Truth For Life Program
Alistair Begg Devotional
C. H. Spurgeon Devotional
One-Year Bible Reading Plan
Why is it imperative to preach the cross of Christ to long-established believers and unbelievers alike? Explore the answer to this question and take a closer look at the centrality of the cross when you join us on Truth For Life with Alistair Begg.
From the Sermon
The Centrality of the Cross
1 Corinthians 1:22–24 Sermon • Includes Transcript • 53:48 • ID: 2175
Look Out!
In all of the apostle Paul’s writings, there is perhaps no place where he made a more graphic statement than in this verse. Referring to the false teachers of his day as “dogs” was even more audacious and confrontational then than it is today. But Paul was not using this language merely for effect; he was gravely concerned because there were dangerous people moving around the Philippian church.
Cults and false teachers are almost always joyless, and these evil men in Philippi were no different. They were the opposite of what they claimed to be, insisting that the Old Testament ceremonial law was a necessary qualification for true Christianity. They addressed the Philippian believers, who had discovered joy in the Lord, by asking, in essence, Are you really a true Christian if you don’t pay careful attention to the external rite of circumcision? This warning from Paul to “look out” was meant to remind the young church that an “augmented” Christianity actually distorts the true gospel. Adding to the gospel always subtracts joy and even salvation from the gospel.
Therefore, when we read the word “dogs” in this verse we shouldn’t think of a friendly family pet. Paul was not referring to a golden retriever. Think of a scavenger, a diseased mongrel that roams around garbage cans and could harm you greatly with a bite. Paul was emphatic that these men, in insisting that people meet legal requirements to be qualified for grace, were equally dangerous. They were drawing attention away from Christ, diluting the sufficiency of His death, resurrection, and ascension.
Paul constantly warned of the tragic consequences of false teaching—and, because he loved the people of the Philippian church, describing them as his “joy and crown” (Philippians 4:1), he was opposed to anyone and anything that would reroute them from the only way to glory. He wanted them to remain vigilant.
We, too, could easily forget that the good news is not a message of “Do your best, and be good enough!” but rather “Your best is never enough—but Jesus is.”
Here’s the good news, though: by faith in Christ alone, we are the true “circumcision”—that is, those who have been set apart as the true people of God, not because we have had some flesh cut off but because Christ was cut off for us. In each generation, there are always those who wish to insist on the outward features of the faith and—implicitly or explicitly—make those observances necessary for salvation. But no external ritual or religious performance can save. Do not place your confidence in your flesh—in your church attendance, your daily Bible reading, your performance as a spouse or parent or worker or evangelist or anything else. Put it all in Christ. He, and He alone, is enough.
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?
Paul Opposes Peter
11But ewhen Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him fto his face, because he stood condemned. 12For before certain men came from James, ghe was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing hthe circumcision party.1 13And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14But when I saw that their iconduct was not in step with jthe truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas kbefore them all, “If you, though a Jew, llive like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
Justified by Faith
15We ourselves are Jews by birth and not mGentile sinners; 16yet we know that na person is not justified2 by works of the law obut through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, pbecause by works of the law no one will be justified.
17But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found qto be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! 18For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. 19For through the law I rdied to the law, so that I might slive to God. 20I have been tcrucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives uin me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, vwho loved me and wgave himself for me. 21I do not nullify the grace of God, for xif righteousness3 were through the law, ythen Christ died for no purpose.
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.
Eternally Crowned With Majesty
His head is the finest gold; his locks are wavy, black as a raven.
Comparisons all fail to set forth the Lord Jesus, but the spouse uses the best she can find. By the head of Jesus we may understand His deity, “for the head of Christ is God”;1 and then the mold of purest gold is the best conceivable metaphor, but all too poor to describe one so precious, so pure, so dear, so glorious. Jesus is not a grain of gold, but a vast globe of it, a priceless mass of treasure such as earth and heaven cannot excel.
The creatures are mere iron and clay—they will all perish like wood, hay, and stubble; but the ever-living Head of the creation of God will shine on forever and ever. In Him is no mixture, nor smallest taint of alloy. He is forever infinitely holy and altogether divine. The wavy locks depict His manly vigor. There is nothing effeminate in our Lord. He is the manliest of men—bold as a lion, strong as an ox, swift as an eagle. Every conceivable and inconceivable beauty is to be found in Him, though He once was despised and rejected of men.
His head the finest gold;
With secret sweet perfume,
His curled locks hang all as black
As any raven's plume.
The glory of His head is not shorn away. He is eternally crowned with peerless majesty. The black hair indicates youthful freshness, for Jesus has the dew of His youth upon Him. Others grow weak with age, but He is forever a Priest like Melchizedek; others come and go, but He remains as God upon His throne, world without end. We will behold Him tonight and adore Him. Angels are gazing on Him—His redeemed must not turn their eyes away from Him. Where else is there such a Beloved? Oh, for an hour's fellowship with Him! Be gone, you intruding anxieties! Jesus draws me, and I run after Him.
1) 1 Corinthians 11:3
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 October 28
Jehu Anointed King of Israel
1Then Elisha the prophet called one of cthe sons of the prophets and said to him, d“Tie up your garments, and take this eflask of oil in your hand, and go to fRamoth-gilead. 2And when you arrive, look there for Jehu gthe son of Jehoshaphat, son of Nimshi. And go in and have him rise from among hhis fellows, and lead him to an inner chamber. 3Then take the flask of oil and pour it on his head and say, ‘Thus says the Lord, iI anoint you king over Israel.’ Then open the door and flee; do not linger.”
4So the young man, the servant of the prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead. 5And when he came, behold, the commanders of the army were in council. And he said, “I have a word for you, O commander.” And Jehu said, “To which of us all?” And he said, “To you, O commander.” 6So he arose and went into the house. And the young man poured the oil on his head, saying to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, iI anoint you king over the people of the Lord, over Israel. 7And you shall strike down the house of Ahab your master, so that I may avenge jon Jezebel the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord. 8For the whole house of Ahab shall perish, kand I will cut off from Ahab levery male, mbond or free, in Israel. 9And I will make the house of Ahab like nthe house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like othe house of Baasha the son of Ahijah. 10pAnd the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel, and none shall bury her.” Then he opened the door and fled.
11When Jehu came out to the servants of his master, they said to him, q“Is all well? Why did rthis mad fellow come to you?” And he said to them, “You know the fellow and his talk.” 12And they said, “That is not true; tell us now.” And he said, “Thus and so he spoke to me, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, I anoint you king over Israel.’” 13Then in haste severy man of them took his garment and put it under him on the bare1 steps, and they blew the trumpet and proclaimed, t“Jehu is king.”
Jehu Assassinates Joram and Ahaziah
14Thus Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. (uNow Joram with all Israel had been on guard at Ramoth-gilead against vHazael king of Syria, 15wbut King Joram had returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds that the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) So Jehu said, “If this is your decision, then let no one slip out of the city to go and tell the news in Jezreel.” 16Then Jehu mounted his chariot and went to Jezreel, for Joram lay there. And Ahaziah king of Judah had come down to visit Joram.
17Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel, and he saw the company of Jehu as he came and said, “I see a company.” And Joram said, “Take a horseman and send to meet them, and let him say, ‘Is it peace?’” 18So a man on horseback went to meet him and said, “Thus says the king, ‘Is it peace?’” And Jehu said, “What do you have to do with peace? Turn around and ride behind me.” And the watchman reported, saying, “The messenger reached them, but he is not coming back.” 19Then he sent out a second horseman, who came to them and said, “Thus the king has said, ‘Is it peace?’” And Jehu answered, “What do you have to do with peace? Turn around and ride behind me.” 20Again the watchman reported, “He reached them, but he is not coming back. And the driving xis like the driving of Jehu ythe son of Nimshi, for he drives furiously.”
21Joram said, z“Make ready.” And they made ready his chariot. aThen Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah set out, each in his chariot, and went to meet Jehu, and met him bat the property of Naboth the Jezreelite. 22And when Joram saw Jehu, he said, “Is it peace, Jehu?” He answered, “What peace can there be, so long as cthe whorings and the sorceries of your mother Jezebel are so many?” 23Then Joram reined about and fled, saying to Ahaziah, “Treachery, O Ahaziah!” 24And Jehu drew his bow with his full strength, and shot Joram between the shoulders, so that the arrow pierced his heart, and he sank in his chariot. 25Jehu said to Bidkar dhis aide, “Take him up and throw him bon the plot of ground belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. For remember, when you and I rode side by side behind Ahab his father, how ethe Lord made this fpronouncement against him: 26‘As surely as I saw yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons—declares the Lord—I will repay you on this plot of ground.’ Now therefore take him up and throw him on the plot of ground, in accordance with the word of the Lord.”
27gWhen Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled in the direction of Beth-haggan. And Jehu pursued him and said, “Shoot him also.” And they shot him2 in the chariot at the ascent of Gur, which is by hIbleam. And he fled to hMegiddo and died there. 28iHis servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his tomb with his fathers in the city of David.
29In the jeleventh year of Joram the son of Ahab, Ahaziah began to reign over Judah.
Jehu Executes Jezebel
30When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it. And kshe painted her eyes and adorned her head and looked out of the window. 31And as Jehu entered the gate, she said, l“Is it peace, you Zimri, murderer of your master?” 32And he lifted up his face to the window and said, “Who is on my side? Who?” Two or three eunuchs looked out at him. 33He said, “Throw her down.” So they threw her down. And some of her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses, and they trampled on her. 34Then he went in and ate and drank. And he said, “See now to this cursed woman and bury her, mfor she is a king's daughter.” 35But when they went to bury her, they found no more of her than the skull and the feet and the palms of her hands. 36When they came back and told him, he said, “This is the word of the Lord, which he spoke by his servant Elijah the Tishbite: n‘In the territory of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel, 37and the corpse of Jezebel shall be oas dung on the face of the field in the territory of Jezreel, so that no one can say, This is Jezebel.’”
1oLet all who are under a yoke as bondservants1 regard their own masters as worthy of all honor, pso that the name of God and the teaching may not be reviled. 2Those who have believing masters must not be disrespectful on the ground that they are qbrothers; rather they must serve all the better since those who benefit by their good service are believers and beloved.
False Teachers and True Contentment
rTeach and urge these things. 3If anyone steaches a different doctrine and does not agree with tthe sound2 words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching uthat accords with godliness, 4vhe is puffed up with conceit and wunderstands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for xcontroversy and for yquarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, 5and constant friction among people zwho are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, aimagining that godliness is a means of gain. 6But bgodliness cwith contentment is great gain, 7for dwe brought nothing into the world, and3 we cannot take anything out of the world. 8But eif we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. 9But fthose who desire to be rich fall into temptation, ginto a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that hplunge people into ruin and destruction. 10For the love of money is a root of iall kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
Fight the Good Fight of Faith
11But as for you, jO man of God, kflee these things. lPursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. 12mFight the good fight of the faith. nTake hold of the eternal life oto which you were called and about which you made pthe good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 13qI charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, rwho in his testimony before4 Pontius Pilate made pthe good confession, 14to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until sthe appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15which he will display tat the proper time—he who is uthe blessed and only Sovereign, vthe King of kings and Lord of lords, 16wwho alone has immortality, xwho dwells in yunapproachable light, zwhom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.
17As for the rich in athis present age, charge them bnot to be haughty, nor cto set their hopes on dthe uncertainty of riches, but on God, ewho richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18They are to do good, fto be rich in good works, to be generous and gready to share, 19thus hstoring up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may itake hold of jthat which is truly life.
20O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you. kAvoid the lirreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called “knowledge,” 21for by professing it some have swerved from the faith.
1The word of the Lord that came to Hosea, the son of Beeri, ain the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of bJeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.
Hosea's Wife and Children
2When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, c“Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have dchildren of whoredom, for ethe land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord.” 3So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.
4And the Lord said to him, “Call his name Jezreel, for in just a little while fI will punish the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezreel, and gI will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. 5And on that day hI will break the bow of Israel iin the Valley of Jezreel.”
6She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the Lord said to him, j“Call her name No Mercy,1 for kI will no more have mercy on the house of Israel, to forgive them at all. 7But lI will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God. I mwill not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen.”
8When she had weaned No Mercy, she conceived and bore a son. 9And the Lord said, n“Call his name Not My People,2 for oyou are not my people, and I am not your God.”3
104 Yet pthe number of the children of Israel shall be qlike the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. rAnd sin the place where it was said to them, o“You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, t“Children5 of uthe living God.” 11And vthe children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and wthey shall appoint for themselves one head. And they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel.
Yodh
73lYour hands have made and fashioned me;
mgive me understanding that I may learn your commandments.
74Those who fear you shall see me and nrejoice,
because I have ohoped in your word.
75I know, O Lord, that your rules are prighteous,
and that in qfaithfulness you have afflicted me.
76Let your steadfast love comfort me
according to your promise to your servant.
77Let your rmercy come to me, that I may live;
for your law is my sdelight.
78Let tthe insolent be put to ushame,
because they have vwronged me with falsehood;
as for me, I will wmeditate on your precepts.
79Let those who fear you xturn to me,
that they may know your testimonies.
80May my heart be yblameless in your statutes,
zthat I may not be put to shame!
Kaph
81My soul alongs for your salvation;
I bhope in your word.
82My ceyes long for your promise;
I ask, d“When will you comfort me?”
83For I have ebecome like a fwineskin in the smoke,
yet I have not forgotten your statutes.
84gHow long must your servant endure?7
hWhen will you judge those who persecute me?
85iThe insolent have jdug pitfalls for me;
they do not live according to your law.
86All your commandments are ksure;
they persecute me lwith falsehood; mhelp me!
87They have almost made an end of me on earth,
but I have not forsaken your precepts.
88In your steadfast love ngive me life,
that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth.
Lamedh
89Forever, O Lord, your oword
is firmly fixed in the heavens.
90Your pfaithfulness endures to all generations;
you have qestablished the earth, and it rstands fast.
91By your sappointment they stand this day,
for all things are your servants.
92If your law had not been my tdelight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93I will never forget your precepts,
for by them you have ugiven me life.
94I am yours; save me,
vfor I have sought your precepts.
95The wicked lie in wait to destroy me,
but I consider your testimonies.
96I have seen a limit to all perfection,
but your commandment is exceedingly wbroad.
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