The Yeast of the Pharisees and Herod

The disciples had forgotten to bring bread,
except for one loaf they had with them in the boat.
“Be careful,” Jesus warned them.
“Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.”

They discussed this with one another and said,
“It is because we have no bread.”

Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them:
“Why are you talking about having no bread?
Do you still not see or understand?
Are your hearts hardened?
Do you have eyes but fail to see,
and ears but fail to hear?
And don’t you remember?
When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand,
how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?”

“Twelve,” they replied.

“And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand,
how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?”

They answered, “Seven.”

²¹He said to them,
“Do you still not understand?”
(Mark 8:14-21).

* * *

God sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.
We saw his son and are now telling others about him.
(1 John 4:14 NIV)

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Pray for peace in Israel, Iran and the Middle East
and continue to pray for peace to return
to Ukraine and Russia!

Volume I of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer won the Best Book of the Year Award from The Word Guild and Volume II has won the Best Devotional of the Year Award. For those who love God’s word, this three-book series is an ideal way to daily meet with the Lord. To purchase or for a closer look click here.

New from David Kitz.

To view further details or purchase click here.

Honesty and Integrity

11 Friday Sep 2026

Posted by Tim K in Psalm 101, Psalms

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David, friends, honesty, integrity, judges, kings, Psalms, the LORD

Today’s Devotion from Psalms 365 by David Kitz

Listen to today’s reading by Jonathan Dent:

Reading: Psalm 101:5-8 (NIV)*

Whoever slanders their neighbor in secret,
    I will put to silence;
whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart,
    I will not tolerate.
My eyes will be on the faithful in the land,
    that they may dwell with me;
the one whose walk is blameless
    will minister to me.
No one who practices deceit
    will dwell in my house;
no one who speaks falsely
    will stand in my presence.
Every morning I will put to silence
    all the wicked in the land;
I will cut off every evildoer
    from the city of the LORD.

Reflection

One of the roles of a king in ancient Israel was to render judgment in difficult civil cases. In fact, judges ruled Israel for about 400 years before the first king was anointed; hence the judicial role was of great significance during the early years of Israel’s kingdom period.

This reading from Psalm 101 should be viewed as King David’s commitment to his judicial role. He was determined to govern wisely, and for him that meant identifying and siding with those who do right. My eyes will be on the faithful in the land, that they may dwell with me; the one whose walk is blameless will minister to me.

Choosing the right kind of people to associate with is of great importance. This is not about the economic strata you occupy. Typically, rich people associate only with other rich people; similarly lower-class people have friends of the same social standing. But honesty and integrity cross these artificial socioeconomic lines. There are crooks and swindlers among the rich and among the poor. In the same way, there are honest, compassionate people with integrity at the extremes of both wealth and poverty.

David’s objective was to raise the integrity bar. He had no patience for lies or deceit. What kind of people do you enjoy hanging around with? Do they prompt you to walk with them in a blameless way, or do they drag you down in the gutter? Do they prompt you to good deeds or tempt you into a crooked path? It has often been said that we are known by the friends we choose. Are you a friend of God? James has this admonition for us: Don’t you know that if you love the world, you are God’s enemies? And if you decide to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God (James 4:4, CEV).

Response

Heavenly Father, I want to be your friend. I want to love you because you first loved me and showed that love through your son, Jesus. Help me to choose my friends wisely as I let your life and joy shine through me. Amen.

Your Turn

Do your friends encourage you in your faith? How are you letting your light shine?

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Pray for peace in Israel, Iran and the Middle East
and continue to pray for peace to return to Ukraine and Russia!

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

10 Thursday Sep 2026

Posted by Victor Uduh in Psalm 101, Psalms

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Today’s quote and prayer from
“Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer”

Today’s Reading: Psalm 101: 1-4 (NIV)*

Listen to today’s reading by Jonathan Dent:

Dear God,
I want my will to be conformed to your will.
I want to lead a blameless life.
By Jesus’ blood,
grant me a blameless heart
that is determined to love and serve you
for all my days.
Amen.

— — — —

Gospel Reading:
Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

During those days another large crowd gathered.
Since they had nothing to eat,
Jesus called his disciples to him and said,
“I have compassion for these people;
they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat.
If I send them home hungry,
they will collapse on the way,
because some of them have come a long distance.”

His disciples answered,
“But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?”

“How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked.

“Seven,” they replied.

He told the crowd to sit down on the ground.
When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks,
he broke them and gave them to his disciples
to distribute to the people, and they did so.
They had a few small fish as well;
he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. The people ate and were satisfied.
Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls
of broken pieces that were left over. About four thousand were present.
After he had sent them away, he got into the boat with his disciples
and went to the region of Dalmanutha.

The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus.
To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. He sighed deeply and said,
“Why does this generation ask for a sign?
Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to it.”
Then he left them,
got back into the boat and crossed to the other side.
(Mark 8:1-13).

* * *

God sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.
We saw his son and are now telling others about him.
(1 John 4:14 NIV)

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Pray for peace in Israel, Iran and the Middle East
and continue to pray for peace to return
to Ukraine and Russia!

New from David Kitz.

To view further details or purchase click here.

Sing of Love & Justice

10 Thursday Sep 2026

Posted by Tim K in Psalm 101, Psalms

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Tags

Bathsheba, blameless, commitment, David, Jesus, justice, love, Psalms, sing, sing praise, the LORD

Today’s Devotion from Psalms 365 by David Kitz

Listen to today’s reading by Jonathan Dent:

Reading: Psalm 101:1-4 (NIV)*

Of David. A psalm.

I will sing of your love and justice;
    to you, LORD, I will sing praise.
I will be careful to lead a blameless life—
    when will you come to me?
I will conduct the affairs of my house
    with a blameless heart.
I will not look with approval
    on anything that is vile.
I hate what faithless people do;
I will have no part in it.
The perverse of heart shall be far from me;
I will have nothing to do with what is evil.

Reflection

Psalm 101 is a call to action or commitment. David, the author of this psalm, commits himself to a course of action. In this short opening portion of the psalm, David makes seven ‘I will’ statements. Each commitment is life altering in some way.

The first commitment David makes is to sing of the LORD’s justice and love. He is determined to praise his God with a full, joyous awareness of the LORD’s character. This is the true starting point of any sustained relationship with God. The LORD is both loving and just. If we emphasize aspects of God’s justice too much, we risk becoming legalistic. If we focus only on the love of God, His holiness is ignored resulting in a break down in personal responsibility. Within the Godhead there exists a perfect tension between His justice and His love. As God’s servants, we do well when we recognize and maintain that tension.

Twice David uses the word blameless. I will be careful to lead a blameless life—when will you come to me? I will conduct the affairs of my house with a blameless heart (v. 2). With these words, David has set for himself a high standard—an impossible standard. Did David succeed in reaching his lofty goal? The biblical record leaves no room for doubt. He failed miserably. In his affair with Bathsheba, King David was guilty of both adultery and murder.

Well, what good is there then in setting lofty goals? Why make any ‘I will’ statements if I am doomed to fail? Why not freely look on the vile and indulge in it?

Despite David’s stunning failures, there are many sound reasons for calling ourselves to a high standard. To put it bluntly, God expects it of us. He demands holiness from us—always has—always will. Will we succeed? Of course not. That’s why there’s the gift of repentance. That’s why there’s a Savior named Jesus. He’s the blameless one. I need his sinless record applied to my account.

Response

Dear God, I want my will to be conformed to your will. I want to lead a blameless life. By Jesus’ blood, grant me a blameless heart that is determined to love and serve you for all my days. Amen.

Your Turn

Should we set goals for ourselves? How do you measure the progress in your love for God?

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Pray for peace in Israel, Iran and the Middle East
and continue to pray for peace to return to Ukraine and Russia!

The Faithful in the Land

28 Saturday Jun 2025

Posted by davidkitz in Psalm 101

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Tags

Bible, blameless, praise the LORD, Prayer, Psalms, slander, the LORD

I will praise the LORD!

A Call for Right Living

Psalm 101:5-8

Whoever slanders their neighbor in secret,
    I will put to silence;
whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart,
    I will not tolerate.
My eyes will be on the faithful in the land,
    that they may dwell with me;
the one whose walk is blameless
    will minister to me.
No one who practices deceit
    will dwell in my house;
no one who speaks falsely
    will stand in my presence.
Every morning I will put to silence
    all the wicked in the land;
I will cut off every evildoer
    from the city of the LORD. *

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Please pray for peace to return to Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine!

A gripping read from David Kitz.
Is a return-to-Jesus revival possible in our time?
This book points the way forward.
For details click here.

I Will Sing Praise to You

22 Sunday Jun 2025

Posted by davidkitz in Psalm 101

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avoiding evil, blameless, David, evil, faithless people, love and justice, praise, praise the LORD, Psalm

I will praise the LORD!

Wild iris — photo by David Kitz

Psalm 101:1-4

Of David. A psalm.

I will sing of your love and justice;
    to you, LORD, I will sing praise.
I will be careful to lead a blameless life—
    when will you come to me?
I will conduct the affairs of my house
    with a blameless heart.
I will not look with approval
    on anything that is vile.
I hate what faithless people do;
    I will have no part in it.
The perverse of heart shall be far from me;
    I will have nothing to do with what is evil. *

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Please pray for peace to return to Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine!

A gripping read from David Kitz.
Is a return-to-Jesus revival possible in our time?
This book points the way forward.
For details click here.

The Passover Lamb Had to Be Sacrificed

15 Tuesday Apr 2025

Posted by davidkitz in Psalm 101, Psalms

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Bible, disciples, friend of God, Jesus, Passover, Passover Lamb, Prayer, Psalms, sacrifice

Today’s quote and prayer from
“Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer”
by David Kitz.

Reading: Psalm 101:5-8

Heavenly Father,
I want to be your friend.
I want to love you
because you first loved me
and showed that love
through your son, Jesus.
Help me to choose my friends wisely
as I let your life and joy shine through me.
Amen.

— — —

Then came the day of Unleavened Bread
on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed.
Jesus sent Peter and John, saying,
“Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.”

“Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.

He replied,
“As you enter the city,
a man carrying a jar of water will meet you.
Follow him to the house that he enters,
and say to the owner of the house,
‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room,
where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’
He will show you a large room upstairs,
all furnished.
Make preparations there.”

They left and found things
just as Jesus had told them.
So they prepared the Passover.
(Luke 22:7-13, NIV)*

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

Please pray for peace to return to Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine!

Today’s review of “The Soldier Who Killed a King“

Great Historical Fiction on the Crucifixion

Thoroughly enjoyed this book during the last part of Lent. Kitz did a great job of bringing a new view of Passion Week without distorting the Biblical account. — D. Norris

This biblically accurate novel is ideal for the Lent/Easter season.
For details click here.

Watch Where You Walk

14 Monday Apr 2025

Posted by davidkitz in Psalm 101, Psalms

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Jesus, Prayer, Psalms

Today’s quote and prayer from
“Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer”
by David Kitz.

Reading: Psalm 101:1-4

Heavenly Father,
I want my will
to be conformed to your will.
I want to lead a blameless life.
By Jesus’ blood,
grant me a blameless heart
that is determined to love and serve you
for all my days.
Amen.

— — —

Above all else, guard your heart,
    for everything you do flows from it.
Keep your mouth free of perversity;
    keep corrupt talk far from your lips.
Let your eyes look straight ahead;
    fix your gaze directly before you.
Give careful thought to the paths for your feet
    and be steadfast in all your ways.
Do not turn to the right or the left;
    keep your foot from evil.
(Proverbs 4:23-27, NIV)*

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

Please pray for peace to return to Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine!

Today’s review of “The Soldier Who Killed a King“

Like the classic, The Robe, but better

This book, like The Robe, tells the story of the crucifixion of Jesus from the centurion’s point of view.

This book is very effective in giving “flesh” to Jesus, seeing how the miracles he did felt to the ones he helped.

It is based on historical research and gives a feel also what it would have felt like to live during this time.

It also explores guilt, PTSD in the book from the soldier and shows how anyone with guilt can receive peace.

Excellent storytelling of a well-known story. — Eva P. Scott

This biblically accurate novel is ideal for the Lent/Easter season.
For details click here.

Setting Spiritual Goals

14 Monday Apr 2025

Posted by davidkitz in Psalm 101, Psalms

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blamelessness, commitment, David, devotion, faith, holiness, justice, love, love of God, Psalm, Reflection, repentance

Today’s Devotion from Psalms 365 by David Kitz

Reading: Psalm 101:1-4
Of David. A psalm.
I will sing of your love and justice;
to you, LORD, I will sing praise.
I will be careful to lead a blameless life—
when will you come to me?
I will conduct the affairs of my house
with a blameless heart.
I will not look with approval
on anything that is vile.
I hate what faithless people do;
I will have no part in it.
The perverse of heart shall be far from me;
I will have nothing to do with what is evil (NIV).*

Greenery growing in the rampart walls of Jerusalem — photo courtesy of Lois Morrow

Reflection
Psalm 101 is a call to action or commitment. David, the author of this psalm, commits himself to a course of action. In this short opening portion of the psalm, David makes seven ‘I will’ statements. Each commitment is life altering in some way.

Twice David uses the word blameless. I will be careful to lead a blameless life—when will you come to me? I will conduct the affairs of my house with a blameless heart (v. 2). With these words, David has set for himself a high standard—an impossible standard. Did David succeed in reaching his lofty goal? The biblical record leaves no room for doubt. He failed miserably. In his affair with Bathsheba, King David was guilty of both adultery and murder.

Well, what good is there then in setting lofty goals? Why make any ‘I will’ statements if I am doomed to fail? Why not freely look on the vile and indulge in it?

Response: Dear God, I want my will to be conformed to your will. I want to lead a blameless life. By Jesus’ blood, grant me a blameless heart that is determined to love and serve you for all my days. Amen.

Your Turn: Should we set goals for ourselves? How do you measure the progress in your love for God?

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

Please pray for peace to return to Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine!

Volume I of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer won the Best Book of the Year Award from The Word Guild and Volume II has won the Best Devotional of the Year Award. For those who love God’s word, this three-book series is an ideal way to begin the new year, and daily meet with the Lord. To purchase or for a closer look click here.

A gripping read from David Kitz.

To purchase or for a closer look click here.

Choose Friends Wisely

20 Monday Nov 2023

Posted by davidkitz in Psalm 101

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Tags

friend of God, friends, Jesus

Today’s quote and prayer from
“Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer”
by David Kitz.

Reading: Psalm 101:5-8

LORD God,
I want to be your friend.
I want to love you
because you first loved me
and showed that love through your son, Jesus.
Help me to choose my friends wisely
as I let your life and joy shine through me.
Amen.

Please pray for peace to return to Israel and Ukraine!

Volume I of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer won the Best Book of the Year Award from The Word Guild and Volume II has won the Best Devotional of the Year Award. For those who love God’s word, this three-book series is an ideal way to daily meet with the Lord.
RGB300Kitz2AWARD

To purchase or for a closer look click here.

Today’s quote and prayer from“Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer”

Today’s Reading: Psalm 101: 5-8 (NIV)*

Heavenly Father,I want to be your friend. I want to love you because you first loved me and showed that love through your son, Jesus. Help me to choose my friends wiselyas I let your life and joy shine through me.Amen.

— — — —

Gospel Reading: