The Daily Lectionary for FRIDAY, Sept 13, 2019

False Prophets and Their Punishment
2 Peter 2:1-10

The Daily Lectionary

FRIDAY, September 13, 2019

(Revised Common Lectionary Year C)

(Semi-continuous Reading Plan)

Psalm 14

Denunciation of Godlessness
To the leader. Of David.
1  Fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.”
     They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
     there is no one who does good.

2  The Lord looks down from heaven on humankind
     to see if there are any who are wise,
     who seek after God.

3  They have all gone astray, they are all alike perverse;
     there is no one who does good,
     no, not one.

4  Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers
     who eat up my people as they eat bread,
     and do not call upon the Lord?

5  There they shall be in great terror,
     for God is with the company of the righteous.
6  You would confound the plans of the poor,
     but the Lord is their refuge.

7  O that deliverance for Israel would come from Zion!
     When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,
     Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad.

Jeremiah 4:1-10

4:1 If you return, O Israel,

        says the Lord,
     if you return to me,
   if you remove your abominations from my presence,
     and do not waver,
2  and if you swear, “As the Lord lives!”
     in truth, in justice, and in uprightness,
   then nations shall be blessed by him,
     and by him they shall boast.

3 For thus says the Lord to the people of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem:

   Break up your fallow ground,
     and do not sow among thorns.
4  Circumcise yourselves to the Lord,
     remove the foreskin of your hearts,
     O people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem,
   or else my wrath will go forth like fire,
     and burn with no one to quench it,
     because of the evil of your doings.

Invasion and Desolation of Judah Threatened
5 Declare in Judah, and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say:

   Blow the trumpet through the land;
     shout aloud and say,
   “Gather together, and let us go
     into the fortified cities!”
6  Raise a standard toward Zion,
     flee for safety, do not delay,
   for I am bringing evil from the north,
     and a great destruction.
7  A lion has gone up from its thicket,
     a destroyer of nations has set out;
     he has gone out from his place
   to make your land a waste;
     your cities will be ruins
     without inhabitant.
8  Because of this put on sackcloth,
     lament and wail:
   “The fierce anger of the Lord
     has not turned away from us.”

9 On that day, says the Lord, courage shall fail the king and the officials; the priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded. 10 Then I said, “Ah, Lord God, how utterly you have deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘It shall be well with you,’ even while the sword is at the throat!”

2 Peter 2:1-10a

False Prophets and Their Punishment
2:1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive opinions. They will even deny the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2 Even so, many will follow their licentious ways, and because of these teachers the way of truth will be maligned. 3 And in their greed they will exploit you with deceptive words. Their condemnation, pronounced against them long ago, has not been idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

4 For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of deepest darkness to be kept until the judgment; 5 and if he did not spare the ancient world, even though he saved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood on a world of the ungodly; 6 and if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction and made them an example of what is coming to the ungodly; 7 and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man greatly distressed by the licentiousness of the lawless 8 (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by their lawless deeds that he saw and heard), 9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trial, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment 10 —especially those who indulge their flesh in depraved lust, and who despise authority.

Optional parts of the readings are set off in [square brackets.]

The Bible texts of the Old Testament, Epistle and Gospel lessons are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.

The Daily Lectionary is a three year cyclical lectionary. We are currently in Year C. Beginning with the first Sunday of Advent in 2019, we will be in Year A. The year which ended at Advent 2018 was Year B. These readings complement the Sunday and festival readings: Thursday through Saturday readings help prepare the reader for the Sunday ahead; Monday through Wednesday readings help the reader reflect and digest on what they heard in worship. Revised Common Lectionary Daily Readings, copyright © 2005 Consultation on Common Texts. www.commontexts.org
If the enemy is going to deceive us he will more than likely do it through a false prophet.

The Daily Prayer for FRIDAY, Sept 13, 2019

The Daily Prayer

for FRIDAY, September 13, 2019

In 1971, inmates at Attica Prison in New York revolted and took control of their facility, presenting a list of demands to the governor of New York that included removal of the warden, better living conditions, and amnesty for those who had participated in the uprising. On September 13, a combined military and police force stormed the prison. By the end of the day, thirty-one prisoners and nine prison guards were dead. As we remember the prisoners and guards who died at Attica, we are also mindful of the fact that more than 1 percent of the US population is incarcerated today. Also noteworthy are the Oslo Accords signed on September 13, 1993, a milestone in the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. They were the first direct, face-to-face agreements between the government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, and were intended to be a framework for ongoing relations and negotiations in this troubled area of the Holy Land.

Clarence Jordan, co-founder of Koinonia Farm, wrote, “The Good News of the resurrection is not that we shall die and go home with him, but that he is risen and comes home with us, bringing all his hungry, naked, thirsty, sick, prisoner brothers with him.”

Lord, help us see that prison takes many forms in all nations, from the steel bars of injustice and unforgiveness to the open fields of consumerism and spirit-killing entertainment. Equip us by your Spirit’s power to free one another from the various prisons in which we find ourselves. Amen.

Verse of the Day for FRIDAY, Sept 13, 2019

1 Peter 3:8 (NIV) Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.

Read all of 1 Peter 3

Listen to 1 Peter 3

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Un dia a la Vez - Friday, Sept 13, 2019

Oración por sueños hechos realidad

Camino, Señor, en torno a tu altar, proclamando en voz alta tu alabanza y contando todas tus maravillas.

~ Salmo 26:6-7 (NVI)

Dios mío, hoy acudo a ti en oración junto a los que como yo hemos visto cumplidos nuestros anhelos más profundos. Levanto mi mirada a ti y no me queda más que decirte… ¡Gracias!

Gracias porque me acompañaste en momentos de angustia. Gracias porque de esta prueba pude aprender muchas cosas. Gracias porque puedo contárselas a otras personas a través de mi ministerio y testificarles que el Dios que sirvo me salvó, me sanó y me trajo de vuelta a una vida nueva con un esposo y un hogar para mis princesas.

Señor, mientras tenga vida te serviré de manera incondicional y no me cansaré de hablar de tus maravillas.

Permite, Jesús, que este libro les sirva de ayuda a las personas que aún dudan de tu poder y que logren conocerte mejor y cambiar el rumbo de sus vidas.

Te lo pido en el nombre de Jesús, amén y amén.

Un Día a la Vez Copyright © by Claudia Pinzón
Oración por sueños hechos realidad

Standing Strong Through the Storm - Friday, Sept 13, 2019

THE REAL ENEMY

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

~ 1 Peter 5:8-9 (NIV)

Joshua Sauñe had not planned to speak at his brothers’ funeral. Had he planned a speech, it certainly would not have been the one he delivered on that remarkable September day in 1992.

“Shining Path is not my enemy, Satan is my enemy,” he told the mourners who packed the Presbyterian Church in Ayacucho, Peru. “The people who killed my brothers need Christ just as you and I do.”

The funeral of Quechua evangelist and Bible translator Rómulo Sauñe, his brother Ruben and their cousins Josué and Marco Antonio, was one of the largest Ayacucho witnessed during the decade that the communist guerrilla army known as Shining Path terrorized the city. Nearly 5,000 people, the vast majority of them Quechua-speaking native Americans like the Sauñes, turned out to grieve the fallen Christians, murdered September 5.

God was there that day, too, performing silent miracles in the lives of several of the mourners.

Joshua was Rómulo’s only surviving brother and had come immediately from his home in the United States when he heard of the murders. All during the long flight to Peru, Joshua seethed with anger. He later told a friend that, in the very moment he rose to address the crowd, God took away the hatred he felt for the Shining Path terrorists that had caused his family so much suffering. In its place, God gave Joshua a burning desire to carry on the evangelistic work that his brothers, parents and grandparents had faithfully performed.

“I suddenly saw (that) if I was going to fight Shining Path, I should fight with the Bible,” Joshua said. “It was the first time I understood that.”

Not long afterward, Joshua abandoned his successful art career in Arizona and moved back to Peru with his family to work with Runa Simi, the indigenous ministry founded by Rómulo and his wife, the former Donna Jackson. Between evangelistic campaigns in the Andes, Joshua and Missy Sauñe have worked to establish community self-help projects and schools for the widows and orphans of Shining Path violence.

RESPONSE: Today I will publicly affirm that my only enemy is Satan and I will be alert to his tactics.

PRAYER: Thank You, Lord, for the work you are doing in Peru as a result of Romulo’s martyrdom and in the face of opposition from the enemy.

Standing Strong Through The Storm (SSTS), a daily devotional message by SSTS author Paul Estabrooks. © 2011 Open Doors International. Used by permission.

Men of the Bible - Friday, Sept 13, 2019

Joseph

His name means: "May He [God] Add"

His work: Joseph was a working man who supported his family through the trade of carpentry.
His character: A man who traced his ancestry back to David, Joseph was just, compassionate, and obedient to God. Though poor, he was a good husband and father, providing for and protecting his family.
His sorrow: That Herod the Great tried to murder his son, Jesus.
His triumph: To be used by God to protect and provide for the world's Savior. Through him, Jesus could trace his ancestry to King David and the tribe of Judah.
Key Scriptures: Matthew 1-2; Luke 2

A Look at the Man

Three times Joseph saw angels in his dreams. In the first appearance, the angel announced something impossible: Mary had become pregnant, though she had not been unfaithful to him. In the second, the angel warned him to flee to Egypt to escape Herod's plan to murder the boy Jesus. Later, an angel sounded the all clear, informing Joseph of Herod's death so that he could return to Israel with Mary and Jesus.

Though we know little of Joseph from the Scriptures, we know at least of his remarkable faith and obedience. Each time the angels appeared to him, they revealed something he could not have known without divine revelation. But each new revelation presented him with a choice. Would he do as the angel instructed, or would he rely on his own understanding and do as he thought best? It would have been so easy to brush off the first dream. When in the history of the world had a woman ever become pregnant without sleeping with a man? Common sense would have told him to proceed with his plan to set Mary aside and marry someone else. Instead, he heeded the angel and, by doing so, said yes to God's surprising plan for his life.

Did Joseph comprehend the enormity of the decisions he was making? Possibly. But certainly he could not foresee the strange mixture of blessing and suffering that lay in store for him and his family. His yes would cost him many sleepless nights, but it would also involve him in the greatest miracle ever.

Centuries later we celebrate Joseph's life, knowing that he was everything a father should be—spiritually perceptive, compassionate, humble, faithful, loving and protective toward the family the Lord had given him.

Reflect On: Genesis 39:1–5 (This is an account of another Joseph, but the similarities between these two obedient men and God’s gracious blessing is striking.)

Praise God: For offering a love that constrains us to obedience.

Offer Thanks: For blessing you with the responsibility of leading and directing the lives of young people—children, nieces, nephews, grandchildren, neighbors.
Confess: Your sin and willful disobedience.
Ask God: To give you a heart that is drawn to him in love and compliance to his perfect will and to empower you in the task of leading these young ones in his ways.

Today's reading is a brief excerpt from Men of the Bible: A One-Year Devotional Study of Men in Scripture by Ann Spangler and Robert Wolgemuth (Zondervan). © 2010 by Ann Spangler. Used with permission. All rights reserved. Enjoy the complete book by purchasing your own copy at the Bible Gateway Store. The book's title must be included when sharing the above content on social media.
Joseph was a working man who supported his family through the trade of carpentry.

LHM Daily Devotions - Sept 13, 2019 - There's More to See

"There's More to See"

Sep. 13, 2019

For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.

~ Ephesians 5:8 (ESV)

Surgical techniques developed over the years have made it possible for some people, blind from birth, to see for the first time. What a miracle! What a blessing from God!

But a mixed blessing, to be sure. Physicians who performed early surgeries of this type soon discovered that not every person whose sight could be restored would truly benefit from it. Not everyone could adjust to vision after 20, 30, or 40 years of using their other senses to compensate for their blindness.

One doctor who studied such patients noted that when asked to do relatively difficult tasks like climbing a flight of stairs, for example, they closed their eyes at the last minute before performing the task. Then they walked up safely. The old way of doing things felt safer, more comfortable.

Upon reflection, it is easy to understand why this might be so. Thinking in a different direction, we might discover that we do something very much like this in our spiritual lives—and with drastic consequences.

By God's grace, His children enjoy the blessings of spiritual vision. The Bible says that once we were darkness, but now we are light in the Lord. The Holy Spirit goes on to urge us to walk as children of the light.

But situations arise in which we are tempted to close our eyes as we walk. We confront problems, and it is more comfortable to revert back to our old way of looking at things, to see things from a merely human point of view.

Our eyes have been opened to the shortness of the time available to us before the night comes, before the Day when our Lord returns and brings judgment to the nations.

Our eyes have been opened to the rich promises of God, to the impossibility that He will ever fail His children.

Our eyes and been opened to the excellence that He has placed within us by His Holy Spirit—an excellence He has commissioned us to use in service to those around us.

Our eyes have been opened to the power of His grace, both to justify and to sanctify us.

Our eyes are open, but we can choose to close them. We can choose to look at people and at situations as the world does.

God's Spirit will not peel back our spiritual eyelids by force. He will not strong-arm individual believers or even whole congregations into using the spiritual insight He has given. He will not force us to see.

But what a tragedy if we, His people, waste the vision He so brightly gives! What a tragedy if we stumble in dim-sighted mediocrity when, in generous exchange, He holds out to us abundant life and excellence.

Once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Don't close your eyes to it! Live as children of light.

THE PRAYER: Heavenly Father, the light has come in Your Son Jesus Christ. Illumine our lives with the light of life. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.

Reflection Questions:

• Do you find your faith acting like a "sense" in respect to the way you live and respond to the world?
• Walking as children of light can be hard sometimes. Do you use any tools or resources to keep your focus sharp and your mind fixed on Jesus?
• How can the light in your life illumine the path for someone else?

From The Lutheran Layman, "Now I See!" by Jane Fryar. Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).
Do you find your faith acting like a "sense" in respect to the way you live and respond to the world?

Devocional del CPTLN del 13 de Septiembre de 2019 - Hay más para ver

ALIMENTO DIARIO

Hay más para ver

13 de Septiembre de 2019

En otro tiempo, ustedes eran oscuridad; pero ahora son luz en el Señor. Por tanto, vivan como hijos de luz.

~ Efesios 5:8 (RVC)

Las técnicas quirúrgicas desarrolladas a lo largo de los años han hecho posible que algunas personas, ciegas de nacimiento, puedan ver. ¡Que milagro! ¡Qué bendición de Dios!

Pero es una bendición mixta, sin duda. Los médicos que realizaron estas cirugías pronto descubrieron que no todas las personas que recuperaron la vista realmente se beneficiaron. No todos pueden adaptarse a ver después de haber desarrollado tanto sus otros sentidos, durante 20, 30 o 40 años, para compensar la ceguera.

Un médico que estudió a estos pacientes señaló que, cuando se les pidió que realizaran tareas relativamente difíciles como subir un tramo de escaleras, por ejemplo, antes de hacerlo cerraban los ojos. Siempre lo habían hecho así, por lo que se sentían más seguros y cómodos.

Es fácil de comprender. Algo así hacemos en nuestra vida espiritual, y con consecuencias drásticas.

Por la gracia de Dios, sus hijos disfrutamos de las bendiciones de la visión espiritual. La Biblia dice que una vez fuimos oscuridad, pero ahora somos luz en el Señor y el Espíritu Santo nos insta a caminar como hijos de la luz.

Pero surgen situaciones en las que estamos tentados a cerrar los ojos mientras caminamos. Cuando enfrentamos problemas, nos es más cómodo volver a nuestra antigua forma de ver las cosas desde un punto de vista meramente humano.

Nuestros ojos se han abierto al poco tiempo disponible con el que contamos antes que llegue la noche, antes del día en que nuestro Señor regrese y traiga juicio a las naciones.

Nuestros ojos se han abierto a las ricas promesas de Dios, a la imposibilidad de que Él le falle a sus hijos.

Nuestros ojos se han abierto a la excelencia que Él ha puesto dentro de nosotros a través de su Espíritu Santo, una excelencia que nos ha comisionado para usar en servicio a quienes nos rodean.

Nuestros ojos se han abierto al poder de su gracia, tanto para justificarnos como para santificarnos.

Nuestros ojos están abiertos, pero podemos elegir cerrarlos. Podemos elegir mirar a las personas y las situaciones como lo hace el mundo.

El Espíritu de Dios no abre nuestros párpados espirituales a la fuerza. Él no forzará a los creyentes o incluso a congregaciones enteras a usar la visión espiritual que Él ha dado. No nos obligará a ver.

Pero qué tragedia si nosotros, Su pueblo, ¡desperdiciamos la visión que Él da tan brillantemente! Qué tragedia si tropezamos con la mediocridad miope cuando, en un intercambio generoso, nos ofrece vida y excelencia abundantes.

Una vez eras oscuridad, pero ahora eres luz en el Señor. ¡No cierres los ojos! Vive como hijo de la luz.

ORACIÓN: Padre celestial, la luz ha venido en tu Hijo Jesucristo. Ilumina nuestras vidas con la luz de la vida. En el Nombre de Jesús oramos. Amén.

Jane Fryar, The Lutheran Layman.

Para reflexionar:

• Caminar como hijos de la luz puede ser difícil. ¿Qué herramienta o recurso utilizas para mantener tu mirada en Jesús?
• ¿De qué manera la luz en tu vida ilumina el camino de quienes te rodean?

© Copyright 2019 Cristo Para Todas Las Naciones. Que a través de estos devocionales, la Palabra de Dios te refresque en tu diario caminar.
Caminar como hijos de la luz puede ser difícil. ¿Qué herramienta o recurso utilizas para mantener tu mirada en Jesús?

Lời Sống Hằng Ngày - Dù Làm Việc Gì

Dù Làm Việc Gì

Đọc: Châm Ngôn 16:1–9 | Đọc Kinh Thánh suốt năm: Châm Ngôn 16–18; II Cô-rinh-tô 6

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Hãy phó thác công việc của con cho Đức Giê-hô-va, thì những lo toan của con sẽ được thành tựu. Châm Ngôn 16:3

Trong cuốn Ngạc Nhiên Vì Niềm Vui, C.S. Lewis thú nhận rằng ông đến với Cơ Đốc giáo ở tuổi ba mươi ba với “đấm đá, vật lộn, phẫn nộ và đảo mắt theo mọi hướng để tìm cơ hội trốn thoát”. Dù Lewis hết sức chống cự, dù ông có những thiếu sót và đối diện với nhiều trở ngại, nhưng Chúa đã biến đổi ông thành người bảo vệ đức tin cách can đảm và sáng tạo. Lewis tuyên bố chân lý và tình yêu của Chúa qua việc viết các luận văn và tiểu thuyết hùng hồn. Sách của ông vẫn đang được đọc, nghiên cứu và chia sẻ hơn năm mươi lăm năm sau khi ông qua đời. Cuộc sống của ông phản ánh niềm tin rằng “không bao giờ quá già để đặt một mục tiêu khác hoặc mơ một ước mơ mới”.

Khi chúng ta lập kế hoạch và theo đuổi ước mơ, Chúa sẽ thanh tẩy động cơ của chúng ta và ban năng lực để chúng ta phó thác mọi điều mình làm cho Ngài (Châm. 16:1-3). Từ những nhiệm vụ bình thường nhất cho đến những thử thách lớn nhất, chúng ta có thể sống vì vinh quang của Đấng Tạo Hóa toàn năng, Đấng “dựng nên muôn vật đều có mục đích” (c.4). Mọi hành động, lời nói và suy nghĩ đều có thể trở thành biểu hiện của sự thờ phượng thành tâm, là của lễ dâng lên Chúa khi có Ngài dõi theo chúng ta (c.7).

Chúa không bị giới hạn bởi những nhược điểm, hạn chế, hoặc xu hướng giải quyết vấn đề hay ước mơ nhỏ bé của chúng ta. Khi chúng ta chọn sống cho Chúa cách tận tâm và nương cậy Ngài, Ngài sẽ thực hiện những kế hoạch của Ngài dành cho chúng ta. Bất cứ điều gì chúng ta làm đều có thể hoàn thành với Ngài, cho Ngài và vì Ngài mà thôi.

Châm Ngôn 16:3 giúp bạn tự tin hơn trong việc sử dụng ân tứ của mình thế nào? Đâu là những bước để bạn tôn vinh Chúa khi theo đuổi ước mơ mà Ngài đặt để trong lòng bạn?

Lạy Chúa, cảm ơn Ngài đã nhắc nhở chúng con rằng không có công việc nào là quá nhỏ và không có ước mơ nào là quá lớn trong vương quốc vĩ đại của Ngài.

bởi Xochitl E. Dixon

© 2019 Lời Sống Hằng Ngày
Khi chúng ta lập kế hoạch và theo đuổi ước mơ, Chúa sẽ thanh tẩy động cơ của chúng ta và ban năng lực để chúng ta phó thác mọi điều mình làm cho Ngài.