14 September 2015

Scripture:

• Luke 9:51-10:24
• Ezekiel 4:1-5:4
• 2 Samuel 4
• Psalm 44

Observations:

• Luke 10:13-14

Let me just say this: the whole Luke passage is phenomenal. I wish more people read this segment. 

Missions is selfless, is harsh, it lacks the comfortable amenities of home, and yet, there is power that comes from Christ. If you want to see faith in action, go speak to a missionary; ask them their stories.

Seriously, I could just leave the devotional here, but I'll continue.

Ezekiel, conversely, is prophesying the siege of Jerusalem (and by the description, it looks to be a rough siege). The 2 Samuel passage clearly shows David's character. Many kings in the day, especially if they were of a different dynasty, would kill off every other possible heir. Here, David punishes the men who sought out Saul's family and killed them, where most kings would have rewarded them. In the psalm, it appears as though the psalmist is asking God why, though he and those with him are following God faithfully, others deride, slaughter, and mock them and is asking for God to rise and come to their aid.

Application:

Really, I see a call to live differently. David is recognised and commended for his difference in attitude. Christ sends out 72 disciples with instructions that set them apart from everybody else. In the psalm, David is persecuted for following God, yet in Ezekiel, God is punishing Jerusalem for disobeying him and becoming like the cities and nations all around her.

Knowledge of and a relationship with God demands difference. We cannot say we know God and continue our lives unchanged from the world. James describes those who hear God's word and do not act as those who see themselves in a mirror then, when walking away, forget what they look like. It should be absurd for a Christian to not be affected by his relationship with Christ.

We'd think it should be absurd, and yet, we so often sell our faith short because of what others will think. We make the mistake of Jerusalem and try to fit in. I know. I, myself, am included in this group. Too many times, I have passed up on the opportunity to show Christ boldly, to evangelise to my friends, to make an active stand for my beliefs, instead, taking the easy route to basic acceptance by implicit agreement, non-action, and passivity.

Living out the gospel is difficult and has high demands, but it's how we should be living.

Prayer:

God, I'm sorry. I really don't quite know what to say or how to say it. I'm easily complacent. I mistake my timidity in actively standing apart for the meekness which should make up a follower of you. You know where I stand, Lord. I'm looking at my past and current states, disappointed and ashamed with my track record, but willfully hoping that I'll be bold and outspoken in the future. I know what they say, that the future starts today, but yet, I feel like I can put off this change for countless tomorrows.

Lord, replace my spirit of timidity and fear for one of boldness. Help me to step out and go, do, as you command. I thank you for my wife, to whom such boldness, despite her shyness, comes so easily, but I ask that I would not become so complacent as to let her do and work, but to grow in myself, to put aside what is for what should be. Change my heart, Lord, please.

Amen