Category: Devotions

TUESDAY October 10^th

 

1 Peter 4:1–2

‘Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God.’

 

Sometimes when I am preparing devotions, oftentimes a few weeks in advance, something happens that is bang in line with whatever the Scripture is that I may be turning to on that occasion. Now I am preparing this devotion on the 26^th of September, and every week, I listen to other Church services on YouTube, often just on in the background so that I can join in with the worship songs and I love to listen to the preaching. It so happened on the 26^th September that I had a particular service playing, and the preacher began his message and it was based on 1 John 2:15-17 and the more I listened the more I noticed how it fitted in with the verses I have for us today from 1 Peter, and the preachers sermon heading was ‘Uncomfortable in the world’.

 

Here is the reference from 1 John, ‘Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.’

 

Scripture is and must be our handbook not only to show us the way of salvation, but to enable us to live rightly in this world as believers. Notice that 1 Peter and 1 John both very clearly teach that we should no longer live according to or be conformed to the ways of the world, but rather we should be living for and according to the will of God.

 

Let me consider the preachers sermon heading again ‘Uncomfortable in the world’ Both Peter and John were writing to believers who needed reminding that they should not live in such a way that they become comfortable living in the same way as their unbelieving friends, but Jesus and the gospel should have made such a difference that they would become uncomfortable in the world.

 

The challenge for us is the same, have we really fallen in love with Jesus and with his word and with his ways, so much so that we feel uncomfortable with that in the world that is not in accord to living a life that God expects us to live, which is one of separation and holiness.  Or do we just live in a way in which on the one hand we are seeking to live for Jesus, while at the same time on the other hand still seeking to be comfortable with involvement in the things of the world that our Saviour has saved us from.

 

I am going to add two Scripture reference here which came up in the sermon that I heard, the first links in with ministry I gave a few months back about choosing who we will serve, it is 1 Kings 18:21 ‘How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.’ We cannot serve or live for two masters.

 

Romans 12:2 ‘Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.’

 

The same theme continues in the verses we turn to in our next devotion.

MONDAY October 9^th

 

1 Peter 3:21–22

‘. . . resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him’.

 

This is our third visit to these verses and I want us to consider what else Peter says concerning the ascended Lord and it is this, that angels, authorities and powers have all been made subject to him. In Ephesians 1:21 we read that Jesus is seated in the heavenly places ‘far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come’. Jesus is both the King of kings and the Lord of Lords. He has been exalted to the highest place, and he has been given the highest name. And it is before him that every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

 

A little chorus I can remember us singing back in my Hereford days was this one,

 

Far above all, far above all,

God has exalted him far above all,

Crown him as Lord at this feet humbly fall,

Jesus Christ Jesus, is far above all.

 

Psalm 2 records the arrival of Jesus back into heaven, and the psalmist calls him ‘The King of glory’ and states very clearly that he is the LORD, strong and mighty, mighty in battle’ and the death and the resurrection of Jesus was exactly that, a battle that Jesus fought and in which he triumphed. In Colossians we read ‘He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him’ (2:15)

 

Now, because all angels, authorities and powers are subject to Jesus we who have come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ can be assured of what we read in Romans 8:38-39 ‘For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.’ Why can we be sure, because Jesus is over and above all these things and we are more than conquerors through him who loved us(Romans 8:37).

FRIDAY October 6^th

 

1 Peter 3:21–22

‘. . . resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him’.

 

The good news of the gospel continues with more, after the resurrection, Jesus went back up into heaven and is at the right hand of God. I like the words of the hymn that pens the ascension of Jesus for us

 

See, the Conqu’ror mounts in triumph;

see the King in royal state,

riding on the clouds, his chariot,

to his heav’nly palace gate.

Hear the choir of angel voices

joyful alleluias sing,

and the gates on high are opened

to receive their heav’nly King.

 

Who is this that comes in glory,

trumpets sound with jubilee?

Lord of battles, God of armies,

he has gained the victory.

He who on the cross did suffer,

he who from the grave arose,

he has conquered sin and Satan,

he by death has beat his foes.

 

We read in Acts 1:11 that the disciples stood gazing as Jesus was taken up from them into heaven, Peter who has written this epistle was one of them, he along with the others had witnessed the death, they had seen both the empty tomb and the risen Jesus and they watched him return to heaven. Therefore Peter could write with authority our text today. He saw Jesus go up.

 

And as amazing as seeing the ascension take place must have been to witness, what followed would have been even more amazing, for Scripture tells us that Jesus went to be at the right hand of God and as Paul tells us in Philippians 2 that Jesus was given the name which is above every other name. Other Scriptures affirm to us that he is there and what happened when he arrived. For example, Stephen the first Christian martyr saw Jesus in the moments when he was being stoned to death and he cried out exactly what it was that he saw ‘Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God’ (Acts 7:56),  it was confirmation to the crowd gathered around as he was being stoned of  what Peter had already preached on the day of Pentecost ‘This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God’ (Acts2:32-33).

 

Now we could refer to other Scriptures, but for now I want the devotion to lead us to the wonder that the man who ascended, is also the man who is appearing in heaven on our behalf, in the words of another song, Jesus is King, we have verse 2 and 3

 

We have a hope that is steadfast and certain,

Gone through the curtain and touching the throne.

We have a priest who is there interceding,

Pouring his grace on our lives day by day.

 

We come to him, our priest and apostle,

Clothed in his glory and bearing his name,

Laying our lives with gladness before him;

Filled with his Spirit we worship the King.

 

The One who died, rose and ascended is not only our wonderful Saviour, he is also our great High Priest.

 

We will continue with 1 Peter 3:21–22 again.

THURSDAY October 5^th

 

1 Peter 3:21–22

‘. . . resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him’.

 

In affirming in verse 18 that ‘Christ also suffered once for our sins’ Peter comes to where we are today in verses 21 and 22 to remind us that Christ was raised from the dead and has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God.

 

Within these few verses, 18-22, we see the fundamental truths that make the gospel what it is, the good news of salvation. Jesus needed to suffer once for our sins, but he also needed to be raised, for his resurrection demonstrates beyond any doubt that he had won the victory over Satan, sin, death and the grave and that he has the power to grant eternal life.

 

Remember what Peter has already written in the first chapter, ‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead’. (1:3) In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul teaches us so much concerning the importance of the gospel and what the resurrection of Christ means for each one who believes.

 

Those of you that hear me preach on a regular basis already know that this resurrection chapter is my favourite chapter in the Bible, it reminds us so clearly that if Christ has not been raised then our hope is in vain, but Paul affirms in verses 20-22, ‘But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive’.

 

May we always keep the truth and the wonder of both the death and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ in the forefront of our lives for this is our eternal hope and as Paul says of first importance, ‘Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures . . .’ (verses 1-4). I will continue with the 1 Peter 3:21-22 in the next devotion.

WEDNESDAY October 4^th

 

1 Peter 3:20–21

‘. . . because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ . . .’

 

These verses are not the easiest to understand, especially as they seem to indicate that baptism is the means of our salvation ‘Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you’. In fact in the preparing of this devotion, I had to turn to a number of different commentaries and various study Bibles for help, and discovered that there were so many differing interpretations I just had to seek to explain it the best way I possibly could. I hope my explanation will help in some way!

 

Peter is looking back into history to the time when God was going to destroy the world with the flood, and save from out of it, Noah and his family, thus eight were saved to enable a new start to take place once the flood had subsided.

 

Peter looks back to that time and considers all those who would have witnessed Noah building the ark and would have heard him warn of what God was about to do and yet they refused to believe, thus just Noah and his family were brought safely through the water. The same water that destroyed also saved, it destroyed those who failed to believe and saved those who were in the ark because it floated on the same water until it eventually came to rest on Ararat.

 

Peter links into this the resurrection of Jesus, and this when compared to the water in Noah’s time reminds us that the resurrection will also lead to some being destroyed, and others being saved. On the one side, those who are destroyed because many will fail to listen to and respond to the hope of salvation and the only message of salvation that comes as result of Christ’s death and resurrection and those on the other side who will be saved because they will have heeded and been saved for eternity.

 

Thus the message of the Cross and the resurrection is likened to the water of the flood, and we are saved as we come by faith to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, if I can put it this way Jesus is the ark into which we have taken refuge, but once saved, this should then lead to the water of baptism, for just as God commands all men to repent (Acts 17:30) he also commands us through the appeal of the apostles to be baptised, for example in Acts 2:38 ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’ and Mark 16:16 ‘Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned’, baptism is not meant to be an optional extra but an essential aspect of our salvation and faith and it is the means by which we affirm our belief in the Lord Jesus Christ and by which we are making a statement, declaring that we are now living a new life, showing that we have been cleansed and we seek to live with a good conscience before God.

MONDAY October 2^nd

 

1 Peter 3:18

‘For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit . . .’

 

After bringing up the subject of suffering, Peter reminds us that Christ also has suffered, and the reason being for our sin. The way Peter has written this is important, he says ‘suffered once for sins’, this is an important reminder that Christ’s suffering or sacrifice for sins was a once for all time sacrifice, a never to be repeated sacrifice. What Christ accomplished at Calvary was sufficient for all time, and the only sacrifice that God has and will accept for all time.

 

The Hebrew writer has also established this in his letter where he writes in chapter 9:24-26  ‘For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.’

 

And what a sacrifice it was! For as a result you and I are able to come to the Lord Jesus Christ as sinners and know what it is to be forgiven, cleansed and to be made saints, and brought into the family of God as his sons and daughters.

 

The suffered once, which also means for all time, verifies what Jesus himself had said that he was the only way, the truth and the life and that no one can come to the Father except through him. It is only through Christ and the way that he has suffered for us that any man or woman can have access into the presence of God, there is no other way, there will never be another sacrifice. It is only by or through the shed blood of Jesus that we can be saved.

 

In suffering once, he took our sins and our sorrows and he made them his very own, he bore the burden to Calvary and suffered and died alone.

 

How marvellous, how wonderful, our song shall ever be.

FRIDAY September 29^th

 

1 Peter 3:13–14

‘Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed.’

 

I want to conclude these few devotions on the theme of suffering for the sake of the gospel  by returning back to 1:67, ’In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.’

 

How genuine would your faith be, and mine, if we were to be tested by various trials that are greater and more severe than anything that we have ever been tested with up until this point? 

 

The psalmist said, ‘For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried.’ Psalm 66:10

 

Proverbs 17:3 says, ‘The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,  and the Lord tests hearts.’

 

To Israel the LORD said, ‘Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;  I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.’ Isaiah 48:10

 

Job could say, ‘But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.’ Job 23:10

 

How would we come through the furnace of testing? Would we come out as gold? The challenge perhaps is for each one of us to allow the Spirit of God to examine our hearts, to cause us to look at the places where we allow the soles of our feet to tread, to see those things we allow our eyes to watch and our ears to hear, to see the company we choose most to spend our time with and to see if there is any grievous way within us, that would cause us to falter, fall or even fail should a season of suffering befall us. 

 

God give us the help and strength to always stand tall, keep us close to your side, keep us firmly established upon your Word with our eyes fixed upon Jesus.  

May I be willing, Lord, to bear daily my cross for thee; then touch my lips with holy fire, to speak of Calvary.

THURSDAY September 28^th

 

1 Peter 3:13–14

‘Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed.’

 

1 Peter 5:8-11

‘Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.’ 

 

Is it not wonderful to have these precious promises that are found in God’s word that give to us wonderful reassurance that God is with us, even when we go through any suffering that we may have to go endure! 

 

First we are reminded here that when we suffer, we are not alone for the same kind of suffering is being undertaken all around the world.

 

Secondly when we are suffering, God is with us! Think about the circumstances of the three Hebrew lads, on that occasion the presence of God with them was visible! But even though we may not see the visible presence of God, we will feel it!

 

Thirdly, the God of all grace will restore, confirm, strengthen and establish.

 

We are not alone, we are family together and God our Father is on our side and if God is for us, who can be against us, and we can be confident that nothing, absolutely nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

The early Church suffered much for the sake of the gospel. Consider the disciples immediately after they had healed the lame man in Acts 4 and what about Stephen who became the first Christian martyr. What about those who were thrown into prison for preaching the gospel.

 

Consider also Paul with all that he lists in 2 Corinthians 11:23-29, ‘Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labours, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?’ 

 

All this in the experience of Paul was a fulfilment of the word that God gave to Ananias in Acts 9:16 concerning him when he was still called Saul, ‘For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.’ ‘I will show him’, indicates that God was going to give him a preview of what was to come in regards to his suffering and yet he was willing to be an ambassador for the gospel. Never boasting of himself or in himself but always boasting in the Cross of Christ. And it cost him! 

 

We could look down through Church history through the centuries that have followed, periods where the Church and individuals have suffered much, far more than we can even imagine, including martyrdom for the sake of the gospel, and we come right up today into the 21st century, and we have brothers and sister who are enduring so much for the sake of the gospel, in countries that are far more opposed to Christ than our own nation.

 

Again as I have previously done, I encourage each of us to pray for those who are being persecuted for their faith.

WEDNESDAY September 27^th

 

1 Peter 3:13–14

‘Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed.’

 

1 Peter 4:1-2

‘Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God.’

 

Following on from yesterday, here it is again ‘Christ suffered’. If we truly desire to live in total obedience to or for the will of God, we have to ‘arm ourselves with the same way of thinking’, that means we have to be willing to be like Jesus, following his example which was a perfect example.

 

For us it means saying ‘NO’ to the world, NO to the desires of the flesh, NO to the old sinful nature and NO to the ideals that the world follows that are opposite to God’s ideals.

 

It is saying ’YES’ to God, YES to his ways, YES to walking in the Spirit, YES to living by the Spirit, therefore, it will mean that somewhere along our course, our pilgrimage as strangers and foreigners or exiles, it will lead to us having to suffer, maybe through ridicule, maybe through rejection, maybe even at times feeling we are friendless and isolated, being the lone voice in the school, college or university, being the only one who stands up for righteousness and godly morals in the work place, it may even be for some in the family home.

 

But out of our willingness to follow Christ’s example there will come joy! Even here in 1 Peter 4:4 Peter says that because we do not join in with the unbelievers behaviour, they will malign us, but remember that as you stand firm in your conviction, even if it leads to suffering, they themselves will one day have to give an account of their behaviour to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 

 

As we continue to 1 Peter 4:12-19 we read,

 

‘Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.’

 

I wonder how often we have been surprised when we have suddenly had to suffer for our faith, or our willingness to stand up for the faith? Peter says don’t be surprised! If we look back over what I have already shared from this epistle, we will remember that we have been saved, we are being sanctified and we are sojourners as we make our way to the heavenly city.

 

Therefore who we are, what we think and how we behave is in stark contrast to those who do not believe (or should be, the line of demarcation has most definitely become blurred over the last few decades). Therefore we should expect to be opposed, we should expect to be alienated, we should expect to be ridiculed and maligned and at times to have to suffer, because we are no longer wanted in what has become a secular, post Christian age, the same way that men and women no longer wanted Jesus when they cried out ‘away with him’. But thank God he is still at work, still saving and still building his Church, he is still calling men and women who will be willing to take up the Cross, to deny themselves and if needed to be willing to suffer for his names sake.

TUESDAY September 26^th

 

 1 Peter 3:13–14

‘Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed.’

 

Peter highlights the subject of suffering in his epistle in the following verses, 1 Peter 4:1-2,12-19 and 5:8-11 which we will turn to during the devotions, but in his very first chapter and verses 6-7, he talks of the various trials, which would include the area of suffering, and in these verses he informs the readers of their purpose, ‘In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.’

 

I guess we should be asking ourselves have I had to suffer for the gospel in some way? If we truly are standing up for it our answer should be yes! It may not be with having to suffer or being persecuted in as extreme ways as we hear and read about in some of the other countries of the world, but in some small way we should all have known some kind of suffering as we have stood up to defend the faith. And the perpetrators don’t necessarily come from outside, they may come from within the Church as we have had to stand firm upon a doctrinal matter or a moral issue and we have been ridiculed for it, maybe even called a bigot, maybe even have been badly treated by those whom we should be able to call our brothers and sisters. And sadly within the UK and the Western Church much of the opposition against the Christian faith and against the Word of God is coming from within, through liberalism, progressive Christianity (if it is Christianity at all) etc.

 

Going back to the verses in chapter one, Peter affirms to his readers that the various trials are proving the genuineness of their faith! James writing his epistle also says in 1:2-4, ‘Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.’ It almost seems to be a glaring contradiction to say ‘count it all joy when you suffer’, for nobody would willingly want to suffer, let alone rejoice in it, but there is a joy that comes from out of it that unless we go through it we will never know, Jesus is our prime example, as Peter says, ‘For Christ also suffered for our sins,’ and we learn from the book of Hebrews, he willingly suffered because he knew of the joy that lay before him, and today he is receiving immeasurable joy as he looks and sees those who have been washed in his blood, he has joy today as he sees you and me! And Jesus would say, ‘the suffering was worth it all!’