Sunday Reading: Matthew 4 1-4

Key Verse: Matthew 4 1
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Devotion:
Each time I read these verses I start to think why on earth would Jesus go out into the desert to allow Himself to be tempted by the devil! I’m sure many people could write books about this subject but I would like to believe that this was God giving the devil another chance at turning his life around. I know we are told that Satan has turned his back on God and that he is going to end up bound in hell, but our God is also just.

How many times have you been given one more chance after you thought that everything around you has been broken for sure? How many times have you looked for one more chance at things? How many times have you broken a friendship and realised that you made a huge mistake and looked for some way of fixing it? And then we should also look at the other end of the stick and think about whether we would be willing to forgive one more time or whether we would want the other person back. Or we could look at it from the side of could we actually change enough to fix things?

The first thing that the devil did was to tempt Jesus into abusing His powers for Himself or for selfish reasons. From that it was clear that the devil was not going to change his ways and that God would have to carry out what He had said. There has got to be a time when “enough” or “time” is called. But the person making that call has got to be absolutely sure that that is the only course of action.

Each of us will have to face times like this when we have to make that final decision and it is times like those that we need to remember because God has already said that He will be calling time soon. He has given us plenty of warning and He has made sure that we have been given plenty of time to repent as well. God is just. That means that He will do what He has said and that we need to be very aware of that! But also be very aware of His love for us and how much He does want to forgive us before He calls time.

Points to Ponder:
How many times do you forgive others?

Do you expect God to forgive you?

Saturday Reading: Amos 5 4-7

Key Verse: Amos 5 5
But do not seek Bethel, nor enter Gilgal, nor pass over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nothing.

Devotion:
When Amos brought the Word from God to the people it was not just a call for the people of Israel to remember God but to turn back to Him. Amos, like many prophets, had to warn the people that they were barking up the wrong tree again; they were chasing after idols and other things in their lives. God does not want us to focus on the things that we think are important but rather to focus clearly on Him.

It is hard to identify what we should focus on when we start to pick up on what we think is important in our walk with God. If we start to think that the ceremonies that we perform in church are what keeps us together, then we lose focus on God Himself. If we focus on making sure that we follow the law, then we get very strict and lose track on our personal relationship with God. If we focus on making sure that we do and say the right stuff, then we leave God behind and take just the law with us.

God has been warning mankind for a long time about losing focus on what is important; and each time we seem to try to focus on something that will do it for us instead of just being with God. When Jesus paid a visit to Martha and Mary, one was too busy making sure that everything was in the right place and that the meal was the best she could make for Christ; when all Christ was looking for was open hearts to follow Him.

We do tend to go off and try to please God in worldly ways when He is continually reminding us that we have a personal relationship with Him and that relationship is what is important; not the ways of the world. When we lift Him up, are we lifting Him up on top of the world? Are we lifting up part of the world and then trying to place Him on top? Should we not be simply giving God the glory and allowing our love to lift Him up? Yes it is a difficult distinction to make sometimes because we do get caught up in so many things!

Points to Ponder:
Do you try to glorify God?

Are you using the world to glorify Him?

Friday Reading: Malachi 1 9-11

Key Verse: Malachi 1 10
“Who is there even among you who would shut the doors, so that you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain? I have no pleasure in you,” says the Lord of hosts, “Nor will I accept an offering from your hands.

Devotion:
What sacrifice do you offer to God today? I am not talking about going out to buy a lamb and killing it in the appropriate way but rather the sacrifice that you offer today to your God, a personal sacrifice you are willing to make to show your God that your revere Him! We like to think that we would be willing to do anything for God, but when we get squeezed between a rock and a hard place, we call out to Him for help rather than step forward willingly giving what is being asked of us!

In the days when people would come to the temple, there would be 6 people in charge of shutting off each of the four gates. They had to keep to the laws about how sacrifices should be done appropriately, but they would also have to make personal choices when the time came to sacrifice for themselves. The people who would tend to the fire on the altar would have to make personal choices as to whether they would do what they had to or do it because they wanted to. You see, we have a choice as to whether we do what we do because it is our assigned job, or do what we do because we want to do it for the glory of God!

I see far too many people going to church because it is what happens on Sundays. I see far too many people going through the motions of attending church, picking up people to take them to church, even preaching, just because it is their job to do so! I go to church to serve my God. I go to encourage others to do the same. I encourage others to come along and do so in the name of our Lord and Saviour, not because of duty!

If we do things out of duty then are we doing so in vain? If we do things just because it is the law to do so, then are we doing so for the right reason? This is the time of the year where we should be remembering what we do for God and not just doing things because it is written down that we should. This is the time of year when we should be refocusing on the real reasons for worshipping our God!

Points to Ponder:
Do you always go to church?

Is it because you have to or want to?

Thursday Reading: Hebrews 10 32-39

Key Verse: Hebrews 10 36
For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:

Devotion:
The one thing that we do still have is hope. The world around us may seem like it is falling apart at the seams and people going mad turning against each other and even killing each other, but we still have hope in the promises that Christ has given us that he will come again to receive us into heaven! I look forward to that day when I will not have to endure the ways of this world; until such time I pray daily for strength and wisdom to approach what the world lays before me and to lift God’s name above the mire around.

Christ showed the disciples their shortcomings and yet lifted them up and told them that they had to go out into the world and spread the Gospel. Just because we have our own shortcomings should not stop us from doing the same as well. We will learn a whole lot more if we are able to listen to God and to follow His instruction, but during those times when the world is so loud that we cannot hear anything we need to shut our eyes and ears to the world for a second so that we can pick up on what God has already said.

We have our bibles and we have what He teaches us along the way; those words of wisdom should burn in our hearts and allow us to see our way forward. Use them as a torch to find your way through the darkness that surrounds you; God has already told us that His Word is like a torch, so use it properly and allow His Word to rise above the darkness. This is the hope that we have, the hope that we can see, the hope that we know and can rely on.

Look deeper into God’s Word and stand firm on the promises that He has given us because we know we can depend on them. They have stood the test of time and the test of the worldliness around us; those words remain firm and true despite all that the world can do and say! I love to be able to get a new bible every few years because it is like bringing fresh hope into my world; the last few bibles I have bought have been electronic and have helped me immensely. But there is something special about getting the written word on paper and my latest is exactly that, a real book of hope!

Points to Ponder:
Do you have a bible you can read?

How often do you read your book of hope?