March 30: John 12 1-8
Key Verse: John 12 8
For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.”
Devotion:
The disciples, their families and their friends around them were not rich people and so everything counted for something. I don’t know if you have ever been really poor but when you have nothing, every little thing counts for something. That last spoonful of sugar is used wisely. The last egg is not just fried but used to make something bigger. You walk instead of taking the car. And yet when we do have the home comforts we tend to be a bit lax in how efficient we are in our living.
Mary had saved up this ointment for the right time and knew that this was the right time. The disciples knew that with Jesus coming back into Jerusalem things were not going to be the same again. Mary wanted Christ to have the benefit of the ointment now instead of having to wait until He was dead. What would you lay down at the feet of Jesus to show Him how much you care for Him?
In tense situations true feeling tend to leak out and things may be said that you would not normally want said out loud even if you do mean them! Judas went on the attack and showed himself up by focusing on the money instead of on Christ. Martha was her normal busy self doing all the serving. Lazarus and Mary were at the feet of Jesus, listening and taking it all in, enjoying their time with their master. Where would you be? And be honest!
How do you look at the people around you? Do you notice the people that have all the bling, all the glitz and glamour? Do you notice the poor and needy? Do you notice the people with big smart cars? Do you notice the people who have to walk? If you are turning your eyes away from those in need then just maybe you are turning your heart away from what is needful in your area or in your own life.
Points to Ponder:
Did you notice the beggar today?
Did you remember Christ today?
March 29: Philippians 2 5-11
Key Verse: Philippians 2 8
And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
Devotion:
The picture of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey is one that is blasted out around the world on this day known to us as Palm Sunday because it was the day that people laid down and waved palm branches as Jesus walked through the streets on the donkey. Even though Christ was coming into the city in a similar manner to royalty it was not on the same scale. Jesus was probably showing the people in the same manner as He would often speak to them – almost living out a parable.
Jesus has been lifted up by God. Jesus was praised by God as being His Son. Jesus said He was the Son of God. These are all true things, so coming into Jerusalem riding on a beast was fitting; but He did it in a manner which showed He was humble. He left His position in Heaven to come down to earth as a man, fully human and yet still God. He did this to show how far He is willing to go for our sakes!
God has not taken away the name of Christ but has taught us just how important His name is. The prophets from the Old Testament foretold how the Messiah would come into Jerusalem riding on a donkey. Jesus fulfilled that prophecy. The prophets told us how He would die in our place even though He did not deserve it. Jesus fulfilled that prophecy by giving His life up on the cross for our sakes!
Jesus did not just come to seek and save the lost but to fulfil the prophecies told of old about a Messiah coming to be our Saviour and our Friend. Christ has demonstrated this time and time again to make sure we have Him when we need Him most of all! We need to daily thank Him for all He has done for us and to live our lives for Him as best we can!
Points to Ponder:
Do you remember what Christ did for you?
Does this show you how much God loves you?
March 28: Matthew 9 35-38
Key Verse: Matthew 9 36
But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd
Devotion:
“Seeing is believing.” This saying should raise up feeling in everyone whether it is about hiding things from others, opening ourselves up to others, turning a blind eye to the news or the realisation that things are actually going on when we finally get to see them. Somehow we always seem to have doubts until we can see the evidence for ourselves, but then other time we do believe but we don’t realise the full impact of the events until we see them.
Jesus would look out at the people around Him and know who the ones are that were going to be joining Him in Heaven. He could see the ones that were trying to get to Heaven by themselves by doing as much as they could and offering sacrifices when they couldn’t. He could see how mixed up the people were and how they really did need someone to reach out to them in love and lead them back to a proper relationship with God.
We can get into a comfortable position in our lives where we just exist and continue doing the things we do because that seems to not cause problems; or we can be bold and step forward to make a difference. We could wait until others came in and started making a difference, or we could be the ones to stand up and start the ball rolling. If we wait on others we may well not see what is actually happening and miss the opportunity all together! But if we try to start the only person we let down is ourselves if we have got it wrong.
Jesus went out into all the cities and villages. That means He went out of His comfort zone and reached out to others. Yes there were some who did not agree because they were too caught up in their own ways and the ways of the few to see what was going on with the many. Jesus looked out and saw the problem and made a way that would help to fix the problem – but we have to be the ones who take up that banner and work with it!
Points to Ponder:
Do you reach out to others?
Do you see unbelievers as the lost or your enemy?
March 27: Luke 11 5-8
Key Verse: Luke 11 5
And He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves;
Devotion:
I like the way Jesus brought up this parable just after teaching us about the Lord’s Prayer. Why would He launch directly into us being there for each other after teaching us how to prayer if He did not want us to apply the sentiment to prayer? Jesus taught people that prayer was not just a place where we could praise God and ask for forgiveness but also a time where we could ask Him as a friend for things just as we ask friends for stuff.
When we ask friends and neighbours to help us out it is normally when we need help and we ask out of love or out of desperation. God wants us to recognise that we can come to Him and ask out of love or desperation as well. God is much more than the best friend or neighbour we may have because He is willing and able to ask so much more from Him than from anybody or anything else!
Even our best friend may well turn us away of we push too far or if we ask too much. God is not going to turn us away. Our best friends will turn us down for things that they cannot do or things they think are wrong and we should not expect God to give us those things that even friends would turn us down for. God is Holy. That means He is not going to entertain sin and if we dare ask Him to avert His eyes while we sin or ask Him to help us in our sin we really should not expect anything less than to be told off by Him! But because we don’t see Him face to face and because He does not verbally talk with us we often go too far without thinking about where we are at.
The last point raised here is that we do have to be persistent with our prayers; but it is not that we should keep asking God until He gives in and says OK but rather that we need to think about what we are asking for. So when we repeat our prayers we are having to think about what we are asking of God. That then makes us think about whether we are asking the right things…
Points to Ponder:
Do you just pray and expect an answer?
How often do you really think about your prayers?
March 26: Hebrews 10 4-10
Key Verse: Hebrews 10 4
For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.
Devotion:
In the Old testament the people of Israel would have to continually offer burnt offerings in order for their sins to be covered. Why could they not offer a single sacrifice that would wipe the slate clean? Well, that was not the design God laid out at that time. He wanted the people to remember what they were doing wrong so they would be less inclined to go back and do those same sins over and over again. The problem being that the people would get into a happy place because their sins were covered and they would then come forward to speak with God less often.
No amount of bulls and goats would ever be able to take away the sins of mankind but they would make man think about what he was doing and hopefully try to put those things behind him. What Christ came to do was something totally different. The people of Israel were getting into a happy place where they would do the sacrifices because they had to be done and not think too deeply about the real reason for the sacrifice. By Christ laying down His own life as the perfect sacrifice mankind would have to think very hard about what had happened.
We now get into the modern world where people have all but forgotten what Christ has actually done for us and have moved away from thinking about what they are doing wrong. God does not desire for us to continually kill animals just so we can be let off the hook – He wants us to repent of our sins properly.
Jesus came to earth to do what God had intended to be done; a sacrifice that would cover all sins of all men once and for all. This was not going to be a repeat performance to make sure men would remember what had been done for them or for men to remember what they had done wrong but something to release men from their burdens. Christ did not come to blame people or to burden them anymore. He came to release us and to lift us up to His Father!
Points to Ponder:
What do you do with your sins?
Will you trust Christ to take them away?