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God, You know how much division there is in this world. I pray Your Church will be an example of the unity only Your love can bring. Help me to foster unity in every environment I step into, seeking to understand and keeping my focus on Christ, In Jesus' name, Amen.

DAILY BIBLE READING: GENESIS 43-45 MATTHEW 12:24-50 THE BROTHERS RETURN TO EGYPT A FEAST AT JOSEPH'S PALACE The waiters served Joseph at his own table, and his brothers were served at a separate table. The Egyptians who ate with Joseph sat at their own table, because Egyptians despise Hebrews and refuse to eat with them. Joseph told each of his brothers where to sit, and to their amazement, he seated them according to age, from oldest to youngest. 34And Joseph filled their plates with food from his own table, giving Benjamin five times as much as he gave the others. So they feasted and drank freely with him. JOSEPH'S SILVER CUP JUDAH SPEAKS FOR HIS BROTHERS JOSEPH REVEALS HIS IDENTITY It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives. So it was God who sent me here, not you! And he is the one who made me an adviser to Pharaoh—the manager of his entire palace and the governor of all Egypt. Weeping with joy, he embraced Benjamin, and Benjamin did the same. 15Then Joseph kissed each of his brothers and wept over them, and after that they began talking freely with him. PHARAOH INVITES JACOB TO EGYPT JESUS AND THE PRINCE OF DEMONS Then a demon-possessed man, who was blind and couldn’t speak, was brought to Jesus. He healed the man so that he could both speak and see. "But if I am casting out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. " “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me." “A tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good, its fruit will be good. If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad." You brood of snakes! How could evil men like you speak what is good and right? For whatever is in your heart determines what you say." A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak. 37The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you.” THE SIGN OF JONAH “Teacher, we want you to show us a miraculous sign to prove your authority.” “Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign; but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah. “When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, seeking rest but finding none. 44Then it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ So it returns and finds its former home empty, swept, and in order. 45Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before. That will be the experience of this evil generation.” THE TRUE FAMILY OF JESUS “Look, these are my mother and brothers. 50Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!”

NEHEMIAH 6:1-9 CONTINUED OPPOSITION TO REBUILDING our enemies found out that I had finished rebuilding the wall and that no gaps remained—though we had not yet set up the doors in the gates. So Sanballat and Geshem sent a message asking me to meet them at one of the villages. But I realized they were plotting to harm me. “I am engaged in a great work, so I can’t come. Why should I stop working to come and meet with you?” “There is a rumor among the surrounding nations, and Geshem tells me it is true, that you and the Jews are planning to rebel and that is why you are building the wall. According to his reports, you plan to be their king. 7He also reports that you have appointed prophets in Jerusalem to proclaim about you, ‘Look! There is a king in Judah!’ 8I replied, “There is no truth in any part of your story. You are making up the whole thing.” 9They were just trying to intimidate us, imagining that they could discourage us and stop the work. So I continued the work with even greater determination. INSIGHT Nehemiah was serving as cupbearer to King Artaxerxes of Persia when he learned that the Jewish remnant who’d returned to Jerusalem was in trouble. The wall of Jerusalem had been broken, and the gates burned (Nehemiah 1:3). Nehemiah fasted and prayed to God (v. 4), and the king graciously allowed him to return to Jerusalem to rebuild (2:1-6). When Nehemiah arrived and announced his plans, the Jewish leaders replied, “Yes, let’s rebuild the wall!” (v. 18 nlt). Opposition began almost immediately (v. 19), but Nehemiah wasn’t discouraged by the false accusers. He declared, “The God of heaven will give us success” (v. 20). As with Nehemiah, when we trust in God, He’ll give us strength to stand even against those who falsely accuse us.

By: Alyson Kieda

FAITH AND FALSE ACCUSATION Driven by powerful winds, the fire raged for days. The historian Tacitus describes a chaotic scene filled with screams and citizens running for their lives. In the end, nearly two-thirds of Rome had been destroyed. The Roman emperor Nero falsely accused believers in Jesus of starting the fire. He hated Christians and selected them to be the scapegoat for the disaster—one that was rumored to have been ordered by Nero himself!

Nehemiah also faced the blistering heat of false accusation. He’d been a servant to the king of Persia but had been allowed to return to Jerusalem with other Israelites to repair its walls (Nehemiah 2:1-10). When the wall was repaired, however, enemies accused the Jews of “planning to rebel” and making Nehemiah “their king” (6:6 nlt). How did they respond to false accusations? By declaring and living out their innocence (v. 8), courageously standing in God’s power (v. 11), and praying fervently to Him (v. 14). Their enemies were ultimately “frightened and humiliated” as they “realized [the wall reconstruction] had been done with the help of . . . God” (v. 16 nlt).

At times, we’ll be falsely accused by others. But as God provides the strength we need, we can forgive our accusers and “live such good lives” that, though “they accuse [us] of doing wrong, they may see [our] good deeds and glorify God” (1 Peter 2:12).

By: Tom Felten

REFLECT AND PRAY Why are believers in Jesus sometimes falsely accused? How can you live out a courageous faith?

Loving God, thank You for helping me when I’m falsely accused. in Jesus' name, Amen.

HOW TO START GOSPEL CONVERSATIONS YOU HAVE A MAJOR ROLE! Never think or listen to this lie: "God does not need you." The truth is that God invites you to join Him in the mission to seek and save the lost. Jesus actually commanded you to make disciples of all nations. In fact, the Apostle Paul, zealous about sharing Jesus clearly and passionately, exclaims your responsibility to share the Good News of Jesus through these four questions in Romans 10:14 which demand your responsibility:

How then can they call on the One they have not believed in? How can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? How can they hear without someone to preach? How can they preach unless they are sent? Reflect on these four questions today that God's Living Word asks YOU. What reactions does your heart have? Write them down. Live them out.

MATTHEW 28:19-20 19Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”