Sunday Reading: Matthew 26 26-30
Key Verse: Matthew 26 29
28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Devotion:
If there is one thing that causes arguments amongst religions then this is it, the Lord’s Supper or the Passover supper and what it means to people. But no matter how you argue about what it means figuratively or physically we must all agree that Jesus Christ affirmed this based on the original Passover meal when the children of Israel had to demonstrate their belief in God by applying blood to the door posts so that the angel of death would not take their first born as God had promised would happen.
But notice the wording that Jesus gives here, that this is His blood of the New Testament. No, they did not have the New Testament as we know it now; rather this was telling the disciples and us that this was pointing to the blood that Christ would shed in order to pay for the sin debt that we now have because of our sin and unbelief. This era of grace was about to begin with Christ shedding His blood for our sakes.
Christ was about to usher in a new sacrifice that would pay for sin once and for all given mankind a new covenant that would last from that point onward until His final return. It was only a few years back that Christ was born and had to live as a human being, a time which in itself must have been tough to put up with knowing that He would be compared to other sinful men that walked around Him. But even knowing that and knowing what he would have to face, Jesus continued to do what had to be done for us.
I wonder how many of us would walk directly into a known bad situation just so that our friends and family could know something different in their lives. Jesus saw what He would have to do and still He went ahead for our sakes knowing that this would be the only way in which we could live under His grace rather than being under our own choice of eternal death because of our sinful lives.
Points to Ponder:
What are you looking forward to next year?
Are you looking to a walk with God?
Saturday Reading: Galatians 5 22-23
Key Verse: Galatians 5 22
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Devotion:
When John saw the Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus, I wonder whether he knew at that stage just how much was meant by that occasion? We know that God will endwell us through the Holy Spirit when we believe and trust in Him and as such we should know what this means just like John. But we are always fighting a battle with our old ways and we need constant reminders of what God actually means to us.
The fruit of the spirit is described in these verses as being all purity and loveliness, and that is what we should have upon being saved. Yes we will know that there is a difference and as long as we are willing to continue on in God's ways then others around us will see that difference as well. But we still have that sin nature battling within us and we will still give in to that from time to time. We don't need to, but because of the way that we are, we probably will do.
Christ, on the other hand, never did give in to those human weaknesses because He knew exactly where they would lead. We are the ones who need the reminders about where it would lead and how much we do need to continue trusting God to show us the righteous ways. When we feel the urge to go off and do things that would undermine teh Holy Spirit's presence within us, we need to be reminded of the things that He stands for and the gifts that He bestows on us when we trust Him.
God does not turn us away when we sin but rather calls us back and reminds us that we are doing things wrong. When we realise that we should be turning back to Him and asking for forgiveness so that He can wipe those sins away and continue to indwell us with an openness instead of being shoved back into a corner.
Points to Ponder:
Do you keep in mind that God is in you?
How often do you have to ask Him for forgiveness?
Friday Reading: Matthew 3 13-17
Key Verse: Matthew 3 17
17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Devotion:
One of the most amazing things that I find about our Lord and Saviour is that He did not show Himself to be a tyranical ruler or king like normal men would do when they think they have all power over everyone. Even though He was born as a human, He knew that He must be different and must do everything according to God His Father; and of that there should have been no disputing after this had happened.
Yet so many still choose to not believe that Jesus is the Son of God and instead say that He was just a prophet or just a blasphemer that tried to do things that he should not have. Instead, God made it very clear to those around Jesus that this was and will always be His Son, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. And yet Jesus still chose to come to John the Baptist (the first prophet in Israel for many years) and show obedience to God by being baptised just the same as other men were being baptised.
It is not all about who is greatest and who is king or queen; it should all be about God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. It should all be about the only one who has all power and all might and not about anyone who chooses to try and take power and might or rule over people with an iron fist. God wants just people and faithful people to proclaim His Word and to spread the truth from the Gospel.
It must have been quite a sight to John to be with Jesus when the Heavens were opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon Christ. John had known that Jesus was special through the events that had happened so far and through what God had revealed to Him. But now here was the Almighty showing him just what was meant by this Messiah. John would have no issues now with proclaiming Christ as God!
Points to Ponder:
How much do you talk of Jesus?
Are you admitting Jesus as God to others?
Thursday Reading: Matthew 2 7-18
Key Verse: Matthew 2 12
12 And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
Devotion:
There is always someone behind the scenes trying to get their own way and trying to make the most out of any situation and Herod was no exception to the rule at this time! He must have had a few too many sleepless nights thinking that the people were going to turn against him because they were very religious and he was in the most precarious position. Think about it for a while. He was supposedly in charge, but he must have already been feeling a bit unsure of his position because he wanted to know all about this Messiah that the religious crowd were talking about.
He must have also seen a change in the religious leaders at this time as they got to be a bit worried that they would lose their own positions as well. So the last thing he wanted was to give in and allow things to run their own course. Here on in he jumped at the chance to try and make things work according to the law of Herod instead of God’s way. What Herod did not know was that God would allow him to get his own way for a while because that was exactly what had been told to the world previously by the prophets.
Another thing he did not count on was that even though the Messiah was a little child, God the Father was making sure that everything continued to happen in exactly the right ways. This is when we begin to see just how awesome our God actually is by making sure that the baby was protected before the king could get anywhere close to Him. Just because Jesus was coming to be born as a human baby did not mean that He was in any danger of things not happening according to God’s plan.
When God had made sure that Herod was out of the picture and that Christ would no longer be in any danger from him, God sent the message back to Joseph and Mary to bring the child back so that He could be brought up in amongst the Jewish people and not in a foreign land. Once again, God making sure that things happen in the right place and at the right time – we just have to learn what God plan is and when His time is. And if we get worried about not knowing things we need to take a step forward and trust God!
Points to Ponder:
Do you try to push God into your own ways?
Do you think God will allow you to get away with things?
Boxing Day Reading: Luke 2 17-20
Key Verse: Luke 2 18
18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.
Devotion:
So what is it going to be today? Sleeping after the heavy celebrations? Rushing out to go see people? Rushing out to sales? Just chilling with friends and family? Whatever you are getting up to today, the day after, take a short while to think about what Christ has done for you. After all the build-up for Christmas the day after is sometimes a bit of a let-down in comparison; somehow we expect so much more to happen the day after because of all the excitement on the day. Or maybe Christmas day was not all that it was built up to be this year…
The shepherds had come to see the Messiah. They were told by the angels that the Messiah was born in Bethlehem and were shown where to find Him. Can you imagine what they must have though when they got to the stable and found an ordinary looking baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and actually in a manger? Where were the host of angels that they had seen? Where were the crowds and the priests and kings and all manner of people coming to see the messiah that they had so longed for? They had just been given something very unique to think about and to meditate on! Here was our Messiah being born as a mere human being! How could He lower Himself to be such a ‘normal’ baby being born to very ordinary parents? They must had had quite a discussion going on about what they had seen!
And yet Mary just took this all in and held these very special moments deep in her heart. She knew what this meant to everyone because of all that had been told to her when Jesus was conceived. She now knew that she had an incredible journey ahead that was definitely going to be anything but normal! Her day after was going to be the first day of the rest of a very special life with God every step of the way! This was something very special and very personal.
But the shepherds had other things on their minds. They wanted to tell as many people as they could and to lift up God and praise Him for making this moment a reality that they were actually part of. They must have been a bit worried as well knowing that there were going to be people who did not believe them even though they saw everything with their own eyes! They now had something very special to take with them for the rest of their lives!
Points to Ponder:
How did you celebrate yesterday?
Are you still lifting up God today?