True to Right Principle

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

There are several Bible characters who chose to be true to right principle in time of great peril. Some were rewarded for their faithfulness, such as Job, who chose to ignore his wife's cynical advice to "curse God and die!"; or Joseph, imprisoned for his refusal to commit adultery (who finally rose to be prime minister of an empire); and Abigail, whose wise counsel saved David from ruining his own career (and who incidentally saved her own husband from his revenge).
Abigail was rewarded well (1 Sam. 25). But there were others who just had to suffer, period, for their faithfulness to right principle. Queen Vashti, wife of Ahasuerus the corrupt ruler of the Persian Empire, the lady who refused his foolish command because she would not expose herself to drunken, leering voyeurs in high political positions. Vashti passes off the stage of Bible history into obscurity; we read of no vindication granted her; she apparently suffered a kind of martyrdom for upholding a standard of modesty (Esther 1:12-18). But millions of people today respect her and would be glad to have her for a neighbor.

Another person who just had to suffer, period, was John the Baptist. He was faithful to God, even while transgressing the rules of political savvy; Herod treated him like a cat treats a mouse, calling him up out of his dungeon to the royal office for conversations as though he was about to release him to freedom, giving John momentary thoughts of hope, only to send him back to his isolated cell. Finally, in a drunken stupor, Herod becomes a voyeur watching an immodest but attractive young woman dance, yields to her grisly request and has the lonely and apparently God-forsaken John beheaded (Matt. 14).

It would be nice if the Bible story instead had John miraculously released and honored, but that's not what happened. God permitted him to suffer alone as an encouragement to millions of faithful people afterward who have had to suffer, apparently forsaken by God. The only reward John gets (so far!) is to be honored posthumously by Jesus, as a prophet of whom there has been none greater (Matt. 11:11). "Be thou faithful unto death," says Jesus, "and I will give thee a crown of life" (Rev. 2:10).

But was John forsaken in his lonely dungeon cell? No, the Holy Spirit comforted him, and angels visited him up to the last. More joy than Herod ever had. Death for Christ is not a tragedy!

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: April 26, 2001.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

YOUR FATHER and YOUR FRIEND

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Do you like to think about the myriads of stars and the vast constellations scattered throughout the infinitude of space? Just look up at those stars tonight, imagine if you can their glory. Then think of this globe on which we live, the astounding complexity of its multitudinous forms of life, and the billions of human beings on it, each created in the image of the Creator of this vast universe.

No human mind can begin to comprehend this infinitude of creation. Isaac Watts caught a little of the heart-thrilling realization of two truths: Watts has been considering "the thunders of His hand, ... and all His mighty works," the greatness of God's creation, and His lowly condescension to us:

"And will this sovereign King
Of glory condescend,
And will He write His name:
My Father and my Friend?
[You have to pause here, and let your humbled heart marvel.]
I love His name, I love His word;
Join all my powers to praise the Lord!"
Yes, look up at those stars tonight, and then ponder--that mighty Sovereign of that vast universe is YOUR FATHER! Yes, and your FRIEND.

All because of His Son Jesus, who has fully adopted you into that "Family of God" (see Eph. 3:14, 15), at an infinite cost. He actually died for you, died your second death, suffered hell in your behalf. Think that one through; how can you possibly go on being selfish? You CAN'T--not if you believe the Good News (see 2 Cor. 5:14, 15).

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: July 16, 1998.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

A Time to Be Awake for Joy

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

The Bible is crystal clear: we are living "in the last days" (2 Tim. 3:1); "the time of the end" (Dan. 12:4); the time for us to "endure" until then (Matt. 24:13); the time when we are to "watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord will come" (vs. 42); the time when we are to "take heed to [our]selves, lest at any time [our] hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on [us] unexpectedly" (Luke 21:34). The "time of the end" is "today" (Heb. 3:13).

We are living in the very time described in Revelation 14:8 and 18:1-4 when "the present truth" (2 Peter 1:12) shouts in our ears that "Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city," the very time when God calls to everyone whose heart has been stirred by the sacrifice of Christ on His cross, "'Come out of her, My people, lest you share in her sins.'" You simply can't enjoy the opulence and arrogant pride of "that great city" if you appreciate the atonement of Christ. You have seen "the Lord sitting on a throne high and lifted up" and have seen yourself as "unclean" in that light which streams from the cross (Isa. 6:1-5). If you are dallying in "Babylon," you are miserable. You want out.

What it boils down to is that we are living in that unique time of "the day of atonement." It's not the one literal day of the year that Jews observe as "Yom Kippur;" it's the grand original, the antitypical, cosmic, REAL "Day of Atonement" that was prefigured in the Israelite sanctuary services of long ago. Now is the grand time that the angel described to Daniel as "then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." It has come on time after the 2300 "days," 2300 literal years, which the angel singled out as "the appointed time" to bring us to this "time of the end" (8:14; 11:35; 12:4). It's the important time when Daniel said, "the wise shall understand" (12:10). It's the same time that Jesus spoke of, "Watch therefore, and pray always, that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man." It's a time to be awake for joy (Luke 21:36).

Around the world there are millions who are waking up; they believe that those 2300 years have expired as Daniel said. They see that the world is now in the ongoing fulfillment of Revelation 14, and has been ever since the early part of the 19th century (since 1844, to be exact, for the Bible prophecies are exact). This is the time when the great angel proclaims "to every ... tongue, and people, … 'the hour of [God's] judgment has come'" (vss. 6, 7), the time for the greatest joy the world has ever known.

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: May 5, 2004.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

Your Heavenly Bank Account

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Our lesson today is: "How to Learn to Believe Your Prayer is Already Answered." Such faith is a pre-requisite for ANY prayer to BE answered! (Heb. 11:6; Matt. 21:22; a difficult lesson for most people, including me). Well, here's the story of the "Unknown Bank Deposit."
As a missionary to Africa on furlough in America, we had saved up $300 to buy a kerosene refrigerator to take back to hot, humid Uganda. And not needing the money right away, I had lent it to a farmer-friend in my hometown whose pickup truck had been repossessed. My father didn't trust him, he said, "Robert, you've lost your money!"
Then we moved away to the University Seminary for some months. I had left a little bank account in my hometown that I didn't use for months. And not using the account for any money transfers, I had tossed the monthly statements unopened into a drawer. Time drew near to return to Uganda; we had to order that refrigerator. I watched the daily mail for a check for $300 from my friend (I was too embarrassed to bill him). I was getting desperate (in those days $300 was SOMETHING to a missionary!). Yes, my dad must be right.
The time had come to move again; must clean out those drawers. Tore open the bank envelopes--same old story, nothing in, nothing out; where's the wastebasket? But wait! What's this? A $300 credit listed months and months ago! My friend had quietly deposited it to my account and had never bothered to tell me! (My dad turned out to be wrong!) All this while I had HAD the $300 but I didn't know it!
As someone who believes in Jesus, you have an account in a heavenly bank. Just as I hadn't needed that $300 until time to go back to Africa, your Savior keeps the deposit in your account until it's time for you to write the requisite check. He keeps quiet about it like my friend; you'll save yourself a lot of needless stress if you'll choose to believe what He says: "All things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive" (Matt. 21:22).
Sometimes you already HAVE things that you haven't yet RECEIVED. There's a difference!
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: November 9, 2000.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

A Psalm Especially for the Elderly

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Some things the Bible says are especially addressed to young people, who are sensible if they read, ponder, and "listen" to what the Holy Spirit says. And there are also some things that the Bible says to elderly people, who will be wise if they listen.

David wrote Psalm 71 especially for them: (a) Verse 1, it is not God's will that you be "confused." (b) Verse 2, God hears your prayers. (c) Verse 3, the Lord is your only sure refuge, not the hospitals or the doctors, or Social Security, or your insurance policy. (d) Verse 4, the Lord does not want you to fall under the many current attempts to hoodwink the elderly. (e) Verse 6, remember God's care for you when you were a baby. (f) Verse 8, don't let any complaint come out of your lips; only praise to the Lord (you DO have something to be thankful for, don't you?). (g) Verse 9, remember that you are alive only because the Lord is with you; trust Him not to "cast [you] off in the time of old age." (h) Verse 14, even in "old age" it is your privilege to be youthful in spirit so you can "hope continually." When hope is gone, nothing remains but burial and you don't want that! (i) Verse 15, as long as you have breath and you can say something, you will declare God's "righteousness and salvation." That means you will keep your mind active by studying the truths of the Bible, especially the truth of "righteousness and salvation" by faith. (j) Verse 16: as you do so, you will receive new "strength." (k) Verse 17, now you can rejoice for having learned what the Lord has been teaching you "from [your] youth." (l) Verse 18, are you "greyheaded"? OK, then you have some work yet to do: to show the Lord's "strength unto this [younger] generation, and [His] power to every one that is to come." There is somebody in the world that needs your testimony of praise to the Lord, and even more than that, who needs the articulation of the Good News gospel that you can communicate. (m) And verse 20: the best preventative against Alzheimer's is to endure "great and sore troubles" that God "shows" you because He gives you new life ("quickens" you), not only physically but mentally and spiritually.
It's all Good News. Make a choice to believe it.

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: June 13, 2000.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org


Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

Deciding Who We Are

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

A wise writer once made this statement: "True Christians will have an experience like that of Christ in the wilderness of temptation, especially those who engage in rescuing souls from the snares of Satan."
What "experience" did Christ have in His Matthew 4 temptation? A terrible ordeal calculated to shake His confidence in God's leading in His life. "IF You are the Son of God ..." was the repeated, insistent doubt flung at Him by the clever, subtle tempter. Several significant factors made up the picture:
(1) The Father had just acknowledged Him openly to be "My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." The principle: whenever one is on a pinnacle of faith one is almost immediately plunged into an abyss of temptation to doubt one's identity "in Christ."
(2) All human appearances supported the contentions of the tempter. Christ was apparently forsaken of God alone in a wilderness with no companions except wild beasts (Mark 1:13). His 40 days of fasting had reduced Him physically so that Isaiah 52:14 was fulfilled: "His visage was so marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men." Satan had a point: How can you think you are the beloved Son of God when You have been abandoned and You look wretched like You do? God would surely take better care of You IF You were His beloved Son! Be sensible! Confess that Your idea that You are His Son is foolish fanaticism! The ultimate issue was more than mere physical appetite (although that was involved); the ultimate issue at stake was His identity. If Satan could shake Him on that, His ministry and His coming sacrifice would be a failure.
(3) The tempter disguised his identity, too. Satan appeared to be an angel of light fresh from the throne of God with a message of mercy for poor, suffering Jesus: "I have come to help You relieve Your hunger. IF You are the Son of God, be sensible: act like it! Command that these stones become bread. You can do it! Why perish here right at the beginning of Your wonderful ministry?"
Jesus had to decide who He was. So must you and I decide: who are we, "in Christ," by His adoption?
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: July 24, 2000.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

"We Shall Not All Die"

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

One of the most popular axioms that many people have on their lips, even the most righteous who say they wait for the second coming of Christ, is this: "Death awaits all of us, everybody has to die." You see the statement over and over in church publications. It's just taken for granted everywhere.

But the Bible squarely and directly contradicts it.

"We shall not all die," says the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:51.

Then he explains more minutely what will happen, in 1 Thessalonians 4: "We who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord" (vss. 15-17).

Yes, there will be some people who will be "alive and remain" at the coming of Christ, who will be ready to meet Him, and who will be translated.

Obviously they will have "overcome, even as [Christ] overcame" (Rev. 3:21). Although they are living in the same "flesh" and "nature" all of Adam's descendants have always lived in, they will have "condemned sin in the flesh," even as Christ did (cf. Rom. 8:3).

If everybody has to die on and on, century after century, and millennium after millennium, how could Christ win the "great controversy" with Satan? This nearly universal axiom is not good gospel news. It's just not truth.

Just because some sincere Christians were disappointed 166 years ago does not mean that this fundamental truth of the gospel is not true. We must never abandon this good news!

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: Exact date unknown.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

The "Great Disappointment"

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

It happened 166 years ago--a group of people joined a New York Baptist farmer, William Miller, in expecting the Lord Jesus Christ to return in fulfillment of His promise, "I will come again" on a certain date, October 22, 1844.

Of course, they were mistaken and their experience became known as "the Great Disappointment," for it was widely publicized. Their belief grew out of the study of Daniel 8:14, "Unto 2300 days [which they correctly understood as literal years], then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." It was the general assumption in the churches that "the sanctuary" is this earth to be cleansed with fire at the second coming. The assumption was wrong but they had the date right: "the sanctuary" is the heavenly one to be cleansed by the heart preparation of a people ready to meet Jesus when He does return.

Does the genuine Holy Spirit ever permit people to be "disappointed" if they haven't studied? Yes! He permitted the Lord's disciples to suffer a terrible disappointment in His crucifixion, because they misunderstood the event. The true Holy Spirit was working in that 1844 movement for it heralded the beginning of Christ's closing ministry as High Priest in the Most Holy Apartment ministry of the heavenly sanctuary, just as Pentecost heralded the beginning of His ministry in the first apartment.

But the ridicule heaped on William Miller has burgeoned into a dislike to think of anyone living to see Jesus return. "Everybody will die" is freely said repeatedly; but the apostle Paul boldly says the opposite: "Listen! I will unfold a mystery: we shall not all die, but we shall all be changed in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet-call. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will rise immortal, and we shall be changed" (1 Cor. 15:50-52, NEB).

Now the question faces us: is the second coming of Christ near? Can we still cherish what Paul also said is the "blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ"? (Titus 2:11-14).
In our zeal to ridicule that sincere and godly Baptist minister of long ago let's not sacrifice a fundamental Bible truth for today. Jesus is coming again--soon. And He intends that people now living will see Him come.
(More tomorrow.)

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: Exact date unknown.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

The Way of the Cross

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

How were you born? A sinner, a selfish person by nature? Or were you born neutral? Or perhaps, were you born righteous and unselfish? (I have known some people who seem so beautifully unselfish that I have been tempted to think they were born that way!)
We know of one man who was born selfish, and that fact is rather disturbing, because no one is going to get into heaven at last except as one of his "children." According to Genesis 25:22, while he was in the womb of his mother Rebecca, Jacob was already busy at strife: "and the children struggled together within her" (KJV), "pressed hard on each other" (NEB), "jostled each other" (NIV), "struggled against each other" (GNB). And when in verse 26 Esau was born a few minutes earlier than he, he grabbed his heel as if to pull him back, "wait, I want to be first!" Isaiah reports God saying, "O house of Jacob, ... thou wast called a transgressor from the womb" (48:1, 8). Hosea says, "The Lord ... will punish Jacob, ... he took his brother by the heel in the womb" (12:2, 3).
Bad beginning!
But before we say, "Too bad, Jacob! You were worse than the rest of us!," let's remember Romans 3:10, "There is none righteous, no not one." Even my wonderfully unselfish friends weren't born that way; they had to learn it. And the Good News is that we can learn it from the Savior of the world!
Recognizing that Jacob was born selfish and a sinner in fact does not support the traditional doctrine of "original sin," which says that the guilt of sin is transmitted genetically by the genes. It simply means that Jacob like all of us was born self-centered; and if you don't know about the principle of the cross, inevitably you do the only thing you know to do--BE selfish. But we can learn the way of the cross. And that's the wonderful Good News!
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: June 27, 1998.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

The Good News That's Coming

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Suppose any Christian denomination claims to be the ONE true church described in the Bible: would such a claim be necessarily arrogant? Is there is no one TRUE church on earth? And suppose somewhere on earth ONE true church does meet the doctrinal criteria in the Bible, but it is so plagued with internal confusion and apostasy and backsliding that it can make no credible claim before the world, does that mean that it will never be healed and purified?
Bible teaching may seem at present unattained, but that does not mean that it is unattainable, given the leading and ministry of the Holy Spirit of God plus that there are at least some people on earth who are honest at heart who will respond to His leading. (If the latter is not true, then it must be obvious that Christ died for nothing!)
Scripture speaks of "one body, and one Spirit, ... one Lord, one faith, one baptism" (Eph. 4:4, 5). It speaks of a people who "keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus" (Rev. 14:12), a "remnant ... seed" emerging after centuries of the Dark Ages as those distinguished who "keep the commandments of God, and [who] have the testimony of Jesus" (12:17). They are distinct from "Babylon," a false system of worship that will deceive "all that dwell upon the earth" except those "whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of life" (13:8). They will bear a witness to earth and heaven that it is possible for an organized, corporate "body" of believers in Christ to "follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth" who stand displayed before the universe as a corporate body "in [whose] mouth is found no guile, for they are without fault before the throne of God" (14:4, 5). They will eventually be the fulfillment of Paul's vision of a "glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing, but ... holy and without blemish" (Eph. 5:27).
In all honesty, one must admit that there is no such "spotless church" on earth today, but if the Bible is true, someday there will be. What will accomplish such a transformation? (1) There's a hint in Ephesians 5:2: the proclamation of agape, which (2) will result in the experience of justification by faith (Rom. 5:8-11). If such a "church" is reconciled to God, it will also be reconciled to God's holy law. Good News--that's coming.
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: October 18, 1999.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

Nduri (Part 2)

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Nduri was the little African widow living in a village on the slopes of Mt. Kenya who had been taught by the Presbyterian missionaries to reverence the Bible and the worship of God (thank God for their work!). In her "family worship" one day she read Hebrews 7, the story of the strange man, "Melchisedec," who served God all alone, "without father, without mother" (vs. 3). She briefly marveled that any one could serve God all alone like that.

Then she hurried to sell her beans in the market, but no success for three days. In desperation, she walks many miles, dodging elephants, to Tharaka, where people always have cash for beans. There she listens to Pastor Solomon explain Bible truths she had never dreamed were therein;--the second coming of the Lord Jesus, the thousand years of Revelation 20, the glorious new earth yet to be created, we humans being mortal await immortality as a gift from Christ at His coming, and on and on. The pastor's sermon probably lasted all morning; he told everything he knew, including the news about the holy seventh day Sabbath of the Lord.
As he pleaded with the congregation for a decision to follow Jesus all the way, renouncing the world and its sinful ways, trusting in Him, taking up the cross to follow Jesus, her heart thrilled; she wanted to say "Yes!" but then she thought, "How can I serve the Lord all alone in my little village? I would be the only one there who kept the Sabbath as the Bible says we should; no, I'm afraid that being all alone I might not remain faithful!"

But then like a flash there popped into her mind that story about that strange man, "Melchisedec."

"If he could serve the Lord all alone, I can, too!" Then came that smile of victory.

I get into the story later, because when I came up and met her, she asked me to baptize her, to seal her decision to follow Jesus every step of the way. (I'll never forget that clear ice water in that stream that flowed from Mt. Kenya's snow.) Until her death, Nduri remained an inspiration to many in Kenya, and those around the world who have heard her story.

Don't despise the littleness of your witness for Jesus!

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: May 15, 2007.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

Nduri (Part 1)

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

It's a fascinating story of how the plain, simple Bible, well, in this instance the New Testament only, brings joy to uneducated people. It happened on the slopes of Mt. Kenya where little streams flow down from the melted snow.

Nduri, a poor African widow lived in a little hut where she loved her Kikuyu New Testament. She had just enough education to know how to read it haltingly. The English Presbyterian Church had done a wonderful mission work among this people, giving them this portion of the Bible in their own language and opening schools for them. Some saint of God had taught Nduri to have "family worship," even though her family was only herself; each day, before going to work in her bean field she would read a portion, and pray.
Today she must sell some beans in the market because she needs money to buy a little soap, salt, and kerosene for her lamp. She spreads little piles of beans on her banana leaf, and awaits customers. Her Scripture reading this morning happens to be Hebrews 7:1-4 about a strange man named "Melchisedec," who served God all alone, "without father, without mother." She wondered, how could anyone serve God like that, all alone with no family?

But not a bean does she sell today. She tries again tomorrow; same economic disaster; again the third day. Amazed, for this has never happened before, Nduri gets desperate; she is out of soap, salt, and kerosene. So she walks many miles to Tharaka, dodging the elephants, where the people can't grow anything to eat but they raise goats to sell; they always have cash to buy beans.

She times her arrival for early morning, anxious to get to that market. My personal friend, Pastor Solomon Ngoroi, is holding a series of evangelistic meetings in our little prayer chapel and is walking up and down the road inviting people to come. Nduri tells him she loves the Bible, etc., but sorry, she must get to the market and sell her bag of beans. The pastor assumes the posture of a prophet, looks her in the eye, and solemnly assures her: if she will come, the Lord will sell those beans.

The mystery happens--"deep calleth unto deep" (Psalm 42:7); Nduri recognizes the Holy Spirit in the strange pastor's invitation. She comes, drops her heavy bag of beans in the back of the meeting place, and listens eagerly.

"Melchisedec" gets into the picture now, and later I do; but we'll tell the rest tomorrow, the Lord willing.

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: May 14, 2007.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

Does Your Switch Turn the Lights On, or Off?

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Does your switch turn the lights On, or Off?

Perhaps you have been in the habit of thinking that the switch in your house turns the electricity on. Wrong! Your electricity is turned on at the power house, and it is flooding your house, wires running all over, ready to run your stove, lights, vacuum cleaner, whatever. 24 hours a day. Your switch turns it off, otherwise your lights would be on all the time!

Likewise, your decision to follow Christ is not what turns His salvation on; He has already given you the gift of His salvation. That's what John 3:16 is saying; it is your unbelief that turns the gift off. Our salvation is 100 percent due to God's initiative, not to our own in any way. But we let Him save us; by repentance, we stop turning the switch off! "The blessings of salvation are for every soul. Nothing but his own choice can prevent any man from becoming a partaker of the promise in Christ by the gospel" (The Desire of Ages, p. 403).

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: Septemer 10, 1999.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. Th e "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

A "Relationship" With Jesus

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

We hear and read at length about the need for us to develop and maintain a "relationship" with Jesus. The problem is that many people don't know how to do that. They feel frustrated that their (a) reading the Bible, (b) their prayers, and (c) their "witnessing" don't get anywhere. They wonder frankly, HOW do you build or maintain a "relationship" that's one-sided? "Jesus doesn't say anything to us!" And their Bible study turns out to be boring. Some get discouraged and stop trying.

What they need is Good News that is better than they have thought it is. Here are three brief points of how good that Good News is:

(1) Jesus isn't waiting for you to initiate or even "maintain" a "relationship" with him. He Himself has taken the initiative to build it: "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you," He says ever so plainly in John 15:16. What He is wondering about is how He can build a one-sided relationship with YOU! He has made all the advances; your job is to respond--which is what it means "to believe." He did all the loving and the giving FIRST (take another look at John 3:16).

(2) He seeks to maintain the relationship through the daily, even hourly prompting of the Holy Spirit: "Thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left" (Isa. 30:21). "The Father ... will give you another Helper, who will stay with you forever. He is the Spirit, who reveals the truth about God" (John 14:16, 17, GNB). Yes, that's true; believe it. He WILL stay with you unless YOU take the initiative to drive Him off. Yes, the ball is in your court.

(3) Please read Isaiah 50:4, 5. Get it? The elusive "relationship" is on, unless YOU choose to be "rebellious."

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: September 15, 1997.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

"Come ... Unto Me"

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

The Lord has mercy on anyone who has sinned away his life and confesses the truth. The Savior knows what failure feels like--no one has ever been "forsaken of God" as He on His cross; that experience has enabled Him ever after to sympathize with people who at last know they deserve to be forsaken of God, and feel heartbroken.

The Bible is full of "come's," inviting those who know they have sinned:

(1) "Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden" (Matt. 11:28, KJV). Who? The angst-laden souls convicted of sin by the Holy Spirit.

(2) "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink" (John 7:37). Note: the invitation is specific: just those who are thirsty. You must feel it.

(3) "Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Matt. 25:34). This "come" will be spoken in the last Judgment Day, but if you come to Him as a sinner today you will revel in anticipating those words at last, for you will know and believe today that the kingdom was prepared for you from that long ago. That's included in justification by faith.

(4) In the wild storm on the lake, Peter saw Jesus walking on the water and begged, "'Lord, … command me to come to You on the water.' So He said, 'Come'" (Matt. 14:25-29). He was totally unfit to walk on water, yet the Lord did not discourage him from doing what he wanted. He never discourages you in your desire to honor Him and to bless your fellowmen.

(5) "He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. Then Jesus said to them, "Come after Me, and I will make you to become fishers of men" (Mark 1:17). How can He make you become a soul-winner? Simon and Andrew have moved aside; the call is now to you. Keep on "following [Him]." "Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days. Give a serving to seven, and also to eight" (Eccl 11:1, 2). That's a promise of soul-winning success. Be patient, and let it be fulfilled in you.

(6) "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid [hinder] them" (Mark 10:14). We must pray for forgiveness for blocking their way so often! When they see us as humble fellow-sinners, they will respond.

(7) To rich and powerful people (in this context), Jesus says, "'Come, take up the cross and follow Me.'" We (He means all of us) are "to sell whatever you have and give to the poor'" (10:21). At this juncture on His great, final Day of Atonement, that makes good sense.

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: November 1, 2006.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

"What Is Faith?"

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

"What is faith?" It's important, because only those who have faith won't "perish" at last, says John 3:16. Millions accept the little boy's definition, "Faith is believin' what you know ain't true." Church members who believe that definition are lukewarm.

A popular definition of faith is: "faith equals trust. You trust God and that's faith!" But what they don't notice is that "trust" always involves an egocentric motivation. As long as we serve God with a self-centered motivation we are either "under the law" (Rom 6:14) or at best lukewarm. The Yemen al Qaeda suicide bombers who blew up the USS Cole [October 12, 2000] "trusted Allah" that in their suicide they would go to Paradise; is that "faith"? So, many Christians "trust God" like we trust our insurance company, or trust the police, or trust our doctors--always with an egocentric motivation. And lukewarmness is the natural result.
Two New Testament words for "trust" are peitho and elpizo, neither of which is the word for faith (believing). The New Testament word "to believe" is pisteuo, an entirely different idea. Jesus Himself must define "faith" for us: "God so [1] loved the world [with agape] that [2] He gave His only begotten Son, that [3] whosoever believeth [the verb for faith] in Him should [4] not perish, but [5] have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

It's simple and it's clear: genuine faith is a heart-melting appreciation of God's loving and His giving! It includes trust, yes; but it precedes trust. It depends on understanding what it cost God to give His Son, and what it cost Him to sacrifice Himself for us. And that is precisely what Satan doesn't want the world to understand! Thus he has invented the false doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul which requires that Christ did not truly die on His cross; it short circuits agape and obscures the cross like clouds enveloping snow-clad Kilimanjaro. If you can't SEE agape, then your so-called faith is nothing more than like trusting your bank-- no melting of the heart involved. The natural result: Laodicea's lukewarmness--that's what sickens Christ.

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: October 19, 2000.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

"Bloom" Where the Lord Has "Planted" You

When we become a bit more mature than our youthful years, we can agree with the apostle Paul: "I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think" (Rom. 12:3). When we overcome our pride and arrogance, that counsel becomes easier for us; but the rest of the verse is now our problem: "but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith."

It's comparatively easy to denigrate ourselves, to say with John the Baptist of everyone else, "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30). We can easily consider ourselves "less than the least of all saints" (Eph. 3:8), "unprofitable servants" (Luke 17:10), "the chief of sinners" (1 Tim. 1:15). All that is healthful spiritual modesty.

What's difficult is coming to where we "think soberly" about ourselves: we're neither somebody great nor are we everybody's doormat. Where are we? Who are we? Oh, God! Give us common sense! Teach us how to avoid pride yet hold our head high--to be what You have ordained us to be, and to be happy there. Not to be more nor to be less.

Regarding that "measure of faith" that He has "dealt" to us: the Greek word is metron, a capacity for faith. It's not impossible for anyone on earth to believe [have faith] in Christ and be saved eternally. God has given you the capacity; now open the closed door of the heart and receive as much of "the faith of Jesus" as you want to have. Then hold your head high in healthful humility as you "bloom" where the Lord has "planted" you.

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: October 6, 2005.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

Hope and Courage From Hannah

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Back in 1831, William Miller of Low Hampton, New York, had a burden on his heart: he was convinced by the Holy Spirit that someone must tell the world the news that we are living in Daniel's time of the end, Jesus is coming again, and the Bible indicates that it will be soon. But he felt wholly incompetent to tell anyone.
He was a modern "Hannah" of First Samuel one; his frustration and despair were similar in spirit to hers. He had a yearning to do something he felt wholly incapable of doing, the equivalent of Hannah wanting to become pregnant and bearing a son but facing the frustration of the Lord "shutting up" her womb.

All through the centuries and millennia, Israelite women each longed for the privilege of becoming the mother of the promised Messiah (a promise extending all the way from Genesis 3:15!); finally, extended time came to the Virgin Mary of Nazareth.

Mary suffered the shame and frustration of her "low estate" (Luke 1:48). In some intimate way it paralleled Hannah's. True, she was engaged to be married to Joseph, who was obviously a widower; but he already had four sons whose names are given us in Matthew 13:55; Mary felt the same kind of frustration that Hannah had felt because the poem Mary wrote at her jubilation was patterned literary-wise after the poem that Hannah wrote at her jubilation of answered prayer (1 Sam. 2:1-10).

But the story of Hannah is written again in God's annals over and over as sincere servants of God wrestle with the same despair that Hannah wrestled with--the thought that in some way God has "shut their womb" in that He has apparently frustrated their desire to proclaim the message or do the work they feel constrained to do. They keep asking, "Master, hast Thou work for me?" only to have doors closed against them.
May such learn hope and courage from dear Hannah. And let them learn from Jesus' wrestling with 30 years of boring carpenter work when His whole soul longed for freedom to assert His Father-given Messiahship. But finally His "hour" came. So will yours. Hang on! In faith!

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: August 25, 2007.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

Hannah's Magnificent Poem

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

This week millions of Christians will be giving special study to Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel. She knew exquisite sorrow; a first wife of Elkanah and truly loved by him, she was childless and deeply pained by his taking a second wife, Peninnah, in order for him to have children. It was a solemn duty for every Israelite man to have some male progeny, otherwise there was an idea that his name would somehow be blotted out of the book of life.

Hannah was the "fall guy" in this drama. For a wife not to be able to get pregnant was tantamount to a slap in the face from God. Hannah bore this disgrace humbly, which was sorrow enough for any woman to endure; but now with fecund Peninnah mocking her and strutting over her even at the dinner table with taunts and ridicule, it became more than Hannah could bear.

Husband Elkanah tried to comfort her with his love, but did not know how to comfort her with God's love; so Hannah took a desperate step. She challenged God with a vow: if He would give her what every Israelite wife yearns for, a male child, she would give him back to the Lord. For any mother this was a prodigious, life-long sacrifice to make!

It happened; and in her joy she wrote her magnificent poem of triumph over Peninah who to her represented the taunts of Satan (1 Sam. 2:1-10).

Another woman in the Bible story later appropriated Hannah's poem of gratitude over humiliation reversed, and re-wrote it as her "Magnificat" in Luke 1:46-55, expressing her burst of joy over the reversal of what had been her particular "low estate" (tapeinosin, Greek). The human mother of our Savior was herself already "acquainted with grief." Jesus is the divine Son of God; but He is also in a very intimate sense "the Son of man." Close to you.

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: August 24, 2007.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

The "Forgiveness Kit"

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Suppose you have done something or said something that is wrong and you know it. You feel burdened; the joy of life is gone. Now it's a dark and cloudy day. What do you do?

Well, first of all, welcome to the worldwide club of people who know they are sinners. Maybe you didn't know you had the capability of doing or saying what you did that is wrong. The truth is, there is no end to our capability for sin. A wise writer says that when Jesus was hanging on His cross, He realized how bad a person can become. That is why He cried out, "My God, why have You forsaken Me?" If our Savior were to let go of our hand, we could fall, fall, fall. There's no end to the depth we would go. Remember, your salvation does not depend on you holding on to His hand; it depends on your believing that He is holding on to your hand.

So, what do you do now?

You find a chance as soon as possible to get on your knees before the Savior (not some earthly priest, or psychiatrist please!), and confess your sin to Him.

The whole thing; with no attempt to justify yourself or plea bargain. Tell Him that you are Peter sinking in the waves in the storm on Galilee, and you join him in crying out, "Lord, save me or I perish!"

Second, ask Him to forgive you of your sin.

Third believe what He says in 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins."

Fourth, believe what else He says there, "and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." The true "forgiveness kit" comes complete with a brand-new attachment--a new hatred for the sin itself.

That little gift that comes in the package is not based upon fear, but heart-sorrow for wounding the Savior. It's new evidence to you personally of a miracle. So, from now on, any doubt that He loves you personally is washed away by this new personal miracle--utterly impossible for "sinful you" unless the Holy Spirit has worked in your heart. You don't naturally hate sin; naturally, you love it; so this newly implanted hatred for the sin is personal evidence that Christ is risen from the dead, He's alive, and He is your High Priest in the heavenly sanctuary. Yes, that is Good News!

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: April 7, 2003. Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland. Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow. --------------------------------------------------------------------

Frustrating the Grace of God

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Nobody hates the gospel of God's "grace" like Satan does. The word is there in both Galatians and Romans (yes, and Ephesians), and he can't blot it out. So the best he can do is to "frustrate the grace of God," and inject into the idea some poisonous infiltration of legalism cleverly disguised. That's Paul's idea in Galatians 2:21 where he says, "I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain." In other words, if an iota of self-seeking pride is mixed in with our "gospel," grace is "frustrated."

Take a seven-course dinner prepared by the best gourmet chef imaginable, full of wholesome food, and add a mere 5 percent of arsenic, maybe even only 1 percent--if the dinner didn't kill you it would paralyze you. Take a sermon, an article, a book, that is 99 percent "gospel" truth full of Christian verbiage, and add 1 percent of subtle, poisonous legalism, and you have the recipe for "lukewarmness," the enervating malady that Jesus says afflicts His last-days church (Rev. 3:14-21).

Wherever human pride or self-sufficiency raises its head even a little, there you can be sure the grace of God is being somehow "frustrated." "Righteousness by the law" is the sure result. Close by Galatians 2:21 in context Paul defines what he means by "grace": "before [your] eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified" (3:1). The people in Paul's Galatian audience forgot who they were, where they were, for he brought them to the cross and they saw, "comprehended," "the width and length and depth and height" of the revelation of that grace (Eph. 3:18, 19), as if they were at Calvary itself. They responded with what Paul called "the hearing of faith," precisely the same as Abraham's response ("he believed" when God preached the gospel to him, Gal. 3:6-8).

I walk softly here; I tread on holy ground; here is the solemn truth behind all the "frustration" of confusion about the gospel that so afflicts the modern lukewarm church. "Who is sufficient for these things?" (2 Cor. 2:16).

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: May 19, 2000.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

Is Christ's Nature Important for Us to Understand?

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Is it really important for us to understand what kind of nature Christ "took" or "assumed" when He became human and was born as a Baby in Bethlehem? If He lived a good life and died a good death in our place so we can be saved, is that not enough to know and believe? Why bother trying to study any deeper into what the Bible says about who He is?

Well, there is a big "THEREFORE" in Hebrews 4:16 that ties the closeness of Jesus to us with our "obtaining mercy" and "finding grace to help in time of need." Knowing the truth about the nature of Christ is necessary in order to know HOW to "come ... unto the throne of grace." If we don't know that truth, we wander in foggy confusion. The word of God is so clear that a child can understand the truth: Christ "was in all points tempted LIKE as we are, yet without sin. Let us THEREFORE come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."

The mercy is there, but we must OBTAIN it; the grace is there, but we must FIND it. The "time of need" is with us always--and for sure you and I will have that "need" today.

Christ's Enemy in the "great controversy" is determined to confuse the world by presenting Christ as not truly tempted in "ALL points ... like as we are." Satan cannot stop us from talking and singing about Christ, but if we don't appreciate how He was "made LIKE unto His brethren," how "He also Himself LIKEWISE took part of the same" "flesh and blood" as we have, we humans inevitably end up being slaves to the sinful impulses of our "flesh and blood." It's not a puzzle for theologians to wrangle about. Children and teens can SEE the truth.

Was Jesus tempted as a youth "LIKE AS" Joseph was tempted by Potiphar's wife in Egypt? What held Joseph in that crisis was FINDING that "grace to help in time of need."

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: March 26, 2002.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

"Even So It Is Now"!

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

What motivates good, sincere people to persecute others who differ from them in religious conviction? The opposition can take cruel forms. Wars have been fought over religion. The United States was "conceived" by a desire to escape religious persecution (said Lincoln).

Thank God we don't now throw theological opponents into prison or burn them at the stake, but we malign them, seek to destroy reputations, slam doors against them, misrepresent them. What's back of this strange phenomenon of unrighteous indignation that blazes forth against someone who differs from us in biblical interpretation?

The answer is--our obsession with the Old Covenant. History is clear: those who love the New Covenant NEVER persecute others! Paul himself was a fanatical follower of the Old Covenant who couldn't stand to watch the New Covenant apostles proclaim gospel Good News. He thought their message destroyed his keep-the-law theology. He misunderstood them--their gospel was the only way anyone truly could become a "doer of the law," but he felt he had to "punish them oft in every synagogue, ... and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities" (Acts 26:11). His zeal for the Old Covenant even led to murder. All, supposedly "righteous"! (And highly popular.)

When finally he discovered the New Covenant, he saw something he had never seen before: Ishmael, the son of the Old Covenant Hagar, "persecuted him that was born after the Spirit," that is, Isaac. "Even so it is now," he added (Gal. 4:29). That brought him to his knees--in his frenzy against the apostles he saw he was acting out the role of Ishmael!

"Even so it is now"! Old Covenant obsession is spiritual poison. If it doesn't outright kill your devotion to Jesus and His church, it weakens it so it becomes "lukewarm." Many Christian youth lose their way because they have been taught Old Covenant concepts under the guise of "Christian education" in church or school. Lord, please help our blindness!

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: November 9, 2002.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

"A Time to Speak"

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

The Wise Man, King Solomon (who also lost much of his God-given wisdom through apostasy) declared that there is "a time to keep silence, and a time to speak" (Eccl. 3:7). Knowing when to do either, and the courage to do it, is our day-by-day task. When the Son of God became one of us in the flesh, He would rise early in the morning and seek His Father's tuition for the day (Isa. 50:4, 5).

When Jesus was arrested, bound and dragged to the house of Caiaphas, He asked the murderous police to "let these [His disciples] go their way" while He would suffer alone for them (John 18:8).

But Jesus also was ready to "speak" up before the high priest in courageous fearlessness. When the cruel "officer ... struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, … Jesus answered him, If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil: but if well, why smitest thou Me?" (vss. 20-23). That was love on the part of Jesus; He tried to save that man's soul by appealing to his awareness of justice. For ought we know, the man may later have repented, for Jesus prayed for His murderers, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34), and the Father answered that prayer.

The courage Jesus showed in rebuking the man straightforwardly when He knew he could retaliate with greater evil, is an inspiration to us. Jesus could have spoken up as He did only if in Him, self was already crucified. Solomon was right--"there is ... a time to speak," and Jesus knew when His had come.
O Father! Please prepare us for when our "time to speak" may "come"!

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: October 8, 2006.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

Assurances of the Heavenly Father's Unending Love

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

The Bible is full of comforting, encouraging assurances of the heavenly Father's unending love. He is the "wonderful Counselor" (Isa. 9:6) who alone understands us and all the labrynthine details of our lives since our conception (Psalm 139:7-17).

When the Bible pleads with us, "Be reconciled to God" (2 Cor. 5:20), the plea is for us to believe His character of love, that infinite though He is as the Ruler of the universe and His Milky Way, He is also the personal, intimate "our Father which art in heaven" whose heart yearns for you and me as if we were the only person for whom the Savior gave His eternal life.

His close, intimate love goes both ways--(a) forward into our future ("I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee," Heb. 13:5); and (b) backward to our very conception in the womb of our mother, according to that psalm.

We can't "do" anything to earn salvation in the least; when the jailer in Philippi asked the apostles what he should "do to be saved" they told him frankly, "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 16:30, 31). That means again, "be reconciled to God," without which heart humbling all our law-keeping is vain.

We sometimes think that the book of Hebrews in the New Testament is over our heads; but after his brilliant teaching in chapters 1-12, Paul ends up in chapter 13 with a humble, simple, heart-warming request for us to "pray for HIM" as though he is as needy as any of us (vs. 18). So we get down on our knees here side by side with "our beloved brother Paul" (2 Peter 3:15), just as though he is with us in our little weekly prayer meeting; just like us, he prays for "a good conscience."

As we face our future confident that the Lord will never "forsake us" or let go of our "right hand" (Isa. 41:13), so in our past let's trust that He has led us unerringly. Part of our being "reconciled" to Him includes that confidence that His leading in our past has been only faithful love.

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: September 9, 2006.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.

The Final Gift of the Holy Spirit

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Devout Jews are monotheists; they believe in one true God, the Creator of heaven and earth. They believe their Bible, which is the Old Testament.

They still gather together at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem and pray for the coming of their Messiah, believing that He is still due to come.

We would like to tap them on the shoulder and say to them, You are wasting your time praying for a Messiah yet to come; the true One has already come in Jesus of Nazareth, whom your ancestors crucified. Just as the Jews pray for a yet-to-come Messiah, so devout Christians pray for God to send “the latter rain” outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The “former rain” was the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost two millennia ago; now “the latter rain” must come as the ancient rains came when the barley harvest had sprouted under what they called “the former rain” and had grown to a certain level of maturity but needed another rainy spell in order to ripen for the farmer’s harvest.

So the Bible promises that in the last days the Father will open the windows of heaven and grant a final gift of the Holy Spirit to prepare all who choose to worship the one true God to be ready for the glorious second coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The biblical illustration is beautifully clear.

When you think of the Bible story, it’s obvious that there is irreverence implicit in praying for “the Messiah” to come when the truth is that He has already come! (It still implies a deep unbelief. Before the end, many devout Jews will recognize this overwhelming truth and experience a corporate repentance in behalf of their race. They will demonstrate it by reading and believing the New Testament and sharing the good news.)
Would there not be the same unbelief in the hearts of Christians begging the Father to send the latter rain of the Holy Spirit if He has already done so, but in blindness and pride they (via their ancestors) had rejected the gift? Prayer is serious business, and Heaven takes it seriously; we need to search and discover the truth how “the Lord in His great mercy sent a most precious message” that proved to be “the beginning” of the Loud Cry and of its necessarily attendant latter rain.

All true-hearted believers in Jesus will respond heartily. And then recover and proclaim the message.

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: February 13, 2007.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.

Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.