14 NOV 23 Tuesday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 14 NOV 23 Tuesday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“Jesus responded, ‘It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.’  She replied that’s true, Lord, but even dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath their master’s table.” Matthew 15:26-27

I was listening to a clip on Instagram of a preacher that I like and had to replay it a couple of times.  He has been asked often, if God is all-powerful and all-good and all-just, why would God allow tragedies to happen to innocent people?  He said he flips the question because people are not being honest with the question.  He asks the question like this, If God is all-good, all-powerful, and all-just, why didn’t he kill me in my sleep last night for what I thought, said, and did yesterday?

Connecting directly to God forces us to look honestly in the mirror and see ourselves as God sees us.  God is holy, morally perfect, and majestic, and he cannot be in the presence of sin or sinful people because we are not worthy.  That is hard for us to admit and it shows in our daily life in how we think, say, and do.  It is revealed in the questions we ask of God that we think we are good enough.

The woman in Matthew whom Jesus encounters knows she is not worthy, but she humbly seeks God’s mercy.  Jesus tells her that Gentiles are not his focus, but the Father’s children.  It would be wrong to give what belongs to his kids to a dog.  This is a test of the woman’s faith for sure, but it is a great story of hope for everyone.  Jesus will not turn away anyone who comes humbly before him acknowledging and confessing their sin and proclaiming him Lord or Master.

We cannot presume to come to his table in our righteousness, but in his great mercies do we trust.  We are not worthy to gather up the crumbs under his table, but he is ready to show mercy if you are ready to surrender your life to him.  

Is God testing your faith?

Reading Plan: Psalm 78:1-39; Neh. 9:26-38; Rev. 18:9-20; Matt. 15:21-28 

13 NOV 23 Monday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 13 NOV 23 Monday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote: These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.  Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.” Matt. 15:7-9

One of the most difficult things is correcting people due to error or sin.  Those who make a lifestyle of sin become blind to what they do because it has become second nature to do the wicked or evil, then cover their tracks like no one will notice.  The one who always notices is God.  He not only sees the sin we do, but he also sees the motivation and condition of the heart.

Jesus was very straightforward and responded to people based on their heart’s condition and the attitude that came from it.  Those who were broken, humbled, and knew they sinned and felt shame, he treated them with gentleness.  Those who were proud, hard-hearted, and blind to their sin he engaged with a lot of salt.  In other words, he gave a harsh rebuke.

Self-righteousness is a sin that blinds and deceives a person to think of themselves as good despite evidence to the contrary.  God lays out in the Ten Commandments showing what holiness and righteousness are and breaking them defines sin or evil.  People delude themselves into thinking they are good even though they have broken all of the laws. 

The only way to open the eyes of a spiritually blind person is with the Holy Spirit and the Law.  The Spirit prepares their heart and the law breaks it by revealing their sin and need for salvation.  Those who remain in their state of delusion and uphold their self-righteousness after admitting their lawlessness are condemned.  They will in turn give you hate and heat.

Those who are affected and convicted of this examination will repent, turn to Jesus, and be thankful for the conversation.  Those are the ones that you can have a real impact on for eternity.  Jesus expects us to talk with both types of people and leave the results to Him, for he is the Judge.

What did Jesus do with the self-righteous?

Reading Plan: Psalm 80; Neh. 9:1-15; Rev. 18:1-8; Matt. 15:1-20

12 NOV 23 Sunday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 12 NOV 23 Sunday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“But I admit that I follow the Way, which they call a cult.  I worship the God of our ancestors, and I firmly believe the Jewish law and everything written in the prophets.  I have the same hope in God that these men have, that he will raise both the righteous and the unrighteous.  Because of this, I always try to maintain a clear conscience before God and all people.” Acts 24:14-16

There are so many different issues going on in the world and with technology it has made it overwhelming to process or address the gambit of issues that exist.  It feels like a John Wick movie with a multitude of attackers that you have to defend against and silence their false philosophies and religions.  The good news is, that the fight and the arguments have not changed since Jesus and are just being rewraped and repacked.

The necessity of doctrine and even the historic creeds of the faith will do a believer well to know and use that to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments.  We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God.  Paul says we address these issues, philosophies, and hard hearts with the word of God because it is the power for salvation.

While all of these things can be frustrating and even overwhelming, we must remember that God is sovereign.  It is for us to trust in him because man is not changed by argument or convincing.  Man is born again, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.  He turns the light on in a dark and hard heart, but interestingly enough through regular people speaking his message.  The foolish are made wise and the wise foolish through this work. 

Are you prepared to rebut the philosophies of this world?

Reading Plan: Psalm 93, 96; Ezra 10:1-17; Acts 24:10-21; Luke 14:12-24 

9 NOV 23 Thursday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 9 NOV 23 Thursday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“You have allowed me to suffer much hardship, but you will restore me to life again and lift me up from the depths of the earth.  You will restore me to even greater honor and comfort me once again.” Psalm 71: 20-21

There are times in our lives when you are living for the Lord that you will face trials, suffering, and betrayal.  The Lord Jesus himself faced all kinds of challenges and trials, he suffered and was ultimately put to death.  He told his followers that if they followed him there would be a cost and would have to carry their cross.  God would be with them and would bless them for suffering in His name.

Paul saw that the road to a blessed life was on the path of suffering.  It became a joy to him once he understood that each time he went through a trial he experienced a  special connection with the Lord.  He embraced it with joy and told all that follow Jesus to rejoice in suffering because it gives you the ability to endure, shape character, and find a powerful hope.  God would give you special grace during those times that would be sufficient.

Amid pain, suffering, or betrayal, you naturally want it to end versus continue.  You certainly don’t rejoice in it, right? In this life, we may never fully understand why God allows us to suffer, but we do grasp that it is not a surprise to Him. In his sovereignty, he uses it for his glory.   All of it will cause us to trust in God and his word. God is faithful to his promises and everything happens how he desires.  He intends victory for his people and will make it so.

David in Psalm 71 captures the story of his life which was a hot mess at times and was certainly not perfect.  He trusted God in every way and every circumstance and faced many trials that were more than he could handle.  He knew that God was the only one who could make sense of it, bring him comfort, protect him, deliver him, or restore him.  Knowing this changed his mindset and his heart to joy because his future was secure in God’s hands.

Do you need to be reminded of the future God has for you?

Reading Plan: Psalm 71; Ezra 7:11-26; Rev. 14:1-13; Matt. 14:1-12 

8 NOV 23 Wednesday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 8 NOV 23 Wednesday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“Give your love of justice to the king, O God, and righteousness to the king’s son.  Help him judge your people in the right way; let the poor always be treated fairly.” Psalm 72: 1-2

It feels like we are in a perpetual election season since we have political leaders in cities, counties, states, and federal coming to the public to support their return to leadership or new people vying for the seat.  We all know a leader of some level because leaders are everywhere and in all parts of life regardless of vocation.  What are some of the traits we desire in a leader and why?

At least in politics, aspirants search statistics of the people and go after target groups that most likely will connect with them.  They study you and package speeches to entice you to vote for them based on what they think you want.  Do you study the candidates? Who are they as a person? How have they operated as a leader to this point? Do they hold the same values and are they virtuous people?

God himself raises people to be leaders in every part of life.  Some leaders have been developed to bring judgment on communities, states, and even nations because of the wickedness and sin of the people.  God raises a wicked leader to match the wickedness of the people.  That nation will crumble in due time.  God also raises up righteous leaders who have a love of holiness and justice.  

Those leaders establish godly and righteous judges and lawmakers who treat people in the right way, even the poor are cared for, and handled fairly, and oppressors are crushed.  Evil and wickedness are stamped out of existence in the land.   The people are refreshed to live in peace and flourish when the godly lead.  So as you get ready to vote again, do your homework on them see if any hold traits of a godly leader, then choose wisely.

Are you looking to establish godly leaders?

Reading Plan: Psalm 61, 62; Neh. 12:27-31a, 42b-47; Rev. 11:1-19; Matt. 13:44-52