Devotions

When the prophet Isaiah foretold the coming of Christ and his kingdom, he outlined what Christ’s true ministers would be like. In doing so, he defined our ministry in these last days when he said, “I want you to know the marks of the true people of God, those who will be ministering just before the Prince of Peace comes to reign.”

The prophet begins with these words: “Behold, a king will reign in righteousness” (Isaiah 32:1). Then he adds, “A man will be as a hiding place from the wind, and a cover from the tempest, as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land” (32:2).

Clearly, Isaiah is talking about Jesus here, and he goes on to tell us that a true servant of God will proclaim the all-sufficiency of Christ. Indeed, such a believer shuts himself in with Jesus, trusting his Lord to make his soul a well-watered garden. He lives in quiet confidence, his spirit at rest and full of peace. And he testifies, “I sat down in his shade with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love” (Song of Solomon 2:3-4).

Isaiah points out two distinguishing marks of the righteous servant: he has discernment and he knows the voice of God distinctly: “The eyes of those who see will not be dim, and the ears of those who hear will listen” (Isaiah 32:3).

When Christ first saw Nathaniel coming toward him, he cried, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!” (John 1:47). In other words, “Look, brothers, here comes a man who is not a hypocrite. There is no immorality or deceit in him. He’s a clean vessel.”  

Then Jesus turned to Nathaniel and said, “Hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man” (1:51). He was saying, “God is going to open up to you continuing revelations.”

Beloved, God makes this same covenant with you and every believer whose life is above reproach, with no hidden sin or dark secrets. Such a servant receives a continuous flow of the revelation of Christ’s glory. Determine in your heart today to pursue God with your whole heart so that you may continue to hear his voice.

After Jesus was crucified, Joseph, a rich man from Arimathea, took our Savior’s body and placed it in his own tomb. A massive stone was then rolled in place to seal the entrance to the tomb — causing all those around the Master to feel profoundly heartbroken and despondent. Scripture says a group of women, including Mary Magdalene, sat opposite the tomb, probably asking, “What will happen now that Jesus is gone? How do we go on?” (see Matthew 27: 57-61).

Then there were the disciples, who shut themselves up in a room, paralyzed with fear. “The doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews” (John 20:19). What were these disciples thinking? They could hardly imagine what was going to become of them all now that Jesus was gone.

We cannot fathom what Jesus’ death meant to his passionate followers. Their Master, the hope of the world, had healed the sick and lame, raised the dead, set captives free, and preached the good news of salvation. He was the embodiment of the new kingdom he preached about and when he said, “It is finished,” they must have thought he meant, “It’s over. I did everything I could but I couldn’t make it happen. This is the end of the story.”  They were all looking at things with the attitudes they held before the resurrection. But today we know the glorious end of the story.

Sadly, all too often Christians believe the wrong message as they endure the trials of life. They see no hope beyond their difficult situation, as if a stone permanently separates them from confidence and trust in the promises of God. Like the women at the tomb or the dejected disciples, all they can see before them is defeat — but Jesus has the last word!

“And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross” (Colossians 2:15, NIV).  Jesus triumphed over all principalities and powers when he rose from the grave. His victory has overcome all your failures! His power can set you free from addiction; his healing can restore broken relationships; his love can conquer every evil that tries to beat you down.

Know this! Jesus is always working on your behalf and he is on the move in your life at this very moment.

God spoke to Isaiah about a certain servant who delights his heart: “Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights” (Isaiah 42:1). Who is this one whom God sustains and upholds, guarding his every step? Who is his chosen, his elect — the one in whom he so delights?

We find the answer in Matthew’s gospel: “When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased’” (Matthew 3:16-17). The original word for “I am well pleased” here is “delight.” God was saying, “My soul delights in my son, Jesus Christ!”

Throughout the Old Testament, untold numbers of sheep and cattle were offered to the Lord as sacrifices, yet the Bible says none of these sacrifices brought the Lord any pleasure: “In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure” (Hebrews 10:6). Yet, in the very next verse we read these wonderful words from Jesus: “Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come … to do Your will, O God’” (10:7).

Christ came to earth to do what no animal sacrifice could do. God had prepared a physical body for him here on earth — a body that would provide the final, perfect sacrifice. In short, God abased himself for our sake. Encasing himself in a human womb, he took on our nature. He gave up the riches of heaven to become poor for us, giving his life to ransom us.

From the foundation of the world, God had only one plan: to reconcile fallen, sinful humankind and bring us back into his good graces. God’s plan for doing this was simple. He said, “I’m going to send forth my son as a deliverer and after he has died, risen, and stands before me, I will recognize only him.”

The Lord said, “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). God would never accept any works by human flesh, no matter how good they might appear. He would recognize only Christ, the servant who perfectly pleased and delighted him!

Sundays used to be the day set aside as the Lord’s Day, a day to worship God and rest from all other activities. Today, however, Sunday is no longer a hallowed day. Sadly, many Christians no longer look on Sunday as a day to prioritize Christian activities. Millions of believers can be seen heading for their family hideaway — a cabin in the mountains, a house in the country, a chalet at the lake. For them, Sunday is one big play day of boating, swimming, skiing, going on cruises or outings. 

What does the Lord have to say about the Sabbath? Well, in one place, Moses said, “The Lord has given you the Sabbath … so the people rested on the seventh day” (Exodus 16:29-30). In other words, the Sabbath was meant as a gift from God to man — and it had a holy purpose. You see, sabbath means, literally, “to cease,” or, “to stop what you’re doing.” And the fourth commandment tells us, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8).

The Bible describes it this way: “Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work …for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lords blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it” (Exodus 20:9-11).

What does it mean to keep the Sabbath holy? If it is not just a matter of legalistic obedience, and is rather a spiritual observance, then what must we do?

It definitely involves rest — physical rest — but there’s a holy rest that begins in the soul: “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God” (Hebrews 4:9). What is this rest? It is the laying of all our sin-burdens on Christ! God calls us to live all our days free of fear, worry and anxiety — to walk in the Spirit, with no more heavy burdens.

Beloved, rejoice over your position in Christ and let every day be a day of Sabbath as you honor him.

“We, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another” (Romans 12:5). By faith, we are the very members of Christ’s body, adopted into one family. There is no longer black, white, yellow, brown, Jew or Gentile. We are all of one blood — one new man — in Christ Jesus! And because of Christ’s work on the cross, man couldn’t become holy by good works, righteous deeds, human effort or strivings of the flesh.

“Having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace” (Ephesians 2:15). Only one man would be accepted by the Father: the new, resurrected man. And when this new man presented to his Father all who had faith in him, the Father responded, “I receive you all as holy, because you are in my holy son!”

We have been sealed by the Holy Spirit. “That in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ … In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise” (Ephesians 1:10, 13). So you see, holiness is not something we do, or attain, or work up. Rather, it is something we believe! The path to holiness is not through human ability but through faith.

God’s message about holiness isn’t about outward things. It is about faith—and he makes it very clear and simple. This is his wonderful answer to the anxious cries of multitudes of Christians who thirst for the understanding of how to be holy. We are holy as we rest in his holiness!

Beloved, put off all reliance on the flesh and make this your declaration: “I claim my holiness that is in Christ Jesus. I’m a part of his body and my Father sees me as holy — because I am in Christ!”