Friday 11 Jan 2013

Friday Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:6-11

Key Verse: 1 Thessalonians 5:8
8  But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.

Devotion:
Even though we are Christians and we should be preparing for our eternal home in heaven we do have to continue living in this world until that day comes. And as such we have to be prepared for what may be ahead, knowing that this world is an evil place when we look at it and compare it with heaven. That is why we have to put on some sort of protection so that we may avoid the evil things that we will find in our paths.

The people that refuse to listen to God will continue to live in darkness, partly because they will never get to see the light and partly because they will prefer the darkness because the light shows up their bad ways. Just as a person who drinks a lot would prefer to drink in dark and shady places so as not to be embarrassed by being drunk in public (though we may think otherwise when we see what state they are in), the person who is drunk in this world (as opposed to drunk in wine) is going to love the dark places of this world so that they are not shown up by people who love the light and like doing things right!

As long as we have hope and faith and aim for that eternal dwelling that Christ has promised us, we can continue to live in this world and not have to be a part of this world. Just because we live here does not mean that we have to be like the rest of the world! God has not created us to be drunkards or to love the evil ways of the world – God has created us to love the light and the righteous ways of His. Following those righteous ways will lead us to Him and to Salvation.

It is He who laid His life down for us so that we may be able to live with Him eternally. It is He who has given us the gift of eternal life as long as we are willing to follow His Word because that is where His Word will guide us. Whether we live a righteous life and try to never sin or whether we give in to sin and then carry on, we can still turn back to Christ and ask for His forgiveness because we will give in to sin at some stage. God does not want us to have to hide in the dark but to be released from that burden and live and walk in the light with Him.

Points to Ponder:
Do you prefer walking in the dark or the light?

Are you allowing God to be your guiding light?