December 13 Daily Devotional

Bible Readings:

Matthew 28:18-20, King James Version:
¹⁸And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
¹⁹Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
²⁰Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

1 Thessalonians 1:2-9, KJV:
²We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers;
³Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;
⁴Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God.
⁵For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.
⁶And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost.
⁷So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia.
⁸For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.
⁹For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God;

1 Peter 1:22-25, KJV:
²²Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
²³Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
²⁴For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:
²⁵But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

Revelation 5:8-13, KJV:
⁸And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
⁹And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
¹⁰And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
¹¹And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
¹²Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
¹³And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.

Devotional:

By the expression "the growing Word" is not meant that the contents of the Bible need additions. The Bible is complete, and woe unto him who seeks to add to it—but that is not to say that the Word of God is not living. We are "born again, not of corruptible seed but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abidcth forever" (1 Peter 1:25). It is quick and powerful. And in the sense that the Word of God molds the character of those who read and believe it, the Bible grows. It is a common thing to say that a certain idea or a person hitherto little known to us is "growing on us." That means that the idea is gaining favor with us and that individual is becoming better known and more appreciated by us. So it is with the Word of God. The more intensively we study its pages and doctrines the more it produces within us virtues which go to make up that renewed image of God in us, our likeness to Christ. Like the waters of a mighty river filling every inlet to mark the shore line, so that "mighty stream, Glod's holy Word" flows through our lives, sometimes gently and other times turbulently, but always shaping us to its own measurements. Then the Word dwells in us richly.

But there is another sense in which the Word of God increases. When the messengers of Christ bring the gospel to places where it has not gone before, and when those who hear that message embrace it, the Word of God grows. Whole communities and nations have been changed by the Word, its good news spreading from person to person, family to family. Thus the elect are gathered out of all nations, and the Word adapted to all peoples fulfills its universal mission. This aspect of the growing Word is simply the carrying out of the command of the Living Word, the Head of the Church. Jesus Christ.

It was Peter, no novice in the knowledge of God's redemptive program, and Paul, learned in God's counsel, who heralded forth the gospel message in the time of the early church. That the Word may become the inheritance of many peoples those who now have but a superficial acquaintance with it must allow it to grow within their own lives and then give it forth to others. The Word that increasingly enriches the life of a disciple of Christ will be carried by him to those who know nothing of the Divine counsel to sinners. The missionary program of any church or the missionary interest of any individual Christian will be strong in proportion to the extent to which that church or person applies the whole Word of God to its life. Thus the two ways in which the Word grows are joined together. The perfectly formed flower will send forth its fragrance. The Christian whose life is balanced by tlic Scriptures will influence men and bring to bear in their lives that truth which, by the grace and power of God, will never be halted in its onward march through men and nations.

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.