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May 10: John 15:1-8
Key Verse: John 15:5
‘I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
Devotion:
I think this is a part of Christian life we come up against a lot of the time and a part we may think of as the opposition rather than helpers. Sometimes you are so sure you should be doing something you go off and do it trying to get support from all over the place to make sure it happens. Where we look for that support and the things we use to bolster our position may not be what God had in mind – so don’t be too surprised if they fail to make the point you thought they should!
If we are willing to really stop and listen to God, then we will be able to do much more than if we go it alone or with earthly help and assistance. As the disciples were learning this from Christ they would have also seen and known how successful the Pharisees had been and may have wanted to do things that way instead. But Jesus kept them following the truth, God’s Word, and kept them from tainting their message with earthly ways and methods.
There is going to be a time when it is too late to pass on the truth. Too late to ask Jesus to forgive you. Too late to share the gospel… But that time will only be after we join Christ in Heaven; until they day we should be facing the opposition with the truth, asking for forgiveness, listening to the Holy Spirit and obeying God in all we say and do.
When we ask Jesus into our lives we are asking to be a part of God’s family. As such we should be doing things differently from our old earthly ways and doing what our Father in heaven is asking us to do. This means listening out for Him and obeying Him. This is what it means to be part of His family.
Points to Ponder:
What have you tried lately to get people into church with?
Have you tried the truth?
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May 9: Acts 14:19-28
Key Verse: Acts 14:23
Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.
Devotion:
Forgive me if this comes to you later than normal, I have been downed with a migraine for a while. I read through this passage and wondered what it was the Lord should have me write – probably because my head is still not quite there too. After reading it a couple of times I realised it was about persistence; Paul and Barnabas were on a mission for God and they were not going to back down!
When the Jews heard about them teaching people about Jesus, they put together a posse which came to reaffirm their grip on the people. I say posse because of what they wanted to do to Paul. They took him outside the city walls and tried to stone him to death because of the work he was doing. There have been times I wanted to get rid of some people for disrupting the work I have been doing, but never to go as far as they did.
The truth should be what wins all the time. Paul and Barnabas were trying to get people to understand there is hope in the truth and the only way to get to be with God in Heaven is through His Son Jesus Christ. This is the truth which Jesus Himself had tried to teach the disciples and all who would listen through persistently telling the truth to them.
As we step forward to work with God we have got to uphold the truth which He gives us and continue to give that truth to people no matter what opposition we come up against. Sometimes you do have to leave the area and wait for the dust to settle before coming back, and other times you have to stand up and continue reaffirming the truth whilst facing that opposition. Listen to what God wants you to do and try hard to obey Him.
Points to Ponder:
Do you get opposition for doing God’s Work?
Do you wait for God to guide you forward?
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May 8: Acts 14:8-18
Key Verse: Acts 14:12
Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker.
Devotion:
How many times have you been complimented this past week? How many of those times did you feel good? How many of those times did you take advantage of being complimented and ask for something in return? How far did you go? There is nothing quite like asking leading questions!
One of the unfortunate parts of being a good Christian is people will lift you up into positions you probably do not deserve and sometimes should not be tempted by; but it happens! We all do like to be complimented because it does make us feel better about ourselves – much better than being berated for doing something wrong! But what we do with compliments and how we allow them to affect our lives is what counts more than the compliments.
Paul and Barnabas fled to the Lycaonian city of Lystra because they were being persecuted and plots were being made against them because they dared to preach the Gospel. When Paul healed a lame man the crowd lifted both Paul and Barnabas to positions of gods – they did not quite get the idea there is only one God because they had always called upon many gods in their lifestyles before this. The priests of these gods wanted to come and offer sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas because of this miracle!
Both Paul and Barnabas tried to quell the hysteria by pleading with the people to accept them as mere human beings like everyone else, but the people had other ideas. Sometimes it seems like it is easier to allow people to think more highly of you than to admit you are just like them but God wants us to show others we are as human as all people – but we do try to be different because we want to follow God’s will rather than the habits of everyone else. Draw the line and keep the line!
Points to Ponder:
Do you see yourself as better than others?
What are the wages of sin?
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May 7: Genesis 8:1-19
Key Verse: Genesis 8:13
By the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year, the water had dried up from the earth. Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry.
Devotion:
I used to read through the story of Noah and the flood and wonder what happened to all the people who were consumed by the flood – I still wonder how this could have happened. But when we see the state of many countries who have rejected God, we see people being consumed by pride and greed. If we simply take the bible as a string of stories which are true, then we are going to miss the real message from God!
God has made sure we have these stories in the state they are so we will meditate on the stories and not just read them like we read a newspaper. God wants us to feel the stories and the emotions so we do not forget what He has done throughout our history.
How often do you think about how old Noah was when this was all happening? How often do you think of the after effects of the flood: the mud, destruction, humidity, and all the horrible things we don’t want to think of? God wants us to remember how bad things can get and how good things are when we live with Him in our lives. God wants us to see we can leave this all behind when we go to be with Him in Heaven!
God gave Noah a chance for a fresh start where he could leave the horrible things of the previous life behind and not have to put up with the pride and greed and other horrible things which were consuming everyone. But such a drastic change in circumstance does not come easy for a mere human! We need to walk with God and keep close to Him so we can survive in our new life!
Points to Ponder:
Do you find life difficult?
How close are you staying to God?
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May 6: Acts 13:44-52
Key Verse: Acts 13:50
But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region.
Devotion:
One of the big problems we have in our society today is the fighting between different churches and different religions. This is one of the hardest things for me to accept in our communities and one which I am sure the Lord does not like either. If we are going to say we are Christians, then we should be able to act like Christians and get along.
Around this time the Jewish leaders were getting more and more upset by the fact people were meeting together outside of their religious circle. Up until this point they had a fairly good grasp on the people by imposing their rules, which were based on the laws of Moses, on them. What they were doing though was expanding on Moses’ laws with their own rules so they could remain in power. They were not going to accept the truth about Jesus because it would mean they would have to change!
So much of the fighting between religions is based on jealousy; one being jealous the other is getting more people through the door or have a bigger building. When those feelings start coming into the church, leaders may well seek to make their own rules in order to keep control of what they have.
When Jesus went around telling people about God, He did not impose any rules outside the Word of God. If people were doing their own thing instead of following the Word of God, He would tell them. If people were lost in their own ways of living, He would tell them. Some people listened and were able to change. Others rebelled and continued to work against God.
Points to Ponder:
Does your work support God or man?
Will you try to restrict your teaching to be within the bible?
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May 5: Acts 13:26-33
Key Verse: Acts 13:33
he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm: “You are my son; today I have become your father.”
Devotion:
As Paul continued to speak to them in Antioch, reminding them of their history and their scriptures, he now links them to what has happened to Jesus. Everything which they have written in their scriptures has come to pass without them realising it. This man Jesus who they had derided and crucified, had been raised up from the dead, witnessed by so many people as being alive again, had completed what God had the prophets write down in preparation for this.
Paul knew the scriptures because he had turned them against Christians before God confronted him. He was the one now standing up and telling people how true the scriptures were and how Jesus was the one who fulfilled them. How could this not be their Messiah! Paul had turned from being a persecutor to a witness.
When you go out into the world and see the things which people do against God, what do you do? As I see it, we have two choices. We can either ignore what our Bibles say and join in with the rest of the world doing whatever it is they are doing, or we can make a stand and we can be a witness for God.
We don’t have to be excellent public speakers. I can remember standing up in front of others for the first time in school and then in university and being terrified because I thought I did not know enough! It only takes a single piece of knowledge which you have and others don’t have to turn you into a teacher. If you are willing to trust God and allow Him to guide you in your words, then you will be like Paul and be able to tell them of your experiences – that is what being a witness is all about!
Points to Ponder:
Do you have a good relationship with God?
Have you told anyone about your relationship?
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May 4: John 13:12-17
Key Verse: John 13:17
Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
Devotion:
One of the biggest problems we have in our societies is the class system we apply to life! We are always taught to try and reach higher in life and to become better; but many choices we make along the way to get better alienate us from others simply because we think we are somehow better than them. Yes we may well be better at doing our job, better at problem finding, better at communication or any other thing in life – but saying we are a better human being is not our choice to make!
God wants us to be able to talk to anyone from any walk in life. Jesus chose to meet with all manner of people during His ministry on earth. He chose to meet with people from all walks in life, all positions and all beliefs. He did not chose to only walk with those who believed in God, or followed the rules of the church, but everyone.
This display of washing of feet was to demonstrate to the disciples they should not place themselves above anyone just because of the position they hold in society or church. Every one of us is called a child of God – which means we need to treat each other as siblings and not as people from a different world!
It is sometimes hard to reach out to people whom you know are working against you and against God; but God is going to open doors for us to reach out to unexpected people in our lives so they too can have a different view of life than what they may be forced into enduring. The choices we make in our lives often govern what lifestyles are open to us which often exclude us from righteous connections and deeds. We need to be willing to be open to what God has in store instead of what we think we should have!
Points to Ponder:
Do you limit your social meetings to people you think are good?
Will you try listening to God?
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May 3: Psalm 67-1-7
Key Verse: Psalm 67:3
May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you.
Devotion:
The reason why I call the relationship between God and us a relationship is because it has to be two ways – we cannot sit idly by and expect God to do everything for us just because we want Him to. We cannot expect God to do anything for us just because we do things for the church. Just as, I hope, you know there has to be a continuous dialogue between two people to keep them in a relationship, so too has there got to be a communion between us and God!
The first thing which jumped out at me when I read this Psalm today was this fact about things going both ways. We like saying things like the grace, saying “bless you” when someone sneezes and lots of other things which we sometimes take for granted. I’m not talking about those things here but the true, meaningful relationship you need to have with God.
Any relationship we have with another person demands some sort of communication, not just sitting down and talking about stuff when it has already gone wrong, but talking about ideas when they first form and not waiting to see what happens before we do anything.
God would love for us to be proactive and get going with ideas and discipleship in its many forms, but talking to Him in the beginning about what forms that could take and asking for guidance will go a long way to making sure your discipling experience is not short-lived. We only have to look at all the things in nature which God has provided for us to know He continues to work with us all the way!
Points to Ponder:
How often do you ask for God’s blessing?
How often do you bless God?
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May 2: John 10:22-30
Key Verse: John 10:24
The Jews who were there gathered round him, saying, ‘How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.’
Devotion:
How many times have you asked God to reveal Himself in some physical form because you still have doubts? It is only human to have doubts but those doubts do not come from God not telling you something or Christ not giving you a cue or The Holy Spirit not talking to you audibly; these doubts come from the things around you which have been placed there by the evil one to try and make you stumble!
Despite the Jews being the chosen race and despite all the things God had done for and with them over the many years they had been together, they still had doubts because of the many things they were doing wrong. They had grown more used to listening to the world than listening to God and it was harder for them to hear Jesus when He did come to fulfil the role of Messiah.
Jesus’ rebuke to them was to say they were not His sheep, effectively saying they were not of the fold of the church. He did this because they were seemingly refusing to listen to Him; they were fighting a battle between the earthly rules they had built up and the scriptures they had been given thousands of years previously. God does not change the words He gives us but our perception changes as we begin to realise what He actually was saying to us.
We have to be willing to change when we hear the truth, and the longer we stay in the world the harder it is going to be for us to listen to those truthful sayings when all we hear is the temptations of the world. Just as God will not change His word, He will never let go of the people who are in His charge!
Points to Ponder:
Do you have doubts about church?
Are you listening to the world or to God?
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May 1: Isaiah 30:15-21
Key Verse: Isaiah 30:16
You said, “No, we will flee on horses.” Therefore you will flee! You said, “We will ride off on swift horses.” Therefore your pursuers will be swift!
Devotion:
When you do something wrong the temptation is to try cover it up or to run away from the problem… And then you find out the bridges you build to run away are the same bridges which will land you in trouble; the faster you try to run the harder the fall. Whilst this does apply to most things in life, the application I want to raise is on our spiritual lives.
When we do something wrong against God and His will in our lives, we try to build earthly bridges upon which we can run away. No matter how quickly we build the bridges we find The Lord is already there with us and already knows what we have done. If we try to make a scene over things to cover up our misgivings, the same scene we make will draw attention to the things we have done wrong rather than hide them – nothing we can do will hide the truth from God.
When we try to rebel against God we think we are going to get a lot of support because we call on earthly things and people for our support. Unfortunately God will reveal the truth and all our earthly support will vanish! As the prophet puts it, we will be left like a single flagpole stood on a mountaintop. There will be no support for us from the world, but everyone will be able to see us!
But, despite all our wrongdoings, God is merciful and gracious to us; His compassion goes far beyond anything we can do wrong, and His justice will reign over everything. What we need to do is to not try and run with the world to hide from God, but to admit we have wronged Him and wait patiently for His loving Grace to cover our sins.
Points to Ponder:
How far can you run?
Do you know God is already there?