“Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep.  I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren.” (2 Corinthians 11:25-26)

Life in this world of rebellion is dangerous.  All the more so in Paul’s time.  Yet, throughout the ages there have been those who were willing to go to whatever length necessary to share the good news of Jesus.  To what extent will you go out to the world to share the faith that has been given you?  Will you remain silent, or will you share that Jesus has borne all our sorrow that we may live as we were created to live?

Lord, I hear the report and there are those who have gone to great lengths that Your truth may be shared.  I often sit quietly aside from what is happening in the world and do nothing.  Help me to do the part You have in mind for me that I would share and not consider the cost.  Lead me, O Lord, the way You know I need to be led.  Guide me according to Your goodness and mercy.

Lord Jesus, there are those who have come along that paid a great price with their own bodies to deliver the truth of the Gospel.  Help me to always be thankful for how easily I have received what others gave their lives to receive.  Lead me to rejoice in the company of the saints knowing I cannot know the cost which I too often take for granted.  Guide me into eternal thankfulness.  Amen.

Monday, December 25, 2017 Devotion

“They will be delivered over to the power of the sword; they will be a prey for foxes.  But the king will rejoice in God; everyone who swears by Him will glory, for the mouths of those who speak lies will be stopped.”  (Psalm 63:10-11)

Though the world rage and do its damage, yet the Lord will prevail.  Nothing can thwart the plans of the Lord, for He alone is Sovereign.  Come into the Lord’s presence and know the goodness of His surpassing mercy for those who love.  To them He gives life and the promise is that all who lie, cheat, steal and kill shall pass away.  Come to the Lord and know the true power of eternity.

Lord, all day long there are those who come against me with their wickedness.  I too have succumbed and do not love my neighbor as myself.  Guide me, O Lord, to live into the life to which You have called me that I would hold fast to the promises You give.  Help me see more clearly that You are always there and that Your goodness shall always prevail.  Let me seek You in every time of danger.

Lord Jesus, You know how the wicked of this age put You to death, yet it is what You came for.  There is nothing they can do that You do not already know.  Let me come into Your rest that I would walk humbly with You in the salvation You provide, knowing that only in You is there hope and a future.  Guide me this day to celebrate Your goodness and Your coming for all who believe.  Amen.

“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” (St. Paul, writing in Philippians 2:3)

As our nation faces another shocking set of murders, it’s good to pause and remember why Christians walk a different path.  After all, it’s one thing to know your morals, and quite another to know why they’re your morals.  Why should we reject rivalry and conceit?

We can surely see the danger of both sins.  Rivalry led to the first murder on earth: Cain killing his brother Abel because Abel had the more acceptable sacrifice.  Conceit abetted the worse murder on earth: Jesus on the cross, arrested by those who thought themselves better than him.  The spirit of rivalry and pride—the hatred of our neighbor—lurks beneath every murder.  

But knowing a sin’s potential danger is not enough.  Our sinful hearts can quickly imagine an exception for ourselves, a justification for sin that makes us imagine that we can manage the risk. Better to know the true foundation of our morality: God gave His Son for sinners.   

Because God stands at the center of all reality, that sacrificial love for all people stands there, too.  God counted sinners more significant than Himself, so significant that He gave His life for theirs.  Being His children, and thus desiring to live in harmony with Him, we follow on that same path: no rivalry, no conceit, no murder, but only loving neighbors as our true selves.  

LET US PRAY: Forgive me, Lord.  I’d rather love myself than my neighbor, and so I do, on most days.  I am not You, Lord, as You know full well, and I often forget.  Yet since it is Your glory to have compassion on the sinner, have compassion on me.  By Your Holy Spirit grant that I would learn to find my true self not in myself, but in Your Son, and so also in His neighbors, and thus forgetting myself, love You and neighbor alike; through Christ Your Son.  Amen

Pastor Steven K. Gjerde

Zion, Wausau