January 31

“And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my Son, my chosen: hear ye him” Luke 9:35

Christ is unique. Any comparison with him is impertinent. Peter was so thrilled to see Moses and Elijah alongside his Lord that he proposed to make for them three tabernacles. But the divine voice effectively silenced him. Moses and Elijah were not to be counted on the same plane as Christ. Peter, of course, would doubtless have given Christ priority, relegating Moses and Elijah to second place and third; but God repudiated the idea that even a Moses or an Elijah, however prominent under the Old Covenant, should have authority in the New. Here “Christ is all and in all.” Christianity is Christ—not Christ plus.

In effect God said, “This is no time for you to be talking; it is a time for you to be listening. Anything you or anyone else has to say is totally irrelevant. There is only One who is qualified to speak here! God’s word today is not “Hear ye them,” but “Hear ye him.”

January 30

“Give us this day our daily bread.” Matthew 6:11

Some may have trouble in understanding how the Lord can teach us to pray for God’s name, God’s kingdom, and God’s will, and then suddenly turn to the matter of daily bread. It appears unfitting to take such a plunge in prayer from the sublime to the very mundane. But there is a good reason for our Lord’s words. He knew only too well that those who are devoted to the will of God will become involved in fierce hostility: that those who pray kingdom prayers will inevitably draw upon themselves Satanic attacks which will threaten their very existence.

Bread is man’s elemental need. If he is to stand for the will of God to be done on earth, he must be kept alive. Hence the relevancy of his asking for daily bread if he is to be true to God in this evil world.

January 29

“Jesus, perceiving in himself that the power proceeding from him had gone forth . . . said, Who touched my garments?” Mark 5:30

In this story we are told that many thronged about the Lord Jesus but only one touched him. This woman came up behind him in the crowd saying, “If I touch but his garments, I shall be made whole.” She had faith and experience followed, for “she felt in her body that she was healed.” And our Lord too felt the touch, and of course knew all that had transpired.

There was no change in the many who thronged around him. It was solely the one who touched him who was instantly changed. It is useless therefore merely to rub shoulders with the Lord. All too many today acquaint themselves with the externalities of Jesus of Nazareth without touching the Son of God as she did. They stay in the outside world of thronging and never venture into the inner world of touching. Do you see the difference? Merely to throng him is of no avail. Reach out the trusting hand to touch him, and diseases are healed and problems solved.

January 28

“Ye also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house.” 1 Peter 2:5

Solomon’s Temple was built of quarried and trimmed stones, each stone in its place but every one lifeless. Today God’s house is made up, not of dead, but of living stones. Peter, who wrote these words, was a living stone, a single unit, before he was built together with the others. Many remain thus, scattered here and there, independent, useless. But if a house is to be constructed they must be gathered, and stone must be built on stone and fitted to other stones.

Thank God you are his! You have trusted in the Lord Jesus, and now you are God's living stone. Don‘t, then, just hide out there alone in the shrubbery to become a cause of stumbling to the unwary! Let yourself be carried to the building site. Allow yourself to be matched up with other living stones, fashioned to fit into your place. The trimming may be uncomfortable, but in the end God will have a dwelling-place.

January 27

“My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing, yea, I will sing praises.” Psalm 57:7

Our problems in life are in general of two kinds. The first kind is circumstantial, arising from the turn of events. This may be met and overcome by prayer. The other kind is more personal, the suffering of being hurt or humiliated by others. For such affronts and misunderstandings prayer does not seem to avail. I myself have prayed, and I know. It is futile to wrestle with such problems and to strive in prayer about them. I want to suggest that you should turn instead to praise.

You should bow your head and say to the Lord, “Lord, I thank you. I receive this bad treatment as from your hands and I praise you for it all.” By so doing you will find that everything is transcended. What the Lord has permitted to come to you cannot be wrong. Everything that he does is perfect. As you thus praise God, your spirit rises victorious over your problems and God himself takes care of your hurt feelings.

January 26

“Be not ashamed therefore of the testimony of our Lord.” 2 Timothy 1:6

Why should we be ashamed of confessing ourselves to be Christians? When the Lord Jesus was hanged on the cross, he bore our shame as well as our sins. The Bible clearly teaches us that he was put to shame. He was humiliated by the soldiers in the Praetorium and disgraced by them at Calvary. If we suffer disgrace from men, that is our rightful portion; no indignity that we receive today can compare with the shame which our Lord endured on the cross.

Let it, then, be no surprise to us to suffer shame, for this is the portion of all who belong to the Lord. It is really the world which should be ashamed. A poet has exclaimed, “Can a flower be ashamed of the sun?” Impossible! As a flower opens gratefully for all to see its response to the sunlight, so will we openly confess before men the Lord who has done so much for us.

January 25

“But thanks be unto God, who always leadeth us in triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest through us the savor of his knowledge in everyplace.” 2 Corinthians 2:14

Fragrance is the world's most elusive commodity. The fragrance of a summer's day is impossible to define and you can’t imitate it. This is also true in the spirit. Have you never had the experience of sensing a special quality about a Christian man or woman which you could neither explain not describe? That is what we mean by spiritual fragrance. It comes from a heart relationship with God which is born of communion and obedience, and it far surpasses all the cultivated excellencies of this world.

True, we may meet fine virtues in people who make no claim to he Christians, and at times these natural qualities put us, as mere men, to shame. But really there is no comparison. The fragrance which comes from a Spirit-directed life proceeds out of heaven itself. It originates from Christ, and it points men not to us but to him.

January 24

“Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.” Matthew 22:29

When Herod asked the priests and scribes where the Christ should be born, they at once recited from memory the prophet’s words: “In Bethlehem of Judea.” How well they knew their Scriptures! They could give an immediate answer when called upon. And was their reply wrong? Not at all. Yet this was the surprising thing, that after they had answered the question, not one of those scribes or elders set out for Bethlehem. What they knew was quite accurate; nevertheless they only used it to point the way to the magi—and then went back to their books. They functioned like a traffic policeman who directs people to where they want to go, but himself remains at his post.

This will not do, it is not enough just to know the Bible; we must also know the power of God. Understanding what he says in the Scriptures is not sufficient if it does not lead us to know God himself. We need to have personal dealings with him, acting on his words in faith. The pathway to the knowledge of God is through such actions. There is no other way.

January 23

“And Jehovah said unto Joshua, Stretch out the javelin that is in thy hand toward Ai; for I will give it into thy hand.” Joshua 8:18

The capture of big Jericho may have been a walkover. and here now is little Ai. Yet the means used successfully for the victory at Jericho cannot be applied here: something new is called for. In other words, you cannot tackle today’s spiritual battles with yesterday’s weapons. The past has become history and you thank God for it, but new power is needed now to deal with a new challenge.

To persist in self-reliance acquired through past successes is to close the door to progress. The Lord orders our circumstances to confront us with an ever-fresh need to seek his face, proving to us thereby that we can overcome every time by means of some new discovery of him.

January 22

“Pray to thy Father who is in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret shall recompense thee” Matthew 6:6

All too often we lay stress on having prayer answered. Yet here the Lord Jesus emphasizes having prayer rewarded. How do we know this? Because the same word “recompense” used here is used again, with no petition implied, in verse 2 concerning alms and in verse 16 concerning fasting. Judged by its context, the recompense promised refers to a reward to be received in the future. What this tells us is that prayer answered is secondary, while prayer rewarded is primary. If our prayer is in accordance with the mind of God, it will not only be answered here. More important than that, it will be remembered in the future at the judgment seat of Christ, for reward.

Prayer is primarily communion with God for the manifesting of his glory. The hypocrites in this passage turn the things that should glorify God to the service of their own aggrandizement. They pray in public places for men to applaud and love it. What is happening? They are praying merely to be seen by others, not to he heard by God, and the motive determines the outcome. These people find their reward where they looked for it, in the praise of men. The recompense reserved in the kingdom to come, they miss altogether. They never really sought it.

January 21

“How much more shall the blood of Christ . . . cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” Hebrews 9:14

The question of how the blood of Christ cleanses our conscience cannot be resolved in literal terms. Can we imagine some onlooker at Calvary stepping forward and taking a little of the blood of Jesus, touching it upon his body as was done symbolically with the Jewish offerings and so finding his conscience cleansed? No. For us, the Holy Spirit deals not with symbols but with spiritual realities.

When the Spirit cleanses our conscience by appeal to the blood of Jesus, he is applying to us the reality of the Lord’s death on the cross. Those who only live in the realm of symbols and forms and rituals will find themselves bound by conscience to dead works. The Spirit is life. He it is who works on the basis of the spiritual reality of the shed blood to guide into a new and real relationship with the living God.

January 20

“And God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God.” Genesis 35:1

Jacob was thinking of settling down peacefully in Shechem, but God could not approve. He permitted circumstances therefore—the humiliation of his daughter and the gross crime of his sons—that disturbed Jacob’s peace and made it possible for God to speak to him again. At the time Jacob had no thought of God's hand in these events. Instead he blamed his sons and became frightened. Then he heard God's voice: “Arise, go up to Bethel.”

I do not believe that a person can become so spiritual that he has no need to learn from his environment. Brothers and sisters, never consider yourselves so advanced in the Christian life that you need only listen to the inner voice. You may have become deaf to that! God has then to speak to you through what is going on around you.

January 19

“Ye shall have tribulation ten days.” Revelation 2:10

What is the meaning of this “ten days”? When Abraham's servant wanted to carry off Rebecca, her brother and mother requested that she stay with them ten days. When Daniel and his friends would not allow themselves to be defiled by the king’s food, they asked the officer in charge to try them for ten days. So the words must have a meaning in the Bible. It seems possible that they indicate “just a short time.” Is this the Lord's meaning in his message to the church at Smyrna?

He seems to be saying, first, that there are certain days marked out for our suffering, and that those days are calculated by him. They are inescapable, but after they are over we shall be freed. On the other hand, he seems to affirm that the trials are brief. The ten days are but a short time. No matter what tribulation you pass through before God, it will soon be past. Be faithful therefore, he awaits you with a crown of life.

January 18

“So teach us to number our days, that we may get us a heart of wisdom.” Psalm 90:12

Reckoned on the calendar, the days we live are easily tallied up, since a day can be measured and so can a year. But reckoned according to God’s valuation, some days are credited while others may be discounted. It appears that in the Bible some days go unrecorded, perhaps because God has looked upon them as wasted days, devoid of meaning for him.

The day you receive the salvation of the Lord is the day you begin your spiritual history. Life, for you, starts then. Before that moment you really have no spiritual days to be credited in the timescale of God. Even after you have believed in him, it is not certain that each day or year necessarily counts. Tell me, have you never wasted a day? Our calendar days are so few! How precious is every one! We need to learn how we can number them so that our every day and every year gives him pleasure.

January 17

“We walk by faith, not by sight.” 2 Corinthians 5:7

Forgive me for saying here something rather elementary about how God delivers us from living by our feelings and leads us into the state of living by faith. When you first find the Savior, you cannot but be happy. Everything is so wonderful, and everything is so new! But this feeling passes, and then what do you think? Because you are not as joyful as when you were first saved, have you lost your spirituality?

Certainly not! To think so is to display a serious misunderstanding of Christian experience, A simple illustration will help us. I lose a watch. When I find it I am happy. When four or five days have elapsed, I am no longer as happy as I was. After a few more days, that happiness may have entirely gone. What has happened? My watch has not been lost again. All that I have lost is the feelings I had at the time of finding it. This is the Christian life.

January 16

“We know that to them that love God all things work together for good.” Romans 8:28

Hangchow is a city of silk-weavers. Come with me into one of their sheds. Look at the reverse side of the brocade that is on the loom. To the untaught, the many-colored warp and woof seem only chaotic, a meaningless crossing of colored threads. But turn it over. Look at the front side of the finished fabric. It is beautiful, a tasteful design of men and trees, flowers and mountains. The work in progress was confusing, but the end product has meaning and purpose.

When our lot appears puzzling to our eyes, remember that we do not know to what design God is working. For each thread, bright or dark, has its function, and each change of pattern follows a prepared plan. What matter if life’s experiences seem disorderly and we cannot grasp what they are all about? God’s Word assures us that all things without exception work together for our good.

January 15

“Behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward.” Ezekiel 47:1

The question is not whether the tide of the Spirit will flow on in our generation, but whether you and I will be caught up into that tide. We have a glorious heritage from the past, but we also have the solemn responsibility of passing it on. lf we fail to fill our role in God's purpose for this present time. he will seek out others to do so. The fruit of the past has been possible because men of God stayed in the mainstream of his purpose.

Now it is we who have the privilege of offering ourselves to him that he may speed a little further on his course. If he can drive a way for himself through our lives, then that will be our greatest glory. If not, he will still go on, but will have to turn in some other direction, and we shall have the tragic experience of being bypassed, it is not merely the proclamation of God ‘s truth that is needed today; it is the release in human lives of the risen Christ to whom that truth points. This happens only as we ourselves are caught up in the Spirit’s on-flowing tide.

January 14

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins.” 1 John 1:9

If a child of God should sin, and should continue in that sin without confession, he yet remains God's child. God is still his Father, but there is now a weakness in that believer’s conscience: he is unable to be at his ease with God. Though he may try to maintain fellowship with God, he will find fellowship both painful and limited. The spontaneity has gone. Within him there is an awareness of distance. But there is one sure way of immediate restoration and that is to go to God in confession of the sin, calling upon Jesus Christ as his Advocate to conduct his case.

Never let us linger, then, in the shame of sin, as if such self-inflicted suffering could itself work in us holiness. There is no merit in a sense of guilt that does not lead on to repentance. If any man sin, the one thing he must do is to go to God and confess, trusting in Jesus Christ the Righteous One to champion his cause.

January 13

“He ever liveth to make intercession for them.” Hebrews 7:25

How could the Lord ever have borne the burdens of others if he had been all the time thinking about his own great sufferings? But he did not. Instead he spent his days as though he had no burdens of his own, and gave himself in sympathy as if he had nothing else to do. Nor was he sympathetic only to the people of his day; he is full of the same sympathy for us here and now. Often you may feel that nobody cares for you. At such times your burdens seem intolerable and earthly friends appear quite powerless to help and understand.

There is, however, a Friend who is always at hand to lift your heavy load. Though seated in the heavens, he seems to bend down and take you as his personal delight, and is deeply concerned with your welfare. He feels for you in your trouble and will fly to your support. Call on him; he ever lives.

January 12

“As many us are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” Romans 8:14

A Christian once appealed to his fellows, “Please ask God to show you what he wants me to do, and when he does, tell me what it is.” We can understand his request but. all unintentionally, it was a violation of the New Testament. God makes no provision there for mediators between ourselves and Christ. We no longer look to men to tell us what we ought to do. The Lord, the indwelling Spirit, teaches us his will.

In Acts 21 we read that when Paul felt he should visit Jerusalem a number of people besought him not to do so, because of the serious trouble which was expected to befall him there. Yet he declined to reverse his decision. Why? Because in his inner being he had assurance regarding the Lord’s will. If we are truly walking with God, we dare not be governed by other people's opinions. In Old Testament times people might consult the prophets, but not so today.