August 2

Luke 13:10-21

[10] Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. [11] And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. [12] When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.” [13] And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. [14] But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, “There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” [15] Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it? [16] And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?” [17] As he said these things, all his adversaries were put to shame, and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him.

[18] He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? [19] It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.”

[20] And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? [21] It is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened.”

1 Timothy 1:12-20

[12] I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, [13] though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, [14] and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. [15] The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. [16] But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. [17] To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

[18] This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, [19] holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, [20] among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.

Proverbs 2

    [1] My son, if you receive my words

        and treasure up my commandments with you, 

    [2] making your ear attentive to wisdom

        and inclining your heart to understanding; 

    [3] yes, if you call out for insight

        and raise your voice for understanding, 

    [4] if you seek it like silver

        and search for it as for hidden treasures, 

    [5] then you will understand the fear of the LORD

        and find the knowledge of God. 

    [6] For the LORD gives wisdom;

        from his mouth come knowledge and understanding; 

    [7] he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;

        he is a shield to those who walk in integrity, 

    [8] guarding the paths of justice

        and watching over the way of his saints. 

    [9] Then you will understand righteousness and justice

        and equity, every good path; 

    [10] for wisdom will come into your heart,

        and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; 

    [11] discretion will watch over you,

        understanding will guard you, 

    [12] delivering you from the way of evil,

        from men of perverted speech, 

    [13] who forsake the paths of uprightness

        to walk in the ways of darkness, 

    [14] who rejoice in doing evil

        and delight in the perverseness of evil, 

    [15] men whose paths are crooked,

        and who are devious in their ways.

    [16] So you will be delivered from the forbidden woman,

        from the adulteress with her smooth words, 

    [17] who forsakes the companion of her youth

        and forgets the covenant of her God; 

    [18] for her house sinks down to death,

        and her paths to the departed; 

    [19] none who go to her come back,

        nor do they regain the paths of life.

    [20] So you will walk in the way of the good

        and keep to the paths of the righteous. 

    [21] For the upright will inhabit the land,

        and those with integrity will remain in it, 

    [22] but the wicked will be cut off from the land,

        and the treacherous will be rooted out of it.

Ezra 3

[1] When the seventh month came, and the children of Israel were in the towns, the people gathered as one man to Jerusalem. [2] Then arose Jeshua the son of Jozadak, with his fellow priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel with his kinsmen, and they built the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the Law of Moses the man of God. [3] They set the altar in its place, for fear was on them because of the peoples of the lands, and they offered burnt offerings on it to the LORD, burnt offerings morning and evening. [4] And they kept the Feast of Booths, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number according to the rule, as each day required, [5] and after that the regular burnt offerings, the offerings at the new moon and at all the appointed feasts of the LORD, and the offerings of everyone who made a freewill offering to the LORD. [6] From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the LORD. But the foundation of the temple of the LORD was not yet laid. [7] So they gave money to the masons and the carpenters, and food, drink, and oil to the Sidonians and the Tyrians to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea, to Joppa, according to the grant that they had from Cyrus king of Persia.

[8] Now in the second year after their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak made a beginning, together with the rest of their kinsmen, the priests and the Levites and all who had come to Jerusalem from the captivity. They appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to supervise the work of the house of the LORD. [9] And Jeshua with his sons and his brothers, and Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah, together supervised the workmen in the house of God, along with the sons of Henadad and the Levites, their sons and brothers.

[10] And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, the priests in their vestments came forward with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the LORD, according to the directions of David king of Israel. [11] And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the LORD, 

    “For he is good,

        for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel.”

    And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.  [12] But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ houses, old men who had seen the first house, wept with a loud voice when they saw the foundation of this house being laid, though many shouted aloud for joy, [13] so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people shouted with a great shout, and the sound was heard far away.

Built on The Rock

“Simon Peter answered and said, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.’”

MATTHEW 16:16-18

 

PONDER THIS

Jesus is the architect of the Church and the foundation of the Church. When Jesus said, “on this rock I will build my church” (v. 18), He was making a play on words. The Greek word for Peter there is petros, but He doesn’t use the word petros again. He uses another word. It reads, “You are Petros, and on this petra, I will build my church.” What’s the difference between petros and petra? One word means a rock, like a boulder. Another word means a rock like a rock stratum, a ledge, a foundation, a massive rock. Jesus says, “Peter, you’re a piece of the rock. You’re a boulder, but I am the foundation, and on this foundation stone I will build my church.” The foundation stone on which the Church is built is Peter’s confession, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (v. 16).

“On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.” The Church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ, her Lord. Simon Peter was a sinner like you and me. The Church is built on the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the solid rock. He is the One who is building the Church. The Church will be completed, and we have beneath us the sure foundation of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Have you made Jesus the foundation of your life? What is different about your life when you make Him the foundation?

What might we try to substitute as the foundation of our lives instead of Christ? Why will substitutes always fail?

PRACTICE THIS

Talk to a mentor or trusted Christian friend and ask how that person has made Christ the foundation of his or her life.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Our Weakness Reveals His Worth

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

God’s design for suffering is that it should magnify Christ’s worth and power. This is grace, because the greatest joy of Christians is to experience Christ magnified in our lives.

When Paul was told by the Lord Jesus that his “thorn in the flesh” would not be taken away, he supported Paul’s faith by explaining why. The Lord said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). God ordains that Paul be weak so that Christ might be seen as strong on Paul’s behalf.

If we feel and look self-sufficient, we will get the glory, not Christ. So, Christ chooses the weak things of the world “so that no human being might boast in the presence of God” (1 Corinthians 1:29). And sometimes he makes seemingly strong people weaker so that the divine power will be the more evident.

We know that Paul experienced this as grace because he rejoiced in it: “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9–10).

Living by faith in God’s grace means being satisfied with all that God is for us in Jesus. Therefore, faith will not shrink back from what reveals and magnifies all that God is for us in Jesus. That is what our own weakness and suffering are meant to do.

John Piper 

August 1

Luke 13:1-9

[1] There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. [2] And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? [3] No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. [4] Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? [5] No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

[6] And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. [7] And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ [8] And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. [9] Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’”

1 Timothy 1:1-11

[1] Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope,

[2] To Timothy, my true child in the faith: 

Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. 

[3] As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, [4] nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith. [5] The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. [6] Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussion, [7] desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make confident assertions.

[8] Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully, [9] understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, [10] the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, [11] in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.

Proverbs 1

[1] The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:

    [2] To know wisdom and instruction,

        to understand words of insight, 

    [3] to receive instruction in wise dealing,

        in righteousness, justice, and equity; 

    [4] to give prudence to the simple,

        knowledge and discretion to the youth—

    [5] Let the wise hear and increase in learning,

        and the one who understands obtain guidance, 

    [6] to understand a proverb and a saying,

        the words of the wise and their riddles.

    [7] The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge;

        fools despise wisdom and instruction.

    [8] Hear, my son, your father’s instruction,

        and forsake not your mother’s teaching, 

    [9] for they are a graceful garland for your head

        and pendants for your neck. 

    [10] My son, if sinners entice you,

        do not consent. 

    [11] If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood;

        let us ambush the innocent without reason; 

    [12] like Sheol let us swallow them alive,

        and whole, like those who go down to the pit; 

    [13] we shall find all precious goods,

        we shall fill our houses with plunder; 

    [14] throw in your lot among us;

        we will all have one purse”—

    [15] my son, do not walk in the way with them;

        hold back your foot from their paths, 

    [16] for their feet run to evil,

        and they make haste to shed blood. 

    [17] For in vain is a net spread

        in the sight of any bird, 

    [18] but these men lie in wait for their own blood;

        they set an ambush for their own lives. 

    [19] Such are the ways of everyone who is greedy for unjust gain;

        it takes away the life of its possessors.

    [20] Wisdom cries aloud in the street,

        in the markets she raises her voice; 

    [21] at the head of the noisy streets she cries out;

        at the entrance of the city gates she speaks: 

    [22] “How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple?

    How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing

        and fools hate knowledge? 

    [23] If you turn at my reproof,

    behold, I will pour out my spirit to you;

        I will make my words known to you. 

    [24] Because I have called and you refused to listen,

        have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded, 

    [25] because you have ignored all my counsel

        and would have none of my reproof, 

    [26] I also will laugh at your calamity;

        I will mock when terror strikes you, 

    [27] when terror strikes you like a storm

        and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,

        when distress and anguish come upon you. 

    [28] Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer;

        they will seek me diligently but will not find me. 

    [29] Because they hated knowledge

        and did not choose the fear of the LORD, 

    [30] would have none of my counsel

        and despised all my reproof, 

    [31] therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way,

        and have their fill of their own devices. 

    [32] For the simple are killed by their turning away,

        and the complacency of fools destroys them; 

    [33] but whoever listens to me will dwell secure

        and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.”

Ezra 1

[1] In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:

[2] “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. [3] Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel—he is the God who is in Jerusalem. [4] And let each survivor, in whatever place he sojourns, be assisted by the men of his place with silver and gold, with goods and with beasts, besides freewill offerings for the house of God that is in Jerusalem.”

[5] Then rose up the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the LORD that is in Jerusalem. [6] And all who were about them aided them with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, with beasts, and with costly wares, besides all that was freely offered. [7] Cyrus the king also brought out the vessels of the house of the LORD that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the house of his gods. [8] Cyrus king of Persia brought these out in the charge of Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. [9] And this was the number of them: 30 basins of gold, 1,000 basins of silver, 29 censers, [10] 30 bowls of gold, 410 bowls of silver, and 1,000 other vessels; [11] all the vessels of gold and of silver were 5,400. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up, when the exiles were brought up from Babylonia to Jerusalem.

Ezra 2

[1] Now these were the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of those exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried captive to Babylonia. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town. [2] They came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum, and Baanah. 

The number of the men of the people of Israel:  [3] the sons of Parosh, 2,172. [4] The sons of Shephatiah, 372. [5] The sons of Arah, 775. [6] The sons of Pahath-moab, namely the sons of Jeshua and Joab, 2,812. [7] The sons of Elam, 1,254. [8] The sons of Zattu, 945. [9] The sons of Zaccai, 760. [10] The sons of Bani, 642. [11] The sons of Bebai, 623. [12] The sons of Azgad, 1,222. [13] The sons of Adonikam, 666. [14] The sons of Bigvai, 2,056. [15] The sons of Adin, 454. [16] The sons of Ater, namely of Hezekiah, 98. [17] The sons of Bezai, 323. [18] The sons of Jorah, 112. [19] The sons of Hashum, 223. [20] The sons of Gibbar, 95. [21] The sons of Bethlehem, 123. [22] The men of Netophah, 56. [23] The men of Anathoth, 128. [24] The sons of Azmaveth, 42. [25] The sons of Kiriath-arim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, 743. [26] The sons of Ramah and Geba, 621. [27] The men of Michmas, 122. [28] The men of Bethel and Ai, 223. [29] The sons of Nebo, 52. [30] The sons of Magbish, 156. [31] The sons of the other Elam, 1,254. [32] The sons of Harim, 320. [33] The sons of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, 725. [34] The sons of Jericho, 345. [35] The sons of Senaah, 3,630.

[36] The priests: the sons of Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua, 973. [37] The sons of Immer, 1,052. [38] The sons of Pashhur, 1,247. [39] The sons of Harim, 1,017.

[40] The Levites: the sons of Jeshua and Kadmiel, of the sons of Hodaviah, 74. [41] The singers: the sons of Asaph, 128. [42] The sons of the gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, and the sons of Shobai, in all 139.

[43] The temple servants: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaoth, [44] the sons of Keros, the sons of Siaha, the sons of Padon, [45] the sons of Lebanah, the sons of Hagabah, the sons of Akkub, [46] the sons of Hagab, the sons of Shamlai, the sons of Hanan, [47] the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar, the sons of Reaiah, [48] the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda, the sons of Gazzam, [49] the sons of Uzza, the sons of Paseah, the sons of Besai, [50] the sons of Asnah, the sons of Meunim, the sons of Nephisim, [51] the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur, [52] the sons of Bazluth, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha, [53] the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Temah, [54] the sons of Neziah, and the sons of Hatipha.

[55] The sons of Solomon’s servants: the sons of Sotai, the sons of Hassophereth, the sons of Peruda, [56] the sons of Jaalah, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel, [57] the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth-hazzebaim, and the sons of Ami.

[58] All the temple servants and the sons of Solomon’s servants were 392.

[59] The following were those who came up from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addan, and Immer, though they could not prove their fathers’ houses or their descent, whether they belonged to Israel: [60] the sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, and the sons of Nekoda, 652. [61] Also, of the sons of the priests: the sons of Habaiah, the sons of Hakkoz, and the sons of Barzillai (who had taken a wife from the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and was called by their name). [62] These sought their registration among those enrolled in the genealogies, but they were not found there, and so they were excluded from the priesthood as unclean. [63] The governor told them that they were not to partake of the most holy food, until there should be a priest to consult Urim and Thummim.

[64] The whole assembly together was 42,360, [65] besides their male and female servants, of whom there were 7,337, and they had 200 male and female singers. [66] Their horses were 736, their mules were 245, [67] their camels were 435, and their donkeys were 6,720.

[68] Some of the heads of families, when they came to the house of the LORD that is in Jerusalem, made freewill offerings for the house of God, to erect it on its site. [69] According to their ability they gave to the treasury of the work 61,000 darics of gold, 5,000 minas of silver, and 100 priests’ garments.

[70] Now the priests, the Levites, some of the people, the singers, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants lived in their towns, and all the rest of Israel in their towns.

The Strength of a Gentle Father

“Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men.” TITUS 3:1-2

 

PONDER THIS

Why do some children adore and worship their dads, and others hate their dads? What is the difference? There’s one characteristic that I’ve found in almost all dads whose children love and follow them: They’re gentle, and it starts when they’re children.

Imagine walking out of your house, and there on the front porch is a guy three times your size. You’re looking at his kneecaps. He has a voice like thunder, and he begins to tell you what to do. If he’s that big and sounds like that, one thing you hope is that he’s gentle, don’t you? That’s what children want out of their dads, somebody who’s gentle. They want a dad they can look up to in love.

One key to this that is so hard to do is to cultivate transparency. Let your children know of your fears, your joys, your disappointments, your failures, and your goals. Show them that you’re not perfect. Kids don’t expect perfection; they just don’t want you to be a phony. In gentleness and openness, we show others the heart of God.

Who has exemplified gentleness to you? What have you learned from them?

When is it challenging for you to be gentle? What is hard about it?

PRACTICE THIS

Confess and repent of the times you have not responded gently.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Suffering That Crushes Faith

“They have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away.” (Mark 4:17)

The faith of some is broken instead of built by suffering. Jesus knew this and described it here in the parable of the four soils. Some people who hear the word receive it at first with gladness, but then suffering makes them fall away.

So, affliction does not always make faith stronger. Sometimes it crushes faith. And then come true the paradoxical words of Jesus, “The one who has not, even what he has will be taken” (Mark 4:25).

This is a call for us to endure suffering with firm faith in future grace, so that our faith might grow stronger and not be proved vain (1 Corinthians 15:2). “To the one who has, more will be given” (Mark 4:25). Knowing God’s design in suffering is one of the main means of growing through suffering.

If you think your suffering is pointless, or that God is not in control, or that he is whimsical or cruel, then your suffering will drive you from God, instead of driving you from everything but God — as it should. So, it is crucial that faith in God’s grace includes the faith that he gives grace through suffering.

John Piper 

Bible Study

Galatians 1:6-9

[6] I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—[7] not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. [8] But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. [9] As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

Galatians 5:7-8

[7] You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? [8] This persuasion is not from him who calls you.

Matthew 11:6

[6] And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

Romans 9:33

[33] as it is written, 

    “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense;

        and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”