26 FEB 23 Sunday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 26 FEB 23 Sunday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.  For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself.  Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and freed us from sin.  1 Cor. 18, 30

Lent and Easter leave many scratching their heads because the good news doesn't make sense to them.  Paul explains to his readers that God has enabled believers with understanding and faith.  They didn’t arrive on understanding and salvation on their own accord.  The Gospel itself has power to bring about salvation both to Jews and Gentiles.  

Yet, the Jews were offended because they wanted proof via signs and wonders.  Gentiles desire wisdom that would explain it so they could mentally ascend to salvation. They are both left blind, spiritually dead, and condemned awaiting destruction.  It can be scary that God holds your future in the palm of his hand.  There is no fate or chance, only God.

All that we need is found in Jesus.  He is our wisdom, hope, and savior.  When we surrender to him, he makes us pure, holy, and frees us from sin and death.  During Lent, consider adding prayer for those you know that balk at the Gospel and ask the Holy Spirit to change their heart toward God.

Who do you know that can’t wrap their head around Jesus?

Reading Plan: Psalm 63:1-11, 98; Deut. 8:1-10; 1 Cor. 1:17-31; Mark 2:18-22

Daily Office Year 1

25 FEB 23 Saturday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 25 FEB 23 Saturday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“No, do not be afraid of those nations, for the Lord your God is among you, and he is a great and awesome God.  The Lord your God will drive those nations out ahead of you little by little.  You will not clear them away all at once.” Deut. 7:21-22a

As you reflect and study during Lent, think about the greatness and awesome power of God.  He is the greatest warrior and truly fights for his people.  Even Jesus told the people not to fear anyone except the one who can not only destroy the body, but also the soul. The Jewish people had to be reminded of what God had done for them in Egypt as they faced new enemies in the promised land.

Our memories are too short of our experiences of God.  We forget what he has done for us and have to be reminded of his goodness, providence, and ability.  When our problems become so large, we can think they dorf God himself.  That’s the nature of man and of spiritual warfare.  The fog of fear can blind us to the reality of who God is.  God is great! 

Do you use the word awesome? I do, for a great cake or an experience, but it should be reserved for God alone.  He has the victory over evil, darkness, Satan, and the demons.  All are subject to him and will be cast into the lake of fire with one word.  Now that is awesome! If we are truly going to grow in this life, we have to entrust God with our enemies because he is able to handle them.  In due time, he will handle them perfectly and eternally.

Who are the enemies that God needs to deal with in your life?

Reading Plan: Psalm 30, 32; Deut. 7:17-26; Titus 3:1-15; John 1:43-51

Daily Office Year 1

24 FEB 23 Friday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 24 FEB 23 Friday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“If you listen to these regulations and faithfully obey them, the Lord your God will keep his covenant of unfailing love with you.  He will love and bless you..You will be blessed above all the nations of the earth.” Deut. 7:12a, 13a, 14a

God is the same in the Old Testament and the New.  He is always internally consistent, in that he operates the same.  He is truth, love, and holy.  None of his attributes are in conflict with the other.  That is hard for us to understand because we don’t have that clarity or perfection.  We also don’t completely do what we say we will do.  It hard to comprehend that someone can.

God is love and his love is much different than friendship love and romantic love.  He loves us prior to faith with a love that is unmerited and unconditional in a sense.  His love is not dependent on us.  He loves us even though we are unworthy of it.  When we enter into a relationship with him, it is a covenant love.  There are conditions to receiving more love, but we are not separated from it.

In this passage, God tells the Jewish people that if they listen and obey, they will experience more love from God and will make their lives fruitful in children and sustainment.  Jesus says the same thing for us when we are in this new covenant relationship.  If you obey His commands, it demonstrates our love for him.  The Father will love us and he will love us and reveal himself to us. (John 14:21) He will make us fruitful in the Spirit, in disciples, and life.

As you reflect today, do you want more of God’s love? Are you obeying Jesus’ commands?

Reading Plan: Psalm 31, 95; Deut. 7:12-16; Titus 2:1-15; John 1:35-42

Daily Office Year 1

23 FEV 23 Thursday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 23 FEB 23 Thursday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“Of all the people on the earth, the Lord your God has chosen you to be his own special treasure.  The Lord did not set his heart on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other nations, for you were the smallest of all nations! Rather, it was simply that the Lord loves you, and he was keeping an oath he had sworn to your ancestors.” Deut. 7:6b-8a

As we examine ourselves during lent, we can sometimes have too high an estimation.  We think that we are better than we are and some think they bring something to the table that God could use.  The truth is, we are all a hot mess when compared to his standards.  There is nothing that makes you stand out from anyone else.  God has to remind us of this.

God explains to the Jewish people after the exodus from Egypt, why he chose them to be his people.  There are some great things here and some challenging ones too.  The great thing is, God desires to have a people for himself.  His people will be a special treasure that will be holy.   If you belong to him, you are valuable, loved, and secure in him.  That is awesome!

The challenging thing, not everyone is God’s people and it's his ultimate choice.  This always gets people bent out of shape even when they look at the Jews of the Hebrew Bible.  Only the Jews were chosen by God to be his people prior to Jesus.  Everyone else was left condemned and far from God.  When Jesus came, he expanded the family choosing both Jews and Gentiles from the world.  That is wonderful news! Because it is likely that you are a Gentile.  There is hope for people from every nation, tribe, and tongue now.

How fantastic is it that God chose you out of everyone? Pretty humbling, no?

Reading Plan: Psalm 37:1-18; Deut. 7:6-11; Titus 1:1-16; John 1:29-34

Daily Office Year 1

22 FEB 23 Wednesday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 22 FEB 23 Wednesday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long.  Finally, I confessed my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt.  I said to myself, I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.  And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.” Psalm 32:3, 5

Today is the start of Lent, which is the 40 days prior to Easter, when the church takes time for self-examination and repentance.  Setting new rhythms such as prayer, self-denial, fasting and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word gives us the opportunity to seek Him like no other time.  It exposes our mortality, our human nature, and our standing with God.

The psalm shows how we naturally handle being in sin.  Like Adam and Eve we hide at first and try to avoid dealing with it.  Sin deals emotional and spiritual damage and we begin to feel it physically.  Guilt actually serves a purpose.  God put his law on all of our hearts and when we sin it triggers an internal response that doesn’t feel good.  We know we have done wrong and guilt is supposed to move us to repentance in order to be set free.

The psalmist can’t stand the guilt anymore and wants relief and to be right with God.  When you confess your sins and rebellion against God, then he will forgive you because Jesus has taken the penalty of your sins on the cross.  He is faithful to restore that relationship and take your guilt away.  This is something to rejoice about! You can be free from the guilt and the penalty of your sins.   Lent is a great time to get right with God.

Is the guilt of your sins weighing you down? Why not settle your accounts with God now?

Reading Plan: Psalm 32, 95, 143; Jonah 3:1-4:11; Hebrews 12:1-14; Luke 18:9-14

Daily Office Year 1