Past Devotions

This is Easter week. It seems early this year, April 5. February seemed to fly by and March is following suit. I want to spend this time before Easter preparing my heart.

As I was reading in Psalm 103 this morning, the opening words struck me. “Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me.” [vs 1-2 NLT]

Then David begins to list the benefits he did not want to forget. As I read David’s words, I began to do the same, to list the benefits I do not want to forget, the benefits I received because of the sacrifice of Christ at Calvary. David begins his remembrance with “He forgives all my sins.”

David understood what it was like to have sin forgiven. The law given by Moses made provision for unintentional sins, but there were no provisions for intentional ones. The intentional sin is what David referred to in Psalm 51:14 as “bloodguilt.” It was the sin of David with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah. There was no provision in the law, yet David knew God’s mercy and the forgiveness of even bloodguilt. He desired to remember that forgiveness.

I, too, remember forgiveness. John wrote: “because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus.” [1 John 2:12 NLT]

Because of what Christ did on the cross, I remember the One who forgives all my sins. Jesus from His cross asked God’s forgiveness for the very ones that were crucifying Him. And He provided, through His sacrifice that day, the forgiveness I need for even my grievous sins.

Praise the Lord, O my soul … forget not all his benefits … the forgiveness of all my sins.

The enemies of God were marching against Judah and its king Jehoshaphat. Their goal was to kill and destroy the king and the people he led. Jehoshaphat was powerless to do anything about it, and he knew it.  He couldn’t muster an army big enough to face this enemy. He was going to be annihilated.

Jehoshaphat saw a real enemy advancing upon him. As Christians we don’t often see our enemies with our physical eyes, but they are real, nonetheless. [2 Corinthians 10:3-4]

Jehoshaphat’s enemies were a vast army set against the nation of Judah. Jehoshaphat’s first response was to call the nation together and to seek the presence of the Lord. “All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the Lord.” They stood, waiting for the Lord, waiting for His response and they were not disappointed.

The Spirit of the Lord God Almighty before whom they stood waiting, descended upon Jahaziel and he proclaimed, “This is what the LORD says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army.  For the battle is not yours, but God’s …. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem…. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.’” [2 Chronicles 20:13-17]

The Lord’s word to Jehoshaphat was simple. You do your part and I’ll do my part. Jehoshaphat’s part was to march against his enemies, to take up a position and to stand firm. He was to “go out to face them.”  He wasn’t to run, or surrender, or hide. He was to take up a position squarely in their path. God’s part was to bring about their deliverance for the battle was not theirs but God’s.

How often do I find myself retreating or hiding rather than facing the enemy. How often do I just surrender to feelings of discouragement or fear. How often do I analyze, rationalize, or allow doubt into my heart as I see the enemies of my soul advancing against me. Yet God’s message is clear, take up your position squarely in their path and watch the deliverance of the Lord.  After all, it is only when we are facing the enemy that we can actually see God’s victory.

Matthew 11:28-30: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” [NIV]

Jesus was gentle, humble, meek, but He was not weak. There is a Scripture in Isaiah that reminds of both the strength and the gentleness of Jesus the Christ. Isaiah 42 begins, “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on the earth. In his law the islands will put their hope.”

God’s chosen Messiah, Jesus the Christ, will bring justice to this earth. In strength He will not falter or fail, He will not become discouraged. Nothing on earth is strong enough to hinder His goal to bring all things back where they belong. Nothing in heaven or hell is strong enough to stand in His way or deter Him.   Nothing, no principalities, no powers, no rulers in heavenly places, can oppose Him and succeed.

Yet even amid all that, strength is seen in gentleness. A bruised reed, a person barely hanging on by a thread, He will not break but will in gentleness make them whole again. A smoldering wick He will not snuff out. Even those souls that are hurt, barely alive, damaged almost to the point of destruction, He will make whole again, will restore, will transform into bright shining lights set high upon a hill.

Jesus treats people a lot better than we treat them. He is gentle and humble, bringing rest for souls. Oh Lord Jesus, let us be like you in ever-increasing measure. 

I decided after wandering through Romans 12 that I would wander through 1 Samuel. Chapter 12 is the prophet Samuel’s Farewell Address. Israel had asked for a king, which displeased Samuel. Prior to that they had been governed by judges and prophets. Now they wanted to be like all the other nations around them and have a king. So, at God’s direction, Samuel anointed Israel’s first, Saul.

Samuel was an old man now. He had served the LORD since he was a young boy. He invited the nation Israel to testify against him about his tenure as their leader.

Within that section, he asks them as series of questions. Several times he begins his questions, “Have I ever …?” and the people responded, “No, you have never ….” [1 Samuel 12:1-5 NLT]

Samuel’s question haunted me for a little while. I don’t know if I would ever have the courage to ask, “Have I ever …?” I know the mistakes I have made. I know there are those who could probably testify against me about something.

Then the Holy Spirit rose up in my heart and reminded me that when I surrendered my heart to my Savior and LORD, Christ Jesus, He set me free from sin and shame. He created a new person in me. He forgave my sins and He promised that He would never hold those things against me. People may be able to “testify” against me, but my Father God never will. Praise God!

Ever thought about that word “good.”  It simply means, high quality, first class, excellent, or superior. As I was reading in Jeremiah 33 this morning, I came across that word “good.” Chapter 33 speaks about the promised restoration of Israel and Jeremiah tells the people:

“This is what the Lord says: You have said, ‘This is a desolate land where people and animals have all disappeared.’ Yet in the empty streets of Jerusalem and Judah’s other towns, there will be heard once more the sounds of joy and laughter. The joyful voices of bridegrooms and brides will be heard again, along with the joyous songs of people bringing thanksgiving offerings to the Lord. They will sing, ‘Give thanks to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, for the Lord is good. His love endures forever.’” [vs10-11a NLT]

We serve a mighty God. We serve a holy God. We serve a righteous God. We serve a God who is all-knowing.  We serve a God who is full of majesty and glory. Perhaps, for me, the most beautiful truth, however, is found in the knowledge that we serve a GOOD God. “For the LORD is good; his love endures forever.”

 Have you ever stopped to ponder the depths of that simple statement, “For the LORD is good; his love endures forever?” What does that mean for you?

I know what it means for me. It means that my God will love me no matter what, and that even when I stumble or fall, when I sin or fail, that love will endure. It means that when He must discipline or correct me, He does it from a heart of love and always with the purpose of seeking my restoration.

It means that even when everything in my soul seems a desolate waste, my God promises that because of His love for me, the sounds of joy and gladness will again ring forth and my voice will join with the multitude of voices down through the ages that proclaim, “Give thanks to the LORD Almighty, for the LORD is good; his love endures forever.”

Recently, a retired minister in our congregation was asked to bring the Team Devotion prior to the first service on Sunday morning. He joked, and we teased him as well, about holding his message to devotion timing at about five minutes. To say it this way, he is never at a loss for words when it comes to talking about the God he loves.

One thing he said really warmed my heart. He reminded us that we were created in God’s image. “So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” [Genesis 1:27 NLT]

Then he reminded us that God did this because of His love.

No one would argue that we have fallen far from the image of God. But while mankind rebelled, God did not leave us to us wallow in our rebellion. He provided a way, THE ONLY WAY, out of that rebellion. That’s what we celebrate each year during the Easter Season—God’s sending His Precious Son to open THE WAY back to the Father.

Jesus came, walked this dirty world with us, died on a cross for us. He was raised from the dead on the third day and returned to His Father to make intercession for us … all to return us to the Image of God.

We may not look like it yet … we still struggle while here … but there is coming a day when …

It seems every day my email inbox has another offer to buy a Christian book that will tell me how to view God, how to live my life, what holiness is, what I should know about Christ, etc. I seldom bite on those offers.

When others ask me what I am reading I am inclined to say that I’m reading my Bible. That doesn’t mean I don’t like a good Christian book. I have read some excellent ones, “The Pursuit of God” by A W Tozer, the “Holiness of God,” by R C Sproul, and others. And I do love good commentaries that help me to understand the background of the verses I read. But I don’t want to get in the habit of replacing my Bible with other books.

There are two things about the Word of God that I have oft repeated. One, the Scripture, our Bible, is the only book that is “alive!” It is God’s Very Word and is able to expose all things, even our deepest motivations.

“For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.” [Hebrews 4:12 NLT]

The second thing is that the Word of God reads us as we read it.

“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.” [2Timothy 3:16-17 NLT]

It shows us where we are. It makes corrections in our walk. It teaches and prepares. No book other than the Word of God, no matter how excellent, is alive and able to read us.

The very end of Romans 12 is in sight. There stands a massive ‘tree’ that provides shelter and shade; one that stretches its branches out in every direction, reaching to the sky and bending to the earth.  I call it the “tree of triumph.”

The final verse in Romans 12 says simply, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

This world is full of trouble, evil, problems, and woes. Despite that we are not to be overcome by it. Jesus promised in John 16:33, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” 

Jesus has overcome the evil of this world through the work of His cross. Now we are to be overcomers through our faith in Him. John wrote in 1 John 5:1-5: “This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.”

The triumph is our faith in the work of Christ on the cross that overcomes the evil of this world with good. This is good that flows from our love of God. This is good that flows from our desire to obey His commands. This is good that has a heart full of love, set in peace, with a gentle and quiet spirit that seeks not its own, but the best for all God’s children.

This is good which has the power of God working through it to overcome the evil of this life.

“Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, ‘I will take revenge; I will pay them back,’ says the Lord.” [Romans 12:17-19 NLT]

Ever been wronged? Ever been unjustly accused? Has someone ever hurt you deeply and left wounds that take years to heal, if they ever do? I doubt we can make it through life without experiencing some of that. My immediate reaction is “Pay Back!”

How many books are written and movies made with the theme of extracting revenge on everyone that committed wrongs. The good guy always gets the bad guy and makes him pay. That, however, is not the theme of this passage. In fact, this passage wouldn’t sell books or movies in our society.

God’s way is not for us to repay evil for evil. There is no doubt about the fact that in this life we often are the target of evil, we often are on the receiving end of hurt and the consequences of the actions of others. Despite that, we are not to extract our pound of flesh. We are to do the exact opposite. We are exhorted to be careful to do what is right and as much as it depends on us to live at peace with everyone.

That is only possible because we trust that whatever payback needs to happen, God will do it. It is God’s place and His place alone, to assume the throne of judgment and to exact whatever punishment is just and necessary. His justice will always be clothed in righteousness, in truth, and in all knowledge. Our place is to trust Him and to focus on what is right and what brings peace.

It is not always possible to have peace, but it is our duty to make sure that we do not contribute to a lack thereof. In truth, only those who know that God will repay wrong can have the freedom to promote peace.