July 15 & 16, 2023
 July 15 – Daily Reading – Neh. 9-10 / Acts 15:1-27
 July 16 – NO READING

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Nehemiah 9:6 Thou, even thou, art LORD alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        When thinking about God’s authority over our lives, where do we begin? We might begin on the day that we realized our sinfulness and cried out to this Holy, merciful God to save us, and He did. On that day, we turned all our future over to Him, and gave Him authority over the paths of our lives. Yet, God’s authority over us goes back further than that. We might even go back to the day of our birth. When God gave us physical life, He also gave with that life the option of eternal life through His Son Jesus. Job realized this as it says in Job 1:21 “And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” However, God’s authority stretches further back than that. 

 

        When the children of Israel were finally back in Jerusalem, things became pretty clear to them. God brought them from Egypt to a land He had promised to Abraham many hundreds of years before. God had fought for them, sustained them, blessed them, and been merciful toward them. It was their sin that caused God to remove them from this promised land. Still, in this chapter they begin their prayer where they see God’s authority begin. He is, “Lord alone.” All of everything is His. Creation is foundational to His authority over everything and everyone. It was then, it is today, and will be throughout eternity. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        I like how Paul said it in Eph. 2:10 where he says, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” If we walk according to His design, life is just better.

 

How is your walk with Him?

 

THE WEEK IN REVIEW:

      Life is just so much better when we remain Clearly Focused on God. The people of Israel saw this in:

  ● Counterfeit Friends
  ● Confused Faithfulness
  ● Contagious Following
  ● Conscious Free
  ● Considered Fortunate
  ● Creation’s Foundational

      With all that is happening in the world around us, it is good to know there is peace of heart and mind still available if we will remain Clearly Focused on God.

       Enjoy today with your church and hear what God has prepared in the heart of His man for you this week.

   See you tomorrow.  

 

 SUNDAYS:

       Today we suggest you read and study whatever the Lord has laid on your Pastors heart. Whatever scripture he uses for today’s messages were given to him by God for your specific needs.

July 17, 2023	Neh. 11-12	Acts 15:28-41
July 18, 2023	Neh. 13	Acts 16:1-24
July 19, 2023	Esther 1-4	Acts 16:25-40
July 20, 2023	Esther 5-10	Acts 17
July 21, 2023	Job 1-4	Acts 18
July 22, 2023	Job 5-8	Acts 19:1-20
July 23, 2023	No Passages Assigned

Clearly Focused

 

  July 14, 2023
  Daily Reading – Neh. 7-8 / Acts 14

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Nehemiah 8:12 And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        While the children of Israel had been in captivity for seventy plus years, they were taught to use the Aramaic language used by the Babylonians and the Persians. They had stopped using the Hebrew language, in which the Books of the Law were written, for daily conversation. So when Ezra stood to read the Books of the Law, not everyone understood all the wording. In Nehemiah 8:9 it says, “And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.” Once they understood what was said, verse 12 says they were rejoicing, “because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.” They considered themselves so fortunate to have the words of God, that verse 13 says the family’s fathers and the leadership came back the next day for more. Not only did they read it, but also did what it said.

 

      With all the arguing today over the different versions of the Bible, do we ever stop and just consider ourselves fortunate to even have the very words of God to read, and to study. The Jewish scholars still have those first five books in their original language. Yet, there are sixty-one more books following them we have today.

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        Most people know, I use the King James Bible. I am old and still believe it is the closest Bible we have to the original manuscripts in the English language. That said, I consider people fortunate today to have God’s Word so readily available to read.

 

Do you consider yourself fortunate?

 

 

  July 13, 2023
  Daily Reading – Neh. 4-6 / Acts 13:29-52

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Nehemiah 6:8 Then I sent unto him, saying, There are no such things done as thou sayest, but thou feignest them out of thine own heart.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        Nehemiah was standing in a very good place in his life. If you have been reading along in the book of Nehemiah up to this point, you might wonder how I could say that. Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem, leaders of the Samaritans were constantly opposing him. Not only from outside of the walls being built, but also from within. They were related to some of the Jewish leaders inside through marriages in the families. Some of whom were sending letters back and forth, constantly conspiring against Nehemiah. Also, many had been coming to him with complaints about injustice among the Jewish families. Saying some of the wealthy had been taking advantage of those who were less fortunate. Nehemiah had to deal with this. Pressures from every side. Yet I still say, Nehemiah stood in a very good place.

 

        You see, when the false accusations began flying around about him and the work that had been done, he knew they were not true. He had not compromised with anyone in the work of the Lord. He had sought God on every detail of the building of the wall, but also on the rebuilding of the Jewish culture and their faith in God. The wall God called him to build was being done. The people were following his advice in following God. God was blessing his work. He was leading Israel back to obedience to the law of the Lord. Therefore, his conscience was free from any such false accusations. What a great place to stand. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        What a wonderful place to stand with God, and man. 1 Peter 3:16 says; “Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed…” If you know you are doing God’s will, stand in peace. 

 

How is your conscience?

 

 

  July 12, 2023
  Daily Reading – Neh. 1-3 / Acts 13:1-28

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Nehemiah 3:1 Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests, and they builded the sheep gate; they sanctified it, and set up the doors of it; even unto the tower of Meah they sanctified it, unto the tower of Hananeel.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        Watch a bunch of two-year-olds play for a while and you will notice something. There is often a toy in the middle of the room that has sat there for a long time, and not one child has shown any interest in it at all. Then, one of the two-year-olds finds it to be a fun toy to play with. The next thing you know, all the children want that toy. The toy has not changed from the time you walked into the room. What changed was that they saw someone else with it, and now they want it too. You might be saying, well that is just how two-year-olds are. I believe that is how most adults are too. It is sort of contagious following.

 

        Nehemiah is burdened with the idea that Jerusalem, and the people who relocated there, were not safe. The walls had been broken down and the gates were all burned with fire and destroyed. Twelve gates in all. What a daunting task for one man to take on. However, it would not be so challenging if he could get the others who were there to help him. Many of these people had been there for a while now. The gates and walls were lying in ruin. No one really did much to change that. That is until Nehemiah showed up with a burden for the city and a plan to rebuild it. He laid out a plan, explaining how if everyone built near their homes this could be done. Eliashib was the first to build. He led the way by building the Sheep-gate. Then, as if they all decided they were not going to be outdone, others joined in rebuilding Jerusalem. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        What daunting task do you see in your church, or town. If you begin with prayer, asking God to lead you, you might find that once you start, there is a contagious following. Sometimes all it takes is for someone to pick up the toy in the middle of the room first.

 

What might God have you do?

 

 

  July 11, 2023
  Daily Reading – Ezra 8-10 / Acts 12

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Ezra 10:11 Now therefore make confession unto the LORD God of your fathers, and do his pleasure: and separate yourselves from the people of the land, and from the strange wives.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        Ezra came back to Jerusalem to find that those who had returned earlier had fallen into some of the same sinful practices that had led to their demise in the first place. The priest and Levites who were already there, had married idol worshiping wives. Many of them had begun families with these wives. This was something God had said they were not to do because it would confuse the faithfulness of the hearts of the men and lead them away from the one true God. Sadly, these men did not lead their wives and children to understand and worship their God, which would have been accepted by the Lord, and they could have become Israelites. Instead, Ezra 9:1 says; “…The people of Israel, and the priests, and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the people of the lands, doing according to their abominations,…” This is exactly what God warned them would happen. They would become the victim of confused faithfulness. The only way for God’s work on the temple to move forward, was to remove the problem from the people.

 

      God still desires our undivided faithfulness toward Himself alone today. He warns against marriage to unbelievers. Against partnering in business with the world. Against forming, lasting friendships with the lost. God does not hate the sinner; He loves the righteous. He is trying to protect us with love from the world’s confusion.  

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        2 Cor. 6:14 says; “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” 

 

Does it sound like God has changed His mind about this?