Deuteronomy 28:1-68, Luke 11:14-36, Psalms 77:1-20, Proverbs 12:18
Today is the 5th day of April. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian and it is a pleasure and an honor and a joy to be with you here today. No matter where you are and no matter what time it is we are in this together and we are not alone. Someone else is listening too. So, it is a joy to be here with you as we take the next step forward in the Scriptures, which leads us back into the book of Deuteronomy as we listen to what Moses has to say as his final will and testament, as it were, the final things that he has to say to the children of Israel before he leaves them, before he will leave the story and they will go across the Jordan River, led by another. Deuteronomy chapter 28. And we’re reading from the English Standard Version this week.
Commentary:
Alright. So, let’s go back to the book of Luke. Jesus is obviously ministering, and in his ministry miraculous things are happening. People are being set free and healed and delivered. And even as they’re seeing this their asking for a sign from heaven because it’s all confusing. Some of them are saying He’s got the devil within him and that’s why contest of the devil. And, of course, Jesus says, that’s doesn’t make any sense. And, so, even though people are seeing the signs, they’re asking for a sign from heaven to confirm that Jesus is something special, right? So, they want something beyond just the miraculous things that are happening around Jesus. They want some kind of sign from heaven to confirm Jesus. And it’s here that Jesus says, this generation is an evil generation, it seeks for a sign. And then Jesus talks about a sign of Jonah. And then immediately after that, like, next paragraph, Jesus starts talking about lighting a lamp, putting it under a basket or is that what you do or you put it up on a lampstand so that everyone can see the light? And He says, the eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy your whole body is full of light but when it is bad your whole body is full of darkness. Therefore, be careful lest the light in you be darkness. So, it seems like He’s switching gears, like, all of a sudden we’re talking about something totally different, but we’re not. He’s talking about this generation who wants to see a sign. And we find ourselves kind of in the same camp. We want to see God do something for us. Okay, so what do you see a sign with if you’re going to see it? You’re going to see it with your eye. Okay. So, when you look around every day and you see, what do you see? Do you see darkness in the world? Is what you mostly see in the world? Because if you’re looking around and what you see is mostly grim than what you are seeing is darkness. And if all you are seeing is darkness, then you will be full of darkness according to Jesus. But what if you were to look around and all you could see was the glory of the Lord and His beautiful continual patient, loving, kind, graceful work in the world? What if everyone you looked at, you didn’t see the darkness in them, you saw what they could to be, you saw the light in them? Well then you would be full of light because you would be seeing the light. And doesn’t Jesus continually tell stories and then say for anyone with eyes to see. So, what we have here is an invitation to consider how it is we’re seeing the world we live in, how it is worth seeing our own existence, how it is worth seeing ourselves. Is what we’re seeing darkness? Well then, is it any wonder that we’re seeing darkness. But Jesus is inviting us to open our eyes and see the light. It’s everywhere. It’s all around us. It is sustained by our Father. This lavish, exquisite gift of the planet is ours to steward and see the light, the glory of the Lord all around us. His presence is everywhere all at once, always available. Are we seeing it? It’s here, it’s happening, it’s right now. It’s exactly what Jesus was saying. If it’s by the finger of God that I cast out demons then the kingdom of God has come upon you, right? Open your eyes and see. It’s everywhere. It’s right now. It’s happening. Open your eyes. See the light. Be filled with light. See the light and not the darkness and you will be filled with light. We’re invited to see things differently. We’re invited to see what’s really going on here. The light is everywhere. And Jesus says, if then your whole body is full of light having no part dark it will be wholly bright, right? Completely of the light, completely bright. And in the final analysis, isn’t that what were after? Wholeness, bright wholeness. That’s what we see in Jesus. And if we’re supposed to be Christ like then that’s what we’re going for - wholeness, light, life, good news, resurrection, restoration, completeness, fullness, things as they were intended to be from the start, shalom. And Jesus is inviting us to see that it’s all around us. It’s all present. It’s all here and He came to bring it to us. He said, I have come that you might have life. And we usually attach that to the cross. And yes, the cross is a part of that but Jesus has also come that we might have life by showing us how to see it because if we can’t see it then we’re blind to it, we’re in the dark to it. So, how do you see things? Because Jesus is suggesting that we can see anything through a lens of darkness through a lens of light. How do you see things? This is powerful enough as all of Jesus words are, to change the way we live going forward starting right now. And if we will begin to see the light and, as yesterday, if we will keep seeking and asking and knocking in pursuit of the light, then we will eventually be filled with light, wholly light, as when a lamp with its rays gives light.
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, come. We recognize that when we look around we see a lot of darkness and we continually ask You to come and take the darkness away when you are saying, look at this a little differently. It’s all around you. Light is everywhere. See it. Walk into it. Become complete and whole in it and show others how to do the same. Bring the good news of the gospel. Replace the darkness with light. And that begins with us. That begins with us seeing the light. So come, Holy Spirit, we change the way that we look at the world today. We’re going to go through our day to day seeing the light everywhere. And we’re asking you to teach us to live in the light. Come, Holy Spirit. We pray in Jesus’ name we ask. Amen.
Announcements:
dailyaudiobible.com is the website, it’s home base, it’s where you find out what’s going on around here. Very quickly. Couple things.
This Sunday, couple days from now, I will be in Washington state in the Tri-Cities and Columbia Community Church. You can get the details at dailyaudiobible.com in the Events section.
And then the 12th of April, which is also coming right up, the beginning of the More Gathering for women starts. And we are covering it continually as a community in prayer. And, so, thank you. Thank you for your prayers over all that is to come at the More Gathering for women.
If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible that can be done at dailyaudiobible.com. Thank you. This is a community endeavor. It has only ever been community endeavor. We’ve done what we’ve done together. So, thank you for your partnership. There’s a link on the homepage of dailyaudiobible.com. if you’re using the app you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or, if you prefer, the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.
And as always, if you have a prayer request or comment, 877-942-4253 is the number to dial.
And that’s it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.
Community Prayer and Praise:
Hello from beautiful Cincinnati Ohio. This is Daniel J. Junior. I’m actually standing in downtown Cincinnati waiting for my connecting bus into northern Kentucky. It is Monday, April the 2nd, 2018. Let’s pray. Dear heavenly Father, Lord of all, I just want to praise You for all of the prayer warriors that exist in the Daily Audio Bible community and those that call in, those that don’t call in, but those that hear and then pray for all of the other DABbers. I praise You for all of those that are ahead of us in age, in the generation that’s ahead of us, our parents, who are facing challenges as they get older. I pray that You would extend their lives, give them health Lord Jesus through the power of Your mighty name. I pray also for the generation that’s coming up behind us, our children and grandchildren, those generations Lord, please continue to guide us and lead us and give us wisdom in how to shepherd them, continue to draw them closer to You for You’re ever, ever, redemptive, always looking to redeem. And I pray for our generation Lord. I just pray that You would just continue to fill us up with Your knowledge and wisdom and Your Holy Spirit. Continue to guide us as we do, as we go about all of our days. We are so grateful to You God for Your love and Your kindness for Your mercy and Your grace. I pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen. From beautiful Cincinnati Ohio, this is Daniel J. Junior saying God bless You. Make it a great day.
Hello everybody. My name is Trilana and I am in South Florida. This is my first time calling and I have been listening to the Daily Audio Bible for the past couple years. I’m calling today because my dad had a fall yesterday. Yesterday was Easter and it’s the 1st of April and he’s actually turning 70. We were celebrating his birthday and after he left my house he had a fall. This isn’t the first time he fell. He’s okay. He’s a little banged up. But he’s fallen before, several times actually. And last year when he fell he actually had to go to the hospital and had to get some things done. So, anyway, I wanted to pray or ask for prayer for my dad and my stepmom, just for the health and strength and wisdom and taking care of themselves as we also are praying and supporting them and trying to do our best as well. But, yeah, I just wanted to ask the community for that and I do pray for you guys and I just thought that this would be a…I wanted to call before but I never did so now I’m calling and I hope to call more in the future. So, anyway, I thank you so much for your prayers.
This call is for Lisa from Kansas and Sharon the Victorious. This is Candace from Oregon lifting you in prayer along with others who are in desperate circumstances. Lord we lift to you these women who have cried out for help and we know that you alone, you alone can address the aching abyss of our hearts Lord. Thank you that you have suffered everything that we have and your love for us is enough. It’s even more than enough. And, so, help us now Lord. Help Lisa and Sharon now too and others who are in desperate circumstances, to stop looking at those circumstances and look into Your eyes Lord and know that when they keep their eyes on You they can walk on water. And You require nothing of them except to obey You. Help them to let go and trust You fully and completely and let it be as simple as it is, to just do the next right thing. We have no more power than that. You’re the one with all the power and Your love for us is beyond anything we could even have imagined. And, so, Lord hold these dear ones and help them to keep their eyes on you and receive all that You have for them in this very moment. In Jesus’ name we pray.
Hi this is Stephanie from Arizona. And Victoria in Northern California, I just heard your prayer request. Today is April 2nd and I just wanted to call in and tell you I am praying for you. I’m praying for your daughter and am praying for your husband. I’m just praying for God’s healing touch on all of you, for peace for all of you. And just know that we’re out here praying for you. So, I just wanted to call in. And for everybody else, I hear your prayers and I’m praying for you as well. So, have a good week and year. I love you Daily Audio Bible family. And Brian, thank you for doing this. Bye.
Hello Daily Audio Bible. This is Nicole from Maryland. I am calling because I heard some prayer requests from Lisa from Kansas and Sharon the Victorious. And Lisa from Kansas, you said that you were dealing with depression. And I struggled with depression for many years and I was seeing a psychiatrist. I was on heavy medication. I saw a psychologist. You know, I never had to see a psychologist on a consistent basis. Thank God, they were Christian. They told me I would never be off of medication but one of the things that was successful for me was the power of our words. As you know, the Bible talks about…there’s power in the spoken word. And, so, be mindful of what you think. Find some promises that are true about you, that the word says regardless of how you feel, you say it out loud. If you have to do it every day, I am healed, I am delivered, I am free from depression, if you have to say it every day. Also, getting involved in a community of believers. I want you to know that through my declaration and through my prayer and through, you know, just finding a community of believers, I am no longer struggling with that. I’m no longer on medication. By the grace of God, I am no longer needing to see a psychiatrist or psychologist but I will if I need to. Okay. So, I want to encourage you there. Also, Sharon the victorious, I am praying for your husband, your husband’s back and your daughter, who is overdosing and violent. And I’m praying for you and I just declare and believe for your healing in the name of Jesus. I believe for your husband’s healing. And I believe God for your daughter’s freedom and deliverance. And please, watch your mouth, watch what you say. You are victorious. Your family is victorious because Jesus already won the victory. Regardless of what we see, you have the victory in Jesus’ name.