January 15: 1 Corinthians 1:1-9
Key Verse: 1 Corinthians 1:7
Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.
Devotion:
How often do you take on board good instructions and follow them to the end? How often do you succeed only because you have followed the instructions faithfully? Why should this be any different from following the instructions God has given us to make the most of our lives and those around us!
Paul was an incredible witness for God; not only was he changed in a very big way, but he continued to spread the gospel far and wide telling as many people about Christ as he could. He did not start off like that because he was one of the people who would go around working against God and working for what they thought was the church back then.
We have to be very wary of who we work for too. It should not be the organisation we call a religion or other corporate bodies; we should be working as Christ directs us and continuing to uphold the gospel truth in whatever we do. This is what made Paul such a success – we willingly set aside things to step up and listen to God’s instructions and to obey them no matter what would happen.
The amount of people he was able to reach during his life is quite staggering, but the amount of people he continues to reach because of the words written down by him is even more impressive. God wants us to be able to spread the gospel in new ways. There is something to be said about social media and the likes because it reaches new people in ways not done before – but we have to be wary we do not fall into the trappings of the world instead of spreading the gospel truth!
Points to Ponder:
How do you like to tell people about God?
Do you know God chose you?
January 14: Psalm 19:7-14
Key Verse: Psalm 19:14
May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
Devotion:
When a lawyer has to go to court to defend a client, they want the best possible witnesses behind them and the best possible advice for their clients based on past court cases and events… If they are very good lawyers, they will search high and low to make sure they have as much data behind them to defend their clients to the best of their abilities. They will be standing up in front of a judge and jury to present their case and so they need all of this data behind them. They are the witness for their client...
When we try to witness to others about Christ, we need to know as much as possible so we can witness to the best of our abilities. This does not mean we need to know everything. Just like a new lawyer, we are still learning and we have to discover things before we can present them before others. We effectively need to study the law.
So what is the law we need to study? Is it the cases presented by the teachers of the law during the time of Jesus life on earth? No! Jesus was not impressed by them either. We should take on board what Jesus stood for and the law He used as His example. That law is the scriptures, or our bibles.
There is nothing more precious than God’s Word for us because it is the truth we need in order to be witnesses to others. This is the law we should try to study to be the most effective witnesses we can be. This is the law being talked about in these verses where the writer describes it as being the most precious thing we have. God’s Word!
Points to Ponder:
How often do you study the law?
How often do you read your bible?
January 13: Mark 2:1-12
Key Verse: Mark 2:9
Which is easier: to say to this paralysed man, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to say, “Get up, take your mat and walk”?
Devotion:
I love this story about how Jesus was able to release this man from his past, not just spiritually but physically too. Jesus first reaction was to help the man with what they were struggling with; in this case the man must have been really struggling with the fact he was paralysed and was probably blaming his physical condition on what he had done in the past.
So many of us will blame ourselves for the spiritual and mental positions we are in by looking at the things we have done wrong in the past. This is not how Christ works! Jesus first healed the man of his spiritual problems by forgiving him – this was unheard of and the teachers immediately said Jesus was blaspheming! How could he forgive the man when it should only be God who does such things!
This was the teachers first fault, overlooking the fact Jesus was their Messiah, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Nothing they could do would have released this man from his problems, but what Jesus said released him immediately!
Sensing what they were thinking Jesus turned to the teachers and asked them which would be more difficult, to simply say the man's sins were forgiven, or to physically heal the man just by telling him to get up and walk! As soon as Jesus told the man to get up and walk, he did! This should have put an end to any doubt those teachers had about Jesus; but it probably didn’t!
Points to Ponder:
What do you look to Jesus to do in your life?
Will you accept what He does for you in faith?
January 12: Hebrews 3:7-14
Key Verse: Hebrews 3:10
That is why I was angry with that generation; I said, “Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.”
Devotion:
How many times have you said something horrible in anger after being provoked a bit too far? I’m sure we have all said things we don’t want to say or even repeat because they were out of character for us; that alter character being born from anger and provocation from people who were not thinking about your feelings...
Now think of that feeling a short while and see if you could have changed your ways at the time? The answer would probably be that you would very much like to change your actions at the time, but your were not in your normal state of mind because of the things which had probably been done and said to you just before that!
God had to put up with the people of Israel doing and saying horrible things time and time again. Eventually He got so angry with the people He made an oath which He looked back on and knew it was harsh – but if truth be told and we look back on the actions of the people of Israel at the time, those reactions may well have been deserved… but out of character for God. This is why we know God as a wrathful God. You continue rubbing Him up the wrong way and it may be inevitable He does something out of character!
This is where Christ comes in. He willingly paid the ultimate price for us so we could be forgiven for the things we do; you know, the time when we have provoked God so much we just know He is going to do something to us! That is the amazing love God has for us; He enabled His own Son to step up and take the blame when we deserved it!
Points to Ponder:
Have you provoked God recently?
Will you seek Jesus to forgive you?