
It’s surprisingly easy to create an idol, even out of the good things God has given. Learn about the power behind idols, and discover how futile and dangerous it is to worship anything other than the one true God. Join us on Truth For Life with Alistair Begg.
From the Sermon
“Behold Your God!” — Part Two
Isaiah 40:12–31 Sermon • Includes Transcript • 50:59 • ID: 3474
A Life of Urgency
As he took his leave of the Ephesian elders in Acts 20, the apostle Paul felt an urgent compulsion from the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. He had no idea what would happen to him when he got there, but he had a clear sense that hard times and imprisonment awaited him. Then he made this staggering statement: “I do not account my life of any value.”
This was not masochism—some strange hatred of happiness, health, or physical life. So what, then, did Paul mean by declaring his life valueless? Simply this: that he did not regard his life as so precious a possession as to be held on to at all costs.
People often say, “Well, as long as you’ve got your health, that’s all that matters!” But that is not all that matters! Our bodies are passing away. We’re crumbling even as we live and breathe. We may have our health today, but a day will come when we do not. Unless we’re able to say with Paul, “To live is Christ,” we cannot legitimately affirm with him, “and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). The only way that death can be gain is if Christ is everything. And if Christ is everything, as Paul says He is, then we can declare with him, My life is not ultimate. I don’t need to protect it as the most precious thing I have. I want to spend it for the most precious person I know.
What mattered most to Paul was that he finished his life trusting Christ and carried out to the best of his abilities the ministry Christ had given him. He felt a compelling resolve to complete the task of testifying to “the gospel of the grace of God” everywhere he could reach. There’s a task! There’s a purpose, significance, an agenda, a calling! And this is a task that has been entrusted to all of us—the commission to let everyone we meet know the good news of God’s amazing grace.
How are you, like Paul, to live a life of urgency so that you might keep going until the end? You must run your race with all your might, with the finish line in view. Don’t look for an opportunity to bow out or slow down before the final lap is over. Run with all your strength and run right through the tape, gripped by Christ’s love, energized by God’s Spirit, and guided by God’s word.
How is God calling me to think differently?
How is God reordering my heart’s affections — what I love?
What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Philippians 1:27–30
27Only vlet your manner of life be wworthy8 of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you xthat you are standing firm in one spirit, with yone mind zstriving side by side for the faith of the gospel, 28and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is aa clear sign to them of their destruction, but bof your salvation, and that from God. 29For cit has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also bsuffer for his sake, 30engaged in the same dconflict that eyou saw I had and now hear that I still have.
Philippians 2:1–2
Christ's Example of Humility
1So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from flove, any gparticipation in the Spirit, any haffection and sympathy, 2icomplete my joy by being jof the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

Devotional material is taken from the Truth For Life daily devotionals by Alistair Begg, published by The Good Book Company, thegoodbook.com. Used by Truth For Life with permission. Copyright © 2021, 2022, The Good Book Company.

On a Fool’s Errand?
And when David inquired of the Lord …
When David made this inquiry, he had just fought the Philistines and gained a classic victory. The Philistines came up in great numbers, but, by the help of God, David had easily put them to flight. Note, however, that when they came a second time, David did not go up to fight them without inquiring of the Lord. Once he had been victorious, and he might have said, as many have in other cases, "I shall be victorious again. I may rest quite sure that if I have conquered once I shall triumph yet again. Why should I delay by seeking God?"
Not so David. He had gained one battle by the strength of the Lord; he would not venture upon another until he had ensured the same. He inquired, "Shall I go up against them?" He waited until God's sign was given.
Learn from David to take no step without God. Christian, if you would know the path of duty, take God for your compass; if you would steer your ship through the dark billows, put the tiller into the hand of the Almighty. Many a rock might be escaped if we would let our Father take the helm; many a shoal or quicksand we might well avoid if we would leave it to His sovereign will to choose and to command.
The Puritan said, "As sure as ever a Christian carves for himself, he'll cut his own fingers." This is a great truth. Another old divine said, "He that goes before the cloud of God's providence goes on a fool's errand," and so he does. We must mark God's providence leading us; and if providence delays, wait until providence comes. He who goes before providence will be very glad to retreat.
"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go,"1 is God's promise to His people. Let us, then, take all our perplexities to Him and say, "Lord, what will you have me do?" Do not leave your house this morning without inquiring of the Lord.
1) Psalm 32:8

Devotional material is taken from Morning and Evening, written by C. H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg. Copyright © 2003, Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.org. Used by Truth For Life with written permission.
Daily Bible Reading for February 9
Joseph's Brothers Go to Egypt
1When lJacob learned that there was grain for sale in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why do you look at one another?” 2And he said, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain for sale in Egypt. Go down and buy grain for us there, that we may mlive and not die.” 3So ten of Joseph's brothers went down to buy grain in Egypt. 4But Jacob did not send Benjamin, nJoseph's brother, with his brothers, for ohe feared that harm might happen to him. 5Thus the sons of Israel came to buy among the others who came, for the famine was in the land of Canaan.
6Now Joseph was governor pover the land. He was the one who sold to all the people of the land. And Joseph's brothers came and qbowed themselves before him with their faces to the ground. 7Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he treated them like strangers and rspoke roughly to them. “Where do you come from?” he said. They said, “From the land of Canaan, to buy food.” 8And Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. 9And Joseph sremembered the dreams that he had dreamed of them. tAnd he said to them, “You are spies; you have come to see the nakedness of the land.” 10They said to him, “No, my lord, your servants have come to buy food. 11We are all sons of one man. We are honest men. Your servants have never been spies.”
12He said to them, “No, it is the nakedness of the land that you have come to see.” 13And they said, “We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan, and behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one uis no more.” 14But Joseph said to them, “It is as I said to you. You are spies. 15By this you shall be tested: by the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go from this place unless your youngest brother comes here. 16Send one of you, and let him bring your brother, while you remain confined, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you. Or else, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies.” 17And he put them all together in custody for three days.
18On the third day Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live, vfor I fear God: 19if you are honest men, let one of your brothers remain confined where you are in custody, and let the rest go and carry wgrain for the famine of your households, 20and xbring your youngest brother to me. So your words will be verified, and you shall not die.” And they did so. 21Then they said to one another, y“In truth we are guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he begged us and we did not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.” 22And Reuben answered them, z“Did I not tell you not to sin against the boy? But you did not listen. So now athere comes a reckoning for his blood.” 23They did not know that Joseph understood them, for there was an interpreter between them. 24Then he turned away from them and bwept. And he returned to them and spoke to them. And he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes. 25cAnd Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, and to replace every man's money in his sack, and to give them provisions for the journey. This was done for them.
26Then they loaded their donkeys with their grain and departed. 27And as done of them opened his sack to give his donkey fodder at ethe lodging place, he saw his money in the mouth of his sack. 28He said to his brothers, “My money has been put back; here it is in the mouth of my sack!” At this their hearts failed them, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, “What is this that God has done to us?”
29When they came to Jacob their father in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them, saying, 30“The man, the lord of the land, fspoke roughly to us and took us to be spies of the land. 31But we said to him, ‘We are honest men; we have never been spies. 32We are twelve brothers, sons of our father. One gis no more, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan.’ 33Then the man, the lord of the land, said to us, h‘By this I shall know that you are honest men: leave one of your brothers with me, and take igrain for the famine of your households, and go your way. 34Bring your youngest brother to me. Then I shall know that you are not spies but honest men, and I will deliver your brother to you, and you shall jtrade in the land.’”
35kAs they emptied their sacks, behold, every man's bundle of money was in his sack. And when they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were afraid. 36And Jacob their father said to them, “You have lbereaved me of my children: Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and now you would take Benjamin. All this has come against me.” 37Then Reuben said to his father, “Kill mmy two sons if I do not bring him back to you. Put him in my hands, and I will bring him back to you.” 38But he said, “My son shall not go down with you, for nhis brother is dead, and he is the only one left. oIf harm should happen to him on the journey that you are to make, pyou would bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol.”
The Parable of the Tenants
1bAnd he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted ca vineyard dand put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and eleased it to tenants and fwent into another country. 2When the season came, he sent a servant1 to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3gAnd they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4gAgain hhe sent to them another servant, and ithey struck him on the head and jtreated him shamefully. 5gAnd he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. 6He had still one other, ka beloved son. lFinally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7But those tenants said to one another, m‘This is the heir. Come, nlet us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8And they took him and killed him and othrew him out of the vineyard. 9What will the owner of the vineyard do? pHe will qcome and destroy the tenants and rgive the vineyard to others. 10sHave you not read tthis Scripture:
u“‘The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;2
11this was the Lord's doing,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”
12And vthey were seeking to arrest him wbut feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they xleft him and went away.
Paying Taxes to Caesar
13yAnd they sent to him some of zthe Pharisees and some of zthe Herodians, to atrap him in his talk. 14And they came and said to him, “Teacher, bwe know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. For cyou are not swayed by appearances,3 but truly teach dthe way of God. Is it lawful to pay etaxes to fCaesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” 15But, knowing gtheir hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why hput me to the test? Bring me ia denarius4 and let me look at it.” 16And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar's.” 17Jesus said to them, j“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” And they marveled at him.
The Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection
18And kSadducees came to him, lwho say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying, 19“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that mif a man's brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man5 must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 20There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring. 21And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. 22And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died. 23In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.”
24Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are wrong, because nyou know neither the Scriptures nor othe power of God? 25For when they rise from the dead, they neither pmarry nor pare given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26And as for the dead being raised, qhave you not read in rthe book of Moses, in sthe passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, t‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong.”
The Great Commandment
28uAnd one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29Jesus answered, “The most important is, v‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, wthe Lord is one. 30And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31xThe second is this: y‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment zgreater than these.” 32And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that whe is one, and athere is no other besides him. 33And to love him with all the heart and with all bthe understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, cis much more than all dwhole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” eAnd after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.
Whose Son Is the Christ?
35fAnd as gJesus taught in the temple, he said, “How can the scribes say that hthe Christ is the son of David? 36David himself, iin the Holy Spirit, declared,
j“‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
until I put your enemies kunder your feet.”’
37David himself calls him Lord. So lhow is he his son?” And the great throng mheard him gladly.
Beware of the Scribes
38nAnd in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces 39and have the best seats in the synagogues and othe places of honor at feasts, 40pwho devour widows' houses and qfor a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”
The Widow's Offering
41rAnd he sat down opposite sthe treasury and watched the people tputting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42And a poor widow came and put in two usmall copper coins, which make a penny.6 43And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, vthis poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her wpoverty has put in everything she had, all xshe had to live on.”
Bildad Speaks: Job Should Repent
1Then cBildad the Shuhite answered and said:
2“How long will you say these things,
and the words of your mouth be a dgreat wind?
3eDoes God pervert justice?
Or does the Almighty pervert the right?
4If your fchildren have sinned against him,
he has delivered them into the hand of their transgression.
5If you will seek God
and gplead with the Almighty for mercy,
6if you are pure and upright,
surely then he will hrouse himself for you
and irestore your rightful habitation.
7And though your beginning was small,
jyour latter days will be very great.
8“For kinquire, please, of bygone ages,
and consider what lthe fathers have searched out.
9For we are but of yesterday and know nothing,
for our days on earth are ma shadow.
10Will they not teach you and tell you
and utter words out of their understanding?
11“Can papyrus grow where there is no marsh?
Can reeds flourish where there is no water?
12While yet in flower and not cut down,
they nwither before any other plant.
13Such are the paths of all who oforget God;
pthe hope of qthe godless shall perish.
14His confidence is severed,
and his trust is ra spider's web.1
15He leans against his shouse, but it does not stand;
he lays hold of it, but it does not endure.
16He is a lush plant before the sun,
and his tshoots spread over his garden.
17His roots entwine the stone heap;
he looks upon a house of stones.
18If he is destroyed from his uplace,
then it will deny him, saying, ‘I have never vseen you.’
19Behold, this is the joy of his way,
and out of wthe soil others will spring.
20“Behold, God will not reject a blameless man,
nor take the hand of evildoers.
21He will yet xfill your mouth with laughter,
and your lips with shouting.
22Those who hate you will be yclothed with shame,
and the tent of the wicked will be no more.”
A Living Sacrifice
1zI appeal to you therefore, brothers,1 by the mercies of God, ato present your bodies bas a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.2 2cDo not be conformed to this world,3 but be transformed by dthe renewal of your mind, that by testing you may ediscern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.4
Gifts of Grace
3For fby the grace given to me I say to everyone among you gnot to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, heach according to ithe measure of faith that God has assigned. 4For jas in one body we have many members,5 and the members do not all have the same function, 5so we, kthough many, lare one body in Christ, and individually mmembers one of another. 6nHaving gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if oprophecy, pin proportion to our faith; 7if qservice, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; rthe one who leads,6 with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with scheerfulness.
Marks of the True Christian
9tLet love be genuine. uAbhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10vLove one another with brotherly affection. wOutdo one another in showing honor. 11Do not be slothful in zeal, xbe fervent in spirit,7 yserve the Lord. 12zRejoice in hope, abe patient in tribulation, bbe constant in prayer. 13cContribute to the needs of the saints and dseek to show hospitality.
14eBless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15fRejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16gLive in harmony with one another. hDo not be haughty, but associate with the lowly.8 iNever be wise in your own sight. 17jRepay no one evil for evil, but kgive thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18If possible, so far as it depends on you, llive peaceably with all. 19Beloved, mnever avenge yourselves, but leave it9 to the wrath of God, for it is written, n“Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20To the contrary, o“if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
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