What value have you placed upon Jesus?

 10 Feb 26

Today's devotional: taken from YouVersion, Devotions on F.I.R.E. Year One

Readings:

Leviticus 10

Leviticus 11

Leviticus 12

Matthew 26:1-19

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matthew 6:21). 

What value have you placed upon Jesus?

Jesus earlier commands His disciples, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth” (Matthew 6:19). Then He gives His followers the right focus, “but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:20). Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, is practicing the latter; she lays up treasures in heaven by anointing the body of Jesus with a perfume that would cost a year’s pay for the average day laborer (John 12:5). By way of contrast, Judas sells out his Lord, friend, and provider for thirty pieces of silver (Matthew 26:15). This is the value of a male or female slave gored to death by an ox (Exodus 21:32). Mary’s sacrificial act stands in stark contrast to the selfish betrayal of Judas. Whose example will you choose to follow? 

Employment Point: Value Jesus highly, by offering sacrifices worthy of heaven’s recognition and reward.

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Reflections

When we come into service with the Lord, it is important to realise that everything ought to be done with reverence to the Lord, giving Him the greatest honour. 

We saw how in Aaron’s case, his sons died because they offered unauthorised fire before the Lord and died and instant death. It must have been quite heartbreaking for Aaron. He can’t mourn the deaths of his son because he is still serving. That was his cost. So he ended up fasting instead. 

Do you sometimes face with such situations? That due to your service to the Lord, you sometimes have to forego certain conveniences, certain family commitments, certain personal dinners, amongst others. Is that worth it, you may ask. To me, it is. It is not an easy decision to make. But when He placed me in a situation where I can make a choice, I hope it is always Him that I choose.

“While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table.”Matthew‬ ‭26‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver.”Matthew‬ ‭26‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• we saw in great contrast the different values people placed on Jesus. The woman, who almost everyone condemned, placed utmost value on Jesus, bringing with her an alabaster jar of expensive perfume that was worth months of wages in those times. Putting it into perspective, Judas deemed Jesus to be only worth 30 pieces of silver, when he is supposed to be His apostle.
• The one who should value Him more did not find Him worthy in the first place

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Is Your Imagination of God Starved?

BY OSWALD CHAMBERS

February 10

Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. — Isaiah 40:26

In Isaiah’s day, God’s people had starved their imaginations by looking on the faces of idols. Isaiah told them to look to God, to the author of everything created and imagined. He made them lift their eyes to the heavens, so that they might begin to use their imaginations aright.

Nature to a child of God is sacramental. In every wind that blows, in every night and every day, in every sign of the sky, in every blossoming and withering of the earth, there is a real coming of God to us, if we will only use our starved imaginations to realize it. If we learn to associate ideas worthy of God with all that happens in nature—with the sunrises and the sunsets, with the moon and the stars, with the changing seasons—our imaginations will never be at the mercy of our impulses but will always be at his service.

Is your imagination looking on the face of an idol? Is the idol yourself? Your work? Your experiences of salvation and sanctification? If your imagination is God-starved, you will have no power when difficulties arise. When you need strength, don’t look to your own experience or understanding; it is God you need. Go out of yourself—away from your idols, away from everything that has been starving your imagination. Take Isaiah’s words to heart: lift your eyes to the heavens and deliberately turn your mind to God.

Leviticus 8-10; Matthew 25:31-46

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.

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Reflections

What popped up most while reading this devotional is of God’s creations. More so the nature, the greens, the sea, all things natural, but perhaps I also should not forget us, his own creations.

To me it is also giving thanks. Looking up to heavens and give him all the thanks for all the simple comforts of rain or sunshine, for the cooling wind and smooth traffic, smooth work, etc. Even in the midst of trials or difficulties, to also give thanks because He is teaching us lessons to be reliant on Him. 

If we look close enough, we will be able to see Him in every single thing in our life. He is so ever present, so prominent. But at times we missed this fact because we lost our focus. Instead of lifting our eyes to the heavens, our eyes were on the problems and challenges. It was how hard it is to plough through the pile of work, how difficult it is to minister to people, how problematic it is to deal with unreasonable people, etc. but when we shift our focus on Christ Jesus, our perspective changes. We will be able to see God’s hand in our situations. We realised His hand is never too short. We saw how He has planned and move things so that it is to our benefit. More of Him and less of us.

Reminds me too of Psalms 121. “I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.”Psalms‬ ‭121‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Let’s pray:

Indeed, the Lord our God is where our help comes from. Help us Lord to seek You always. Help us, not to take Your love, Your grace, Your mercy and everything from You for granted. Remind us to sing praise and give thanks for all that You have done, even the small and yet essential things in our lives-our home, our clean water, our hot shower, our safe country and many more. Not forgetting the very breaths that we take all comes from You. Thank You Father God for everything. We are thankful and grateful for Your abundant blessings upon us. In Jesus’s name we ask and pray. Amen 🙏🏻