What brings you endless joy?
5 Apr 26
Today's devotional: taken from YouVersion, Devotions on F.I.R.E. Year One
Readings:
Judges 15
Judges 16
Judges 17
Luke 10:1-24
Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven (Luke 10:20).
What brings you endless joy?
Jesus dispatches seventy disciples on a mission. He teaches these followers about faith, saying, “Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals” (Luke 10:4). Jesus provides for all their needs. Once they return and give their praise report, He gives them two commands: One is stated negatively and the other positively (Luke 10:20). Although our Lord “saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” (Luke 10:18), He doesn’t want them focusing upon the expulsion of demons. Rather, Jesus uses the present tense verb to guide them habitually to “rejoice because your names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:20). Conversely, many throughout the ages reject Jesus; they will be eternally separated from His presence. John writes, “And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:15).
Employment Point: Continually rejoice in your salvation.
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Reflections
“When the Philistines asked, “Who did this?” they were told, “Samson, the Timnite’s son-in-law, because his wife was given to his companion.” So the Philistines went up and burned her and her father to death.”Judges 15:6 NIV
- where there were no judges, people tend to do things however they want to. Lawless and scary to some point.
“Because he was very thirsty, he cried out to the Lord, “You have given your servant this great victory. Must I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” Then God opened up the hollow place in Lehi, and water came out of it. When Samson drank, his strength returned and he revived. So the spring was called En Hakkore, and it is still there in Lehi.”Judges 15:18-19 NIV
- Are we able to just trust God to deliver us out of every situation like how Samson did? At a random place where no water is found, the Lord opened up the hollow place in Lehi and out came drinking water. All praises be to our Lord and God for delivering us and helping us, even when we may not even realised it.
“Delilah then said to Samson, “All this time you have been making a fool of me and lying to me. Tell me how you can be tied.” He replied, “If you weave the seven braids of my head into the fabric on the loom and tighten it with the pin, I’ll become as weak as any other man.” So while he was sleeping, Delilah took the seven braids of his head, wove them into the fabric and tightened it with the pin. Again she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” He awoke from his sleep and pulled up the pin and the loom, with the fabric.”Judges 16:13-14 NIV
- I’m not too sure what to make of this part of the verses. Delilah had asked him time and again how to overcome his strength. Even though Samson did not tell her the truth in the beginning, he eventually did in the end. A few points came to mind while reading all these
- When told not to marry an enemy, don’t, because we do not know what their ultimate intentions are. Though for Samson’s case, it may be that this is meant to be or a diversion from his original fate.
- Do not fully trust anyone who keeps taunting you or kept digging what your weaknesses are. Unless you are able to explain what good intentions can come out of it. No loving people of God will cause someone to be distressed, ridiculed, belittled or have negative feelings about themselves.
- Remember that a good tree will bear good fruit and a good fruit cannot come from a bad tree. We also ought not to judge someone by their looks only. The Lord has taught us to look at their hearts.
“Then she called, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” He awoke from his sleep and thought, “I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.”
Judges 16:20 NIV
- This is where we get reminded not to be too full of ourselves, thinking we can overcome anything. Samson forgot that it was the Lord who gave him extraordinary strength, which was due to a binding covenant that he does not shave his head, etc.
- The same with us. We too ought to remember our calling and what the Lord has reminded us of. Do not forget. We need to remember our calling.
“Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived.”Judges 16:30 NIV
- the judges are truly meant to bring judgement upon people who refused to abide in the Lord. This is no ordinary strength but strength that is divine and a gift from God.
- Remember our spiritual gifts and use them wisely to glorify His name.
“However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.””Luke 10:20 NIV
- I felt that this is not a “yeah, I can drive out demons moment” but one that proves that we are the children of God and because we are heirs and co-heirs of Christ, we live in the authority and power that comes from our Abba Father, our Sovereign Lord.
- It is not how great works we can do, but by His power and His name, we are given the gifts to serve His people. Be careful not to boast in those things but boast only in the Lord.
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His Agony in Gethsemane
BY OSWALD CHAMBERS
April 05
Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, . . . “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” — Matthew 26:36,38
We know nothing about Gethsemane in our personal experience. Both Gethsemane and Calvary stand for something unique: they are the gateway into life for us. We can never fully fathom the agony Jesus went through in Gethsemane, but we can at least try not to misunderstand it. It is the agony of God and man in one, coming face-to-face with sin.
Death on the cross wasn’t what Jesus feared in Gethsemane. He’d already stated that he’d come for that purpose. Read about his agony in light of the temptation Jesus endured three years earlier at the hands of Satan. “When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time” (Luke 4:13). The “opportune time” was Gethsemane. It was then that Satan came back and resumed his onslaught, and what Jesus feared was that he might not get through the attack as the Son of Man. He knew he’d get through it as the Son of God—Satan couldn’t touch him there. But Satan’s attack, if victorious, would mean that Jesus only withstood temptation as the Son of God, an isolated Figure, and thus could be no savior.
The agony in Gethsemane is the agony of the Son of Man fulfilling his destiny as the savior of the world. The veil is drawn aside to reveal what it cost him to make it possible for us to become children of God. Jesus’s agony is the basis of the simplicity of our salvation. The cross of Christ is a sign not only that our Lord has triumphed but that he triumphed to save humankind. Now, thanks to what the Son of Man endured, every human can get through to the presence of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD
Jesus Christ reveals, not an embarrassed God, not a confused God, not a God who stands apart from the problems, but One who stands in the thick of the whole thing with man.
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Reflections
Reading this devotional reminds me of the sermon I heard on Good Friday. One part of it reminds us of our sins. And each and every sin being nailed to the cross. And it is our sins, every single one of them that drives a nail upon Him. It is a really sobering thought and can you imagine how many sins that we committed in this lifetime that drove Him to the cross? And that is just us, one person.
The Lord takes on the sins of the world, how painful that can be. I’m sure this is beyond human measure and understanding and He has endured it all. He bear all so that we can be saved and have direct access to the Father, something that was not possible if He had not sacrificed Himself as the sacrificial lamb being presented as the offering once and for all for the redemption of our sins. It is through His blood that we are cleansed and made clean. That we can start life afresh. That we are called children of God.
Our salvation is not earned. We do not deserve it in any case but given to us as a gift by faith so that no man can boast.
Good Friday changes everything and Easter Sunday brought forth a light that is brighter than any light in the world. He came to bring us out of darkness. He came so that we have direct access to the Father. We no longer carry the guilt in the garden of Eden, we have forever been redeemed.
Thank You Lord, for coming to us and revealing to us what a true God You have been. Thank You for guiding us through the help of the Holy Spirit every single day. Praise You Lord. Thank You for mercy and grace.
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Lent devotion Day 47/53
taken from YouVersion, Lent for Everyone
Lent for Everyone is a devotional created and written by N.T. (Tom) Wright. For each day of Lent, there is a reading chosen from the Gospel of Matthew, plus a reflection by Wright. These readings have grown out of a project encouraging Lent reading in Northern England. This is the second in a three-volume series based on the Revised Common Lectionary of the Church of England.
Today’s reading:
Matthew 28:1-10
EASTER DAY
Earthquakes, angels, women running to and fro, a strange command. A highly unlikely tale. Yes, indeed, and that's the point. Nobody thought in the first century, and nobody should think now, that the point of the Easter story is that this is quite a reasonable thing to happen, that dead people really do rise if only we had the wit to see it, that it should be quite easy to believe it if only you thought about it for a few minutes.
No. It was always a strange, crazy, wild story. What else would you expect if, after all, the ancient dream of Israel was true? If the God who made the world had finally acted to turn things around, to take all the forces of chaos, pride, greed, darkness and death and allow them to do their worst, exhausting themselves in the process? If Jesus of Nazareth really was, as the centurion (greatly to his own surprise, no doubt) found himself saying three days before, 'the Son of God'? What else would you expect? A calm restatement of some philosophical truths for sage old greybeards to ponder — or events which blew the world apart and put it back in a new way?
The unlikeliest bit of the story is the bit that really does show they weren't making it up. Women were not regarded as reliable witnesses in a court of law in those days, and everybody knew it. Even the early church, where women played an important part, formulated the first official statement of resurrection faith in such a way that the women were quietly removed from the story (1 Corinthians 15.3—9). It is a thousand per cent more likely that the women were in the story at the start and then airbrushed out, rather than that they were never there in the earliest forms of the story and then inserted, in different ways, by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. How to ruin a good story for public use! Everyone would surely say, and many sceptics did indeed say, 'How can you believe a crazy tale on the evidence of a few hysterical women?'
But, as Paul put it elsewhere in that same letter, God chooses what is weak in the world, what the world counts as foolishness, to put to shame the power and wisdom of the world. That is part of what Easter is all about. God is doing a new thing, and, as Jesus said earlier in the story, the first shall be last and the last first. Easter is a day to put everything upside down and inside out. Maybe we should have Easter processions with the young, the weak and the stranger in pride of place, letting the normal leaders sink into oblivion somewhere. Maybe we should let the children's band lead the worship and send the professional choirs into the congregation for the day. Maybe the women should lead the entire service and then, at a certain point, go and tell the men that it's time they joined in. Giving the women pride of place in the story makes exactly that point. Instead of the men getting the message and then solemnly informing the women later on, the women are in on the action from the start. It is they who have to go and tell Jesus' 'brothers' (verse 10).
But the main thing is that, once more, they are told not to be afraid (verse 5). What is there to be afraid of, if Easter has dealt with the greatest monster of all, death itself? Why should you be afraid of anything, if Jesus has been raised from the dead, if the old world has cracked open and a new world has been born?
And Easter always looks outwards. From the very start, the news that Jesus is risen contains a command: 'Go!' Go, first to Galilee; go back to where it began, back to your roots to meet the risen Jesus there and watch him transform everything, including your oldest memories. And, as you obey the command of the angel, Jesus himself may perhaps meet you in person (verse 9). Take hold of him. Worship him. This is his day, the Day of Days. Make it yours too.
TODAY
We praise you, Lord Jesus Christ, because you have overcome death, and opened God's new creation to all believers.
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Let’s pray:
We thank You Lord, for this day of celebration and the day where all things are made new in You! Thank You that whatever You had promised do come to pass and that You have proved to us that You can rebuild the temple in 3 days. Forgive us Lord on the times we focus only on what we think possible and yet forgotten that we have a Sovereign Lord and Father who had the ability and power to turn hearts, transform and to be resurrected from the dead. Thank You Lord for Your everlasting grace and love, and may we all rejoice in knowing You and Your word! In Jesus’s name we pray. Amen 🙏🏻
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