The Lord will come; go out to meet him! He is the prince of peace - Daily Bible Readings December 13,2013

1^ST READING

 

Lack of obedience to the Word of God can mean that we miss out on many of the blessings He wants to give us. Is God being mean? No. He is just being faithful to His promises to bless us according to our commitment to bless and honor Him. Many of the blessings that God desires to give us depend on our receptivity. If we are not in the right place to receive them, we will not get them. If I offer to give you a million dollars and ask you to meet me at the top of a particular mountain, I cannot give the money to you unless you make the climb.

 

Isaiah 48:17-19

17 Thus says the Lord, your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I, the Lord, your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go. 18 If you would hearken to my commandments, your prosperity would be like a river, and your vindication like the waves of the sea; 19 your descendants would be like the sand, and those born of your stock like its grains, their name never cut off or blotted out from my presence.”

 

P S A L M

 

Psalm 1:1-2, 3, 4, 6

R: Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.

1 Blessed the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked nor walks in the way of sinners, nor sits in the company of the insolent, 2 but delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on his law day and night. (R) 3 He is like a tree planted near running water, that yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade. Whatever he does, prospers. (R) 4 Not so the wicked, not so; they are like chaff which the wind drives away. 6 For the Lord watches over the way of the just, but the way of the wicked vanishes. (R)      

 

GOSPEL

 

 

If you want to find an excuse for not following Jesus, then you will find one. It will not be a good one because the benefits of being a disciple of Jesus far outweigh the negatives. Jesus is frustrated by the lack of response to His ministry; the same is true of all preachers and leaders at times.  However, that is not what we should worry about. The issue we all have to face is our own response to the Gospel.

 

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION

The Lord will come; go out to meet him! He is the prince of peace.

 

Matthew 11:16-19

16 Jesus said to the crowds: “To what shall I compare this generation? It is like children who sit in marketplaces and call to one another, 17 ‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance, we sang a dirge but you did not mourn.’ 18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said, ‘He is possessed by a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they said, ‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is vindicated by her works.” think:  Many of the blessings that God desires to give us depend on our receptivity.

 

T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST

Thank You Lord for: __________________

 

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God’s special verse/thought for me today_

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READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Ecclesiastes 5-8