Bible League: Living His Word . . . He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being. . .There are many passages in the Bible that explicitly teach or imply that we have access to the Lord God of heaven and earth. Here are just a few examples: "Come before His presence with singing" (Psalm 100:2). "Turn to Me with all your heart" (Joel 2:12). '"Return to Me," says the LORD of hosts, "and I will return to you"' (Zechariah 1:3). In all these passages, and many more like them, it is simply assumed that we can come into the presence of the Lord. Thus, although we cannot see Him or hear Him, at least under normal circumstances, God is available to us and accessible by us. We can turn to Him, return to Him, come before Him, enter into His presence, and so on. Just as we can relate to the natural world beneath us, and the human world around us, we can relate to the Lord God above us. No matter where we are, He is available to us. Jeremiah 23:23 says, '"Am I a God near at hand," says the LORD, "And not a God afar off?"' The reason we have access to the Lord God anywhere and everywhere is because He is, to use a term from theological discourse, omnipresent. Although God transcends space as its creator, He Himself is wholly present everywhere in space. As our verses for today put it, "He is not far from each one of us." Although we can ignore God and turn away from Him, this does not mean that we can actually escape from His presence. Psalm 139:7-8 says, "Where can I go from your Spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there." It is true that "in Him we live and move and have our being" because God is present everywhere sustaining, maintaining, and upholding the whole creation, heaven and earth. Hebrews 1:3 says of God the Son that He is continuously "upholding all things by the word of His power." Take comfort today in the thought that God is not far away from you and is not inaccessible to you. At any time and from any place, you may enter into His presence. Bible in a Year Old Testament Reading2 Samuel 23, 24 2 Samuel 23 -- David's Last Song NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB 2 Samuel 24 -- The Census Taken; David Builds an Altar NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading Luke 22:31-53 Luke 22 -- Preparing the Passover; Jesus Arrested, Disowned by Peter NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion So I recommend having fun, because there is nothing better for people in this world than to eat, drink, and enjoy life. That way they will experience some happiness along with all the hard work God gives them under the sun.Insight Solomon recalls the remedy for life's unanswered questions. He recommends joy and contentment as encouragement for us along life's pilgrimage. Challenge We must accept each day with its daily measure of work, food, and pleasure. Let us learn to enjoy what God has given us to refresh and strengthen us to continue his work. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Numbers 14:2 And all the children of Israel murmured.There are murmurers amongst Christians now, as there were in the camp of Israel of old. There are those who, when the rod falls, cry out against the afflictive dispensation. They ask, "Why am I thus afflicted? What have I done to be chastened in this manner?" A word with thee, O murmurer! Why shouldst thou murmur against the dispensations of thy heavenly Father? Can he treat thee more hardly than thou deservest? Consider what a rebel thou wast once, but he has pardoned thee! Surely, if he in his wisdom sees fit now to chasten thee, thou shouldst not complain. After all, art thou smitten as hardly as thy sins deserve? Consider the corruption which is in thy breast, and then wilt thou wonder that there needs so much of the rod to fetch it out? Weigh thyself, and discern how much dross is mingled with thy gold; and dost thou think the fire too hot to purge away so much dross as thou hast? Does not that proud rebellious spirit of thine prove that thy heart is not thoroughly sanctified? Are not those murmuring words contrary to the holy submissive nature of God's children? Is not the correction needed? But if thou wilt murmur against the chastening, take heed, for it will go hard with murmurers. God always chastises his children twice, if they do not bear the first stroke patiently. But know one thing--"He doth not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men." All his corrections are sent in love, to purify thee, and to draw thee nearer to himself. Surely it must help thee to bear the chastening with resignation if thou art able to recognize thy Father's hand. For "whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons." "Murmur not as some of them also murmured and were destroyed of the destroyer." Daily Light on the Daily Path 1 John 2:5 but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him:Hebrews 13:20,21 Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, • equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. 1 John 2:3 By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. John 14:23 Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him. 1 John 3:6,7 No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. • Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; 1 John 4:17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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