Speaker 1: Most of us eat every day, some of us too
much because yesterday's food is not enough to supply energy
for today's needs. Why then, do some of us expect
yesterday's portion of heavenly manna, the word of God to
keep us through today's challenges. On this program, we are
going to change all of that. Let's experience God's words
today and receive the power we need to live healthy,
vibrant lives. Welcome to your Daily Portion with your host,
author speaker, Elle David Harris.
Speaker 2: Good morning, Good morning, Good morning. It is Sunday, December
twenty nine, twenty twenty four. Hello, my name is Elle
David Harris. I am your host, and this is your
Daily Portion where we give you God's word every single day,
and today is no exception. We are continuing in our
new Lesson study series. God's love and justice are like
how those go together their balanced God's love and justice
and our ca option for today is beyond reasonable expectations.
Beyond reasonable expectations. We'll get into that in just a moment,
but before we do, I'd like to say welcome to
you and ask you to go over to your Daily
Portion dot com. I need you to join our online community.
Make sure that you get the Companion Guide. Get the
Companion Guide, and also click that number seven. It's a
special place to continue to grow in your spiritual development.
But certainly get that get that guide because we will
make reference to it in the community and sometimes when
we are engaging here. Okay, this is all at your
Daily Portion dot com. This is one of the ways
that we continue to build faith and fellowship. Let's go
ahead and pray and then we will get underway. Father
and Heaven, thank you for this new work weeknd for
the privilege that you have given us to behold your love,
the love that you have toward us. Please help us
to live as though we embrace your love and then
give it to others freely. In Jesus name, I pray, Amen,
and a man again beyond reasonable expectations. Okay, So the
first thing that I wrote in my lesson was the
word agape. That's one of the four ways that love
is described in the original language of the New Testament
agape or agapao, depending on where we are in the text.
I love you in spite of what you do. I
love you in spite of what you do. That is
that is unconditional love. It's it's the fullness of godly love,
the fullness, the fullest expression of godly love. For God's
soul loved the world that he gave his only begotten son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life. Okay, And so the question is is it
reasonable to expect God to love us to the degree
that when his children, the children of Israel, erected the
Golden Calf while he was up in the mount or
really he had Moses up in the mountain, then into
the cloud, giving him the Ten Commandments for his people,
giving him the blueprint for the plan of salvation, that
is the sanctuary. Is it reasonable for God to love
his people when they created a false God, right while
he was teaching them not to have any gods before him,
right after he is delivering them from Egyptian captivity slavery,
right as he is making them holy, they are making
themselves unholy. Moses thinks they're at war, and God is like, no, No,
that is not the sound of war. That is the
sound of my people turning their backs on me. They
are false worshiping another God. Is it reasonable for us
to expect that God would love them after that, And
really we need to personalize it immediately, like, is it
reasonable for God to continue to love me? When I
have promised over and over again? Father, if you will
get me out of this I'm talking about the collective eye,
like all of us have done one or many of
these things. If you get me out of this problem,
then I will fill in the blank. Lord. If you
will do X, then I will do why. And then
we break our promises. Father, I won't do X again.
Just please help me, and then we break our covenant
with God. Is it reasonable for God to continue to
love me in that regard? Well, of course the answer
is absolutely not. Is it is unreasonable? But this is
not the standard. Reason is not the standard. We don't
worship reason. We don't use intellect and reasonability to try
to describe God.
Speaker 1: Like.
Speaker 2: God does things that are beyond our expectations. You see,
humans would turn our backs on each other. God does
not turn his back on us. Huh. Humans would only
give us what we deserve. But God does not give
us what we deserve. Humans would would say, okay, you
take one step and I'll take two or whatever. But
God does not do that. God makes all of the
first steps to empower us to step lively into a
relationship with Him. And so God has a perfect track
record of love. And we can read now what Moses
was experiencing while the people of God were turning their
backs on God. And in the Bible Book of Exodus,
chapter thirty three, we read beginning at verse fifteen, and
he said, unto him, if thy presence go not with me,
carry us not up hence, for where shall it be
known here that I and thy people have found grace
in thy sight? So he's looking for the favor of God.
He is looking for the grace that comes from God,
the approval of God. How am I gonna know that
you're really literally with us? God, Please do not let
us go into this mess of a life without you.
Do not let us go into the wilderness. Do not
take us up out of Egypt unless we know that
we have your favor. And the Bible continues. The Bible continues,
and the Lord said, unto Moses, verse seventeen, I will
do this thing. I will do this thing also that
thou hast spoken for, thou hast found grace in my sight.
And now I know thee by name. And he said,
I beseech THEE show me thy glory. What a lofty request,
Show me thy glory. And he said, I will make
all of my goodness past before THEE, and I will
proclaim the name of the Lord before THEE, and will
be gracious to whom I will be gracious. See Moses
didn't fully understand this yet until the Golden Calf incident.
While he was up in the mount. He was listening
to this conceptually. But when he went down and saw
his brother leading that ridiculous circus of false worship, he
could realize, Oh, wait a minute, God actually will have
mercy on those he will have mercy. He will be
gracious to those he will have grace upon. And the
Bible continues in verse twenty and he said, thou canst
not see my face. See he's even showing grace here.
Moses said, show me thy glory. But if you've seen
all of the glory of God. I said, all of
the glory of God in the fullness, then you're gonna die.
The Bible says, there shall no man see me and
live verse twenty one, and the Lord said, behold, there
was a place by me that thou shalt stand upon
a rock, and it shall come to pass while my
glory passeth by that I will put thee in the
cliff of the rock, and will cover thee with my
hand while I pass by. Moses craved the presence of God?
Do you crave the presence of God? Are you looking
for an opportunity every day to experience God in the
fullness of what He can reveal to you so you
can overcome those doubts, overcome those fears, be overcome with
God's love. Are you looking for an opportunity for God
to manifest himself in and through you. I'm talking about
in your spiritual development, in your personal development, huh, in
those relationships at your workplace or in your business. This
is why I have this application guide, the Life application Guide. Again,
go to your Daily Portion dot com to pick it
up and look at today's lesson for that and so
really the outcome that we're looking for, or let's just
pick in the relationship setting. The next best move would
be to make an intentional effort to show grace to
someone in your life this week, whether by forgiving an
offense or reaching out in kindness. Let God's unconditional love
be your guide let's go into the professional application for
the next best move. There are three items generally, but
let's go to the next best move. Take action by
offering grace in a workplace situation where it's needed. Whether
it is a second chance or a simple word of encouragement.
Let your actions mirror God's love. God's love is beyond
reasonable expectations.
Speaker 1: Thanks for joining us listening. Friends. Always remember we cannot
live by bread alone, but by every word that comes
from the mouth of God. This has been your daily
portion with El David Harris. Make it a great day. Yeah,