Tuesday 15 Mar 2011

Tuesday Reading: John 5:39-42

Key Verse: John 5:42
42  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.

Devotion:
There is a big difference between being a Christian and being religious. I fear that many people will hide behind the bible or their own variant of the bible and say that they believe in a God but do not believe the truth in their own hearts. When Christ described how we must love God it is with our whole heart and soul and mind. That means that we have to make sure that we believe in God’s Word, Jesus Christ and everything that we are taught from our bibles. The Old Testament does not record a different religion to the New Testament; as Jesus describes later in this chapter, the writings of Moses proclaim the truth about Jesus – they are one and the same Word of God.

Just because someone knows the bible inside out does not make them a Christian. Just because they know what to say and when to say it does not mean that they believe those words in their own hearts. We need to make sure that we do believe in God’s Word because it is the solid rock upon which we build our faith. It is no use building our faith on someone else’s say-so or building our faith on what others tell us. Unless we are willing to go back and read God’s Word and make sure that what we are being told is the truth – then should we even believe it?

Jesus Himself made sure that all that He did was perfectly in line with God’s Word because He knew that He was the fulfilment of that Word. We have all of this recorded in scripture so that we can have proof – but in order to prove anything we have to compare it against that proof. I always try to make sure that what I say can be upheld by God’s Word because I never want to cast doubt into anyone’s mind. I know God’s Word as the truth and I believe it as the truth in my heart. I read through it and conclude that it must be the truth because it fills all the gaps that religion and man leave out. My hope is that you all will get to know God’s Word as your truth as well.

Points to Ponder:
What do you base your faith on?

Is your heart set on the truth?