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

  Morning, December 31 Go To Evening Reading “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink.” — John 7:37 Patience had her perfect work in the Lord Jesus , and until the last day of the feast, he pleaded with the Jews, even as on this last day of the year he claims with us and waits to be gracious to us. The wonder of wonders that we are still in the land of mercy! Admirable indeed is the longsuffering of the Savior in bearing with some of us year after year, notwithstanding our provocations, rebellions, and resistance of his Holy Spirit . Pity expressed herself most plainly , for Jesus cried , which implies not only the loudness of his voice but the tenderness of his tones. He entreats us to be reconciled. “We pray you,” says the Apostle, “as though God did beseech you by us.” What earnest, pathetic terms are these! How deep must be the love which makes the Lord weep over sinners, an...

  December 31: From Beginning to End Lamentations 4:1–5:22 ; Romans 16:1–27 ; Proverbs 31:10–31 Endings are always difficult. But when they’re new beginnings, they’re revitalizing. At the end of Paul’s letter to the Romans, we see Paul the apostle and Paul the empathetic and concerned pastor. Paul knows that if dissension or temptation rules over the Roman Church, they will fail in their ministry, so he warns them ( Rom 16:17–19 ) and offers them a word of hope: “And in a short time the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you” ( Rom 16:20 ). Here, Paul is echoing God’s words to Adam, Eve, and the serpent after the fall, when, instead of carrying out God’s request to bring order to creation (as He had done in the beginning), humanity turned from Him, defacing His image ( Gen 1:1–2, 27–28; 3:14–20 ). But while Gen 3:15 merely depicts Satan biting the heel of humanity and being struck on the head in return ( Gen 3:15 ), Paul ...

  December 31st Yesterday The God of Israel will be your reward. Isaiah 52:12 . Security from Yesterday. “God requireth that which is past.”  God reminds us of the past lest we get into a shallow security in the present. At the end of the year, we turn with eagerness to all that God has for the future, and yet anxiety is apt to arise from remembering yesterdays. Our present enjoyment of God’s grace is apt to be checked by the memory of yesterday’s sins and blunders. God is God of our yesterdays, and He allows their memory to turn the past into a ministry of spiritual culture for the future. Security for Tomorrow. “For the Lord will go before you.” This is a gracious revelation that God will garrison where we have failed. He will watch lest things trip us up again into like failure, as they assuredly would do if He were not our reward. God’s hand reaches back to the past and makes a clearing-house for conscience. Security for Today. “For ye shall not go out with haste.” A...

  December 31 Which hope we have as an anchor to the soul Heb. 6:19 Anchor to the throne of God, and then shorten the rope! Selected  Hardman, Samuel G., and Dwight Lyman Moody. Thoughts for the Quiet Hour . Willow Grove, PA: Woodlawn Electronic Publishing, 1997. Print.

  Morning, December 30 Go To Evening Reading “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof.” — Ecclesiastes 7:8 Look at David’s Lord and Master; see his beginning. He despised and rejected men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. Would you know the end? He sits at his Father’s right hand, expecting until his enemies are made his footstool. “As he is, so are we also in this world.” You must bear the cross, or you shall never wear the crown; you must wade through the mire, or you shall never walk the golden pavement. Cheer up, then, poor Christian. “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof.” See that creeping worm, how contemptible its appearance! It is the beginning of a thing. Mark that insect with gorgeous wings, playing in the sunbeams, sipping at the flower bells, full of happiness and life; that is the end thereof. That caterpillar is yourself until you are wrapped up in the chrysalis of death, but when Christ shall appear, you shall be...

  December 30: The Proverbs 31 Woman Lamentations 3:1–66; Romans 15:22–33; Proverbs 31:1–19 A Proverbs 31 woman is hard to find, but it isn’t for lack of effort. She’s been the topic of more than a few Bible studies. She can be recognized by her many positive traits—strong, courageous, and trustworthy. She is hardworking, discerning, giving, dignified, business savvy, wise, and kind. If we’re looking for vice or an Achilles heel, we’ll have to turn to another passage in the ot (we’re sure to find more failures than achievers within its pages). As we look through the list of qualities, though, it’s hard to check them all off, even for Type-A personalities. But the key to understanding the list of characteristics isn’t found in what we can attain. It’s located in the last verse—the crux of the poem. The crown of the woman’s wisdom isn’t her charm, beauty, or even ability to “get things done.” It is her fear of Yahweh. This relationship with God guides all of her actions. God’s ...

  December 30th “And every virtue we possess.” All my fresh springs shall be in Thee. Psalm 87:7 (P.B.V.). Our Lord never patches up our natural virtues; he remakes the whole man on the inside. “Put on the new man” —see that your wild human life puts on the garb that is in keeping with the new life. The life God plants in us develops its own virtues, not the virtues of Adam but of Jesus Christ. Watch how God will wither up your confidence in natural virtues after sanctification and in any power you have until you learn to draw your life from the reservoir of the resurrection life of Jesus. Thank God if you are going through a drying-up experience! The sign that God is at work in us is that He corrupts confidence in the natural virtues because they are not promises of what we are going to be but remnants of what God created man to be. We will cling to the natural virtues, while God is always trying to get us into contact with the life of Jesus Christ, which can never be descri...

  December 30 Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord Gen. 6:8 Noah found grace in the same way that Paul obtained mercy ( 1 Tim. 1:16 ), namely, by mercy’s taking hold of him. Selected  Hardman, Samuel G., and Dwight Lyman Moody. Thoughts for the Quiet Hour . Willow Grove, PA: Woodlawn Electronic Publishing, 1997. Print.

  Morning, December 29 Go To Evening Reading “Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.” —1 Samuel 7:12 The word “hitherto” seems like a hand pointing in the past direction. Twenty years or seventy, and yet, “hitherto the Lord hath helped!” Through poverty, through wealth, through sickness, through health, at home, abroad, on the land, on the sea, in honor, in dishonor, in perplexity, in joy, in the trial, in triumph, in prayer, in temptation, “hitherto hath the Lord helped us!” We delight to look down a long avenue of trees. It is delightful to gaze from end to end of the long vista, a sort of verdant temple, with its branching pillars and its arches of leaves; even so, look down the long aisles of your years, at the green boughs of mercy overhead, and the strong pillars of lovingkindness and faithfulness which bear up your joys. Are there no birds in yonder branches singing? Surely there must be many, and they all sing of mercy received “hitherto.” But the word also points for...

  December 29: The Grace of God Shines Through Lamentations 1:1–2:22 ; Romans 15:8–21; Proverbs 30:1–33 I was once asked why the Bible is so brutal—why it depicts things like babies being killed and war. It’s true; the Bible has many moments of darkness and violence. But these depictions of the rawness of humanity—in all its ungratefulness and depravity—demonstrate how much people need God. And more than that, through these moments, the Bible shows how much people need a savior. The book of Lamentations is brimming with sorrow and gnashing of teeth. Little hope can be found in this book. The prophet weeps and moans over his fallen nation, over watching Jerusalem crumble. In this poetic work, we see people who don’t follow the God who loves them dearly and so badly yearns to see them return to Him. “How desolate the city sits that was full of people! She has become like a widow, once great among the nations! Like a woman of nobility in the provinces, she has become a forced labo...

  December 29th Deserter or Disciple? Many of His disciples went back and walked no more with Him from that time. John 6:66. When God gives a vision by His Spirit through His word of what He wants, and your mind and soul thrill to it, if you do not walk in the light of that vision, you will sink into servitude to the point of view which Our Lord never had. Disobedience in mind to the heavenly vision will make you a slave to points of thought alien to Jesus Christ. Do not look at someone else and say— ‘Well, if he can have those views and prosper, why cannot I?’ You have to walk in the light of the vision that has been given to you and not compares yourself with others or judge them; that is, between them and God. When you find that a point of view in which you have been delighting clashes with the heavenly vision, and you debate, certain things will begin to develop in you—a sense of property and a sense of personal right, something of which Jesus Christ made nothing. He was al...

  December 29 She [Hannah] … prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore … she, spake in her heart 1 Sam. 1:10, 13 For real business at the mercy-seat give me a homemade prayer, a prayer that comes out of the depths of my heart, not because I invented it, but because God the Holy Ghost put it there and gave it such living force that I could not help letting it out. Though your words are broken, and your sentences disconnected, if your desires are earnest, if they are like coals of juniper, burning with a vehement flame, God will not mind how they find expression. If you have no words, perhaps you will pray better without them than with them. Some prayers break the backs of words; they are too heavy for any human language to carry. Spurgeon  Hardman, Samuel G., and Dwight Lyman Moody. Thoughts for the Quiet Hour . Willow Grove, PA: Woodlawn Electronic Publishing, 1997. Print.

  Morning, December 28 Go To Evening Reading "The life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God." —Galatians 2:20 When the Lord in mercy passed by and saw us in our blood, he, first of all, said, "Live" ; and this he did first , because life is one of the absolutely essential things in spiritual matters, and until it is bestowed we are incapable of partaking in the things of the kingdom. Now the life which grace confers upon the saints at the moment of their quickening is none other than the life of Christ, which, like the sap from the stem, runs into us, the branches, and establishes a living connection between our souls and Jesus. Faith is the grace that perceives this union, having proceeded as its first fruit. It is the neck that joins the body of the Church to its all-glorious Head. "Oh, Faith! thou bond of union with the Lord, Is not this office thine? and thy fit name, In the economy of gospel types, And symbols ap...

  December 28: Unity Jeremiah 52:1–34; Romans 14:13–15:7 ; Proverbs 29:1–27 Paul calls us to refrain from judging others (Rom 14:3). That’s easy enough to do when the people in our communities are the people we’d want to have over for dinner. What happens when those in our community don’t value (or disvalue) the things we love (or disvalue)? “Now may the God of patient endurance and of encouragement grant you to be in agreement with one another, by Christ Jesus, so that with one mind you may glorify with one mouth the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore accept one another, just as Christ also has accepted you, to the glory of God” (Rom 15:5–7). Paul asks the Roman believers to stretch themselves in this portion of his letter. For the Roman believers, the judgment might have centered on the issue of eating the meat of unclean animals or the observance of Jewish holidays. Paul asks them to withhold judgment of one another because only God has that right (Rom 14:10...

  December 28th Continuous conversion Except ye be converted and become as little children.… Matthew 18:3. These words of Our Lord are actual of our initial conversion, but we have to be continuously converted all the days of our lives, continually to turn to God as children. If we trust our wits instead of God, we produce consequences for which God will hold us responsible. Immediately our bodies are brought into new conditions by the providence of God; we have to see our natural life obeys the dictates of the Spirit of God. Because we have done it once is no proof that we shall do it again. The relation of the natural to the spiritual is continuous conversion, and it is the one thing we object to. In every setting in which we are put, the Spirit of God remains unchanged and His salvation unaltered, but we have to “put on the new man.” God holds us responsible every time we refuse to convert ourselves; our reason for refusing is wilful obstinacy. Our natural life must not rule...

  December 28 The friendship of the world is enmity with God James 4:4 It is like the ivy with the oak. The ivy may give the oak a grand, beautiful appearance, but all the while, it is feeding on its vitals. Are we compromising with the enemies of God? Are we being embraced by the world by its honors, pleasures, and applause? In the world's estimation, this may add to us, but our strength becomes lost. Denham Smith  Hardman, Samuel G., and Dwight Lyman Moody. Thoughts for the Quiet Hour . Willow Grove, PA: Woodlawn Electronic Publishing, 1997. Print.

  Morning, December 27 Go To Evening Reading “Can the rush grow up without mire?” —Job 8:11 The rush is spongy and hollow, and even so, is a hypocrite; there is no substance or stability in him. It is shaken to and fro in every wind just as formalists yield to every influence; for this reason the rush is not broken by the tempest, neither are hypocrites troubled with persecution. I would not willingly be a deceiver or be deceived; perhaps the text for this day may help me to try myself whether I be a hypocrite or no. The rush by nature lives in water, and owes its very existence to the mire and moisture wherein it has taken root; let the mire become dry, and the rush withers very quickly. Its greenness is absolutely dependent upon circumstances, a present abundance of water makes it flourish, and a drought destroys it at once. Is this my case? Do I only serve God when I am in good company, or when religion is profitable and respectable? Do I love the Lord only when temporal ...

  December 27: Love Is Good News Jeremiah 51:1–64 ; Romans 13:8–14:12 ; Proverbs 28:1–28 Love is good news for those seeking guidance. Love is the guide we need. Many first-century Jewish Christians faced the question of what to do with the Law (the first five books of the Bible), by which they had lived previously. Now that they had Jesus, what would they do with their traditions? Paul’s answer is based on love: “Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another, for the one who loves someone else has fulfilled the law” (Rom 13:8). He goes on: “For the commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not commit murder, you shall not steal, you shall not covet,’ and if there is any other commandment, are summed up in this statement: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ Love does not commit evil against a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law” (Rom 13:9–10). These are beautiful words, and I’m not saying that because they let me off the hook for ke...

  December 27th Where the battle’s lost and won If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the Lord.… Jeremiah 4:1. The battle is lost or won in the secret places of the will before God, never first in the external world. The Spirit of God apprehends me, and I am obliged to get alone with God and fight the battle out before Him. Until this is done, I lose every time. The action may take one minute, or a year, that will depend on me, not on God, but it must be wrestled out alone before God, and I must resolutely go through the hell of a renunciation before Him. Nothing has any power over the man who had fought out the battle before God and won there. If I say—I will wait till I get into the circumstances and then put God to the test,’ I shall find I cannot. I must get the thing settled between myself and God in the secret places of my soul where no stranger intermeddles, and then I can go forth with the certainty that the battle is won. Lose it there, and calamity, disaster, and upset...

  December 27 He ever liveth Heb. 7:25 It is our hope for ourselves, and for His truth, and for mankind. Men come and go. Leaders, teachers, thinkers speak and work for a season and then fall silent and impotent. He abides. They die, but He lives. They are lights kindled, and therefore, sooner or later quenched, but He is the true Light from which they draw all their brightness, and He shines for always. Alexander Maclaren  Hardman, Samuel G., and Dwight Lyman Moody. Thoughts for the Quiet Hour . Willow Grove, PA: Woodlawn Electronic Publishing, 1997. Print.

  Reception of his divine love into our poor cold hearts, and we are cold no longer, but glow like seraphs, equal to every labor, and capable of every suffering. If we know that Jesus is with us, every power will be developed , and every grace will be strengthened, and we shall cast ourselves into the Lord’s service with heart, soul, and strength; therefore, the presence of Christ is desired above all things. His presence will be most realized by those who are most like him . If you want to see Christ, you must grow in conformity to him. By the power of the Spirit, bring yourself into union with Christ’s desires, motives, and plans of action, and you are likely to be favored with his company. Remember,  his presence may be had . His promise is as accurate as ever. He delights to be with us. If he doth not come, we hinder him by our indifference. He will reveal himself to our earnest prayers, and graciously and our tea suffer himself, for these are the golden c to be detained b...

  December 26: Community Jeremiah 50:1–46; Romans 12:9–13:7 ; Proverbs 27:1–27 She might be the one we tend to avoid—the member of a small group who always states the obvious or brings up topics unrelated to the discussion at hand. I’m always a bit impatient for her to finish speaking so that others can offer more insightful comments, but generally, her remarks are followed by only awkward pauses. Or, he’s the person we’re attempting to avoid after church and small group because he constantly repeats the story about his grandkids that we’ve heard more than just a few times. I hope someone else will be there for him. If I’m feeling extra congenial, I might chat with him—always good to earn some kindness points. I might approach community this way, but reading Romans 12:9–16 convicts me. The list of instructions on building up the community quickly reveals the selfish bent of my motives. Paul, who has just finished explaining that each member has specific spiritual gifts, shows wh...

  December 26th Placed in the light If we walk in the light, as He is in the morning, … the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin. 1 John 1:7. Making conscious freedom from sin for deliverance by the Atonement is a significant error. No man knows what sin is until he is born again. Sin is what Jesus Christ faced on Calvary. The evidence that I am delivered from sin is that I know the fundamental nature of sin in me. It takes the last reach of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, that is, the impartation of His absolute perfection, to make a man know what sin is. The Holy Spirit applies the Atonement to us in the unconscious realm and in the realm of which we are conscious. It is only when we get a grasp of the unrivaled power of the Spirit in us that we understand the meaning of 1 John 1:7, “the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin.” This does not refer to conscious sin only, but to the tremendously profound understanding of sin which only the Holy Ghos...

  December 26 God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ Gal. 6:14 The cross is the great center of God’s moral universe! To this center God ever pointed, and the eye of faith ever looked forward, until the Saviour came. And now we must ever turn to that cross as the center of all our blessing, and the basis of all our worship, both on earth and in Heaven—in time and throughout all eternity. D. L. M.  Hardman, Samuel G., and Dwight Lyman Moody. Thoughts for the Quiet Hour . Willow Grove, PA: Woodlawn Electronic Publishing, 1997. Print.