Tag: Jesus

Battles and God’s Will

2 Chronicles 13-14

Psalm 79

Colossians 4

-Devotion by Juliet Taylor (TN)

In the Old Testament passages we read today, I pondered a lot. I wondered if Abijah actually sought God’s wisdom about starting the civil war against his brethren or if he took his own initiative. He slighted his father for not being aggressive and starting the battle during his reign. We know through scripture that his father refrained on account of God’s will.

What is evident in the passage is that when Abijah called upon the name of the LORD in times of war, he and his kingdom were saved in miraculous ways during each battle. Because they called out to God in their distress, God acted on their behalf. God acts as they humble themselves before him.

Another thought I pondered was God’s heart when it came to hearing his children brag about him, and how they kept his commandments and served him. This bragging seemed to be a part of Abijah’s decision to begin a civil war because it made the people proud. Though it ended victoriously, it led to the slaughter of thousands of Abijah’s own bloodline. 

This is where Jesus and the New Covenant direct my thoughts. We should absolutely strive to keep God’s commandments and serve him through Jesus, and we should be proud if we are able to do that, but we should brag about how we were able to do it with the help of Jesus. We should not brag about our works on account of ourselves, lest it puffs us up and leads us into battle against our brother or sister (whatever “battle” that may be). 

Though God led Abijah to victory, I don’t think it was God’s will for him to start a war in the first place. But since he acted, got himself into trouble, then humbled himself, God acted on his behalf. I don’t think it was the boasting that led God to work on his behalf, it was his/his people’s humility in their distress.

If we are going to boast, we should boast in Jesus. Boast that you died and were buried with him, then raised to life, so that you can live like him, loving as he loved, to help another conquer like he conquered. If we let love drive us, maybe there won’t be a need for victories to be won—at least not victories conquering our opponents.

Our victories will be measured by the way we loved our “opponents.” Colossians gives us a few examples of how to love our “opponents” in our everyday lives with the relationships we have.

Most of us will never be a master of slaves. But we do have relationships that need cultivating, like that of an employee to an employer, husband to wife, child to parent, apostle to church goer, etc., that we can respect and behave in with wisdom, working for the good of both parties like Jesus would, with the same endgame; save others. And if we mess up, we have a God we can seek in the name of Jesus, who will look on the humble who cry out to him for help.  

How do we cultivate good in these relationships, rather than going to war in them? Colossians 4 gives us some wisdom about this. Devote yourselves to prayer and thanksgiving, especially for those who have the opportunity to meet others, for a door to be opened to share the gospel. We should conduct ourselves with wisdom towards outsiders (by asking for it), so that our speech towards them will be seasoned with salt, so that we’ll gain more wisdom about how to speak life to them. 

It is good for those doing the Lord’s work to talk about it with the churches, so that we can be encouraged and join in the fight for lives, and provide for those in the trenches. We must remember their labor, especially when we’re comfortable in our more stationary position in the body of Christ, without much hardship. Remember those imprisoned for Christ’s sake. 

QUESTIONS:

1.      How many times do you think God answers your distress call after you’ve messed up?

2.      Kings who do what is good and right in the sight of the LORD often receive such a title by doing what?

3.      What wisdom do you get from reading Colossians 4 that can help you in your “battle” with one of your relationships?

Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father – I need Your wisdom to walk in Your will. Help me come before You seeking direction to do only what is pleasing to You. Give me a humble spirit and strength to do what You want me to do – in the way You want me to do it. Help me be a wise witness of You and Your son in all of my interactions with outsiders, “opponents”, brothers and sister. In Your Son’s name I pray, Amen

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Examining Your Work and Way

2 Chronicles 11-12

Psalm 79

Colossians 3

-Devotion by Juliet Taylor (TN)

In the previous chapters, I concluded that Rehoboam was wrong in dividing the kingdom of Israel in two, because he followed the advice of his young friends over the elders, whom I assume advised him to listen to God’s will in the matter, as they are often more inclined to adhere to the word of God than youth, having gained wisdom in their years. But now we read that God says that the dividing of the kingdom of God was from him, and that Rehoboam should not fight against his relatives to restore the one kingdom.

This is what I think is going on:  God allows us to make our own decisions. If we make a bad choice about what’s good for us without his wisdom about it, he decides the next move, not necessarily that he planned everything out the way it goes. And accordingly, we have the chance again to seek his will and choose to follow it or not. He moves as we move, though we should strive to move as he moves. We’ll see more of this happening in today’s readings. 

This time, Rehoboam listens to God’s words (his wisdom about what to do). His choice to listen to God yields to the creating of many notable fortified cities and prosperity in gaining his kingdom food, oil, and wine. Perhaps most importantly, the priests and the levities who were in all of Israel came to serve God with Rehoboam – at least for 3 years.

There is so much going on in Rehoboam’s reign that I think relates to this present age. It is after being established and strong that Rehoboam (and likewise most) forsook the law of the LORD again. Think about that. When we’re weak and in need, we tend to call upon the LORD. But when we’re healthy, strong, established, wealthy, etc., we forsake the Lord and his laws by going our own way (seeking our own will/wisdom about what we should do).

Why? The bible talks about this often. When we rely on our own wealth/power/established state, we forget God and all that he’s done for us.

In response, the LORD brings word that since Rehoboam forsook God, he’ll forsake him (and his kingdom which God gave him). This time, their response was good, though their repentance wasn’t without punishment. God sent an army against them. But because they humbled themselves, instead of allowing them to perish, he allows them to become slaves, “so that they may learn the difference between My service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.” (2 Chron. 12:8).

Though it may sound harsh, it is good to realize how good we’ve got it when we are in service to the LORD, rather than in service, or a slave, to another. God’s wisdom about this is also all throughout scripture. We must learn to understand that punishment is good for us, when it is ordained by God. It can humble us.

Now read Psalm 79 and ponder upon the humility displayed from those who are God’s who have been downcast. Now read Colossians chapter 3.

This life in Christ is supposed to be one wherein we live as Christ lived, not how those whom we read about in the past lived. They should have continuously looked to God’s laws and been thankful for them, so that they could do them and live well.

We have more wisdom than they I think, to be able to do God’s will, because we are in Christ. The “how to” though often finds a way to baffle us.

In his letter to the Colossians, Paul talks as if the things we need to do come naturally to those of us in Christ – at least that’s how it has been perceived by me when preached.

I find myself more inclined to think that the things Paul writes about affect me much in the same way they affected Rehoboam and Jeroboam, though in Christ, I received the spirit of Christ, urging me to follow him. Every act I make is a decision to let God be the judge of what’s right and to do accordingly, or to let myself, my flesh, be the judge and act foolishly.

But by remembering Christ, what he did, God’s plan of salvation through him, and who I am in him, I can be prudent to humble myself in good times and in bad and walk as he walked. This takes prayer. It takes the reading of God’s word. It takes much action from me.

My actions may be to make my days routine full of what it says we should be doing in Colossians 3 by reading God’s word, by discussing it with my brothers and sisters in Christ, by allowing myself to be taught and admonished by them and vice versa; to sing with them and gush with thankfulness to God in unity.

I can be a wife subject to my husband as unto the Lord (and he thus to me, both with love for each other). I can raise my children to be obedient but without causing them to lose heart, teaching them the love of Christ and why it is so good to desire that he rules over us, admonishing them when they miss the mark. It is all a part of God’s plan of salvation, which is so good for us.

I can think of the things I decide to do in word or in deed as actions I take for the Lord Jesus, thanking God our father through him. I can decide to work heartily for the Lord, and not merely for men when in my job, as an employee to my boss, doing my best to please my Lord (I liken this to a slave working for her master in Paul’s time). And I can do it all with a mindset that I want all whom I come across to be affected by my behavior, acting in such a manner to win others to Christ because it is so good for them.

QUESTIONS:

1.      Do you think that under the New Covenant we’ve entered into that God will forsake us if we forsake him? What does that even mean?

2.      Do you think that under the New Covenant we’ve entered into that God allows us to be slaves to sin when we follow the urging of the flesh instead of the urging of the spirit to do what is right so that we may learn the difference between his service in Christ and the service to sin again?

3.      Paul gives the Colossians a lot of instruction regarding what they should do in Christ. However, it doesn’t read as if he’s giving them laws to follow under the New Covenant like that of the Old Covenant. To me it sounds like he gives them a lot of great wisdom relating to their lives that they can adhere to or not. What do you think?

PRAYER:

Dear God of wisdom and might – I want to follow You well all of my days. May I abide by your will with a heart of humility, eagerly doing the work You have for me to do. Help me to show the world that You are a good God and that there is great joy in serving Your Son Jesus Christ. In his name I pray, Amen.

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Walk in Wisdom – in Christ

2 Chronicles 9-10

Psalm 78

Colossians 2

-Devotion by Juliet Taylor (TN)

Listen to the beautiful words from the Queen of Sheba, regarding the wisdom of Solomon, which God had given him when he asked. Though a gentile, she knew that it was God who gave such wisdom to men, and that those who heard it were cherished by God. For it is God who gives such blessings – to place a ruler on his throne over his people, who will judge rightly:

2 Chronicles 9:7-8

7“How blessed are your men, how blessed are these your servants who stand before you continually and hear your wisdom. 8“Blessed be the LORD your God who delighted in you, setting you on His throne as king for the LORD your God; because your God loved Israel establishing them forever, therefore He made you king over them, to do justice and righteousness.”

Having someone judge over us rightly for God so that it will be well with us, because his wisdom about what’s right for us is what we can expect and hope for in the Kingdom age, and to an extent now, if we are allegiant to the King now. That is love. I yearn for all of Christianity to get this right – to know that it is so good for us to desire to be ruled – but only by a just king, who gets his wisdom from our just loving father.

For now, we wait hopefully for that day when God gives us such a gift, when our Lord Jesus returns to rule justly from the throne of David. In the meantime, I see myself like all of the other children of God who have been saved (think of “being saved” like the Israelites were from slavery to Egypt, to serve God, or how all of humanity under Christ are saved from slavery to sin, to serve God like Jesus did, yet we must finish the race to enter the kingdom of God at the end of our lives). I’m in a race to the finish line of this life, aiming to do well and to please my father God, because he’s so good, just like the people of God of old were supposed to. 

It is surprising to me that the man who had nothing hidden from him in terms of wisdom from God, could not pass on such wisdom just one generation later. Though I should not be surprised, as the Bible foretells an ongoing story of his people succeeding and failing, ultimately failing until Christ.

When crowned King, not only did Solomon’s son Rehoboam fail to make wise choices based on seeking God’s wisdom about how he should rule, he also made a decision based on the will of his young friends that split the kingdom of Israel in two!

The wisdom from God remains the same for us to adhere to or neglect today. Our destruction will be great when we choose our own way without his wisdom about what we should do. That has always and will always be the case. It is a wonder in our day and age too that we don’t get this right, even after Jesus had to die (lest we forget).

This is why I believe Paul is struggling with the Colossians in his letter to them. Paul is well versed in the Old Testament. He knows how easy it is to forget what God has done for his people and go astray, especially when there are others out there trying to persuade Christians to make subtle changes in their thinking because of wisdom from men, which results in following a different gospel.

Paul sees an urgency for the Colossians to continue in their faith. Yes, they were God’s children. Yes, they loved greatly, yes, it sounds like they were even praised for their faith. And yet, Paul is still distressed, as someone could still teach them a gospel that was contrary to the true gospel, which could cause great demise for anyone carried away by it.

Paul does with Jesus regarding the New Covenant what God taught the Israelites to do with him regarding the Old Covenant. He beautifully lays out how important Jesus is for those who have entered the New Covenant with God through him. He gives them wisdom from God to follow and reminds them who they are in Christ.

All the hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in Jesus. To obtain it, you must walk this life as he walked it. Even though you’ve received Christ Jesus as Lord, having been firmly rooted, you must continually be built up in Christ to establish your faith (your trust in God), with gratitude, because you know the cost (and the reward). If you can do this, then no one will be able to take you captive with another gospel (through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, the world, rather than according to Christ) as it seems someone(s) was trying to do to the Colossians.

Let Christ take you captive, because the fullness of the godhead bodily dwells in Jesus, meaning, all that there is to know about God, including his ways, can be found in Jesus. Jesus was made God’s wisdom for us, so that we would know God’s will and keep his commandments. In Jesus you were circumcised (you belong to Christ/identify in him, if you’ve entered the New Covenant of God through him), you were buried with him in baptism (you died to your old self and following your own will), and raised with him, to live a life of one who’s been forgiven (made alive through the working of God to raise Jesus from the dead, so that you will live like Jesus now and stop sinning). Jesus is now our ruler and authority, if we make ongoing plans to give him our allegiance daily.  

If someone is teaching you to do something contrary to Christ, look at what Jesus did to see how he handled those trying to teach God’s people a different gospel (like the Pharisees). If we can do that, we’ll be able to stand against someone trying to be our judge regarding the keeping of festivals, new moons, the Sabbath, or in regards to what we can eat or drink, or whatever it is that’s trying to get into our way of thinking that’s contrary to Christ.

These things are a shadow of what’s to come in the Kingdom, but Christ is the substance. I take this to mean that they can be good things to keep to help you remember God’s plan of salvation through Christ, but Christ is the Lord of them all. The Sabbath was made for man, not the other way around. And Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath. So if you want to keep the Sabbath, talk to your Lord about it, but don’t get carried away by those telling you you must keep it, or even worse, being someone else’s judge telling them they must keep it if they are Christ’s. These types of teachings, though they can be subtle changes to the true gospel, can lead you astray, so be on guard.

If you’re ever struggling about what to do, seek God’s wisdom in Christ. Follow the urging of the spirit about what you should do. Pray often about it. Remember who your Lord is and what he did for you often. Make ongoing plans so that you will not forget. For it is in him that we are all held together. Emphasis remembering that latter part too – we’re held together in the body—we’re supposed to work as a team, (team body!!), with Christ our head who leads us together.

God, please help us to grow together with the growth that comes from you. Let us be diligent to do as the wisdom from Psalm 78 advises today in our walk, but in regards to our God through our Lord Jesus:

Tell your children and your children’s children of the praises of Yahweh and his strength and his wonderous works. Tell them to put their confidence in God, and not forget his works, especially those now fulfilled in Jesus, and keep his commandments. Don’t be like those who did not prepare their hearts, whose spirit was not faithful to God.

QUESTIONS:

1.      Why do you think Rehoboam didn’t seek God’s wisdom like his father Solomon did, who was the wisest in the world (he had to have known about his father’s wisdom, right?!?)?

2.      What other gospel(s) do you think Paul was warning the Colossians against? Following the Law of Moses? Following the laws created by the Pharisees as they interpreted the Law of Moses? Gentile laws? All or some of the above? 

3.      What do you think Paul means when he says this in Colossians 1:16-17, “…no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day— 17things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ.”?

PRAYER

Dear God, I pray that today and always I will seek You and Your wisdom. Help me to receive and act upon Your wisdom and pass along a deep desire for Your wisdom to the next generation. Thank You for Jesus and Your wisdom he has brought and will bring as ruler. Help me to recognize and turn my back on any different gospel. May I be guided by Your Spirit, to be a fruitful member of the true body of Christ which brings glory to You.

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If My People

2 Chronicles 7-8

Psalm 78

Colossians 1

-devotion by Juliet Taylor (TN)

To the creator of the universe, our father God, for all his goodness, mercy, and stead-fast love—to what can we give him? Solomon chooses to honor his father David’s wish to give him a house. When he finished building God’s house, he prayed, asking God for help in various trials, come what may. God responds with fire and his glory filling presence. The people respond with reverence, thanksgiving, and sacrifice.

But God didn’t just celebrate this special time when he was given a house. When Solomon was finished with all he had planned for God’s house and the King’s house, God gave him instructions with warnings in a dream:

2 Chronicles 7:13 – 22

13 If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, 14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 15 Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to the prayer offered in this place. 16 For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that My name may be there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually. 17 As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, even to do according to all that I have commanded you, and will keep My statutes and My ordinances, 18 then I will establish your royal throne as I covenanted with your father David, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man to be ruler in Israel.’

19 “But if you turn away and forsake My statutes and My commandments which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them, 20 then I will uproot you from My land which I have given you, and this house which I have consecrated for My name I will cast out of My sight and I will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples. 21 As for this house, which was exalted, everyone who passes by it will be astonished and say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ 22 And they will say, ‘Because they forsook the Lord, the God of their fathers who brought them from the land of Egypt, and they adopted other gods and worshiped them and served them; therefore He has brought all this adversity on them.’”

 We know from history that Israel did turn away. They were uprooted from the land and the house, and carried away into exile for a time.

As I read through Psalms 78, I am reminded of a similar account years earlier between God and his people Israel after leading them out of Egypt to serve him in the desert on their way to the promised land.

I am reminded of the ongoing story of humanity, wherein our father God gives his children everything, so long as they seek him for his judgement about what they should do, lest they go their own way and it turns out unwell for them.

Again and again he gives them wisdom about how to live well, and how to avoid the hurt that so easily comes when we choose our own way, which is sin. Sometimes the wisdom comes in blessings and cursing, or in instructions and warnings.

In Masseh and Meribah it came in as a test to see if they would trust in him for their salvation. Though he gave them bread from heaven, water from a rock, and meat just waiting to be caught, they still chose their own will, seeking their own wisdom about what was right for them to do to live well. In turn they tested God.

How often God restrained himself from giving the people what they deserved. How often he continued in his steadfast love towards them, taking care of them and being faithful to those who continued to seek him.

His name does still remain in Israel forever (the blessing of the name given to Joseph’s son, Ephraim). His Kingly Messiah line does carry on through Solomon (the blessing given to Judah, then David), though he did not heed God’s warning. 

Though he continued to give out grace, God knows that unless someone dies, the people will not seek their God. They will not remember all that God has done for them (Psalm 78:34-35). This is wisdom.

Some of the Israelites died in the wilderness after they tested God. Some died before and during their exile that God warned about in Solomon’s dream. Ultimately, God’s only son had to die to save us from our sins.

Jesus is God’s only begotten, worthy son, and yet, God gave him over out of love for the rest of us who are unworthy without him, so that we could be free to serve him by being like his son in our ways (doing God’s will for our good).

God is a just God. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice for us all, God raised him from the dead and made him first place in everything. He is the image of the invisible God. He is the firstborn of all the new creation. All things new are created through him/because of his sacrifice.

But Jesus didn’t just die for his people Israel, he died for all people, both Jew and Gentile, like the Colossians Paul writes to. God’s name is now among those who identify through his son. And Jesus is the King of the world, our Messiah.

Paul tells the Colossians who know the love of Christ that they are doing well, and yet, he prays for more for them.

To this end, to our faithful God who continues in his steadfast love towards us who have not always been faithful, nor even have always bore the name Israel, to what can we give him?

You give him what Paul is praying for the Colossians to give him, even though they’re doing quite well in their Christian walk. You ask God to fill you with all the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.

QUESTIONS

1.      God calls his people by his name, and his name is in the house that David builds for him forever. What name do you think God is referring to?

2.      What do you think it means for Jesus to be first place in everything?

3.      How does Paul “fully carry out the preaching of the word of God?” from Colossians 1:25

PRAYER

Dear Awesome God, I want to be a part of Your people today and forever. Help me to be wise and choose paths and ways that bring me closer to You and what You want from me. Thank You for Your Word where You reveal Yourself, and Your Son who makes a way to You. Help me to learn from the past and see and do what pleases You. In Your Son’s name I pray, Amen

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The Power of His Resurrection

2 Chronicles 3-4

Psalm 77

Philippians 3

-devotion written by Pastor Jeff Fletcher and posted for SeekGrowLove on August 23, 2023 – Pastor Fletcher died last November and is awaiting the return of his Lord Jesus Christ and the amazing resurrection of the dead – what a day that will be!

            “There Ain’t no grave, gonna hold my body down. There ain’t no grave, gonna hold my body down.  When I hear that trumpet sound, gonna rise right outta the ground. There Ain’t no grave gonna hold my body down.”  I love hearing Johnny Cash sing that song with his old, gravelly voice.  He recorded it not long before he died.  I imagine he was thinking a lot about death at that point in his life.  Most old people do think about death.  And most young people I know don’t think much about death.  We all know vaguely that we are mortal and that one day, somewhere far down the road we will have to face our own death, but we usually try to distract ourselves from the reality of death by thinking about other things.  In his Pulitzer Prize-winning book The Denial of Death, Ernest Becker wrote: “Modern man is drinking and drugging himself out of awareness…”. I think that’s pretty accurate.

            Personally, I never thought much about my own death until I was diagnosed with cancer 7 years ago (I’m still here).  Cancer doesn’t automatically mean you are going to die, in fact, the majority of people with cancer do not die from cancer, at least not right away.  There are many treatments to delay or send many cancers into remission.  But I can tell you from experience when you hear the word cancer it does make you at least think about death, not just as a remote possibility but as something that you will actually have to experience someday.  I imagine an accident or other near-death experience will do the same thing.  PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) can be caused by exposure to death or fear of dying.

            People deal with the fear of death in a variety of ways. One approach goes back to the time of Epicurus 300 BC who taught that there was no judgment or afterlife.  When you die you simply cease to exist.  There is no future reward beyond this life, and there is no fear of future punishment.  Modern day atheism has embraced this approach to death.  Another common approach to dealing with death is the denial of death by believing in the natural immortality of the soul.  We are all immortal by nature.  Our bodies die but our souls are immortal and when our bodies die our souls live on in another place like heaven or hell or come back in another form, reincarnation.

            The Apostle Paul offers a third, biblically consistent, and hope-filled understanding of death.  We are mortal by nature, not immortal.  Death is a reality, but it does not have to be the final reality.  In Christ there is the hope of the resurrection from the dead.  Just as Christ died and went to the grave and on the third day was raised from the dead (in the same way that Jesus had previously raised Lazarus from the dead) Paul hoped that in Christ he too might attain the “resurrection from the dead.” (Philippians 3:11 NRSV). 

            Paul’s hope was that his savior, the Lord Jesus Christ who is currently in heaven will come and transform “the body of our humiliation” (Phil 3:21) into a glorious body like Jesus is today.  Paul’s term “the body of our humiliation” can also be translated as “of low estate” or even “vile”.  In my work at a hospital chaplain, I am daily acquainted with how our bodies suffer decay and corruption.  When people are sick the fragility of their bodies is exposed.  The fragility of Jesus’ body was also exposed in his crucifixion.  Ultimately, our fragile bodies will suffer disease, injury, and slow decay and we will die.  But our hope in Jesus Christ is that he will come again and raise our bodies up in glory, in bodies that are no longer corrupt and subject to death.   This is our blessed hope.

            For Paul there was a daily awareness that he had not yet arrived at the fullness of the resurrected body, that will only happen when Christ comes at the end of this age.  So for now Paul’s focus was to “press on” (Philippians 3:12) or “strain forward” (3:13).  It gives us the image of a runner keeping his eye on the finish line.  Paul is saying “keep your eye on the prize”.

            Paul contrasts this way of being with those whom he says live as though they were “the enemies of Christ”.  Their gods are earthly things (their belly or human appetites- 3:19).  Paul makes their end clear – destruction (3:19).  For Paul, humans are mortal, death is a reality that we will all face one day. For those who make themselves an enemy of Christ by rejecting him and making their own appetites their gods, the end is final destruction.  But for those who put their hope in Jesus Christ, whom God raised from the dead, their hope is to be raised up from among the dead to be transformed into a glorious body like Jesus has been transformed into at his resurrection.  A body that is not corruptible and cannot die.  They will be clothed in immortality by Jesus upon his return from heaven.

            I hope that you, like Paul and like me and countless other believers, trust in Jesus Christ and keep pressing on to follow him.  Keep your eye on the prize.

            “There Ain’t no grave, gonna hold my body down. There ain’t no grave, gonna hold my body down.  When I hear that trumpet sound, gonna rise right outta the ground. There Ain’t no grave gonna hold my body down.”

-Jeff Fletcher

Reflection Questions:

  1.  What value can you see in understanding the reality of death and the hope of bodily resurrection at the return of Christ as opposed to the no hope of life after death or the natural immortality of the soul?
  2. Paul named those who were doomed for destruction as those whose gods were their belly/appetites.  What might you name as other appetites/gods of people today?  In what ways do pursuing those gods lead to destruction?
  3. What does the promise of resurrection from the dead reveal to us about God’s character and plan for the world?  What difference does that make in your life?

Prayer

Dear God Almighty, I praise You for Your power and Your plan. What a good God You are! I thank You for Your Son Jesus who teaches us still today, who provided a way for us to draw near to You, who died for us, and You rose from the dead. Thank you for those like Paul, and Jeff, and so many others who have and are faithfully speaking Your words and preparing others for life, death, resurrection and a coming perfect Kingdom with You. Help me, too, to press on, to be ready and to actively share the good news with others. In Your Son’s name I pray.

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The Burdens We Carry

1 Chronicles 14-15

Psalm 72

Galatians 6

~ Devotion by Cayce Fletcher (SC)

Cayce Fletcher is a wife and homeschool mom of three. She writes and podcasts at amorebeautifullifecollective.com where she helps women grow in grace, build with purpose, and live beautifully. Read the latest post in the Systematic Theology series here. 

I was recently tasked with an errand by my husband. I was to go to the store and return to silt screens (big tarps with pickets attached to help with run-off on construction sites). When I pulled up to the store, I noticed there were no carts nearby, so I tried – with my three-year-old daughter in tow – to somehow lift the two rolls while she hung onto my shirt. (Any moms reading this probably are nodding their heads. You’ve done something similar.) 

As we walked through the parking lot, I could feel the plastic start to slip down, and white-knuckling it, I tried to maneuver the tarps to the side to lift it back up without stopping in the middle of the road. About that time, a guy walked up with his wife and child, looked over, and immediately said, “Hey, do you need help with that?” Laughing, I responded that help would be great. 

No matter who you are, this truth applies to you: We are all limited by our bodies. As parents with more than two children like to say, you only have two hands. We can only lift so much, and even the strongest person in the world has a limit to their ability. (If you are wondering, that title goes to Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, who deadlifted 1,124 lbs(!).) We can only carry so much. 

Today’s readings dealt with the idea of carrying burdens. In 1 Chronicles 14-15, we read the second part of the ark’s journey back to Jerusalem. After Uzzah died when the men tried to return the ark on a cart, David left the ark at a man’s house. In 1 Chronicles 15, David had done his research, and this time, he brought Levites who would carry the ark in the proper way back to Jerusalem. 

Exodus 25:10-22 describes the way that the ark was meant to be carried – the ark was to be lifted up on poles. According to BibleHub, “The method of carrying the Ark on poles symbolizes the separation between the divine and the human, emphasizing God’s holiness and the need for reverence in worship. It also signifies the role of the Levites as mediators between God and the people, entrusted with the sacred duty of handling holy objects.”

Carrying the ark was the burden of the Israelites – one they could not shirk without dire circumstances. 

In Galatians 6, we read more about burdens, but in this passage, we read about our own burdens as the new royal priesthood. After Paul lays out the freedom we find in Christ in the first half of Galatians, he then moves to encourage the people ‘to not bite and devour one another’ (Gal. 5:15) and instead produce fruit in keeping with the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23). 

In Galatians 6, he turns his focus from our own individual spiritual growth to how we can support each other in overcoming sin. In Galatians 6:2, we read, “Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” The Enduring Word Commentary explains it like this, “When Paul brought up the idea [in verse 1] of the one overtaken in any trespass, it painted the picture of a person sagging under a heavy load. Here he expanded the idea to encourage every Christian to bear one another’s burdens.”

We don’t bear the weight as the Levites did of the ark. We are not the mediator between God and the people. But, we can lift each other up – just as the Levites lifted up the ark – towards God. When we come alongside each other and support one another in our spiritual growth, we are doing the good work we are called to do (verse 9-10). 

Interestingly, right after this passage, we have a seeming contradiction in verse 5 when Paul seems to say that each person will have to carry their own load. 

Some commentators say that this is due to the differences in translation. Load, in verse 2, comes from a word that emphasizes the heaviness of the burden. It paints the burden as excessive, something you would stumble under. Whereas in verse 5, load or burden is a word that comes from the word for a backpack a soldier would have. Verse 5 is in reference to loads that other people cannot carry for us (think: calling, marriage, family, etc.). 

Other commentators say that this is actually a counter-example. Verse 2 is the optimal, Spirit-led response to burdens: We should bear each other’s burdens. However, if we want to respond ‘in the flesh’, we may try to think of ourselves as more highly than we ought. We take pride in ourselves alone and are responsible for our own work. Thus, we have to shoulder our own burdens. 

Verse 9-10 sum up our work and should be our motto as we do ministry: “Let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith.” Amen!

Reflection Questions

  1. Why do you believe the ark had to be carried in this way? What does it symbolize?
  2. What do you think is the most likely interpretation of Galatians 6:2-5? 
  3. What is a burden you could share with others? And, what is a burden someone has that you can help bear?

Prayer

Lord, 

Please help us to be a people who support one another, not bite and devour one another. Help us to lift each other up to you. Let us not grow weary of doing good. 

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

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The Shepherd King of Israel

1Chronicles 10-11 

Psalm 72

Galatians 5

~ Devotion by Cayce Fletcher (SC)

Cayce Fletcher is a wife and homeschool mom of three. She writes and podcasts at amorebeautifullifecollective.com where she helps women grow in grace, build with purpose, and live beautifully. Read the latest post in the Systematic Theology series here. 

I live on family land, and over the years, there have been several different kinds of livestock that we’ve had ‘out to pasture.’ Cows, goats, and chickens all have their challenges, but what they all will do, when given a chance, is escape. 

Several years ago, before we moved back to the Farm (as we call it), we got home after a long week at Southeast Camp only to find that the cows had escaped the fence and were busy eating up the vegetable garden and walking on the flowers in the yard. We had to shepherd them back into the fence. 

Israel often follows the same path. In the story of Israel, we see their propensity for ‘escape’ – or their ability to wander off the good path of God and pursue their own desires. They desperately needed a shepherd to care for them. God was their shepherd king, but in the time of Samuel, they rejected him. David stepped in to care for the people as the kingdom was handed to him. 

What did the shepherd king do for his people? 

The shepherd king guided them to green pastures. 

The shepherd king needed to bring the people to good pastures. That means he needed to guide the people to the place where they would get life – and that place is in God’s presence. David recognized the importance of bringing people to God. 1 Chronicles 13:3, “Then let’s bring back the ark of our God, for we did not inquire of him in Saul’s days.” 

During the time of the judges and Saul, the Israelites did not have a close relationship with God. As king, he could bring the people to God and show them how good God was. This is why bringing the ark back was one of his first actions as king. 

The shepherd king protected them from harm. 

David was a man of war. This was one way that David used his unique abilities in obedience to God. The people had not fully conquered the land in the time of Joshua. David continued this work during his time as king. 

In 1 Samuel 17:34-36, he describes what a shepherd does: “David answered Saul, “Your servant has been tending his father’s sheep. Whenever a lion or a bear came and carried off a lamb from the flock, I went after it, struck it down, and rescued the lamb from its mouth. If it reared up against me, I would grab it by its fur, strike it down, and kill it. 36 Your servant has killed lions and bears; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.”

The shepherd had to protect his flock from dangerous animals. The shepherd king had to protect his people from the surrounding nations and influences that would harm the people and lead them away from God. 

The shepherd king watched out for the weakest in the flock. 

1 Chronicles 12 describes the people who came to support David when he was on the run from Saul. 1 Samuel 22:2 gives more insight into who they were when it says, “All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander. About four hundred men were with him.” 

David looked out for the outcast, the ‘weak links’, the poor. He took them in and led them in such a way that they turned into the mighty men we read about in 1 Chronicles 11-12. They were men of valor with such jaw-dropping military exploits that we can’t really comprehend them today. 

In Psalm 72, we read about a prayer for this shepherd king. Verses 12-14 say, “12 For he will rescue the poor who cry out and the afflicted who have no helper. He will have pity on the poor and helpless and save the lives of the poor. He will redeem them from oppression and violence,

for their lives are precious in his sight.”

The shepherd king sees with the people the eyes of God. Each one is precious in his sight. 

Every person who leads someone else has to step into the role of shepherd. That is why we call ‘pastors’ pastors – it is a word derived from the Latin pastor, which means shepherd. When we shepherd others, we don’t do it for our own glory, but to bring people to glorify God. The ultimate example of this type of shepherd is Jesus – the perfect fulfillment of the shepherd king. 

May we humbly follow his example! 

Reflection Questions

  1. Why do you think that the shepherd imagery is so strong throughout the scriptures? What can we learn from this today? 
  2. Who has been a ‘shepherd’ in your life, leading you to God? 
  3. How can you be a better shepherd to others? 

Prayer

Lord, 

Help me to guide other people to you through my words and deeds. Please bless the shepherds around me. Strengthen them for the task at hand. May we approach all things with humility and dependence on you. 

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

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The Tragedy of Saul, the first King of Israel

1 Chronicles 10-11 

Psalm 71

Galatians 4

~ Devotion by Cayce Fletcher (SC)

Cayce Fletcher is a wife and homeschool mom of three. She writes and podcasts at amorebeautifullifecollective.com where she helps women grow in grace, build with purpose, and live beautifully. Read the latest post in the Systematic Theology series here. 

Last week, as I was working on writing our summer camp journals, I turned on David for my kids to watch. It was the first time that I had seen the movie myself, but with The Prince of Egypt being one of my favorite movies as a kid, I had high expectations. 

Of course, there were things that I wish they had done differently, but overall, I was pleasantly surprised. I so appreciated how they didn’t just stop at the Sunday School version of David’s life (just covering the story of David and Goliath), but instead told his story up until he received the kingship after Saul’s death. 

Saul is such a tragic figure. He was so earnest in the beginning. If you remember in 1 Samuel 9, when Saul was first anointed, he responded to the kingship with humility. In verse 21, Saul responds to Samuel, “But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?” 

As the years went on, this humility began to wane, and it was replaced by pride and self-focus. He is so scared to lose the kingdom, to do something wrong, that he ultimately loses it anyway. In Saul’s story, we see an example of someone who holds the ‘good’ so tightly that it becomes an enemy of the ‘great’ – a deep relationship with and dependence on God.

Over and over, Saul chooses to do ‘little sins’ in order to bring honor and fame to himself. He tries to manipulate the outcomes of battles. He’s willing to kill Jonathan (multiple times). He tries to keep the spoils of war and hides them from Samuel. By the end, he even turns to witchcraft to get answers because he feels like God has left him. 

Like Macbeth and other power-hungry characters, Saul’s downfall was his lack of awareness that God can just as easily take away the responsibilities that he gave if the holder is found lacking. If Saul had depended on God completely, we would have read a different ending to his story than what we read today in 1 Chronicles 10. 

1 Chronicles 10:13-14 sums up Saul’s life: “Saul died for his unfaithfulness to the Lord because he did not keep the Lord’s word. He even consulted a medium for guidance, but he did not inquire of the Lord. So the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David, son of Jesse.”

The tragedy of Saul affected more than just him. All of his sons fell in the doomed battle against the Philistines – an entire house extinguished. 

Writing this just after Father’s Day, this makes me think about the responsibility we have as leaders. Saul was so concerned with his own pride and recognition that he ultimately sacrificed not only himself but also his family on that altar. As a leader of the people, we were supposed to steadfastly point them to God. Instead, he foolishly acted in ways that ‘seemed right in his own eyes’ but were contrary to God’s law. 

Wherever you are leading – whether in your own homes, your church, or your community – you have a great responsibility to be steadfast. You cannot fall prey to the temptation of allowing the lines between right and wrong to blur in the service of your own desires. You cannot hold the good you feel like you deserve too tightly, ultimately rejecting wholehearted obedience to God. 

Saul’s life is a reminder to look at our own lives and the gravity of our actions. How are they measuring up? May our lives always be characterized by faithfulness, not unfaithfulness like Saul. 

Reflection Questions

  1. Saul’s life is a tragedy, and tragedy is often characterized by a central character flaw that leads to their doom. What do you think is the core sin of Saul’s life? 
  2. As Saul began to grow in influence and power, that tainted his relationship with God. How do you handle influence rightly so that it brings glory to God – not yourself? 
  3. When we think of Saul, we often think of Saul the King, not Saul the Father. How did Saul’s actions affect his family? What lessons can we learn from this about parenting?

Prayer

Lord, 

Help me hold my responsibilities rightly so that they bring glory to you. May I not fall prey to the dangers of pride, but instead lead with humility. Help me to guide those who are following after me to a better relationship with you. 

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

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Scriptural Paleontology or the First Church Council

1 Chronicles 4-6

Psalm 70

Galatians 2

-Devotion by Jeremy Martin (TN)

            1 Chronicles has one of the densest “who begats” sections in scripture, and roughly 10% of the entire book is devoted to genealogy.  Let’s talk about the genealogies for a second.  These are admittedly some tough chewing at times, but that’s because they are so nutrient dense.  Every single one of the names that we normally skim over is an entire novel or series of novels in it’s own right, and constitutes an entire lifetime of choices, decisions, and adventures but it’s hard to see that because all we see is a name and then it moves to the next.  I used to completely skip over these as a kid because, well, let’s be honest: not a whole lot was going on that I could see, just a lot of “and Jed begat Bob who begat Bill who begat Frank who begat…”.  I’d considered it as the literary equivalent of Ambien ™ at the time.

            That perception changed for me when I did a deep dive into the genealogy listed in Matt 1, and I started taking genealogies seriously.  Jewish folks take their genealogies very seriously, and for a very good reason, we touched on that just a little bit in yesterday’s devotion.  What I discovered, quite by accident, is that genealogies are fascinating if you start digging.  Think of every genealogy section in scripture as a dinosaur bone.  You don’t always know what it’s going to look like when you start digging it up, but it’s always amazing what you find if you’re a good scriptural paleontologist.  In fact, yesterday’s entire devotion was going to be done out of 1 Chronicles 1-3, but after I read Galatians 1 I rewrote the whole thing because it had such an important message in it. 

            Let me see if I can inspire your inner scriptural paleontologist with some interesting snippets from 1 Chronicles 1-6:

  1. In 1Chron 1:1-4 there is a direct line from Adam to the sons of Noah.  Which one of these men listed didn’t die, and purportedly has a “pseudepigriphal” (apocryphal) book that is quoted later in the New Testament but which is NOT included in the canon of the New Testament? (Hint: Gen 5:24, Jude 14-15.  Also, if you get a chance, read the book in question, it’s interesting.)
  2. In 1Chron 1:19 it states: “…the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided “.  What does that mean?  Is this a confirmation of the scientific theory of “Pangea”, or is it a reference to the tower of Babel? (Hint: Although also noted in Gen 11, it never clearly says why in the Bible, but a few apocryphal books including “The book of Jubilees” seem to imply the latter)
  3. In 1 Chron 2:7, when it mentions “Achar, the troubler of Israel” it seems like there’s a gap in the genealogical listings between Zimri and Carmi, who’s missing, and why is Achar called that? (Hint: he’s also known as Achan, see Joshua 7 for both answers)

            I don’t want to get too sidetracked from our devotion today, but I’ve listed the few snippets above to try and inspire you to dig scripturally every time you come across a genealogy.  You never know what you’re going to find, but there are books and books worth of stories in genealogies that we normally just brush past.  They’re fascinating, dig a little bit.

            Moving on to our Galatians 2 reading today, we see a quick snippet in v1-2 that is pretty important for a number of reasons.  In it, Paul, after being called by a revelation from Jesus, empowered by the holy spirit,  and preaching to the gentiles for 14 years, humbly goes to the “authorities” (namely, some of the original apostles), to make sure he’s acting properly.  Firstly, note that God has at this point in time already been performing miracles through Paul, and also keep in mind that prior to the events in Acts 10, the message was being delivered solely for and to the Jewish people.

            The first “Church Council” is referenced here in Galatians 2, and actually takes place back in Acts 15.  There are a number of very important things to take away from this council.  Firstly, the gospel of salvation is approved to be given to the gentiles, fulfilling many prophecies (See in particular Is 49:6).  This is huge, particularly if you’re a gentile (non-jewish person).  Secondly, the content of the meeting is absolutely screaming down history at us about what it doesn’t say, or even question. 

            Keep in mind, the Jews are fiercely monotheistic ever since the return from the Babylonian exile.  The gospel message of salvation has been being preached to the Jews by Jesus and by the apostles after Jesus was resurrected, and now is going to the gentiles for the first time.  So let’s think for a moment: the content of this first, hugely controversial, church council is (in it’s entirety) this: can the gospel of salvation be preached to the gentiles, and if so, what must they do? The entire reason for the meeting was predominantly to question whether or not gentiles should be circumcised to be considered “of the faith” (A: no, see Acts 15).

            You know what is NOT being questioned at this first church council, nor by any other church council until AD 325, hundreds of years after Jesus’ resurrection, and hundreds of years after converting many pagans and philosophers into Christianity?  “Is Jesus God?”.   It just never came up, because it’s such a foreign concept to the Jews of that time that it would never even be conceived of as a possibility.  The apostles and all of the Jewish followers of Christ at that time wrote, suffered, and often died, to tell the world and to prove that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah prophesied about in numerous scriptures; nothing more, and certainly nothing less.

            The Jews knew  who God was, His name occurs almost 7000 times in scripture;  Yahweh, the creator and sustainer of all life, who revealed Himself to Moses in Ex 3.  The Jews fully understood the concept of “shaliah” (see 1/27 devotion), but they could also quote the Shema (Deut 6:4-5) by heart, and had it written beside their doors, and in boxes they tied to their hands, and in boxes they tied to their foreheads because it was so important to God that he commanded them to do so.  If you have a more “complex” understanding about the nature of God than what is written, I urge you to “stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. “ (Jer 6:16).

            One thing to leave with; as obedient servants and slaves to our king, Gal 2:20 is a really good verse to memorize and keep in your defensive arsenal for when you are tempted: “I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me “ (LSB).  Remember that we were bought by our God at a price, a very high price indeed, and allow our king, the Christ, to sit upon the throne of our hearts.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

  1. Are you (even slightly) inspired to dig a little next time you see a genealogy?
  2. Why do you think Paul, after 14 years, went to check with the “authorities”?
  3. If the “authorities” had told Paul “No, you can’t preach to the gentiles” do you think he would have listened based on the rest of the chapter?  Either way, would that have been the right or the wrong call, and why?
  4. How can we get off the throne of our hearts, and put Christ there? (It’s different for each of us, your answers will be unique to you)

PRAYER

Father God, forgive me of all sin and teach me to be holy.  Circumcise my heart, father, and let me humbly serve you and bear good fruit to honor you.  Thank you for sending your light to the nations, thank you for the high price which you paid for me, please grant that I can honor you in everything I say, do, or think.  In Jesus name, amen.

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Who is Your Daddy?

*1 Chronicles 1-3

Psalm 70

*Galatians 1              

-Devotion by Jeremy Martin (TN)                      

            The opening of Galatians is one of the (many) clear examples of Paul’s personal understanding of scripture, of the nature of the Most High God and of His Messiah, Jesus.  The thing to keep in mind about Paul is that he was a “good Jewish boy” (just like Jesus was), and a Pharisee who trained under the renowned Gamaliel (and likely the “Hillel” school associated with Gamaliel) .  The Pharisees were basically just what we’d call the “church leaders” of his time.

            There were 4 predominant Jewish “philosophies” at the time, and it’s very important historically to understand them and their differences with each other in order to fully grasp what being a “Pharisee” meant.  So here they are, in no particular order:

  1. Pharisees-Devout Jews who emphasized strict adherence to the Torah and the oral law. They believed in resurrection, an afterlife, and divine providence.
  2. Sadducees: A priestly and aristocratic group who accepted only the written Torah (Pentateuch) as authoritative, rejected the oral law, and did not believe in resurrection or an afterlife.
  3. Essenes: A separatist, ascetic group that lived in communal settlements (like Qumran), practiced ritual purity, and are associated with the Dead Sea Scrolls. They believed in divine predestination and awaited a messianic figure.
  4. Fourth Philosophy: A radical political and revolutionary movement advocating armed resistance against foreign rule, particularly Roman occupation. They opposed paying taxes to Rome, viewed submission to foreign powers as idolatry, and sought a theocratic Jewish state. This group is often identified with the Zealots and Sicarii (Remember Simon the Zealot?  Yea, this is what they’re talking about: more stabby stabby, less “oh that guy was really zealous”.  Look up “sicarii” for some really cool information about these guys.)

            So here is the thing, the Pharisees were (as every branch mentioned) FIERCELY monotheistic; they believed in the one God, the God Most High, Yahweh. This particular sect was so fiercely monotheistic that they literally posted copies of The Shema (Deut 6:4-5) beside the doors to their houses, put it in little boxes and tied it to their hands, and tied them in little boxes around their foreheads to remind themselves: “Listen Israel! Yahweh God, Yahweh is one.”  It was a big deal, so big that when Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was in Mark 12:29-31 he quoted this (also note that the scribe agreed with him, and Jesus didn’t correct him).   That’s just what every good Jewish boy knew.  As good (Judeo-)Christians, we should know it too.

            My point in bringing this up is simply this: if Paul had come to a more “complex” understanding of the nature of God and His Christ as some modern apologists have suggested it would have been a huge, earth shatteringly tremendous, shockingly big deal.  It would have come up very clearly (not inferred) in conversation, and probably more than once.  There would have been screaming bouts and yelling, probably violence.  At least something in scriptures would have documented very clearly this huge diversion from an entire nation’s historical understanding of the nature of God, but it never comes up.  

Gal 1:1-4, LSB:

1Paul,…not sent from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead…3Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,4who gave Himself for our sins …according to the will of our God and Father, 5to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

            We see from the above that Paul believed that Jesus was The Christ (The “Messiah”, see May 8th devotional), that God raised Jesus from the dead, that Jesus gave himself for our sins, and that this sacrifice was done according to the will of our God and Father (to whom be the glory forever).  It’s pretty hard to have a “complex” reading of this, Paul delineates firmly between his God and his Messiah (as does Jesus, see John 20:17).  Almost all of Paul’s openings in his letters clearly delineate between God and His Christ, the man Jesus of Nazareth whom he believes is the Messiah (as did Jesus, see John 4:25).  All of the new testament authors (and Jesus himself) identify Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah.  It is not good to go beyond what is written (1 Cor 4:6), and that is what is written.  He is the Messiah, the son of David, the son of the living God (Matt 16:15).  He has to be, to fulfill the prophecies of the Messiah (see 2 Sam 7).

            As we can see in our 1 Chronicles 1-3 reading today, the Jewish folks have a passion for genealogy, we might view it as almost more of an obsession.  I never really understood that, but it’s simple, and very practical: the inheritance of the people was determined by ancestry.  In the book of Numbers (which has quite a bit of this type of genealogy) in chapters 34-36 it gives the breakdown of these inheritances for the Jews.  The obsession was because, simply, that determined where you lived, who you were, and what you got.  Want to be a priest in the nation of Israel?  Well, who’s your daddy? Let’s break out the genealogical scrolls and trace you backwards because if you can’t make a pretty straight genealogical line from you to Aaron, you aren’t qualified.  This concept ended up being carried over generationally, because who you were determined your inheritance.

            This type of genealogical thinking is entrenched in the Jewish mentality because of this, and that’s why 2 of the gospels make a point to break down the genealogy of Jesus in order to prove that he met the requirements of being the “Messiah” or “Christ” (Matt and Luke), but Jesus also exemplified the loving nature of God towards His creation. John the baptist (in Matt 3:9) warns the people not to think that because Abraham is “their father” that they’re safe, because it is faith that determines spiritual lineage (Rom 4:16, Gal 3:7) and not genealogy.  In John 8:44 Jesus tells some of the religious leaders that “You are of your father the devil”.  This is not to imply that their biological father was Satan, but to explain that true spiritual paternity is determined by behavior, actions, and attitude.  So with that understood, let me ask you the question: who is YOUR daddy?

            Our Father in heaven is the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.  He has given us blessings abundantly, even when we didn’t deserve them, and even when we were acting in opposition to His will.  He forgives freely to those who ask, He is faithful, He is loving, He comes running to meet us along the path when we wake up and begin to return home from our own folly.  Even when He is wronged, He stands waiting with outstretched arms for His children to return.  He is patient, He is kind, He always keeps His promises, and He will make a way for those who love and seek Him.  He LOVES YOU SO MUCH that He sent His only begotten son to die to make a way for you.

            So, again: who is your daddy?  Read the above paragraph very carefully.  If you are reflecting all of those traits, then you too are a child of the living God.  If you are not reflecting those traits listed above stop for a moment, and with fear and trembling consider your path and who your father is, and how to return to the loving arms of the God who made you.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

  1. What single thing can you do better to reflect the nature of God in your life?
  2. What flaw do you personally feel is the most detrimental to you, and how can you fix it?
  3. We are to regularly examine and test ourselves (2Cor 13:5): How do you normally do?
  4. Who is your Father, today?  What about yesterday?  Tomorrow?

PRAYER

Father God, my father, please show me what I can do better.  Please teach me Your ways, and let me humbly seek after You with all my heart.  Please forgive me when I fail You, as I so often do, and cleanse my heart of all wrongdoing and wrong thinking.  Guide me on the path that leads to Your kingdom.  Thank you for sending Your son to teach us, grant us the wisdom to listen.  In Jesus name, Amen.

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