DAILY, WEEKEND, AND HOLIDAY INTERNET EVANGELIZE TO THE WORLD MINISTRY

VISITATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY Catholic Daily Readings First Reading  Zep 3:14–18a  or  Ro 12:9–16 Response   Is 12:6 Psalm  Is 12:2–3 Gospel Acclamation   Lk 1:45 Gospel   Lk 1:39–56

Promise Isaiah 5:3 Excerpt There is in the Heb. OT no special term for the concept or act of promising. Where our English translations say that someone promised something, the Hebrew simply states that someone said or spoke ( ’āmar ,   dāḇar ) some word with future reference. In the NT the technical term,  epangelia , appears chiefly in Acts, Galatians, Romans and Hebrews. A promise is a word that goes forth into unfilled time. It reaches ahead of its speaker and its recipient, to mark an appointment between them in the future. A promise may be an assurance of continuing or future action on behalf of someone: ‘I will be with you’, ‘They that mourn shall be comforted’, ‘If we confess our sins, God will forgive us our sins.’ It may be a solemn agreement of lasting, mutual (if unequal) relationship: as in the covenants. It may be the announcement of a future event: ‘When you have brought the people from Egypt, you will serve God on this mountain.’  More Hoa...

Remember the Height from which You have Fallen Excerpt The Ephesians were first reminded to  remember the height from  which you have fallen!  They were told to  repent  and to return to the love they had left. Similar exhortations concerning the need for a deep love for God are frequently found in the New Testament ( Matt.  22:37 ;  Mark 12:30 ;  Luke 10:27 ;  John  14:15 ,  21 ,  23 ;  21:15-16 ;  James 2:5 ;  1 Peter 1:8 ). Christ stated that one’s love for God should be greater than his love for his closest relatives, including his father, mother, son, and daughter ( Matt.  10:37 ). Paul added that love for God should even be above one’s love for his or her mate ( 1 Cor.  7:32-35 ). In calling the Ephesian believers to repentance Christ was asking them to change their attitude as well as their affections. They were to continue their service not simply because it was right but because they lov...

Warning of Apostates Excerpt Jude compared the present apostates to three historical apostates, all of whom have their counterparts today: • Cain, who ignored God’s wishes and offered a bloodless sacrifice (see  Gen. 4:1–7 ;  Heb. 11:4 ;  1 John 3:12 ). Many today, while claiming to be Christians, ignore God’s Word. • Balaam, the greedy prophet hired to curse Israel, who was reprimanded by his donkey (see  Num. 22:1–25:9 ;  Rev. 2:14 ). Many today make merchandise of the gospel. • Korah, who slandered and rebelled against Moses (see  Num. 16 ). Present-day apostates speak evil against those who speak for God.  More Willmington, H. L.  Willmington’s Bible Handbook . Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1997. Print.

Love God, Obey His Commandments Excerpt John is not talking about how we know others have a  vital relationship with God. He is discussing how a real faith in Jesus expresses  itself in our lives. As we experience love for others and for God, and find ourselves choosing to obey His commandments, we realize that we truly have  been born again.  More Richards, Lawrence O.  The Bible Reader’s Companion . electronic ed. Wheaton: Victor Books, 1991. Print.

THE VISITATION Lutheran Service Book Three Year Lectionary Old Testament  Is 11:1–5 Psalm  Ps 138 Epistle  Ro 12:9–16 Gospel  Lk 1:39–45 ,  46–56

WEDNESDAY AFTER THE SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER Revised Common Lectionary Daily Readings Psalm   Ps 99 First Reading  1 Ki 8:54–65 Second Reading  Jn 3:31–36

WEDNESDAY OF THE WEEK AFTER ASCENSION, MORNING PRAYER Book of Common Prayer (1928) Daily Office Lectionary Psalm  Ps 21:1–6 ;  Ps 23 First Reading  Is 4:2 Second Reading  Re 19:11–16 a

Wednesday, May 31, 2017 | Holy Day The Visitation Years ABC First Reading 1 Samuel 2:1–10 Psalm Psalm 113 Second Reading Romans 12:9–16b Gospel Luke 1:39–57   Episcopal Church (USA) Revised Common Lectionary . Bellingham, WA: Faithlife, 2016. Print.

Wednesday, May 31, 2017 | Special Days Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth Years ABC Old Testament 1 Samuel 2:1–10 Psalm Psalm 113 New Testament Romans 12:9–16b Gospel Luke 1:39–57   Revised Common Lectionary . Bellingham, WA: Faithlife, 2009. Print.

May 31: Fighting Loneliness 1 Chronicles 28:1–29:2; 2 Timothy 4:9–22 ; Psalm 90:1–17 Loneliness is one of the most disheartening feelings a person can know. Being alone in a time of pain is even worse. Several recent surveys suggest that lonely people—especially teenagers—subtly reach out through their social networks, desperately looking for someone who cares. In a world where anyone can get attention online, we’ve moved away from authentic community. We continue to crave personal interactions—perhaps more so because we have electronic witness to the interactions of others. We as Christians should see this as an opportunity to reach out to disenfranchised, lonely people and show the love of Christ to others. Paul’s second letter to Timothy illustrates how feelings of loneliness are amplified by pain. He makes one of the most candid statements in the Bible: “At my first defense, no one came to my aid, but they all deserted me; may it not be counted against them. But the Lord ...

Morning, May 31                             Go To Evening Reading “The king also himself passed over the brook Kidron.” — 2 Samuel 15:23 David passed that gloomy brook when flying with his mourning company from his traitor son. The man after God’s own heart was not exempt from trouble, nay, his life was full of it. He was both the Lord’s Anointed, and the Lord’s Afflicted. Why then should we expect to escape? At sorrow’s gates the noblest of our race have waited with ashes on their heads, wherefore then should we complain as though some strange thing had happened unto us? The King of kings himself was not favoured with a more cheerful or royal road. He passed over the filthy ditch of Kidron, through which the filth of Jerusalem flowed. God had one Son without sin, but not a single child without the rod. It is a great joy to believe that Jesus has been tempted in all points like as we are. What is our ...

May 31st God first Put God First in Trust. Jesus did not commit Himself unto them, … for He knew what was in man. John 2:24–25 . Our Lord trusted no man; yet He was never suspicious, never bitter, never in despair about any man because He put God first in trust; He trusted absolutely in what God’s grace could do for any man. If I put my trust in human beings first, I will end in despairing of everyone; I will become bitter, because I have insisted on man being what no man ever can be—absolutely right. Never trust anything but the grace of God in yourself or in anyone else. Put God’s Needs First. Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God. Hebrews 10:9 . A man’s obedience is to what he sees to be a need; Our Lord’s obedience was to the will of His Father. The cry to-day is— ‘We must get some work to do; the heathen are dying without God; we must go and tell them of Him.’ We have to see first of all that God’s needs in us personally are being met. “Tarry ye until.…” The purpose o...

May 31 Without me ye can do nothing.… I can do all things, through Christ which strengtheneth me John 15:5 ; Phil. 4:13 Apart from Him we can do nothing. Whilst we are abiding in Him nothing is impossible. The one purpose of our life should therefore be to remain in living and intense union with Christ, guarding against everything that would break it, employing every means of cementing and enlarging it. And just in proportion as we do so, we shall find His strength flowing into us for every possible emergency. We may not feel its presence; but we shall find it present whenever we begin to draw on it. There is no temptation which we cannot master; no privation which we cannot patiently bear; no difficulty with which we cannot cope; no work which we cannot perform; no confession or testimony which we cannot make, if only our souls are living in healthy union with Jesus Christ; for as our day or hour, so shall our strength be. F. B. Meyer  Hardman, Samuel G., and Dwigh...

Walking With God Excerpt John’s readers were confused by two false teachings. The first was the claim that those who choose sin’s lifestyle can maintain fellowship with God. This John labeled as a lie (v.  6 ). The second claim was by those who said they were without sin (v.  8 ). They based their claim to fellowship with God on the belief that they matched God in His moral perfection! John called this claim self-deceit: “We deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (v.  8 ). Truth and falsehood are not related so much to the trustworthiness of the teller as they are to correspondence with reality. The problem with the claim of sinlessness is not that the motives of the claimant are unpure. His or her report may be made with honest conviction. But the report of sinlessness is mistaken: it does not correspond to reality. “We deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” What is the reality of sin for the Christian? The simple fact is that while in His dea...

The Common Gospel Excerpt Most of the sections of the epistle have begun with a clear reference to the reasons that had led Paul to write them—news, for example, received from Chloe’s household ( 1:11 ), or questions asked in a Corinthian letter ( 7:1 , etc.). No such reference is made in the present paragraph, and it is not till  15:12  that we learn that there were some in Corinth (of whom Paul had heard, possibly through Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus— 16:17 ) who held the view that there was no resurrection of the dead. Throughout chapter  15  Paul deals with this erroneous opinion, its presuppositions and its consequences. In doing so he finds it necessary to begin some way back; hence the present paragraph, which is intended to call to mind that the resurrection of Christ played an essential part in Paul’s preaching, and indeed in all Christian preaching. Paul plunges directly into the theme.  More Barrett, C. K.  The First Epistle to ...

Slaves to Righteousness Excerpt People obviously are the slaves of the one to whom they offer themselves to obey ( v.   17 ).43 Paul set forth two masters: one is sin,  and the other is obedience [to God]. There is no possibility of living without an allegiance to one or the other. “There is no absolute independence for man,” writes J. Denney; “our nature requires us to serve  some master.” 44 Unbelievers may think they are free and would have to give up that freedom should they accept Christ. Such is not the case. They are servants of sin right now. In coming to Christ they simply exchange one master for another. Servitude to sin is replaced with servitude to God. The master we obey is clear evidence of whose slaves we really are. There is no room for compromise.45 As Jesus taught, “No one can serve two masters” ( Matt  6:24 ). We also are reminded of Joshua’s challenge to the Israelites at Shechem, “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve” ( Jo...

Salvation by Faith, Not by the Law Excerpt The first part of  Deuteronomy 30:12  is  Who will ascend into heaven?  Paul interprets this as  to bring Christ down  (= “that is, the incarnation” ). Paul’s use of  that is  is similar to Qumran’s  pesher  interpretation (so Cranfield 1979; Wilckens 1980; Fitzmyer 1993b), in which the Old Testament text is made to fit a contemporary situation. Paul’s is somewhat different in that he does not view this as the actual meaning of the Old Testament text (as Qumran did) but is applying the Deuteronomy quote to Christ and to the issue of justification by faith (so Moo 1996). Ascending into heaven is an impossible quest. Moses meant that one did not have to climb up to heaven or cross the sea to obey the law. Paul is saying that one does not have to go to heaven to bring Christ down to earth so he can provide salvation to humankind. God has already done that for them. The incarnation is God’s...

TUESDAY AFTER THE SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER Revised Common Lectionary Daily Readings Psalm  Ps 99 First Reading  Nu 16:41–50 Second Reading  1 Pe 4:7–11

TUESDAY OF THE WEEK AFTER ASCENSION, MORNING PRAYER Book of Common Prayer (1928) Daily Office Lectionary Psalm  Ps 92 First Reading  2 Sa 7:18 Second Reading  Re 11:15

Tuesday, May 30, 2017 | Easter Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Easter Years 1 & 2 | Roman Missal | Lectionary First Reading Acts 20:17–27 Response Psalm 68:33a Psalm Psalm 68:10–11 , 20–21 Gospel Acclamation John 14:16 Gospel John 17:1–11a   Catholic Daily Readings . Bellingham, WA: Faithlife, 2009. Print.

May 30: In Season and Out of Season 1 Chronicles 26:1–27:34; 2 Timothy 4:1–8 ; Psalm 89:23–52 I like to operate when I feel like I’m in control. When I haven’t gathered enough information or I feel uncertain of my circumstances, it’s tempting to avoid making a decision or taking action. Paul knew that this type of outlook was detrimental to Timothy’s ministry. He tells Timothy that regardless of his circumstances, he was required to act: “Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all patience and instruction” ( 2 Tim 4:2 ). Paul uses the certainty of Christ’s return to motivate Timothy to stick to his task ( 2 Tim 4:1 ). Although Timothy experienced times when it was not always convenient for him to act on his calling, he had been admonished by Paul about the importance of the work they were doing together: their calling. He also knew the urgency of that calling. Christ’s return and the appearance of His kingdom was their motivation...

Morning, May 30                             Go To Evening Reading “Take us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines.” — Song of Solomon 2:15 A little thorn may cause much suffering. A little cloud may hide the sun. Little foxes spoil the vines; and little sins do mischief to the tender heart. These little sins burrow in the soul, and make it so full of that which is hateful to Christ, that he will hold no comfortable fellowship and communion with us. A great sin cannot destroy a Christian, but a little sin can make him miserable. Jesus will not walk with his people unless they drive out every known sin. He says, “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love, even as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.” Some Christians very seldom enjoy their Saviour’s presence. How is this? Surely it must be an affliction for a tender child to be separated from his father. Art th...

May 30th “Yes—But …!” Lord, I will follow Thee; but … Luke 9:61 . Supposing God tells you to do something which is an enormous test to your common sense, what are you going to do? Hang back? If you get into the habit of doing a thing in the physical domain, you will do it every time until you break the habit determinedly; and the same is true spiritually. Again and again you will get up to what Jesus Christ wants, and every time you will turn back when it comes to the point, until you abandon resolutely. ‘Yes, but—supposing I do obey God in this matter, what about …?’ ‘Yes, I will obey God if He will let me use my common sense, but don’t ask me to take a step in the dark.’ Jesus Christ demands of the man who trusts Him the same reckless sporting spirit that the natural man exhibits. If a man is going to do anything worth while, there are times when he has to risk everything on his leap, and in the spiritual domain Jesus Christ demands that you risk everything you hold by commo...

May 30 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid Matt. 5:14 Lamps do not talk, but they do shine. A lighthouse sounds no drum, it beats no gong; and yet far over the waters its friendly spark is seen by the mariner. So let your actions shine out your religion. Let the main sermon of your life be illustrated by all your conduct. Spurgeon  Hardman, Samuel G., and Dwight Lyman Moody. Thoughts for the Quiet Hour . Willow Grove, PA: Woodlawn Electronic Publishing, 1997. Print.