DonateMy Utmost for His Highest in Crewe, England [Great Britain], United Kingdom for Tuesday, 7 June 2016 "Don’t Slack Off" by Oswald Chambers
Whatsoever ye shalt ask in My name, that will I do.[John 14:13]
Am I fulfilling this ministry of the interior? There is no snare or any danger of infatuation or pride in intercession, it is a hidden ministry that brings forth fruit whereby the Father is glorified. Am I allowing my spiritual life to be frittered away, or am I bringing it all to one centre — the Atonement of my Lord? Is Jesus Christ more and more dominating every interest in my life? If the one central point, the great exerting influence in my life is the Atonement of the Lord, then every phase of my life will bear fruit for Him.
I must take time to realize what is the central point of power. Do I give one minute out of sixty to concentrate upon it? “If ye abide in Me” — continue to act and think and work from that centre — “ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” Am I abiding? Am I taking time to abide? What is the greatest factor of power in my life? Is it work, service, sacrifice for others, or trying to work for God? The thing that ought to exert the greatest power in my life is the Atonement of the Lord. It is not the thing we spend the most time on that moulds us most; the greatest element is the thing that exerts most power. We must determine to be limited and concentrate our affinities.
“Whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I do.” The disciple who abides in Jesus is the will of God, and his apparently free choices are God’s fore-ordained decrees. Mysterious? Logically contradictory and absurd? Yes, but a glorious truth to a saint.
Bible in One Year: 2 Chronicles 28-29; John 17
2 Chronicles 28:1 Achaz was twenty years old when he began his reign, and he ruled sixteen years in Yerushalayim. But he did not do what was right from the perspective of Adonai, as David his ancestor had done. 2 Rather, he lived in the manner of the kings of Isra’el and made cast metal images for the ba‘alim. 3 Moreover, he made offerings in the Ben-Hinnom Valley and even burned up his own children as sacrifices, in keeping with the horrible practices of the pagans, whom Adonai had thrown out ahead of the people of Isra’el. 4 He also sacrificed and offered on the high places, on the hills and under any green tree.
5 Because of this, Adonai his God handed him over to the king of Aram; they attacked him and carried off from his people a great number of captives, bringing them to Dammesek.
In addition, he was handed over to the king of Isra’el, who inflicted on him a great massacre. 6 For Pekach the son of Remalyah killed in Y’hudah 120,000 men in one day, all of them brave men, because they had abandoned Adonai, the God of their ancestors. 7 And Zikhri, a champion from Efrayim, killed Ma‘aseiyah the king’s son, ‘Azrikam the administrator of the household and Elkanah, who was second only to the king. 8 The people of Isra’el took captive from their kinsmen 200,000 wives, sons and daughters; they also captured from them much spoil, which they brought to Shomron.
9 But a prophet of Adonai named ‘Oded was there; he went out to meet the army coming to Shomron and said to them, “Look, it’s because Adonai the God of your fathers was angry with Y’hudah that he has handed them over to you, and you have slaughtered them in a fury that has reached up to heaven. 10 Now you intend to force the people from Y’hudah and Yerushalayim into subjection as your slaves; but haven’t you guilty deeds of your own that you committed against Adonai your God? 11 Therefore listen to me now; and send the captives back, the people you have taken captive from your kinsmen; because the fierce anger of Adonai is on you.”
12 At this, some of the leaders of the people of Efrayim — ‘Azaryahu the son of Y’hochanan, Berekhyahu the son of Meshilemot, Y’chizkiyah the son of Shalum and ‘Amasa the son of Hadlai — protested against those who were returning from the war, 13 saying to them, “Don’t bring the captives here, because you intend to do something that will bring guilt on us against Adonai. It will only add to our sins and guilt, for our guilt is great, and there is fierce anger against Isra’el.”
14 So the armed soldiers left the captives and the spoil there with the leaders and the whole community; 15 while the men named above took charge of the captives and from the spoil clothed those among them who were inadequately clothed, giving them garments and shoes, providing them food and drink and anointing them with oil. After placing all the weak among them on donkeys, they brought them to Yericho, the City of Date-Palms, to their kinsmen; only then did they return to Shomron.
16 It was at that time that King Achaz sent to the kings of Ashur to help him. 17 For again the people from Edom had come, attacking Y’hudah and carrying off captives. 18 The P’lishtim too had invaded the cities in the Sh’felah and in the Negev of Y’hudah; they had captured Beit-Shemesh, Ayalon, G’derot, Sokho with its villages, Timnah with its villages and Gimzo with its villages; and they settled there. 19 For Adonai brought Y’hudah low because of Achaz king of Isra’el, since he had caused disturbances in Y’hudah and acted very treacherously against Adonai.
20 Tilgat-Piln’eser king of Ashur attacked and besieged Achaz instead of strengthening him — 21 even though Achaz had stripped the house of Adonai and the palaces of the king and princes and had given the plunder to the king of Ashur, it didn’t help him at all.
22 During his time of distress this same King Achaz added to his treachery against Adonai 23 by sacrificing to the gods of Dammesek, who had attacked him, reasoning, “The gods of the kings of Aram helped them, so I will sacrifice to them, and then they’ll help me.” But they became the ruin of him and of all Isra’el. 24 Achaz collected the equipment from the house of God, broke to pieces the equipment from the house of God and sealed the doors of the house of Adonai; then he made himself altars in every corner of Yerushalayim. 25 In every city of Y’hudah he made high places for offering to other gods, thus provoking Adonai the God of his ancestors.
26 Other activities of Achaz and his ways [of doing things], from beginning to end, are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Y’hudah and Isra’el. 27 Achaz slept with his ancestors, and they buried him in the city, in Yerushalayim; because they did not bring him to the tombs of the kings of Isra’el. Then Hizkiyahu his son took his place as king.
29:1 Hizkiyahu was twenty-five years old when he began his reign, and he ruled for twenty-nine years in Yerushalayim. His mother’s name was Aviyah the daughter of Z’kharyah. 2 He did what was right from Adonai’s perspective, following the example of everything David his ancestor had done.
3 In the first month of the first year of his reign, he reopened the doors of the house of Adonai and repaired them. 4 Then he brought in the cohanim and L’vi’im, assembled them in the open space to the east, 5 and said to them, “Listen to me, L’vi’im: consecrate yourselves now, consecrate the house of Adonai the God of your ancestors, and remove the filth from the Holy Place. 6 For our ancestors acted treacherously, they did what is evil from the perspective of Adonai our God, they abandoned him, they turned their faces away from where Adonai lives and turned their backs on him. 7 They sealed the doors of the vestibule, put out the lamps and stopped burning incense and offering burnt offerings in the Holy Place to the God of Isra’el.
8 “Because of this, Adonai’s anger has settled on Y’hudah and Yerushalayim; and he has made them an object of horror, astonishment and mocking — as you can see with your own eyes. 9 Here, our ancestors have fallen by the sword; and on this account our sons, daughters and wives have gone into captivity.
10 “Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with Adonai the God of Isra’el, so that his furious anger will turn away from us. 11 My sons, now is not a time for being negligent; for you are the ones Adonai chose to stand before him and serve him as his ministers, offering him incense.”
12 Then the L’vi’im set about the task — Machat the son of ‘Amasai and Yo’el the son of ‘Azaryahu from the descendants of the K’hati; of the sons of M’rari, Kish the son of ‘Avdi and ‘Azaryahu the son of Yehallel’el; of the Gershuni, Yo’ach the son of Zimah and ‘Eden the son of Yo’ach; 13 of the descendants of Elitzafan, Shimri and Ye‘i’el; of the descendants of Asaf, Z’kharyahu and Matanyahu; 14 of the descendants of Heman, Yechi’el and Shim‘i; and of the descendants of Y’dutun, Sh’ma‘yah and ‘Uzi’el.
15 They gathered their kinsmen, consecrated themselves and, in keeping with the king’s order and Adonai’s words, went in to cleanse the house of Adonai. 16 The cohanim went in to cleanse the inner part of the house of Adonai; all the unclean things they found in the sanctuary of Adonai they brought out into the courtyard of the house of Adonai, where the L’vi’im took and carried them out to Vadi Kidron. 17 They began consecrating on the first day of the first month, and on the eighth day of the month they reached the vestibule of Adonai. Then they consecrated the house of Adonai in eight more days; so that on the sixteenth day of the first month, they had finished. 18 Then they went to Hizkiyahu the king in [the palace] and said, “We have cleansed all the house of Adonai, including the altar for burnt offerings, with all its equipment, and the table for the showbread, with all its equipment. 19 Moreover, we have reconditioned and consecrated all the articles that King Achaz threw out during his reign, when he was sinning; and they are there, in front of the altar of Adonai.”
20 Next morning, Hizkiyahu the king got up early, gathered the leading men of the city and went up to the house of Adonai. 21 They brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs and seven male goats as a sin offering for the kingdom, for the sanctuary and for Y’hudah; and he ordered the cohanim to offer them on the altar of Adonai. 22 After slaughtering the bulls, the cohanim took the blood and splashed it against the altar. Next, they slaughtered the rams and splashed the blood against the altar and also slaughtered the lambs and splashed the blood against the altar. 23 After bringing the male goats for the sin offering close to the king and the assembly and laying their hands on them, 24 the cohanim slaughtered them and made a sin offering with their blood on the altar to make atonement for all Isra’el; for the king had ordered that the burnt offering and the sin offering should be for all Isra’el.
25 He stationed the L’vi’im in the house of Adonai with cymbals, lyres and lutes, in keeping with the order of David, Gad the king’s seer and Natan the prophet; for the mitzvah had come from Adonai through his prophets. 26 The L’vi’im stood with the instruments of David and the cohanim with the trumpets. 27 Hizkiyahu ordered that the burnt offering should be offered on the altar. The moment the burnt offering began, the song of Adonai also began, accompanied by the trumpets and the instruments of David king of Isra’el. 28 The whole assembly prostrated themselves, the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded; all this continued until the burnt offering was finished.
29 When the offering was over, the king and everyone present with him bowed down and prostrated themselves. 30 Then Hizkiyahu the king and the leaders ordered the L’vi’im to sing praises to Adonai, using the words of David and of Asaf the seer. They sang praises until they were filled with joy, and they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves.
31 Hizkiyahu responded by saying, “Now that you have consecrated yourselves to Adonai, come close, and bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the house of Adonai. So the community brought in sacrifices and thank offerings, and as many as were willing volunteered burnt offerings. 32 In all, the burnt offerings brought by the congregation totaled 70 bulls, 100 rams and 200 lambs; all these were for a burnt offering to Adonai. 33 The consecrated gifts amounted to 600 oxen and 3,000 sheep. 34 Only there weren’t enough cohanim to skin and butcher all the burnt offerings, so their colleagues the L’vi’im assisted them until the work was finished and the cohanim had consecrated themselves (for the L’vi’im had been more diligent to consecrate themselves than the cohanim). 35 Besides the abundance of burnt offerings, there was the fat of the peace offerings and drink offerings for each burnt offering.
Thus the service of the house of Adonai was restored. 36 Hizkiyahu and all the people rejoiced over what God had prepared for the people, since it had all happened so suddenly.
John 17:1 After Yeshua had said these things, he looked up toward heaven and said, “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, so that the Son may glorify you — 2 just as you gave him authority over all mankind, so that he might give eternal life to all those whom you have given him. 3 And eternal life is this: to know you, the one true God, and him whom you sent, Yeshua the Messiah.
4 “I glorified you on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. 5 Now, Father, glorify me alongside yourself. Give me the same glory I had with you before the world existed.
6 “I made your name known to the people you gave me out of the world. They were yours, you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. 7 Now they know that everything you have given me is from you, 8 because the words you gave me I have given to them, and they have received them. They have really come to know that I came from you, and they have come to trust that you sent me.
9 “I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given to me, because they are yours. 10 Indeed, all I have is yours, and all you have is mine, and in them I have been glorified. 11 Now I am no longer in the world. They are in the world, but I am coming to you. Holy Father, guard them by the power of your name, which you have given to me, so that they may be one, just as we are. 12 When I was with them, I guarded them by the power of your name, which you have given to me; yes, I kept watch over them; and not one of them was destroyed (except the one meant for destruction, so that the Tanakh might be fulfilled). 13 But now, I am coming to you; and I say these things while I am still in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves.
14 “I have given them your word, and the world hated them, because they do not belong to the world — just as I myself do not belong to the world. 15 I don’t ask you to take them out of the world, but to protect them from the Evil One. 16 They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. 17 Set them apart for holiness by means of the truth — your word is truth. 18 Just as you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 On their behalf I am setting myself apart for holiness, so that they too may be set apart for holiness by means of the truth.
20 “I pray not only for these, but also for those who will trust in me because of their word, 21 that they may all be one. Just as you, Father, are united with me and I with you, I pray that they may be united with us, so that the world may believe that you sent me. 22 The glory which you have given to me, I have given to them; so that they may be one, just as we are one — 23 I united with them and you with me, so that they may be completely one, and the world thus realize that you sent me, and that you have loved them just as you have loved me.
24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am; so that they may see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25 Righteous Father, the world has not known you, but I have known you, and these people have known that you sent me. 26 I made your name known to them, and I will continue to make it known; so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I myself may be united with them.”
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Biblical Ethics, The Moral Foundations of Life, and The Philosophy of Sin
Ethical Principles for the Christian Life
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My Utmost for His Highest © 1927 in the U.K. by Oswald Chambers Publications Association, Ltd. © 1935 by Dodd, Mead & Company, Inc. Copyright renewed 1963 by Oswald Chambers Publications Association, Ltd. All rights reserved. United States publication rights are held by Discovery House, which is affiliated with Our Daily Bread Ministries.---------------------
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