Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion

Acts 1:12 -14 Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, a distance of half a mile. When they arrived, they went to the upstairs room of the house where they were staying…They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus. The days between Jesus’ ascension and Pentecost were filled w...

Titus 3:1-2 Remind the believers to submit to the government and its officers. They should be obedient, always ready to do what is good. They must not slander anyone and must avoid quarrelling. Instead, they should be gentle and show true humility to everyone. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has 38 member countries and it regularly runs surveys to discover the lev...

Titus 2:9-10 Slaves must always obey their masters and do their best to please them. They must not talk back or steal, but must show themselves to be entirely trustworthy and good. Then they will make the teaching about God our Saviour attractive in every way. The idea of slavery is so appalling that it is hard for us to imagine what it would be like to live in a world where it was normal. However...

Titus 2:1 As for you, Titus, promote the kind of living that reflects wholesome teaching. Paul’s letters are incredibly down to earth. He was very concerned to ensure that everyone understood the basic elements of Christian doctrine. They needed to know who God is and why He sent Jesus into the world to save us from our sins. But he knew that Christian teaching also needed to be turned into action...

Titus 1:15 Everything is pure to those whose hearts are pure. But nothing is pure to those who are corrupt and unbelieving, because their minds and consciences are corrupted. These words may well feel familiar. They closely echo the words of Jesus when he said that: “a good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of a...

Titus 1:5-6 I left you on the island of Crete so you could complete our work there and appoint elders in each town as I instructed you. An elder must live a blameless life. Crete had many cities. Homer, the Greek poet, described the island as “Crete of the hundred cities.” The apostle Paul was clearly concerned that each community of Christian believers should have leadership and he trusted his fr...

Titus 1:2 This truth gives [those God has chosen] confidence that they have eternal life, which God—who does not lie—promised them before the world began. We inevitably spend much of our life focused on the here and now. We need to eat, drink, work and sleep, and often there won’t be much time to do anything else. But we all need to make sure we find time to stand back from this busyness and look...

Titus 1:1 This letter is from Paul, a slave of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ. Paul was born into a strongly Jewish family and also had the privilege of being a Roman citizen. It is quite likely that his family was wealthy and that he would have been waited on by slaves from birth. He himself certainly wasn’t a slave within his society, but when it came to his relationship with God, slavery wa...

Acts 1:9-11 [Jesus] was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!” The asc...

Acts 1:8 [Jesus said:] “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria and to the ends of the earth.” What an amazing day this must have been for the disciples! They were just about to see Jesus disappear before their eyes, and before He did so He gave them their marching orders...

Acts 1:3-4 During the forty days after [Jesus] suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God. Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised.” Luke wrote two books: his gospel and what is oft...

Psalm 113:5-7 Who can be compared with the LORD our God, who is enthroned on high? He stoops to look down on heaven and on earth. He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the garbage dump. When you hear that God is enthroned on high, it’s easy to assume that He must therefore be totally disconnected from the harsh realities of our world. The psalmist makes it clear that the reverse is tr...

Psalm 112:4 Light shines in the darkness for the godly. They are generous, compassionate and righteous. I will never forget my visit to Ruby. She was dying and knew that her end was very near. It was late in the afternoon when I went to her cottage and daylight was fading, but my overwhelming memory of that visit is of her radiant smile. On paper, the situation seemed so sad and hopeless, but Ruby...

Psalm 111:1-2 Praise the LORD! I will thank the LORD with all my heart as I meet with his godly people. How amazing are the deeds of the LORD! All who delight in him should ponder them. It is, of course, possible to praise God anywhere, but there is something incredibly precious about getting together with others to worship Him, and it is wonderful to think of God’s people doing that for thousands...

Psalm 108:1-2 My heart is confident in you, O God; no wonder I can sing your praises with all my heart! Wake up, lyre and harp! I will wake the dawn with my song. Isn’t it wonderful when you can say you are totally confident about someone? Perhaps it’s your doctor, dentist, plumber or friend. Without hesitation, you can commend them to someone else. You know they will never let anyone down. The re...

Psalm 107:1-3 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. Has the LORD redeemed you? Then speak out! Tell others he has redeemed you from your enemies. For he has gathered the exiles from many lands, from east and west, from north and south. This psalm celebrates the people’s return after the exile. This was a massive moment in national life, and the psalmist is cle...

Exodus 34:9 [Moses said:] “O Lord, if it is true that I have found favour with you, then please travel with us. Yes, this is a stubborn and rebellious people, but please forgive our iniquity and our sins. Claim us as your own special possession.” What an incredible job Moses had! The people had rebelled against God in the most dramatic way. They’d known that Moses had gone up Mount Sinai to meet w...

Exodus 32:1 When the people saw how long it was taking Moses to come back down the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. “Come on,” they said, “make us some gods who can lead us. We don’t know what happened to this fellow Moses, who brought us here from the land of Egypt.” Moses spent 40 days and nights on top of Mount Sinai receiving the instructions which were to be the foundation of the people...

Exodus 23:9 You must not oppress foreigners. You know what it’s like to be a foreigner, for you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt. The people of Israel had lived in Egypt for 400 years, so they had a huge experience of being foreigners. Throughout that time, they knew their true home was elsewhere, and that one day they would enter the land that the Lord had given them. This mea...

Exodus 23:8 Take no bribes, for a bribe makes you ignore something that you clearly see. A bribe makes even a righteous person twist the truth. I had never really thought about bribes until I spent two years living in India. There, we spoke about bribes on a regular basis. Soon after I arrived there, a servant girl was murdered near where we lived. Her body was found at the bottom of a well. I was...

Exodus 23:5 If you see that the donkey of someone who hates you has collapsed under its load, do not walk by. Instead, stop and help. These laws make fascinating reading. Here, the people are told that they have a responsibility to other people, whoever they are. If you see the donkey of your enemy struggling, the immediate ungodly response would be to say of the owner: “Serves him right. Just wha...

Exodus 23:2-3 When you are called to testify in a dispute, do not be swayed by the crowd to twist justice. And do not slant your testimony in favour of a person just because that person is poor. Telling the truth is absolutely crucial in a healthy society. However uncomfortable and awkward the truth might be, it needs to be proclaimed and followed at all times, or society is in peril. That means w...

Exodus 20:13-17 [God said:] “You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely against your neighbour. You must not covet your neighbour’s house.” These blunt commandments are even more brief in Hebrew, where a better translation would be “No murder. No adultery. No stealing.” God is setting out in quick succession the activities that must be stopp...

Exodus 20:8-10,12 “Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the LORD your God…Honour your father and mother. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the LORD your God is giving you.” Here are the first two positive commandments. The previous three declared that we s...

Exodus 20:6-7 [God said:] “I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. You must not misuse the name of the LORD your God. The LORD will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name.” The word commandment sounds demanding and perhaps even harsh, so we need to be clear that God’s motivation was lavish unfailing love. When I think back to my child...