Look in the water and you’ll see your image… but throw a rock in the water and your likeness will disappear. Look at someone in normal circumstances and they will behave in ordinary ways …but throw something like COVID19 and the threat of a national pandemic into their life and all kinds of unlovely emotions can erupt from the person. Lord, create in us a pure heart that is not shaken by the world around us. Amen.
Tag: daily encouraging devotions
Luke 12:15 ” Then He said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.’ “
If we take anything away from the past few months it’s this – COVID19 isn’t a respecter of socio-economic status. It doesn’t matter how much money you make a year, how big a portfolio you have, or what kind of car you drive…the virus is nondiscriminatory when choosing its victims. And amassing large amounts of “things” won’t stop the virus from invading your body if you’re exposed. Job very wisely tells us that we can’t save ourselves by hoarding “things” nor that we can put our trust in those “things”, for our only security comes from God alone. (Job 20:20 & Job 31:24) When Jesus spoke these words in Luke, He was warning us about the sin of covetousness and selfishness…for we do not exist for “things”… we live to have relationship with Him.
Psalm 78:3-4 ” What we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power, and the wonders He has done.”
Not since the early 60’s has prayer and God been brought back into the classroom…now that the classroom is around your kitchen table during this pandemic. In the Old Testament Jewish fathers were instructed to teach their children the miracles and mighty deeds of God their Deliverer, and now you have the same opportunity to instruct your children in the awesome creative activities of God. It can be as simple as taking turns reading through Scripture together, and discussing what you’ve just read, to acting out Bible stories, complete with costumes. The Lord has given you this wonderful chance to pour Godly truths into your kids that will last a lifetime.
Isaiah 59:1 ” Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor His ear too dull to hear.”
The Lord asks again in Isaiah 50:2, “Was My arm too short to ransom you? Do I lack strength to rescue you?” The answer to all of it is a resounding No! Our God is all powerful, ever-present, and all sufficient for anything that would come into our lives…and that includes COVID19. So if today the darkness is overtaking you, look to the Lord for strength and hope…for in Isaiah 65:24 God tells us, “Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.” No one or thing is beyond the reach of God and His power to change any situation.
Luke 23:48 ” When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away.”
For all who had gathered around the Cross at Gethsemane, this was not what they had been expecting. They wanted Jesus to miraculously come down from that Cross and claim His Kingship over Roman rule. But instead, He died like any other man would, leaving them stunned and confused. Raw emotions started spilling out of them. Sorrow in seeing their Lord die in such a horrible way. Despair in feeling abandoned and alone. Regret in following Jesus only to have this happen. As they turned their backs on the Cross and went away, all these emotions were compounded by fear…fear that the Roman Guard would be coming for them next. A song by Don Franciso starts with these words, “The gates and doors were barred and all the windows fastened down, I spent the night in sleeplessness and rose at every sound, half in hopeless sorrow half in fear the day would find the soldiers crashing though to drag us all away…” As the COVID19 virus has us all hunkered down in our homes, admittedly, we are all dealing with these same types of emotions…sorrow, despair, regret, anger, and fear. But we must also remember what tomorrow is Resurrection Sunday, and with it comes hope…hope for tomorrow through our Lord Jesus!
Matthew 27:57-60 ” As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away.”
In reading these verses you can’t help but notice the use of the impersonal pronoun “it” in speaking about the body of Jesus. It was no longer His body, for in verse 50 of this Chapter as He hung from that Cross, “When then Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, He gave up His spirit.” The Greek word for “gave up” literally means to permit, allow, or hand over. Jesus was in complete control…even to the point of having total dominion and power over His time of death…He let His spirit pass, and the body that remained behind was just a empty shell.
John 13: 4-5 ” So He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him.”
This very intimate moment happened during the Last Supper when Jesus and His disciples were eating the Passover meal together. There must have been gasps and awkward silence as the disciples watched their Lord take on the role assigned to the lowest of lowest servants. For the washing of dusty, dirty feet was a part of hospitality and custom of the time… a generous and gracious way to receive guests into your house…and usually done by a lowly, and young servant. It says that when He had finished, He said, “Now that I, Your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.” But what was Jesus trying to tell us? First, Jesus was teaching us by example. In Matthew 20:28 He explained, “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.” So what He’s telling us is that we need to follow His example by having a servants heart. And in doing so, we can show others recognition and gratitude that’s steeped in humility and love. For it says He washed the feet of all the disciples…including the feet of Judas.
Matthew 21:14-15 ” The blind and the lame came to Him at the Temple, and He healed them. But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things He did and the children shouting in the Temple area, ‘Hosanna to the son of David,’ they were indignant.”
Jesus had just cleared the Temple area of the money-changers and merchants. The crowd then started bringing Him all their sick…and He healed them all it says. To add to this building excitement, the children were running among the people shouting praises to God! But when the Pharisees and the Sadducees entered the Temple area, they didn’t see the amazing miracles, or hear the beautiful worship… they instead took offense. Rather than rejoicing in the goodness of God, they in selfish indignation chose to be insulted and offended by what they saw and heard. We need to be wary of taking the bait of Satan, which is taking offense…especially during this current time of difficulty and fear. We can’t judge or second guess people when we don’t know all that’s going on in their life right now. We also can’t allow selfish anger to well up when we think our needs aren’t being met. Now is the time to turn outside ourselves, to guard against taking offense, and to come together.
Mark 11:11 ” Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the Temple. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, He went out to Bethany with the Twelve.”
In this verse Jesus has made His way into Jerusalem that Palm Sunday only to look upon the Temple area in disgust. It tells us in verse 15 that the next day Jesus entered the Temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling, not only quoting Isaiah 56:7, “My house will be called a house of prayer.” but also Jeremiah 7:11, “Has this house, which bears My Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching! declares the Lord.” So today, I’m going to ask you to examine your own Temple. For our body is a Temple of the living God. (I Corinthians 3:16 & 6:19, II Corinthians 6:16) and it’s very easy to allow things into our Temple that shouldn’t be there…especially during this uncertain and difficult time with the COVID19 virus. So I just want you to ask yourself – “Have I permitted negative emotions such as fear, worry, and doubt to now take up space in my Temple…Have I allowed frustration, irritation, and exasperation to take over my house of prayer?” Today’s the day to clear the Temple.
Luke 19:41-42 ” As He approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it and said, ‘If you, even you had only known on this day what would bring you peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes.’ “
In the Bible it’s called the Triumphal Entry…today, we call it Palm Sunday, but it was anything like a great king making a grand entrance into the city of Jerusalem. The writer of this gospel, Luke, was a physician, and as one who by profession had sympathy towards the whole of humanity, he wrote in a style that showcased the compassion and kindness of Jesus. For Luke writes in Chapter 13: 34-35 of Jesus lamenting over the stubbornness and unwillingness of the Jewish people to acknowledge Him as their long-awaited Messiah. So as Jesus came into view of the city that Palm Sunday, He started to weep, grieving deeply over the self-imposed destruction of His people. (Isaiah 22:4)
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