March 4: Hebrews 10 23-25
Key Verse: Hebrews 10 25
not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
Devotion:
It is somewhat amusing to see the reasons why people say they are or are not going to church. I browsed through quite a few before thinking about what to write today. I go to church so I can learn more about God and to encourage others to do so. Yes, I could stay at home and do my own studying, but I only seem to be able to get so much out of my own reading. I know I do get a lot because looking back at when I first started these daily devotions I used some verses then that I used recently, but talking about different ideas. God’s Word is just so wonderful in being able to explain so much to us that it would be a shame to miss out on even more explanations.
Going to church and listening to someone who has made it their life's work to find out as much as they can about God’s Word so they can bring it to you, explaining even more than you ever thought possible sometimes, is very fulfilling. Hebrews 4 12 gives us “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart”. No matter where we hear God’s Word, it will work in our lives. God gave us His Word so we can find out more and prepare ourselves as well as getting others to believe.
We need to hold fast to His Word without thinking whether it really applies or not; why else would He have given us His Word? We need to share it with each other so that others too can find that love we share with Him. And not forgetting the church as well, the body of believers who meet regularly, encouraging each other to continue in His Word so that we all can remain faithful. He has. He is. He will. He has promised it so and we need to remember that!
Points to Ponder:
Do friends last forever?
Christ is a friend who will last longer than any other... Show Him you care.
March 3: John 8 31-36
Key Verse: John 8 34
Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.
Devotion:
It really must have been awesome to be able to listen to Jesus whilst He spoke; to be able to hear the authority by which He spoke, knowing that many believed just by listening to short sermons from Him. We may go to church many times before the truth start to sink in... But we face the same problems the Jews faced then. We start to let go, we start to wither, we start to fade, we give in to those temptations around us and lose sight of Christ again.
Jesus knew what was in the hearts of those around Him, but He also knew what was going to be said to them when He was no longer around. He knew they lived in a very strict society where the law had to be followed. He did not want to take them away from the law, because it was that same law Jesus stood for. What He did want them to know, though, was that nothing they could do on earth would allow them to escape from their sins.
Oh, we do try to get away from them, but all we can focus on is the physical aspect of them all. We fight the fight and before long we think we are losing because we don't seem to make a difference – we give in. For as long as we do have that sin in our lives, we continue to be servants of that sin. We continue to give in to it and continue to even enjoy it when we do it – we may regret it afterwards, but that's a bit late! But if we have Christ in our lives, we have the advantage. He is the one who can set us free. If we do want to be set free forever, there is only one way and that is not by trying extra hard and thinking we can fight it! No matter how much we try, we still sin... we continue to be the servant of sin because that is what we like in our lives! But Christ has the power to release us from our sins and He has the power to help us to fight them and He has the power to help us avoid them.
Points to Ponder:
Can any of your friends release you from punishment from the law?
What makes you think you can avoid Gods Law?
March 2: 1 John 2 15-16
Key Verse: 1 John 2 16
For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.
Devotion:
I wonder if you have ever sat back and considered what is wrong with the world? Have you ever contemplated why things have gone wrong or tried to figure out who started the decline of various parts of the world? Politicians would have you believe it is one group of people, the police would have you believe it is another group and the residents would blame those who they see doing things wrong in their eyes. Each of us is uniquely created by God but each of us is distinct from others because of the ways in which we choose to live our lives. We are born into a world that is corrupted by sin where so many people are not Christians and where we seemingly have no hope! Or at least that is what it looked like at first!
As long as we know that it is our sin nature which starts the ball rolling, these verses describe the basis by which we are all tempted away from being the new creatures that God would have us to be. Whether we are saved or not, we are still going to be tempted by similar things, it's just that we should be depending on God for our strength after we have accepted Him as our Counsellor and King.
There are three types of temptation: 1. The lust of the flesh. Our over-zealous desire to indulge in all things which excite our pleasures. We just want to be able to do anything and everything because we just want to have fun! We even want to do bad things because they are fun too! 2. The lust of the eyes. Our eyes are the pathway to our hearts and we are sorely tempted by all manner of riches and possessions as well as all manner of corruptions that we care to look at. Little do we know the destruction each of those things does to our spirits. 3. The pride of life. Vanity! The more someone encourages us, the more we want it. The more we get, the more we want. Greed is that final downfall which we never see coming until we are buried by its destructive force! Isn't it amazing how we can break down things into such small categories, yet we never see the dangers approaching until after we are trapped!
Points to Ponder:
Do you like joining in with your friends?
How much of what you do is actually for God's glory?
March 1: 2 Corinthians 5 16-21
Key Verse: 2 Corinthians 5 17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Devotion:
How do we know the difference that love can make in our lives? How do we know what a difference God can make in our lives? Those are difficult questions to answer for most people, unless you are in the right position to answer them. You cannot say what a difference love will make in your life unless you have experienced real love. You cannot say what a difference God will make in your life until you have experienced Him being in your life!
Surrendering one's life to God will allow us to be forever changed in a way which we will not be able to explain fully unless we have done exactly that, surrender fully to Him. When we give our lives back to Christ, He changes us from the inside (“he is a new creature”), a change that is done, not on a temporary way, but permanently. Once we do this we are God's children once again. It does not mean we are never going to sin again, because we are still living in our bodies with a sin nature. What it means is that we have a new Friend within us who, if we listen to Him, will be able to guide us away from the old life and away from sin.
Because we now have the opportunity to live our lives according to His wishes – is it not prudent to do so? He has given us a new heart through which we can embrace our life with Him eternally. Through that new heart we can change things in our lives. Or in other words, we can change our outward appearance to others through our new heart which Christ has given us. That is how others will be able to see just what a difference He does make in our lives. That example is going to be better than any words we can hope to achieve because we simply cannot explain all He means to us through simple words.
As Christians, our hearts were once filled with enmity towards Christ. In other words, we worked against Him, as an enemy does. We realised our faults, admitted to them and gave our lives back to Christ. Through that we were able to accept Christ's gift He gave by giving His own life on the cross. To those who do not know Christ, this all just seems impossible... But when they can see the change He has made in our lives, they too will start to seek out the truth!
Points to Ponder:
Christ is our living example.
We need to be an example too!
February 28: 1 Corinthians 13 4-8
Key Verse: 1 Corinthians 13 8
Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.
Devotion:
If you have ever wondered about the true meaning of charity (or love), you now know it! Charity or love is something which must agree with all of these points, not in part, but all of them, not slightly, but fully! If you are looking to find out whether your love towards others is true, then you need to reflect upon each of these aspects of love. Each of them has to be fulfilled entirely! We are not only talking about “the one true love in your life” but the love which we should have towards everyone! Christ's love for us was not in part, but total and He wants us to continue that love towards others.(John 15 12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.)
If we are falling short in any one of these aspects in our love towards others, then we have to look into why we are and sort it out before we cause conflict within ourselves. The more that conflict builds up within ourselves, the more we are unable to extend our love towards others as Christ has told us to do. Once that imperfection is allowed to take grip, it starts to spread through us.
When Christ wanted to tell us how we should love, His words in Matthew 22 39 state how we need to love others as we love ourselves. This does not mean we need to have a huge affection for ourselves, but rather that we need to look out for those around us as we do look out for ourselves. He has a build-in desire to continue living and looking out for ourselves. That desire should spread to those around us as well!
But the first and foremost love we should have is for God. Matthew 22 37 Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all they heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. If our love for God is not reflected in this definition of charity today, then we are falling short of the mark...
Points to Ponder:
How deep is your love towards others?
Try to love others as much as Christ showed for us!