[Ohio-Communities-of-Faith] DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR THURSDAY APRIL 14

[Donnie Parrett]

DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR THURSDAY APRIL 14

WORD OF WISDOM

The fitness trainer asked me, "What kind of a squat are you accustomed to
doing?" I said, "Diddly."

___

DAILY DEVOTION

Your Good Works Can't Do It


Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to
declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through
the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness:
that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. 
Romans 3:25-26

When I was a little boy, I thought God was like Santa Claus with a long
beard sitting up in heaven-making a list and checking it twice, trying to
find out if I was naughty or nice. Then when my life was over, I would face
Him and He would pull out these massive scales and weigh my good works
against my bad to see if I made it into heaven.
Do you know what thinking this did to me? It made me fearful that at the end
of my life I would face God and He would say, "Donnie. I'm sorry, but
according to My calculations, you didn't make it." Then I would have to turn
and ashamedly walk past my family and friends, separated from them and from
God forever.
Friend, maybe you too believe this. But let me set the record straight:
Salvation is not an attainment, it is an atonement-it is the reconciliation
of man with God through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. You cannot
achieve it-you must receive it.
You cannot atone for your sins. Your good works cannot do it. None of us
could produce works good enough or fast enough to atone for sin. Don't even
try. Rest in the finished work of the Cross.

___

DAILY BIBLE READING

2 Kings 4-6 New King James Version
Elisha and the Widow's Oil
4 A certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to
Elisha, saying, "Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your
servant feared the Lord. And the creditor is coming to take my two sons to
be his slaves."

2 So Elisha said to her, "What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have
in the house?" And she said, "Your maidservant has nothing in the house but
a jar of oil."

3 Then he said, "Go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your
neighbors-empty vessels; do not gather just a few. 4 And when you have come
in, you shall shut the door behind you and your sons; then pour it into all
those vessels, and set aside the full ones."

5 So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons, who
brought the vessels to her; and she poured it out. 6 Now it came to pass,
when the vessels were full, that she said to her son, "Bring me another
vessel."

And he said to her, "There is not another vessel." So the oil ceased. 7 Then
she came and told the man of God. And he said, "Go, sell the oil and pay
your debt; and you and your sons live on the rest."

Elisha Raises the Shunammite's Son
8 Now it happened one day that Elisha went to Shunem, where there was a
[a]notable woman, and she [b]persuaded him to eat some food. So it was, as
often as he passed by, he would turn in there to eat some food. 9 And she
said to her husband, "Look now, I know that this is a holy man of God, who
passes by us regularly. 10 Please, let us make [c]a small upper room on the
wall; and let us put a bed for him there, and a table and a chair and a
lampstand; so it will be, whenever he comes to us, he can turn in there."

11 And it happened one day that he came there, and he turned in to the upper
room and lay down there. 12 Then he said to Gehazi his servant, "Call this
Shunammite woman." When he had called her, she stood before him. 13 And he
said to him, "Say now to her, 'Look, you have been concerned for us with all
this care. What can I do for you? Do you want me to speak on your behalf to
the king or to the commander of the army?' "

She answered, "I dwell among my own people."

14 So he said, "What then is to be done for her?"

And Gehazi answered, "Actually, she has no son, and her husband is old."

15 So he said, "Call her." When he had called her, she stood in the doorway.
16 Then he said, [d]"About this time next year you shall embrace a son."

And she said, "No, my lord. Man of God, do not lie to your maidservant!"

17 But the woman conceived, and bore a son when the appointed time had come,
of which Elisha had told her.

18 And the child grew. Now it happened one day that he went out to his
father, to the reapers. 19 And he said to his father, "My head, my head!"

So he said to a servant, "Carry him to his mother." 20 When he had taken him
and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.
21 And she went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, shut the door
upon him, and went out. 22 Then she called to her husband, and said, "Please
send me one of the young men and one of the donkeys, that I may run to the
man of God and come back."

23 So he said, "Why are you going to him today? It is neither the New Moon
nor the Sabbath."

And she said, [e]"It is well." 24 Then she saddled a donkey, and said to her
servant, "Drive, and go forward; do not slacken the pace for me unless I
tell you." 25 And so she departed, and went to the man of God at Mount
Carmel.

So it was, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to his servant
Gehazi, "Look, the Shunammite woman! 26 Please run now to meet her, and say
to her, 'Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with
the child?' "

And she answered, "It is well." 27 Now when she came to the man of God at
the hill, she caught him by the feet, but Gehazi came near to push her away.
But the man of God said, "Let her alone; for her soul is in deep distress,
and the Lord has hidden it from me, and has not told me."

28 So she said, "Did I ask a son of my lord? Did I not say, 'Do not deceive
me'?"

29 Then he said to Gehazi, "Get[f] yourself ready, and take my staff in your
hand, and be on your way. If you meet anyone, do not greet him; and if
anyone greets you, do not answer him; but lay my staff on the face of the
child."

30 And the mother of the child said, "As the Lord lives, and as your soul
lives, I will not leave you." So he arose and followed her. 31 Now Gehazi
went on ahead of them, and laid the staff on the face of the child; but
there was neither voice nor hearing. Therefore he went back to meet him, and
told him, saying, "The child has not awakened."

32 When Elisha came into the house, there was the child, lying dead on his
bed. 33 He went in therefore, shut the door behind the two of them, and
prayed to the Lord. 34 And he went up and lay on the child, and put his
mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands; and he
stretched himself out on the child, and the flesh of the child became warm.
35 He returned and walked back and forth in the house, and again went up and
stretched himself out on him; then the child sneezed seven times, and the
child opened his eyes. 36 And he called Gehazi and said, "Call this
Shunammite woman." So he called her. And when she came in to him, he said,
"Pick up your son." 37 So she went in, fell at his feet, and bowed to the
ground; then she picked up her son and went out.

Elisha Purifies the Pot of Stew
38 And Elisha returned to Gilgal, and there was a famine in the land. Now
the sons of the prophets were sitting before him; and he said to his
servant, "Put on the large pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets."
39 So one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine,
and gathered from it a lapful of wild gourds, and came and sliced them into
the pot of stew, though they did not know what they were. 40 Then they
served it to the men to eat. Now it happened, as they were eating the stew,
that they cried out and said, "Man of God, there is death in the pot!" And
they could not eat it.

41 So he said, "Then bring some flour." And he put it into the pot, and
said, "Serve it to the people, that they may eat." And there was nothing
harmful in the pot.

Elisha Feeds One Hundred Men
42 Then a man came from Baal Shalisha, and brought the man of God bread of
the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley bread, and newly ripened grain in
his knapsack. And he said, "Give it to the people, that they may eat."

43 But his servant said, "What? Shall I set this before one hundred men?"

He said again, "Give it to the people, that they may eat; for thus says the
Lord: 'They shall eat and have some left over.' " 44 So he set it before
them; and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the
Lord.

Naaman's Leprosy Healed
5 Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and
honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the Lord had given
victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper. 2 And the
Syrians had gone out on[g] raids, and had brought back captive a young girl
from the land of Israel. She [h]waited on Naaman's wife. 3 Then she said to
her mistress, "If only my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria!
For he would heal him of his leprosy." 4 And Naaman went in and told his
master, saying, "Thus and thus said the girl who is from the land of
Israel."

5 Then the king of Syria said, "Go now, and I will send a letter to the king
of Israel."

So he departed and took with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels
of gold, and ten changes of clothing. 6 Then he brought the letter to the
king of Israel, which said,

Now be advised, when this letter comes to you, that I have sent Naaman my
servant to you, that you may heal him of his leprosy.

7 And it happened, when the king of Israel read the letter, that he tore his
clothes and said, "Am I God, to kill and make alive, that this man sends a
man to me to heal him of his leprosy? Therefore please consider, and see how
he seeks a quarrel with me."

8 So it was, when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had
torn his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, "Why have you torn your
clothes? Please let him come to me, and he shall know that there is a
prophet in Israel."

9 Then Naaman went with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of
Elisha's house. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, "Go and wash
in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you
shall be clean." 11 But Naaman became furious, and went away and said,
"Indeed, I said to myself, 'He will surely come out to me, and stand and
call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place, and
heal the leprosy.' 12 Are not the [i]Abanah and the Pharpar, the rivers of
Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and
be clean?" So he turned and went away in a rage. 13 And his servants came
near and spoke to him, and said, "My father, if the prophet had told you to
do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he
says to you, 'Wash, and be clean'?" 14 So he went down and dipped seven
times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his
flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

15 And he returned to the man of God, he and all his aides, and came and
stood before him; and he said, "Indeed, now I know that there is no God in
all the earth, except in Israel; now therefore, please take a gift from your
servant."

16 But he said, "As the Lord lives, before whom I stand, I will receive
nothing." And he urged him to take it, but he refused.

17 So Naaman said, "Then, if not, please let your servant be given two
mule-loads of earth; for your servant will no longer offer either burnt
offering or sacrifice to other gods, but to the Lord. 18 Yet in this thing
may the Lord pardon your servant: when my master goes into the temple of
Rimmon to worship there, and he leans on my hand, and I bow down in the
temple of Rimmon-when I bow down in the temple of Rimmon, may the Lord
please pardon your servant in this thing."

19 Then he said to him, "Go in peace." So he departed from him a short
distance.

Gehazi's Greed
20 But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, "Look, my master
has spared Naaman this Syrian, while not receiving from his hands what he
brought; but as the Lord lives, I will run after him and take something from
him." 21 So Gehazi pursued Naaman. When Naaman saw him running after him, he
got down from the chariot to meet him, and said, "Is all well?"

22 And he said, "All is well. My master has sent me, saying, 'Indeed, just
now two young men of the sons of the prophets have come to me from the
mountains of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two changes of
garments.' "

23 So Naaman said, "Please, take two talents." And he urged him, and bound
two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and handed
them to two of his servants; and they carried them on ahead of him. 24 When
he came to [j]the citadel, he took them from their hand, and stored them
away in the house; then he let the men go, and they departed. 25 Now he went
in and stood before his master. Elisha said to him, "Where did you go,
Gehazi?"

And he said, "Your servant did not go anywhere."

26 Then he said to him, "Did not my heart go with you when the man turned
back from his chariot to meet you? Is it time to receive money and to
receive clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male and
female servants? 27 Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and
your descendants forever." And he went out from his presence leprous, as
white as snow.

The Floating Ax Head
6 And the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, "See now, the place where we
dwell with you is too small for us. 2 Please, let us go to the Jordan, and
let every man take a beam from there, and let us make there a place where we
may dwell."

So he answered, "Go."

3 Then one said, "Please consent to go with your servants."

And he answered, "I will go." 4 So he went with them. And when they came to
the Jordan, they cut down trees. 5 But as one was cutting down a tree, the
iron ax head fell into the water; and he cried out and said, "Alas, master!
For it was borrowed."

6 So the man of God said, "Where did it fall?" And he showed him the place.
So he cut off a stick, and threw it in there; and he made the iron float. 7
Therefore he said, "Pick it up for yourself." So he reached out his hand and
took it.

The Blinded Syrians Captured
8 Now the king of Syria was making war against Israel; and he consulted with
his servants, saying, "My camp will be in such and such a place." 9 And the
man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, "Beware that you do not pass
this place, for the Syrians are coming down there." 10 Then the king of
Israel sent someone to the place of which the man of God had told him. Thus
he warned him, and he was watchful there, not just once or twice.

11 Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was greatly troubled by this
thing; and he called his servants and said to them, "Will you not show me
which of us is for the king of Israel?"

12 And one of his servants said, "None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the
prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak
in your bedroom."

13 So he said, "Go and see where he is, that I may send and get him."

And it was told him, saying, "Surely he is in Dothan."

14 Therefore he sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they
came by night and surrounded the city. 15 And when the servant of the man of
God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with
horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, "Alas, my master! What
shall we do?"

16 So he answered, "Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than
those who are with them." 17 And Elisha prayed, and said, "Lord, I pray,
open his eyes that he may see." Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young
man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of
fire all around Elisha. 18 So when the Syrians came down to him, Elisha
prayed to the Lord, and said, "Strike this people, I pray, with blindness."
And He struck them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.

19 Now Elisha said to them, "This is not the way, nor is this the city.
Follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom you seek." But he led them
to Samaria.

20 So it was, when they had come to Samaria, that Elisha said, "Lord, open
the eyes of these men, that they may see." And the Lord opened their eyes,
and they saw; and there they were, inside Samaria!

21 Now when the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, "My father,
shall I kill them? Shall I kill them?"

22 But he answered, "You shall not kill them. Would you kill those whom you
have taken captive with your sword and your bow? Set food and water before
them, that they may eat and drink and go to their master." 23 Then he
prepared a great feast for them; and after they ate and drank, he sent them
away and they went to their master. So the bands of Syrian raiders came no
more into the land of Israel.

Syria Besieges Samaria in Famine
24 And it happened after this that Ben-Hadad king of Syria gathered all his
army, and went up and besieged Samaria. 25 And there was a great famine in
Samaria; and indeed they besieged it until a donkey's head was sold for
eighty shekels of silver, and one-fourth of a [k]kab of dove droppings for
five shekels of silver.

26 Then, as the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out
to him, saying, "Help, my lord, O king!"

27 And he said, "If the Lord does not help you, where can I find help for
you? From the threshing floor or from the winepress?" 28 Then the king said
to her, "What is troubling you?"

And she answered, "This woman said to me, 'Give your son, that we may eat
him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.' 29 So we boiled my son, and ate
him. And I said to her on the next day, 'Give your son, that we may eat
him'; but she has hidden her son."

30 Now it happened, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he tore
his clothes; and as he passed by on the wall, the people looked, and there
underneath he had sackcloth on his body. 31 Then he said, "God do so to me
and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat remains on him
today!"

32 But Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with
him. And the king sent a man ahead of him, but before the messenger came to
him, he said to the elders, "Do you see how this son of a murderer has sent
someone to take away my head? Look, when the messenger comes, shut the door,
and hold him fast at the door. Is not the sound of his master's feet behind
him?" 33 And while he was still talking with them, there was the messenger,
coming down to him; and then the king said, "Surely this calamity is from
the Lord; why should I wait for the Lord any longer?"

Footnotes
2 Kings 4:8 Lit. great
2 Kings 4:8 Lit. laid hold on him
2 Kings 4:10 Or a small walled upper chamber
2 Kings 4:16 Lit. About this season, as the time of life
2 Kings 4:23 Or It will be well
2 Kings 4:29 Lit. Gird up your loins. The skirt of the robe was wrapped
around the legs and tucked in the belt to gain freedom of movement.
2 Kings 5:2 Or in bands
2 Kings 5:2 Served, lit. was before
2 Kings 5:12 So with Kt., LXX, Vg.; Qr., Syr., Tg. Amanah
2 Kings 5:24 Lit. the hill
2 Kings 6:25 Approximately 1 pint