THE LORD SPOKE (April 30)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Old Testament: I Samuel 26-28

I Samuel 26:20,23 - "Now do not let my blood fall to the ground far from the presence of the Lord.... The Lord rewards every man for his righteousness and faithfulness."

David desired with all his heart, and demonstrated throughout all his life, that he wanted to be faithful to the Lord. There were times when he failed, but in each case he got back up and stuck to the course.

Stick to the course! We have other ways of saying it: during the dark days of World War II, Churchill used to remind others to "KBO" ("keep buggering on"); my Dad used to say, "I know how to plod"; in the Iditarod it's, "die in the traces"; in Dodge City it was, "die with your boots on". I like, "fail falling forward".

David's commitment, and God's hand upon him, was recognized:

• by the evil king, Saul (26:25) - "May you be blessed...you will do great things and surely triumph."
• by the enemy king, Achish (27:12; 29:6,9) - "Achish trusted David and said...'You have been reliable, and I would be pleased to have you serve with me'."

Being committed to death or committeed to death won't do it. David wanted to be committed until death. His prayer was that he would die close to the Lord. Mine too!


New Testament: Romans 3

The “Romans Road”. It used to be known to every believer. Now, it’s more likely that some might confuse it with the “Via Appia” or some other boulevard in ancient history.

The “Romans Road is a string of important verses in the book of Romans that summarize succinctly God’s plan of salvation for man. By following this path one is brought to understand the essence of what is necessary for saving faith. It’s a valuable tool for presenting the Gospel message.

Beginning at Romans 3:23 we find the reason why man needs to be saved. He is a sinner. Every man is a sinner and cannot reach up to God on his own. Isaiah tells us that even our righteous acts are like filthy rags. They’re worthless to attain salvation. Because of our sin, we fall short of God’s righteous standard every time.

From there go to Romans 5:8 for the marvelous discovery that God loves sinners. In spite of our sin, God has demonstrated His wonderful love for us by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to die in our place. He took the penalty for our sin, by dying to set us free from the debt we owe.

Romans 6:23 elaborates on that. The just recompense for our sin is death - eternal separation from God. “But” (that’s mercy) “the gift” (that’s grace) of God is to give us eternal life. That union with Him is found in the Lord Jesus. But how?

The answer comes in Romans 10:9-10. We must first believe it in our heart. Justification (which means “just as if I’d never sinned”) comes by believing what God has said in His Word. It is necessary to confess that with your mouth - to say it! A verbal affirmation of your trust in Jesus as Lord of your life is necessary. That’s what Paul meant when he said, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

The first thing you need is to have that down deep in your own heart. Then, be so familiar with it that you can easily share it with a friend or someone who is seeking to know the Lord.

Tip: If you have a hard time remembering the sequence of verses, try penciling in the margin the next reference so you know where to go next (3:23 ➔ 5:8 ➔ 6:23 ➔ 10:9-10,13). That way all you need to remember is Romans 3:23.