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  Follow Daily Encouragement on Facebook and Twitter    The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber. <Previous Message · Archives · Archive edition Wednesday, April 20, 2011  Goldfinch Photo by our friend Doris High 40 Day New Testament Reading/Listening Plan: This suggested 40 day reading plan began Sunday (April 3). If you want to participate and have not been following the reading schedule up to this point we suggest starting with today's reading and reading previous portions after this reading period ends. Here's the entire 40 day schedule. More information concerning the Scripture reading plan is below the daily message. The links below will open to the selection to be read along with a built-in listening device.
"God's Definite Plan" "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves know—this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men" (Acts 2:22,23).  Many of you have read the allegory about a drawbridge operator who took his son to work one day. The boy went to fish as his father was working. He then fell into the gears of the huge drawbridge where he was trapped. Just as a passenger train loaded with people was rapidly approaching the bridge the operator had to make an agonizing decision. He could stop lowering the drawbridge to save his son or proceed with the lowering which would result in the most certain death of his son, but save the lives of those on the train. A video has been made about this and we will link to it below. It is a very touching illustration of the father who sacrificed his son to save the lives of others.However the illustration falls short in a vitally important way (though I hesitate to write critically about an intriguing illustration that has surely touched many lives). In the drawbridge illustration the critical decision the drawbridge operator had to make was not planned, but rather forced upon Him spontaneously. This was certainly not the case in regard to the death of Christ nor His Father’s decision in sending His only begotten Son into the sin-sick world.  In our daily text Peter begins his sermon on the day of Pentecost. Just over 50 days prior to this significant day he had witnessed the very crucifixion he is now describing, though due to his denial of Christ it was likely from a distance. The nails used in the crucifixion of our Savior were likely iron spikes five to seven inches long.In the daily text the action of crucifying is taken from a Greek word that appears only once in the entire New Testament and literally means “to impale.” How indescribably horrible this form of death was. Peter, who earlier was filled with fear, now boldly preached to the mixed crowd: "This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men." Bible teacher James M. Boice writes that the emphasis of the Scriptures is upon this being the work of God, who by it was accomplishing salvation for all who would believe on Christ. This is why Jesus is referred to as "the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world" (Revelation 13:8). "It was God the Father who sent the Lord Jesus Christ to the cross. This tells us that the death of Jesus was no accident, but rather the accomplishment of God's plan of redemption, devised even before the universe was created. It is why Jesus came. It was for others. The death of Jesus, thus planned by God, was for others, which means that it was substitutionary or vicarious. Paul says that it was 'for our sins.' Death is God's punishment for sin; its consequence. But Jesus had not sinned and therefore did not deserve death. That He did die was because He was dying in our place as our sin-bearer." Watchman Nee, a Chinese follower of Christ was persecuted for his faith and died in prison in 1972. He was a prolific writer but a single note found under his pillow after he died powerfully summarizes the simple essence of his faith: "Christ is the Son of God. He died to atone for men's sin, and after three days rose again. This is the most important fact in the universe. I die believing in Christ." Let us remember the One who was crucified on the cross and His great act of atoning sacrifice on our behalf. Let us live faithfully for the One who died in our place! Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber  Daily prayer: Jesus, we can’t fully comprehend the depth of Your sacrificial death where we view sin at its worst testing redemption to its utmost. But we are living testimonies that redemption passed the test and, like the grave clothes left behind at the tomb, we leave behind the grave clothes of our former life dead in its transgressions and sins. Our hope is restored as we experience life through You, our resurrected Savior, who was the sin offering poured out for us. You gave all so that we could be forgiven and anticipate glorious eternal life beyond the grave. We thank You for it. Amen. Today's mention of Watchman Nee brings to mind our friend Nigel who along with his wife Laifong were the very first recipients of daily encouragement on October 21, 1996. Nigel has an interesting association for students in Christian literature. His grandmother's sister was married to Watchman Nee. We still hear from Nigel occasionally and rejoice that they are in faithful service to the Lord. They have been on the list ever since the beginning of this ministry and I reckon they have received nearly 4,000 daily messages! They live in the Boston area and are shown with their son Caleb. Laifong is from Malaysia and they met at Chi Alpha, a Christian campus ministry, while in graduate school at Princeton. Both have earned scientific doctorates; Nigel's in electrical engineering and Laifong's in molecular biology. They attend the Boston Worship Center where Nigel has been an elder and they also have a Bible Study in their home."The Bridge" Video This is a powerful video of the allegory referred to in the message. It is a very well-done and touching presentation lasting just over 9 minutes with majestic background music and captions (no spoken words).Some Snippets Of Our Life.    Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources "Worthy Is The Lamb Who Was Slain" (Revelation Song) Video Kari Jobe "All For Love" Video Hillsong "Amazing Love" Video Lyndsey Wallace "It Was Love" Video Sovereign Grace Music "O The Deep, Deep Love of Jesus" Video Sovereign Grace Music This ministry does (IMHO) an outstanding job of producing well-written music as well as reviving old hymns such as this one written by Samuel Trevor Francis in 1875. These outstanding lyrics will bless your soul and remind you of our great heritage as members of the Church Triumphant, written by one who is now experiencing glorious rest above! O the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast, unmeasured, boundless, free! Rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me! Underneath me, all around me, is the current of Thy love Leading onward, leading homeward to Thy glorious rest above! O the deep, deep love of Jesus, spread His praise from shore to shore! How He loveth, ever loveth, changeth never, nevermore! How He watches o’er His loved ones, died to call them all His own; How for them He intercedeth, watcheth o’er them from the throne! O the deep, deep love of Jesus, love of every love the best! ’Tis an ocean full of blessing, ’tis a haven giving rest! O the deep, deep love of Jesus, ’tis a heaven of heavens to me; And it lifts me up to glory, for it lifts me up to Thee! Today closeup photo of the goldfinch was taken by our friend Doris High and used by permission. She is probably the world's most prolific photo blogger and this collection is here. Major Events of the Passion Week Holy or Passion Week is so named because it chronicles the events leading up to the Lord's death and resurrection. Here's an interesting chart from a Study Bible that may be helpful as you study the Bible this week and consider these events. It sure helps me to have a sense of when the events took place and I am inspired as I read these Scriptures in the daily sequence leading up to Easter. Note: The precise days these events occurred cannot be determined with certainty. Earnest Christians have various views as to the day Christ died, some believing it would have been on Wednesday or Thursday rather than Friday. However we feel the basic outline is still helpful. I enjoy math although I'm not very good at it beyond the basics needed to get by in life (such as preparing my taxes!) Consider this: The four gospels cover the life of Christ, a period of about 33 years. But almost all of this material deals with just the 3½ year period of His earthly ministry. However, an astounding 30 of the 89 accumulative chapters in the gospels cover the period beginning with Christ's triumphal entry through His resurrection and post-resurrection appearances. Mathematically this means that approximately 33% of the written material in the Gospels deals with a mere .05% period of His life! In the providence of God we have a much greater proportion of Scriptural revelation dealing with God's greatest act of love and mercy in providing our redemption. Sunday
(This material is developed from an outline in the Life Application Bible) 40 Day New Testament Reading/Listening Plan For more info on the reading plan see our daily archive (scroll down).  "Tortured For His Faith" We would highly recommend this book which is available to Daily Encouragement readers for the month of April free of charge! It is tremendously inspiring and will stir you to faithfulness in the face of persecution. It will also create a greater hunger for the Bible as a result of reading it. Merely go to this page and fill out the form on the lower part of the page. Indicate that you are a daily encouragement reader and request the book in the comment box. (Don't forget to include your mailing address.)Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne |
 "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update (Revised 12/31/10)  Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. Would you please consider a financial offering to support us in this daily encouragement ministry? Donations are tax deductible and will be receipted directly by my chaplaincy endorsing ministry. Thanks!See here for details. 2011 financial offerings to Daily Encouragement Net as of 4/19/11: $3,250T.00 SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? If you desire you can receive your own free! To receive these "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. This newsletter is never sent by us unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR a friend forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the rss feed or as an email subscription through feedburner.Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If you no longer desire to receive these messages you can remove your address from the list by merely using the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each email message. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Weekly Version: The weekly version is intended for those who may not check their email regularly or who may desire less frequent mailings. It is Friday's message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. Daily Encouragement on Facebook and Twitter: The daily message and prayer on Facebook. The daily message and prayer on Twitter.Reader Survey: Please take a few minutes to assist us in improving our ministry effectiveness by filling out this online reader survey. To take the survey click here. Please feel free to pass these messages on! "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "A Little Foolishness" - Humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) Last updated with the story of Mildred Swanson, who joyfully discovers her "spiritual gift" is sending forwarded emails! (Note: This material is satire!) "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. (Actually this is my intent but I haven't done much with it!) "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. All of these songs are also available for download on the site.  Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com. Any orders placed to Christian Book Distributers using this link or any specific product link to a recommended resource in a daily encouragement message will help our Daily Encouragement ministry through a small commission on the sale. Thank you for using these links when purchasing online through CBD!Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."  How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. © Copyright 2011 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us  Endorsed chaplain "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net |
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