Truth For Life Program
Alistair Begg Devotional
C. H. Spurgeon Devotional
One-Year Bible Reading Plan
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From the Sermon
Giving: A Matter of the Heart
1 Corinthians 16:1–9 Sermon • Includes Transcript • 46:53 • ID: 1802
You Shall Be Clean
Even a brief reading of history and sociology reveals humanity’s inability to fix our broken world. Not so long ago, we were told that people did bad things because they were poor; if we dealt with the material need, then we would see better behavior. Now, in some of the world’s most affluent countries, some sociologists explain that greed, corruption, and murder are the result of having too much. Experts and world leaders stand before these external forces in bewilderment, looking for answers in all the wrong places.
Naaman had a condition that made him unhappy and was downright ugly to deal with. He had the resources to try any cure he wanted, and he presumably was prepared to go to any length. The problem was that he was looking in the wrong places. His status, wealth, and royal connections did not produce the remedy he desired, and in going to the king of Israel for relief, his request brought dismay; the king tore his clothes because he knew he could not help (2 Kings 5:7).
The king’s response was the same kind of reaction that many of our world leaders likely have as they travel the globe, seeking to do what they can in public service. Surely in the watches of the night, they must feel like tearing their clothes and saying, “How can I deal with this and make a difference? How can we bring peace? How can we bring a cure?”
What the king could not do, though, God’s prophet could. But the cure sounded offensive to the leper! Naaman was looking for something grand—something that would fit his lofty status and leave him with a bolstered sense of self-importance. He thought the cure should be less simple or more impressive. He regarded Elisha’s remedy as humiliating and ridiculous.
While actual leprosy has been largely eradicated, we all still live with that ugly, terminal condition called sin. Yet many are no more ready to listen to the cure than Naaman was. The message of Christ crucified as the only and sufficient remedy for our sin was “a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles” (1 Corinthians 1:23), and it is still those things to many today. Even believers are not immune to the temptation to think that when it comes to a cure for sin, we must do something.
We need daily to open our eyes to the remedy we need and to stoop down in humility, as Naaman eventually did (2 Kings 5:14). For it is the person who does that who can know that the words “You shall be clean” are a thing of the past, and who can rejoice that Jesus sees them and says, “You are clean” (John 13:10-11; 15:3). Do not look in the mirror and think that the cure is found in who you are or what you do; instead, look through the window of faith, see the cross, and know that He did it all.
How is God calling me to think differently?
How is God reordering my heart’s affections — what I love?
What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Naaman Healed of Leprosy
1lNaaman, mcommander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master and in high favor, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valor, but he was a leper.1 2Now the Syrians on none of their raids had carried off a little girl from the land of Israel, and she worked in the service of Naaman's wife. 3She said to her mistress, “Would that my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” 4So Naaman went in and told his lord, “Thus and so spoke the girl from the land of Israel.” 5And the king of Syria said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.”
So he went, otaking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels2 of gold, and ten pchanges of clothing. 6And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you Naaman my servant, that you may cure him of his leprosy.” 7And when the king of Israel read the letter, qhe tore his clothes and said, r“Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Only sconsider, and see how he is seeking a quarrel with me.”
8But when Elisha the tman of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent to the king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come now to me, that he may know that there is a prophet in Israel.” 9So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha's house. 10And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, u“Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.” 11But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. 12Are not Abana3 and Pharpar, the rivers of vDamascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage. 13But his servants came near and said to him, w“My father, it is a great word the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it? Has he actually said to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14So he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God, xand his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, yand he was clean.
Devotional material is taken from the Truth For Life daily devotionals by Alistair Begg, published by The Good Book Company, thegoodbook.com. Used by Truth For Life with permission. Copyright © 2021, 2022, The Good Book Company.
Brokenness of Heart
Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
In this solemn confession, it is helpful to observe that David plainly names his sin. He does not call it manslaughter or speak of it as an imprudence by which an unfortunate accident occurred to a worthy man, but he calls it by its true name, "bloodguiltiness." He did not actually kill the husband of Bathsheba; but still it was planned in David's heart that Uriah should die, and David was before the Lord responsible for his murder. Learn in confession to be honest with God. Do not give fair names to foul sins; call them what you will, they will smell no sweeter. What God sees them to be, that you should work to feel them to be; and with an honest, open heart acknowledge their real character. Observe that David was evidently oppressed with the heinousness of his sin. It is easy to use words, but it is difficult to feel their meaning. The fifty-first Psalm is the photograph of a contrite spirit. Let us seek to display the same brokenness of heart; because no matter how excellent our words may be, if our heart is not conscious of the hell-deservingness of sin, we cannot expect to find forgiveness.
Our text has in it an earnest prayer—it is addressed to the God of salvation. It is His prerogative to forgive; it is His very name and office to save those who seek His face. Better still, the text calls Him the God of my salvation. We bless His name, in that while we are still going to Him through Jesus' blood, we may rejoice in the God of our salvation.
The psalmist ends with a commendable vow: If God will deliver him he will sing—actually, he will "sing aloud." Who can mute their praise in light of such a mercy as this! But note the subject of the song —"your righteousness." We must sing of the finished work of a precious Savior; and the one who knows this forgiving love the best will sing the loudest of us all.
Devotional material is taken from Morning and Evening, written by C. H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg. Copyright © 2003, Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.org. Used by Truth For Life with written permission.
Daily Bible Reading for April 7
The Death of Nadab and Abihu
1Now yNadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, zeach took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered aunauthorized1 fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. 2And fire bcame out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. 3Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Among cthose who are near me dI will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’” eAnd Aaron held his peace.
4And Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of fUzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near; carry your brothers away from the front of the sanctuary and out of the camp.” 5So they came near and carried them in their coats out of the camp, as Moses had said. 6And Moses said to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar his sons, g“Do not let the hair of your heads hang loose, and do not tear your clothes, lest you die, and hwrath come upon all the congregation; but let your brothers, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning that the Lord has kindled. 7iAnd do not go outside the entrance of the tent of meeting, lest you die, jfor the anointing oil of the Lord is upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.
8And the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying, 9k“Drink no wine or strong drink, you or your sons with you, when you go into the tent of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. 10You are to ldistinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean, 11and myou are to teach the people of Israel all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them by Moses.”
12Moses spoke to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his surviving sons: “Take the ngrain offering that is left of the Lord's food offerings, and eat it unleavened beside the altar, for oit is most holy. 13You shall eat it in a holy place, because it is your due and your sons' due, from the Lord's food offerings, for pso I am commanded. 14But the qbreast that is waved and the thigh that is contributed you shall eat in a clean place, you and your sons and your daughters with you, for they are given as your due and your sons' due from the sacrifices of the peace offerings of the people of Israel. 15rThe thigh that is contributed and the breast that is waved they shall bring with the food offerings of the fat pieces to wave for a wave offering before the Lord, and it shall be yours and your sons' with you as a due forever, as the Lord has commanded.”
16Now Moses diligently inquired about sthe goat of the sin offering, and behold, it was burned up! And he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, the surviving sons of Aaron, saying, 17t“Why have you not eaten the sin offering in the place of the sanctuary, since oit is a thing most holy and has been given to you that you may bear the iniquity of the congregation, to make atonement for them before the Lord? 18Behold, uits blood was not brought into the inner part of the sanctuary. You certainly ought to have eaten it in the sanctuary, vas I commanded.” 19And Aaron said to Moses, “Behold, wtoday they have offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the Lord, and yet such things as these have happened to me! If I had eaten the sin offering today, xwould the Lord have approved?” 20And when Moses heard that, he approved.
Psalm 11
The Lord Is in His Holy Temple
To the choirmaster. Of David.
1In the Lord I take refuge;
how can you say to my soul,
z“Flee like a bird to your mountain,
2for behold, the wicked abend the bow;
bthey have fitted their arrow to the string
to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart;
3if cthe foundations are destroyed,
what can the righteous do?”1
4dThe Lord is in his holy temple;
the Lord's ethrone is in heaven;
his eyes see, his eyelids ftest the children of man.
5The Lord gtests the righteous,
but hhis soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.
6Let him rain coals on the wicked;
ifire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be jthe portion of their cup.
7For the Lord is righteous;
he kloves righteous deeds;
lthe upright shall behold his face.
Psalm 12
The Faithful Have Vanished
To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith.1 A Psalm of David.
1Save, O Lord, for mthe godly one is gone;
for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
2Everyone nutters lies to his neighbor;
with oflattering lips and pa double heart they speak.
3May the Lord cut off all oflattering lips,
the tongue that makes qgreat boasts,
4those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
our lips are with us; who is master over us?”
5“Because rthe poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
sI will now arise,” says the Lord;
“I will place him in the tsafety for which he longs.”
6uThe words of the Lord are pure words,
like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times.
7You, O Lord, will keep them;
you will guard us2 from this generation forever.
8On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among the children of man.
More Proverbs of Solomon
1These also are mproverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied.
2It is the glory of God to nconceal things,
but the glory of kings is to osearch things out.
3As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth,
so the heart of kings is punsearchable.
4Take away qthe dross from the silver,
and rthe smith has material for a vessel;
5take away sthe wicked from the presence of the king,
and his tthrone will be established in righteousness.
6Do not put yourself forward in the king's presence
or stand in the place of the great,
7for uit is better to be told, “Come up here,”
than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.
What your eyes have seen
8wdo not hastily bring into court,1
for2 what will you do in the end,
when your neighbor puts you to shame?
9xArgue your case with your neighbor himself,
and do not reveal another's secret,
10lest he who hears you bring shame upon you,
and your ill repute have no end.
11yA word fitly spoken
is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.
12Like za gold ring or an ornament of gold
is a wise reprover to aa listening ear.
13Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest
is ba faithful messenger to those who send him;
he refreshes the soul of his masters.
14Like cclouds and wind without rain
is a man who dboasts of a gift he does not give.
15With epatience a ruler may be persuaded,
and a soft tongue will break a bone.
16If you have ffound honey, eat gonly enough for you,
lest you have your fill of it and vomit it.
17Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor's house,
lest he have his fill of you and hate you.
18A man who hbears false witness against his neighbor
is like a war club, or ia sword, or a sharp arrow.
19Trusting in a treacherous man in time of trouble
is like a bad tooth or a foot that slips.
20Whoever jsings songs to a heavy heart
is like one who takes off a garment on a cold day,
and like vinegar on soda.
21kIf your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat,
and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink,
22for you will heap lburning coals on his head,
and the Lord will reward you.
23The north wind brings forth rain,
and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.
24mIt is better to live in a corner of the housetop
than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife.
25Like cold water to na thirsty soul,
so is ogood news from a far country.
26Like pa muddied spring or a polluted fountain
is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.
27It is qnot good to eat much honey,
nor is it glorious to rseek one's own glory.3
28A man swithout self-control
is like ta city broken into and left without walls.
A Life Pleasing to God
1Finally, then, brothers,1 we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you dreceived from us ehow you ought to walk and fto please God, just as you are doing, that you gdo so more and more. 2For hyou know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3For this is the will of God, iyour sanctification:2 jthat you abstain from sexual immorality; 4that each one of you know how to control his own kbody3 in holiness and lhonor, 5not in mthe passion of lust nlike the Gentiles owho do not know God; 6that no one transgress and pwrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is qan avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. 7For rGod has not called us for simpurity, but in holiness. 8Therefore twhoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, uwho gives his Holy Spirit to you.
9Now concerning vbrotherly love wyou have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been xtaught by God yto love one another, 10for that indeed is what zyou are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to ado this more and more, 11and to aspire bto live quietly, and cto mind your own affairs, and dto work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12so that you may ewalk properly before foutsiders and be dependent on no one.
The Coming of the Lord
13But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, gthat you may not grieve as others do hwho have no hope. 14For isince we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him jthose who have fallen asleep. 15For this we declare to you kby a word from the Lord,4 that lwe who are alive, who are left until mthe coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16For nthe Lord himself will descend ofrom heaven pwith a cry of command, with the voice of qan archangel, and rwith the sound of the trumpet of God. And sthe dead in Christ will rise first. 17Then we who are alive, who are left, will be tcaught up together with them uin the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so vwe will always be with the Lord. 18Therefore encourage one another with these words.
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