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Devotion.al

Tag: give

  • Resurrecting Hope

    Psalm 39; Luke 24:8–35; Acts 26:1–8 (read online ⧉)

    Brian Sanders (Executive Director of Tampa Underground) shared some very interesting thoughts regarding the Emmaus Road story.

    Cleopas and the unnamed disciple hadn’t yet seen the Resurrected Jesus. Like any of the “outer circle” disciples, they didn’t see Jesus immediately, and many of the inner circle missed him too. So, they were “stuck” on the outside. They knew of the wrongful conviction, abuse, and death. They’d heard this impossible to belief story—from people they trusted—that Jesus had died, but was now risen!

    Sanders suggests that our 2 Emmaus Road disciples were running away from the confusing situation in Jerusalem. They were feeling overwhelmed. They were probably hurting. They were probably confused. Sanders also suggests that they were “packing” their “escape route”. The day we just celebrated, possibly people were trying to escape it.

    Sanders’ suggestion just seems wrong in so many ways. How could these disciples be so confused and hope destroyed that they were trying to escape? Yet, Sanders makes a good point in that they were leaving Jerusalem. Leaving. They weren’t joining the other disciples. They were leaving.

    They didn’t understand, not really. How many of us ourselves have been at the point where there was an internal disconnect between what we thought we knew/believed, and what we think we should have known? That point in our lives that we started to run away in some small way: alcohol, drugs, partying, gambling, videos, gaming, even reading.

    Then Jesus shows up. That’s a pretty common story in the Christian world. It’s a pretty common story in the world outside of Christians, but far too many people are self-blinding and cannot (or will not) see Jesus. Sometimes that is us, too. Then Jesus shows up and life is changed.

    Paul went from accuser and abuser of Christians to defender of the faith. He stood before people who could, at their whim, cause him to live or die. Instead of renouncing Christianity, he wouldn’t just defend, he tried to convert! Unlike the Emmaus Road disciples, Paul wasn’t hopeless or lost when he met Jesus. Quite the contrary. Paul was a rising star in the Jewish world. He was going to fix this minor annoying Nazarene sect, and get them back on the right path of the Law. Paul’s conversion story is the opposite of many’s conversion stories. He is in power. He has had—to our knowledge—no qualms seeking to fix the wrong-thinking of this new sect. It on his way with even more power in his hand, that Jesus turns the script. While many convert on their knees and in desperation with nothing to lose, Paul converted when he only had something to lose, a lot of something.

    It really is the question Paul asks in Acts 26:8 that is Resurrection of hope that the Jewish people, and the world, really needed. “Why is it thought incredible by you people that God raises the dead?” Today we are told that this Resurrection is a fairy tale. In Paul’s day, it may have been far fetched, but it wasn’t unbelievable. In a time when people believed that gods could raise the dead, Paul still had to defend Jesus’ Resurrection. This should tell us something. Jesus’ Resurrection was something far greater than just a dead person coming to life! A dead person “just” coming to life wasn’t the greatest concern. It was Jesus’ Resurrection that was. The Jewish leaders knew and understood (no matter how much they opposed it), that this was no normal come-back-to-life tale.

    This means that this Resurrection is something greater. Perhaps its the kind of thing that causes those who have lost hope or who have run away from their confusion, become empowered and full of hope and faith. When those who have a Resurrection hope and faith not only turn toward what almost destroyed them; they walk (or even run) to it with the ability to overcome it with a power that comes through the restoring power of God.

    God of all mercies, grant us the power, faith, and hope to look at all the troubles of the world, whether they be distant or near, and know that through you the world can have the hope it seeks. Give us the eyes and hearts to see where we are called to be the agents of restoration, so that the hopes of the world may find true hope through the Resurrection of Jesus. This we pray in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

    1) Was your conversion at a height or at a low? Why do you think it was there, rather than the opposite? If you’ve known no other life than life with Jesus (i.e., from childhood), what cemented your faith in Jesus Christ?

    2) What are some characteristics of “Resurrection” hope versus “normal” hope? What could be the difference between Resurrection hope and Saving hope?

    3) Often we look at the weaknesses of people in the Scriptures and respond with, “glad that’s not me.” Except it is. When were you like the Emmaus Road disciples? When were you like Paul?

  • Power of Resurrection

    Power of Resurrection

    1 Corinthians 15:1–11; John 5:24–30 (read online ⧉)

    Paul is deeply concerned that the Corinthians have already set aside the Resurrection. He is right to be. Without the Resurrection, all Christians should be pitied.

    We often tie everlasting life to the Resurrection, but the reality is that without the Resurrection, Jesus’ life and death are merely interesting points in history. The Resurrection is proof that Jesus was/is who he said he was. The Resurrection proves that death brought through the Fall of Creation can be overcomed (and is being overcomed). The Resurrection proves that Jesus did live a sinless life that that was qualified to be the necessary sacrifice for all of humanity’s sin.

    So, yes, the Resurrection is kind of important.

    Also tied to the Resurrection is the Final Judgement that comes with it. At the Resurrection of humanity, Jesus will be the judge. Jesus died. If Jesus did not live again, then the judgment is just an empty threat. If judgment is an empty threat, then the necessity of Jesus’ death on the cross becomes cruelly needless bloodshed.

    The Resurrection is proof that God did, does, and will continue to turn the world upside down.

    The Resurrection is also what should be empowering us to bring the Light of the World (Jesus Christ) to others. It is the power of Resurrection that brings new life to people. It is the power of the Resurrection that restores people from a place of death. In other words, if you don’t believe in the Resurrection, why would you share about Jesus? Why would you believe a murderer, adulterer, thief (like the one Jesus said would be with him in Paradise) could be loved by God and be transformed into Christ-likeness. Oh, and why would you think Jesus matters to you, or that Jesus made a difference in your life?

    Today is Easter Monday (it’s actually a holiday in some places). Last year it was a normal workday for many, who would just set aside the Resurrection and go to work. In today’s COVID climate none of us (even those of us going to work remotely or on-site) is looking at Easter Monday as “normal”. COVID-19 shows us our need—in fact, the need of humanity—for Resurrection. Economies, societies, cultures will all need Resurrection power to restore things that are now dead. It’s not as if we all didn’t need Resurrection power as it was, it’s that we are aware of just how much we need it.

    Giving Father, self-sacrificing Jesus, all-empowering Holy Spirit, we give you thanks for the ever-present and ever-working power of the Resurrection. Help us to keep in our hearts, souls, and minds that Resurrection power is not something we had or will have. Help us to understand and believe to the core of our beings that Resurrection power is something we have right now, and to live lives that show we know it to be true. Amen.

    1) How does Resurrection power affect you? How do you think about it?

    2) If there was no Resurrection, would you believe that Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior? Why or why not?

    3) While Easter Monday is uncommonly used in the USA, it is incredibly important. Why is the concept of Easter Monday important for our daily lives?

  • Holy Wednesday

    Psalm 94; Zechariah 13:7-9; Hebrews 12:1-4; John 16:1-15 (read online ⧉)

    The psalmist declares that the Lord’s people will not be forsaken, and justice will return. He continues with the steadfast love of God holding him up when he slips. The beginning of this psalm is harsh in tone but quickly turns to praise of God.

    The hour draws near. From a human perspective (and God’s), what is about to happen is harsh indeed. What is about to come is almost like the very vengeance that the psalmist opens up with. Except, all of that will be poured out onto one person!

    There is a sense that Jesus, with the time drawing near, has turned on the fire hose, trying to fill the disciples (even the one who betrays him) with everything he can before he is gone. This passage in John is often cited on Trinity Sunday, the day set aside to focus on an essential of the Christian faith. This short passage is given toward the end, conveying a mystery still not completely understood.

    “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.”
    John 16:12

    The clock is ticking. Jesus promises that the disciples will not be alone. Imagine them trying to understand that this Advocate might be better than Jesus? Better for them at least. How could that be? They had to have been so very confused. Despite wanting to give it all to them, Jesus moved forward.

    He was coming around the final lap. In his case, there was a crowd of earthly witnesses. Some waiting for him to fall. Others waiting for him to take an earthly throne. Some just wanting him to go away.

    1. Much of Holy Week is just waiting. What are you waiting for?

    2. If you gave up something for Lent, are you anticipating getting it back?

    3. If you didn’t give up something, what do you think the anticipation does to a person’s anticipation of Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday?

  • Longing for the End

    Psalm 31:9–16; Job 13:13–19; Philippians 1:21–30 (read online ⧉)

    As we are about to enter yet another week full of COVID-19, exhaustion is setting in for many people. Some people are discovering how empty their lives are without work. Some people are discovering how empty their lives are without others around them. Others are wanting to escape being “locked” into the same house with their parents, teenagers, children, etc.. It makes for interesting times.

    The psalmist and Job are both very tired. They are tired emotionally, physically, and spiritually all the way down to their bones. Many of us can sympathize, as we are feeling something similar. Is it to the same extreme? No. It is immediate and undeniable.

    Do not deny your feelings. Do not deny your spiritual desert. Don’t think “because you’re a Christian” you’re “not supposed” to feel the way you do. There are exceptions, of course. Jesus does tell us a few things. However, there has long been a culture in churches where many of the feelings people are feeling now would be considered unfaithful and unChristian.

    This might actually be the most powerful Holy Week you ever experience if it has not been the most powerful Lent. Being overwhelmed and the exhaustion matches the pace, heartache, and (ultimately) crushing nature of Holy Week. As we approach Holy Week (starting tomorrow with Palm Sunday), embrace it. It sounds strange, yet it is entirely fitting. Too much focus on Easter robs much of the emotional and spiritual significance of Holy Week.

    Most people are longing for the end of the COVID-19 situation. For some it is cabin-crazy, others are terrified financially, others are terrified for their health. When will it end?

    We don’t think of Paul asking that question, for we look at Paul as this big character and “doctor” of the Christian faith, and he is. As we read Philippians, he wanted to go “home” to be with Jesus. He wanted it to just be over and get to the great part. Paul wanted it to end. However, he wanted to take as many people with him to Jesus. The quip holds true, you can only take people to Heaven with you, not things or status.We are called not to deny our feelings, exhaustion, our fear. We are called to embrace them…and then live our lives as fully as we can through Christ. Then we become testifiers to the hope that we have that is beyond the current and beyond the now. There are many people around us that need that hope.

    1) How are you doing? Really. What are your feelings? How are you doing emotionally, spiritually, physically?

    2) What might Holy Week teach you (yes, you’re guessing) about how to deal with COVID-19? What might your experiences with COVID-19 teach you about Holy Week?

    3) There are a lot of people struggling right now. Many of them are thinking about a different response to, is it over yet? What will you do to seek such people out and to give them hope? If you are one of those that are thinking of suicide, who can you reach out to?

  • Grace of Perfection

    Psalm 119:9–16; Isaiah 44:1–8; Acts 2:14–24 (read online ⧉)

    The beginning of this passage in Isaiah has an important meaning that is easy to overlook.

    Hear | Servant
    Chosen | Israel
    Do not fear | Servant
    Chosen | Jeshuran

    At the beginning, it is certainly more direct and imposing. At the second part, though, the tone changes. Hear (or Listen!) becomes do not fear. Israel becomes Jeshuran, a poetic “perfect” Israel. The way of addressing the people goes from formal to informal, some might even say endearing or intimate. Israel is not just someone to be commanded; they are someone loved intimately, warts and all, and are “perfect” despite their imperfections.

    This loving God then declares that he will pour his spirit into his people! It will be like water filling the desert.

    A fisherman standing up and making a scene was probably not in the top 10 ways expected to have this played out. In a very public sermon, Peter invokes the prophet Joel’s vision, and we can easily see the parallel between Joel’s vision and Isaiah’s.

    In both, God seeks to give more than the Imago Dei and the weakness of human frailty. God seeks to fill us, upon our acceptance, with the Holy Spirit filling us with life eternal.Us being filled by the Holy Spirit can be viewed as the ultimate expression of the intimacy expressed by Israel being called Jeshuran, or us (as the church) being called the Bride of Christ. With the Spirit in us, we should never be unaware of God’s presence in us, and the intimacy that conveys.

    1) When you hear God in you, what goes through your mind?

    2) Have you progressed to the point where it is not just spiritual or intellectual, but both? If not, what could help you get there?

  • Control or Trust?

    Psalm 107:1–3, 17–22; Daniel 12:5–13; Ephesians 1:7–14 (read online ⧉)

    Many of Daniel’s visions are held up in the church today as applying to today. There are fundamental truths in Daniel’s visions (and the visions of other prophets), but we all must be very cautious when trying to apply them to today. Daniel, himself, didn’t know how to interpret his visions, so he had to ask for assistance, in the middle of his vision. The vision was interpreting the vision.

    Daniel 12:10 reads, “Many shall be purified, cleansed, and refined, but the wicked shall continue to act wickedly. None of the wicked shall understand, but those who are wise shall understand.” This is as true today as the day Daniel had the vision, as it is today. The words (vision) of Daniel were to be, “…secret and sealed until the time of the end.” Daniel was told to, “…go your way, and rest….”

    Paul provides much the same guidance, “…he has made known to us the mystery of his will…as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.”

    We yearn to know all the answers and have a fixed understanding. We yearn to know what will happen today and tomorrow. We want a safe and predictable life. We also want “the right” answers. The day-to-day is always full of pieces of chaos and unpredictability. Yet the assurance that it is all in God’s hands, and that we can fully rely on him, should give us the ability to not be tossed about in our anxieties and questions.

    As the time was approaching for his final walk, Jesus, too, had questions and concerns. It is not wrong to wonder and be concerned. If we allow our lack of confidence in God to ground us, the winds and waves of the world will continue to overtake us.

    1) Do you ever let your concerns and/or worries overtake your confidence in God?

    2) Have you ever tried to comfort someone or yourself by saying God has it all under control?

    3) How did that work? Did it really bring comfort?

  • Salvation Praise

    Psalm 107:1–3, 17–22; Genesis 9:8–17; Ephesians 1:3–6 (read online ⧉)

    Destined to be a child of God. This is such a comforting phrase. As in all comfortable things, there is a danger. This comforting phrase is often, and understandably, taken as being directed toward individuals. Yet, if we use both Old Testament and New Testament phrasing, it is better (and more safely) understood as a corporate destiny.

    As part of Noah’s covenant, we are corporately covered insofar as God will never flood the entirety of the earth again. Just as the 12 Tribes of Israel were the Chosen of God, corporately, so too is the Church. How an individual behaved and responded toward God was, and remains, separate from the corporate selection.

    We are all part of the corporate destiny, and we have our place in it (accepting the gift of redemption and salvation). To be clear, accepting the gift does not mean that the act required (Christ’s death on the cross) for salvation was anything but God’s.

    There is a tension here. Salvation is also quite personal and individual. Salvation is best expressed and the saved life best lived within the community of believers. There is a balance, and we don’t want to be overly weighted to individual or corporate salvation.

    We testify and give thanks through our worship and praise of God. As part of both our corporate and personal activity (our “liturgy”) is to praise “… his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us….”

    The psalmist declared…

    1O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
     for his steadfast love endures forever.
2Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
     those he redeemed from trouble
21Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
     for his wonderful works to humankind.
22And let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices,
     and tell of his deeds with songs of joy

    1) When thinking of your salvation do you tend to think of yourself as an individual?

    2) Have you ever thought of your salvation as being part of the Body of Christ (the Church)?

    3) Why do you think there is a difference? What difference does it make to you?

  • Giving and Moving

    Genesis 22:1-19; Hebrews 11:13-19; Psalm 105-37-45

    The almost sacrifice of Isaac is, for many, one of the hardest passages of scripture to read. Those who are parents cannot imagine being God asking Abraham to do this. Those who are parents cannot imagine being Abraham and being asked to do this. Note the “ask”. In English translations, we often lose a Hebrew grammar article, נָא (na’). It makes the “take” into, “please take.” Then God says, “…your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love…”.

    As the child of God’s promise, Isaac is Abraham’s “true” son. There is no other child of the promise. Isaac is not just a child of the promise to Abraham, but also to God. And God knows how much Abraham loves Isaac.

    Isaac. We don’t know much about either’s thoughts during their trip to Moriah. Isaac trusted his father. At this point, too, Abraham was quite old—his prime behind him—and Isaac was probably an older teenager—entering his prime. Scripture doesn’t say that Isaac fought his father. Isaac trusted his father and allowed (it seems) himself to be bound and placed on the pile of sticks. Culturally, this was not abnormal. Child sacrifices to harsh and unpredictable gods was normal.

    As Christians, looking back, we cannot help but see Abraham as a vision of God the Father, and Isaac as God the Son (Jesus). The loving father sacrificing his son; the loving son trusting his father.

    As the author of Hebrews notes, Abraham was promised that his descendants of the promise would come from Isaac. Abraham probably didn’t understand, but he had walked long enough with God, that even in the time of trial, pain, and confusion, he still trusted.

    1) Have you, or someone you know, had a crisis of belief, where your choice was to follow God or give up on your dreams or hopes?

    2) What did that crisis teach you about God?

    3) What did that crisis teach you about others?

    4) What did that crisis teach you about yourself?

  • Plan Pushing

    Psalm 22:23-31; Genesis 16:1-6; Romans 4:1-12 (read online ⧉)

    The story of Sarai and Hagar is strange. Did Abram not trust God to give him a son through Sarai? Or did they (Abram and Sarai) assume that as Sarai was not conceiving that this would be fulfilled through Hagar? It wasn’t, from their perspective, unreasonable. Yet, as we know by reading further along in Genesis, that this really wasn’t God’s intent for Abram and Sarai.

    Abram and Sarai rushed God’s plan. That is not to say that Abram was not being faithful or not trusting God, but that his limited understanding caused him to follow a path that was not God’s intent. Paul suggests that the union of Abram and Haggar was an event of human works. It is only the union of Abram and Sarai that truly fulfills the promises of God to Abram.

    Another way to say this is that God blessed Abram’s union with Hagar, because Abram was still in relationship with God. However, the fulfillment of God’s promise and blessing was fulfilled through Abram and Sarai.

    1. Have you ever rushed God’s plan?
    2. Has God ever honored a decision you made, despite it not being what God revealed to you? If so, once you got back on the path God laid out for you, what happened?
    3. Why do we tend to trust that we “know” in the physical world (such as Abram and Hagar having a child), rather than trusting in God’s promises (such as Abram and Sarai having a child)?

  • Fatalism Antivenom

    Job 5:8-27, 1 Peter 3:8–18a, Psalm 77 (read online ⧉)

    When we talk about the underlying joy of Lent (see yesterday’s devotion), we must have an understanding that this underlying joy fully rests on God, and who God is. This foundation of joy is not shaken or disturbed by the world and all its troubles, because (and only because) it is built on God.

    In our passage from Job, Eliphaz is still lecturing Job. Job 5:8 is a legal appeal. Eliphaz is telling Job that all Job has to do is make an appeal to God. If Job is as innocent as he claims, then God will spare Job. Eliphaz continues to speak, and it seems that his words are accurate, that is until we get to verse 19 (and on through 27). Eliphaz sums up his legal argument from verse 8. God will keep Job from everything bad, if Job is indeed innocent, and continues to appease God. This is essential to understand. Eliphaz had fallen victim to the culture around him regarding God. Eliphaz’s understanding was that God was transactional in nature. You give God what he wants, you’ll get good (not necessarily what you want, but still good). The conclusion that Eliphaz made was that Job didn’t fulfill his end of the transaction.

    This the perspective that many people have of God, including many Christians. This view, however, does not have the joyful foundation that is essential to a Christian life. This view is fatalistic. In other words, the world is full of bad, and there is nothing we can do about it.

    Peter has a significantly different view. Peter, having spent time with Jesus, and life being transformed by Jesus through the Holy Spirit, know we can do something about it.

    Peter gives us direction on how to be life giving to fellow believers, and even to those who do not believe. Peter knows that bad will happen. Yet, he encourages his readers (and us) to rely on Jesus Christ. This reliance is the power of the joyful life that does not laugh in the face of danger, or dance in the midst of trial, but understands that God is there beside us in and through it all.

    1) How have you been fatalistic (i.e., “there’s nothing I can do”) in your lift?

    2) How are Peter’s words an antidote to fatalism?