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June 27: Matthew 8:18-22
Key Verse: Matthew 8:22
But Jesus told him, ‘Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.’
Devotion:
This may sound like a really horrible thing for Jesus to say to this person, but let us not forget Christ would have known what was in their heart and not just what came out of their mouths. Quite often we hear what someone has to say and we take it the wrong way because we cannot know their hearts without God guiding us. I know I have got into trouble a few times for saying something which turned out not to be what the other person needed to hear!
This person came to Jesus and said they were willing to follow Jesus wherever He went. Jesus then said something which seems strange “foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” This seems to be a dig at the people around Him by saying that animals and birds have their homes allowed them by God, but Jesus would not be able to stay with any of them – suggesting most of the people around Him would not give Him a place to stay in their hearts.
Another disciple must have know this teacher of the law and said Jesus should let them off because they had had a death in their family. Jesus’ response was to reject them by saying the dead should bury the dead. This does not mean leaving the body of the person’s father to physically dead people to bury but to leave that task to the spiritually dead people to bury the father.
Christ’s rejection serves to remind us He wants a firm commitment from us, not some sort of “wishy washy” decision we make when we are standing in front of others. Christ wants the decision to follow Him to come directly from our hearts out of love and not through pride or any other emotion. Allow Christ to know your true feelings!
Points to Ponder:
How honest do you think you are with God?
You do know He knows already – don’t you?
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June 25: Matthew 8:14-17
Key Verse: Matthew 8:16
When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.
Devotion:
Soon after the centurion’s servant was healed without the servant even having to be with Jesus, the flood-gates opened and everyone want to be healed by Him. It was the first demonstration of faith which allowed more people to have faith and their faith grew on others; before long the queue was probably very long!
When I came back into hospital yesterday I was faced with a long queue of people trying to get admitted to hospital too. This was not to see Jesus and be healed unfortunately, but we all had a need to have some respite from our ailments. It is moments like those we see the frailty of our bodies, for desperate circumstances and the unfolding issues in our communities.
I thank God He is with me and gives me hope and peace to continue on. I see the desperate situations of patients around me but also the desperate situation the medical staff find themselves in because of lack of staff, time and space. This is very different to the way Jesus was handling things – though I’m sure He would have felt overwhelmed by the number of people reaching out in desperation – knowing they were seeking something more than what they thought they needed.
As the doctors, consultants and nurses discuss what can and should be done with me, they have to work within some restrictions which they do not like having to face. They try to do what they can in the time and budget given to them, but want to be able to be more like Jesus and give out absolute healing rather than patching people up and moving down the queue. Allow Christ to heal you from the inside so your life will have more meaning!
Points to Ponder:
What sort of healing do you think you are looking for?
Will you allow Christ to work with your heart?
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June 24: Galatians 3:23-25
Key Verse: Galatians 3:24
So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith.
Devotion:
Have you ever had to stay in a place which had lots of very strict rules to follow? Boarding school seemed like that at times with lots of rules to follow which were strictly kept by the prefects and masters. To a large extent it made sure we behaved properly most of the time, but there were times we got into trouble because we broke the rules...
Israel was like that in the beginning because they had so many rules to follow so they could please God; when they broke the rules there would be consequences and the people would have to atone for what they had done wrong. After atoning they would be forgiven and life would continue.
When Christ came to live amongst us, everything changed. No longer would we have to live strictly by the rules and atone for everything we did wrong. Christ laid down His life to atone for all of our sins instead of us having to sacrifice animals or birds each time we got things wrong. Instead we are instructed to have faith – faith that Christ has died for our sins and we will be forgiven when we ask Him to forgive us.
No longer do we have to carry out the physical deeds to make sure we will be forgiven, our faith in believing Christ has paid the price once and for all is all that is required of us… just like the people had to have faith in looking up at the snake statue after snaked ran rampant in the camp of the people of Israel. All they had to have was faith that God’s promise to cue them and keep them safe would become true when they looked up at the statue of the snake.
Points to Ponder:
What do you think is the weak point in your faith?
Did you know Christ died to cover all of our weak points?
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June 23: Luke 12:35-40
Key Verse: Luke 12:38
It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or towards daybreak.
Devotion:
One of the mysteries we face in life is when will Christ return. The disciples were closest to Him and yet they understood they were not going to know when He would come back, but only after it was told to them multiple times. We like to be in control of things in our lives and having an uncertainty hovering over us makes us uneasy at best! Christ is asking us to have faith and to be ready...
The best description of His return date is like a thief who will come in the middle of the night. We don’t know when the thief will come because they don’t announce their coming, instead they approach with stealth and try to leave again with stealth so they will not be caught out. If we have the right stuff like security systems then we may well be alerted about the thief – but only after they have arrived!
So how do we stay ready all the time? Should we not sleep or work? God does not want us to give up on life but rather the live our lives to the best we can. He also wants us to be prepared so when He does make His surprise visit, we will not find ourselves in a difficult or compromising situation! He wants us to live our lives as Christians who know Christ is returning and are ready for it.
This means knowing what we should do by reading His Word and preparing. He wants us to be disciples. Being a disciples does not just mean staying home and studying the bible. Being a disciple means taking what we know and passing on that information to others – going out into the world and encouraging others to follow Christ as well.
Points to Ponder:
Are you getting ready for Christ’s return?
Will you help someone else to get ready too?
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June 22: Matthew 7:15-20
Key Verse: Matthew 7:17
Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
Devotion:
How do you recognise bad people? Is it not from seeing or hearing the bad things they do or say? It is very easy to make wrong assumptions about people just by meeting them once, but as you get to know them better by being with them, their true colours will show through. Jesus had the advantage of being able to know the people before He met them in person but we do not have that luxury!
The same could be said about fruit trees – if you do not know the fruit trees by sight, you have to wait until they bear fruit before you will recognise them; that takes time. We may start out by thinking we know the fruit tree and tend to it as best we know how, then be disappointed when we get to know the truth about what kind of tree it is. Some fruit trees will not bear fruit unless they are cared for in the right manner…
We are going to meet some people in our lives whom we think are good and righteous people, but when we get to know them by being with them for long enough, we will find out the truth about what sort of people they actually are. God wants us to be wary of the people who act good but who are not good inside because they may fool us in the beginning and we may only find out the truth when it is too late!
To navigate this minefield of good and bad in our lives we need to have someone to guide us so we can avoid the bad and evil where possible. The Holy Spirit was sent by Christ to do that for us – but to gain from this relationship we need to listen to Him! Bring the Holy Spirit closer into your life and allow Him to guide you in the best ways forward.
Points to Ponder:
How do you tell good from bad?
Will you allow the Holy Spirit to guide you?
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June 21: Matthew 7:13-14
Key Verse: Matthew 7:14
But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Devotion:
How easily do you get distracted when you are trying to do an important job? I don’t know about you, but my mind is always spinning with many things going through it and concentrating on a single thing can be difficult for me unless it is something I enjoy or am very interested in. Even sitting down and reading God’s Word can be difficult for me at times...
It is little wonder then we are given this warning in amongst all the warnings about not judging and treating others correctly; we do have the offer of assistance from God through the Holy Spirit to get through our days and to be able to stick with the plan. We need to take every bit of assistance we can get – especially if we do find it difficult to keep going.
This brings up another important task we have in hand. Because the world is so ‘loud’ compared to the quietness of God and the Word, we can find it difficult to focus on the right thing and to even find the right ways of doing things. If we are all searching for this small sweet spot in our lives, then should we not be helping others if we do find it? What is the use of everyone going off to find the right way by themselves; if one of us should find it, then we should be guiding others toward it so they can find it more easily.
God does not want us to be alone with Him in heaven – He wants us to all be together with Him. If we are headed for a feast with Him in Heaven, then we should be sending out the invites for others to come and join us, giving them clear instructions on how to get there too. Jesus left us very clear instructions in the form of His Word...
Points to Ponder:
Would you like your friends and family to be with you in Heaven?
Are you handing out invitations?
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June 20: Matthew 7:1-5
Key Verse: Matthew 7:4
How can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?
Devotion:
It is very easy to see the errors others make and very easy to think you can cover up the errors you make; but we need to remember there is someone watching us all the time, not waiting for us to make mistakes, but waiting for us to come to Him for our help and guidance. Part of that help and guidance is so we do not jump in to judge others.
I love the symbolism of these words used here. I don’t know if you have ever tried to read something when you get sand or other foreign objects blown into your eyes – it’s a bit difficult! This is the symbolism used here, when we have something wrong in our lives it is hard to be able to see the reality of someone else’s situation – maybe they are doing what they are because they think they have no other choice!
Part of our life is making choices when the going gets difficult. Christ has given us the Holy Spirit for guidance and help during those times when we do find it difficult. The Holy Spirit does not have anything to hold them back like we do, so they see the big picture in its correct light, and not jaded as we see because of the sin in our lives.
You may not think of the things wrong in your life when you are too busy focusing on what you see wrong in other’s lives, but when you stop to think about it, you will see the faults in your life. Christ is saying we need to sort those faults out before we can even think about picking the faults in other’s lives. Those little things wrong in our lives may be like a speck of sand, but that is enough to make you not see clearly!
Points to Ponder:
How often do you pick holes in other people's business?
Will you allow the Holy Spirit to guide you first of all?
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June 19: Luke 8:27-33
Key Verse: Luke 8:33
When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.
Devotion:
This is one of those strange stories which makes me stop and think a lot. Each time I try to write about it, I stop and allow myself to hear from the Holy Spirit because of the uncertainty in the way things happened… The demons possessing the man begged Jesus to allow them to enter into the pigs instead of being simply cast out. This is when people start asking questions like “why did Jesus allow that rather than just getting rid of the demons?”
Well, let’s take a look at the character of demons… Are they trustworthy? Are they honest? What would you have done? Jesus showed His compassionate side by allowing them to go into the pigs rather than being cast away; but then the pigs rush off into the lake and drown! I like to think Jesus knew they were going to try and make a run for it and purposely pointed the pigs in the direction of the lake first. The banks were too steep and once they started running, there was only one way it would end!
This should give us a pointer to never trust demons. To never believe what they say and to avoid them at all costs. Allow the professionals to deal with them… and I don’t mean people who make a living out of saying they cast out demons, I’m talking about people who call out to Christ to do the exercising. Christ has the power to do this and He is the one who is looking out for us. If we are willing to believe and trust in Him, then He will be faithful and deliver us from the evil (just as we prayer in The Lord’s Prayer)
Points to Ponder:
Do you trust Christ enough to keep you safe?
Will you place a bit more trust in what He can do for you?
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June 18: 2 Chronicles 24:17-19
Key Verse: 2 Chronicles 24:19
Although the Lord sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen.
Devotion:
We often think we are safe in our houses or in our countries because we live in a peaceful part of the world; but that is only what is on the surface. If we did deep into our own countries and communities we will see all manner of corruption and greed which leads to many having to go without the things we take for granted. One of those things many Christian take for granted is that God is always going to look after us!
We only have to look back into our history to see how God was tested to the limit by many people over time. Some of those people had to face the consequences of their inaction or of their bad behaviour, whilst others ended up paying for what their parents had done wrong.
After the death of Jehoiada, Joash became the new king. He did not follow what God had continued to ask the people of Judah to do. They rebelled against all of God’s rules and covenants. Instead they started worshipping Asherah poles and idols – not quite sure what made them do that, but it was probably one person who started talking about what could be better if they did something else instead.
The Lord sent prophets to try and bring the people back to worshipping Him but the people continued to ignore them and rebel against God. They made the choice to go against God… We have a choice to make in our own lives, we could just go ahead and ignore all the people who give us advice, or we could choose one person to listen to and follow whatever they say… the wise choice would be to follow the right person who is telling us things which agree with everything God has taught us in the past!
Points to Ponder:
Who do you take advice from?
Does that advice agree with what is in the bible?
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June 17: Matthew 6:19-23
Key Verse: Matthew 6:21
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Devotion:
How come there are rich Christians and poor Christians? Shouldn’t we all be the same so nobody will get treater better than the rest of us? No matter where you look in life, you will always see people who are better off than others and people who are worse off than others; that is how we behave as human beings, never mind Christians.
We can look through the bible and see how some Christians were kings, some were poor and many others were in between those extremes – that is part of life! But what should tell us apart from any other human is how we look at what we have and what we do with what we have. God wants us to do our best to make use of what we have and to treat those around us with respect and dignity.
Some of the richest people in the world are also some of the most generous people in the world; it may not always work like that because there are also many who are truly greedy with their wealth and will not share anything with anyone… what do they have? They have wealth which they cannot use with the very people around them because their greed sets them apart from the rest of us. But those who choose to share what they have or to look after others who do not have enough have a lot more – they have the friendships and partnerships around them with people who are thankful!
God would like us to not just share what we have but to use what we have to help others; and if making more money with the money we have is what is going to help more people, then that is what we should be doing. Wealth can be measured by many things, not just money but love and friendship too!
Points to Ponder:
What do you do with the money you earn?
What will you do to show people God is generous with you?