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September 14: John 3:13-17
Key Verse: John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Devotion:
I have watched a few of the news channels reporting on the number of people who have lined streets to catch a glimpse of the late Queen Elizabeth II as they drove past. Just about every road the hearse drove down, people were patiently waiting, bowing humbly as it went by. When it came to driving down the streets of London, people stopped their cars and got out – this is on dual carriage ways where there is no stopping allowed; because there was no room for them to park up and make it back to the road in time.
Back in the days of Moses, a statue of a snake was made and the people were told to simply look up at the snake in order to be healed. They had to do a few things: be somewhere where they would be able to see the snake, stop what they were doing and wait for the snake to pass by, and finally to look up at the snake. With that they would be healed and life could go on.
This is what was going to happen to Jesus, He was going to be placed on a cross for everyone to see. The people would have to make a choice to go and see Him, or to at least believe that what He was doing was going to make all the difference. That belief was the important part, the part which would save their lives.
Jesus did not come to condemn us but to give us a way through which we can be saved from our sin debt. He gives us the choice to believe Him and trust Him, or just continue on in our lives and see what happens. We know the right thing to do is to believe in Christ – we have to make that active choice in our lives.
Points to Ponder:
Do you wish to live an eternal life with God?
Will you trust in what Jesus has done for you already?
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September 13: Luke 7:11-17
Key Verse: Luke 7:13
When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, ‘Don’t cry.’
Devotion:
Wherever Jesus went, a large crowd of people was sure to follow, some to worship Him, some to monitor Him, some to see what miracle He would do next, and many other reasons… What the apostle writes about here could be looked as as being just another miracle, but when we look at the events and what is written, we see the real reason behind Jesus’ actions.
A widow had just lost her only son and the funeral cortège was on its way out of the town going to the place appointed for the young man to be buried. Jesus could sense the loss this woman was going through and even the crowd of people who were following the bier which was being used to carry the body. He had great compassion for this woman because He knew it was her only son and knew what she was going through.
Rather than simply comforting her and assuring her the young man would be with God, He went a step further and stopped the people carrying the body. He spoke plainly to the young man and told him to “get up!” With those words, the young man sat up with his life having been fully restored as all around him could plainly see when he sat up and started talking again!
No matter how small and insignificant we think we are, no matter how much we think we do not deserve God’s love and support, Christ shows us there is no end to God’s love and no end to His mercy. With this in mind, never give up hope when the world around you is saying give up. Trust in Christ and allow Him to do what He wills in your life!
Points to Ponder:
Do you hamper God’s will by listening too much to the world around you?
Will you allow Christ to work in your life?
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September 12: Psalm 40:7-11
Key Verse: Psalm 40:8
I desire to do your will, my God; your law is within my heart.
Devotion:
If God called out audibly for helpers to go and spread the gospel, what would your reaction be? Would you step forward and say “Here I am” as the psalmist writes here? Would your reaction be because it was an audible voice from God and other people heard it too? You see what I am getting at here… sometimes we do things because we want to show others we are doing something, but when nobody else knows about the request, we often stay quiet and do nothing just because it is easier to do that!
God is always asking people to be brave and step forward to do His will. He is not going to shout about it because that would attract people who may not be pure in heart; i.e. they may just be doing it to impress others! We all know God is calling because we have His written word telling us this all the time – what we do with that silent call defines our hearts toward God!
The psalmist knew he was stepping forward because of his love for God. Here he reminds God (who doesn’t actually need reminding, but it’s good to tell God what is on your heart) about how he has been telling others about God in the great assembly. The psalmist is not trying to convince himself, but it telling it how it is. His heart is open and honest.
This is what God looks for in each of us, a humble heart which is willing to listen, and an honest heart which is willing to say here I am and step forward to be there when is counts! God doesn’t want people who say yes and then go back to their old ways; God wants people who will say yes and step forward time and time again to do His will in their lives!
Points to Ponder:
Have you ever said “Here I am, send me” to God?
Are you ready to try and make that commitment?
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September 11: Luke 15:8-10
Key Verse: Luke 15:10
In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.
Devotion:
How special you regard life depends on your outlook on life and how much you treasure it. If you are nonchalant about life, then your value placed on life would be equally nonchalant. If, however, you regard life as all important, then your value of life is high and will affect how you live your life. God’s value on life goes beyond our understanding; how else can we justify Him allowing His only Son to die on the cross in our stead!
When Jesus came to be amongst mankind, it was a step through which God could be amongst us without giving in the sin and mankind's ways. Jesus tried to impress on all He talked to how much God the Father regarded the life of every soul on earth. We have been given free choice to make our own decisions on whether we live our lives with God, or whether we live a life full of and indebted to sin. The choice is ours.
Jesus came to share God’s Word with us because mankind was losing direction and walking away from God. This was the way He could reach us with the truth and through which we could gain eternal life and walk away from our lives of sin. Because of what Jesus did for us, we have a way of being totally forgiven for what we have done wrong in our lives once and for all.
When we make the choice to bring Christ into our lives, the whole realm of Heaven rejoices as another soul is made safe from eternal darkness and given a place in heaven when God will always be our eternal light.
Points to Ponder:
How much wealth do you place on life?
Will you give you life back to God so Heaven can rejoice eternally with you?
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September 10: Luke 6:43-45
Key Verse: Luke 6:44
Each tree is recognised by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thorn-bushes, or grapes from briers.
Devotion:
The first years of my life, up until late high school years, was spent in Zimbabwe where we were blessed with many different fruits being able to grow abundantly. During my primary school days we had a variety of fruits and vegetables which flourished in our garden; each fruit tree or vegetable was know by what they looked like and by the fruit and vegetables they produced. We did have one odd fruit tree which grew a fruit which looked like a lime, tasted between a lime and a lemon, but was the size of a large coconut! But it was still unique and many got to know of this tree and would ask for spare fruits it gave – I loved to make a special lemonade from it!
If a tree, bush or plant was not taken care of, not watered at the right time, or left to fend for itself, it would often not produce a good harvest and we would have to wait for the next year remembering to take better care of it for a better harvest!
Just like these plants, each of us is unique and also needs care and attention to grow into the best plant and produce the best harvest. If we are left to our own devices we often seek the path of least resistance and get mixed up in things we should not be doing! We do need care and attention to make sure we become the best version of ourselves.
What better caretaker than the King of Kings, Jesus Christ, who is willing and able to make the best of us if we are willing to listen and obey Him. When we do listen and obey, people will see us for the best version we can be; they will see us in a new light which is not shining because we did things for ourselves, but because we listened to Christ and reflected a bit of Him through our lives!
Points to Ponder:
Do you try to be the best version of yourself?
Will you listen to Christ and be a reflection of what He wants for you?
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September 9: Luke 6:39-41
Key Verse: Luke 6:41
Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?
Devotion:
As our country mourns the loss of our Queen, we reflect on a life, not of a untouchable monarch, but of a monarch who gave herself selflessly as a servant to her country and empire. It is not until you genuinely look into her life that you see just how reachable she wanted to be. During her last decade of service we saw more and more of her life with God. She certainly was not blind in her faith but deeply committed to living as a Christian and serving those she promised to serve all her life. We need to take a page out of her book and live our lives faithfully for God so others can be encouraged to seek Him too.
Our Queen was a very learned individual, not just in ways of the Royal Family, but in a very personal and caring way with all she met and learned about. Her life was spent learning about others so she could be the leader she promised to be, a head of state she had committed to be and a Christian above all. Her command of the English language and the knowledge and compassion she learned along the way allowed her to be approachable in most people’s eyes – something which may have been lacking in the history of Royal Families of the past.
Our Queen did not look for the speck of sawdust in other’s eyes but rather tried to help us see we are all vulnerable and all need Christ in our lives to live life to the full.
In the words of The Archbishop of Canterbury “As we grieve together, we know that, in losing our beloved Queen, we have lost the person whose steadfast loyalty, service and humility has helped us make sense of who we are through decades of extraordinary change in our world, nation and society.”
Points to Ponder:
May Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II rest in peace and rise in glory.
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September 8: Luke 6:32-36
Key Verse: Luke 6:33
And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that.
Devotion:
One of the hardest lessons I learned out on the mission field was to show love to others even though they may being hostile to you. There is no way others are going to trust you if you do one thing and say another thing – so starting by showing love and support to others before you expect anything back has got to be the first step!
Jesus did not wait for mankind to be nice to Him before He came to give His life. He came to give His life for us knowing we are doing things wrong and knowing we did not show Him the correct love and respect. Through that action by Jesus we know He loves us and we know He does not expect anything before showing that love.
This is the example we need to follow – we need to show love, compassion and respect to others so they know we are being genuine with what we say because we follow that us with actions and not just words. Jesus wants us to go out to be disciples – this means going out into the sinful world and showing people there is love and hope through Christ and His actions.
If you are able to show love to you enemies they may think differently of you because of your actions. How far do we go? How can we love our enemies? We need to do what Jesus did and show them respect and support even though they are labelled as our enemies...
Points to Ponder:
How do you treat others?
Will you try to love everyone instead of choosing who to love?
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September 7: Luke 6:20-26
Key Verse: Luke 6:23
Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.
Devotion:
Jesus’ words here where both an encouragement and a warning; and encouragement reminding the disciples what was in store for them in Heaven, and a warning to all who would turn their backs on God because they would not be in a good place! God wants us all to be able to receive blessings and not have to face His wrath!
It is our choice as to whether we face the blessings or the woe. If we choose to include Christ in our lives and to keep Him close, then we should expect to see and receive the blessings Jesus is talking about here. We can see this throughout history as the people of Israel received blessings when they walked with God, but we also see the opposite side of the story when they walked away from God because the world over ran them and their lives were filled with woe.
Any suffering we endure here on earth is going to be nothing in comparison to the joy we will have in Heaven. We have Jesus’ words to remind us of the things which can go wrong – the parables which foretell of disasters or hard times. We also have parables which tell of the blessings and joy of the people when they continued to walk with God.
If we aim for personal wealth or favour during our life on earth, are we not asking for earthly recognition instead of Heavenly recognition? When we strive for earthly comforts, that will be our reward – earthly comforts. But if we strive to serve God we can expect worldly opposition to what we do and hence earthly discomforts; but our Heavenly rewards will be so much more than we can imagine!
Points to Ponder:
Do you seek earthly recognition?
Will you humble yourself before God and serve Him?
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September 6: Luke 6:12-19
Key Verse: Luke 6:19
and the people all tried to touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all.
Devotion:
What an amazing experience it must have been to be close to Jesus when all this was happening. To see the people being cured of all sorts of things, spiritually and physically. Though Jesus had just picked out the 12 apostles, He did not limit His time to them but allowed everyone who was close to enjoy the healing time!
This is just one demonstration of the power of Jesus. He may have been fully man, but He was also the Son of God and He depended on God for everything He was able to do with the people around Him. We know Jesus spent time alone with God before these events – something we need to be mindful of and what we need to practice in our lives.
God wants us to draw close to Him by spending time with Him in prayer where we can pour out our hearts to Him. But we must also remember to stop and wait for answers from God. What use is a one sided conversation when we can benefit more from a two way discussion? Jesus always spent time waiting for answers from God and not just chatting away to Him.
People had come from all over the countryside to be with Jesus because they had heard of the miracles He was doing. They had enough faith to believe Jesus would be able to do something for them and so made time to be with Jesus. We need to stop in our busy lives and make time for God too!
Points to Ponder:
When do you make time for God in your life?
How much of that time do you wait for Him to answer you?
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September 5: 1 Corinthians 5:6-8
Key Verse: 1 Corinthians 5:6
Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough?
Devotion:
How many times have you boasted about what someone has done in your community – even though you have known in your heart it was wrong? We tend to get carried away when extraordinary things happen; sometimes justifying what is happening by saying it cannot be done by man or by boasting about how powerful that person must be to achieve something like that.
When someone does something wrong in a tight-knit community there will be some who support that person just because they have managed to do something nobody else has, whilst there will be a few who try to stand up and say something is wrong. The majority may well ignore that person who stand up because the ‘problem’ goes away when nobody taken notice of it.
God wants us to stand up for righteousness, to stand up for what is right and just… He does not want us to ignore the issue just so it will go away. When we stand up for what is right, we should be asking Christ for the strength to stand up against the crowd. He will give us the strength if we ask. When we ignore things we become part of the problem and we are complicit in what has been done wrong.
Rather than allowing one wrong thing to affect the whole community in this manner, if we stand up and declare the truth, the community will be able to see what is wrong and work against that. By ignoring it we are allowing the whole community to become corrupted by that evil… that makes it harder to work with Christ in amongst those people because they will all be afraid of what will happen to them!
Points to Ponder:
Do you try to ignore problems?
Will you ask Christ to allow you to stand firm with the truth?