Archive for March, 2011

A Banquet of Grace

Thursday, March 31st, 2011 at 10:26 pm  
Leave your comment

Chuck Swindoll’s Daily Devotional: A Banquet of GraceChuck Swindoll’s Daily DevotionalReceive a daily devotional message written by Charles Swindoll that brings God’s Word to life.Left

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Blog Home Page
Archive

IFL USA
Current Broadcast
About Us
Contact Us
www.insight.org
Online Store

IFL Around the World
insightworld.org

Blog powered by TypePad« Strength to Weep |Main| A Reflection of Christ »

March 30, 2011A Banquet of Grace

by Charles R. Swindoll

Read Genesis 43:31-34

Joseph’s brothers were astonished at the way they were being treated. They had expected any number of things to happen to them, including possible death, but certainly not this. Now here they were, seated according to age, dining with the prime minister. And what a feast! They were served fresh garden salads, thick T-bone steaks, fried okra, overstuffed baked potatoes, cornbread, black-eyed peas, and big glasses of iced tea (if Egypt was anything like Texas)! Besides that, the prime minister unloaded more food from his own table.

Benjamin, interestingly, was served portions five times the size of the other men. Those hungry Hebrews must have thought they’d died and gone to glory. Benjamin himself may have thought, I know I’m thin, but this is ridiculous. What’s going on here?

By now Joseph was totally oblivious. This is Benjamin! My brother! He was so ecstatic, so overjoyed that he just kept piling on the food. Sounds like something an older brother would do for one he hasn’t seen in ages, doesn’t it? Especially when the elder is full of forgiveness and grace!

Amazing, isn’t it, how Joseph’s acts of grace freed up everyone around the tables. At the outset, there were feelings of anxiety and dread as guilt held them in its grip. Their fear had known no bounds as they returned to Egypt, wondering what they would face.

Within a brief span of time, they found themselves treated kindly, sitting around a banquet table loaded with food, and, of all things, relaxing in the joyful presence of royalty. What relief! Better than that, what grace! They were the recipients of favor they hadn’t earned and kindness they didn’t deserve. And they were overloaded with an abundance of provisions they could never repay. Is anyone surprised they were astonished and no longer afraid? Their fear was now displaced by grace. Why? One reason—Joseph. This great man, though not as yet known to them to be their brother, determined to forgive their mistreatment and, instead, demonstrate great grace. Rather than remind them of their wrongs and force them to pay for their cruelty and injustices from years gone by, he showed them favor to the maximum extreme. This reunion was really a banquet of grace—on full display—thanks to Joseph, a man of integrity and forgiveness. 

 

 

Excerpted from Charles R. Swindoll, Great Days with the Great Lives (Nashville: W Publishing Group, 2005). Copyright © 2005 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

 Posted at 08:00 AM |

Right In Appreciation of Your Gift This Month

The Secret to Facing
Hard Days

Travel with Chuck
Upcoming Events
Past Events

Related Blogs
IFL Pastor Blog
Special Needs Blog document.write(unescape(“%3Cscript src=’” + (document.location.protocol == “https:” ? “https://sb” : “http://b”) + “.scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js’%3E%3C/script%3E”));COMSCORE.beacon({ c1: 2, c2: “6035669″, c3: “”, c4: “http://insightforliving.typepad.com/dailydevo/2011/03/a-banquet-of-grace.html”, c5: “”, c6: “”, c15: “”});

View the original article here

Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

Tags: ,

Holiness or Hardness Toward God?

Thursday, March 31st, 2011 at 9:19 pm  
Leave your comment

He . . . wondered that there was no intercessor . . . —Isaiah 59:16

The reason many of us stop praying and become hard toward God is that we only have an emotional interest in prayer. It sounds good to say that we pray, and we read books on prayer which tell us that prayer is beneficial— that our minds are quieted and our souls are uplifted when we pray. But Isaiah implied in this verse that God is amazed at such thoughts about prayer.

Worship and intercession must go together; one is impossible without the other. Intercession means raising ourselves up to the point of getting the mind of Christ regarding the person for whom we are praying (see Philippians 2:5). Instead of worshiping God, we recite speeches to God about how prayer is supposed to work. Are we worshiping God or disputing Him when we say, “But God, I just don’t see how you are going to do this”? This is a sure sign that we are not worshiping. When we lose sight of God, we become hard and dogmatic. We throw our petitions at His throne and dictate to Him what we want Him to do. We don’t worship God, nor do we seek to conform our minds to the mind of Christ. And if we are hard toward God, we will become hard toward other people.

Are we worshiping God in a way that will raise us up to where we can take hold of Him, having such intimate contact with Him that we know His mind about the ones for whom we pray? Are we living in a holy relationship with God, or have we become hard and dogmatic?

Do you find yourself thinking that there is no one interceding properly? Then be that person yourself. Be a person who worships God and lives in a holy relationship with Him. Get involved in the real work of intercession, remembering that it truly is work-work that demands all your energy, but work which has no hidden pitfalls. Preaching the gospel has its share of pitfalls, but intercessory prayer has none whatsoever.

View the original article here

Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

Tags: , ,

Valid Entry

Thursday, March 31st, 2011 at 8:39 pm  
Leave your comment

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” —John 14:6

On a teaching trip outside the US, my wife and I were denied entry into our country of destination because of visa problems. Although we were under the assumption our visas had been correctly issued by the country we planned to visit, they were deemed invalid. Despite the efforts of several government officials, nothing could be done. We weren’t allowed in. We were placed on the next flight back to the States. No amount of intervention could change the fact that we did not have the proper validation for entrance.

That experience with my visa was inconvenient, but it can’t begin to compare with the ultimate entry rejection. I’m speaking of those who will stand before God without valid entry into heaven. What if they were to present the record of their religious efforts and good deeds? That would not be enough. What if they were to call character references? That wouldn’t work. Only one thing can give anyone entry into heaven. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

Christ alone, through His death and resurrection, paid the price for our sins. And only He can give us valid entry into the presence of the Father. Have you put your faith in Jesus? Make sure you have a valid entry into heaven.


There aren’t many ways into heaven;
The Bible says there’s only one;
Good works won’t gain anyone entrance;
It’s only through faith in God’s Son. —Sper

Only through Christ can we enter the Father’s presence.

View the original article here

Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

Tags: ,

A Reflection of Christ

Thursday, March 31st, 2011 at 7:32 pm  
Leave your comment

Chuck Swindoll’s Daily Devotional: A Reflection of ChristChuck Swindoll’s Daily DevotionalReceive a daily devotional message written by Charles Swindoll that brings God’s Word to life.Left

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Blog Home Page
Archive

IFL USA
Current Broadcast
About Us
Contact Us
www.insight.org
Online Store

IFL Around the World
insightworld.org

Blog powered by TypePad« A Banquet of Grace |Main

March 31, 2011A Reflection of Christ

by Charles R. Swindoll

Read Genesis 43:33-34

Joseph's life offers us a magnificent portrayal of the grace of God as He came to our rescue in the Person of His Son, Jesus. So many come to Him, like Joseph's guilty brothers, feeling the distance and fearing the worst from God, only to have Him demonstrate incredible generosity and mercy. Instead of being blamed, we are forgiven. Instead of feeling guilty, we are freed. And instead of experiencing punishment, which we certainly deserve, we are seated at His table and served more than we can ever take in.

For some, it's too unreal. So we desperately plead our case, only to have Him speak kindly to us—promising us peace in our own language. We then try to fend off His anger by bargaining with Him, thinking our hard work and sincere efforts will pay Him back for all those evil past deeds we're guilty of. But to our astonishment, He never even considered our attempts important enough to mention. What we had in mind was earning just enough to silence our guilt, but what He had in mind was overwhelming us with such an abundance we'd realize we can never, ever repay.

What a beautiful picture of Christ at the cross, bearing the sins we committed, forgiving us in the process. Isn't such grace amazing? The One who was rejected is the same One who goes the limit to get us reunited with Him.

Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you,
And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you.
For the LORD is a God of justice;
How blessed are all those who long for Him. (Isaiah 30:18)

Do you long for Him? I've got great news! In an even greater way—greater than you could ever imagine—He longs to be gracious to you. He is offering you all the things you hunger for. The table is loaded, and He is smiling, waiting for you to sit down and enjoy the feast He prepared with you in mind. Have a seat—grace is being served.

 

 

Excerpted from Charles R. Swindoll, Great Days with the Great Lives (Nashville: W Publishing Group, 2005). Copyright © 2005 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

 Posted at 08:00 AM |

Right

In Appreciation of Your Gift This Month

The Secret to Facing
Hard Days

Travel with Chuck
Upcoming Events
Past Events

Related Blogs
IFL Pastor Blog
Special Needs Blog document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js'%3E%3C/script%3E"));COMSCORE.beacon({ c1: 2, c2: "6035669", c3: "", c4: "http://insightforliving.typepad.com/dailydevo/2011/03/a-reflection-of-christ.html", c5: "", c6: "", c15: ""});

View the original article here

Tags: ,

Heedfulness or Hypocrisy in Ourselves?

Thursday, March 31st, 2011 at 6:42 pm  
Leave your comment

If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death —1 John 5:16

If we are not heedful and pay no attention to the way the Spirit of God works in us, we will become spiritual hypocrites. We see where other people are failing, and then we take our discernment and turn it into comments of ridicule and criticism, instead of turning it into intercession on their behalf. God reveals this truth about others to us not through the sharpness of our minds but through the direct penetration of His Spirit. If we are not attentive, we will be completely unaware of the source of the discernment God has given us, becoming critical of others and forgetting that God says, “. . . he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death.” Be careful that you don’t become a hypocrite by spending all your time trying to get others right with God before you worship Him yourself.

One of the most subtle and illusive burdens God ever places on us as saints is this burden of discernment concerning others. He gives us discernment so that we may accept the responsibility for those souls before Him and form the mind of Christ about them (see Philippians 2:5). We should intercede in accordance with what God says He will give us, namely, “life for those who commit sin not leading to death.” It is not that we are able to bring God into contact with our minds, but that we awaken ourselves to the point where God is able to convey His mind to us regarding the people for whom we intercede.

Can Jesus Christ see the agony of His soul in us? He can’t unless we are so closely identified with Him that we have His view concerning the people for whom we pray. May we learn to intercede so wholeheartedly that Jesus Christ will be completely and overwhelmingly satisfied with us as intercessors.

View the original article here

Tags: , ,