Devotion by Tom Siderius (MI)
Our reading today includes so much powerful material and wisdom. The reading from the Psalms is from Psalm 1 and tells us how to live and worship our God in 6 easy verses. Just do these things and your life is on path and blessed by God. How is it that God distills such great truth so many times into passages that give us such pure direction in a short section. This should be a familiar section of scripture to many and be a comfort and help in our lives. I have it here quoted in the KJV because of the familiarity of the section wording, and also that it does a good job of showing us the poetic nature of the Psalm.
Psalms 1(KKJV) Blessed is the man
that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly,
nor standeth in the way of sinners,
nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD;
and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
that bringeth forth his fruit in his season;
his leaf also shall not wither;
and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
4 The ungodly are not so:
but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous:
but the way of the ungodly shall perish.
The Old Testament was memorized by the Hebrews and many of them knew the whole of the scrolls by heart. The poetic nature of the original writing helped them to remember the passages. Some of the easiest passages to memorize are those that are poetic in their structure for us in English. The Psalms were also written to be sung which is an even more powerful way that helps us remember scripture. Think about small songs that you may have sung as a child. For me many taught me were verses from the Bible and etched those verses in my memory.
How about you? What puts the words of the Word into your memory?
Do you meditate on the Word of God every day?
What is a good way to bring it to mind for you?
When we read the section of Matthew 15 this morning Jesus cuts right to the chase with the people there and then puts us on the right track of understanding and action. The argument he has with scribes and Pharisees is over the disciples hand washing rituals before a meal. It wasn’t for sanitary purposes that these rules were developed but were regulations made up to control people’s lives by ritual.
Matthew 15:1-9(NLT) Some Pharisees and teachers of religious law now arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus. They asked him, 2 “Why do your disciples disobey our age-old tradition? For they ignore our tradition of ceremonial hand washing before they eat.”
3 Jesus replied, “And why do you, by your traditions, violate the direct commandments of God? 4 For instance, God says, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’ 5 But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry, I can’t help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.’ 6 In this way, you say they don’t need to honor their parents. And so you cancel the word of God for the sake of your own tradition. 7 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote,
8 ‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
9 Their worship is a farce,
for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’”
This passage is from Isaiah 29 and Jesus knowing the scriptures draws on a section where God judges the standard for our actions and faith.
Isaiah 29:13(NKJV) Therefore the Lord said:
“Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths
And honor Me with their lips,
But have removed their hearts far from Me,
And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,
Then God tells us in this section of Ezekial another prophecy about Jesus:
Ezekiel 33:30-33(NKJV) As for you, son of man, the children of your people are talking about you beside the walls and in the doors of the houses; and they speak to one another, everyone saying to his brother, ‘Please come and hear what the word is that comes from the LORD.’ 31 So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. 32 Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them. 33 And when this comes to pass—surely it will come—then they will know that a prophet has been among them.”
I am aways astounded by God’s anticipation of all that Jesus does in his life here on earth and in his ministry. These words of God’s true wisdom that Jesus speaks are ignored then and ignored today by all that don’t believe his words. When we hear God’s Word with our ears but don’t hear with our hearts then we are far from the God that made us and created His life in us.
Isaiah 29:15-16(NLT) What sorrow awaits those who try to hide their plans from the LORD,
who do their evil deeds in the dark!
“The LORD can’t see us,” they say.
“He doesn’t know what’s going on!”
16 How foolish can you be?
He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay!
Should the created thing say of the one who made it,
“He didn’t make me”?
Does a jar ever say,
“The potter who made me is stupid”?
How can we change our hearts and actions today?
What will put this Word into our hearts and minds?
Our lives are determined by what we truly believe in our hearts and not by what we do and Jesus shows us this again in Matthew 15.
Matthew 15:15-20(NLT)Then Peter said to Jesus, “Explain to us the parable that says people aren’t defiled by what they eat.”
16 “Don’t you understand yet?” Jesus asked. 17 “Anything you eat passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer. 18 But the words you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you. 19 For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. 20 These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never defile you.”
REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
See questions in bold above
PRAYER:
Father, please open our hearts to hear your Words and believe them. Give strength to us to do the actions You ask us to do. Give us works of righteousness to do to show others your greatness and deliverance. Let us not be defiled by our unrighteous thoughts but changed to become like Your Son in every way. In Jesus name we pray this day.
Seek Grow Love 