Hearing God’s Voice from His Word
James 4:8 says, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.”
Take a moment and turn your attention to God. Tell God that you desire to trust and obey Him. Ask God to speak to you from His word.
Psalm of the Day
Psalm 74:12-17 God my King is from ancient times, performing saving acts on the earth.
13 You divided the sea with your strength; you smashed the heads of the sea monsters in the water; 14 you crushed the heads of Leviathan; you fed him to the creatures of the desert.
15 You opened up springs and streams; you dried up ever-flowing rivers. 16 The day is yours, also the night; you established the moon and the sun. 17 You set all the boundaries of the earth; you made summer and winter.
Read the Entire Psalm
God is King. Praise God because He is King of all. He reigns over every creature, great and small. He reigns at all times whether we are sleeping or awake; whether we acknowledge Him or not. Praise Him because He rules the seasons, over the weather, and over all the earth.
SCRIPTURE READING:
John 6:58-71 – Christian Standard Bible
58 This is the bread that came down from heaven; it is not like the manna your ancestors ate—and they died. The one who eats this bread will live forever.”
59 He said these things while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
Many Disciples Desert Jesus
60 Therefore, when many of his disciples heard this, they said, “This teaching is hard. Who can accept it?”
61 Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, asked them, “Does this offend you? 62 Then what if you were to observe the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? 63 The Spirit is the one who gives life. The flesh doesn’t help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. 64 But there are some among you who don’t believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning those who did not believe and the one who would betray him.) 65 He said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted to him by the Father.”
66 From that moment many of his disciples turned back and no longer accompanied him. 67 So Jesus said to the Twelve, “You don’t want to go away too, do you?”
68 Simon Peter answered, “Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”
70 Jesus replied to them, “Didn’t I choose you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil.” 71 He was referring to Judas, Simon Iscariot’s son, one of the Twelve, because he was going to betray him.
Having God’s Ear through Prayer
- Express thanksgiving to God.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal sin to you.
- Confess your sin to Him and receive forgiveness.
(1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sin He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins.”) - Bring your personal requests to God.
(Psalm 62:8 “Pour out your heart before God”) - Pray for someone in your small group.
- Pray again today for Kid’s Camp. Today is the final day. Pray that the seeds planted in children’s lives would bear fruit.
Living as God’s People by applying the Bible
Scripture Reflection from the Sermon
Did Judas betray Christ because he was not chosen by God or because he chose not to obey God? The answer, of course, is “yes.” How does this work? No one can answer that in ways that are fully satisfactory to the human mind. We only know that John and the other biblical authors don’t try to “solve” this like it is a math problem. They simply present it as a reality. God is sovereign, and unless he granted salvation to us, we would not be saved. For this we must be grateful and humble. We had no part in our salvation; it is by grace through faith alone. At the same time, we are responsible, and we have been given an invitation, a command, to believe and receive salvation. If we fail to respond to God’s gracious invitation, we are ultimately the ones who will be liable. Please don’t get stuck here. Many have. Instead of getting stuck, take decisive action, two actions, in fact. First, give glory to God for his grace shown to you. Be filled with thanksgiving. Second, choose to obey God. This is your responsibility. Obey him by following Christ yourself, and obey him by making Christ known to others. You will not merely “think” your way out if you are stuck in this tension of God’s sovereignty and human responsibility. You can, however, learn to thrive in the reality of God’s grace and human grit. Be grateful and take decisive action; this is the way forward.