December 10 Daily Devotional

Bible Readings:

Psalm 2:1-12, King James Version:
¹Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
²The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying,
³Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.
⁴He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall have them in derision.
⁵Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure.
⁶Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
⁷I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.
⁸Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
⁹Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.
¹⁰Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.
¹¹Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
¹²Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

Psalm 76:1-12, KJV:
¹In Judah is God known: his name is great in Israel.
²In Salem also is his tabernacle, and his dwelling place in Zion.
³There brake he the arrows of the bow, the shield, and the sword, and the battle. Selah.
⁴Thou art more glorious and excellent than the mountains of prey.
⁵The stouthearted are spoiled, they have slept their sleep: and none of the men of might have found their hands.
⁶At thy rebuke, O God of Jacob, both the chariot and horse are cast into a dead sleep.
⁷Thou, even thou, art to be feared: and who may stand in thy sight when once thou art angry?
⁸Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven; the earth feared, and was still,
⁹When God arose to judgment, to save all the meek of the earth. Selah.
¹⁰Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee: the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.
¹¹Vow, and pay unto the LORD your God: let all that be round about him bring presents unto him that ought to be feared.
¹²He shall cut off the spirit of princes: he is terrible to the kings of the earth.

Romans 11:33-36, KJV:
³³O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!
³⁴For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?
³⁵Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again?
³⁶For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.

Ephesians 1:3-11, KJV:
³Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
⁴According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
⁵Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
⁶To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
⁷In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
⁸Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;
⁹Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
¹⁰That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
¹¹In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

Devotional:

Robert G. Ingersoll, the noted infidel, once said, "Life is a narrow vale between the cold and barren peaks of two eternities. We strive in vain to look beyond the heights. We cry aloud—and the only answer is the echo of our wailing cry." Though spoken of the mystery of death this expression of despair might also describe man's futile effort to understand apart from God's Word the existence of good and evil in this world. Who is sufficient to analyze history and our present generation and tel! how disparate forces such as the Church of Christ and the spirit of antichrist can exist together in this world? A rational explanation for the evil that is all about us is nowhere to be found except in the pages of the Bible. According to the Scriptures God is not surprised by the rebellious actions of His creatures. When men defy His law or oppose His Church the Lord is not confronted with a situation with which He had not reckoned. Evil as well as good is included when the apostle writes that believers have been "predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will." The Divine decree embracess every particular thought, word and action of every individual creature. Why God has decreed that men shall do that which is contrary to His will has not been disclosed to us, but that there is an adequate answer in God is not to be doubted. The Christian echoes the words of Romans 11:33 "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!" And in that adoration of the perfect, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable wisdom of God there is comfort for the troubled inquiring soul.

Yet in the Word of God there are indications given that the sin that men commit and the violent attacks of the ungodly upon the Church are instruments in the sovereign, omnipotent hand of God for good. The very bitterness of feeling that led the brothers of Joseph to sell him to the Ishmaelites proved to be but a link in that redemptive chain that brought God's people into the Promised Land. The seething animosity of Haman terminated not in the destruction of God's people but in the undoing of this proud infidel. Ezra and Nehemiah's foes in seeking to hinder the work of rebuilding Jerusalem only spurred on those valiant soldiers of Jehovah to finish the work committed to their hands. So the Psalmist writes "Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee: the residue of wrath shalt thou gird upon thee" (Psalm 76:10, A.R.V.). What an awful instrument in God's almighty hand is man's hatred for his Creator. God sits in the heavens to laugh and deride kings and rulers whose counsel is to overthrow the rule of God's Anointed One. Taking hold of the rage of His enemies He turns that very passion into an instrument of their destruction. And He remains Lord of all.

The Church in our day has suffered and will undoubtedly suffer still more before Christ's return. The swords of determined unbelief are being sharpened for future attacks upon the Word of God and those who stand upon that Word. The gospel of the sovereign grace of God will continue to stir up hatreds which come to the surface only when that pure unadulterated gospel is preached. Even God-fearing men will be tempted to despair of seeing victory over the forces of antichrist. But in that day let us remember that the outworking of God's eternal plan can result in nothing less than complete victory over His and our enemies. Temporary successes for Satan's hosts provide the preliminary steps to the climactic triumph of the Israel of God and the ultimate crushing of the head and seed of the serpent. The disciples may be scattered abroad, the apostles imprisoned, the Word of the Lord denied, but these events are small parts of the Divine mosaic wrought bv the Master's hand. There shall be "beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness." The words of Luther are very fitting here: "And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us; We will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us."

We are very happy to make available to you this month these devotionals by the late Rev. LeRoy B. Oliver. They originally appeared in The Presbyerian Guardian during the late 1940's.

The description of his "Your Family Altar" page in The Presbyterian Guardian also fits this Web page: "The page is designed for both private and family use, whichever is most convenient in your case. If you do not have family worship in your home, we hope you will begin, and suggest using these readings. They should not, however, take the place of reading books of the Bible, or the Bible itself, through in regular course." It is those who abide (continue) in the Word who are truly Christ's disciples, who know the truth, and who experience freedom in Him (John 8:31-32). May these devotionals be used for the building up of God's people and to the glory of God.