March 4
“When they saw the boldness of Peter and John…they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13). Queen Victoria had asked her chaplain if “‘one could be absolutely sure in this life of eternal safety?” He said he “knew of no way one could be absolutely sure.” John Townsend wrote the queen: “With trembling hands, but heart-filled love and because I know that we can be absolutely sure, even now, of our eternal life in the home that Jesus went to prepare, may I ask your Most Gracious Majesty to read the following Scriptures: Jn 3:16; Rom 10:9, 10; 1 Cor 15:51, 58. These...
Read MoreMarch 3
It is a common argument, when discussing Isaiah 53 with a Jew, that the Servant of the Lord represents his suffering people, but Old Testament scholar Arnold Fruchtenbaum writes: “To interpret Isaiah 53 as speaking of Messiah is not non-Jewish. In fact, if we are to speak of the traditional Jewish interpretation, it would be that the passage speaks of the Messiah. The first one to expound the view that this referred to Israel rather than the Messiah was Shlomo Yizchaki, known as Rashi…But this was to go contrary to all rabbinic teaching…of the preceding one thousand years. Today Rashi’s view...
Read MoreMarch 2
“…Come…Come…come” (Rev 22:17). When I found my usual barber shop closed, I crossed the street to a “salon,” and was served by a woman who told me her name was Delilah! “The Bible says some interesting things about you,” I replied. “Yes, I guess I was fated to cut hair.” “There are many interesting things in the Bible,” I ventured. “Like what?” “Like, ‘Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners’.” “Are you a believer?” she queried. “Yes, are you?” “For just a few months,” she replied. She had been a hairdresser to the stars in Hollywood but her sinful life had inflamed her conscience so...
Read MoreMarch 1
Good works can be an effective handmaiden to the Good News. You are indeed a profitable Christian if everyone is glad to see you coming, if eyes light up at your approach, especially if little children love to be with you and are sorry when you must go. You are a profitable Christian if you are making happy those whom Christ came to make happy—particularly the poor, the sick, the lonely, the sorrowing, the sinful, the oppressed. These six classes of people were closest to the heart of Jesus, because their need was the greatest; and He is best pleased when they are closest to the hearts of...
Read MoreFebruary 28
When witnessing, don’t be surprised to meet believers who are shaken in their faith by some tragedy that baffles them. They are tempted to doubt God’s love or wisdom. George Henderson tells of a believer who said: “I often remember my first year at college, when I was having difficulty with math. After two or three hours of study, I found it hard to think clearly or even to keep awake. At length I thought the matter out to two reasonably certain conclusions. From then on, I worked hard till I found myself getting sleepy; then, turning out my light, I went cheerfully to bed. The two things...
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