Friday Reading: Psalm 51:16-17

 

Key Verse: Psalms 51 17
17  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.

 

Devotion:
Have you noticed that when people get found guilty of doing something wrong, they go out of their way to try and get out of having to pay for the crime? People will go to extraordinary lengths to try and escape punishment! But when people are told of a punishment that will happen in the future, at an uncertain time, and are still allowed to roam free whilst they wait for that punishment; they tend not to bother about finding out how to get out of it – because they still think they are free… People who are truly convinced that they have sinned and that they will have to pay for that sin through death will do whatever they can to be able to get out of that punishment. Because they find out in their hearts about the crime and the punishment, they know then that they have to find a solution. That solution is surprisingly easy!

 

No matter what sins we have committed, we will never find true satisfaction in doing any of them. Just as we will never find satisfaction, Christ cannot abide them! Each one of us that are able to find that we have done things wrong must be willing to come forward with a broken spirit. We must know within ourselves that we are broken, that we have separated ourselves from God because of what we have done. Each of us must then be willing to come forward with a contrite heart. That is to say that we should be willing to give it all up so that we can please God again. Unless we are willing to beg for forgiveness for what we have done and continue to do wrong, we are not convinced within our own hearts that we have done wrong. It is only when we truly admit to our faults that we are then able to come forward in all sincerity.

 

It is that sincere moment in our lives that Christ lovingly waits with all patience for. At that moment we are asking for forgiveness with a sincere heart. Our spirit is realised to be broken. We are willing to come forward and do what is required… But all that is required is that we ask for His forgiveness, believing that He will do exactly that because He is the Son of God. How simple…

 

Points to Ponder:
Do other people accept your apology when you don’t mean it?
 
Do you think God will accept your apology if you don’t mean it?

Thursday Reading: Matthew 5 3
 
Key Verse: Matthew 5 3
3  Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

 

Devotion:
If you wanted to be able to describe yourself, where would you start? Would you start by listing your good points, or by listing your bad points? Would you start by listing the things you are able to do correctly, or the mistakes you have made? Most of us would go for the positive approach so that we could talk ourselves up, so we could sound good or even better than we are. So many people try to go for jobs by describing all manner of things that they think they can do rather than what they have actually done… No matter how much of a storm we talk up about ourselves, when people get to know us, the truth will come out pretty quickly and they will see us for what we are. No matter how much we think of ourselves, we can only do a certain amount of things before people see through what we have said.

 

If we are willing to acknowledge what sort of person we are in the beginning, then people will not be disappointed when they find out what sort of person we are by the things that we do. If we are able to admit to our faults up front, people will not be surprised when we do things the way we do. If we are willing to admit to our shortcomings, people will not be disappointed in us. But admitting to those shortcomings can be very difficult. Social pressure dictates that we talk ourselves up and make a good impression before we can be accepted. What that so called good impression entails is probably a few lies in the beginning!

 

If we were in debt to the tune of a few million pounds, we would be totally helpless. There is no way that we could make up that sort of money. That sort of debt would cripple us both economically and emotionally. But if we are willing to admit to it and there was someone willing to help, we would not have to look back… If we are willing to admit to the fact that we are in debt to Christ for our lives and that we are spiritually destitute we make a step forward. If we then accept Christ as our Saviour, we are once again no longer in debt – forever. Admitting our failures is the first step forward!

 

Points to Ponder:
How would you describe your spiritual state?

 

How much have you admitted to Christ?

Wednesday Reading: Philippians 1 8-11
 
Key Verse: Philippians 1 11
11  being filled with the fruits of righteousness through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

 

Devotion:
Can our love for others ever be compared to the love that Christ has for us? Whilst our love will always seem to fail us at certain times, Christ’s love will never cease nor fail. But what we should be doing is trying to extend our love towards others as Christ extends His love towards everyone. He has set us the ultimate example and we have to live towards that – He knows that we will never show as greater love as He has, but that does not stop us from exercising our love! I am talking here about true Christian love, the love we should have for one another and not just for partners.

 

When we are able to show our love towards others, we get a better glimpse of our Father’s love towards us. The more we are able to love, the more we will learn about love. If we put love behind us, then we are putting Christ behind us as well.  Christ never put His love aside and we should never think of doing so either. Our love should not be for show, but should be sincere and real. Christ never did anything just to show off, He did things because of His sincere love for us. If we want to emulate Him in any way, then our love should follow His example.

 

We must be careful not to be offended by things. I see so many cases where people’s lives have been changed for the worse just because they have been offended by something that was done. People carry round grudges because they think they have been offended. Just imagine how much of a grudge Christ would have to carry round if He took offence to everything we do. His grace is sufficient to allow Him to forgive us of our sins so that we may draw closer to Him. His love truly knows no bounds. His example is there for all of us to follow. If we follow His example, He will get the glory that He alone deserves!

 

Points to Ponder:
How things do you take offence to every day?
 
How many people do you show love to through forgiveness?

Tuesday Reading: Matthew 3 7-12
 
Key Verse: Matthew 3 8
8  Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance;

 

Devotion:
I can just picture this going on… The Pharisees and Sadducees placed so much emphasis on being seen in the right clothes, being seen to do the right thing and being heard to say the right stuff that they had lost their way with God. John, on the other hand was not one for ceremonial attire, being dressed in camel skin, and simply wanted people to hear the truth. He told them to their faces – you are hypocrites!

 

Too often in our lives we are more inclined to be like them than we are like John. We face the world with worldly possessions, neglecting the more important issues like morality and spirituality. We loose sight on the things that God wants us to focus on because we get carried away with the glamour and sparkles of life around us. We loose focus on what is right because of the glitz that surrounds us. The surprising thing is that it is still there; all that good stuff is still there, right where we left it. We don’t have to go hunting to try and re-find our salvation, nor do we have to go out seeking that which we think we have lost… It is right in front of us – we just choose not to look at it!

 

It may take someone different in our lives, like John was in the lives of the Pharisees and Sadducees, to remind us of what we have left behind. It may not be a pleasant reminder. It may not be a gentle reminder. But we ignore it at our peril.

 

We may think that we are safe because we have been saved, but what are we doing to everyone that comes after us. What example are we giving to those that we call our friends? Are we really showing that that God is our Saviour and that He alone is the focus of our lives? Or are we saying that we know He is there but we choose to ignore Him so that we can be friends with the world instead? That choice is ours and we need to focus on that choice every day of our lives and not just when we think we need God!

 

Points to Ponder:
How often do you go looking for new clothes/computers/gifts?

 

How often do you go looking for new instruction from God?