DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR FRIDAY NOVEMBER 10:
WORD OF WISDOM
For all you do, His blood's for you.
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DAILY DEVOTION
Unfailing Promises
"And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this
prayer and supplication unto the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the
LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven. And he
stood, and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying,
Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according
to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good
promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant."
1 Kings 8:54-56
Charles Spurgeon said, "I sometimes liken the promises to the smith's great
bunch of keys which he brings when you have lost the key of your chest, and
cannot unlock it. He feels pretty sure that out of all the keys upon the
ring some one or other will fit, and he tries them with patient industry. At
last-yes-that is it, he has loosened the bolt, and you can get at your
treasures. There is always a promise in the volume of inspiration suitable
to your present case."
The challenges that we face as we go through life require strength, wisdom,
and resources that are beyond our ability to produce. But for every trial
and burden, there is a promise in the Word of God on which we can lean for
help-and not one of those promises God makes has ever been broken. No child
of God has ever been turned away because the Father in Heaven did not have
the resources or ability to meet his need.
While many Bible promises are conditioned on our obedience, and cannot be
claimed unless we fulfill the conditions, all of them are utterly reliable.
Our task is to fill our hearts and minds with the Bible so that we know what
God has said, and then to claim His promises in faith. When we do, we will
receive what God offers.
We can rely on the promises of God with complete confidence in every
situation of life.
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DAILY BIBLE READING
Acts 7-9New King James Version (NKJV)
Stephen's Address: The Call of Abraham
7 Then the high priest said, "Are these things so?"
2 And he said, "Brethren and fathers, listen: The God of glory appeared to
our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran, 3
and said to him, 'Get out of your country and from your relatives, and come
to a land that I will show you.'[a] 4 Then he came out of the land of the
Chaldeans and dwelt in Haran. And from there, when his father was dead, He
moved him to this land in which you now dwell. 5 And God gave him no
inheritance in it, not even enough to set his foot on. But even when Abraham
had no child, He promised to give it to him for a possession, and to his
descendants after him. 6 But God spoke in this way: that his descendants
would dwell in a foreign land, and that they would bring them into bondage
and oppress them four hundred years. 7 'And the nation to whom they will be
in bondage I will judge,'[b] said God, 'and after that they shall come out
and serve Me in this place.'[c] 8 Then He gave him the covenant of
circumcision; and so Abraham begot Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth
day; and Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot the twelve patriarchs.
The Patriarchs in Egypt
9 "And the patriarchs, becoming envious, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was
with him 10 and delivered him out of all his troubles, and gave him favor
and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; and he made him
governor over Egypt and all his house. 11 Now a famine and great trouble
came over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and our fathers found no
sustenance. 12 But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent
out our fathers first. 13 And the second time Joseph was made known to his
brothers, and Joseph's family became known to the Pharaoh. 14 Then Joseph
sent and called his father Jacob and all his relatives to him,
seventy-five[d] people. 15 So Jacob went down to Egypt; and he died, he and
our fathers. 16 And they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb
that Abraham bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor, the father of
Shechem.
God Delivers Israel by Moses
17 "But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to
Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt 18 till another king arose
who did not know Joseph. 19 This man dealt treacherously with our people,
and oppressed our forefathers, making them expose their babies, so that they
might not live. 20 At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing to
God; and he was brought up in his father's house for three months. 21 But
when he was set out, Pharaoh's daughter took him away and brought him up as
her own son. 22 And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians,
and was mighty in words and deeds.
23 "Now when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his
brethren, the children of Israel. 24 And seeing one of them suffer wrong,
he defended and avenged him who was oppressed, and struck down the Egyptian.
25 For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would
deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand. 26 And the next day
he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile
them, saying, 'Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?' 27 But
he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, 'Who made you a ruler
and a judge over us? 28 Do you want to kill me as you did the Egyptian
yesterday?' [e] 29 Then, at this saying, Moses fled and became a dweller in
the land of Midian, where he had two sons.
30 "And when forty years had passed, an Angel of the Lord[f] appeared to him
in a flame of fire in a bush, in the wilderness of Mount Sinai. 31 When
Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he drew near to observe, the
voice of the Lord came to him, 32 saying, 'I am the God of your fathers-the
God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' [g] And Moses
trembled and dared not look. 33 'Then the Lord said to him, "Take your
sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground. 34 I
have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt; I have heard
their groaning and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send
you to Egypt."' [h]
35 "This Moses whom they rejected, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and a
judge?' [i] is the one God sent to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of
the Angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 He brought them out, after he
had shown wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red Sea, and in
the wilderness forty years.
Israel Rebels Against God
37 "This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel,[j] 'The Lord your
God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you
shall hear.' [k]
38 "This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the Angel
who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, the one who received
the living oracles to give to us, 39 whom our fathers would not obey, but
rejected. And in their hearts they turned back to Egypt, 40 saying to
Aaron, 'Make us gods to go before us; as for this Moses who brought us out
of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.'[l] 41 And
they made a calf in those days, offered sacrifices to the idol, and rejoiced
in the works of their own hands. 42 Then God turned and gave them up to
worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the Prophets:
'Did you offer Me slaughtered animals and sacrifices during forty years in
the wilderness,
O house of Israel?
43
You also took up the tabernacle of Moloch,
And the star of your god Remphan,
Images which you made to worship;
And I will carry you away beyond Babylon.'[m]
God's True Tabernacle
44 "Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He
appointed, instructing Moses to make it according to the pattern that he had
seen, 45 which our fathers, having received it in turn, also brought with
Joshua into the land possessed by the Gentiles, whom God drove out before
the face of our fathers until the days of David, 46 who found favor before
God and asked to find a dwelling for the God of Jacob. 47 But Solomon built
Him a house.
48 "However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the
prophet says:
49
'Heaven is My throne,
And earth is My footstool.
What house will you build for Me? says the Lord,
Or what is the place of My rest?
50
Has My hand not made all these things?'[n]
Israel Resists the Holy Spirit
51 "You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist
the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets
did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the
coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and
murderers, 53 who have received the law by the direction of angels and have
not kept it."
Stephen the Martyr
54 When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed
at him with their teeth. 55 But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed
into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand
of God, 56 and said, "Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man
standing at the right hand of God!"
57 Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him
with one accord; 58 and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And
the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59 And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, "Lord Jesus,
receive my spirit." 60 Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice,
"Lord, do not charge them with this sin." And when he had said this, he fell
asleep.
Saul Persecutes the Church
8 Now Saul was consenting to his death.
At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at
Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and
Samaria, except the apostles. 2 And devout men carried Stephen to his
burial, and made great lamentation over him.
3 As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and
dragging off men and women, committing them to prison.
Christ Is Preached in Samaria
4 Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word. 5
Then Philip went down to the[o] city of Samaria and preached Christ to them.
6 And the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip,
hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. 7 For unclean spirits, crying
with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed; and many who were
paralyzed and lame were healed. 8 And there was great joy in that city.
The Sorcerer's Profession of Faith
9 But there was a certain man called Simon, who previously practiced sorcery
in the city and astonished the people of Samaria, claiming that he was
someone great, 10 to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the
greatest, saying, "This man is the great power of God." 11 And they heeded
him because he had astonished them with his sorceries for a long time. 12
But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the
kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were
baptized. 13 Then Simon himself also believed; and when he was baptized he
continued with Philip, and was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs which
were done.
The Sorcerer's Sin
14 Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had
received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, 15 who, when
they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit.
16 For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized
in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid hands on them, and they
received the Holy Spirit.
18 And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles' hands the
Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, 19 saying, "Give me this
power also, that anyone on whom I lay hands may receive the Holy Spirit."
20 But Peter said to him, "Your money perish with you, because you thought
that the gift of God could be purchased with money! 21 You have neither
part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of
God. 22 Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps
the thought of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are
poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity."
24 Then Simon answered and said, "Pray to the Lord for me, that none of the
things which you have spoken may come upon me."
25 So when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, they
returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many villages of the
Samaritans.
Christ Is Preached to an Ethiopian
26 Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, "Arise and go toward
the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." This is
desert. 27 So he arose and went. And behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of
great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of
all her treasury, and had come to Jerusalem to worship, 28 was returning.
And sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet. 29 Then the
Spirit said to Philip, "Go near and overtake this chariot."
30 So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said,
"Do you understand what you are reading?"
31 And he said, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he asked Philip
to come up and sit with him. 32 The place in the Scripture which he read
was this:
"He was led as a sheep to the slaughter;
And as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.
33
In His humiliation His justice was taken away,
And who will declare His generation?
For His life is taken from the earth."[p]
34 So the eunuch answered Philip and said, "I ask you, of whom does the
prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?" 35 Then Philip opened
his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. 36 Now
as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said,
"See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?"
37 Then Philip said, "If you believe with all your heart, you may."
And he answered and said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of
God."[q]
38 So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the
eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. 39 Now when they came
up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the
eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip was
found at Azotus. And passing through, he preached in all the cities till he
came to Caesarea.
The Damascus Road: Saul Converted
9 Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the
Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked letters from him to the
synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether
men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around
him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to
him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?"
5 And he said, "Who are You, Lord?"
Then the Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.[r] It is hard for
you to kick against the goads."
6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, "Lord, what do You want me to do?"
Then the Lord said to him, "Arise and go into the city, and you will be told
what you must do."
7 And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but
seeing no one. 8 Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were
opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into
Damascus. 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
Ananias Baptizes Saul
10 Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias; and to him
the Lord said in a vision, "Ananias."
And he said, "Here I am, Lord."
11 So the Lord said to him, "Arise and go to the street called Straight, and
inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he
is praying. 12 And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in
and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight."
13 Then Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how
much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. 14 And here he has
authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name."
15 But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear
My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. 16 For I will
show him how many things he must suffer for My name's sake."
17 And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on
him he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus,[s] who appeared to you on the
road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled
with the Holy Spirit." 18 Immediately there fell from his eyes something
like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was
baptized.
19 So when he had received food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some
days with the disciples at Damascus.
Saul Preaches Christ
20 Immediately he preached the Christ[t] in the synagogues, that He is the
Son of God.
21 Then all who heard were amazed, and said, "Is this not he who destroyed
those who called on this name in Jerusalem, and has come here for that
purpose, so that he might bring them bound to the chief priests?"
22 But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who
dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ.
Saul Escapes Death
23 Now after many days were past, the Jews plotted to kill him. 24 But
their plot became known to Saul. And they watched the gates day and night,
to kill him. 25 Then the disciples took him by night and let him down
through the wall in a large basket.
Saul at Jerusalem
26 And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but
they were all afraid of him, and did not believe that he was a disciple. 27
But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. And he declared to
them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had spoken to him,
and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. 28 So he
was with them at Jerusalem, coming in and going out. 29 And he spoke boldly
in the name of the Lord Jesus and disputed against the Hellenists, but they
attempted to kill him. 30 When the brethren found out, they brought him
down to Caesarea and sent him out to Tarsus.
The Church Prospers
31 Then the churches[u] throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace
and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of
the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.
Aeneas Healed
32 Now it came to pass, as Peter went through all parts of the country, that
he also came down to the saints who dwelt in Lydda. 33 There he found a
certain man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden eight years and was
paralyzed. 34 And Peter said to him, "Aeneas, Jesus the Christ heals you.
Arise and make your bed." Then he arose immediately. 35 So all who dwelt at
Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.
Dorcas Restored to Life
36 At Joppa there was a certain disciple named Tabitha, which is translated
Dorcas. This woman was full of good works and charitable deeds which she
did. 37 But it happened in those days that she became sick and died. When
they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room. 38 And since Lydda was
near Joppa, and the disciples had heard that Peter was there, they sent two
men to him, imploring him not to delay in coming to them. 39 Then Peter
arose and went with them. When he had come, they brought him to the upper
room. And all the widows stood by him weeping, showing the tunics and
garments which Dorcas had made while she was with them. 40 But Peter put
them all out, and knelt down and prayed. And turning to the body he said,
"Tabitha, arise." And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat
up. 41 Then he gave her his hand and lifted her up; and when he had called
the saints and widows, he presented her alive. 42 And it became known
throughout all Joppa, and many believed on the Lord. 43 So it was that he
stayed many days in Joppa with Simon, a tanner.
Footnotes:
a.Acts 7:3 Genesis 12:1
b.Acts 7:7 Genesis 15:14
c.Acts 7:7 Exodus 3:12
d.Acts 7:14 Or seventy (compare Exodus 1:5)
e.Acts 7:28 Exodus 2:14
f.Acts 7:30 NU-Text omits of the Lord.
g.Acts 7:32 Exodus 3:6, 15
h.Acts 7:34 Exodus 3:5, 7, 8, 10
i.Acts 7:35 Exodus 2:14
j.Acts 7:37 Deuteronomy 18:15
k.Acts 7:37 NU-Text and M-Text omit Him you shall hear.
l.Acts 7:40 Exodus 32:1, 23
m.Acts 7:43 Amos 5:25-27
n.Acts 7:50 Isaiah 66:1, 2
o.Acts 8:5 Or a
p.Acts 8:33 Isaiah 53:7, 8
q.Acts 8:37 NU-Text and M-Text omit this verse. It is found in Western
texts, including the Latin tradition.
r.Acts 9:5 NU-Text and M-Text omit the last sentence of verse 5 and begin
verse 6 with But arise and go.
s.Acts 9:17 M-Text omits Jesus.
t.Acts 9:20 NU-Text reads Jesus.
u.Acts 9:31 NU-Text reads church . . . was edified.
New King James Version (NKJV)
Scripture taken from the New King James VersionR. Copyright C 1982 by Thomas
Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
