2020-12-02
1 Corinthians 15:55 NLT
How can we know that God has a place for us with Him in heaven? In John 14, Jesus said: ‘”Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am’ (v.1-3 NLT). Romans 6:23 says: ‘For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord’ (NIV).
Because of sin, death became part of our world, but Jesus chose to die for all our sins and paid the price for us. That doesn’t mean we won’t experience death, but it does mean that if we accept God’s gift of salvation, we can take our place with Him in heaven.
As Jesus was dying on the cross, one of the criminals said to Him: ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom’ (Luke 23:42 NIV). Because of his faith and acceptance of who Jesus was, Jesus promised him: ‘Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise’ (v.43 NIV). We don’t know what crime he had committed, but it would have been a serious one. But his past didn’t matter – what mattered was that He repented and accepted Jesus. Because of Jesus’ victory over death, we can join in with saying ‘O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’ We can have confidence that, no matter what our past might be like, when we call out to God and accept salvation, He’ll have a pace for us and welcome us to heaven.
Jos 1-4; John 15:18-27; Ps 65; Prov 28:17-20
2020-12-01
Psalm 16:11 NIV
For many of us, the thought of death can stir up fear in our hearts. But God has promised us a place with Him in heaven, and His Word tells us that it’ll be a place that’s better than any we could ever imagine.
Billy Graham’s daughter Anne wrote about a conversation she had with her mum which illustrates the difference between our world and the next: ‘I told her about my recent visit to Westminster Abbey, where kings and queens are crowned and royalty are married. The door for tourists that leads to the cathedral entrance is a dark, cramped space. Opposite is another door that opens into the magnificent, glorious, cavernous sanctuary of Westminster Abbey. The dimly lit narthex [a porch or entrance hall] is just a place to purchase your ticket and guidebook before transitioning to the cathedral. I can’t imagine anyone clutching a ticket or leafing through a guidebook being satisfied with staying in the [entrance hall]…We pick our ticket to heaven when we’re born again through faith in Jesus. And we familiarise ourselves with the “guidebook” to heaven – the Bible.’ She goes on to compare death to the process of moving from the dark entrance hall into the beautiful sanctuary.
The psalmist said: ‘You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.’ The Bible gives us glimpses of heaven, and time spent with God gives us an idea of the immense joy we’ll feel when we’re with Him in heaven. But we’re also on a journey with God now, so while we’re following His path, let’s share with others the glory and joy that’s waiting for them when they accept salvation and put their faith in Him.
3 John; Jude; John 15:5-17; Ps 14; Prov 28:13-16
2020-11-30
Lamentations 1:12 NLT
A few years ago, The Washington Post conducted a social experiment. They asked world-famous violinist Joshua Bell to try busking at a busy metro station in Washington D.C., set up a camera to record the whole thing, and then waited to see what would happen.
As Bell started playing, he was mostly ignored. After about three minutes, a man slowed down briefly, but then hurried away. Another man stopped to listen for a few minutes before carrying on with his day. Every child who walked past tried to stop and listen, but each time, their parents hurried them along. During the 43 minutes that Bell was playing, 1,097 people passed him, but only seven stopped to listen, and only one person actually recognised who he was.
In our relationship with God, we can sometimes be like the passers-by in the experiment: 1) We can rush through our busy lives and neglect our time spent listening to God. Most people didn’t take even a moment to stop and listen to the beautiful music being played that morning. Our days might be packed with things to do, but it’s important to stop for God, and listen to what He has to say to us.
2) We can miss hearing from God because He’s not speaking to us in the way we expect. Nobody expected to hear one of the world’s best musicians busking in a station. If we have a fixed idea of when, where, or how God will speak to us, we might overlook other times when He’s tried to get our attention. So let’s ensure we take time to stop and listen out for God’s voice, whatever is going on around us and in our lives.
2 Chr 35-36; 2 John; John 14:26-15:4; Ps 146; Prov 28:9-12
2020-11-29
Romans 12:2 NLT
As we saw in yesterday’s reading, Martha was very busy when Jesus visited. Her intentions were good – she wanted to do everything a good host should do and make Jesus feel welcome. It was a cultural code of conduct for a host to show honour to a guest by offering them hospitality. If a host fell short, it could be considered an insult to the guest. But Martha made these customs a priority over spending time with Jesus.
We can be like Martha in some areas of our lives. For example, we’re very privileged to live in a world that’s so connected, but one of the downsides of this culture is that we can feel pressured to respond immediately to things, and get impatient if someone doesn’t reply to us quickly. We don’t want to miss out on the latest news and messages. But what if we felt just as afraid of missing out on a message that God has for us?
Romans 12:2 says: ‘Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect’ (NLT). It’s a message that can apply to Martha and to us.
To hear and learn from God, we need to slow down and give Him our attention by: 1) Simplifying our lives. Put God first and everything else will follow. 2) Making space for God. If we’re filling our lives with worldly things we won’t have room for God to move. 3) Setting aside time for God. Sometimes He guides us to act in His name, but sometimes all He wants is for us to rest in His presence.
Josh 1; Ps 27:11-14; 2 Tim 2:1-13
2020-11-28
Luke 10:41 NIV
We live in a world full of multitasking. We can be drinking our to-go coffee while driving. We can be carrying on a text conversation while sitting in a lecture or a meeting. We can be playing a game while eating lunch. We tend to do just about everything with our phones close by so we can keep checking them for messages.
We might think that doing several different tasks at once helps us to be productive. And sometimes that’s true – if there’s a task you hate, like cooking or washing the car, doing something like catching up with your favourite podcast at the same time can make the job seem easier and more enjoyable.
God’s given us the ability to multitask, so we shouldn’t necessarily think it’s a bad thing, but we need to be careful how we use it. God’s also given us the ability to focus, but multitasking can lead to us losing concentration, making mistakes, and taking even more time than if we’d done each thing separately. Multitasking can also lead us to lose focus on the one thing we should constantly look to: God.
When Jesus visited Martha and Mary, Martha was concerned that she got everything right and made her guest feel welcome. While she was busy with all the preparations, Jesus said to her: ‘Martha, Martha…you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed – or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better’ (Luke 10:41-42 NIV). Mary had chosen to focus on Jesus and what He was saying, whereas Martha was continuing with work. While work is important, there are times when we need to slow down, focus, and give God our full attention.
2 Chr 32-34; John 14:15-25; Ps 118:19-29; Prov 28:5-8
2020-11-27
Isaiah 58:5 NIV
God never commanded us to become obsessed with examining our emotions, experiences, or sins. What He did say is, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!’ (John 1:29 ESV). Victory over sin comes from focusing on Christ – not from beating ourselves up!
In the Old Testament the Israelites reached a place of despair. They’d fasted and humbled themselves, but God ignored their efforts. They searched for spiritual restoration in their own self-directed way, and God rejected it, saying: ‘Is this the kind of fast I have chosen…for people to humble themselves…bowing one’s head like a reed…in sackcloth and ashes? Is that…acceptable to the Lord?’ God’s clearly not pleased with the misery that comes from self-focus.
He has a more effective way to free us. Rather than have us weighed down with remorse, He said: ‘Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice…set the oppressed free…break every yoke…share your food with the hungry…provide the poor wanderer with shelter – when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not…turn away from your own flesh and blood?’ (Isaiah 58:6-7 NIV).
God’s way eliminates any danger of becoming fixated on self-analysis by commanding us to stop dwelling on our imperfections and get involved in the lives and needs of others. His plan for overcoming our old fleshly natures is: 1) Acknowledge His grace and see ourselves as ‘righteous’ in Christ. 2) Fix our eyes on Jesus. 3) Reject obsessive self-focus. 4) Serve God by serving others. When we do all these things, ‘Your light will rise in the darkness…The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs…and will strengthen your frame’ (vv. 10-11 NIV).
2 Chr 29-31; John 14:1-14; Ps 118:10-18; Prov 28:1-4
