April 2: John 19:16-22
Key Verse: John 19:19
Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: Jesus of Nazareth, the king of the Jews.
Devotion:
Sometimes it is not nice to be the person in charge when things go terribly wrong. Sometimes the outcome is way out of your reach and the only thing you can feasibly do is to go with the flow – or at least that is how we see things. God does not see things like that, instead standing up for what is right and always telling the truth!
I’m pretty sure Pilate saw what the Chief Priests were up to but he was not in a position to argue against them. If he did, they would have revolted in some way and there would have been a time of unrest which is not what he would have wanted! So he did the human thing and gave ground to the crowd. We do things like that when the going gets tough because we see it as an easier way out that having to put up with an angry crowd.
Jesus knew He was going to get blamed for many things and He knew He would have to go to the cross and give up His life. I wonder what was going through His mind as He saw the Chief Priests doing what they were doing out of ignorance, pride and greed rather than out of wisdom! Jesus wept over the people when He saw they had turned toward sin instead of following Him. Now the priests themselves were turning away from Him.
Pilate’s words he had written on the sign which was fastened to the cross explained his personal feelings in a way. He saw Jesus as the example the others should have been looking up to and following. Instead, to keep the peace, he was having to give in to the ignorance, pride and greed of the people in charge of the Jews, so he wrote these words! And he stood by them when the Chief Priests came to complain about them...
Points to Ponder:
Do you give in to peer pressure a lot?
Have you tried to ask Christ which way you should be going lately?
April 1: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
Key Verse: 1 Corinthians 11:26
For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Devotion:
Jesus tried to remind the disciples about the poor and needy whenever He could, and on this occasion, He wanted them to think about what it means when they sit down to a meal in remembrance of God. When we do ask for God’s blessing on the meal, are we doing it out of habit, or are we really remembering what it all means.
As we come up to Easter we remember all Christ did for us and all the history which lead to this – I think modern Christians have got pretty good at setting up reminders of all things which have happened – but some of us may not be thinking about the right stuff in our hearts!
When we remember how Jesus’ body was broken for us and how He shed blood for us, we also need to remember who He did this for and why. How can we sit at a nice big family table and enjoy a great meal, saying all the right things about how Jesus died for us when we are not doing what we can to show love and support for the people Jesus wanted to show love and support for?
Jesus showed His love, mercy, support, forgiveness and so much more for every one of us, from the richest to the poorest, from the healthiest to the sick and infirm. Jesus wants us to remember these same people when we sit at the table to remember Him. Jesus wants us to know what was going through Jesus’ heart by remembering these same people as He did all those years ago. Jesus reached out to us, sinners. We should be reaching out to others – not just because they are part of our family circle, but because they are loved by God!
Points to Ponder:
How often do you thank God for your food and drink?
How often do you share your food and drink?
March 31: John 13:21-30
Key Verse: John 13:21
After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “Very truly I tell you, one of you is going to betray me.”
Devotion:
We all like to think we will never let God down, how we will always listen to Him and obey when He asks or directs, but the truth is we all fall short of the mark and we all let Him down every day! Every day? Yes, every day! No matter how small the infraction, we all do something wrong against God’s will every day just because we have free choice and are surrounded by temptation all the time.
God knew this and knew not matter how much His chosen people said they would follow Him, they, and us, would falter at some stage. This has been shown to us time and time again in the Old Testament as the people went after their own beliefs when they grew tired of waiting for God or when they got side-tracked by things and people around them.
We live in similar times nowadays too; we get side-tracked by all manner of things and people. We let God down because we are weak and we fall for the many temptations which surround us. But God still loves us! That is the key thing here! The love of God goes far beyond our failing and our strengths. God’s love went all the way to the cross and beyond. Jesus knew what he had to do and He even understood how one of His disciples would betray Him in the final days – just because they wanted a bit of money!
Even though we face temptations, trials and sinful ways, we do still have a choice as to what we do before the case, during the case and after the case! We have the choice to try and avoid bad situations. We have the choice to leave bad places. We have the choice to ask for forgiveness when we know we have done wrong. This is why Christ went through this all – so we have that final choice, the one which can save us!
Points to Ponder:
How many things have you done wrong already today?
Will you ask Christ to forgive you?
March 30: John 12:20-26
Key Verse: John 12:24
Very truly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.
Devotion:
I love the way Jesus told the disciples the truth no matter how bad things seemed to be; but He always made sure they still had hope – a hope for a future with Him in Heaven for eternity! The passage starts out by telling us how other people wanted to come and worship at the temple, not just the Jews.
Jesus came to open the doors for everyone to be able to come to join Him, not just the Israelites but the Greeks as well. Jesus opens the door for us all which was seen by the kinds of people He met with and even socialised with. Just because we are not of the tribe of Judah, or any other Israeli tribe, does not mean we will be excluded. We are all included as God’s children, part of His family.
What Jesus wanted people to start seeing here is how we all have to sacrifice something in our lives to do the right thing. We may have a wonderful life, home, car, whatever, but if we are not willing to open our lives and homes to others, we are excluding God’s people! Jesus highlights this by reminding us of the simplicity of nature – unless a seed is planted and allowed to change, it will not grow into another plant.
Christ wants us all to know we do have to change in order to grow in our lives with Him; turning our backs on the ways of the world and embracing God’s ways. This does not mean we have to turn our backs on the people of the world – far from it. God wants us to embrace the people and be the example of a seed being planted, dying and coming back to life as something new and special.
Points to Ponder:
How comfortable are you in your life?
Will you try to share your life with someone else (as we start to come out of lockdown)