Category: 260 Devotional

9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have
told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for
one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.
I rejoice today? No, cares a lot of things …..
I know the love of God, but how can the love of God do? (10)
Meditate: often in God’s love got to do with joy. (11)
Lord! I would like to respect the line of your will, and is willing to abide in
your love wrapped Dian was a joy to meet, but also to love others (17

Introduction

 

What is Lent?

 

Lent is a period of 40 days starting with Ash Wednesday (for this year it was March 5) prior to Easter day, during this time Christians all around the world prepare our hearts through prayers, devotions, fasting, or other spiritual activities.

 

Why Lent?

 

If our loved one passes away we gather with all the family and friends to  remember him through a funeral service, and every year we may go back to the cemetery to remember him because he was / is deeply loved.

 

Jesus is our great shepherd, our loving teacher, and our dearest friend, and he consciously chose to walk up to the cross to die for us so we can live eternally. Have we thought about what we have done to remember Jesus’ death on the cross? Have we done anything special to reflect on Jesus’ death and resurrection, as well as our role as followers of Jesus around the Easter time?

 

That is why even though PGC may not observe strict religious ceremonies for Lent like other churches may do, we think it is important we spend Lent and remember Jesus, as well as meditate and reflect on our lives through devotion and prayers.

 

Fasting?

 

Traditionally, Lent is a time when Christians fast, or give things up.  It is important to know that physically fasting does not ‘purify’ our soul and the act of giving up on things we like does not ‘’cleanse’ our sins.  We are justified and redeemed by Jesus’ death and no deed on our own can replace or ‘add to’ that salvation.

 

When we deny ourselves of familiar comforts though, we learn something powerful about our weaknesses, our needs, and our deepest longing for God. Fasting is a physical activity that points to our spiritual longing to be rooted in Jesus alone and find our true comfort and joy in him.  There are different forms of fasting, some first-timers choose to fast 1 meal per day during the Lent period. Others may choose 1 type of food (meat, for example). You may choose any form of fasting. Our willingness to give up our comfort is far more important than how we fast.

 

Alternatively, you may also consider giving up an activity you normally enjoy doing – watching TV, playing video games, or social media like Facebook, Whatsapp etc. Do keep in mind that fasting / giving up something alone does not draw us closer to Jesus. The principle is the same – to restrict ourselves from our material comfort, we learn about our weakness, the chain and control these activities have on our lives, and our longing for Jesus. We should instead use that time to reflecting on our weakness and our needs, and focus on building a stronger relationship with our Lord during the time of our physical needs.

 

Whichever way you choose, we recommend you to try to fast or give up 1 thing you enjoy in Lent 2014.

 

 

I’d like to try but …

 

• Q: We are half way into Lent already if it started on Ash Wednesday, why don’t I try next year instead?
• A: The main purpose of Lent is to remove things that give us physical comfort or leisure or sense of security, and through our lacking or need we learn to rely on Jesus and Jesus alone. Therefore it does not matter we start on Ash Wednesday, before Ash Wednesday, or even 5 days prior to the end of Lent. The length of time we fast or give up something is not the key here.

 

• Q: I have a weak stomach, fasting might be bad for my health. Can I give up something else instead?
• A: Absolutely! You may give up 1 type of food you like, you may give up eating meat or fish during this period, you may give up an activity you like as well – using internet, social networking, playing video games, playing badminton … as long as it is something you treasure.

 

• Q: This is perfect since my doctor has recommended me to try a low-carb diet to lose weight! I’ll give up carb for Lent!
• A: Again, the point of Lent is to give up something you treasure so you can feel your own weakness, a sense of lacking in your life. You are completely missing the point if Lent becomes a motivation to lose weight, or eat healthy. 

 

• Q: For Lent I am giving up playing video games, and I can use the time to catch-up on a TV series I’ve wanted to watch for a long time!
• A: Ask ourselves why we’re participating in Lent to begin with … it is not a duty. Ideally we participate in Lent because we’d like to build a better relationship with Jesus. Replacing 1 leisure activity we like (video game) with another leisure activity (watching TV) is also missing the point of Lent.

 

• Q: I tried to fast but I failed at it for the first 2 days … should I give up and try again next year?
• A: Lent is not easy, but that’s exactly how it can create a sense of lacking in us. If you failed at it don’t give up, take each day as a new test! And share your experience with your cell members so we can all encourage one another!

 

• Q: What should I expect by fasting? I have been fasting but I can’t hear God’s voice?
• A: The act of fasting itself only achieves half of what we try to achieve. It is through meditating and reflecting on our weakness that we learn to rely on Jesus. Don’t set out to achieve a goal like “hearing God’s voice to me” or “seeking my calling for this year” for Lent. Instead, at times of hunger, or weakness, or lacking, seek Jesus through prayers, devotion and His words.

I Will Sing of the Steadfast Love of the Lord

A Maskil of Ethan the Ezrahite.

89 I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever;
with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.
² For I said, “Steadfast love will be built up forever;
in the heavens you will establish your faithfulness.”
³ You have said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one;
I have sworn to David my servant:
⁴ ‘I will establish your offspring forever,
and build your throne for all generations.’” Selah

⁵ Let the heavens praise your wonders, O Lord,
your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones!
⁶ For who in the skies can be compared to the Lord?
Who among the heavenly beings is like the Lord,
⁷ a God greatly to be feared in the council of the holy ones,
and awesome above all who are around him?
⁸ O Lord God of hosts,
who is mighty as you are, O Lord,
with your faithfulness all around you?
⁹ You rule the raging of the sea;
when its waves rise, you still them.
¹⁰ You crushed Rahab like a carcass;
you scattered your enemies with your mighty arm.
¹¹ The heavens are yours; the earth also is yours;
the world and all that is in it, you have founded them.
¹² The north and the south, you have created them;
Tabor and Hermon joyously praise your name.
¹³ You have a mighty arm;
strong is your hand, high your right hand.
¹⁴ Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.
¹⁵ Blessed are the people who know the festal shout,
who walk, O Lord, in the light of your face,
¹⁶ who exult in your name all the day
and in your righteousness areexalted.
¹⁷ For you are the glory of their strength;
by your favor our horn is exalted.
¹⁸ For our shield belongs to theLord,
our king to the Holy One of Israel.

 

Reflection

• Psalm 89 is a long psalm of 52 verses. It celebrates something basic in the nature of God and vital to our relationship with Him. Because God’s love stands firm forever, because faithfulness surrounds Him, we who walk in His presence are assured of blessing, of strength, and of a ready answer to our prayers.
• Read this passage, or better yet, read this psalm in its entirety thoughtfully. What evidence does it give that God is faithful forever? What does the fact of God’s faithfulness mean to you?
  • Then join the Maranatha Kids in singing “I will sing of the mercies of the Lord”   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4wZRiI66SY

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

I Cry Out Day and Night Before You

A Song. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah. To the choirmaster: according to Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite.

88 O Lord, God of my salvation;
I cry out day and night before you.
² Let my prayer come before you;
incline your ear to my cry!

³ For my soul is full of troubles,
and my life draws near to Sheol.
⁴ I am counted among those who go down to the pit;
I am a man who has no strength,
⁵ like one set loose among the dead,
like the slain that lie in the grave,
like those whom you remember no more,
for they are cut off from your hand.
⁶ You have put me in the depths of the pit,
in the regions dark and deep.
⁷ Your wrath lies heavy upon me,
and you overwhelm me with all your waves. Selah

⁸ You have caused my companions to shun me;
you have made me a horror to them.
I am shut in so that I cannot escape;
⁹     my eye grows dim through sorrow.
Every day I call upon you, O Lord;
I spread out my hands to you.
¹⁰ Do you work wonders for the dead?
Do the departed rise up to praise you? Selah
¹¹ Is your steadfast love declared in the grave,
or your faithfulness in Abaddon?
¹² Are your wonders known in the darkness,
or your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

¹³ But I, O Lord, cry to you;
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
¹⁴ O Lord, why do you cast my soul away?
Why do you hide your face from me?
¹⁵ Afflicted and close to death from my youth up,
I suffer your terrors; I am helpless.
¹⁶ Your wrath has swept over me;
your dreadful assaults destroy me.
¹⁷ They surround me like a flood all day long;
they close in on me together.
¹⁸ You have caused my beloved and my friend to shun me;
my companions have become darkness.

 

Reflection

• Most psalms which express despair or distress lead us from the depths to the heights. This psalm is different. It speaks of an unrelenting darkness. The psalmist found himself “in the depths of the pit, in the regions dark and deep”. Though he called out to God “every day”, there was no answer, and the psalmist felt rejected by the God on whom he depended.
• This psalm reminds us that faith promises no quick solution to our problems, nor instant spiritual highs. There well may be days, weeks, or even years when all seems dark, and God remains silent. While faith frequently offers us inner peace in outward turmoil, some men and women with a true faith will find themselves living in unexpected, and unexplained dark.
• When that happens, we need not blame ourselves, as if the darkness were evidence of some personal spiritual lack. This psalm reminds us that for some, who honestly trust and cry out to God, the answer is withheld and the darkness remains. When this happens, and we cannot say why, then we must believe that even the darkness is a gift, intended by God to be our “closest friend”.
• Read and listen to this song “Holy Darkness” (by Dan Schutte)  as your prayer to God today. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6NWR08ts_w&feature=kp

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Glorious Things of You Are Spoken

A Psalm of the Sons of Korah. A Song.

87 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
²     the Lord loves the gates of Zion
more than all the dwelling places of Jacob.
³ Glorious things of you are spoken,
O city of God. Selah

⁴ Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon;
behold, Philistia and Tyre, with Cush—
“This one was born there,” they say.
⁵ And of Zion it shall be said,
“This one and that one were born in her”;
for the Most High himself willestablish her.
⁶ The Lord records as heregisters the peoples,
“This one was born there.”Selah

⁷ Singers and dancers alike say,
“All my springs are in you.”

 

Reflection

• This psalm emphasizes the fact that Zion is not only a place, but also a people. To be born in Zion is to be one with the people of God, who gather round His revelation and rejoice in the Lord.
• The stunning emphasis of this psalm is that those who have been Israel’s historic enemies, Rahab (Egypt), Babylon, and Philistia too, will one day know the Lord. It will be said of them as well as of Israel, “This one was born in Zion”.
• What an amazing reminder of God’s grace, nestled here among psalms that celebrate forgiveness. And how we need to remember that those who seem God’s most implacable enemies remain the objects of His forgiving love.
• Pray for your unbelieving friends or relatives that they will also receive God’s forgiveness and be counted among God’s people one day.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Great Is Your Steadfast Love

A Prayer of David.

86 Incline your ear, O Lord, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
² Preserve my life, for I am godly;
save your servant, who trusts in you—you are my God.
³ Be gracious to me, O Lord,
for to you do I cry all the day.
⁴ Gladden the soul of your servant,
for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
⁵ For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,
abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.
⁶ Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer;
listen to my plea for grace.
⁷ In the day of my trouble I call upon you,
for you answer me.

⁸ There is none like you among the gods, O Lord,
nor are there any works like yours.
⁹ All the nations you have made shall come
and worship before you, O Lord,
and shall glorify your name.
¹⁰ For you are great and do wondrous things;
you alone are God.
¹¹ Teach me your way, O Lord,
that I may walk in your truth;
unite my heart to fear your name.
¹² I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,
and I will glorify your name forever.
¹³ For great is your steadfast love toward me;
you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

¹⁴ O God, insolent men have risen up against me;
a band of ruthless men seeks my life,
and they do not set you before them.
¹⁵ But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.
¹⁶ Turn to me and be gracious to me;
give your strength to your servant,
and save the son of your maidservant.
¹⁷ Show me a sign of your favor,
that those who hate me may see and be put to shame
because you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

 

Reflection

• David (who wrote this psalm) acknowledged to God that he needed mercy, and looked only to God for salvation and joy. Having experienced God’s love, he prayed freely to Him alone for marvelous deeds.
• David asked to know God more fully: “Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.”(v11) He focused completely on God and responded to God’s great love with a wholehearted effort to glorify the Lord.
• Do you have an undivided heart? What divides your heart? How many “pieces” of heart do you carry inside? What can restore your internal unity?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Revive Us Again

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah.

85 Lord, you were favorable to your land;
you restored the fortunes of Jacob.
² You forgave the iniquity of your people;
you covered all their sin. Selah
³ You withdrew all your wrath;
you turned from your hot anger.

⁴ Restore us again, O God of our salvation,
and put away your indignation toward us!
⁵ Will you be angry with us forever?
Will you prolong your anger to all generations?
⁶ Will you not revive us again,
that your people may rejoice in you?
⁷ Show us your steadfast love, O Lord,
and grant us your salvation.

⁸ Let me hear what God the Lord will speak,
for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints;
but let them not turn back to folly.
⁹ Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him,
that glory may dwell in our land.

¹⁰ Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;
righteousness and peace kiss each other.
¹¹ Faithfulness springs up from the ground,
and righteousness looks down from the sky.
¹² Yes, the Lord will give what is good,
and our land will yield its increase.
¹³ Righteousness will go before him
and make his footsteps a way.

 

 Reflection

• The psalmist began by thanking God for forgiving and restoring His sinning people. Even though Israel was free, she still needed spiritual restoration and revival. Therefore, the psalmist petitioned God to put away all of His anger against His sinning people. They needed His faithful love and His deliverance “that your people may rejoice in you”.
• How can we understand forgiveness? By seeing it as a place where God’s love, faithfulness, and righteousness unite to bring peace. Because God loves us, He forgives. Because He is faithful to His covenant promises, He forgives. Because God is righteous, He pays the price in Christ that forgiveness requires.
• When we see forgiveness as an expression of God’s character and attitude toward man, we can be sure that “the Lord will give what is good”.
• Are you disappointed that something didn’t turn out the way you hoped it would? How might this psalm help you?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

My Soul Longs for the Courts of the Lord

To the choirmaster: according toThe Gittith. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah.

84 How lovely is your dwelling place,
O Lord of hosts!
² My soul longs, yes, faints
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and flesh sing for joy
to the living God.

³ Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may lay her young,
at your altars, O Lord of hosts,
my King and my God.
⁴ Blessed are those who dwell in your house,
ever singing your praise! Selah

⁵ Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
in whose heart are the highways to Zion.
⁶ As they go through the Valley of Baca
they make it a place of springs;
the early rain also covers it with pools.
⁷ They go from strength to strength;
each one appears before God in Zion.

⁸ O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;
give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah
⁹ Behold our shield, O God;
look on the face of your anointed!

¹⁰ For a day in your courts is better
than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
¹¹ For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
the Lord bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does he withhold
from those who walk uprightly.
¹² O Lord of hosts,
blessed is the one who trusts in you!

 

Reflection

• In a way, Ps 78-83 describe the journey through a desert. God’s people were weak and struggling. They were victims of enemies that had drained them and their land of every resource, and left them destitute and dying. It’s no wonder that Asaph cried out again and again, appealing to God to restore the blessings once enjoyed by his people.
• Now suddenly, with Ps 84, another psalmist reminds us that no matter how desperate our situation, any desert God’s people may find themselves in, there is an oasis. In O. T. times, God’s people directed their feet upward. Approaching Jerusalem, buoyed up by the thought that they would soon appear before God in Zion, His people went “from strength to strength”.
• Our days may be filled with troubles, and our hearts may ache, yet we can know the blessedness of those “whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage” (v5, The Voice).  As pressures mount, we can be reminded that “No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly” (v11).
• The more difficult our days, the more we need to draw strength from God, and experience the blessing that is ours now through trust.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

O God, Do Not Keep Silence

A Song. A Psalm of Asaph.

83 O God, do not keep silence;
do not hold your peace or be still, O God!
² For behold, your enemies make an uproar;
those who hate you have raised their heads.
³ They lay crafty plans against your people;
they consult together against your treasured ones.
⁴ They say, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation;
let the name of Israel be remembered no more!”
⁵ For they conspire with one accord;
against you they make a covenant—
⁶ the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Moab and the Hagrites,
⁷ Gebal and Ammon and Amalek,
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
⁸ Asshur also has joined them;
they are the strong arm of the children of Lot.Selah

⁹ Do to them as you did to Midian,
as to Sisera and Jabin at the river Kishon,
¹⁰ who were destroyed at En-dor,
who became dung for the ground.
¹¹ Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,
all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,
¹² who said, “Let us take possession for ourselves
of the pastures of God.”

¹³ O my God, make them like whirling dust,
like chaff before the wind.
¹⁴ As fire consumes the forest,
as the flame sets the mountains ablaze,
¹⁵ so may you pursue them with your tempest
and terrify them with your hurricane!
¹⁶ Fill their faces with shame,
that they may seek your name, O Lord.
¹⁷ Let them be put to shame and dismayed forever;
let them perish in disgrace,
¹⁸ that they may know that you alone,
whose name is the Lord,
are the Most High over all the earth.

 

Reflection

• This psalm is an impassioned appeal to God to crush the nations that conspired and attacked Israel. This psalm is also a prayer of intercession – interceding for people to have knowledge of God’s final vindication, and for this to result in conversion prior to that final day.
• The surrounding nations wanted to destroy the people of God (v.4).  Yet, the psalmist saw this more as an attack on God Himself.  He refers to them as “your enemies” (v.2) and stated how “against you they make a covenant” (v.5).
• The prayer of this Psalm is that God’s enemies will be routed.  “O my God, make them like whirling dust, like chaff before the wind.” (v.13).  However, this is not merely a plea for destruction, but it is also intercession for conversion.  “Fill their faces with shame, that they may seek your name, O Lord…. that they may know that you alone, whose name is the Lord, are the Most High over all the earth.” (vv.16, 18).
  • Who are your opponents right now? Are your enemies also God’s? Do you pray for vengeance or the grace to love your “enemy” and for their conversion?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Rescue the Weak and Needy

A Psalm of Asaph.

82 God has taken his place in the divine council;
in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:
² “How long will you judge unjustly
and show partiality to the wicked? Selah
³ Give justice to the weak and the fatherless;
maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
⁴ Rescue the weak and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”

⁵ They have neither knowledge nor understanding,
they walk about in darkness;
all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

⁶ I said, “You are gods,
sons of the Most High, all of you;
⁷ nevertheless, like men you shall die,
and fall like any prince.”

⁸ Arise, O God, judge the earth;
for you shall inherit all the nations!

 

Reflection

• The word “gods” in v1 and v6 refers to the strong ones in Israel, namely, the human rulers or authorities. They were appointed to this high position to give “justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” (v3-4)
• Privilege carries responsibility. The higher the privilege, the greater the responsibility. While God has given us great privileges, His is the ultimate responsibility. Thus the psalmist was sure that God who holds men responsible will “rise” and “judge the earth” (v8).
• What responsibility do you have to the “weak and the needy”? What about your cell group or church?  What can you individually and as a group do to fulfill this responsibility?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Oh, That My People Would Listen to Me

To the choirmaster: according to The Gittith. Of Asaph.

81 Sing aloud to God our strength;
shout for joy to the God of Jacob!
² Raise a song; sound the tambourine,
the sweet lyre with the harp.
³ Blow the trumpet at the new moon,
at the full moon, on our feast day.

⁴ For it is a statute for Israel,
a rule of the God of Jacob.
⁵ He made it a decree in Joseph
when he went out over the land of Egypt.
I hear a language I had not known:
⁶ “I relieved your shoulder of the burden;
your hands were freed from the basket.
⁷ In distress you called, and I delivered you;
I answered you in the secret place of thunder;
I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah
⁸ Hear, O my people, while I admonish you!
O Israel, if you would but listen to me!
⁹ There shall be no strange god among you;
you shall not bow down to a foreign god.
¹⁰ I am the Lord your God,
who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

¹¹ “But my people did not listen to my voice;
Israel would not submit to me.
¹² So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
to follow their own counsels.
¹³ Oh, that my people would listen to me,
that Israel would walk in my ways!
¹⁴ I would soon subdue their enemies
and turn my hand against their foes.
¹⁵ Those who hate the Lord would cringe toward him,
and their fate would last forever.
¹⁶ But he would feed you with the finest of the wheat,
and with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”

 

Reflection

• The psalmist had cried out to God for restoration. Yet in this psalm, he explicityly recognized the fact that God is always willing to deliver and to bless.  It was Israel’s own failure (their stubborn hearts, v12) to listen to the Lord and submit to Him that led to disaster. God, speaking through the psalmist, said, “If only My people would hear My voice and Israel would follow My direction! Then I would not hesitate to humble their enemies and defeat their opposition Myself.  (vv13-14, The Voice)”
• We too can cry out to God when we are in distress. But we need to examine our lives, and see if our own unwillingness to obey is keeping God from giving us the blessing we so desperately desire.
• Has God ever lifted a burden from your shoulders? What was it? What happened? Are you carrying a burden now?   Read vv6-8 as God shouting at you, or whispering in your ears His love for you, and His desperate desire to carry off your burdens.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Restore Us, O God

To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Testimony. Of Asaph, a Psalm.

80 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth.
²     Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh,
stir up your might
and come to save us!

³ Restore us, O God;
let your face shine, that we may be saved!

⁴ O Lord God of hosts,
how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
⁵ You have fed them with the bread of tears
and given them tears to drink in full measure.
⁶ You make us an object of contention for our neighbors,
and our enemies laugh among themselves.

⁷ Restore us, O God of hosts;
let your face shine, that we may be saved!

⁸ You brought a vine out of Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
⁹ You cleared the ground for it;
it took deep root and filled the land.
¹⁰ The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
¹¹ It sent out its branches to the sea
and its shoots to the River.
¹² Why then have you broken down its walls,
so that all who pass along the way pluck its fruit?
¹³ The boar from the forest ravages it,
and all that move in the field feed on it.

¹⁴ Turn again, O God of hosts!
Look down from heaven, and see;
have regard for this vine,
¹⁵     the stock that your right hand planted,
and for the son whom you made strong for yourself.
¹⁶ They have burned it with fire; they have cut it down;
may they perish at the rebuke of your face!
¹⁷ But let your hand be on the man of your right hand,
the son of man whom you have made strong for yourself!
¹⁸ Then we shall not turn back from you;
give us life, and we will call upon your name!

¹⁹ Restore us, O Lord God of hosts!
Let your face shine, that we may be saved!

 

Reflection

• The psalmist appealed to God to deliver and restore as the Shepherd of His people Israel. The title “Lord of hosts” suggests God’s ability to deliver His people whenever He chooses to do so. But the Lord’s silence implied that He was angry with them. As a shepherd, God had fed His people, but He had given them tears to eat and to drink rather than nourishing food. Their condition led their neighbor nations to mock them.
• Starting v8, the psalmist pictured Israel as a vine that God had transplanted from Egypt to Canaan. He cleared the land of Canaan for her by driving the native people out. Israel had taken root in the Promised Land and, as a vine, had spread out in all directions. It had become strong and luxuriant under God’s blessing. However, God had broken down the wall that protected it, and its neighbors were now consuming it.
• God’s people are similar to a grapevine, in that God has called us to be a blessing to others. However, if we do not walk in trust and obedience, God may PRUNE us back and limit our fruitfulness in order to increase our ultimate productivity. We experience blessings as we become a blessing to others. If we depart from God, we need to call on Him to restore our fruitfulness and commit ourselves to Him again.
• Have you experienced God’s pruning in your life?  Has that experience help improve the productivity of the fruit of the Spirit in your life? 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

How Long, O Lord?

A Psalm of Asaph.

79 O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple;
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
² They have given the bodies of your servants
to the birds of the heavens for food,
the flesh of your faithful to the beasts of the earth.
³ They have poured out their blood like water
all around Jerusalem,
and there was no one to bury them.
⁴ We have become a taunt to our neighbors,
mocked and derided by those around us.

⁵ How long, O Lord? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy burn like fire?
⁶ Pour out your anger on the nations
that do not know you,
and on the kingdoms
that do not call upon your name!
⁷ For they have devoured Jacob
and laid waste his habitation.

⁸ Do not remember against us our former iniquities;
let your compassion come speedily to meet us,
for we are brought very low.
⁹ Help us, O God of our salvation,
for the glory of your name;
deliver us, and atone for our sins,
for your name’s sake!
¹⁰ Why should the nations say,
“Where is their God?”
Let the avenging of the outpoured blood of your servants
be known among the nations before our eyes!

¹¹ Let the groans of the prisoners come before you;
according to your great power, preserve those doomed to die!
¹² Return sevenfold into the lap of our neighbors
the taunts with which they have taunted you, O Lord!
¹³ But we your people, the sheep of your pasture,
will give thanks to you forever;
from generation to generation we will recount your praise.

 

Reflection

• The psalmist Asaph recounted the violence done to Jerusalem by pagan nations and called on God to pay them back.  He acknowledged that the disaster came because of their “former iniquities” (sins of our ancestors, v8 , the Voice). He called on God to forgive His people and restore the nation for His own glory. He then asked God to pay back the nations, for in crushing Judah, they have, in fact, insulted the Lord.
• As we look at the society we are in, we see Christians and churches become objects of scorn and derision, too.  The psalmist prayed: “How long, O Lord? Will you be angry forever?”(vv5)
• This is a prayer of desperation.  It is also a prayer of faith.  The psalmist believes God has the power to transform the situation.  He looks forward to the time when God will answer their prayer, then “we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise (v.13).”
• Are you saying “How long” right now? What makes you impatient?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Tell the Coming Generation

A Maskil of Asaph.

⁵⁶ Yet they tested and rebelled against the Most High God
and did not keep his testimonies,
⁵⁷ but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers;
they twisted like a deceitful bow.
⁵⁸ For they provoked him to anger with their high places;
they moved him to jealousy with their idols.
⁵⁹ When God heard, he was full of wrath,
and he utterly rejected Israel.
⁶⁰ He forsook his dwelling at Shiloh,
the tent where he dwelt among mankind,
⁶¹ and delivered his power to captivity,
his glory to the hand of the foe.
⁶² He gave his people over to the sword
and vented his wrath on his heritage.
⁶³ Fire devoured their young men,
and their young women had no marriage song.
⁶⁴ Their priests fell by the sword,
and their widows made no lamentation.
⁶⁵ Then the Lord awoke as from sleep,
like a strong man shouting because of wine.
⁶⁶ And he put his adversaries to rout;
he put them to everlasting shame.

⁶⁷ He rejected the tent of Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,
⁶⁸ but he chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion, which he loves.
⁶⁹ He built his sanctuary like the high heavens,
like the earth, which he has founded forever.
⁷⁰ He chose David his servant
and took him from the sheepfolds;
⁷¹ from following the nursing ewes he brought him
to shepherd Jacob his people,
Israel his inheritance.
⁷² With upright heart he shepherded them
and guided them with his skillful hand.

 

Reflection

• This psalm teaches present and future generations to learn from the past, and it stresses the grace of God. It recounted their history. In the wilderness, God’s people were judged when they willfully put the Lord to the test. Even though later generations forgot His miracles and were disloyal to His covenant, God was merciful to them. Despite the love displayed in the Exodus and Conquest, Israel continued to rebel against the Lord, and was justly punished.
• But then, in today’s passage, despite Israel’s faults, God chose David to shepherd His people. The lesson of the psalm is clear. In David, Israel was granted a fresh start. God’s people had to learn from their past, and follow David’s example of faithfulness to the Lord if they hoped to avoid future disaster.
• What story of God’s past dealings with you can you remember in times of temptation, forgetfulness and doubt you still face?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

In the Day of Trouble I Seek the Lord

To the choirmaster: according to Jeduthun. A Psalm of Asaph.

77 I cry aloud to God,
aloud to God, and he will hear me.
² In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying;
my soul refuses to be comforted.
³ When I remember God, I moan;
when I meditate, my spirit faints. Selah

⁴ You hold my eyelids open;
I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
⁵ I consider the days of old,
the years long ago.
⁶ I said, “Let me remember my song in the night;
let me meditate in my heart.”
Then my spirit made a diligent search:
⁷ “Will the Lord spurn forever,
and never again be favorable?
⁸ Has his steadfast love forever ceased?
Are his promises at an end for all time?
⁹ Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has he in anger shut up his compassion?”Selah

¹⁰ Then I said, “I will appeal to this,
to the years of the right hand of the Most High.”

¹¹ I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
¹² I will ponder all your work,
and meditate on your mighty deeds.
¹³ Your way, O God, is holy.
What god is great like our God?
¹⁴ You are the God who works wonders;
you have made known your might among the peoples.
¹⁵ You with your arm redeemed your people,
the children of Jacob and Joseph. Selah

¹⁶ When the waters saw you, O God,
when the waters saw you, they were afraid;
indeed, the deep trembled.
¹⁷ The clouds poured out water;
the skies gave forth thunder;
your arrows flashed on every side.
¹⁸ The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind;
your lightnings lighted up the world;
the earth trembled and shook.
¹⁹ Your way was through the sea,
your path through the great waters;
yet your footprints were unseen.
²⁰ You led your people like a flock
by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

 

Reflection

• The psalmist spoke of fervent, anguished, and continual prayer which brought him no comfort at all. Sometimes prayer, the means by which we cast our burdens on God, actually increases the pressure we feel. When an answer to prayer is delayed we begin to wonder if God will ever show us favour again.
• The psalmist then recalls “the deeds of the Lord”, His “wonders of old” and “mighty deeds”.  The key here is not simply that God is all-powerful, but that God has in the past used His power to redeem His people.
• It is the same for us. When distress drives us to doubt, we are to recall what God has done for us in Christ. Jesus’ resurrection demonstrates God’s power. But it is the fact that the Son of God died and was raised for us, that seals our confidence and hope.
• Name three things you’re grateful for. Reflect on your response. (How long did it take you to think of things you’re grateful for? Did they come to mind quickly or slowly? How conscious are you of God’s good gifts?)

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Who Can Stand Before You?

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.

76 In Judah God is known;
his name is great in Israel.
² His abode has been established in Salem,
his dwelling place in Zion.
³ There he broke the flashing arrows,
the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war.Selah

⁴ Glorious are you, more majestic
than the mountains full of prey.
⁵ The stouthearted were stripped of their spoil;
they sank into sleep;
all the men of war
were unable to use their hands.
⁶ At your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
both rider and horse lay stunned.

⁷ But you, you are to be feared!
Who can stand before you
when once your anger is roused?
⁸ From the heavens you uttered judgment;
the earth feared and was still,
⁹ when God arose to establish judgment,
to save all the humble of the earth. Selah

¹⁰ Surely the wrath of man shall praise you;
the remnant of wrath you will put on like a belt.
¹¹ Make your vows to the Lord your God and perform them;
let all around him bring gifts
to him who is to be feared,
¹² who cuts off the spirit of princes,
who is to be feared by the kings of the earth.

 

Reflection

• The psalmist wrote that the Lord is to be feared by those who see His works among His own people.  And the natural response would be: Who can stand before you, a title given in ESV.
• God was characterized by majesty, power, and righteousness expressed in His judgment of sinful men (vv4-9). Thus “the wrath of man shall” bring God praise (v10).  “For the wrath of man will end in praise of You, and whatever wrath is left You will wrap around Yourself like a belt.” (The Voice)
• The cross of Jesus Christ bore all the “wrath of man”.  Jesus took the cup and accomplished God’s plan of salvation for us all.
• Sing this old hymn “Down at the cross – Glory to His Name” ( Elisha A. Hoffman,  1878) as your praise to God, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSKZXlBV84Q.

Down at the cross where my Savior died, Down where for cleansing from sin I cried,
There to my heart was the blood applied; Glory to His Name!

(Refrain)   Glory to His Name, glory to His Name:

                  There to my heart was the blood applied; Glory to His Name!

I am so wondrously saved from sin, Jesus so sweetly abides within;
There at the cross where He took me in; Glory to His Name! (Refrain)

Come to this fountain so rich and sweet, Cast thy poor soul at the Savior’s feet;
Plunge in today, and be made complete; Glory to His Name! (Refrain)

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

God Will Judge with Equity

To the choirmaster: according to Do Not Destroy. A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.

75 We give thanks to you, O God;
we give thanks, for your name is near.
We recount your wondrous deeds.

² “At the set time that I appoint
I will judge with equity.
³ When the earth totters, and all its inhabitants,
it is I who keep steady its pillars. Selah
⁴ I say to the boastful, ‘Do not boast,’
and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horn;
⁵ do not lift up your horn on high,
or speak with haughty neck.’”

⁶ For not from the east or from the west
and not from the wilderness comes lifting up,
⁷ but it is God who executes judgment,
putting down one and lifting up another.
⁸ For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup
with foaming wine, well mixed,
and he pours out from it,
and all the wicked of the earth
shall drain it down to the dregs.

⁹ But I will declare it forever;
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
¹⁰ All the horns of the wicked I will cut off,
but the horns of the righteous shall be lifted up.

 

Reflection

• This thanksgiving psalm anticipates a victory in Israel when God as Judge would destroy the wicked and establish the righteous. God judges when He decides the time is right, and He judges fairly.
• God as the Sovereign Judge, forces His enemies to drink all the wine of judgment that He has prepared for them. One may choose to act against God by doing evil, but then he/she has to accept the consequences of rebellion against God and harming His people.
• The psalmist concluded by praising God publicly, and in song, for judging His enemies. The horns symbolize strength. Israel’s enemies would lose their strength, but God’s people would grow stronger.
• Though we might encounter hardship from others, we have the confidence that God will judge and is near to His people.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Arise, O God, Defend Your Cause

A Maskil of Asaph.

74 O God, why do you cast us off forever?
Why does your anger smoke against the sheep of your pasture?
² Remember your congregation, which you have purchased of old,
which you have redeemed to be the tribe of your heritage!
Remember Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
³ Direct your steps to the perpetual ruins;
the enemy has destroyed everything in the sanctuary!

⁴ Your foes have roared in the midst of your meeting place;
they set up their own signs for signs.
⁵ They were like those who swing axes
in a forest of trees.
⁶ And all its carved wood
they broke down with hatchets and hammers.
⁷ They set your sanctuary on fire;
they profaned the dwelling place of your name,
bringing it down to the ground.
⁸ They said to themselves, “We will utterly subdue them”;
they burned all the meeting places of God in the land.

⁹ We do not see our signs;
there is no longer any prophet,
and there is none among us who knows how long.
¹⁰ How long, O God, is the foe to scoff?
Is the enemy to revile your name forever?
¹¹ Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand?
Take it from the fold of your garment and destroy them!

¹² Yet God my King is from of old,
working salvation in the midst of the earth.
¹³ You divided the sea by your might;
you broke the heads of the sea monsters on the waters.
¹⁴ You crushed the heads of Leviathan;
you gave him as food for the creatures of the wilderness.
¹⁵ You split open springs and brooks;
you dried up ever-flowing streams.
¹⁶ Yours is the day, yours also the night;
you have established the heavenly lights and the sun.
¹⁷ You have fixed all the boundaries of the earth;
you have made summer and winter.

¹⁸ Remember this, O Lord, how the enemy scoffs,
and a foolish people reviles your name.
¹⁹ Do not deliver the soul of your dove to the wild beasts;
do not forget the life of your poor forever.

²⁰ Have regard for the covenant,
for the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence.
²¹ Let not the downtrodden turn back in shame;
let the poor and needy praise your name.

²² Arise, O God, defend your cause;
remember how the foolish scoff at you all the day!
²³ Do not forget the clamor of your foes,
the uproar of those who rise against you, which goes up continually!

 

Reflection

• This psalm posed a question that each of us is driven to ask at times. Why is God silent? Why hasn’t He acted? Why does He seem to reject His people? The psalmist described Jerusalem’s destruction and questioned God why He allowed the enemy to mock Him as such?
• What are we to do when we too feel crushed, puzzled, and anguished because God permits us to suffer?
• It is at such times, we are often driven to pray and intercede. We become aware of the consequences of sin and the destructive power of evil. And know that we need God’s help otherwise we will have no hope for restoration.
• What event in your life has caused a crisis in faith for you? How did you handle it? Is the problem resolved? How can your cell group or the church help?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

God Is My Strength and Portion Forever

A Psalm of Asaph.

73 Truly God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
² But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled,
my steps had nearly slipped.
³ For I was envious of the arrogant
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

⁴ For they have no pangs until death;
their bodies are fat and sleek.
⁵ They are not in trouble as others are;
they are not stricken like the rest of mankind.
⁶ Therefore pride is their necklace;
violence covers them as a garment.
⁷ Their eyes swell out through fatness;
their hearts overflow with follies.
⁸ They scoff and speak with malice;
loftily they threaten oppression.
⁹ They set their mouths against the heavens,
and their tongue struts through the earth.
¹⁰ Therefore his people turn back to them,
and find no fault in them.
¹¹ And they say, “How can God know?
Is there knowledge in the Most High?”
¹² Behold, these are the wicked;
always at ease, they increase in riches.
¹³ All in vain have I kept my heart clean
and washed my hands in innocence.
¹⁴ For all the day long I have been stricken
and rebuked every morning.
¹⁵ If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
I would have betrayed the generation of your children.

¹⁶ But when I thought how to understand this,
it seemed to me a wearisome task,
¹⁷ until I went into the sanctuary of God;
then I discerned their end.

¹⁸ Truly you set them in slippery places;
you make them fall to ruin.
¹⁹ How they are destroyed in a moment,
swept away utterly by terrors!
²⁰ Like a dream when one awakes,
O Lord, when you rouse yourself, you despise them as phantoms.
²¹ When my soul was embittered,
when I was pricked in heart,
²² I was brutish and ignorant;
I was like a beast toward you.

²³ Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
you hold my right hand.
²⁴ You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will receive me to glory.
²⁵ Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.
²⁶ My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

²⁷ For behold, those who are far from you shall perish;
you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you.
²⁸ But for me it is good to be near God;
I have made the Lord God my refuge,
that I may tell of all your works.

 

Reflection

• In this psalm, Asaph related his inner struggle when he compared his life, as one committed to Jehovah God, with the lives of his acquaintances who did not put God first. He confessed discouragement. On further reflection he realized the sinfulness of his carnal longings. Finally, he explained that the contrast between these two lifestyles enabled him to keep a proper view of life in perspective.
• Envious of the arrogant is something we can all understand. If the wicked prospers and God’s people suffer, this begs the question, “What good is faith, anyway”? “All in vain have I kept my heart clean” (v13).
• The key and turning verse is v17. He was carrying his angry, discouragement, bitterness, and puzzlement “until I went into the sanctuary of God”. What exactly takes place in the sanctuary? Asaph had a changed perspective.  He realized the troubles he experienced were gifts from God, and that the easy life granted the wicked was actually “slippery places”.
• Have you ever felt as Asaph did in this psalm. Read the whole psalm as your own conversation with God. Spend some time in the “sanctuary”(v17) and converse with God with verses 21-26. Tell God what comes up in your mind and heart. Listen to what God wants to say to you.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer.  Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me.  Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

¹ Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. ² And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.³ His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. ⁴ And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. ⁵ But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. ⁷ Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” ⁸ So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. ⁹ And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. ¹⁰ Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”

¹¹ While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. ¹² And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers ¹³ and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ ¹⁴ And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” ¹⁵ So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

¹⁶ Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. ¹⁷ And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted.¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

 

Meditation:

• Matthew 28 focuses on the messengers of Jesus’ resurrection—the angel tells the women, the women tell the disciples, the disciples tell the nations, even the guards tell the religious leaders. As Matthew concludes his Gospel, we are invited to join with those who throughout history have been witnesses and messengers of Jesus, the victorious resurrected Lord.
• The eleven did go to Galilee, and Jesus appeared as promised.  He gave them the Great Commission and authorized His disciples to make disciples of all nations, and promised to be with them until the end of the age.
• Why did Jesus tell the disciples that He would be with them to the end of the age?  In what way is Jesus Christ with you today?
• How can you be more involved in making disciples and fulfilling the Great Commission?

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

³² As they went out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name. They compelled this man to carry his cross.³³ And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), ³⁴ they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. ³⁵ And when they had crucified him, they divided his garments among them by casting lots. ³⁶ Then they sat down and kept watch over him there. ³⁷ And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.” ³⁸ Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left. ³⁹ And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads ⁴⁰ and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” ⁴¹ So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, ⁴² “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. ⁴³ He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” ⁴⁴ And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.

⁴⁵ Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. ⁴⁶ And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” ⁴⁷ And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” ⁴⁸ And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. ⁴⁹ But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” ⁵⁰ And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.

⁵¹ And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. ⁵² The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, ⁵³ and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. ⁵⁴ When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

 

Meditation:

• This chapter began with the news that Judas hanged himself. Jesus was condemned by Pilate, mocked by His executioners, and crucified. He was buried and His tomb placed under guard. But death is not the end!
• The central event of Christian faith is the incredible humiliation of our God. His own people demanded his death, his friends deserted him.  And now even his loving Father has turned away.
• Imagine yourself there at the scene watching as Jesus hangs on the cross, and is repeatedly mocked and insulted. And then as death begins to engulf him, you heard Jesus’ crying out to God.

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning?
O my God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, and am not silent. (Ps 22:1-2)

• What wells up inside you as you meditate on Jesus’ death? Read the passage again.  Allow yourself to sink into the event deeply, be aware of your reaction and talk to Jesus about it.
• Find a place to be silent, such as walk in a quiet place or sit in an empty church sanctuary.  Continue meditate on Jesus’ sacrifice for you, and wait for what God’s response to you.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

³⁰ And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. ³¹ Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ ³² But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” ³³ Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” ³⁴ Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” ³⁵ Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same.

³⁶ Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” ³⁷ And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. ³⁸ Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” ³⁹ And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”⁴⁰ And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? ⁴¹ Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” ⁴² Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” ⁴³ And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. ⁴⁴ So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again. ⁴⁵ Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁴⁶ Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”

 

Meditation:

• With these last chapters of Matthew, we enter the Christian’s holy of holies. We witness with a deep awe again the death and the resurrection of our Lord. Jesus predicted His imminent death as Judas plotted with the chief priests to betray Him. During a final meal Jesus instituted Communion, and predicted Peter’s denial. Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, where He was arrested and taken before the Jewish high court. Peter did deny his Lord.
• Here recorded three times of Jesus’ prayer.  It clearly portrayed Jesus wrestling with God’s will and then finally accepting it.  It started with Jesus asking if it is possible for the cup (referring to God’s judgment expressed in and by the cross) to be removed from him.  “my Father” (vv39, 42). Jesus’ cup was not so much the physical torment He was about to experience, as it was the awful prospect of taking on Himself the sin of humankind. At that prospect, He said, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” (v38) The next two times of prayer He says, “If this cannot … your will be done” (v42).  In all cases, Jesus addresses God in the most intimate terms as
•  The disciples could not understand, or even stay awake to share the awful loneliness with Him. Jesus then said to the disciples, “Watch and pray … The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (v42)
• Meditate on Christ’s agony and share in His suffering.  Quietly sing this Taize song:

Stay with me, remain here with me
watch and pray, watch and pray. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkivkORaeJA

 

 

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

 

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

¹⁴ “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. ¹⁵ To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. ¹⁶ He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. ¹⁷ So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. ¹⁸ But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. ¹⁹ Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. ²⁰ And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ ²¹ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ ²² And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ ²³ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ ²⁴ He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, ²⁵ so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ ²⁶ But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? ²⁷ Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. ²⁸ So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. ²⁹ For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. ³⁰ And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

 

Meditation:

• Jesus used two parables to emphasize the importance of service. Ultimately Jesus will come again and establish His kingdom. God gives gifts to all his disciples: wealth, skills, time or opportunities. God wants us to use them fully. This is how we can serve him.
• The master praised two of the slaves for they had done their best. But not the third slave. This slave was doing the safest thing, and the least work, to protect himself from hard work and punishment he thought he might receive if he lost it.
• What resources and responsibilities has Jesus given you? How can you handle them in a good and faithful manner?
• Think of one way you can use your gift today and this week.  Ask God to help you do it well for His sake.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

 

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

¹ Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. ² But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”

³ As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” ⁴ And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. ⁵ For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. ⁶ And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. ⁷ For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.

⁹ “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. ¹⁰ And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. ¹¹ And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. ¹² And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. ¹³ But the one who endures to the end will be saved. ¹⁴ And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

 

Meditation:

• Jesus did make specific predictions about the future. But He emphasized what His servants are to do until the future arrives. Jesus answered His disciples’ questions about the end of the age, the signs of His coming, and when these things will happen. He went on to emphasize the importance of being ready.
• Think about the fact that Jesus Christ will return to this earth. Does this promise make you happy? Or is it like a danger to you? Make a list of what you might lose on that great day. Then make a list of what you will gain. Why is it hard for some Christians to believe that Jesus will return?
• Imagine that Jesus will return in a month’s time. What would be different in your church? What would you do?
• Let this question linger in your heart for a while.  Wait for God to show you how you may get ready for Jesus’ coming.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

 

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

¹Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: ²“The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. ³So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. ⁴They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.  ⁵“Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; ⁶they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; ⁷they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’  ⁸“But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. ⁹And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. ¹⁰Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ. ¹¹The greatest among you will be your servant. ¹²For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

¹³ “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in. ¹⁵ Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.

¹⁶ “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ ¹⁷ You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? ¹⁸ And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ ¹⁹ You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? ²⁰ So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. ²¹ And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it.²² And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it.

 

Meditation:

• Jesus pronounced woes on the Pharisees and sages for their spiritual blindness, and lamented over the doomed city of Jerusalem.
• Jesus’ disciples are commanded not to accept the title rabbi, father, or teacher, for there is only one final and authoritative teacher – not Moses or Solomon, but the Christ (v10).  Thus, Jesus’ followers must always remain learners.
• Those who exalt themselves will be humbled and vice versa (v12).  Jesus repeatedly condemns play-acting, which is what the word “hypocrite” actually means.  Jesus’ criticism is aimed at the dichotomy between appearance and reality, between word and deed vv13-33).
• How can you keep from being hypocrite: teaching (or saying) one thing and doing another? Ask God to make your Christian life consistent with your beliefs.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

 

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

³⁴ But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. ³⁵ And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. ³⁶ “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” ³⁷ And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸ This is the great and first commandment. ³⁹ And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ⁴⁰ On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

⁴¹ Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, ⁴² saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “The son of David.” ⁴³ He said to them, “How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying,

⁴⁴ “‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
until I put your enemies under your feet”’?

⁴⁵ If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?” ⁴⁶ And no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

 

Meditation:

• Jesus continued His parables pointing out the hardness of His people to God’s Kingdom. He turned aside verbal challenges and silenced His critics.
• The entire law hinges on its central commands to love God and neighbor.  All the law and the prophets spoke was intended to nurture love for God and love for one’s neighbor.  God is to be loved wholeheartedly, which is the greatest commandment.  But this is impossible without the aid of God.
• Hence the words of Augustine of Hippo, “Give what you command, Lord, and then command whatever you will”.
• In what way do you want to grow in love right now:  Toward God?  Toward those in your family?  Toward the needy?  Toward yourself?  How would you do it?  Use the above prayer of Augustine of Hippo and ask God to help you grow in love in the specific way shown by the Holy Spirit.

 

 

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

 

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

¹ Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, ² saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. ³ If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” ⁴ This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying,

⁵ “Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”

⁶ The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. ⁷ They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. ⁸ Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹ And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”¹⁰ And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” ¹¹ And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”

¹² And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. ¹³ He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”

¹⁴ And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. ¹⁵ But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant, ¹⁶ and they said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read,

“‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies
you have prepared praise’?”

¹⁷ And leaving them, he went out of the city to Bethany and lodged there.

 

Meditation:

• Jesus now entered His last week on earth. He entered Jerusalem hailed as the Messiah. This angered temple leaders.
• These merchants and money exchangers were extorting the pilgrims and making a big profit on the trade.  They have turned the temple into a high profit lucrative business enterprise.  No wonder Jesus was furious and drove them out.
• If Jesus were to visit your church today, where might He begin “turning over tables”?
• What about your life if Jesus comes to visit your heart, where might He begin “turning over tables”? Identify one area in which your actions need to be more consistent with your beliefs. Ask for God’s help.

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

¹ “For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. ² After agreeing with the laborers for a denariusa day, he sent them into his vineyard. ³ And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, ⁴ and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ ⁵ So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. ⁶ And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ ⁷ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ ⁸ And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ ⁹ And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. ¹⁰ Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. ¹¹ And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, ¹² saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’¹³ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? ¹⁴ Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. ¹⁵ Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ ¹⁶ So the last will be first, and the first last.”

 

Meditation:

• This story troubles many.  It seems obvious that the owner of the vineyard wasn’t being fair.  Jesus is saying that some people want to put relationship with God on an equal-work-equal-pay basis.  And these folks often assume they’ll be rewarded for being so busy.
• Relationship with God, in fact, is based on His generosity (v15), His grace, not our works.  We don’t advance spiritually by being busy.
• Are you becoming so caught up in doing things for God that you forget to simply love Him?  Do you forget to stop, listen to people, and try to respond to their needs?  Are you actually drying up spiritually but still spending your energies in an unproductive way?  What is God telling you?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

¹⁶ And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” ¹⁷ And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” ¹⁸ He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, ¹⁹ Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ²⁰ The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” ²¹ Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” ²² When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

²³ And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. ²⁴ Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” ²⁵ When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” ²⁶ But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”²⁷ Then Peter said in reply, “See, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” ²⁸ Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. ²⁹ And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. ³⁰ But many who are first will be last, and the last first.

 

Meditation:

• When Jesus remarked that it is difficult for a rich man to enter the kingdom, the disciples were shocked.  In general, people view the wealthy as blessed by God, for they had the opportunity to do good with their wealth and so gain merit with God.
• Jesus had a different perspective.  The more we have, the more our possessions may possess us!  It is hard for a person with many resources tied up in this world to focus his or her attention on the next.
• Thank God that He can do what we cannot.  We can be saved for eternity.  And we can be saved from slavery to our wealth so that we can instead become slaves of God.
• Do you love God above all else?  Is there anything hindering you to become a true disciple of Jesus Christ? Ask God to give you strength to stand against the world and to make His values your values.

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.

Before you begin, take a few moments to find and create for yourself a quiet space. You can turn off your phone and close any chat or other things that might interrupt your time. Give your time and attention wholly to God for the next while.

You might say a prayer, inviting God to speak to you, to reveal Himself to you and to help you grow in your knowledge and understanding of who He is and who He calls you to be.

 

¹⁵ “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. ¹⁶ But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.¹⁷ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. ¹⁸ Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.¹⁹ Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

²¹ Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” ²² Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.

²³ “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.²⁴ When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. ²⁵ And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.²⁶ So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ ²⁷ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. ²⁸ But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ ²⁹ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ ³⁰ He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. ³¹ When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. ³² Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.³³ And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴ And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. ³⁵ So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

 

Meditation:

• Jesus gave us a compelling reason to forgive one another by telling the story of a wicked servant (vv23-32).
• This is a reminder for us when we harden our hearts toward a brother or sister after a few repeated hurts.  After all, God, the great King, has forgiven us an absolutely unpayable debt, our sins.
• Who do you find it hard to forgive?  Think about the forgiveness you have received from the Lord.  Imagine yourself as the first servant.  Ask God for grace to forgive the other person.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

On your prayer journal, as you listen to God, write down a few thoughts, questions, words, names, drawings, or anything that has come to your mind during this time.