Truth For Life Program
Alistair Begg Devotional
C. H. Spurgeon Devotional
One-Year Bible Reading Plan
Media frequently insinuates that our significance is directly related to our appearance. But how important are looks when it comes to choosing a spouse? Hear biblical advice about what to look for in relationships, on Truth For Life with Alistair Begg.
From the Sermon
Be Honest With Yourself
In Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov, one of the characters gives another this advice: “Above all, do not lie to yourself. A man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point where he does not discern any truth either in himself or anywhere around him, and thus falls into disrespect towards himself and others.”[1] Nearly three millennia before, David also described the potential effects of self-deceit about what we are really like.
Honesty is vital to the discovery of happiness. Joyful, contented people do not lie to themselves or to anybody else. We cannot deceive ourselves and enjoy genuine happiness; deceit and happiness don’t sleep in the same bed.
The Bible calls us to be as honest about ourselves as it is honest. It turns a searchlight onto our hearts and minds, revealing the truth of the human predicament. We are told that we live in iniquity, which results in an internal bias towards wrongdoing and a nature corrupted by sin. We’re transgressors, going where we shouldn’t go. We’re sinners, failing to live up to our own standards, let alone the standard God has set.
The surprise of this verse is that David starts off with the word “blessed” or “happy,” but then immediately introduces such hard realities as our iniquity and our capacity for lying to ourselves and God about it. But the reason he can do that is because the predicament he faces is more than matched by the cure God offers.
Notice that David doesn’t say, Happy is the individual whose iniquity the Lord does not count. He says, “Happy is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity.” Because God is holy, He must count sin—but He counts it against someone else. He counts it against His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. We find in David’s words the amazing doctrine of justification by faith, which we first see in God’s relationship with Abraham, who “believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). The moment we truly believe that our sins have been counted against our Savior, we will be blessed; we will be happier than ever before.
So the path to blessing starts with honesty. We are not good people who make the odd mistake. We are not wonderful individuals with a few flaws that can be blamed on our upbringing, our environment, or our lack of sleep last night. We are sinners with deceitful hearts, who fall short of God’s glorious standards and by nature stand to inherit only wrath (Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:23; Ephesians 2:1-3). Be honest about who you are. Be specific about how you have sinned against the Lord. Then you will be ready to embrace the most joyful news in the world: that each day, though “our sins they are many, His mercy is more.”[2]
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?
Do Not Forsake Me, O Lord
A Psalm of David, lfor the memorial offering.
1O Lord, mrebuke me not in your anger,
nor discipline me in your wrath!
2For your narrows have sunk into me,
and your hand ohas come down on me.
3There is pno soundness in my flesh
because of your indignation;
there is no health in my qbones
because of my sin.
4For my riniquities have gone over my head;
like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me.
5My wounds stink and fester
because of my foolishness,
6I am sutterly bowed down and tprostrate;
all the day I ugo about mourning.
7For my sides are filled with burning,
and there is pno soundness in my flesh.
8I am feeble and crushed;
I vgroan because of the tumult of my heart.
9O Lord, all my longing is before you;
my wsighing is not hidden from you.
10My heart throbs; my strength fails me,
and xthe light of my eyes—it also has gone from me.
11My yfriends and companions zstand aloof from my aplague,
and my nearest kin bstand far off.
12Those who seek my life clay their snares;
those who seek my hurt dspeak of ruin
and meditate etreachery all day long.
13But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear,
like fa mute man who does not open his mouth.
14I have become like a man who does not hear,
and in whose mouth are no grebukes.
15But for hyou, O Lord, do I wait;
it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer.
16For I said, “Only ilet them not rejoice over me,
who jboast against me when my kfoot slips!”
17For I am lready to fall,
and my pain is ever before me.
18I mconfess my iniquity;
I am nsorry for my sin.
19But my foes are vigorous, they are mighty,
and many are those who hate me owrongfully.
20Those who prender me evil for good
qaccuse me because I rfollow after good.
21Do not forsake me, O Lord!
O my God, be not sfar from me!
22tMake haste to help me,
O Lord, my usalvation!
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.
Justified and Accepted
Are they Israelites? So am I.
We have here a personal claim, and one that needs proof. The apostle knew that his claim was indisputable, but there are many people who have no right to the title yet still claim to belong to the Israel of God. If we are confidently declaring, "I am also an Israelite," let us only say it after we have searched our hearts as in the presence of God. But if we can give proof that we are following Jesus, if we can say from the heart, "I trust Him wholly, trust Him only, trust Him simply, trust Him now, and trust Him ever," then the position that the saints of God hold also belongs to us.
All their enjoyments are our possessions; we may be the very least in Israel, "least of all saints," but since the mercies of God belong to the saints as saints, and not as advanced saints or well-taught saints, we may put in our plea and say, "Are they Israelites? So am I. The promises are mine, grace is mine, and glory will be mine." The claim, rightfully made, is one that will yield untold comfort. When God's people are rejoicing that they are His, what a happiness to be able to say, "So am I!"
When they speak of being pardoned and justified and accepted in the Beloved, how joyful to respond, "Through the grace of God, so am I." But this claim not only has its enjoyments and privileges, but also its conditions and duties. We must share with God's people in cloud as well as in sunshine. When we hear them spoken of with contempt and ridicule for being Christians, we must come boldly forward and say, "So am I." When we see them working for Christ, giving their time, their talent, their whole heart to Jesus, we must be able to say, "So do I." Let us then prove our gratitude by our devotion and live as those who, having claimed a privilege, are willing to take the responsibility connected with it.
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 June 6
New Tablets of Stone
1“At that time the Lord said to me, l‘Cut for yourself two tablets of stone like the first, and come up to me on the mountain and mmake an ark of wood. 2And I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets that you broke, and nyou shall put them in the ark.’ 3So I made an ark oof acacia wood, and pcut two tablets of stone like the first, and went up the mountain with the two tablets in my hand. 4And qhe wrote on the tablets, in the same writing as before, the Ten Commandments1 rthat the Lord had spoken to you on the mountain out of the midst of the fire son the day of the assembly. And the Lord gave them to me. 5Then I turned and tcame down from the mountain and uput the tablets in the ark that I had made. vAnd there they are, as the Lord commanded me.”
6(The people of Israel wjourneyed from Beeroth Bene-jaakan2 to Moserah. xThere Aaron died, and there he was buried. And his son Eleazar ministered as priest in his place. 7yFrom there they journeyed to Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah to Jotbathah, a land with brooks of water. 8At that time zthe Lord set apart the tribe of Levi ato carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord bto stand before the Lord to minister to him and cto bless in his name, to this day. 9dTherefore Levi has no portion or inheritance with his brothers. The Lord is his inheritance, as the Lord your God said to him.)
10e“I myself stayed on the mountain, as at the first time, forty days and forty nights, fand the Lord listened to me that time also. The Lord was unwilling to destroy you. 11gAnd the Lord said to me, ‘Arise, go on your journey at the head of the people, so that they may go in and possess the land, which I swore to their fathers to give them.’
Circumcise Your Heart
12“And now, Israel, hwhat does the Lord your God require of you, but ito fear the Lord your God, jto walk in all his ways, kto love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13and lto keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord, which I am commanding you today mfor your good? 14Behold, nto the Lord your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, othe earth with all that is in it. 15Yet pthe Lord set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day. 16Circumcise therefore qthe foreskin of your heart, and be no longer rstubborn. 17For the Lord your God is sGod of gods and tLord of lords, uthe great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is vnot partial and takes no bribe. 18wHe executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. 19xLove the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 20iYou shall fear the Lord your God. You shall serve him and yhold fast to him, and zby his name you shall swear. 21aHe is your praise. He is your God, bwho has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. 22Your fathers went down to Egypt cseventy persons, and now the Lord your God has made you das numerous as the stars of heaven.
The Lord Will Not Forsake His People
1O Lord, God of pvengeance,
O God of vengeance, qshine forth!
2rRise up, O sjudge of the earth;
repay to the tproud what they deserve!
3O Lord, uhow long shall the wicked,
how long shall vthe wicked exult?
4They pour out their warrogant words;
all xthe evildoers boast.
5They ycrush your people, O Lord,
and afflict your heritage.
6They kill zthe widow and the sojourner,
and murder zthe fatherless;
7aand they say, “The Lord does not see;
the God of Jacob does not perceive.”
8bUnderstand, O dullest of the people!
Fools, when will you be wise?
9cHe who planted the ear, does he not hear?
He who formed the eye, does he not see?
10He who ddisciplines the nations, does he not rebuke?
He who eteaches man knowledge—
11fthe Lord—knows the thoughts of man,
12hBlessed is the man whom you idiscipline, O Lord,
and whom you teach out of your law,
13to give him jrest from kdays of trouble,
until la pit is dug for the wicked.
14mFor the Lord will not forsake his npeople;
he will not abandon his nheritage;
15for ojustice will return to the righteous,
and all the upright in heart will pfollow it.
16qWho rises up for me against the wicked?
Who stands up for me against evildoers?
17rIf the Lord had not been my help,
my soul would soon have lived in the land of ssilence.
18When I thought, t“My foot slips,”
your steadfast love, O Lord, uheld me up.
19When the cares of my heart are many,
your consolations cheer my soul.
20Can wwicked rulers be allied with you,
those who frame2 injustice by xstatute?
21They yband together against the life of the righteous
and condemn zthe innocent to death.3
22But the Lord has become my astronghold,
and my God bthe rock of my crefuge.
23He will bring back on them dtheir iniquity
and ewipe them out for their wickedness;
the Lord our God will wipe them out.
Hezekiah's Sickness and Recovery
1qIn those days Hezekiah became rsick and was at the point of death. And sIsaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him, and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: Set your house in order, for you shall die, you shall not recover.”1 2Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 3and said, “Please, O Lord, remember how tI have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
4Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: 5“Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add ufifteen years to your life.2 6vI will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and will defend this city.
7“This shall be the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing that he has promised: 8wBehold, I will make the shadow cast by the declining sun on the dial of Ahaz turn back ten steps.” So the sun turned back on the dial the ten steps by which it had declined.3
9A writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, after he had been sick and had recovered from his sickness:
10I said, xIn the middle4 of my days
I must depart;
I am consigned to the gates of Sheol
for the rest of my years.
11I said, I shall not see the Lord,
the Lord yin the land of the living;
I shall look on man no more
among the inhabitants of the world.
12My dwelling is plucked up and removed from me
zlike a shepherd's tent;
alike a weaver bI have rolled up my life;
che cuts me off from the loom;
dfrom day to night you bring me to an end;
13eI calmed myself5 until morning;
like a lion fhe breaks all my bones;
from day to night you bring me to an end.
14Like ga swallow or a crane I chirp;
hI moan like a dove.
iMy eyes are weary with looking upward.
O Lord, I am oppressed; jbe my pledge of safety!
15What shall I say? For he has spoken to me,
and he himself has done it.
kI walk slowly all my years
because of the bitterness of my soul.
16lO Lord, by these things men live,
and in all these is the life of my spirit.
Oh restore me to health and make me live!
17mBehold, it was for my welfare
that I had great bitterness;
nbut in love you have delivered my life
from the pit of destruction,
nfor you have cast all my sins
behind your back.
18oFor Sheol does not thank you;
death does not praise you;
those who go down to the pit do not hope
for your faithfulness.
19The living, the living, he thanks you,
as I do this day;
pthe father makes known to the children
your faithfulness.
20The Lord will save me,
and we will play my music on stringed instruments
all the days of our lives,
qat the house of the Lord.
21rNow Isaiah had said, “Let them take a cake of figs and apply it to the boil, that he may recover.” 22Hezekiah also had said, “What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the Lord?”
The Seventh Seal and the Golden Censer
1When the Lamb opened uthe seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. 2Then I saw the seven angels vwho stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. 3And another angel came and stood wat the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with xthe prayers of all the saints on ythe golden altar before the throne, 4and zthe smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel. 5Then the angel took the censer and afilled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and bthere were peals of cthunder, rumblings,1 flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.
The Seven Trumpets
6Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.
7The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed dhail and efire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a fthird of the earth was burned up, and a third of gthe trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.
8The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like ha great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea ibecame blood. 9A third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of jthe ships were destroyed.
10The third angel blew his trumpet, and ka great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on lthe springs of water. 11The name of the star is Wormwood.2 A third of the waters mbecame wormwood, and many people died from the water, nbecause it had been made bitter.
12The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of othe sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of their light might be darkened, and a third of the day might be kept from shining, and likewise a third of the night.
13Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, p“Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”
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