager of our country, who has killed many of us.” [25] And when their hearts were merry, they said, “Call Samson, that he may entertain us.” So they called Samson out of the prison, and he entertained them. They made him stand between the pillars. [26] And Samson said to the young man who held him by the hand, “Let me feel the pillars on which the house rests, that I may lean against them.” [27] Now the house was full of men and women. All the lords of the Philistines were there, and on the roof there were about 3,000 men and women, who looked on while Samson entertained.

[28] Then Samson called to the LORD and said, “O Lord GOD, please remember me and please strengthen me only this once, O God, that I may be avenged on the Philistines for my two eyes.” [29] And Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and he leaned his weight against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other. [30] And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines.” Then he bowed with all his strength, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people who were in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he had killed during his life. [31] Then his brothers and all his family came down and took him and brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. He had judged Israel twenty years.

God, Touch Our Hearts

Saul also went to his home at Gibeah, and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had touched. (1 Samuel 10:26)

Just think of what is being said in this verse. God touched them. Not a wife. Not a child. Not a parent. Not a counselor. But God. God touched them.

The One with infinite power in the universe. The One with infinite authority and infinite wisdom and infinite love and infinite goodness and infinite purity and infinite justice. That One touched their heart.

How does the circumference of Jupiter touch the edge of a molecule? Let alone penetrate to its nucleus?

The touch of God is awesome not just because it is God who touches, but also because it is a touch. It is a real connection. That it involves the heart is awesome. That it involves God is awesome. And that it involves an actual touch is awesome.

The valiant men were not just spoken to. They were not just swayed by a divine influence. They were not just seen and known. God, with infinite condescension, touched their heart. God was that close. And they were not consumed.

I love that touch. I want it more and more. For myself and for all of you. I pray that God would touch me anew with his glory and for this glory. I pray that he would touch us all.

Oh, for the touch of God! If it comes with fire, so be it. If it comes with water, so be it. If it comes with wind, let it come, O God. If it comes with thunder and lightning, let us bow before it.

O Lord, come. Come that close. Burn and soak and blow and crash. Or still and small, come. Come all the way. Touch our hearts.

John Piper