Are you walking in God’s light?

 21 May 26

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


Readings:

1 Chronicles 3

1 Chronicles 4

1 Chronicles 5

John 8:1-20


God is light and in Him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). 


Are you walking in God’s light?


Jesus arrives at the Temple early one morning. He is rudely interrupted by the scribes and Pharisees who “brought to Him a woman caught in adultery” (John 8:3). They seek to entrap Jesus by pointing out that Moses’ Law demands the death penalty for this act. If He encourages her to be stoned, then the Romans would be upset because only they can enact capital punishment. On the other hand, if He ignores the Law, then His own people will disown Him. What Jesus writes on the ground isn’t as important as how He writes. He writes with the finger of God, which is how the Law was written (Exodus 31:18). The woman who was in the dark repents and now lives in the light. No wonder Jesus says, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). 


Employment Point: Remain in the light by following Jesus.

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Reflections

In 1 Chronicles 3:10-16, it listed all that kings that reign in Judah that we read about in 2 Kings, in chronological order.


“They were helped in fighting them, and God delivered the Hagrites and all their allies into their hands, because they cried out to him during the battle. He answered their prayers, because they trusted in him.”1 Chronicles‬ ‭5‬:‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  • When we put our trust in the Lord, He will answer our prayers. Let not our trust as well as our faith waver. Help us to stand firm in the Lord


“Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.””John‬ ‭8‬:‭10‬-‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  • Jesus came to bring us a new life. He forgives us our sins and cleanse us of all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9). Jesus knew that it is impossible to be sinless. So he asked whoever who is without sin to first throw a stone at the women and true enough, none can do that. And Jesus who is perfect and without sin, said He too, will not condemn her.
  • I don’t know how many second chances we may be given but with Christ, it seems to be endless. May we give thanks to the Lord for He is good gives us chances to a new life.


“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””John‬ ‭8‬:‭12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  • this is indeed a great promise. In this world where we are surrounded by so much darkness and evil, this promise is like the light at the end of the tunnel. this is the light of hope, a renewed hope in all who thinks that’s the end of the world, in people who thinks there no more meaning in life, to anyone who thinks that there’s no more cure, no more family, etc.. in all these darkness, we have our Lord Jesus, who will never leave us nor forsake us. Thank You Lord

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Divine Reasonings of Faith

BY OSWALD CHAMBERS

May 21


But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.— Matthew 6:33


The words Jesus speaks here are the most revolutionary words human ears ever heard: “Seek first his kingdom.” Even the most spiritually-minded of us argue that we must do other things first. “But I must make money. I must be clothed. I must be fed,” we say. When we reason like this, we make it clear that the great concern of our lives isn’t the kingdom of God; it’s how we’re going to get by financially. Jesus reverses the order, telling us to get rightly related to God first. He asks us to maintain our relationship with our heavenly Father as the main focus of our lives, and to take the focus off all other concerns.


“Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear”(Matthew 6:25). Our Lord points out the unreasonableness of being anxious about how we’ll live. Jesus isn’t saying that the person who thinks of nothing is blessed—that person is a fool (Proverbs 19:2). Jesus is telling us to place our relationship to God at the center of our lives, and to be carefully careless about everything else in comparison. He’s saying, “Don’t make the main concern of your life what you will eat and what you will drink. Be focused on God.”


Some people are careless about what they eat and drink, and they suffer for it. Some are careless about what they wear, and they look as they have no business looking. Some are careless about their earthly affairs, and God holds them responsible. What Jesus is saying in these verses is that the great care of our life should be to put our relationship to God first, and everything else second. One of the harshest disciplines of the Christian life is allowing the Holy Spirit to bring us into harmony with this teaching of Jesus.


1 Chronicles 13-15; John 7:1-27


WISDOM FROM OSWALD

Am I getting nobler, better, more helpful, more humble, as I get older? Am I exhibiting the life that men take knowledge of as having been with Jesus, or am I getting more self-assertive, more deliberately determined to have my own way? It is a great thing to tell yourself the truth.

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Reflections

This verse seems to be popping up every now and then in my current season of life. I agree, this is a difficult chapter to learn.


Like what Oswald says, we have the tendency of focusing on the other things first, the Lord second. For example, we know we should seek first His kingdom but we ended up scrolling social media before we read the word. The time we spent on social media lengthens, which is a signal that our focus is not so strong. Check your phone usage to see how much time you are spending on something, in comparison to studying of God’s word. That would give us a good idea where we stand.


We will have to devise ways and ask the Holy Spirit to guide us and grant us wisdom. What to read and what not. What to watch and what not. What to eat and what not. And in whatever we do, think or say, it should be encouraging to others as they see the Christ in us.


Let’s pray:


Father thank You for the reminder to us to keep our life centered in You, keeping our focus on the one true God. Help us to cast away things or worries that hinders our growth and may we always be able to put You first and seek You first. Thank You Lord. In Jesus’s most powerful name we pray. Amen 🙏🏻 

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