Heavenhigh

Perfection

# 30 2016 Dev. Mt. 5:48. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Matthew 5:48

“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

We have been looking at Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” Mt.5-7. The verse we see today (vs.48) is in a larger section of the Jesus’ instruction called “Love for Enemies”. Think about the title! Jesus is turning religious thinking of His day and the thinking of today upside down. There is no rationalization today that would suggest that we should love our enemies. In our political climate today enemies are quickly established, in our society today enemies are many, in our religious culture today fellow Christians often are the enemy! The reality of today is such that different views and different interpretations are being forced on those who disagree; there is no tolerance for dissenting believers or dissenting opinions.

In God’s realm all people and all of His creation belongs to Him and He wants to be glorified. He is not looking for clones, He wants all people to honor Him in diversity and respect His creation that highlight the riot of diversity we see all around us. Today the ability to “agree to disagree” is lacking among followers of Jesus and in society in general. We no longer are allowed to act on or speak about following our conscience because it is now deemed as a hate crime or hate speech if that disagrees with the majority opinion.

How then are we to be perfect as our verse commands? The verse points back to what goes before it Mt. 5:43-47. In the covenant of Jesus’ blood, we are not allowed to hate!

We are starting to see that “the New Testament is in the Old Testament contained and the Old Testament is in the New Testament explained”. Love those who hate us, love those who oppose us and love those who seek to hurt us. “Love Wins”. Love wins not only because it gives light to our enemies but it puts us together with Jesus as “children of God”. Wow! We are perfect only when we live in Jesus’ presence, He perfects us, faith in Jesus covers us with perfection in God’s eyes as it was in Abraham’s time (Gen 17:1). Loving our enemies in Jesus’ name is glorifying to God our Father, lights up the dark places of our world and draws us closer to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the God of Scripture. Praise be to God!

Peace

# 29 2016 Dev. Ps. 85:8. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Psalm 85:8

“I will listen to what God the Lord says; he promises peace to his people, his faithful servants—but let them not turn to folly.”

The Psalms in general is a five volume section in Scripture of poems, songs, and prayers all praising, confessing to, and petitioning God. It is a Book of intimate fellowship with our Creator. Psalm 85 is near the end of Book Three and is part of a 6 chapter set; Ch. 84-89. Book Three is about seeking God’s special love for His people, seeking fellowship, seeking God’s protection and His blessings for our lives. This Book is the back story in our changing and unpredictable situation today.

The last section of the Book Ps. 84-89 is comprised of individual prayers and communal prayers to which Ps. 84 is a powerful introduction. The emphasis in this section is on the “Lord Almighty”, His faithfulness, His everlasting love, His protection, His shield, and His anointed one. The anointed one refers to King David but ultimately is a reference to Jesus Christ who fulfills Ps. 89:4 quoted in Lk. 1:32-33,69.

Ps. 85 is a communal prayer seeking God’s mercy during a difficult time. This Psalm is addressed to everyone who follows Jesus. We live in a broken world and a broken country but there is room for optimism as this prayer indicates. We praise God for his past mercies and care (1-3). We petition God for restoration, for His unfailing love and for His forgiveness and salvation (v. 4-7.)

Verse 8 is a promise to listen to God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) and claims God’s promise of peace but not to just anyone; to his righteous followers. The verse ends with a “but’ let them (God’s people) not turn to folly”. This phrase may also be translated as

“let them turn from folly”. Thinking about the issues churches are dealing with today, which translation of that phrase applies to us?

In verses 9-13 the Psalm goes on with an optimistic vision we have the opportunity to experience today. God’s salvation and glory is near to us! In the context of love and faithfulness, righteousness and peace kiss each other, they are intimately connected and go together. Our faithfulness by God’s Grace and God’s righteousness; forgiveness, salvation and unfailing love will bring us what is good. Are you ready to experience God’s goodness? The answer is verse 8; promise to listen to God and act on His will and experience His peace in an unpredictable world!

The Light!

# 28 2016 Dev. Mt. 5:14. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Mathew 5:14

¹⁴“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden”.

This verse is part of the Sermon on the Mount. The introduction tells us there was a large crowd, Jesus moved to a high place, called his disciples to Him and started to teach. Jesus taught his disciples, He taught the crowd and now He also teaches us. Jesus’ message covers three chapters of Mt. 5,6,7. His teaching is revolutionary! He turned a very legal understanding of God’s Word, probably the Septuagint, upside down! This is a guide to all the teachings of the New Testament, the New Covenant of Jesus’ blood, His sacrifice for us, this is the way of Jesus.

Mt. 5: 3-12 is the baseline for the message, these nine attitudes and accompanying blessings allow us, in the power of the Holy Spirit, to hear the Way of Jesus and follow the Way of Jesus. From Jesus’ time on earth true Christians are people of the Way. Jesus teaches on murder, adultery, divorce, punishment, love, giving, prayer, wealth, worry, judging others, and trusting. He ends his message with the parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders. (Mt. 7:24-27)

Therefore, Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount compels His followers to be light in the world. Not only because Jesus commands it but also because they hold the key to the Light of God. The verse for this week is part of a larger section beginning in verse 13-16 called “Salt and Light”. Following Jesus is a complete experience, we see the light, we feel the power, and we taste the goodness. But Jesus warns us that salt affects taste, life is sweet, spicy and good, we are the salt in society but if we lose our saltiness we lose our good affect on those around us.

We also “are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.” A light is lit for the purpose of giving light and must not be hidden, Jesus tells us. God’s light shines through Jesus’ followers, let’s keep it high and bright. Jesus wants everyone to see our good works, not for our own praise but to the praise of God our Father! Shine on!

Confession and Forgiveness

# 27 2016 Dev. Ps. 32:11 The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Psalm 32:11

“Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!”

Psalm 32 is a liturgical Ps. that falls into the category of Penitential Psalms (Ps. 6; 32; 38; 51; 130; 143). The structure is concentric (2,3,2,3,1). Starting with the first two verses David is speaking to an audience and sounding much like a call to worship.

The next 3 verses speak to God and is the theological heart of this Psalm. It is about the results of a stubborn refusal to acknowledge one’s sins. Both Peter and Judas acknowledged their sin but only one repented. There is Christian repentance and there is worldly repentance. David here does not hide his sin, “I will confess… to the Lord”, he goes straight to the Creator the only one who has the power to forgive and does forgive in Christ Jesus.

The next 2 Verses (6,7) describes the blessings in verses 1,2, but it begins with prayer, “everyone who is godly”. Does God listen to us? (Jas. 5:16). David addresses the audience again but in verse 7 he addresses God, yet he is still talking about the blessings of true repentance.

In the next section vs. 8,9,10 David is speaking for God. Here God is also speaking to us! It is a promise to guide and to protect. God also tells us to leave our stubborn ways giving the horse and the mule as the example of stubborn. God ends this section with a comparison of the life of the wicked and the life of those who trust in Him highlighting His unfailing love. That love is what David experiences and is the love we should experience as followers of Jesus.

Therefore, we are given the command to rejoice v.11! “Rejoice in the Lord you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!”. That should be a given and is based on all that goes before in this Psalm. For followers of Jesus, righteousness is kind of automatic isn’t it? No it is not! During Jesus’ time on earth the religious leaders pretended to be righteous but Jesus exposed their unrighteousness and they did all they could to be rid of Him. They succeeded but they did God’s work for Him.

Today we have no problem to consider ourselves righteous but often we lack the joy. We cannot just read verse 11, the whole Psalm applies here. We have attended and conducted worship serves in Africa and there is much joyful singing and dancing in the church. Many come out of a pagan culture and at one time pagan practices, now they are set free and rejoice in the Lord! We thank God! We need to again understand as David did that we all are sinners and have no right to look down at those overwhelmed with life.

Our righteousness and the uprightness of our hearts is directly related to our confessions, our repentance and our trust in Christ. Our relationship with Christ underpins our compassion for those struggling to find their way, that is the way of Jesus. We are His body and His light to all around us. Rejoice! Dance and sing! God is glorified!

Courage

# 26 2016 Dev. I Cor. 16:13,14 The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

I Corinthians 16:13,14

“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. Do everything in love.”

Corinth was one of the main cities of Greece, a port city with many temples and a city known for its unbridled sexual practices. The church in this environment was influenced by the culture around it. The church, struggling under these difficult problems had requested Paul to help them address these issues. Paul addresses a series of problems and questions: divisions in the church, immorality within the church, lawsuits in pagan courts, marriage, Christian freedom, spiritual gifts, Christian love, the resurrection of the body, and the collection of gifts.

Chapter 16 is the last page of this letter and reflects what was discussed but also includes personal requests and greetings. The central verses are 13,14 which points back to all the issues Paul has discussed in this letter. Further, Paul gives them and us the way forward under the pressure of a pagan culture. This advice is presently relevant for followers of Jesus. There are many Christians and churches in our country but true followers of Jesus need to come to grips with the fact that we live in a pagan culture when compared with Biblical principles.

The two verses we look at this week begins with: “Be on your guard”. That is the first thing we must do, question every change that is promoted by Christian leaders. Do we understand the culture pressures on our way of life? What is our responsibility when the government legalizes and pushes pagan practices on followers of Jesus? Is our Christian freedom and freedom of speech at risk?

Secondly, Paul says: “Stand firm in your faith”. Faith is a gift but it also comes from and is built up by hearing God’s Word. How much time are we spending hearing God’s Word but also spending time with the Scripture, pondering the issues of our day in the light of it?

Thirdly, we are told “be courageous”. Courage is in short supply among Christians this day and age, our youth are afraid to stand up for Biblical principles, afraid to commit to a life time of service in ministry or missions. Weak faith and lack of courage go together and is addressed by again filling our minds and hearts with the Word of God.

Fourth, we are told to “by strong”. Our strength comes from the Spirit of Christ (Php. 4:13)! The Spirit of Christ lives in the hearts of all followers of Jesus and He can be encouraged or He can be resisted as He works in us. He mostly speaks to us in whispers but many followers of Jesus are not listening.

Fifth, “Do everything in love”. Love is the bottom line as Paul shows us throughout I Cor. We all must practice this principle as the decline in Biblical Christianity is addressed. On the other hand, we must not use love as the only standard for accepting the radical cultural issues followers of Jesus are facing today. Also, love demands that we do point out that the Biblical principles are being watered down and in some cases set aside in the name of political correctness and peace. We must continue to pray for God’s wisdom!

From Our Father: “Love and Faithfulness”

# 25 2016 Dev. Pr.3:3 The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Proverbs 3:3

“Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart.”

The purpose of Proverbs is clearly laid out in the prologue (Pr. 1:2-7) summarized here: “for gaining wisdom and instruction; for understanding, insight; doing what is right and just and fair; for giving prudence, knowledge and discretion to the young—let the wise listen and add to their learning… The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools^[^c^] despise wisdom and instruction.” Generally speaking, in our time Proverbs is a world and life view that glorifies God, resulting in a long, peaceful and satisfied life that shines the light of Jesus Christ to all those around us.

Ch. 3 is labeled in the NIV as: “Further Benefits of Wisdom” and is part of a larger section consisting of Ch. 1-4. This section is about all the benefits of practicing wisdom. This is always an important section for all of us but particularly so for Father’s Day. The emphasis is on parental guidance: “Listen my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching” (ch.1:8).

The verse for this week is in the context of a father’s instruction: “My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart,²for they will prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity” (Ch.3:1,2). Verse 3 the father (and mother) encourages his/her son (and daughter) to practice love and faithfulness. Wear it like a necklace; a diamond studded necklace dazzling, of great value and obvious to everyone you meet. Daily practice impresses love and faithfulness on our hearts; practice turns into a good habit.

Before love and faithfulness moves down into our hearts it resides in our minds as God’s wisdom found only in the Word of God. From our minds, by the power of the Holy Spirit love and faithfulness moves into our hearts. From our hearts it becomes a life style because then by God’s grace we are empowered to live love and faithfulness. Praise the Lord!

Spiritual Gifts

# 24 2016 Dev. I Cor. 14:1 The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

I Corinthians 14:1

“Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy.”

This introductory verse to Ch.14 points back to Ch.13 as the basis for unity in the church and points forward to a comparison of speaking in tongues and prophesying by church members. Ch.14 is a long and diverse discussion of the pros and cons of speaking in tongues and prophesying and the need for order in church services. Paul tells us this chapter is a command and he expects spiritual discerning church members to “acknowledge what I am writing to you is the Lord’s command” (v.37).

This chapter also includes the principle of married women to defer to their husbands instead of speaking in church assembles, ignored today by 99% of churches. The discussion of authority in the church is beyond the scope of this devotional.

This chapter also includes the call for “good order in worship”. This is about exercising our spiritual gifts in an orderly way to allow individuals to speak and to be able to hear and discern the working of the Holy Spirit among us. Is that how we worship today?

The main principle in chapter 14 is spiritual gifts and how they are used. Verse 1 summarizes that principle and drawing on ch.13 puts Paul’s discussion on the foundation of love, the Love of Jesus Christ. Further, we are commanded to “eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit.” The fruit (gifts) of the Spirit is included here Gal 5:22-23. Also, Paul proclaims that “God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues”, (Ch.12:28) but the greater gifts are faith, hope, and love (Ch. 13:13).

These three Ch. 12,13,14 are very much connected one to an other and are part of the discussion of unity in the church. Obviously the diversity of the gifts, the perceived importance of each gift and the personalities of those blessed with Spiritual gifts is the root of disunity in the church in Paul’s time. So what do we take away from this verse and the context in which we find Paul’s discussion/command?

1^st. Love: spiritual gifts are practiced in the Love for God, love for each other, love for one’s self and love for those who do not know Jesus. You will recognize this first statement as the definition of “Christian Charity”.

2^nd. “Eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit”. Paul says be excited about the Spiritual gifts of God, find them in yourself, develop them, practice them, don’t be afraid to use them. Use them or lose them, there is no room for being lukewarm!

3^rd. Tongues is one of the lesser gifts. It teaches us that all gifts are from the same Spirit so there is not an order of importance, all that we do in Jesus’ Name is important in terms of eternity but there is a difference in impact of each gift. That is what Paul is saying here, prophecy has a greater impact when compared to speaking in tongues that many thought was the most important gift, a position some people still hold today.

4^th. We also learn that today we need the gift of prophecy, we again need to hear the voice of God that is being minimized in our approach to the Word of God, the Holy Scriptures. Let us pray for God to give the Spiritual gifts to make clear the truth of God and to reject the half truths that have deceived some of us.

Teach us Lord!

# 23 2016 Dev. Ps.25:4-5 The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Psalm 25:4-5

“Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.
⁵Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long.”

The Psalter is a book of prayer and praise consisting of 150 psalms divided into five books. They were and are used as a liturgical resource in temple and synagogue worship and used extensively in churches today. Psalm 25 is part of a larger section, Ps. 25-33 highlighting prayer and praise. The Psalm is an acrostic poem that represents a prayer of David.

We know very little of the back story of David’s prayer. We don’t know the time of writing nor what precipitated this prayer but is was a time of loss and strong opposition to David and to Israel as well. The prayer is personal and intimate switching back and forth from the first person to the second person and ends with a plea for the whole nation of Israel.

The verses we have for this week are particularly intimate and are balanced with verses six and seven. Verse 4-5 are a plea for God’s instruction: “Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.” We live in a world where we are bombarded with every conceivable alternate way of living that are apposed to the way of the Lord. Christians and churches are not recognizing these alternatives as unscriptural. The whole issue of gender conflict in people that is front and center right now is an example of what followers of Jesus are faced with. God’s ways are clear in Scripture but now it appears that everything is open to interpretation. Therefore, the second part of this verse (prayer) is essential: “teach me your paths.” Teach us Lord how to walk in today’s world!

David doubles down on this request in verse 5: “Guide me in your truth and teach me.” We tend to think we can do this: walking and living in todays world on our own, we can’t! Lord send us your Spirit to revive us, to guide us, to teach us again as in the past. “Open the eyes of our hearts Lord” so that we see. Remove the scales of self will, of arrogance, of today’s culture pressure and our misguided desire to fit into it, from our spiritual eyes in our hearts. “For you are God my (our) Savior,” … When does our arrogance and our current cultural interpretation of Scripture become a matter of salvation? Is our hope in God all day long?

David balances his request for instruction with praising God’s mercy, asking God not to remember his sins but to remember his loving kindness to him and acknowledges that “God is good (v. 6-7). May we all pray this prayer David prays in v. 4-7 in these troubling times. “My hope is in you all day long”, O God!

Difficult Choices

# 22 2016 Dev Rom. 13:4-5The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Romans 13:4-5

“4 For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.”

These two verses are part of a larger section labeled “Submission to Governing Authorities” Ch. 13. Paul is speaking to the church in Rome about the Roman government in control of the city and controlling most of the known world at that time. This is a hard saying to accept but we should not take it out of context. The government was unjust, anti Christian, adhering to multiple God’s and Caesar was considered divine.

The context is verse 1 “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.” God holds leaders accountable to do good and to do justice. There was a lot of good done by the ruling authorities, such as the “rule of law” at that time but Paul opposed the ruling authorities when he and Silas were treated unjustly. Christians opposed the ruling authorities when told to burn incense in order to proclaim Caesar as the “God”. Many people died for their faith and Paul was executed as well.

What about today? We have a secular government that guarantees religious freedom but also allows things that Christians oppose because they are against God’s law. Followers of Jesus know what they are. Right now the political gridlock of the US leadership has rendered the Government ineffective in dealing with problems that should be dealt with. The political outlook for the future is particularly unnerving with what are three difficult choices for a new President. What are followers of Jesus to do? We do what God’s Word tells us to do.

We turn to the verses for the week in the context we find it. We have hard choices ahead but this is not the first time. Way back during war times people got drafted and joined up but we all/I had to make a decision. For me this verse spoke as it did for many others and we celebrate and honor those decisions on May 30^th. We ask God to guide us into the choices ahead. Praise Him!

God’s Grace Continues

# 21 2016 Devotional Is.43:1bb The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Isaiah 43:1

“But now, this is what the Lord says—
he who created you, Jacob,
he who formed you, Israel:
‘Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine”.

Isaiah’s career extended through the reigns of four kings in the Southern Kingdom of Judah: Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah from around 740 to 686 B.C. Isaiah addressed the sins of the people: idol worship, the oppression and marginalization of the poor for personal gain and underhanded business practices that undermined God’s law. Isaiah clearly pointed out that superficial worship was the beginning of lawless social ethics. God also addresses the sins of the nations around Israel.

The character of Isaiah’s ministry blends fore-telling (seeing far into the future) with forth-telling (preaching the truth to a sinful people). The book ranges in its visions from Isaiah’s own times through to the end of time when God creates “the new heavens and a new earth” (Is. 65:17). Further, Isaiah fore-shadows the coming of the Messiah in the the prophecy to King Ahaz (Is.7: 13-14) and (9:1-8) that God would give him the sign the virgin’s baby, Immanuel (God with us) fulfilled in Matthew 1:18-24.

Ch. 43 is part of God’s grace proclaimed in Isaiah, ch.40-45. Broadly speaking the rest of the book is about God’s glory, His election, God’s forgiveness, His grace, and redemption, God’s salvation through His Servant (Jesus) which includes Israel and all nations and all people. God’s proclamation reaches back into the Old Testament Church, covers followers of Jesus today and reaches into the future to the end of time (Rev.7:9).

We move to the verse of the week. There is no doubt that the book of Isaiah is God speaking. There is no doubt that God created his people the same re-creation we as followers of Jesus experience. Also, there is no doubt that God chooses his people (Eph. 1:4-5). Verse one points back to the end of Ch. 42 where Israel is under punishment but in the next ch. God tells us not to be afraid:” Do not fear”. Fear is becoming an issue today, overseas Missions are curtailed, there is danger, we must deal with real danger, but there is also perceived danger that Satan is using to stop the work of the church. The level of danger in our own country is real, multiple people are shot every day, we only have to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Do we really believe that God takes care of his own? Ask yourself? God goes on to tell us that He has redeemed us, He has called us by our names, this is personal. He dispels our fear with “you are mine”, “if God is for us who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31-39) Danger, real or perceived is in God’s hands and believing that sets us free, and if that freedom ends our earthly life it is with God’s knowing and with His Salvation. Praise be to God!