Wednesday 4 Jan 2017

January 4: Matthew 13:18-23

Key Verse: Matthew 13:23
But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

Devotion:
What good is getting something for Christmas if you are not going to do anything with it? What joy can be gained by leaving a present unopened? What joy would the giver be able to have if the receiver does not open the present? What joy can then be had by either if the receiver does not ever look upon that gift again? It is strange how times have changed so we no longer look at parables like this and understand them immediately, so let’s change it to another parable of our own...

If there was one Christmas tree in a public place and some real presents put under it without names on, others could come along and take the presents which may have been meant for you and not them. How the most wicked would enjoy taking as many of those gifts as possible. If you did not hear the instructions or you were never told you had a present under that tree, you would never go looking for it. If you did not understand the instructions about where your present was, you would lose out too.

What if you opened your present and liked it, but put it down somewhere so that you could enjoy the party instead. Who knows where that present would end up going! If the temptation of enjoying yourself was more than your gift, then you would probably not stick around to use the gift. What if you were more interested in what other people got for their presents? Would you not lose sight of your own?

God has laid down a most wonderful gift for each one of us. If we ignore it, then we shall not ever receive it. If we take it but do not fully open it, we may just as well have not taken it. If we take it and receive it but grow tired of it, then questions would be asked as to whether we ever truly accepted it. But if we take that gift and apply it in our lives then we are the ones who have received it properly. All we need do is remember just how much that gift means to God and to us and treat it in such a manner.

Points to Ponder:
So what gifts have you ignored this year?

Are you ignoring God's gift?