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December 10: Matthew 17:10-13
Key Verse: Matthew 17:10
The disciples asked him, ‘Why then do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?’
Devotion:
One of the things many people struggle with is the fact we are very different in Gods eyes than in mankind's eyes. That includes our names, reputations and most other things which we take for granted. Jesus saw people for what and who they were in Gods eyes and was not swayed by human emotions like we are.
When the disciples were asking Jesus about Elijah coming before the Messiah, they were not ready for the answer He gave them – that Elijah had already come. What they did not realise was the Elijah God was talking about was not the Elijah they were thinking about. We tend to get mixed up with people and names; often thinking of the wrong people when someone mentions a name, and even judging people by what name they have been given!
Jesus was talking about the man they knew as John the Baptist, the man who was living out in the desert and baptising people in the river Jordan based on the scriptures which had been revealed to Him through the Holy Spirit. This “Elijah” was the human who was preparing the way… If they had defined the man by the act he was doing, they may have been able to recognise John for the name God knew him by, but they were too entrenched in human ways – like we are!
God can and does use anyone. I have met many people whom the world has rejected because of what they have done in the past. Jesus came into their lives and turned their lives around – they have become extraordinary disciples who are totally different to how they used to be!
Points to Ponder:
Do you judge people by earthly standards?
Will you allow God to tell you about people instead?
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December 9: Isaiah 48:17-19
Key Verse: Isaiah 48:18
If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea.
Devotion:
The theme seem to be “listening to God” this week! Isaiah had the onerous task of having to tell the people what God was saying, and much of the time it was not good news for the people – they had grown weary of listening and wanted to do their own thing! As they continued to do their own thing, they moved away from God and slowly they began to find out God could not help them as much as He used to! It was not because God could not reach them, God can go anywhere and do anything; but he gives us free choice!
That is the important part – we are given free choice to do what we want. If we go off and do things which go against God’s teaching, He no longer has the right to intervene. We have chosen not to allow Him to intervene in our lives and He abides by our choice – that is what makes it free choice!
As the world begins to shout louder, we start to listen more to the world and less to God… why… because we grow so used to God helping us and guiding us we take Him for granted. Once we take Him for granted, we don’t listen to His instructions as much as we used to! This goes for anyone in your life – if you grow used to them, you stop concentrating on their words and advice…
If mankind had continued to listen to God right from the beginning, we would have had a much better and deeper life with Him! I know it is “empty” just saying that because we only have one side of the story. We have the side where we stopped listening to God and did our own thing. We don’t have the side where we listened to Him so we can’t really compare what it should have been like… or can we? Try reading the Old Testament and see what happens when people stop listening to God!
Points to Ponder:
How much do you really listen to God?
How much do you listen to the world?
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December 8: Isaiah 41:13-14
Key Verse: Isaiah 41:14
Do not be afraid, you worm Jacob, little Israel, do not fear, for I myself will help you,’ declares the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
Devotion:
Yesterday we were reminded about God being our strength and guide, our ever present helper who is always willing and able to help… when we ask! This is nothing new, in other words this is not something Jesus introduced to give the disciples hope, but something which God instituted from the beginning – something which continues to stand today as it was back then!
I love the words God gave to the prophets hundreds of years before Jesus came to be with us. He called us worms and insects! Don’t let that upset you though; instead, think of how much power you have over worms and insects! We can pick on insects at any time without having to worry (unless we are allergic to bees or something like that!) We don’t have to worry we are not strong enough to overcome any problem an insect is facing!
I can remember helping out bees, ants and spiders when I was young. If I saw a bee had run out of puff and needed some sugar or nectar to keep going, I would try to help it. If I saw ants trying to get to the food they need, I would help them… But I would also swat bees away if they got too close or sweep ants away when they were bothering me… We don’t think much of doing that when we are so strong compared to them!
When God used these words, He may well have been comparing how humans reacted to insects and worms with how He could act toward humans. There is nothing too big for God to turn over in order to help us. There is no mountain too high which He cannot move in order for us to keep going. He wants to help us and can help us… so why not ask!
Points to Ponder:
Do you think your problems are too big for God to cope with?
Can you help an ant lift up a leaf without any problem?
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December 7: Matthew 11:28-30
Key Verse: Matthew 11:29
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
Devotion:
I have had these words underlined in my Bible for a very long time and it is words which I cling to when the going gets tough. We have the saying “when the going gets tough, the tough get going” in the UK which is meant to indicate how tough people will be able to weather the storms of life. I have seen far too many people fail (including myself) when the going gets tough, so I don’t adhere to that English saying; instead I cling to these words in the Bible.
Jesus reminds us He is watching over us all the time and wants to help us through life; this includes when the going is good and when the going is at its toughest! When we don’t know which way to turn because we cannot see a way out of a situation, we need to turn to Christ and give Him the opportunity to help us through the situation. These words do not say Jesus is going to make our lives easy, but, if we do listen to His guidance, then we will have an easier path to walk with Him by our sides.
Jesus went through the toughest times whilst He was on earth and He knew He was going to have to face those times; but he also knew they would be short-lived and He would be back in Heaven before too long. This is one of the things I cling to when things get tough – knowing I will be able to have a much easier life in Heaven with Christ than down here on earth.
For Jesus to go through so much on our behalf and still tell us His burden is light speaks volumes to me. I know He is going to get me through every situation in life. I may not come out the way I want it to, but I know if I listen to Him, the way forward will always be the best way forward for me...
Points to Ponder:
How much do you face in life?
How well do you listen to Christ?
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December 6: Mark 11:27-33
Key Verse: Mark 11:30
John’s baptism – was it from heaven, or of human origin? Tell me!
Devotion:
When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem and whilst He was walking in the temple courts, He was confronted by the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders: they wanted to know by what authority Jesus was going round doing the things He was doing. They had assumed the positions of authority and they did not expect anyone to confront them or do anything without their authority! They had in effect taken charge of all things in the temples!
Whilst we do have people who have been given charge of congregations, teaching people, watching over the communities and being in charge of church organisations, Christ should remain the head of the church at all times. He is the one who came down to be with us and to give His life in our stead. It is He who stood up to the sin debt we owe and took on the punishment we deserve!
When the teachers and priests confronted Jesus and demanded answers, He turned the situation round and asked them to explain where John got his authority to baptise people in the Jordan river. They were confronting Jesus in his human form, so He confronted them with the same issue.
John had been sent by God to make the way clear for Jesus to come and sort things out once and for all. Jesus simply asked them to confirm this. But if they confirmed it was from God, then His work could be described as coming from God because of the similarities of the works. But if they said it was from man they would have to face up to huge crowds who would reject their statement… The worldly power they had built up was about to come crashing down!
Points to Ponder:
Do you acknowledge Christ as the head of the church?
Do you give Christ the power to do things in your life?
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December 5: Isaiah 35:1-4
Key Verse: Isaiah 35:3
Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way;
Devotion:
Isaiah had a special relationship with God and was told in many ways of the wonders which await us when we put our faith and trust in God. The way he describes it here in these words depicts a happiness which comes to those who seem to have no hope and nothing to look forward to. If you are in the middle of a desert, you have a rather bleak outlook no matter which way you look – but there is hope for those who know there is something beyond what they can see…
Our world may seem like a desert to us at times because we cannot see a way forward and we cannot see how there can be hope when we are faced with so much which seems wrong. Just like a crocus waits for the right time before it blooms into life, we may have to wait until the time is right before God will open up the doors in our lives.
God wants us to know there is hope, not just for us, but for everyone in our world. Isaiah talks about giving strength to the weak and fearful, not because we will eventually get something right in our lives, but because God has set in motion a string of events which will lead to something profound in our lives. We cannot see it yet because all we see is the desert around us. We cannot understand it because we don’t know where the water or strength is going to come from – but that does not mean it is not there!
God is our strength. Christ is the Living Water. We have this hope in our lives and we have to live them as if we know there is this hope. If we reject that hope we will only ever see the despair which surrounds us in this world. If we cling to the hop Christ gives us we will be able to see a world which goes far beyond our imaginations and far beyond our normal understanding. That world begins with hope and continues with faith.
Points to Ponder:
Are you watching the world or God?
Do you have hope in a future with Christ?
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December 4: Romans 15:4-7
Key Verse: Romans 15:4
For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.
Devotion:
How do you look at the scriptures? Do you see them as a series of laws and rules by which we should live? Do you look at them as a suggestion of how we should aim to live? Or do you see the scriptures in a different light altogether? How you see the scriptures will shape your whole life with God...
We can look back on the Israelites and see how they took the Torah as everything they had to live by. We can see how they could never live up to the rules and regulations and so endured a life in which they had to continually offer sacrifices and plead with God for forgiveness in order to draw closer to Him. We can, however, also see how God chose them to be His people and did so much for them in so many ways giving them countless ways in which they could be forgiven for the sin in their lives.
This is because God wanted them to have eternal life and not to be burdened by guilt and shame all their lives. God showed them the things in life which they would have to face but also gave them hope for a future which was yet to come. This same God also gave them, and us, Jesus Christ as a Saviour who would be able to pay the ultimate price so we would no longer have to offer sacrifices and live under the burdens.
Through everything God has done for us and for everything which is recorded in the scriptures, we should be thankful and happy it has all come to pass. This gives us genuine hope for a future with Him in Heaven; for this we should be trying to live our lives in the manner in which Jesus lived. Whilst it may not be possible for us to attain the level of righteousness He had, we can attain the forgiveness because He has already paid the price on our behalf.
Points to Ponder:
How will you see the scriptures this Christmas?
Will you praise God for all He has done?
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December 3: Matthew 10:1-8
Key Verse: Matthew 10:1
Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and illness.
Devotion:
When the time came for Jesus to tell the disciples what they should be doing, He gave them far-reaching instructions. To start with He gave them the authority to drive out spirit and the heal people. This does not mean He gave them the power to drive out spirits or heal people; He gave them the authority to do so. When Jesus drove out spirits or healed people He did so knowing it came from God and without God He knew He could do nothing as a mere human being. The same goes for us!
Jesus gives us the authority to go forward and do things through His name. He is the Son of God and God gave Him authority to do so much more. Jesus in turn gives us the authority to go forward and do things. Never walk into the world thinking you can take over the world or do things without God – that is not what Jesus did. Jesus, being the Son of God, had the power to do all of those things but only did them through the authority given to Him by His Father.
Jesus also told the disciples to go forward without taking the world and its treasures with them. They were to leave the treasures and trappings of the world behind and do things as He gave them the authority to do so. They were obedient to Christ!
Jesus does not want us to hold back but to go forward as disciples. A disciple is not someone who just tells other people about God. A disciple will move forward with people to invite them into the kingdom of God and give them the authority to go forward to do things for Christ too. A disciples job is to make disciples!
Points to Ponder:
Do you get scared of doing things for God?
Have you ever thought of it as inviting people to be your closest friends?
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December 2: Matthew 9:27-31
Key Verse: Matthew 9:30
and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, ‘See that no one knows about this.’
Devotion:
This story draws many pictures in my mind; firstly the fact the two men were blind and yet continued to follow Jesus around. They could not see Jesus and yet they were able to follow the crowd and work out where He was according to the commotion and other people – a selection of people who may or may not have believed in Jesus, but nonetheless they were unknowingly guiding the two blind men toward Jesus! This should speak volumes to all of us – no matter how much we tell others what we believe, as long as we continue to show people the way toward Christ through what we do and say, it is for His ultimate glory!
The second is that the men did not give up. They continued to follow Jesus and when He went indoors, they went indoors too knowing they would be able to get a bit closer! What the other people around them must have thought about these two is a whole different story! Sometimes we are too scared to admit to the world we love and follow Jesus; when we do that our faith is almost diluted in other people’s eyes. But if we are willing to continue reminding people we love Jesus, then He is going to take notice of us!
Which brings us to the final point for today. Jesus takes notice of what we do. If we are going to avoid Him, then that is our choice. But if we continue to try to get closer to Him, He will answer us and find out what we need in our lives. Yes He already knows, but by us asking Him we are reminding ourselves just who He is and how much we do depend on Him!
Points to Ponder:
Are you actively following Jesus?
What picture do other people get of your relationship with Christ?
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December 1: Psalm 118:22-24
Key Verse: Psalm 118:22
The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone;
Devotion:
Do you ever think you are not good enough for God to use you in spreading the gospel? The more I get to share the gospel the more I realise every single one of us has a way we can share the gospel; if we all did it the same way we would probably have a very limited demographic of people hearing about Christ, but because we all have our own ways of sharing the love we have for Christ, more and more people get to hear the truth!
When we look back on the Old Testament we see so many references to Jesus being rejected by the people God actually chose as His people; now we can look back on the life of Jesus and compare all the prophetic words with what happened – including these words. Jesus was the ‘stone they rejected.’ The Israelites chose to follow their own teachings instead of God. I believe they were probably doing it out of a combination of ignorance and self pride; they could not get their heads round the fact their Messiah was actually here and they did not want to let go of the important positions they had made for themselves.
Christ, on the other hand, laid Himself down to be the cornerstone of the church. Can you imagine putting everything your life stood for aside just so you could do things for other people? This is what Christ has done for us!
God’s love for us stands for so much He was willing to lay down everything to serve us and to be our advocate to ensure we can join Him in Heaven for eternity. This means He must want us to be with Him so much! Can you imagine being with someone for longer than your whole life? Rejoice and be glad!
Points to Ponder:
Do you feel you are not good enough for God?
Do you realise what He did just for you?