Month: November 2024

2 Chronicles 14:1-15:19; Ezekiel 36:16-38; John 14:15-31

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. Psalm 116:15

How can the death of a “loved one” be precious when I am so sad and desolate? Because it is then that the Lord sees “of the travail of his soul, and [is] satisfied” (Isa. 53:11). When He gathers a dear one to Himself, the Lord sees afresh all He once suffered and endured at the hands of a Christ rejecting world, and then at the hands of His loving Father, who, “laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53:6). When He finally gathers each blood-bought child back to
Himself, He must think “It was worth it all”. —David Croudace

Give me a sight, O Saviour, of Thy wondrous love to me,
Of the love that brought Thee down to earth, to die on Calvary.
Oh, make me understand it, help me to take it in,
What it meant to Thee, the Holy One, to bear away my sin. —K. Kelly

2 Chronicles 12:1-13:22; Ezekiel 35:1-36:15; John 13:31-14:14

Aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands…that you may walk properly toward those who are outside… 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 NKJV

Sometimes we are noisy as opposed to quiet, and nosey and meddling rather than minding our own business. And yes, we can be idle when we should be working. Remember that we are exhibits in God’s “display case” for the power of the Gospel. Am I a solid piece of evidence that Christ produces beautifully transformed attitudes and attractive gracious behaviours in society? Eagerly strive or aspire to lead the quiet life of one who knows the Lord. —Peter Ramsay

May His beauty rest upon me, as I seek the lost to win,
And may they forget the channel, seeing only Him.  —Kate B. Wilkinson

2 Chronicles 10:1-11:23; Ezekiel 34:1-31; John 13:1-30

Christ…loved the church, and gave himself for it. Ephesians 5:25
No man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church. Ephesians 5:29
That he might present it to himself a glorious church. Ephesians 5:27

In the order set out above, these verses speak of Christ’s relationship to the church in the past, present and future. The cost of the church (v. 25) is illustrated by Eve, the complement for Adam from his wounded side. The cherishing of the church (v. 29) reminds us of how Isaac loved Rebekah, his comfort after the death of Sarah. The  consummation of the church (v. 27) is reflected in Asenath, Joseph’s consort in the glory that followed his suffering. —Phil Coulson

I love Thee because Thou hast first loved me.
And purchased my pardon on Calvary’s tree.  —William Featherstone

2 Chronicles 8:1-9:31; Ezekiel 33:33; John 12:20-50

And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him. Luke 23:33 NKJV

What does Calvary mean to you? To the crowd on that day it was the place of crucifixion and the end (or so they thought) of the Lord. To the believer, however, Calvary means so much more. It is the high point of love displayed by our Lord. For it was “at the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light, and the burden of my heart rolled away”. Tell me, what does Calvary mean to you today? —John M Clegg

Calvary! O Calvary!
Mercy’s vast unfathomed sea,
Love, eternal love to me.
Saviour, we adore Thee!  —S. Trevor Francis

2 Chronicles 7:1-22; Ezekiel 32:1-32; John 11:55-12:19

But the Lord is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation. He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom. Jeremiah 10:10, 12

The world chooses to ignore the existence of God and in many places openly rejects His Word and denies Him outrightly. Yet it matters not! His power and wisdom created all things and He is still the only true, living, eternal God and one day all men will have to face Him! Will you pay homage to the everlasting King or suffer His wrath in a coming day? —Pete Smith

O worship the King all-glorious above,
O gratefully sing His power and His love. —Robert Grant

2 Chronicles 6:12-42; Ezekiel 30:20-31:18; John 11:28-54

And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God. Luke 1:64

Zachariah couldn’t speak for at least nine months, but when he did speak, we are told that the first thing out of his mouth was praise to God. He didn’t talk about his experience in the temple or his excitement in having a child. He didn’t complain about not being able to speak. He spoke about what was in his heart. What is in my heart when I speak to someone? May it be that my heart is full of the Lord Jesus, and that things concerning Him are what come
out of my mouth first. —K. J. W.

Oh fill me with Thy fullness,
Lord, until my very heart o’erflow
In kindling thought and glowing word,
Thy love to tell, Thy praise to show. —Frances Ridley Havergal

2 Chronicles 5:1*6:11; Ezekiel 29:1-30:19; John 11:1-27

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. Romans 1:16

Like Jonah, we may shrink from testifying to a wicked society. Like Moses we may feel inadequate. Living in a world that glories in complex knowledge and power, we can easily become embarrassed by the message. It is a simple message. We are weak messengers. It is a dark world. Yet, the Lord mightily uses Spirit-filled believers to share His life-transforming Gospel message, powerfully saving and changing people from this corrupt world. Pray for  opportunities! —George Ferrier

Go in the power the Lord will provide you, led by the Spirit each day,
You cannot fail on the mission He sends you—go then, no longer delay.  —John Peterson

2 Chronicles 3:1-4:22; Ezekiel 28:1-26; John 10:19-42

Jesus did many other signs. John 20:30 NKJV

Skeptics claim that miracles break the laws of nature. They’re right! However, if we can accept that there is a God who made science and its natural laws, then we can also acknowledge that such a God is able to exert His power over any part of creation to bring about what we call “a miracle”. What purpose do these miracles serve? “That you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name” (Jn. 20:31).— B. Cretney

O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art! How great Thou art. —Stuart K. Hine

2 Chronicles 1:1-2:18; Ezekiel 27:1-36; John 10:1-18

All scripture is given by inspiration of God. 2 Timothy 3:16

There are many undeniable proofs of biblical inspiration. Externally, archeology has uncovered many sites that support Scripture, such as Nineveh and Petra. Internally, the content of Scripture both in themes and in fulfilled prophecy support its divine authorship. Eternal proof is found in the person of the Lord Jesus, His teaching, death and resurrection attest to His view of Scripture. Practical proof is in the lives of sinners saved by grace, born again of the Word of God. In summation, the spade, the Scriptures, the Saviour, and saved sinners all give evidence to the fact that Scripture is Godbreathed. —Gary McBride

This Book will stand forever, when this world has passed away.
The lips of God have spoken; every word I will obey!
It will stand each test we give it, for its Author is divine. —R.Hamilton

1 Chronicles 29:1-30; Ezekiel 26:1-21; John 9:18-41

Because I live, you will live also. John 14:19 NKJV

In many nations, this is a day of remembrance for those who died in times of war. In some countries, a red poppy is worn to remember the fallen. The symbol comes from a poem, In Flanders Fields by William McCrae, a Canadian doctor who served in World War 1. Looking at the many graves in war torn Belgium, he noticed the little red flowers springing up, a tiny sign of life in fields of death. We remember those who died today, but our hearts should also turn
to another place of death, Calvary. Christ finished His work there and rose from the grave. Because of Him we too will rise, glorious life springing from that place of death. —S.M.

Because He lives I can face tomorrow, because He lives all fear is gone;
Because I know He holds the future, and life is worth the living,
Just because He lives. —Gloria and William Gaither