The Daily Lectionary for WEDNESDAY, October 23, 2019

The Daily Lectionary

WEDNESDAY, October 23, 2019

(Revised Common Lectionary Year C)

(Semi-continuous Reading Plan)

Psalm 129

(My attackers have not prevailed)

Prayer for the Downfall of Israel’s Enemies
A Song of Ascents.
1  “Often have they attacked me from my youth”
     —let Israel now say—
2  “often have they attacked me from my youth,
     yet they have not prevailed against me.
3  The plowers plowed on my back;
     they made their furrows long.”
4  The Lord is righteous;
     he has cut the cords of the wicked.
5  May all who hate Zion
     be put to shame and turned backward.
6  Let them be like the grass on the housetops
     that withers before it grows up,
7  with which reapers do not fill their hands
     or binders of sheaves their arms,
8  while those who pass by do not say,
     “The blessing of the Lord be upon you!
     We bless you in the name of the Lord!”

Jeremiah 50:1-7, 17-20

(Judgment on Babylon)

Judgment on Babylon
50:1 The word that the Lord spoke concerning Babylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, by the prophet Jeremiah:

2  Declare among the nations and proclaim,
     set up a banner and proclaim,
     do not conceal it, say:
   Babylon is taken,
     Bel is put to shame,
     Merodach is dismayed.
   Her images are put to shame,
     her idols are dismayed.

3 For out of the north a nation has come up against her; it shall make her land a desolation, and no one shall live in it; both human beings and animals shall flee away.

4 In those days and in that time, says the Lord, the people of Israel shall come, they and the people of Judah together; they shall come weeping as they seek the Lord their God. 5 They shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, and they shall come and join themselves to the Lord by an everlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.

6 My people have been lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains; from mountain to hill they have gone, they have forgotten their fold. 7 All who found them have devoured them, and their enemies have said, “We are not guilty, because they have sinned against the Lord, the true pasture, the Lord, the hope of their ancestors.”
[...]
17 Israel is a hunted sheep driven away by lions. First the king of Assyria devoured it, and now at the end King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon has gnawed its bones. 18 Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: I am going to punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I punished the king of Assyria. 19 I will restore Israel to its pasture, and it shall feed on Carmel and in Bashan, and on the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead its hunger shall be satisfied. 20 In those days and at that time, says the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and none shall be found; for I will pardon the remnant that I have spared.

Luke 22:39-46

(Jesus prays for life)

Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives
22:39 He came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed him. 40 When he reached the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not come into the time of trial.” 41 Then he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, 42 “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.” [[43 Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and gave him strength. 44 In his anguish he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground.]]* 45 When he got up from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping because of grief, 46 and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not come into the time of trial.”
* Other ancient authorities lack verses 43 and 44

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
The Daily Lectionary
Psalm 129; Jeremiah 50:1-7, 17-20; Luke 22:39-46

The Daily Prayer for WEDNESDAY, October 23, 2019

The Daily Prayer

WEDNESDAY, October 23, 2019

Second-century bishop Melito of Sardis wrote, “Nature trembled and said with astonishment: What new mystery is this? The Judge is judged and remains silent; the Invisible One is seen and does not hide himself; the Incomprehensible One is comprehended and does not resist; the Unmeasurable One is measured and does not struggle; the One beyond suffering suffers and does not avenge himself; the Immortal One dies and does not refuse death. What new mystery is this?”

In the light of the morning, Lord, we glorify your name. May the mystery of your incarnation shine through the complexities of this day so that in all we do, your name might be praised. Amen.

Verse of the Day for WEDNESDAY, October 23, 2019

Galatians 6:2 (NIV)

Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Read all of Galatians 6

Listen to Galatians 6

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 - Miércoles 23 de Octubre de 2019

La luz del mundo

Así alumbre vuestra luz delante de los hombres, para que vean vuestras buenas obras, y glorifiquen a vuestro Padre que está en los cielos.

— Mateo 5:16 (RVR-60)

El deseo de Dios es que nosotros seamos luz del mundo. De ahí que nuestra vida se compare con una lámpara que alumbra a los demás. Sin embargo, para poder alumbrar debemos estar llenos y cargados de Dios y de su Palabra para servir de ejemplo a otras personas.

En la época de Cristo se utilizaban lámparas pequeñas de arcilla en las que se quemaba aceite de oliva. Sin aceite, no prendían. Y si nuestra lámpara no está llena de Dios, será muy difícil alumbrar a los demás. A veces tenemos una vida tan fría con Dios que lo más probable es que, a mitad del camino, nos quedemos nosotros también sin luz.

Pidámosle a Dios que nos llene hoy de su amor, que podamos tomar ese hábito de leer la Biblia y de ese modo ser la luz del mundo, tal y como lo dejó escrito en su Palabra.

Un Día a la Vez Copyright © by Claudia Pinzón
El deseo de Dios es que nosotros seamos luz del mundo.

Standing Strong Through the Storm - Wednesday, October 23, 2019

WALK IN VICTORY

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

— Romans 8:28 (NIV)

Our trust is not in a God who uses his power without a plan or at His whim. Rather our trust is in a loving, purposeful God who promises that all thing work together for good for those who love Him.

No one believes this any more than Kim Phuc. She is known as the picture girl from the Vietnam war. The Pulitzer Prize winning photo seen around the world was snapped on June 8, 1972 following a South Vietnamese napalm attack on Trang Bang village. Nine-year-old Kim is seen running down the road toward the camera, naked and screaming in pain.

Living in constant pain as a result of the horrific injuries she suffered, Kim recalls she was bitter and filled with hatred asking the universal question, “Why me? Why do I have to suffer like this?”

As a teenager, she encountered a Vietnamese Bible in a library. Impressed with Jesus and His teaching, she became a believer in 1982. She comments that it took years, but “God freed me from hatred and enabled me to love and forgive my enemies, to trust Him and to obey.”

She still suffers daily from excruciating pain but she now finds purpose in that pain. “The pain reminds me daily to go back to the Lord in prayer,” she says. “Then he gives me peace, energy, strength and grace to face each day…The pain is for my spiritual protection and I thank God for it.”

Kim Phuc says she wants to change the way people see her; no longer the little girl crying out of pain, but now a young woman crying out for peace. She adds, “Now He uses my picture and my everyday life to glorify Him. Now I understand the purpose of why I’m still here and why I suffer. It’s to glorify the Lord. It’s not about me. It’s about Him!”

God has a plan and purpose for our life, and through our obedience to His teaching, He is going to work in us and through us that which will ultimately bring glory to God. With this kind of faith, we will see victory.

RESPONSE: Today I will walk in victory because I will give every part of my being to glorify God.

PRAYER: Lord, help me to experience the purpose and meaning You have ordained in my suffering for You.

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

LHM Daily Devotions - October 23, 2019 - When God Thinks Otherwise

"When God Thinks Otherwise"

Oct. 23, 2019

But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the Law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by His grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by His blood, to be received by faith.

— Romans 3:21-25a (ESV)

What a relief it must have been for the apostle Paul to receive the truth that we are justified before God not by works of the Law but by the grace of God!

Oh, the magnitude of God's grace! How it brings us—prodigal sons and daughters who were irretrievably lost—back into the fold of His creation. Though we willfully sought our own way, shunning His Word and the good witness of the faithful around us, He has led us back, given us His Son—who cleanses us from all sin—and with Him the glory of eternal life in the presence of God Himself.

The righteousness of God—the same righteousness imparted to a believing Abraham and his descendants Isaac and Jacob—is ours as believers in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. And it's available to everyone. Receiving this perfect righteousness, this divine justification before the Law, even Paul found new life even after he had "persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it" (Galatians 1:13b).

But Paul found more than a new life—he found a new mission: "But when He who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son to me, in order that I might preach Him among the Gentiles" (Galatians 1:15-16a).

"Preach Him among the Gentiles"? Paul!?

Schooled for years in the pharisaic tradition, steeped in the knowledge of Jewish history and thought, trained in interpreting the Hebrew Scriptures and the voluminous commentaries that went along with it, Paul was tailor-made for proclaiming the Gospel to his fellow countrymen: the Jews.

But God had other things in mind.

How about you? Have you been receptive to God's hand in your life, even (especially) when it seemed to be leading you in a direction not anticipated? When you pray, are you open for what God has in store for you? This can be difficult. It can be demanding. But think what God can do when we yield our lives to Him.

"For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," the Scripture says. All people everywhere are in need of God's great salvation, the forgiveness of their sins that comes through faith in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. That means those who are outside our family and closest friends, even those who are outside our ethnic background or culture, need to hear the Gospel.

Do you know anyone who could use some good news right now?

THE PRAYER: Heavenly Father, by Your Holy Spirit, lead us to speak confidently of Jesus and His love to those we know who need to hear it. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.

Reflection Questions:

• Has God ever "stepped" into your life in some dramatic way?
• What does it mean that "the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law"?
• How does knowing that we're all equally sinners before God figure into your witness to others?

This Daily Devotion was written by Paul Schreiber. Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).
Has God ever "stepped" into your life in some dramatic way?

CPTLN devocional del 23 de Octubre de 2019 - Cuando Dios tiene otros planes

ALIMENTO DIARIO

Cuando Dios tiene otros planes

23 de Octubre de 2019

Pero ahora, aparte de la ley, se ha manifestado la justicia de Dios, y de ello dan testimonio la ley y los profetas. La justicia de Dios, por medio de la fe en Jesucristo, es para todos los que creen en él. Pues no hay diferencia alguna, por cuanto todos pecaron y están destituidos de la gloria de Dios; pero son justificados gratuitamente por su gracia, mediante la redención que proveyó Cristo Jesús, a quien Dios puso como sacrificio de expiación por medio de la fe en su sangre. Esto lo hizo Dios para manifestar su justicia, pues en su paciencia ha pasado por alto los pecados pasados.

— Romanos 3:21-25 (RVC)

¡Qué alivio debe haber sido para el apóstol Pablo recibir la verdad de que somos justificados ante Dios no por obras de la Ley sino por la gracia de Dios! ¡La magnitud de la gracia de Dios! Nos trae de vuelta al redil a sus hijos e hijas pródigos que nos habíamos perdido irremediablemente. Aunque buscamos voluntariamente nuestro propio camino, evitando Su Palabra y el buen testimonio de los fieles que nos rodean, Él nos ha guiado de regreso, nos ha dado a Su Hijo, que nos limpia de todo pecado, y con Él la gloria de la vida eterna en la presencia de Dios mismo.

La justicia de Dios—la misma justicia impartida a Abraham y sus descendientes Isaac y Jacob—es nuestra como creyentes en Jesucristo como nuestro Señor y Salvador. Y está disponible para todos. Al recibir esta justicia perfecta, esta justificación divina ante la Ley, hasta Pablo encontró una nueva vida incluso después de haber sido quien "perseguía y asolaba sobremanera a la iglesia de Dios" (Gálatas 1:13b).

Pero Pablo encontró más que una nueva vida: encontró una nueva misión: "Pero Dios me apartó desde el vientre de mi madre y me llamó por su gracia, y cuando a él le agradó revelar a su Hijo en mí para que yo lo anunciara entre los no judíos, no me apresuré a consultar a nadie" (Gálatas 1:15-16a). ¿"Lo anunciara entre los no judíos"? ¿¡Pablo!?

Educado durante años en la tradición farisaica, inmerso en el conocimiento de la historia y el pensamiento judíos, capacitado para interpretar las Escrituras hebreas y los voluminosos comentarios que las acompañaban, Pablo estaba hecho a la medida para proclamar el Evangelio a sus compatriotas: los judíos.

Pero Dios tenía otros planes en mente.

¿Y tú? ¿Has sido receptivo a la mano de Dios en tu vida, incluso (o especialmente) cuando parecía guiarte en una dirección que no esperabas? Cuando oras, ¿estás abierto a lo que Dios tiene reservado para ti? Esto puede ser difícil. Puede exigir mucho de ti. Pero piensa en lo que Dios puede hacer cuando le entregamos nuestras vidas.

"Pues no hay diferencia alguna, por cuanto todos pecaron y están destituidos de la gloria de Dios", dice la Escritura. Todas las personas en todas partes necesitan la salvación de Dios, el perdón de sus pecados que viene por la fe en Jesús como su Señor y Salvador. Eso significa que aquellos que no son parte de nuestra familia ni son amigos más cercanos, incluso aquellos que no son de nuestro origen étnico o cultura, necesitan escuchar el Evangelio.

¿Conoces a alguien que se pueda beneficiar de las buenas noticias en este momento?

ORACIÓN: Padre Celestial, por tu Espíritu Santo, llévanos a hablar con confianza de Jesús y Su amor a aquellos que conocemos y que necesitan escucharlo. En el Nombre de Jesús oramos. Amén.

Paul Schreiber

Para reflexionar:

• ¿Cuándo ha intervenido Dios en tu vida de una manera dramática?
• ¿Cómo influye en tu testimonio el saber que todos somos igualmente pecadores ante Dios?

© Copyright 2019 Cristo Para Todas Las Naciones. Que a través de estos devocionales, la Palabra de Dios te refresque en tu diario caminar.
¿Conoces a alguien que se pueda beneficiar de las buenas noticias en este momento?

Ministérios Pão Diário - De irmão para irmão

De irmão para irmão


Leia: Gênesis 33:1-11
 | A Bíblia em um ano: Jeremias 1–2; 1 Timóteo 3


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Novo mandamento vos dou: que vos ameis uns aos outros; assim como eu vos amei… João 13:34


Meu irmão e eu, temos menos de um ano de diferença, fomos muito “competitivos” enquanto crescíamos (leia-se: briguentos!). Papai entendia. Ele tinha irmãos. Mamãe? Não muito.

Nossa história poderia muito bem levar o título “Rivalidade entre irmãos”. Caim e Abel (4); Isaque e Ismael (21:8-10); José, Benjamim e os demais (37). Mas em questão de animosidade entre irmãos é difícil superar Jacó e Esaú.

Jacó, o irmão gêmeo de Esaú o tinha enganado duas vezes, então Esaú quis matá-lo (27:41). Décadas depois, eles se reconciliaram (33). Mas a rivalidade continuou entre os seus descendentes, as nações de Edom e Israel. Quando o povo de Israel se preparou para entrar na Terra Prometida, Edom os encontrou com ameaças e um exército (Números 20:14-21). Muito mais tarde, quando os cidadãos de Jerusalém fugiram das forças invasoras, Edom exterminou os refugiados (Obadias 1:10-14).

Felizmente para nós, a Bíblia não contém apenas o triste relato do nosso fracasso, mas também a história da redenção. Jesus mudou tudo, dizendo a Seus discípulos: “Novo mandamento vos dou: que vos ameis uns aos outros…” (João 13:34). Dessa maneira, Ele nos mostrou o que isso significa morrendo por nós.

Hoje mais idosos, meu irmão e eu somos bem próximos. Quando respondemos ao perdão que Deus oferece, a Sua graça pode transformar nossas rivalidades em amor fraternal.

A rivalidade entre irmãos é natural. 
O amor de Deus é sobrenatural.

por Tim Gustafson

© 2019 Ministérios Pão Diário
A rivalidade entre irmãos é natural. 
O amor de Deus é sobrenatural.