“...WAIT, I SAY, ON THE LORD!”(Psalm 27:14)

READING: John 20: 1-18

Verse 16: “Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ She turned and said to Him, ‘Rabboni!’ (which is to say Teacher)”

John Chapter 20 describes what happened shortly after our Lord was placed in the tomb. Mary  Magdalene went there to look where she thought His body would be. Instead, she found that He was gone. Therefore, she went to Peter and John for help. When they also confirmed He was not there, they became confused and departed. Mary, however, remained at the tomb. Because she stayed there, she was the first person to see the resurrected Savior. Sometimes we have similar experiences. We find ourselves needing Jesus, so we look where we think He should be. If He doesn’t seem to be there, people at times experience disappointment or even disillusionment. Worst of all, people may entirely give up on finding resolution in the Lord. Mary’s experience teaches us to do better. From her response we can learn to remain, hold fast and wait for Jesus. For those who wait on the Lord, He
is faithful to appear and to provide. As the Bible says in Psalm 27, He will strengthen your heart. That’s a thought – about God’s Word.

RESPONSE

1. Where do you look and how do you respond when you need contact with Jesus?

2. What do you learn from Mary’s experience?

THE GREATEST POWER

READING: JOHN 18:1-11

Verse 6: “Now when He said to them’ ‘I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground.”

Jesus went to the cross and suffered death as the result of the sinfulness of mankind. This death, however, should not be mistaken for weakness. He did not die because He was overpowered by the devil and was helpless. The Lord deliberately made the decision to freely give His life as a sacrificial act of love. The Bible gives us an idea of the power available to Jesus just prior to His crucifixion.  John 18 describes how troops from the chief priests and Pharisees arrived at the Garden of Gethsemane to arrest the Lord. When Jesus spoke to identify Himself to them, they drew back and fell to the ground. They were unable to stand before Him! At that time the Heavenly Father would have provided 12 legions of angels for Jesus at His request. Literally, that amounts to some 84,000 angels. Actually it is a number given to represent limitless overwhelming power. In the end, however, Jesus displayed the greatest power of all. That was the mighty power of His Holy love as He gave Himself for us. That’s a thought – about God’s Word.

RESPONSE

1. If you were able to speak with power such as Jesus demonstrated, what is the first way you would use it?

2. What do you conclude about the contrast between the restraint of Jesus and the attempt by Peter to use force?

FINDERS KEEPERS

READING: 1 CHRONICLES 28: 1-9

Verse 9: “As for you my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve him with a loyal heart and with a willing mind; for the LORD searches all hearts and understands all the intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will cast you off  forever.”

God is truly amazing as He brings people together as couples. These matchups are often so unlikely that it is impossible to anticipate them before He pulls them off. The people involved just simply  could not know to be present at the right place and time in order to meet each other. Sometimes these types of meetings are know as “matches made in heaven”, or may be referred to as “divine  appointments”. People who do not know to specifically seek each other and become connected, are able to do so because the Lord causes it to happen. Since He causes us to find what we don’t even know to seek, how powerful He must be in making us able to find what we are seeking. This is even more so if what we are seeking is God Himself. The verse quoted above tells us that. Sometimes  people feel pressured to find the Lord, especially when they have important needs. There is good news! The pressure is off! When we honestly and sincerely seek Him, He is the One who makes Himself sure to be found. That’s a thought – about God’s Word.

RESPONSE

1. What significant divine appointments have you experienced?

2. Is there any aspect of your life where God is not found? Whether there are such areas or if there are not, what is your response?

WE DON’T GET WHAT WE DESERVE

READING: LUKE 9:51-56

Verse 56: “For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them...”

Joshua 7:1 tells us that a man named Achan committed a trespass by taking of the accursed things. These were items that had been designated for total destruction. Achan then attempted to conceal his theft. Prior to this, God had established that anyone taking accursed things, would themselves become accursed. Although Achan successfully concealed his theft from other people, he could not hide it  from the Lord. Achan therefore became accursed and personally marked for destruction, along with what he had taken. The Lord exposed him and his execution is recorded in Joshua 7:25. When Christians sin, we take of accursed things. God knows our sin and we deserve destruction, but we are not  executed. Our experiences differ from Achan’s, not because we are any better than he was, but  because the Lord Jesus has saved us. Luke 9:56, as above, captures this perfectly. He has saved us! That’s a thought – about God’s Word.

RESPONSE

1. Are there any accursed things around you of which you must take care?

2. Accursed things were marked for destruction. These days, how can accursed things be destroyed.

MEMORIAL DAY

READING: JOSHUA 4:1-24

Verse 7: “Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a monument to the children of Israel forever.”

When the people of Israel crossed into the Promised Land, they built a monument. As stated in verse 7 above, it was to be a memorial before them forever. They built it to honor the Lord and to  acknowledge His supernatural provision. This monument did become a memorial just as Joshua had specified. It stood as a visual reminder of God’s faithfulness. It was another of many reasons for them to remember and recite the history of the goodness of their Lord to their nation. We also have  opportunities to memorialize the acts of God in our lives and families. Although we may not stack up rocks, we can obtain similar results in other ways. We can use any of the many media that are  available to make records of events. We can even place mementoes in and around our homes as reminders of what the Lord has done. As modern Christians we should also establish monuments to God. That’s a thought – about God’s Word.

RESPONSE

1. Next to your salvation, what is the main event in your life that deserves a memorial to God?

2. Is there anything in your home that serves as a monument of an important event? Does this reading influence the meaning of your memorial?

FROM TOO HIGH TO JUST RIGHT

READING: ROMANS 12:1-8

Verse 3: "For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.”

This verse of scripture provides an important message regarding our self perceptions and  impressions. For many people who do think too highly of themselves, the process of getting there has likely been a very subtle one. In fact I suspect that most who tend to do this don’t even recognize its presence in their lives. For a person who becomes convicted and needs to repent of lofty thinking, Romans 12:3 is useful in its instruction to think soberly. It might be assumed that  thinking soberly is the opposite of thinking drunkenly. That is probably pretty close to the intended meaning of this passage. Thinking soberly involves using soundness and rightness of mind to arrive at godly resolution and responses. So that this can be accomplished, we have been granted the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). When we accept the influence of that spiritual mind, the result will be sober thinking and properly balanced self perceptions. That’s a thought – about God’s Word.

RESPONSE

1. What is your right response to one who thinks to highly of himself or herself? br />
2. Have you made yourself available to receive input about your self perceptions?

ARE WE ON YOUR WATCH?

READING: MARK 13:24-37

Verse 37: “And what I say to you I say to all: ‘Watch’”

We are not active watchers today in the sense that people have been in former times. I think of how sailors used to watch for land, of how scouts watched in advance of armies, explorers or wagon trains. Lookouts and guards watched for the approach of the enemy. The art of watching in those ways is largely lost to us today. Instead, in our time, we have become watchers of screens. We watch computer screens, TV screens, movie screens and even our cell phones are small screens. For security and surveillance purposes, we watch video and radar monitors which are also screens. However, for we who are Christians, there is a different type of watching that is our assignment. We are commended to a spiritual watch. We accomplish it as we anticipate the return of the Lord Jesus. He instructed us about this kind of watching as He spoke the words that are recorded above in Mark 13, to the  disciples. His message to us is crystal clear. We are to watch for the return of our Lord, and the success of that watch is assured. He will be seen because no one will miss His appearing! That’s a thought – about God’s Word.

RESPONSE

1. What can you learn from contemporary screen watching that will be useful for application in your spiritual life?

2. Mark 13:34 says the doorkeeper was commanded to watch. Check that verse to see if and/or how you identify with the doorkeeper role.