Past Devotions

You can probably tell from the last couple devotions that I have been reading in Colossians, specifically that first wonderful chapter. There are three verses (vs21-23) that contain three of the most amazing truths found in Scripture. Verse 21-22a speaks of our separation and reconciliation, verse 22b gives us the result of that reconciliation and verse 23 provides a warning. I want to look at what those verses mean for us over the next couple days.

Colossians 1:21: “This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body.

Once we were alienated. We were banished from the presence of God. We were estranged. We were habitual enemies of God because of our sin. God was holy; we were not. Ezekiel 18:4 reminds us of that: “Behold, all souls are Mine…. The soul who sins shall die.”   

Doesn’t come much plainer than that. The soul who sins shall die. Before we came to Christ, we may have been good people or evil people according to the world’s viewpoint, but to a Holy God, we deserved nothing less than death. Each of us had broken the first and greatest commandment to love, “the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.”

No one was able to keep that commandment, even if we did well with others. And breaking one law, just one, makes us a lawbreaker under judgment. “Yet now” the most amazing transformation; God has reconciled us through Christ’s death.

I don’t want justice. Justice demands my death as a lawbreaker, and my condemnation and eternal alienation from God. I need a Holy God to be merciful to me, a sinner. I need a Holy God to make the way for me. I need a Holy God to enable me to come into His presence. I need His mercy and His grace.

Want to hear something that will take your breath away?   “Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.”

 Not enough? There’s More! “Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.” [Colossians 1:15-20 NLT]

This passage declares the Supremacy of Christ. This, in all its radiance, is the very nature and the prerogatives of God that Christ relinquished when He came to earth, and what He reclaimed when “God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names….”  [Philippians 2:9 NLT]

This is the God we serve. When we are feeling discouraged or frightened, we should remember that He created everything, all things in heaven and on earth.

When we wonder if the church will ever get its act together, we need to remember that He is the head of the body, the church.

When we are feeling adrift or disjointed or alone, we need to remember that He holds it all together and it is through Him that all things are reconciled.

When we are in a battle, we need to remember that His blood, shed willingly on the cross, brought us peace.

When we aren’t sure we know God, we need to remember that Jesus is the visible image of the invisible God, and we can be comforted.

“For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.” [vs13-14 NLT]

God rescued us; we didn’t rescue ourselves. It can’t get any plainer than that. It was His idea, His plan, and His Son that carried it out on Calvary. If we ever get the feeling that God is lucky to have us, those three little words–God rescued us–should put it all back in perspective. We were dead; God gave us life through His Son.

God rescued us from the kingdom of darkness. The Greek word for darkness is used throughout the New Testament as the equivalent of physical darkness, intellectual darkness, blindness, the place of punishment, moral and spiritual darkness, evil works, evil powers that dominate the world. That’s the ugly stuff that held us in its powers.

God transferred us into the kingdom of His dear Son. He didn’t rescue us from the power of darkness and drop us just anywhere. He brought us into the kingdom, into the kingdom of the Son He loves, the Son who gave His life for our rescue.

It is in God’s very own Son that we find redemption. We have been redeemed and set free by the very blood of God’s own Son. Even more, we have the forgiveness of sins. God has forgiven my sins. They will never be thrown up in my face, they will never be put on display, they will never be whispered about in heaven, they are forever covered by the Precious Blood of God’s Lamb.

Two short verses, a couple of lines in my Bible, a few words and held within those few words are our lives, past and present as well as the hope for a glorious eternal future. Glory to God.

In the first chapter of Joshua, Joshua is commanded to “Be strong and courageous.” The LORD commands him three times between verses 6-9. (The people will echo that command in vs 18.) Along with “Be strong and courageous,” Joshua is also instructed to “not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

I often hear those commands quoted. What I seldom hear quoted are two verses around those commands that are equally important.

“Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left.”  and “Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.” [vs 7b, 8]

Joshua not only needed to be strong and brave, but he also needed to be diligent to study God’s word and to obey it. God is clear when He tells Joshua, “…only then will you prosper and succeed ….”

Too often we focus on the “strong and courageous” and fail to realize that you cannot have strength and courage apart from obedience, and you cannot be obedient apart from knowing what God demands.

We must study and prayerfully consider the Word of God. Then obedience will follow and courage and strength will arise.

The last verses in Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians contain a prayer and a charge: “Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. God will make this happen, for he who calls you is faithful.”  [5:23-28 NLT]

When I was first saved, I honestly despaired that God would be able to make anything of my life. I knew I was a sinner – then I found a Scripture, the first I ever memorized, and with that Scripture I found hope. “…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” [Philippians 1:6]

In Paul’s final greeting to the Thessalonians, at the end of his prayer for their sanctification, he reminds these young believers of that wonderful hope, “for He who calls you is faithful.”

God is faithful to us. He began the work in our lives; it was not our own doing. He initiated our salvation and sanctification. God carries on the work He started in our lives. Every moment of every day His Spirit works in us to conform us to the image of His Dear Son. He desires for us to be like Christ.

He is not daunted by the task, or our unwillingness, or stubbornness or even rebellion at times. He carries on His work in us.

Our LORD will complete that good work in us. He will not drop the ball. His work in us is on schedule and He will finish it. Praise His Glorious Name. Amen and Amen.

In 1Thessalonians 5:14-15, Paul gave his Thessalonian converts qualities that are aimed outward, in their relationships with other believers and with nonbelievers also. Now in verses 16-18, he also gives them three short exhortations of heart instructions—words that can change lives in the greatest of measures.

“Be joyful always. Pray continually. Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Be joyful always. The King James Version says it even more succinctly, “Rejoice evermore.” Be cheerful, joyful, always. Joy is an inner quality of the heart and spirit. How many times have we been reminded that is doesn’t say, Be Happy Always. Happiness is based on happenings. Joy is founded in the absolute fact that we are loved by God, that our abode is in Him, and that Christ died for us.

Pray continually. We are to pray without ceasing, we are to be instant in prayer, we should pray without weariness. It doesn’t mean we do nothing BUT pray, but it means prayer should accompany everything we do. We need to pray now, in this life, because when we cross into the presence of God, prayer will be replaced with praise. We shall then see God as He is, and at that point, we will no long need to seek Him in prayer, we will approach Him in praise.

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Give thanks FOR all circumstances? No give thanks IN all circumstances. It is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus to be a giver of thanks.

In essence what Paul is saying is that in every circumstance and facet of life we are to be joyful, prayerful, and thankful. The marks of the Followers of Christ are that we face each new day with joy, prayer and thanksgiving.

We are in the final instructions of IThessalonians. Paul begins with instructions to respect and hold in highest regard those who have been charged by God to minister His word and His work among believers. They have accepted an awesome charge from the Lord to build up the Body of Christ.

As believers we are to do other things as well. “Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone. See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people.” [I Thessalonians 5:14-15 NLT]

Warn the lazy. Some translations render this as “admonish the unruly.” The meaning is to warn those people who are unruly, disorderly, lazy, idle, those who will not be productive members of a body of believers, but who still demand to be maintained. Earlier Paul said to make it their ambition to lead a quiet life, minding their own business and working with their own hands. This warning is to those who do not follow that advice. [4:11-12]

Encourage the timid. Take tender care of the weak. Encourage and lift those who are ready to sink without hope, who are afraid, who are beat down by the demands and circumstances of life. I remember my former pastor saying that it is far easier to knock down the proud than it is to lift up those without hope; how difficult it is for many people to believe that God isn’t mad at them, but that He loves them.

Be patient with everyone. Oh no, surely Paul can’t mean be patient with everyone.  Yes, everyone. Everyone needs patient endurance from others. We all have our trials, troubles, decisions, and problems. We need to be patient while God works in each life. Then Paul adds, “See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people.”

Do Good. Friends, we live in an unkind world. Life is neither gentle nor kind most of the time. We need to exhibit kindness and patience with all people, believers and non-believers; remembering after all, how kind and how patient God is with each of us.

I hate it when I get to the end of a really good book. That’s the way I feel now at the end of I Thessalonians, a section titled in my Bible as “Final Instructions.” Paul’s letter to his young converts is winding down. After everything he has told them about their character, example, and the coming of the LORD, he has just a few final instructions.

“Dear brothers and sisters, honor those who are your leaders in the Lord’s work. They work hard among you and give you spiritual guidance.  Show them great respect and wholehearted love because of their work. And live peacefully with each other.” [I Thessalonians 5:12-13 NLT]

I loved to watch MASH with Hawkeye, Trapper, BJ, Colonel Potter, and Radar. My favorite character was Father Francis Mulcahy. I remember a conversation he had with Hawkeye once. He said that when Hawkeye lost a patient, he lost a life, but when he, Father Mulcahy, lost a patient, he lost a soul.

To have souls placed in your trust by God is one of the most awesome, fearsome tasks given to a person. While every person is responsible for his/her own soul, a minister is given the responsibility to handle God’s word and equip His Church.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:11-12, “Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.” [NLT]

Paul tells his young converts that because of that charge they are to respect and hold in highest regard those God has called to that task, which, along with prayer, is exactly what we should be doing every day also.

I was reading Psalm 147 this morning. It is one of the final psalms in the book, and part of a group of five (146-150) that begin and end with the word “Hallelujah!” Hallelujah translated is “Praise the LORD!”

I was especially touched by the first five verses. “How good to sing praises to our God! How delightful and how fitting! The Lord is rebuilding Jerusalem and bringing the exiles back to Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds. He counts the stars and calls them all by name. How great is our Lord! His power is absolute!” [Psalm 147:1-5 NLT]

Truly, how good, delightful, and fitting to sing praises to our God! It is so good for our soul to dwell in gratitude and expressions of thanksgiving.

I love the thought expressed in the phrase “bringing the exiles back.”  While the psalmist was thinking about the nation of Israel coming back to Jerusalem from her exile in Babylon, I can’t help but think about all of us – exiled because of rebellion and brought back to God through the sacrifice of His Precious Son.

Perhaps, however, the most delightful promise is found in “He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.” We have all experienced brokenness. We have all been wounded. But our God promises that in Christ our brokenness is made whole and our wounds are healed.

In case we are wondering if God CAN do all that – we are reminded of His absolute power and greatness. He counts the stars and calls them all by name. And in case we are wondering if God WILL do all that for us – He knows His children and calls each of us by name. Amen!