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# 38 2020 Dev. Psalm 95:1. Worship! Read all of Ps. 95. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Psalm 95:1 “Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.”

Psalms 90 through 100 are a series of 11 Psalms that open and close with “Lord” (Adonai) or “the Lord” (Yahweh). After Psalm 94, a prayer to God for relief from persecution and injustice that speaks to what we are experiencing today, this series pivots to Psalm 95, a call to worship God Almighty. This is a call that is commanded to every generation and is still being commanded today and is commanded into eternity.

Vs.1-2 The call: “sing for joy”, come to God to worship “with thanksgiving”, and “with music and song.”

Vs.3-5 Why worship? “For the Lord is the great God” the Creator of all things.

Vs. 6-7 How? “bow down” and “let us kneel before the Lord our Maker” because we are His people endowed with the divine.

Vs. 8-11 This is not only a call to worship but a call to repentance and a warning as well: ‘“Do not harden your hearts…they shall never enter my rest’”. God’s rest here is the “promised land” they refused to enter because they did not believe God’s promises (lack of faith). But it is the metaphor for God’s eternal rest waiting for believers at that time and waiting for believers today and what we preview every Sunday.

This is the bottom line of the call to worship; how long will we harden our hearts? How long will we allow to be corrected by the world and disregard humility, thankfulness, righteousness, daily worship and the fruit of the spirit: “love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control? Against such things there is no law” (Gal. 5:22,23). Followers of Jesus transcend this world but we still live here for a short time; as we read Psalm 95 we realize that not only are we called to worship and to repentance but to dedicate all of our lives on this earth, living for Jesus every day. We have seen what God has done for us, all of us in our own way, have experienced God’s grace in our lives. For those who do not follow Jesus, you may not know or acknowledge God’s Grace to you and our country but I ask you; look truth into His face (Jesus) and let us all give thanks to God for every blessing we have received in this great land. Let us all pray that God will continue to bless His people!

 © cgvanwyk, all rights reserved               

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# 37 2020 Dev. James 5:13. Faith! Read all of Chapter 5. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

James 5:13 “is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. “

James addresses three huge subjects in Ch. 5: Oppression, Patience and Prayer.The author is speaking out against people for not paying a fair wage and not paying for work rendered. Is there a more pertinent situation going on today? I suspect most people support capitalism but there are problems among us. What do we call it when workers are not receiving a living wage and the CEO of that company receives millions a year with a golden parachute of more millions? How about sports deals of up to many millions a year for one person while workers and venders at the stadiums are barely making a living wage?  James is calling this oppression!

Next James addresses: “Patience in Suffering” but James throws something into this section that many are not thinking about: be patient “until the Lord’s coming”. James is giving his readers and us the bigger picture. We are, after all, in the last days, Jesus is on the way. Yet, that does not mean we give up, no, he tells us to stand firm and do not complain, “because the Lord is near. As we know, we count as blessed those who have persevered”. Also, “the Lord is full of compassion and mercy”. In other words, be patient, God is in control!

James also addresses prayer. “The Prayer of Faith”. Prayer is always a function of faith. Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Verse15 is the heart of this section: “And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven.” Healing and forgiveness, God always gives us. Our family prayed for my brother, who struggled with MS for five years. My brother is forgiven, and our neighbor, Mr. Todd, suffering from cancer is forgiven as well because he accepted Christ when my brother talked with him. After that event both died, God healing both of them, praise the Lord. Verse 20, “remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.” Death here meaning “eternal death”; separation from God forever. Is healing and forgiveness the meaning for my brothers short life? Faith tells us that it is. 

Justice, patience, prayer and faith all work together for healing and forgiveness under the Grace of God.  Praise Him!

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# 36 2020 Dev. Psalm 94:14. Our Rock! Read all of Ps. 94. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Psalm 94:14 “For the Lord will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance.”

Psalms 90 through 100 are a series of 11 Psalms that open and close with “Lord” (Adonai) or “the Lord” (Yahweh). Ps. 94 is an appeal to God for relief from persecution and injustice. You cannot make this up; this Psalm is addressing what we all are facing in our country today. Not only injustice to minorities but also to conservatives, Christians, pro lifers, dedicated police officers, conservative judges and upstanding leaders that support the rule of law.

Vs. 1-3 is a prayer that all followers of Jesus should pray today: Lord, “RIse up, Judge of the earth”.

Vs. 4-7 The prayer continues laying out the problems and the disregard for God: “They say, ‘The Lord does not see; the God of Jacob takes no notice.’ “Really?

Vs. 8-11 The Psalmist speaks to the perpetrators, “Take notice, you senseless ones among the people; you fools, when will you become wise?” Take note, who is speaking out today? “The Lord knows all human plans; he knows that they are futile.” Amen!

Vs. 12-15 The prayer gives us the answers to our difficulties today: “Blessed is the one you discipline, Lord, the one you teach from your law;” Pray that God will teach, give relief, not reject, and never forsake our land and God’s people.“Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it.” Amen!

Vs. 16- 19 This part of the prayer puts God squarely on the side of followers of Jesus.  God “rises up”, God gives “me help”, and “your unfailing love supported me”. Praise God!

Vs. 20-23 points out the foolishness of being allied with those who reject law and order. When God is thrown out of public life, and leaders pay only lip service, do we really think God will continue to bless us and our land? The Psalmist ends on a positive note that gives followers of Jesus the comfort we need right now: “But the Lord has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge.”

That is what we hold onto, the promises of God!

© cgvanwyk, all rights reserved               

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# 35 2020 Dev. James 4:1. Submission! Read all of Ch. 4. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

James 4:7-8 “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you.”

Chapter 4 is a discouraging chapter, pointing out the human failings that lead followers of Jesus and non followers astray as well. James is the brother of Jesus and the leader of the church in Jerusalem. We may legitimately ask: to whom is this chapter directed? Of course, the Scriptures speak to all people, at all times of history but this chapter is directed to followers of Jesus. Vs. 1-3 he speaks of evil desire: “You do not have because you do not ask God. ³ When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives.”

Vs.4-6 addresses when the the world is too much with us, we can’t have it both ways: “anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God,” who” jealously longs for the Spirit he has caused to dwell in us. But he gives us more grace: ‘God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.’”

Vs. 7-10 gives us the alternative to what James tells us before this: “submit yourselves, then, to God.” Resist evil, “Come near to God and he will come near you. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.”

Vs.11-12 tells us not to judge or slander one another. “There is only one lawgiver and judge, the one who is able to save and destroy, but you- who are you to judge your neighbor?”

Vs. 13-17 tells us that God is in control and that we are not: i.e.- followers of Jesus and those who are not. We “are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” James is reminding us that we are human with many limitations, how easy it it is to be arrogant. James calls sin, not to do good when we know what good is.

That is the point in this whole chapter, followers of Jesus know what is right, what is just and good and when we do not practice what we preach Jesus is minimized, our message is minimized, our churches are marginalized and our young people leave our churches. James is speaking in clear and bold terms but today what James is talking about, evil desire, quarreling, friendship to the world, judging each other and arrogance is very subtle today. It is hidden in our society, in education, it is hidden, barely, in the media, it is hidden in social media, it is hidden in our churches. Part of the problem is that many people claiming to be followers of Jesus have their eyes and ears, and in some cases their hearts closed, demonstrated by those on the out side who see the problems that James is presenting here before we see it ourselves. The answer is also in this chapter: “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you.  Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.” Show us more grace, Lord Jesus, we pray!

© cgvanwyk, all rights reserved                 

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# 34 2020 Dev. Psalm 93:4 The Lord Reigns! Read all of Ps. 93. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Psalm 93:4 “Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea—the Lord on high is mighty.”

Psalms 90 through 100 are a series of 11 Psalms that open and close with “Lord” (Adonai) or “the Lord” (Yahweh). Ps. 93 has two stanzas v.1-2 and v.3-4 with v.5 as the conclusion. The first stanza praises God’s Majesty: “the Lord is robed in Majesty and armed with strength.” This stanza tells us that God is in control since the beginning of creation: “you are from all eternity”. 

The second stanza praises God for His strength: “Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea—the Lord on high is mighty”; This stanza tells us that God is all powerful.

The conclusion is about the law of God: “Your statutes Lord stand firm”, God is holy and God has no beginning and no end, His rule is from everlasting to everlasting. Praise be to God!

What do we take away from this short praise Psalm that comforts us today?We worry about our country right now; is democracy at risk, is our freedom at risk, is law enforcement at risk, what about our lively-hoods and our health, our families, our religious freedom and are we able to live in freedom and security in every area of this land? Everyone is asking these questions; in the cities and in the rural areas and even the country side, no one feels safe.

The answer is in this Psalm: God is in control, our God reigns, nothing will happen that God does not control, He is almighty and has ordained what will happen over the next three months, what will happen next year, and the year after that, and what will happen forever. Yet, we are responsible for our actions and will be judged accordingly. Followers of Jesus, stay awake!

God is not in space or time, but He is very concerned for His people, for His church, for His program of calling all people back to Himself and for justice in this world. We as followers of Jesus need to get onboard with God’s program, stop worrying about the future, keep working. God has us in His hands and God controls what will happen and what is good for His people. Our God reigns, praise be to Him!      

© cgvanwyk, all rights reserved               

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# 33 2020 Dev. James 3:1. Speech! Read all of Ch. 3. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

James 3:1 “Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.”

James divides this chapter into two sections and accomplishes the same purpose of promoting good communications, words supported by actions. He begins with speech, “the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.” James calls the tongue; “a restless evil, full of deadly poison.” He is pointing out when speech is misused but speech is also used for good. For followers of Jesus speech must always be used for good, yet, we all know how difficult that is to accomplish. We turn to Scripture: “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech.” (I Pe. 3:10) and (Pr.15:4) “The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.”

In vs. 9-12 James tells us that a person’s speech can not be good and bad at the same time; I interpret this to mean that our use of words is a matter of the heart, as well as dictating our actions.

In the second part of Ch.3, vs.13-18 James deals with the other part of speech; actions, by pointing out “two kinds of wisdom”. Heavenly wisdom Is displayed “by a good life, deeds done in humility” that come from the heart. Earthly wisdom is “bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts… or deny the truth.”

James starts this chapter with a warning; v.1 “Not many of you should become teachers, we who teach will be judged more strictly.” That warning applies to not only teachers, but also pastors, parents, civic leaders, law makers, police, and especially politicians. The bottom line we take away from good speech, words and action is: “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. ¹⁸ Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.”

Amen and Amen!

© cgvanwyk, all rights reserved                 

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# 32.1. 2020 Dev. Ecc. 3:1. Why! Read chap.3:1-14. The purpose of this devotional is to reflect on a hero of faith who God called home un-expectantly this week. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ecclesiastes 3:1“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:”

The theme of Ecc. Is to explore human existence on this earth not based on faith in God. The purpose is to point out the limitations of human knowledge and wisdom, limited by experience on earth and by not knowing what we experience when a life on earth ends.

The questions begin with: why God?  We also ask: why do bad things happen to good people? Here we have a relatively healthy, very happy and friendly person and the next day that person is in heaven. I say in heaven because this person had faith in Jesus and lived out faith by involvement in the church, one of the founding members, a person gifted as an organizer and a volunteer in the community.

One thing we know, we are on earth for a short time and only God knows the day of our passing and that followers of Jesus are placed in this world to serve. Everything we do is preparation for a much bigger and never ending job in heaven. The second truth we know is that every person that turns to Jesus in faith is qualified for a job. The third thing we know is that followers of Jesus will see each other again and when we do, she will show us the ropes. Our lives are in God’s hands, every person, but living and the quality of life is in our own hands.

At the end of this section, Solomon, the author, gives us amazing comfort: “I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. ¹³ That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God”. Let us pray that God will comfort the many thousands of people who have lost a loved one over the last three months. Lord Jesus, heal our land and comfort her people!

© cgvanwyk, all rights reserved.             

# 31 2020 Dev. James 2:18-19. Works of Compassion! Read all of Ch. 2:14-26. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

James 2:18-19 “But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds. Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.”

James begins this section, “Faith and Deeds” with a question: “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?” He points out the responsibility of followers of Jesus to care for one another when in need. He appeals to human compassion and to the the royal law of God, love one another and your neighbors as much as yourself. According James, people who claim to have faith but do nothing to help anyone, don’t have faith or faith is dead. Also, on the down side, deeds without faith, as good as they may be, do not count as works done in the name of Jesus and do not last into eternity.  

He uses the rest of the passage to prove the point that authentic faith demands action. James gives Abraham as the ideal example: “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness”. Not only did Abraham believe against all odds but he acted on what he believed to be true, thereby completing his faith. Abraham’s faith in the promises of God is the same faith in the fulfilment of the promise, Jesus Christ. The faith of followers of Jesus drives our compassion, our sense of justice, our love for others and for the lost.  For true Christians, faith is the knowledge of God in our heads that we have allowed into our hearts and with the help of the Holy Spirit we address the needs around us.  

We all know that works do not save us spiritually but we do deeds because we are saved and deeds are done out of gratitude.  What is amazing is that work done in the name of Jesus, with His mercy, with His justice, with His love and with the Holy Spirit follow us to heaven and become the building blocks for the New Heaven and the New Earth. Praise the Lord always!

© cgvanwyk, all rights reserved                 

# 30 2020 Dev. Psalm 91:4. Trust! Read all of Psalm 91. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ps. 91:4 “He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.”

Ps. 90 through 100 is a series of 11 Psalms that open and close with “Lord” (Adonai) or “the Lord” (Yahweh). Psalm 91 is a statement of assurance, it proclaims God’s care and assures God’s salvation for those who love Him.

PS 91:1-2 introduces God’s assurance and the trust of His people: “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, ‘he is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust’. But the Psalm also draws a contrast between good and bad, see v. 8.

Vs. 3-8. Describes the various physical dangers that plague people and the protection that is extended to those who love and trust God.  

Vs. 9-13. “If you say,” ‘The Lord is my refuge,’ and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you”, indicates the imperative of proclaiming God as your God and the importance of living one’s life accordingly.

“Draw close to God and He will draw close to you”. How? “For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” Yes, there is divine intervention in our lives!

Vs. 14-16. ‘Because he loves me’ says the Lord. ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.’ God addresses His people in the first person: God will rescue, will protect, will answer, be with him, will deliver and honor, give long life “and show him my salvation.”

Given our situation today we may want to identify with every verse in this Psalm. This Psalm is our comfort and our assurance in this life and and assurance for the next life. God’s assurance is based on His love and grace to all those who believe on Jesus and follow Him. But let’s be realistic; Bad things also do happen to good people.

Today, we have the answer: ” And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. ²⁹ For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. ³⁰ And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.” (Rm. 8:28-29) Today,trust in God!

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