SWEET AND SOUR

Sweet and Sour

Read: Job 2:1–10
Bible in a Year: Ecclesiastes 10–12; Galatians 1

Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?—Job 2:10

When our toddler first bit into a lemon wedge, he wrinkled his nose, stuck out his tongue, and squeezed his eyes shut. “Sow-wah,” he said (sour).

I chuckled as I reached for the piece of fruit, intending to toss it into the trash.

“No!” Xavier scampered across the kitchen to get away from me. “Moe-wah!” (more). His lips puckered with every juice-squirting bite. I winced when he finally handed me the rind and walked away.

My taste buds accurately reflect my partiality to the sweet moments in life. My preference for avoiding all things bitter reminds me of Job’s wife, who seems to have shared my aversion to the sourness of suffering.

Job surely didn’t delight in hardship or trouble, yet he honored God through heart-wrenching circumstances (Job 1:1–22). When painful sores afflicted Job’s body, he endured the agony (2:7–8). His wife told him to give up on God (v. 9), but Job responded by trusting the Lord through suffering and afflictions (v. 10).

It’s natural to prefer avoiding the bitter bites in life. We can even be tempted to lash out at God when we’re hurting. But the Lord uses trials, teaching us how to trust Him, depend on Him, and surrender to Him as He enables us to persevere through difficult times. And like Job, we don’t have to enjoy suffering to learn to savor the unexpected sweetness of sour moments—the divine strengthening of our faith. —Xochitl Dixon

Thank You for assuring us that suffering is never wasted when we place our confidence in who You are, what You’ve done, and what You’re capable of doing.

God uses suffering to strengthen our faith.

INSIGHT: In the ancient story of Job, we see a devout follower of God whose life has been laid bare by financial, family, and physical suffering. The book of Job asks the perennial question, “Why do the righteous suffer?” Job’s ordeals test his devotion to his Redeemer and Provider. Clearly the book shows how God uses suffering to strengthen believers’ faith and refine their character. Job declares, “But [God] knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold” (Job 23:10). 

Has God used a trial in your life to refine your character and strengthen your faith? Dennis Fisher

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THE DAILY PRAYER

The Daily Prayer

Read: Ephesians 6:18–19
Bible in a Year: Ecclesiastes 7–9; 2 Corinthians 13

Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.—Ephesians 6:18

Singer/songwriter Robert Hamlet wrote “Lady Who Prays for Me” as a tribute to his mother who made a point of praying for her boys each morning before they went to the bus stop. After a young mom heard Hamlet sing his song, she committed to praying with her own little boy. The result was heartwarming! Just before her son went out the door, his mother prayed for him. Five minutes later he returned—bringing kids from the bus stop with him! His mom was taken aback and asked what was going on. The boy responded, “Their moms didn’t pray with them.”

In the book of Ephesians, Paul urges us to pray “on all occasions with all kinds of prayers” (6:18). Demonstrating our daily dependence on God is essential in a family since many children first learn to trust God as they observe genuine faith in the people closest to them (2 Tim. 1:5). There is no better way to teach the utmost importance of prayer than by praying for and with our children. It is one of the ways they begin to sense a compelling need to reach out personally to God in faith.

When we “start children off” by modeling a “sincere faith” in God (Prov. 22:6; 2 Tim. 1:5), we give them a special gift, an assurance that God is an ever-present part of our lives—continually loving, guiding, and protecting us. —Cindy Hess Kasper

Help me to depend more fully on You in every moment of the day and to rest in the assurance that You are always with me. 

Daily prayers lessen daily worries.

INSIGHT: Ask God to help you model faith and prayer this week to the younger generation—children or grandchildren, youth in your church, or children in your neighborhood.

For more on prayer, visit discoveryseries.org/tag/prayer/.

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THE MOUNTING FAILURES OF NATURALISM

THE MOUNTING FAILURES OF NATURALISM

For more great blogs as this one go to Daniel’s blog site at:  www.Mannsword.blogspot.com

What if you found that a marine animal had its own GPS system? Would you automatically conclude that such a thing could blindly evolve, or would you conclude that an intelligent Mind had to design such a thing?

A loggerhead turtle migrates millions of miles over its lifetime, and, each year, it always returns to the very beach in Japan where it had been hatched to lay its own eggs after feeding on the coast of California.

In Have You Considered: Evidence Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, Bruce Malone writes:

•         It has been known for decades that loggerheads have a built-in “compass” in their heads that allow them to know their latitude…Loggerheads were found to have not just a “compass” but a built-in “GPS” system detecting both the intensity and angle of the magnetic field.

Malone argues that we intelligent beings had required hundreds of years to develop such devices. Could they have just happened through a mindless process?

Before you answer this question, consider the fact that animals have other equally complex and profound sensory systems like sonar, sight, radar, and infrared heat sensors. Do we have any evidence that these can arise from a chance and mindless process?

Let’s take it to a more basic level. There is absolutely no evidence that anything ever happens or is caused naturally (without intelligence or design). No one has ever been able to provide a shred of evidence otherwise. Meanwhile, some have mentioned snowflakes and crystals as evidence that design can have a natural cause. However, when they are challenged by the obvious fact that these minerals are merely replicating their pre-existing chemical design, which had already been programmed into them, they have no further answer.

Naturalism is an utterly bankrupt idea, although it now holds Western culture hostage. However, few have eyes to see and to proclaim that the King is without clothing.

IRREDUCIBLE COMPLEXITY AND ONE OF THE INTRACTABLE PROBLEMS OF EVOLUTION

Evolution and Darwin have offered “gradualism” to explain the development of new and beneficial structures, which improve a creature’s ability to survive and reproduce. Darwin theorized that each successive change (mutation, adaptation) had to produce a survival advantage in order for it to be “selected” (passed on) by evolution. But here’s the problem – a new and adaptive structure, like sonar, requires numerous and simultaneous changes before it can confer a survival advantage, and the evidence fails to provide any clear examples of this.

To use a very clear example of this problem – for a worm to become a butterfly, it has to build a cocoon around itself, totally deconstruct, and be transformed into an entirely different creature. For this to happen, thousands of pieces of genetic information have to simultaneously exist beforehand. Without all of this information, the worm will remain dead in its cocoon.

This problem is explained by the concept of “irreducible complexity (IC),” which observes that unless all of the materials and information are simultaneously present, no new functioning structure can naturalistically arise.

The mouse trap is often used to explain this problem. For a mousetrap to work, it cannot evolve gradually. All of the five parts must first be present and properly constructed or the trap will fail to catch a mouse. Nor can it be reduced to four parts to catch mice.

It is argued that every organ or structure is “irreducibly complex” and therefore defies evolutionary explanations. In Have You Considered: Evidence beyond a Reasonable Doubt, Bruce Malone provides several examples of (IC). Our blood must be able to clot, or any cut can cause us to bleed to death. However:

∑       In order for blood to clot, there must be 12 specific individual chemicals reacting in a domino effect for a clot to form.

Malone adds that these chemicals must also be present in the right amounts lest no clot or too many clots result. How then could an animal survive unless this entire mechanism had been present! This reality defies any gradualistic Darwinian explanation.

Malone also offers the example of the carnivorous Venus flytrap. For it to survive on its exclusively insect diet, five complex systems have to be in place simultaneously.

1.    The insect has to be lured to Venus by a “sweet smelling aroma.”

2.    Venus has to “know the insect is there.”

3.    Venus has to “trap the insect.”

4.    Venus has to have the digestive apparatus to digest the insect.

5.    Finally, Venus has to eliminate the remains.

Lacking any one of these IC processes could mean starvation and death for Venus. Instead, each of these had to be present simultaneously.

We encounter this same problem within all species. Malone also cites the sea cucumber. It survives its predators by secreting its sticky organs which “can glue a predator’s throat shut.” Malone rhetorically asks:

∑       How did the first sea cucumber survive the first time he spilled his guts? From the very beginning, he had to have the ability to vomit out his sticky organs and then have the ability to regrow them.

Without all of these complex abilities functioning simultaneously, the cucumber could not have survived.

Is there any evolutionary record of these adaptations (gradual changes found in the fossil record)? Not really! Malone offers the example of the monotremes, egg laying mammals. There are only two – the platypus and the echidria. Evolutionists believe that mammals had evolved from amphibians. However, the fossil record is silent about any such transition. Malone writes:

∑       Did the platypus evolve? Fossil platypuses are essentially identical to modern platypuses; no transitional forms have been found.

I will offer once last example, among many, of IC. Malone offers the example of the poisonous snake. In order for this weapon to be functional, many systems have to be in place simultaneously:

1.    Venom

2.    Venom gland to store venom

3.    Canal to transfer venom to the fangs

4.    Hollow fangs…to inject the poison

5.    Muscles to contract the venom reservoir

6.    A nervous system to signal the muscles to contract

7.    Spring loaded fangs

8.    Instincts to know when and how to use all this against prey or predator

To illustrate the problem for Darwinian gradualism, all of these systems have to be present at the same time for the snake to deliver its lethal blow. If just one is lacking, the snake will not survive. Only the Design hypothesis is capable of accounting for the simultaneous appearance of all of the necessary systems.

As science continues to demonstrate the complexity, functionality, and profound elements of design, it becomes obvious that to deny design contradicts the many findings. It also suggests that the denial of an Intelligent Designer constitutes a rejection of the findings in favor of a blind faith that someday naturalistic explanations will counter-evidentially appear.

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LET'S FINISH THE RACE

Let’s Finish the Race

Read: Ecclesiastes 4:9–12
Bible in a Year: Ecclesiastes 4–6; 2 Corinthians 12

Two are better than one . . . . If either of them falls down, one can help the other up.—Ecclesiastes 4:9–10

In the 2016 Rio Olympics, two athletes in the 5,000-meter race caught the world’s attention. About 3,200 meters into the race, New Zealander Nikki Hamblin and American Abbey D’Agostino collided and fell. Abbey was quickly up on her feet, but stopped to help Nikki. Moments after the two athletes had started running again, Abbey began faltering, her right leg injured as a result of the fall. It was now Nikki’s turn to stop and encourage her fellow athlete to finish the race. When Abbey eventually stumbled across the finish line, Nikki was waiting to embrace her. What a beautiful picture of mutual encouragement!

It reminds me of a passage in the Bible: “Two are better than one . . . . If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up” (Eccl. 4:9–10). As runners in a spiritual race, we need one another—perhaps even more so, for we are not racing in competition with each other but as members of the same team. There’ll be moments where we falter and need someone to pick us up; at other times, someone may need our encouragement through our prayers or presence.

The spiritual race is not to be run alone. Is God leading you to be a Nikki or Abbey in someone’s life? Respond to His prompting today, and let’s finish the race! —Poh Fang Chia

Dear Lord, thank You for the encouragement of fellow believers to help me on my journey. Help me to look for ways to encourage others.

We need each other to get where God wants us to go.

INSIGHT: Ecclesiastes is a very unusual book. For much of this inspired text, life is examined without God in the picture (1:2). Although the book concludes with moral admonitions (see 12:1-8), the majority of the book has almost a secular feel to it. Yet because King Solomon the Wise is its author, remarkable principles of life surface. Today’s reading blesses the reader with insights on the benefits of meaningful relationships. The journey of life is not to be walked alone but benefits from mutual support of another. 

Can you recall a time when God used someone to help you carry your load? Dennis Fisher

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THE BEST PORTION OF ALL

The Best Portion of All

Read: Psalm 73:21–28
Bible in a Year: Ecclesiastes 1–3; 2 Corinthians 11:16–33

I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation.—Philippians 4:12

“His piece is bigger than mine!”

When I was a boy my brothers and I would sometimes bicker about the size of the piece of homemade pie mom served us. One day Dad observed our antics with a lifted eyebrow, and smiled at Mom as he lifted his plate: “Please just give me a piece as big as your heart.” My brothers and I watched in stunned silence as Mom laughed and offered him the largest portion of all.

If we focus on others’ possessions, jealousy too often results. Yet God’s Word lifts our eyes to something of far greater worth than earthly possessions. The psalmist writes, “You are my portion, Lord; I have promised to obey your words. I have sought your face with all my heart” (Ps. 119:57–58). Inspired by the Holy Spirit, the writer conveyed the truth that nothing matters more than closeness to God.

What better portion could we have than our loving and limitless Creator? Nothing on earth can compare with Him, and nothing can take Him away from us. Human longing is an expansive void; one may have “everything” in the world and still be miserable. But when God is our source of happiness, we are truly content. There’s a space within us only God can fill. He alone can give us the peace that matches our hearts. —James Banks

Loving Lord, thank You that nothing and no one can meet my every need like You can.

When we are His, He is ours, forever. You have made us for yourself, Lord. Our hearts are restless until they can find rest in You. Augustine of Hippo

INSIGHT: In Philippians 4:12, the key verse for today, the apostle Paul says he’s learned the secret of being content. Yet for Paul, life wasn’t easy—especially life as an evangelist. In another letter written by him, Paul lists the many trials he faced: five times he was brutally whipped, three times beaten with rods, and once pelted with stones. He was in danger at sea and on land, was imprisoned several times, and often went without sleep or food (see 2 Cor. 11:23-27). How could Paul be content in such difficult circumstances? What was his “secret”? He wrote, “I can do all this through him who gives me strength” (Phil. 4:13). Because of the strength God gave him, Paul could be content “whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want” (v. 12).

Do you struggle with contentment? Ask God to give you the strength to be content in your situation. Alyson Kieda

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THE SPIRIT AND HIS WORD: THEY WORK TOGETHER

THE SPIRIT AND HIS WORD: THEY WORK TOGETHER

For more great blogs as this one go to Daniel’s blog site at:  www.Mannsword.blogspot.com

The knowledge of the truth of God can build us up. It is even necessary for our growth. Paul explained that God had provided His Church with teachers and pastors to build it up in the transformational knowledge of the truth:

∑       …to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ. (Ephesians 4:12-15; ESV)

The truth is the source of all unity, stability, and growth (2 Peter 1:2-3). Nevertheless, the truth can also be used as a hammer to destroy and separate us when the Spirit is not involved:

∑       If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 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. (1 Corinthians 13:1-2)

Where the Spirit is lacking, we are possessed by an earthly wisdom and its earthly motives:

∑       But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. (James 3:14-16)

Without the Spirit, we can even use the truth for very self-centered and unspiritual purposes. Consequently, in the Dynamics of Spiritual Life, Richard Lovelace has written:

∑       [Biblical] propositions fall far short of the splendor of the One who is the Word and the Truth, it must be admitted. But by the power of the Spirit of truth they can be the medium of conveying to us the mind of Christ. The Christian who wants to encounter God without listening to what he has to say may remain in the condition of a smiling sub-literate and the disobedient two-year-old. (282)

Lovelace, therefore, argues that we need both – the Word and the Spirit illuminating it and applying it to our minds and hearts. Actually, this is at the heart of the New Covenant promise:

∑       “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” (Jeremiah 31:33)

However, this promised experience of God writing His words on our heart does not seem to be independent of our meditating on His Word. Paul had explained that the Spirit had written the Words upon the hearts of the newborn Church, but this did not happen apart from Paul’s teaching ministry.

∑       And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. (2 Corinthians 3:3)

The Israelites also had the Scriptures, which were able to make them wise unto salvation (2 Timothy 3:15; but without the Spirt, they remained blinded (1 Corinthians 3:14). However, the children of Christ had the Spirit. Consequently, they were able to behold the transformative truths of God (2 Corinthians 3:17-18; 4:4-6).

The Spirit must illuminate the Scriptures for us as Jesus had done for His disciples after His resurrection:

∑       Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. (Luke 24:44-45)

While the Spirit has the ability to open our minds without the Word, He does so in accordance with the Word. Jesus had also promised His Apostles that the Spirit would bring all His teachings (Scripture) back into their remembrance (John 14:26).

Similarly, Paul instructed Timothy to meditate on what he had written him. Consequently, God would give Timothy understanding in conjunction with Paul’s words, not in isolation from them:

∑       It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything. (2 Timothy 2:6-7)

Again, we see that the Lord illuminates Scripture giving us understanding. Paul also likens Timothy’s reflections on Paul’s writings to the “hard-working farmer.” This suggests that we shouldn’t take the Spirit’s work for granted. We too must do our part by diligently studying Scripture, laboring over it, meditating on it both night and day (Psalm 1:1-3; Joshua 1:9; Deuteronomy 6:4-6).

Against this, some have appealed to the Spirit alone to guide us into all truth. For example:

∑       Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Consequently, they wrongly argue that all they need is the Spirit and ecstatic experience. However, if we truly hear what Scripture is promising, we understand that these verses are promising His guidance in conjunction with the Word, with acknowledging Him in all of our ways.

How do we acknowledge Him? By acknowledging His Word! There is no other way. To acknowledge Him, we have to acknowledge what He reveals about Himself. According to Jesus, the Father requires worship which accords with His truth, as He had informed the woman by a well in Samaria:

∑       But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23-24)

Scripture does not allow us to separate God from the truth of His Word. The two are inseparable. To love God is to love His Word. To hate Him is to dismiss or hate His Word. Consider these verses:

∑       Psalm 130:5-6: “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in HIS WORD I put my hope.”

∑       I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise your name for your love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name [God Himself] and YOUR WORD. (Psalm 138:2)

∑       "But anyone who sins defiantly…BLASPHEMES THE LORD, and that person must be cut off from his people. Because he has DESPISED THE LORD'S WORD and broken his commands, that person must surely be cut off; his guilt remains on him" (Numbers 15:30-31).

∑        “Why did you DESPISE THE WORD OF THE LORD by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you DESPISED ME and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own” (2 Samuel 12:9-10).

Consequently, to love God is to love His Word (John 14:23-24). This understanding should prevent us from relying on either the Spirit or His Word. The two must go together. Besides, we are instructed to pursue understanding through the Word and not experiences.

Seeing our dependence on both the Word and the Author of the Word, we should be in continual prayer for understanding and the Spirit’s involvement. We also have to ask Him to protect us from sin – anything that would distance the Spirit from us. Consequently, we should be examining ourselves to see if there is anything that might be separating us from His influence (1 Corinthians 11:28-32), also asking Him to examine us (Psalm 139:23-24).

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WATCH THE CONDUCTOR

Watch the Conductor

Read: Hebrews 12:1–3
Bible in a Year: Proverbs 30–31; 2 Corinthians 11:1–15

Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.—Hebrews 12:1–2

World-renowned violinist, Joshua Bell, has an unusual way of leading the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, a forty-four-member chamber orchestra. Instead of waving a baton he directs while playing his Stradivarius with the other violinists. Bell told Colorado Public Radio, “Even while I’m playing I can give them all kinds of direction and signals that I think only they would understand at this point. They know by every little dip in my violin, or raise in my eyebrow, or the way I draw the bow. They know the sound I’m looking for from the entire orchestra.”

Just as the orchestra members watch Joshua Bell, the Bible instructs us to keep our eyes on Jesus our Lord. After listing many heroes of the faith in Hebrews 11, the writer says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith”  (Heb. 12:1–2).

Jesus promised, “I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matt. 28:20). Because He is, we have the amazing privilege of keeping our eyes on Him while He conducts the music of our lives. —David C. McCasland

Lord, our eyes look to You this day so we may follow Your direction and live in harmony with You.

Let us keep our eyes on Jesus our Savior as He directs our lives.

INSIGHT: Have you ever walked away from a parent, teacher, coach, or military officer you thought was being too hard on you?

The men and women of faith listed in Hebrews 11 must have wondered at times whether their God was asking more of them than they could possibly give. Yet through doubt, personal failure, and unfulfilled dreams, the Bible gives all of them honorable mention—as witnesses to the faith that has been entrusted to us.

Now it’s our turn. When we face fears, we have the opportunity to follow the One who asks us to trust Him in a way that lifts us above own natural inclinations. This is a moment to remember the lingering witness of Jesus’s own disciples who so often heard the words, “Don’t be afraid.” From the stories of those who have gone before us, we are reminded that it was on a road of faith that Jesus and His witnesses suffered to bring others to God.

Jesus invites us to experience for ourselves the honor of being witnesses to His faithfulness even when we struggle to trust Him. Mart DeHaan

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REMOVING THE BARRIERS

Removing the Barriers

Read: Philemon 1:8–16
Bible in a Year: Proverbs 27–29; 2 Corinthians 10

He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a fellow man and as a brother in the Lord.—Philemon 1:16

I saw Mary every Tuesday when I visited “the House”—a home that helps former prisoners reintegrate into society. My life looked different from hers: fresh out of jail, fighting addictions, separated from her son. You might say she lived on the edge of society.

Like Mary, Onesimus knew what it meant to live on the edge of society. As a slave, Onesimus had apparently wronged his Christian master, Philemon, and was now in prison. While there, he met Paul and came to faith in Christ (v. 10). Though now a changed man, Onesimus was still a slave. Paul sent him back to Philemon with a letter urging him to receive Onesimus “no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother” (Philem. 1:16).

Philemon had a choice to make: He could treat Onesimus as his slave or welcome him as a brother in Christ. I had a choice to make too. Would I see Mary as an ex-convict and a recovering addict—or as a woman whose life is being changed by the power of Christ? Mary was my sister in the Lord, and we were privileged to walk together in our journey of faith.

It’s easy to allow the walls of socio-economic status, class, or cultural differences to separate us. The gospel of Christ removes those barriers, changing our lives and our relationships forever. —Karen Wolfe

Dear God, thank You that the gospel of Jesus Christ changes lives and relationships. Thank You for removing the barriers between us and making us all members of Your family.

The gospel changes people and relationships.

INSIGHT: After reading the book of Philemon, questions sometimes arise such as, “How can I trust a Bible that tolerated slavery?” and “When Paul had the opportunity to condemn slavery outright, why didn’t he do it?” One thing to keep in mind is that slavery in ancient times was different than our concept of slavery today. For example, in the Roman Empire slaves could work toward and achieve freedom. Paul is actually suggesting a change that goes far deeper than an institution change. When Paul asks that Onesimus be taken back and viewed as a brother, he is ultimately dismantling the mindset that segregates people. The Scriptures deal with how we think and not simply how we act. J.R. Hudberg

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ANGER MANAGEMENT

Anger Management

Read: Ephesians 4:15, 26–32
Bible in a Year: Proverbs 25–26; 2 Corinthians 9

In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry.—Ephesians 4:26

As I had dinner with a friend, she expressed how fed up she was with a particular family member. But she was reluctant to say anything to him about his annoying habit of ignoring or mocking her. When she did try to confront him about the problem, he responded with sarcastic remarks. She exploded in anger at him. Both parties wound up digging in their heels, and the family rift widened.

I can relate, because I handle anger the same way. I also have a hard time confronting people. If a friend or family member says something mean, I usually suppress how I feel until that person or someone else comes along and says or does something else mean. After a while, I explode.

Maybe that’s why the apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:26 said, “Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry.” Providing a time limit on unresolved issues keeps anger in check. Instead of stewing over a wrong, which is a breeding ground for bitterness, we can ask God for help to “[speak] the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15).

Got a problem with someone? Rather than hold it in, hold it up to God first. He can fight the fire of anger with the power of His forgiveness and love. —Linda Washington

Heavenly Father, please guard us from uncontrolled anger. May the words that we speak bring honor to You.

For help in managing anger, go to discoveryseries.org/cb942.

Put out the fire of anger before it blazes out of control.

INSIGHT: One reason it is sometimes hard to admit we are angry when someone offends us is that we fear what others might think of us. But acknowledging anger and providing a time limit on resolving issues is essential in keeping harmonious relationships intact. “Speaking the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15) to the one who has offended us is vital, even if it means stepping outside our comfort zone. This scriptural approach to conflict resolution helps to clear the air and restore relationships. Explaining to the offending party what was hurtful and listening to the other person’s perspective lays the groundwork for healthy relationships. When we keep love in the picture, our goal becomes restoration. Dennis Fisher

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WHAT'S YOUR FATHER'S NAME?

What’s Your Father’s Name?

Read: John 8:39–47
Bible in a Year: Proverbs 22–24; 2 Corinthians 8

To those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.—John 1:12

When I went to buy a cell phone in the Middle East, I was asked the typical questions: name, nationality, address. But then as the clerk was filling out the form, he asked, “What’s your father’s name?” That question surprised me, and I wondered why it was important. Knowing my father’s name would not be important in my culture, but here it was necessary in order to establish my identity. In some cultures, ancestry is important.

The Israelites believed in the importance of ancestry too. They were proud of their patriarch Abraham, and they thought being part of Abraham’s clan made them God’s children. Their human ancestry was connected, in their opinion, to their spiritual family.

Hundreds of years later when Jesus was talking with the Jews, He pointed out that this was not so. They could say Abraham was their earthly ancestor, but if they didn’t love Him—the One sent by the Father—they were not part of God’s family.

The same applies today. We don’t choose our human family, but we can decide the spiritual family we belong to. If we believe in Jesus’s name, God gives us the right to become His children (John 1:12).

Who is your spiritual Father? Have you decided to follow Jesus? Let this be the day you trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins and become part of God’s family. —Keila Ochoa

Dear Lord, You are my heavenly and eternal Father. Thank You for Jesus, my Savior.

God is our Eternal Father.

INSIGHT: The Israelites of Jesus’s day had many Old Testament heroes, but three soared above the rest. David was the great king who established the city of Jerusalem and stabilized the kingdom. Moses was the leader who was given the law of God. He was God’s instrument of deliverance and led the Israelites to the threshold of the land of promise. But their most ancient hero was Abraham—the father of the faithful and the man whose faith was counted to him as righteousness. Jesus, however, surpasses this great heritage, for through Him we become children of God Himself. Bill Crowder

WE HAVE A KING

We Have a King!

Read: Judges 2:11–23
Bible in a Year: Proverbs 19–21; 2 Corinthians 7

In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.—Judges 21:25

After attacking my husband with hurtful words when a situation didn’t go my way, I snubbed the Holy Spirit’s authority as He reminded me of Bible verses that revealed my sinful attitudes. Was nursing my stubborn pride worth the collateral damage in my marriage or being disobedient to God? Absolutely not. But by the time I asked for forgiveness from the Lord and my spouse, I’d left a wake of wounds behind me—the result of ignoring wise counsel and living as if I didn’t have to answer to anyone but myself.

There was a time when the Israelites had a rebellious attitude. After the death of Moses, Joshua led the Israelites into the promised land. Under his leadership, the Israelite’s served the Lord (Judg. 2:7). But after Joshua and the generation that outlived him died, the Israelites forgot God and what He’d done (v. 10). They rejected godly leadership and embraced sin (vv. 11–15).

Things improved when the Lord raised up judges (vv. 16–18), who served like kings. But when each judge died, the Israelites returned to defying God. Living as if they didn’t have anyone to answer to but themselves, they suffered devastating consequences (vv. 19–22). But that doesn’t have to be our reality. We can submit to the sovereign authority of the eternal Ruler we were made to follow—Jesus—because He is our living Judge and King of Kings. —Xochitl Dixon

Jesus, please help us remember You are our living King of Kings and Lord of Lords, almighty and worthy of our loving obedience and trust.

God gives us the power and the privilege to enjoy the rewards of doing things His way.

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STAY AWHILE

Stay Awhile

Read: Hebrews 11:8–13
Bible in a Year: Proverbs 16–18; 2 Corinthians 6

All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.—Hebrews 11:13

During a discussion of The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy, a teenager said he prefers his stories in books rather than movies. When asked why, the young man replied, “With a book, I can stay there as long as I want.” There is something to be said for the power of lingering in a book, especially the Bible, and “inhabiting” the stories there.

Hebrews 11, often called “the faith chapter” of the Bible, mentions nineteen people by name. Each one traveled a road of difficulty and doubt, yet chose to obey God. “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth” (v. 13).

How easy it is to rush through our Bible reading without pondering the people and events in the text. Our self-imposed time schedule robs us of going deeper into God’s truth and His plan for our lives. Yet, when we are willing to stay awhile, we find ourselves caught up in the real-life dramas of people like us who chose to stake their lives on God’s faithfulness.

When we open God’s Word, it’s good to recall that we can stay as long as we want. —David C. McCasland

Father in heaven, thank You for Your written Word and the examples of people who lived by faith. Help us to follow You as they did.

Linger in God’s Word and you’ll find stories of faith.

INSIGHT: Hebrews 11 provides examples of how authentic faith leads to a changed life. Belief and action produce acts of courage and perseverance. As we ponder the deep and impressive faith our spiritual ancestors demonstrated through their actions, it encourages us to follow in their footsteps. The examples of those who have preceded us—those who lived as “foreigners and strangers on earth” (v. 13)—help us to fix our eyes on Jesus (12:2).  

As you reflect on today’s reading, how are you inspired in your walk with Christ? J.R. Hudberg 

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