DAY 280    Read Matthew 8:18 through 9:1, 10-26; Mark 4:35 through chapter 5:; 2:15-22.

Today's reading:  A storm on the lake accompanied a storm in the minds of men.  Jesus exercised His power to bring peace in both areas.

Memory gem:  "Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee"  (Mark 5:19).

Thought for today:
The story of Christ's victory over the evil powers in control of men's minds is a very significant account.  The unseen demons evidently believed the time would come when they would meet punishment; they apparently recognized Christ.  They knew Him to be the Son of God and Judge of the universe, and they were concerned; they were frightened.  This was an audible message from the spirit world.  The demons used the lips, tongues, and voices of human beings to communicate.  The men had become, willingly or unwillingly, mediums through which unseen spirits spoke.

The poor men who were thus freed from the control of demons were not merely suffering from a form of insanity or from a naturally caused disease.  From the conversation which Christ carried on with the demons, it is plain that the Lord Jesus understood perfectly the intelligence with which He was dealing.  They were not the spirits of dead men.  They were mighty intelligences of the unseen world.  They were of that host of angels who fell from heaven with Lucifer and since that day have carried on unceasing warfare against God and His work on earth.  Jesus plainly recognized the presence and agency of these evil spirits, and He dealt with them as such.

After the departure of the demons, the victims were entirely changed.  They were calm, subdued, intelligent, gentle.  Speaking of one of them, the Scripture says he was "clothed and in his right mind."

NOTE:  Matthew says that two demon-possessed men confronted Jesus; Mark and Luke mention only one.  We presume that one man was dominant.  Matthew, an eyewitness, no doubt saw two men; Mark and Luke, writing what others reported, apparently thought of only the one.

DAY 279    Read Matthew 13:1-53; Mark 4:1-34; Luke 8:4-18.

Today's reading:  Much of Jesus' teaching was in the form of parables--stories about familiar objects or experiences to dramatize spiritual truths.  Today we read several of these.

Memory gem:  "He that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty"  (Matthew 13:23).

Thought for today:
" 'The sower soweth the word.'  Christ came to sow the world with truth....He who had stood in the councils of God, who had dwelt in the innermost sanctuary of the Eternal, could bring to men the pure principles of truth....It is to His personal ministry among men, and to the work which He thus established, that the parable of the sower especially applies.

"The word of God is the seed.  Every seed has in itself a germinating principle.  In it the life of the plant is enfolded.  So there is life in God's word.  Christ says, 'The words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit, and they are life.'  John 6:63.  'He that heareth My word, and believeth on him that sent Me, hath everlasting life.'  John 5:24.  In every command and in every promise of the word of God is the power, the very life of God, by which the command may be fulfilled and the promise realized.  He who by faith receives the word is receiving the very life and character of God.

"Every seed brings forth fruit after its kind.  Sow the seed under right conditions, and it will develop its own life in the plant.  Receive into the soul by faith the incorruptible seed of the word, and it will bring forth a character and a life after the similitude of the character and the life of God."--Christ's Object Lessons, pp. 37, 38.

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Difficult or obscure worlds:
Matthew 13:21.  "By and by"--literally: immediately, or at once.  Old English usage was the exact opposite of our modern meaning.

DAY 279    Read Matthew 13:1-53; Mark 4:1-34; Luke 8:4-18.

Today's reading:  Much of Jesus' teaching was in the form of parables--stories about familiar objects or experiences to dramatize spiritual truths.  Today we read several of these.

Memory gem:  "He that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty"  (Matthew 13:23).

Thought for today:
" 'The sower soweth the word.'  Christ came to sow the world with truth....He who had stood in the councils of God, who had dwelt in the innermost sanctuary of the Eternal, could bring to men the pure principles of truth....It is to His personal ministry among men, and to the work which He thus established, that the parable of the sower especially applies.

"The word of God is the seed.  Every seed has in itself a germinating principle.  In it the life of the plant is enfolded.  So there is life in God's word.  Christ says, 'The words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit, and they are life.'  John 6:63.  'He that heareth My word, and believeth on him that sent Me, hath everlasting life.'  John 5:24.  In every command and in every promise of the word of God is the power, the very life of God, by which the command may be fulfilled and the promise realized.  He who by faith receives the word is receiving the very life and character of God.

"Every seed brings forth fruit after its kind.  Sow the seed under right conditions, and it will develop its own life in the plant.  Receive into the soul by faith the incorruptible seed of the word, and it will bring forth a character and a life after the similitude of the character and the life of God."--Christ's Object Lessons, pp. 37, 38.

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Difficult or obscure worlds:
Matthew 13:21.  "By and by"--literally: immediately, or at once.  Old English usage was the exact opposite of our modern meaning.

DAY 278    Read Luke 7:1-10; Matthew 8:5-13; 9:27-35; Luke 8:1-3; 7:11-17; Matthew 12:22-50; Mark 3:20-35; Luke 11:14-32; 8:19-21.

Today's reading:  Among other things, we read Jesus' description of the sin which God cannot forgive--commonly called the "unpardonable sin."

Memory gem:  "Whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come"  (Matthew 12:32).

Thought for today:
The context of the startling words of Matthew 12:32 shows that our Lord had performed a mighty miracle, and His bitter enemies could not deny the fact.  It is also evident that some of them recognized in their hearts that Christ's miracles were performed by the power of God.  Yet they publicly attributed Christ's miracle to the power of the devil.  They were willing to go to this extreme to destroy His popularity and influence with the people.  It was when they made this wicked charge, knowing it to be false, that Jesus spoke about what we call the "unpardonable sin."

Our Lord declares that all manner of sin shall be forgiven unto men.  And for this we thank God!  There is hope for everyone who repents and forsakes his sin.  Let no one say, "I am sorry for my wicked life and want to be saved, but there is no hope for me.  Since I did a certain thing, committed a particular sin, I am hopeless."  Do not believe it for one minute, for Jesus plainly says, "All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men," and He means just that.  He calls you just as you are.

If all manner of sin...shall be forgiven unto men," why does our Lord warn us that the blasphemy "against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness"  (Mark 3:29)?  The reason is clear, when we refer to what the Scripture says about the Holy Spirit of God.

The Holy Spirit is the only agent God uses to bring repentance to a human soul; and if a man persistently grieves away, or drives away, the Spirit of God, his heart will harden and he will have no more conviction of sin--will not repent--and therefore will not be forgiven.  No man who has any concern for his sin has committed the unpardonable sin.  There is forgiveness for you, but don't delay.

DAY 277    Read Matthew 5:1 through 8:1.

Today's reading:  Christ's well-known Sermon on the Mount presents tremendous spiritual truths.

Memory gem:  "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven"  (Matthew 5:16).

Thought for today:
The world needs light.  It has always needed light, but it needs it now more than ever before.  The Word of God is light.  "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path," we read in Psalm 119:105.  And so, every Christian should be a lamplighter, a lamp holder.  It is the responsibility of all God's people to turn on the light.  As the apostle says in Philippians 2:15, 16: "that ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; holding forth the word of life."  That's the way to shine--holding forth God's Word--and it is the only way.

As a boy I lived in a city where the lamplighter came around every night.  He put his ladder up to each lamppost and lighted the gas lights.  One could follow his progress down the streets as the lights came on.  The whole aspect of the city was changed in a short time.  Light is deadly to ghosts, goblins, germs, burglars, and racketeers.  Light in a city is a policeman that never takes a bribe, never gets drunk, never goes to sleep on duty, never takes a vacation.  As light is a savior to a city, so Jesus Christ is the Light of the world, and His Word brings salvation.

Let us not forget our duty to turn on the light.  Let us tell others about Jesus Christ.  Let us go forth with a united, obedient testimony.  Let us be faithful and fearless for God.

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Difficult or obscure words:
Matthew 5:3.  "Blessed"--better: happy , or fortunate.
Matthew 5:15.  "Candle" and "candlestick"--rather: lamp, and lampstand.
Tallow candles were unknown in New Testament times.  Light came from shallow bowls containing oil and a wick.
Matthew 5:15.  "Bushel"--rather: measuring pot.  Most homes had an earthenware vessel of about two gallons (eight liters) capacity for measuring or storing grain or flour.

DAY 276    Read Matthew 12:1-21; Mark 2:23 through 3:19; Luke 6.

Today's reading:  The rabbis had imposed so many rules involving Sabbath observance that God's holy day had become burdensome.  Jesus tried to show that the Sabbath could be "a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable"  (Isaiah 58:13).

Memory gem:  "The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath"  (Mark 2:27, 28).

Thought for today:
Since Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath, the Sabbath is the Lord's day.  It was made for man, that is, mankind--not merely for Adam alone, but for all of his descendants to the end of time.

These are the very same words that are used in reference to the marriage relationship, when the apostle said that the woman was made for the man (see 1 Corinthians 11:9).  This certainly does not mean that only Adam, or some one particular race of people, has the right to marriage.  Marriage is for mankind, and so is the Sabbath.  It was made for man in the beginning, before sin entered the world.  The Sabbath and marriage are the two holy institutions that have come to us from those wonderful Eden days before the dark shadows of sin and death came over the earth.

Notice, Jesus did not say that the Sabbath was made by man, but that it was made for man.  The reason the Lord made the seventh day the Sabbath was that He made the world in six days.  Man did not make the world.  In fact, man was not created when the world was formed.  He did not appear until the sixth day.  All the works of God existed before Adam was created, and the holy Sabbath was the first complete day that he enjoyed.  Surely, through his lifetime, he never forgot it.  And God says to us today, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy."

NOTE:  The naming of the twelve apostles differs slightly in the four lists (see Matthew 10:2-4; Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:14-16; Acts 1:13).  For the most part the differences are only in the order.  One man, however, has three different names: Lebbaeus, Thaddaeus, and Judas (not Judas Iscariot).  Another one, Bartholomew, is called Nathaniel in John's Gospel.

DAY 275    Read Mark 1:21 through 2:14; Luke 4:31-44; 5:12-28; Matthew 8:14-17; 4:23-25; 8:2-4; 9:2-9.

Today's reading:  A good share of Christ's ministry consisted of healing sufferers, always in response to their faith and always with the purpose of freeing them from sin.

Memory gem:  "When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee"  (Mark 2:5).

Thought for today:
An unforgettable story about five men is recorded in the second chapter of Mark's Gospel.  One of them was hopelessly ill.  The other four were his friends.  These men had heard of Jesus, and they attempted to bring their friend to Him.

The Saviour was in a house packed with those who had come to hear Him and those who had come for help.  There wasn't even standing room outside near the door.  What a preacher Jesus was!  So different from most of us.  Today people seem to like to sit as far away from the preacher as they can, and leave a "great gulf fixed" between the pulpit and the hearer, which nobody could cross over in human friendship or spiritual fellowship.  But with Jesus it was different.  They tried to get as close to Him as they could, to hear every word from His holy lips.

So these four men came, bringing their sick friend.  Yes, they went up on the flat roof of this Palestinian house, pulled off the tiles, and made an opening large enough for their purpose.  They must have used ropes, because they let the bed or pallet right down in front of Jesus.  There was the sick man, needing His healing power!  And notice the significant words of the fifth verse: "When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee."

Notice, He saw their faith--not only the faith of the sick man, but the faith of the four men who brought him.  Who were these men of faith?  Jones, Smith, Johnson, and Hunter?  We do not know their names.  Christians Anonymous!  They were not looking for credit or reputation or personal glory.  They were seeking help for their friend.  They were coming to Jesus in faith.  They were looking for God without any thought of human reward.

What God needs in the world today is more Christians Anonymous, more of His servants who seek the glory of Christ more than anything else in the world.

DAY 274    Read John 5; Luke 4:14-30; Matthew 4:12-22; Mark 1:14-20; Luke 5:1-11.

Today's reading:  Christ's early ministry in Judea ends as He begins a year of work in Galilee.  "He came unto his own, and his own [people] received him not"  (John 1:11).

Memory gem:  "He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound"  (Isaiah 61:1).

Thought for today:
On the Sabbath morning in the Nazareth synagogue, our Saviour read from the prophet Isaiah and applied the prophecy to Himself.  He was opening the prison to set people free.

Do you believe that?  Why shouldn't we believe it?  If that scripture is true and Jesus told the truth--and He did, for He is the truth--on that very Sabbath day in old Nazareth the prison doors were flung open, and the spirits in prison came out free men (see 1 Peter 3:18, 20).  That's the prison Jesus was talking about--the prison house of sin.

He was opening the doors that Sabbath day, not somewhere inside the earth to disembodied souls or spirits, but to people with the chains of sin clanging about them, people whose lives were fettered with evil, people like us, conscience-smitten, who knew the right but often did not do it.  He was talking to spirits in prison, people who had been under the control of the devil for years, people with the chains of habit upon them.  Right then and there they were free--"This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears."

Friend, it can happen to you this day, this moment.  You can go free and leave the prison behind you forever.  Not only will He raise you from the dead if you fall asleep in Christ, but He will raise you from the death of sin right now.  From that prison house you will be delivered.  Doors will open.  The chains will fall.

Just now, do you desire freedom from this prisonhouse of habit and of evil?  Jesus says: "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed"  (John 8:36).

Nothing is too hard for Him.  If you desire it, this freedom is for you now in Christ.