God provides

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Devotions: Ps 81, 82, 119:97-120; Esth 6:1-14; Acts 19:1-10; Lk 4:1-13

Let us sing praise and thanks and shout for joy to our God. He has relieved me from my burdens and freed me from bondage; He answers me with thunder and with mercy. We have no other idols; we worship God alone, Who created us, Who cares for us! Let God's people heed His voice and obey His commands. Then God will be pleased to provide for us—the finest of fare, honey from the Rock! God presides over all the spiritual beings, and demands justice for the weak and orphaned, for the weak, needy, afflicted and destitute. He is Judge over all creation. Lord, how I love Your law and the truth and encouragement I find there! I understand more than my teachers or the elders of the community, as I keep Your precepts. Your word is sweet and satisfying, a lamp for my feet, a light for my path. When I am sorely afflicted, I reflect on Your word, and You deliver me. You preserve me from the snares of the wicked. Let evildoers depart into the darkness reserved for them. Uphold me, God, and preserve me in the time of trial.

On the very night that Haman was plotting to murder Mordechai, the king was restless. He ordered his attendants to bring him the book in which memorable deeds were recorded. As he read, the king came across the account of Mordechai's intervention, reporting the plot against the king by two of his household guards. The king inquired what honor or dignity had been bestowed on Mordechai for this service; it was reported to the king: 'Nothing has been done for him.' The king inquired, 'Who is in the court right now?' And the attendants told Ahasuerus that Haman was there. So the king directed that Haman be brought in to him. When Haman came before him, the king asked, 'What shall be done for a man whom the king delights to honor?' Haman jumped to the false conclusion that Ahasuerus was referring to Haman himself, so he answered: 'Let royal robes be put on him and a horse that the king himself has ridden, and let one of the kings most noble princes lead this man through the streets, robed and mounted with the king's own best, and declare throughout the city, "This shall be done for the man the king delights to honor!" Then the king said to Haman, 'Make haste; take the robes and the hourse, as you have said, and do to Mordechai the Jew who sits at my gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.' So Haman publicly honored the man he had planned to murder! When he had completed the mission, Haman returned home in mourning, and told his wife and friends all that had befallen him. They recognized Haman's peril and said to him, 'You have begun to fall before this Mordechai; and you will surely not prevail against him and his people.' While they were sharing this dire opinion, the king's eunuchs arrived to escort Haman to the banquet Queen Esther had prepared.

While Apollos was preaching in Corinth, Paul traveled to Ephesus. He encountered converts there and asked them if they received the Holy Spirit when they professed faith in Jesus. They had never heard of the Holy Spirit. Paul asked, 'Then into what were you baptized?' They answered, 'Into John's baptism.' Paul explained: 'John baptized with the baptism of repentance, and told the people to believe in the One Who came after him, that is, the Lord Jesus.' Hearing this, the Ephesian converts were baptized in the Name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them and they spoke with tonges and prophesied. There were about twelve of these new Christians. Then Paul entered the Ephesian synagogue; and for three months, he spoke boldly, arguing and pleading concerning the kingdom of God. When some of the party there were stubborn and disbelieved, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation, Paul withdrew, taking the disciples with him, and aruged daily in the hall of Tyrannus. This went on two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord—both Jews and Greeks.

Full of the Holy Spirit, Jesus came up from the Jordan, and the Spirit led Him into the wilderness. For forty days, He was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing for that period, and became very hungry. Then the devil said to Jesus, 'If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.' Jesus answered, 'It is written, "Man does not live by bread alone." Then the devil took Jesus up and in a moment showed Him all the kingdoms of the world, and said to Him, 'To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I can give it to whomever I will. If you, then, will worship me, it shall be yours.' But Jesus answered, 'It is written, "You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve only Him."' Finally, the devil took Jesus to Jerusalem and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, 'If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, "He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'" But Jesus replied, "Iot is said, "You shall not tempt the Lord your God."' And the devil departed from Jesus until an opportune time.