January 14: Proverbs 25:21-22
Key Verse: Proverbs 25:21
If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.
Devotion:
O how we like to berate our enemies or to embarrass them in the sight of others, but this is not God’s way! Jesus told things how they were; He called out those who were hiding behind acts which were not sincere, but He always held out a hand to His enemies! It is a difficult route to follow, but one which we need to strive for in our own lives.
I know many people justify their actions through the next verse which tells us how being kind will heap burning coals on the heads of our enemies. This is not meant as a justification for doing something good! God wants us to do good things for the people around us because it is the right thing to do – not because we will be getting back at them in some other way!
But it is a though we should remind ourselves of because we may end up doing more harm than good if we go about things in the wrong way. If we go out of our way to be nice just so we can get back at people, then we are doing that as our primary goal and not blessing them! It is not right to channel all our energy into getting back at people, no matter how much they have done in our lives.
Striving to be what Jesus would do is a far better goal to aim for – one which we may end up finding much hard to achieve that living our lives peaceably! Our motives for doing what we do have got to be more in line with God’s motives; it is these motive God will be looking at and how He will be judging us.
Points to Ponder:
Do you go out of your way to get back at people?
Are you setting your goals in line with Jesus’ goals?
January 13: Proverbs 17:17
Key Verse: Proverbs 17:17
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity.
Devotion:
When you meet someone as a friend and you bond together as friends, not a lot is going to be able to get in the way of your friendly love for one another – there is something very special about the love you build up as friends. If something does get in the way, then you start to ask questions about what is special and what is vanity.
As Christians we need to have this sort of love for one another, making sure nothing gets in the way of your love for others and making sure the love remains even when things go wrong. God wants us to think about others all the time and not just think of ourselves – this is especially so when we are in sad and lonely time as we are now in the UK.
It is hard not being able to go round to friends' houses and greet each other with big hugs, but we need to remain careful and diligent to ensure we don’t all succumb to the virus! We need to make sure we spread the love, but not the germs. God made special concessions for people who had infectious deceases in the bible and we should not take this virus lightly.
But, equally, we need to remember our love for each other, remember the friendships we have and make sure they stand firm and strong. Also making sure the people around us know they can count on us to help out where we can and to share things when we can. I love being part of a community where things are not just discarded but advertised in case someone is in need.
Points to Ponder:
Do you find it hard in these stressful times?
Will you try and share something with a neighbour to lift the stress a bit?
January 12: Matthew 12:30-32
Key Verse: Matthew 12:32
Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
Devotion:
This is one of those verses in the bible which worries a lot of people because it seems to say that we could be in mortal danger if we say anything against the Holy Spirit... but we do have to take it in context and study the whole bible and not take a single verse as meaning everything! There are so many places in our bibles which tell us how forgiving and merciful God is and many more places where God has forgiven people for sins which would have demanded death of old!
God is willing and able to forgive anyone who has done anything wrong, even those who have spoken against the Holy Spirit! If we take this to its furthest extent, then many of us have cursed in the name of the Holy Spirit or Jesus... do we deserve eternal death? Well, everyone deserves eternal death according to the rules... but God forgives us and allows us to come to Him through Christ.
It is the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus which has allowed us to come to God no matter what we have done in our lives. We have to be careful in this though because the rules were laid down by God for a reason! If we say one thing (say we love God) but do something else (continue sinning as if it was normal) then are we showing God our true colours?
God wants us to be truthful and honest with Him and then He will uphold His promises to us. If we continue to berate the Holy Spirit and continue to work against the Spirit in our lives, then we are living a lie; something God will see right through! God will judge us according to the truth in our lives and not just what we say!
Points to Ponder:
What do you say about God in your life?
What do you do with God in your life?
January 11: Mark 1:9-13
Key Verse: Mark 1:12
At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness,
Devotion:
What is the first thing which comes into your mind when you think about the baptism of Jesus? Is it the fact He came to John in human form and asked to be baptised just as everyone else was being baptised? Was it the fact the Spirit descended on Him like a dove from Heaven?
These are points which we need to remember and be thankful for, points which are very important and upon which many sermons have been preached – but I want to focus on what happens next... Have you been baptised? Can you remember it? I love the way baptisms are done in a small community church called church at five, based in East Finchley in London; or at least how they were done before COVID-19 set in!
The person being baptised is fully immersed in the pool and then the whole congregation gathers around the pool and prophesies over them. Yes, the whole congregation! Each one of us can listen to the spirit and tell others what the spirit it telling them! In Jesus’ case the spirit of God spoke out from Heaven... but it was not Jesus’ task to sit and soak up the spirit...
Instead, the spirit led Him out into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan! What would you have thought if your first task as a new Christian was to go out into the hardest, toughest and wildest place you can imagine and to be provoked as far as you could by a horrible person! Jesus needed to demonstrate to us we have the power to ignore evil when we have God on our side. God gives us the strength required through the Holy Spirit!
Points to Ponder:
How much do you rely on the Holy Spirit?
Will you step forward and expect the Holy Spirit to hold on tight today?