April 25: Acts 4:5-12
Key Verse: Acts 4:10
then know this, you and all the people of Israel: it is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.
Devotion:
The apostles made sure people knew exactly why they went around spreading the gospel and healing people. They wanted everyone to know it was because of Jesus Christ and nothing they could do on their own. They had faith in telling people about Jesus would help them and others...
If we try to be more like the Apostles and have faith in the power of the name of Jesus, we will get a whole lot more done than just working at it alone. We could act like evangelists and shout all about Jesus and hope people listened to us because of our charismatic ways – but a better solution is to show them the power of Jesus name!
To show people the power of Jesus name means we have to have faith things will happen when we ask for them in Jesus' name. They went forward and took Jesus’ name before them wherever they went. They knew Jesus would answer their prayers because Jesus had promised to do so. He also promises the same to us, that is we go forward and ask for things in His name, God will listen and answer our prayers.
It is not about shouting the right words, chanting the right prayers or singing the right songs... it is about lifting up our prayers and asking Jesus to make sure they are answered. We have to petition God in the name of Jesus – that is why Jesus gave His life on the cross, so we would have the chance to ask things in His name afterward.
Points to Ponder:
How often do you ask for things in Jesus’ name?
Will you faithfully ask your next prayers in Jesus’ name?
April 24: Philippians 4:4-7
Key Verse: Philippians 4:5
Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
Devotion:
One of the most important things as a Christian is to allow other people to see how happy you are to be a Christian. There is no greater witness than a person who is happy with what they have and how they are – so accepting the way you are, what God has given you and being content with everything God has given you is the first step forward!
God wants us to be able to love Him and to love others too – but in order to do that we have to be able to love; the first step being loving yourself or accepting yourself and being content. When we are able to do that, we then can expand that toward God and toward others. The more other people see we are happy with things, the more they will want to hear about what makes you happy and content!
God wants us to be happy and so will give us things when we ask through prayers and worship. When we begin to see how God listens to us and answers our prayers, we begin to shine in a new way where others will want to know why we are happy all the time. What better witness than being happy all the time with everything God gives you!
No, it does not come naturally to most people – we have to work at being content with things because we are surrounded by a greedy world which wants more things all the time. But when we are able to separate ourselves from the greed of the world and those around us, we begin to see how much God does give us through Christ and we begin to shine as a happy people!
Points to Ponder:
Are you happy with yourself?
Have you thanked God for you happiness lately?
April 23: 1 Peter 2:13-17
Key Verse: 1 Peter 2:13
Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority,
Devotion:
Yes we do live in a world which seems to be based on corruption, pride and greed in so many ways and at so many levels throughout society. This does not mean we should ignore governmental authority! God wants us to follow the law of the land. If we go about breaking laws all the time, people will not be likely to listen to us when we tell them about Christ – they will assume we are going to break the rules or lie like any other person...
God wants us to be different so people take notice of us. He wants us to live lives others will strive to copy, with the ultimate task being to give glory to God like we strive to do. We should not assume we are not going to get punished if we break the law – whether that is God’s laws or man’s laws. We should all be treated the same and should all expect to receive the same treatment.
We are seeing many different things happening in the Western world where people are becoming more aware of the racism in society and are trying to change to make sure people all get treated the same no matter what race or standing they have in society. We should not expect to have preferential treatment just because we are Christians – that may not be seen as being fair!
Each of us are free because Christ has paid for our sin debt – we should live as if we know that and want to show it to others. Why should we hide our freedom? Instead, we should live according to God’s will in our lives and show all people the same dues respect as we are all God’s children!
Points to Ponder:
Do you treat everyone the same or do you have favourites?
Will you try to give everyone the same chance in your life?
April 22: Philippians 3:4-9
Key Verse: Philippians 3:7
But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.
Devotion:
When Paul wrote letters to the church in Philippi, he knew he was writing to people who thought they were good people. His writing, however, hints at people thinking more of themselves than they should be. He saw this problem with many who had been brought up as he was – to be Hebrew people whose lives were based on the law handed down from Moses!
What they may have been doing is probably what he was doing before he got to know Christ. They were holding the law above everything and judging everyone according to these very strict laws. This would exclude Christians because Christ had shown people they no longer had to live under the weight of those very strict rules. Christ was telling people they could be forgiven for the worst sins because He had taken their sin debt to the cross and had paid for it with His own life!
Paul was raised in a very strict environment and he persecuted some of the earliest Christians because they would not agree to the sacrifices and way of old. But once he got to know Christ, his life changed and he began to realise just how much Jesus did for him and how that love continues to flow through all of us now.
Paul was now focusing on getting to know Christ more because it was that knowledge and growing faith which was allowing him to better understand what God was asking for and not blindly following rules which mankind had changed over the years to suit themselves. God wants us to follow His example of true love and not to be caught up in earthly rules and regulations which prevent us from getting to live with this love...
Points to Ponder:
Do you use excuses not to share love with others?
Will you allow Christ’s love to grow in you so you can truly share His love with others?