Today’s Bible Reading

March 19


Old Testament I

Exodus 36 

36:3 And they received from Moses all the offering which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of making the sanctuary. So they continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning.

The act of giving

The right way to give is to give willingly. We should learn how to support the work of God freely. There are different ways to give; It’s not only through finance. We can give our time, we can give our skills. We should be happy to support the work of God anyway we can.

The Israelites gave until they were asked to stop giving. It would be great if we all developed this type of attitude of giving.



Old Testament 2

Psalms 89:1-18 

Psalm 89 begins as a psalm of praise but ends as a psalm of lament. It celebrates God’s covenant with David (2 Sam. 7) and then laments how David’s descendants had not remained faithful to the provisions of that covenant (see 2 Sam. 7:14). Yet even in the face of unfaithfulness, this psalm reaffirms God’s faithfulness to His covenant and its ultimate fulfilment in David’s greater Son, the Messiah (vv. 33–37). The title attributes the psalm to Ethan, who was also known as Jeduthun (1 Chr. 25:1, 3, 6).

The structure of the psalm is:

(1) praise to the Lord for His everlasting covenant with David (vv. 1–4);

(2) a celebration of God who established His covenant with David (vv. 5–18); 



New Testament

Acts 21:17-40

21:19 things which God had done: The evidence of how God changed the lives of Gentiles was presented to the Christians in Jerusalem. The strongest evidence was the Gentile believers themselves who had accompanied Paul to Jerusalem. At this time, Paul may have also given the money he had been collecting from the Gentile Christians (11:27–30; 1 Cor. 16:1). The love the Gentiles expressed to their suffering Jewish brethren was a mark of their genuine conversion

 

21:21 informed about you: Reports were circulating that Paul had been urging Jews to abandon Mosaic traditions. However, Paul never derided his Jewish heritage nor demanded that Jewish Christians renounce the Law of Moses. He only made it clear to everyone that the law could not function as a means of salvation.

There is evidence that Paul was continuing to keep the Law when he stood before Felix in 24:11, 12. The fact that he was coming to Jerusalem to worship was evidence of this. What Paul did resist was any attempt to force Gentiles to become Jews. Salvation was through faith alone. Relying on adherence to the Jewish law was repudiation of the gospel message that salvation proceeds from faith in Christ and that alone.

 

21:25 they should keep themselves: The Christian leaders were not asking Gentiles to live like Jews; neither did they want to compel Jews to live like Gentiles. The spiritual unity of the body of believers is realised in its diversity, not in its conformity. From our diverse backgrounds and cultures we honour the same Lord.


Action Point

give willingly to support the gospel of Christ

love your neighbor


Quotes

Giving to the poor is an essential part of Christian morality.

-C.S. Lewis


“It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

-Jesus, in Acts 20:35


“No person was ever honoured for what he received. He was honoured for what he gave.”

-Calvin Coolidge



“Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can.”

- John Wesley


Being a Christian is more than just an instantaneous conversion - it is a daily process whereby you grow to be more and more like Christ.

-Billy Graham


Prayer Points

Praise God for His covenant with you through Jesus Christ

Thank God for saving you from sins

Ask God for mercy

Pray for the power of Holy Spirit

Pray for God's blessing

Pray that the love of God be expressed through our lives



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