KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Friday, May 18, 2018
Chapters: Psalms 26, 40, 58, 61-62, & 64
Message: In The Name of Jesus
Hello My Friend,
As I was driving home last night I saw something amazing, it was that time between dusk and night, the sun was just about gone, barely noticeable as the darkness took over, and it was raining. I was waiting for the traffic light when what should appear, a rainbow, in the dark sky. I have seen rainbows appear in the daytime as the weather was clearing up, and while they are all beautiful sights, I have never seen one appear in the dark like that. It truly was an amazing sight, and a great reminder of how God can bring something beautiful out of the darkest moments of our lives. I know that the rainbow is God’s promise that He would never destroy the earth with a flood ever again, but to me it is much more than that. When I see a rainbow I see a promise of God’s everlasting love, protection, and preservation for those who love Him. Let me tell you, loving God does not come easy, but God makes it easy as we learn to fear Him, trust Him, and follow Him. “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:” – Romans 3:10-12,24.
“Being justified freely by his grace” Yes, I know I started yesterdays message with the same passage, but I thought it necessary to remind ourselves that it is Christ in us that teaches us to love God, after all, He loves us first. And by the way, we truly do not understand the power of His redeeming love until we come to a point in our lives when we find ourselves at His mercies. It often takes the darkest moments of our lives to see just what Jesus went through to save us and it is at that point when we decide that pleasing God is more important than pleasing the desires of our flesh. Loving God does not mean that we will never sin, but it does mean that we learn to have some integrity. David understood this, and yes, he messed up plenty of times, which is why he thought it necessary to ask God to examine him to make sure his integrity was not marred.
“A Psalm of David. Judge me, O LORD; for I have walked in mine integrity: I have trusted also in the LORD; therefore I shall not slide. Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart. For thy lovingkindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth. I have not sat with vain persons, neither will I go in with dissemblers. I have hated the congregation of evil doers; and will not sit with the wicked. I will wash mine hands in innocency: so will I compass thine altar, O LORD: That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works.” – Psalm 26:1-7.
“and will not sit with the wicked.” The fact that a person is saved when they call on Christ does not mean they are exempt from be tempted and tried by those who would just love to see them fall. In fact, the closer you get to Him the more the devil will tempt you by introducing these people into your life. However, it does mean that they have the power of Christ in us to help endure those temptations and get away from them. Of course, we are not perfect and since we are not perfect we are going to sin sometimes, which is why we must make it an effort to avoid getting into those situations in the first place. David found out the hard way about the importance of being a living sacrifice, not living as you please then seeking forgiveness from God.
“Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required. Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart. I have preached righteousness in the great congregation: lo, I have not refrained my lips, O LORD, thou knowest. I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart; I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation: I have not concealed thy lovingkindness and thy truth from the great congregation. Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O LORD: let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually preserve me. For innumerable evils have compassed me about: mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head: therefore my heart faileth me. Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me: O LORD, make haste to help me.” – Psalm 40:6-13.
“mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up;” The more we walk with Christ the more we discover how sinful we are. I watch little babies sometimes and see the sin nature that we are born with. Being a living sacrifice does not mean that we are to sit in a corner and read the Bible all day, it means we are to live our lives in a way that is pleasing to God, not our flesh, and that includes keeping our bodies pure. “Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.” – I Corinthians 6:15-18.
It is by the grace of God that we are not persecuted for every little thing that we do in the flesh, it is by our faithfulness that we walk in the ways of Jesus, and in case you have not noticed, Jesus has mercy on all sinners. We are not always going to do what is right, and sometimes we do not have to sin to do wrong, we just make decisions that are not wise, but that is what Jesus is for, He is our shelter from the elements that we bring ourselves into.
“To the chief Musician upon Neginah, A Psalm of David. Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy. I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah. For thou, O God, hast heard my vows: thou hast given me the heritage of those that fear thy name.” – Psalm 61:1-5.
“lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” Rock; Defense; means of safety; protection; strength; asylum. Firmness; a firm or immovable foundation. Jesus is our Rock, the immovable foundation that is not only our defense, but our hope, our peace, our strength, our safety, our protection, and our salvation. So as we wait upon God’s love to see us through all the days of our lives here and into eternity, together, we can say with David, “My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.” – Psalm 62:5-8.
“pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us.” Once saved, always saved, but to truly understand and have the life that God wants us to have, we need to walk with Christ daily. Of course, we are not always going to be bright eyed and eager to walk with Him some days, but God knows our heart and what we are going through. Sometimes all we need is to let Him know that we will not be moved, that we love and honor Him, not for the sake of the Law, but to be renewed in Christ every day. “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak; Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you. For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God. For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” – II Corinthians 4:13-16.
Jesus Christ Magnified: “He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.” – Psalm 40:2-3.
Today’s Prayer: Jesus, Thank You for loving me and giving Your life for me. You loved me well before I loved you and proved that by taking all my sins to the cross with You and offering Yourself as the sacrifice for my redemption. It is a good thing that we do not have to repay You for what You have done because I know I would never be able to do enough to pay You back, but I do want to honor You by living my life as a living sacrifice for You. It is not always easy, I know I mess up, especially when my flesh is tired and weak, but You are my strength, You are my Rock, the only foundation that will never move me. Praise God! Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me. When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek. Hide not thy face far from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation. In Your name Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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