[Ohio-Communities-of-Faith] DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR FRIDAY JULY 1

[Donnie Parrett]

DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR FRIDAY JULY 1

WORD OF WISDOM

If you see someone over 50 out in public after 9PM, you can be assured they
took a nap earlier in the day.

___

DAILY DEVOTION

The Necessity of the Cross


Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to
Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: And Paul, as his manner
was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the
scriptures, Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and
risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is
Christ. And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of
the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.
Acts 17:1-4

A great many of the Jewish people when Jesus came had no real interest in a
Saviour. They were looking for the Messiah, but they pictured Him as a
military or political leader who would overthrow the Romans and give Israel
back its independence. They were thinking purely in nationalistic and
physical terms rather than in personal and spiritual terms. The truth that
the Messiah would come as a sacrifice rather than as a conqueror was laid
out clearly in the Old Testament, but the people in large part had no desire
to follow such a leader. A large number of people responded to Jesus
initially, but as He laid out His purpose and God's plan more clearly, they
went away. "From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no
more with him" (John 6:66).
If there had been any way in which salvation could have been offered to
sinful and fallen man, God would not have sent His Son to die on a cross.
But it was necessary for the perfect and sinless Christ to die in our place,
paying the rightful penalty He did not owe so that we could receive pardon.
The cross was not a setback or a detour, but a central part of God's plan to
save those who believe and accept His offer of salvation by grace through
faith alone. There is no other way that any of us can be justified before
God.
The only way we can come to God is on His terms-through Christ's sacrificial
death on the cross.

___

DAILY BIBLE READING

Psalm 136-140 New King James Version
Thanksgiving to God for His Enduring Mercy
136 Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
2 Oh, give thanks to the God of gods!
For His mercy endures forever.
3 Oh, give thanks to the Lord of lords!
For His mercy endures forever:

4 To Him who alone does great wonders,
For His mercy endures forever;
5 To Him who by wisdom made the heavens,
For His mercy endures forever;
6 To Him who laid out the earth above the waters,
For His mercy endures forever;
7 To Him who made great lights,
For His mercy endures forever-
8 The sun to rule by day,
For His mercy endures forever;
9 The moon and stars to rule by night,
For His mercy endures forever.

10 To Him who struck Egypt in their firstborn,
For His mercy endures forever;
11 And brought out Israel from among them,
For His mercy endures forever;
12 With a strong hand, and with [a]an outstretched arm,
For His mercy endures forever;
13 To Him who divided the Red Sea in two,
For His mercy endures forever;
14 And made Israel pass through the midst of it,
For His mercy endures forever;
15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea,
For His mercy endures forever;
16 To Him who led His people through the wilderness,
For His mercy endures forever;
17 To Him who struck down great kings,
For His mercy endures forever;
18 And slew famous kings,
For His mercy endures forever-
19 Sihon king of the Amorites,
For His mercy endures forever;
20 And Og king of Bashan,
For His mercy endures forever-
21 And gave their land as a [b]heritage,
For His mercy endures forever;
22 A heritage to Israel His servant,
For His mercy endures forever.

23 Who remembered us in our lowly state,
For His mercy endures forever;
24 And rescued us from our enemies,
For His mercy endures forever;
25 Who gives food to all flesh,
For His mercy endures forever.

26 Oh, give thanks to the God of heaven!
For His mercy endures forever.

Longing for Zion in a Foreign Land
137 By the rivers of Babylon,
There we sat down, yea, we wept
When we remembered Zion.
2 We hung our harps
Upon the willows in the midst of it.
3 For there those who carried us away captive asked of us a song,
And those who plundered us requested mirth,
Saying, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"

4 How shall we sing the Lord's song
In a foreign land?
5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
Let my right hand forget its skill!
6 If I do not remember you,
Let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth-
If I do not exalt Jerusalem
Above my chief joy.

7 Remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom
The day of Jerusalem,
Who said, [c]"Raze it, raze it,
To its very foundation!"

8 O daughter of Babylon, who are to be destroyed,
Happy the one who repays you as you have served us!
9 Happy the one who takes and dashes
Your little ones against the rock!

The Lord's Goodness to the Faithful
A Psalm of David.
138 I will praise You with my whole heart;
Before the gods I will sing praises to You.
2 I will worship toward Your holy temple,
And praise Your name
For Your lovingkindness and Your truth;
For You have magnified Your word above all Your name.
3 In the day when I cried out, You answered me,
And made me bold with strength in my soul.

4 All the kings of the earth shall praise You, O Lord,
When they hear the words of Your mouth.
5 Yes, they shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
For great is the glory of the Lord.
6 Though the Lord is on high,
Yet He regards the lowly;
But the proud He knows from afar.

7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me;
You will stretch out Your hand
Against the wrath of my enemies,
And Your right hand will save me.
8 The Lord will [d]perfect that which concerns me;
Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever;
Do not forsake the works of Your hands.

God's Perfect Knowledge of Man
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
139 O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
2 You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You understand my thought afar off.
3 You [e]comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.
5 You have [f]hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.

7 Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in [g]hell, behold, You are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
10 Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness shall [h]fall on me,"
Even the night shall be light about me;
12 Indeed, the darkness [i]shall not hide from You,
But the night shines as the day;
The darkness and the light are both alike to You.

13 For You formed my inward parts;
You [j]covered me in my mother's womb.
14 I will praise You, for [k]I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
15 My [l]frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.

17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
When I awake, I am still with You.

19 Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God!
Depart from me, therefore, you [m]bloodthirsty men.
20 For they speak against You wickedly;
[n]Your enemies take Your name in vain.
21 Do I not hate them, O Lord, who hate You?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?
22 I hate them with [o]perfect hatred;
I count them my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties;
24 And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting.

Prayer for Deliverance from Evil Men
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
140 Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men;
Preserve me from violent men,
2 Who plan evil things in their hearts;
They continually gather together for war.
3 They sharpen their tongues like a serpent;
The poison of asps is under their lips. Selah

4 Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
Preserve me from violent men,
Who have purposed to make my steps stumble.
5 The proud have hidden a snare for me, and cords;
They have spread a net by the wayside;
They have set traps for me. Selah

6 I said to the Lord: "You are my God;
Hear the voice of my supplications, O Lord.
7 O God the Lord, the strength of my salvation,
You have [p]covered my head in the day of battle.
8 Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked;
Do not further his wicked scheme,
Lest they be exalted. Selah

9 "As for the head of those who surround me,
Let the evil of their lips cover them;
10 Let burning coals fall upon them;
Let them be cast into the fire,
Into deep pits, that they rise not up again.
11 Let not a slanderer be established in the earth;
Let evil hunt the violent man to overthrow him."

12 I know that the Lord will maintain
The cause of the afflicted,
And justice for the poor.
13 Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name;
The upright shall dwell in Your presence.

Footnotes
Psalm 136:12 Mighty power
Psalm 136:21 inheritance
Psalm 137:7 Lit. Make bare
Psalm 138:8 complete
Psalm 139:3 Lit. winnow
Psalm 139:5 enclosed
Psalm 139:8 Or Sheol
Psalm 139:11 Vg., Symmachus cover
Psalm 139:12 Lit. is not dark
Psalm 139:13 wove
Psalm 139:14 So with MT, Tg.; LXX, Syr., Vg. You are fearfully wonderful
Psalm 139:15 Lit. bones were
Psalm 139:19 Lit. men of bloodshed
Psalm 139:20 LXX, Vg. They take Your cities in vain
Psalm 139:22 complete
Psalm 140:7 sheltered