Days of Praise

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August 11, 2026
True Prosperity
“Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.” (3 John 2)

This text has been misused by many who promote the modern false gospel of health and wealth—teachers who promise healing and financial success to every believer whose “soul prospereth.” The negative implication of such teaching, of course, is that Christians who are not in robust physical health and enjoying material affluence are somehow lacking in faith and are not in the will of God.

This pernicious notion is disproved, of course, merely by the example of Paul the apostle. He was a far more exemplary Christian than any of these latter-day false teachers, yet his earnest prayer for healing from his “thorn in the flesh” was denied, and he died in poverty and martyrdom in a Roman dungeon (2 Corinthians 12:7). There are numerous modern examples as well: Fanny Crosby was blind but wrote many wonderful hymns, for example, or many have given their lives in sacrificial service on a thousand mission fields.

Note that our text is not a promise but a prayer. Furthermore, that prayer will be answered in great fullness, but not necessarily now! “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. . . . He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son” (Revelation 21:4,7).

In the meantime, we should remember that this coming time of true prosperity will be measured in accordance with the health and prosperity of our souls, exactly as John had prayed for his spiritual children, for Jesus said, “My reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be” (Revelation 22:12). HMM

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August 14, 2026
Questioning God
“Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?” (Romans 9:20)

Whenever one begins a question with “why,” he should realize that the answer must necessarily be theological, not scientific. Science can deal with the questions of “what” and “how,” sometimes even with “where” and “when,” but never with “why”! The “why” questions have to do with motives and purposes, even when dealing with natural phenomena. (“Why does the earth rotate on its axis?” “Why do we have mosquitoes?”) Even though we can partially explain such things by secondary causes, we finally encounter a first cause, and then the “why?” can be answered only by God.

The wise thing to do is simply believe that He has good reasons for everything, whether we can discern them now or not. “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:25). God the Creator “worketh all things after the counsel of his own will” (Ephesians 1:11), and it is our high privilege simply to trust Him, not to question Him.

On the other hand, He often asks us: “Why?” “Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?” Jesus asked His disciples when they thought they were in great peril (Matthew 8:26). “If I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?” (John 8:46), He would say to those who question His Word.

To those who doubt His deity, the apostle Paul, speaking in His name, asks, “Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?” (Acts 26:8). As the popular chorus goes, “God specializes in things thought impossible!” Our God is omniscient and knows what’s best; He is omnipotent, so He can do it. He is all-loving and will surely do what’s best for those who trust Him. HMM

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August 16, 2026
Who Shall Bring Me Down?
“The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground?” (Obadiah 3)

The little book of Obadiah is entirely devoted to a prophecy against the strong nation of the Edomites, descended from Jacob’s carnal and careless brother, Esau. At the time he wrote, Edom’s capital was in what seemed to be the impregnable rock fortress of Petra, and the Edomites had been a great people in the Bible lands for many centuries.

But God had pronounced their doom through Obadiah and other prophets because of their inordinate pride and rebellion against the Word of God, following their father Esau. No one today seems to know exactly how it all came about, but now Petra and the land of the Edomites are a barren wilderness—a marvel to tourists, but nothing more.

Edom’s gradual decline and eventual abandonment constitute one of many fulfilled Bible prophecies dealing with ancient nations and cities. Many other great nations of the past—Assyria, Babylonia, Philistia, Moab, and the Hittite empire, to mention just a few—all rebelled against their Creator, and all have finally vanished, just as the prophets had warned. “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God” (Psalm 9:17).

Though the Edomites are no longer a distinct people, their spiritual and intellectual heirs are legion. Like Esau, their father, and King Herod, their best-known descendant, these modern spiritual heirs of the Edomites have abundant opportunity to know and serve the true God, but their heart is full of pride, manifesting itself in various ways: pride of wealth, intellect, appearance, strength, or position. May God deliver us from the sin of pride! HMM

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August 17, 2026
Long Enough
“And the LORD spake unto me, saying, Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward.” (Deuteronomy 2:2-3)

This was the second time God rebuked Israel for staying too long in one place. Here they were camped adjacent to the region controlled by the descendants of Esau and thus kinsmen of the Israelites, but God told them to go on north toward Canaan.

Long before, they had wanted to stay too long at Mount Sinai (same as Horeb) where God had given the law to Moses. Finally, “the LORD our God spake unto us in Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount . . . . Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers” (Deuteronomy 1:6, 8).

It is possible for a Christian to become too satisfied with his level of attainment when the Lord may well have something more for him to do. Possibly, like Israel at Sinai, we may be content to stay in a situation where we have seen God work in the past. Or, like Israel at Edom’s Mount Seir, we want to stay in what we think may be friendly surroundings rather than venture into overtly enemy territory. Perhaps we have stayed long enough at a certain stage in our Christian growth or service, and God wants us to go further.

Paul wanted to continue preaching near his home in Asia, but God said for him to go on into Europe (Acts 16:6-10). Peter asked Jesus what John was going to do, but Jesus said, “What is that to thee? follow thou me” (John 21:22).

God may, indeed, want us to continue all of our lives right where He has placed us now, as far as location and position are concerned, but He also wants us to go on further with Him. The last words written by Peter are profoundly important. “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). HMM

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August 18, 2026
The Spiritual Senses
“O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.” (Psalm 34:8)

Frequently, Scripture uses our five physical senses in a figurative way to help us comprehend our interaction with God’s spiritual presence and power.

We can “see,” for example, with spiritual eyes. Paul prayed thus for the believer: “The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:18).

Similarly, we are privileged to hear the voice of the Lord with spiritual ears. “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27). “A stranger will they not follow . . . for they know not the voice of strangers” (John 10:5).

The sense of touch is the sense of feeling, and God can both touch and be touched. We read, for example, of “a band of men, whose hearts God had touched” (1 Samuel 10:26). Of Jesus Christ, it is said that He is not a remote deity “which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities” (Hebrews 4:15). Even people who never knew Him can perhaps “feel after him, and find him” if they truly desire His great salvation (Acts 17:27).

We can even become “unto God a sweet savour of Christ” (2 Corinthians 2:15). To the world, the faithful Christian life and testimony can either be “the savour of death unto death” to those who refuse it or “the savour of life unto life” (v. 16).

Finally, we are exhorted actually to taste the Lord and see that He is good! His Word will be, according to our needs, either “sincere milk” (1 Peter 2:2), “strong meat” (Hebrews 5:14), or “sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb” (Psalm 19:10). HMM

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September 1, 2026
Stand Ye Still
“Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem . . . to morrow go out against them: for the LORD will be with you.” (2 Chronicles 20:17)

The Ammonites, Moabites, and Edomites had organized “a great multitude” seeking to destroy Judah under King Jehoshaphat. But the king and his people came together to “seek the LORD” in prayer for deliverance, and God answered. “The Spirit of the LORD” spoke through Jahaziel, assuring them that “the battle is not yours, but God’s” (see 2 Chronicles 20:2, 4, 14–15).

Then the Lord sent what may have seemed a strange instruction. “Stand ye still,” He said. Just watch God do it! And He did. All their enemies were constrained by the Lord to fight and destroy each other, without the Israelites having to fight at all. Similarly, at the Red Sea when everything looked hopeless, “Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD” (Exodus 14:13). So, they did, and all Pharaoh’s armies were overthrown in the midst of the sea.

In Isaiah’s day, when Israel was tempted to call on pagan Egypt for help against pagan Assyria, God said concerning Israel’s armies, “Their strength is to sit still” (Isaiah 30:7). As the ship was being buffeted in the storm and the sailors in panic were about to flee in the lifeboat, Paul said, “Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved” (Acts 27:31). So, they stayed, and God spared every man.

There are times for action, of course, but the principle is this. When we have done all we can, and the situation seems hopeless, this is the time to sit still and trust God to work it out in His own good way. “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). Got any rivers you think are uncrossable? God specializes in things thought impossible! HMM

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September 13, 2026
All Means All
“All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” (Matthew 28:18)

“All” is a tiny word, but its all-encompassing meaning indicates its great importance, especially when in reference to Jesus.

Consider its use in relation to creation. “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth . . . all things were created by him, and for him: and he is before all things, and by him all things consist” (Colossians 1:16-17). There was never a time when all things were not in Christ’s mighty hands.

As the Father’s heir, Jesus received all these things from the Father. “[The Father] hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things” (Hebrews 1:2). “The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand” (John 3:35). The Father has also made Jesus the judge of all. “For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son” (John 5:22). Jesus Himself states that “all power is given unto me” (our text).

With this power, Jesus redeems humanity and makes a new creation! “Thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him” (John 17:2). “Behold, I make all things new” (Revelation 21:5).

Jesus desires “all men to be saved” (1 Timothy 2:4), so He directs us to “teach all nations” (Matthew 28:19).

We need not look anywhere else for help. Jesus has all things in His hand and has all authority! What a great comfort to know that, “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). MJS

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September 14, 2026
Guard against Pride
“To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.” (Acts 26:18)

Jesus promised to make Paul “a minister and a witness” (Acts 26:16) to “turn [unbelievers] from . . . the power of Satan unto God” (our text). And Paul did this through his living and teaching for the rest of his life, teaching the exact opposite of what caused Satan’s downfall and what led Paul to persecute believers: pride.

Scripture reveals the devil’s proud heart in the famous five “I wills” of Isaiah 14. Here are two: “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High” (Isaiah 14:14). This mere creature believes he deserves praise fit only for the uncreated Lord. So do we! Why else do we want others to know how good we are, like Paul before he encountered Christ? When we try to wrest glory from the infinitely more deserving Lord, we follow in the steps of Satan. How can we escape this “darkness” (our text)? Live like the living Light: Jesus.

Instead of expecting and demanding the treatment due Him as Lord, Jesus “made himself of no reputation, and . . . humbled himself” (Philippians 2:7-8). The result? “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him” (v. 9). The way up is to give ourselves up to the will of the Lord. “So the last shall be first” (Matthew 20:16).

Will you obey your self-exalting flesh or “set your affection on things above” (Colossians 3:2)? Peter admonished, “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time” (1 Peter 5:6). Each day affords a gracious opportunity to turn “from the power of Satan unto God” (our text). BDT