August 20: Isaiah 56:1-8
Key Verse: Isaiah 56:3
Let no foreigner who is bound to the Lord say, ‘The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.’ And let no eunuch complain, ‘I am only a dry tree.’
Devotion:
The stereotypical view of the bible is the Old Testament was all about the Jews and excluding other people from their race, but as we see here in these verses, it was all about a relationship with God. It is true we see so many places where the Jews were told not to mix with other people but there is good reason for this. Other races had other gods in which they believed. God knew His people and knew they would be easily side-tracked by other people’s beliefs because they were a loving people.
I know my family is a loving family and we welcome all sorts of people into our lives. We have had God-fearing people in each generation who have continued to teach the next generation to have a relationship with Christ. It is this sort of close-knit family which God wants us all to be, loving God and loving each other, and this is what Isaiah was trying to impress on the people at this time.
I does not matter what walk in life you are from, you have the right to have a loving relationship with God. At the time Isaiah was teaching others the people would still make sacrifices and offerings to God. He wanted them all to know that the deeper you get into a relationship with God, the more He will be able to bless you!
All sorts of things happen in our lives which are out of our control. We live in the same world as the people around us so are affected by the same events which effect others; but what we have which separates us from others is our relationship with God through Christ. Jesus opened the doors for everyone to be able to have a loving eternal relationship with God – all we have to do is to believe it and trust Him!
Points to Ponder:
Do you have a good relationship with others?
Do you have a good relationship with God?
August 19: Matthew 19:13-15
Key Verse: Matthew 19:14
Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’
Devotion:
The more I read through these few verses the more convinced I was Jesus was not just talking about the young children who had come to make a fuss around Jesus. Children will always get excited about crowds or something different which is happening. Our modern society frown upon children getting involved because of child safety issues, but as long as there are responsible adults involved who are impartial, things can be done safely!
I say it was more than just the children because we see people being shunned by churches because they do not fit in, or do not come from the right area. This is as bad as the Pharisees policing the people instead of allowing God to work. God wants the gospel to be accessible by everyone, which means allowing people from all walks of life to be able to come and join in with worshipping God.
Our places of worship must be safe places where anyone can come to be safe and to share in finding out more about God. We should encourage people to come in and not discourage them. If we set up rules and expectations we may well be excluding people without realising it; and by the time we do find out it is already too late because they have the wrong opinion about church life already!
Some societies actually encourage people to be themselves and work together to make sure everyone feels included. If our churches are not like that, then we are excluding people from the gospel and from meeting with Jesus. If we are too stiff-necked about the type of people we expect in church, we shouldn’t expect to see many people joining us in worshipping God because we are more likely worshipping our ideas instead of God!
Points to Ponder:
How inclusive do you think your church is?
Are you willing to talk to anyone today?
August 18: Joshua 21:1-18
Key Verse: Joshua 21:7
The descendants of Merari, according to their clans, received twelve towns from the tribes of Reuben, Gad and Zebulun.
Devotion:
I find the portioning of the land after Joshua had led the people over the river to settle in the ‘land of milk and honey’ to be a strange affair. Why strange? Maybe because we live in such a corrupt and diverse society the way in which it was all done with such agreement is quite unfamiliar. In our modern world the politicians fight it out all the time not always thinking of the people but their own gain instead. We have countries warring and sending young people to fight a battle they do not understand…
Yet these people obeyed God and did this whole section peaceably. Over the past few chapter we read all about what land was elected to which tribes, why it was so and even the setting up of cities of refuge where people in trouble could flee to until things were sorted out in law. Now we have the tribe of the Levites who had always looked after the temple who had not amassed earthly wealth in livestock or land but had listened to and obeyed God throughout the journey through the desert.
Now was the time for the people to step forward and give back to the Levites for all the work they had done. Each tribe apportioned parts of their land to the Levites, some for farming, some for living and even parts for safety refuge too. These were not given to the people who were first chosen to be Levites, but to their descendants.
God does not forget what we have done and although we may not always get to see the earthly wealth for our Godly works, He is always fair and makes sure we, or our families get rewarded. God is good, all the time! This was not a case of the people giving what they didn’t want to people they didn’t like, it was a case of people obeying God and giving part of what they treasured to people who had obeyed God!
Points to Ponder:
How often do you do things because of earthly wealth?
How often do you do things because of Heavenly wealth?
August 17: Joshua 3:7-17
Key Verse: Joshua 3:8
Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: “When you reach the edge of the Jordan’s waters, go and stand in the river.”
Devotion:
How often do you implicitly trust a friend when they tell you to do something in a particular way? Maybe you have to build up trust in that friend before you listen to everything they say? When you do have enough trust in someone you are willing to listen to them even when they tell you to do something which at first seems counter-intuitive!
If we are able to give Christ the faith we have in some of our friends, then, just maybe, we will get to see Him do marvellous things in our lives! We often forget just how capable God is at doing everything in our lives and we listen to the world a bit too much. Just like Peter stepping out of the boat to walk to Jesus on the water; he started out fine until he allowed himself to be swayed by the world around him, then he sank!
God made a promise to Joshua he would be able to cross the river Jordan. At this time of the year the river was in flood, yet as soon as the people carrying the Ark listened fully to God, everyone witnessed something of a miracle! It took faith from Joshua to believe God. It took faith from the priests carrying to ark to listen to Joshua. It took faith from the people they would be able to follow the ark.
Nobody had to perform a miracle. Nobody had to have amazing powers. It was all down to faith in God and listening to the people God was talking to and through. If we are able to think less of the limitations of the world around us and more of our faith in God, we too will be able to see things God wants to do in our lives!
Points to Ponder:
What does it take for you to believe in something?
Will you try to allow God to do what He wants to do?