Truth For Life Program
Alistair Begg Devotional
C. H. Spurgeon Devotional
One-Year Bible Reading Plan
When something’s broken, it’s usually considered useless and tossed out. Listen to Truth For Life as Alistair Begg gives a brief overview of the highs and lows of Peter’s faith, explaining why brokenness played a significant role in shaping his usefulness.
From the Sermon
The Promise of Paradise
Jesus was crucified between two convicted criminals—and those criminals both heard the words of Christ, yet they responded very differently. The first dying man regarded the cross as a contradiction. He concluded that because Jesus was on the cross, He was no Savior. So he ridiculed the man on the middle cross: “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” (Luke 23:39). But the second man saw the cross as confirmation. He recognized that because Jesus was on the cross, He must be the Savior.
This once hard-bitten criminal had seen and heard enough of Jesus in His final hours to conclude that He was innocent of any crime. And the Holy Spirit had opened his eyes to realize that his predicament was far greater and different from what he had formerly thought. Not only was he being punished justly, receiving the condemnation his sins deserved, but his punishment would extend into eternity if he lacked the forgiveness of which Jesus spoke.
Following this realization, the condemned man made a humble request to Jesus for what he knew he didn’t deserve: “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Presumably, he had processed the evidence, concluding, If this man is the Messiah, then He’s the long-promised King. If He’s that King, then He’s going to have a kingdom—the eternal kingdom of God. And when He reaches His kingdom, then perhaps He will remember me when He arrives there.
Jesus’ reply is wonderful: “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” Not only did Jesus promise that this man—even this man—would go to heaven; He also emphasized the immediate nature of that reality for this dying man: “today”! We may imagine them finishing their conversation not hanging on crosses at Calvary but sitting in the kingdom of God.
This criminal offered nothing and asked the King for everything. And He said yes. This should never fail to strike us and reassure us, for you and I are in the same position as that criminal. We have nothing to bring to Jesus, as though our deeds might be the key that opens the way into His kingdom. All we bring is all that the criminal brought: our sin. But that is why Jesus hung on the cross: so that we might bring our sin to Him and that He might take it and bear it. That is why Jesus’ promise to the criminal is also His promise to every believer who dies: “Today you will be with me in paradise.” Let that knowledge be your joy and fuel for your praise today. One day, you—even you—will be with your King in paradise.
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?
The New Heaven and the New Earth
1Then I saw ya new heaven and a new earth, for zthe first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2And I saw athe holy city, bnew Jerusalem, ccoming down out of heaven from God, dprepared eas a bride adorned for her husband. 3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, fthe dwelling place1 of God is with man. He will gdwell with them, and they will be his people,2 and God himself will be with them as their God.3 4hHe will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and ideath shall be no more, jneither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
5And khe who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I lam making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for mthese words are trustworthy and true.” 6And he said to me, n“It is done! oI am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. pTo the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. 7qThe one who conquers will have this heritage, and rI will be his God and she will be my son.
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.
Does It Represent Your Sin?
So they took Jesus, and he went out.
He had spent the night in agony, and in the early morning He was hurried from the hall of Caiaphas to Pilate, from Pilate to Herod, and from Herod back again to Pilate. Consequently his strength was almost gone, but He was granted neither food nor rest. They were eager for His blood and therefore led Him out to die, burdened with the cross. At this sad procession the women wept, and my soul weeps in turn.
What do we learn here as we see our blessed Lord led forth? Do we not perceive the truth, which was foreshadowed in the scapegoat? Remember how the high priest brought the scapegoat and put both his hands upon its head, confessing the sins of the people, so that those sins might be transferred from the people and laid upon the goat. Then the goat was led away into the wilderness, and it carried away the sins of the people, so that if they looked for them they could not be found.
Now we see Jesus brought before the priests and rulers, who pronounce Him guilty. God Himself imputes our sins to Him: “the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all”;1 “He made him to be sin.”2 And as the substitute for our guilt, bearing our sin upon His shoulders, represented by the cross, we see the great Scapegoat led away by the appointed officers of justice.
Beloved, can you feel assured that He carried your sin? As you look at the cross upon His shoulders, does it represent your sin? There is one way by which you can tell whether He carried your sin or not. Have you laid your hand upon His head, confessed your sin, and trusted in Him? Then your sin no longer lies on you; it has all been transferred by blessed imputation to Christ, and He bears it on His shoulder as a load heavier than the cross.
Do not allow this picture to disappear until you have rejoiced in your own deliverance and bowed in adoring wonder before the Redeemer upon whom your iniquities were laid.
1) Isaiah 53:6
2) 2 Corinthians 5:21
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 3
11 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2“If anyone sins and bcommits a breach of faith against the Lord by cdeceiving his neighbor in da matter of deposit or security, or through robbery, or eif he has oppressed his neighbor 3or fhas found something lost and lied about it, gswearing falsely—in any of all the things that people do and sin thereby— 4if he has sinned and has realized his guilt and will restore ewhat he took by robbery or what he got by oppression or the deposit that was committed to him or the lost thing that he found 5or anything about which he has sworn falsely, he shall hrestore it in full and shall add a fifth to it, and give it to him to whom it belongs on the day he realizes his guilt. 6And he shall bring to the priest as his compensation to the Lord ia ram without blemish out of the flock, or its equivalent, for a guilt offering. 7jAnd the priest shall make atonement for him before the Lord, and he shall be forgiven for any of the things that one may do and thereby become guilty.”
The Priests and the Offerings
82 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 9“Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the burnt offering. The burnt offering shall be on the hearth on the altar all night until the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be kept burning on it. 10And kthe priest shall put on his linen garment and put his linen undergarment on his body, and he shall take up the ashes to which the fire has reduced the burnt offering on the altar and put them lbeside the altar. 11Then mhe shall take off his garments and put on other garments and carry the ashes noutside the camp to a clean place. 12The fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not go out. The priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and he shall arrange the burnt offering on it and shall burn on it othe fat of the peace offerings. 13Fire shall be kept burning on the altar continually; it shall not go out.
14“And this is the law of pthe grain offering. The sons of Aaron shall offer it before the Lord in front of the altar. 15And one shall take from it a handful of the fine flour of the grain offering and its oil and all the frankincense that is on the grain offering and burn this as its qmemorial portion on the altar, a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 16And rthe rest of it Aaron and his sons shall eat. It shall be eaten unleavened sin a holy place. In the court of the tent of meeting they shall eat it. 17tIt shall not be baked with leaven. uI have given it as their portion of my food offerings. vIt is a thing most holy, like the sin offering and the guilt offering. 18Every male among the children of Aaron may eat of it, as decreed forever throughout your generations, from the Lord's food offerings. Whatever touches them shall become holy.”
19The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 20w“This is the offering that Aaron and his sons shall offer to the Lord on the day when he is anointed: a xtenth of an ephah3 of fine flour as a regular grain offering, half of it in the morning and half in the evening. 21It shall be made with oil yon a griddle. You shall bring it zwell mixed, in baked4 pieces like a grain offering, and offer it for a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 22The priest from among Aaron's sons, who is anointed to succeed him, shall offer it to the Lord as decreed forever. aThe whole of it shall be burned. 23Every grain offering of a priest shall be wholly burned. It shall not be eaten.”
24The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 25“Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, bThis is the law of the sin offering. cIn the place where the burnt offering is killed shall the sin offering be killed before the Lord; dit is most holy. 26eThe priest who offers it for sin shall eat it. fIn a holy place it shall be eaten, in the court of the tent of meeting. 27Whatever touches its flesh shall be holy, and when any of its blood is splashed on a garment, you shall wash that on which it was splashed in a holy place. 28And gthe earthenware vessel in which it is boiled hshall be broken. But if it is boiled in a bronze vessel, that shall be scoured and rinsed in water. 29Every male among the priests may eat of it; dit is most holy. 30iBut no sin offering shall be eaten from which any blood is brought into the tent of meeting to make atonement in the Holy Place; it shall be burned up with fire.
Psalm 5
Lead Me in Your Righteousness
To the choirmaster: for the flutes. A Psalm of David.
1Give ear to my words, O Lord;
consider my ugroaning.
2Give attention to the sound of my cry,
my vKing and my God,
for wto you do I pray.
3O Lord, in xthe morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you1 and ywatch.
4For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil may not dwell with you.
5The zboastful shall not astand before your eyes;
you bhate all evildoers.
6You destroy those who speak clies;
the Lord abhors dthe bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
7But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
will enter your house.
I will ebow down ftoward your gholy temple
in the fear of you.
8hLead me, O Lord, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
imake your way straight before me.
9For there is no truth in their mouth;
their inmost self is jdestruction;
ktheir throat is lan open grave;
they mflatter with their tongue.
10nMake them bear their guilt, O God;
let them ofall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.
11But let all who ptake refuge in you qrejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may rexult in you.
12For you sbless the righteous, O Lord;
you tcover him with favor as with ua shield.
Psalm 6
O Lord, Deliver My Life
To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments; according to vThe Sheminith.1 A Psalm of David.
1O Lord, wrebuke me not in your anger,
nor xdiscipline me in your wrath.
2Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing;
yheal me, O Lord, zfor my bones are troubled.
3My asoul also is greatly troubled.
But you, O Lord—bhow long?
4Turn, O Lord, deliver my life;
save me for the sake of your steadfast love.
5For in cdeath there is no remembrance of you;
in Sheol who will give you praise?
6I am dweary with my emoaning;
every night I flood my bed with tears;
I drench my couch with my weeping.
7My feye wastes away because of grief;
it grows weak because of all my foes.
8gDepart from me, all you hworkers of evil,
for the Lord ihas heard the sound of my weeping.
9The Lord has heard my jplea;
the Lord accepts my prayer.
10All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled;
they shall kturn back and be put to shame in a moment.
1The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord;
he yturns it wherever he will.
2zEvery way of a man is right in his own eyes,
but the Lord aweighs the heart.
3bTo do righteousness and justice
is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.
4cHaughty eyes and a proud heart,
dthe lamp1 of the wicked, are sin.
5The plans of ethe diligent lead surely to abundance,
but everyone who is fhasty comes gonly to poverty.
6hThe getting of treasures by a lying tongue
is a ifleeting jvapor and a ksnare of death.2
7The violence of the wicked will lsweep them away,
because they refuse to do what is just.
8The way of the guilty mis crooked,
but the conduct of the pure is upright.
9It is nbetter to live in a corner of the housetop
than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife.
10The soul of the wicked desires evil;
his neighbor finds no mercy in his eyes.
11When oa scoffer is punished, the simple becomes wise;
when a wise man is instructed, he gains knowledge.
12The Righteous One pobserves the house of the wicked;
he throws the wicked down to ruin.
13qWhoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor
will himself call out and not be answered.
14rA gift in secret averts anger,
and a concealed bribe,3 strong wrath.
15When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous
sbut terror to evildoers.
16One who wanders from the way of good sense
twill rest in the assembly of the dead.
17Whoever loves pleasure will be a poor man;
he who loves wine and oil will not be rich.
18uThe wicked is a vransom for the righteous,
and the traitor for the upright.
19It is wbetter to live in a desert land
than with a quarrelsome and fretful woman.
20xPrecious treasure and oil are in a wise man's dwelling,
but a foolish man ydevours it.
21Whoever zpursues righteousness and kindness
will find alife, righteousness, and honor.
22bA wise man scales the city of the mighty
and brings down the stronghold in which they trust.
23cWhoever keeps his mouth and his tongue
dkeeps himself out of etrouble.
24f“Scoffer” is the name of the arrogant, haughty man
who acts with arrogant pride.
25The desire of gthe sluggard kills him,
for his hands refuse to labor.
26All day long he craves and craves,
but the righteous hgives and does not hold back.
27iThe sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;
how much more jwhen he brings it with evil intent.
28kA false witness will perish,
but the word of a man who hears will endure.
29A wicked man puts on a bold face,
but the upright lgives thought to4 his ways.
30mNo wisdom, no understanding, no counsel
can avail against the Lord.
31nThe horse is made ready for the day of battle,
but othe victory belongs to the Lord.
1Masters, treat your bondservants1 justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.
Further Instructions
2cContinue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it dwith thanksgiving. 3At the same time, pray also for us, that God may eopen to us a door for the word, fto declare the mystery of Christ, gon account of which I am in prison— 4that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
5hWalk in wisdom toward ioutsiders, making the best use of the time. 6Let your speech always jbe gracious, kseasoned with salt, lso that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
Final Greetings
7Tychicus will tell you mall about my activities. He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant2 in the Lord. 8I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may encourage your hearts, 9and with him nOnesimus, our faithful and obeloved brother, who is one of you. They will tell you of everything that has taken place here.
10pAristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, and Mark qthe cousin of Barnabas (concerning whom you have received instructions—rif he comes to you, welcome him), 11and Jesus who is called sJustus. tThese are the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and uthey have been a comfort to me. 12vEpaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always wstruggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand xmature and fully assured in all the will of God. 13For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis. 14yLuke the beloved physician greets you, as does zDemas. 15Give my greetings to the brothers3 at Laodicea, and to Nympha and athe church in her house. 16And when bthis letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you also read the letter from Laodicea. 17And say to cArchippus, “See that you fulfill dthe ministry that you have received in the Lord.”
18I, Paul, ewrite this greeting with my own hand. fRemember gmy chains. hGrace be with you.
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