Devotions

You Are the King of Israel

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The gospel of John opens in John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” and in John 1:3 “All things came into being through him”. It is God acting on our behalf, it is God, the Word, who in John 1:14 “became flesh and took up residence among us, and we saw his glory, glory as of the one and only from the Father, full of grace and truth”. Yet the world did not know him, the world did not recognize him. But some, like Nathanael did and in every generation some have and in John 1:12–13 “as many as received him—to those who believe in his name—he gave to them authority to become children of God, 13 who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a husband, but of God”. 

In the Beginning was the Word

John 1:1–9
The gospel of John doesn’t begin with a salutation or description of the writer, it begins with the central message of Christianity that “the Word became flesh and took up residence among us” in John 1:14. John starts in the first sentence saying in John 1:1 “In the beginning … God”. This work that Jesus Christ came to do, reconciling humanity to God, wasn’t an afterthought, and it wasn’t the last resort because Jesus, the Word, was there from the beginning. Paul said it this way in

1 Corinthians 2:7 but we speak the hidden wisdom of God in a mystery, which God predestined before the ages for our glory,

John introduces Jesus Christ as “the true light” that has now entered the world in

John 1:9 The true light, who gives light to every person, was coming into the world. 

As Many As Received Him

John 1:10–18
John the writer, and John the Baptist both testify that Jesus is the one, not just savior, but also the creator in

John 1:3 All things came into being through him, and apart from him not one thing came into being that has come into being.

Yet, Jesus entered into a dark world and in

John 1:10–11 He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, and the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to his own things, and his own people did not receive him.

We only know the world through our experience and as we know it, the natural state of the world is fallen, dark, separated from God. Later, John says this in

1 John 5:19 We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

Jesus came not only to bring light but He is light. There is a whole new relationship that we enter into when we receive Jesus Christ and by God’s action for us through Jesus Christ we “become children of God” as it says in

John 1:12–13 But as many as received him—to those who believe in his name—he gave to them authority to become children of God, 13 who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a husband, but of God.

Make Straight the Way of the Lord

John 1:19–28

The Lamb of God

John 1:29–34

We Have Found the Messiah

John 1:35–42 

You Are the Son of God!

John 1:43–51
John the Baptist had been declaring the coming of the Lord and Andrew, “heard John and followed him” in John 1:40. It is clear that Andrew and Peter had been seeking the Lord because in

John 1:41 This one first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah!” (which is translated “Christ”).

but Andrew didn’t just tell Peter about finding “Christ”, “He brought him to Jesus” in John 1:41. As Jesus is gathering these men together, they each are coming to a personal recognition that Jesus is the Christ. And, while Andrew was filled with excitement, when “Philip found Nathaniel” in John 1:45, Nathanael reacted with a very worldly jaded and negative comment. In his response, “Nathanael was contemptuous. There was nothing in the Old Testament which foretold that God’s chosen one should come from Nazareth. Nazareth was a quite undistinguished place. Nathanael himself came from Cana, another Galilaean town, and, in country places, jealousy between town and town, and rivalry between village and village, is notorious”.1

Nathanael’s reaction may have simply been a recognition of the small size of Nazareth but likely goes deeper, “As Galileans were frequently despised by people from Judea, so it appears that even fellow Galileans despised Nazareth. Nathanael’s scathing question probably reflects more than local rivalry between villages”.2

How often do we judge people based on their place of birth or cultural background, yet as Nathanael meets Jesus, all of his prejudice falls away. Nathanael sees Jesus for who he is in

John 1:49 Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the king of Israel!”

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • John 1:1-51

References

  • 1. Barclay, W. (2001). The Gospel of John (Rev. and updated., Vol. 1, pp. 107–108). Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press.
  • 2. Carson, D. A. (1991). The Gospel according to John (p. 160). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans.
Devotions

The One Who Does Good is of God

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Our relationship with God begins the moment we accept that Jesus Christ came in the flesh and gave his life for our sin. From that moment, we begin walking on the earth as the sons and daughters of God. Sadly, there are those that are still under the power of the “evil one” in 1 John 5:19. But happily, it is also true today, as it was written here, in 2 John 4 “I was very glad because I found some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us”. We are not to be put off or offended by those that continue in evil, but the admonition to us is in 3 John 11 Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God.

The One Who Has the Son Has the Life

1 John 5:1–12 

This is the Confidence That We Have Before Him

1 John 5:13–21
Our relationship with God through Jesus Christ doesn’t begin somewhere off in the distant future. There isn’t a time of punishment that we must go through as some religions have taught. From the time of Jesus Christ’s life and death and resurrection, we have had clear access to God and here John emphasizes two key points.

  • First, we who have believed have eternal life in

    1 John 5:13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.

  • Second, we can have confidence, not only that God hears us, but that he grants our requests in

    1 John 5:14–15 And this is the confidence that we have before him: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked from him.

    The message God was sending through the work done by Jesus Christ is that we are now translated into God’s kingdom. We are no longer under the power of the “evil one” in

    1 John 5:19 We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

 

I Found Some … Walking in the Truth

2 John 1–4
There is some debate about this greeting that is translated as if written to a specific woman. It is more likely that this was written to the church, that is, the body of believers because “kyria is the feminine form of kyrios (Lord) and that chosen is an adjective frequently applied to the church as the bride of Christ, it seems to make most sense to regard this letter as addressed to a church, whose members are the children of verses 1 and 4”.1 And if we look at any body of believers, any group that we might identify as a church, we will find some “walking in the truth” as in

2 John 4 I was very glad because I found some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us.

It is true that not all have understood or accepted or walked in the truth that God has extended but it “will be with us” as it says in

2 John 3 Grace, mercy, peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Son of the Father in truth and love.

Confess Jesus Christ Coming in the Flesh

2 John 5–11

Speak Face to Face

2 John 12–13

Prosper Concerning Everything and Be Healthy

3 John 1–4

They Have Gone Out on Behalf of the Name

3 John 5–8 

The One Who Does Good is of God

3 John 9–15
Sadly, there are those in the church that have their own motives and are not seeking God’s will or plan or purpose. Just as in the world, there are those that “wants to be first among them” in 3 John 9.

The behavior of these people should be easy to spot, they protect their position, they refuse to acknowledge other Christian leaders and of those leaders they are “disparaging us with evil words” in 3 John 10 and refuse to “receive the brothers himself” and even worse, “hinders those wanting to do so and throws them out of the church”. You may have seen this behavior, setting people around themselves so no one can come to them. Creating layers of hurdles that people must jump through to get into their inner circle. Yet, because they speak with authority and intimidate suggesting you aren’t being obedient they often go unchecked.

But hospitality, and exhortation and encouragement, these things that come as extensions of the fruit of the Holy Spirit are the good actions of those that love God and love people. Or, as it says here in

3 John 11 Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God.

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • 1 John 5:1-21
  • 2 John 1-13
  • 3 John 1-15

References

  • 1. Jackman, D. (1988). The message of John’s letters: living in the love of God (pp. 175–176). Leicester, England; Downer’s Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
Devotions

By this You Know the Spirit of God

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Every person is born into the world in a state of innocence. We then become aware of the natural world and learn to recognize sin. But God has not left us, in Ephesians 2:12 “not having hope, and without God in the world”, but in Jesus Christ, as it says in 1 John 3:2 “now we are children of God”. Well, that is, if we accept the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. John makes this very simple in 1 John 4:2 “By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God”. 

You Have Known the One Who is From the Beginning

1 John 2:12–17
John writes to every generation because they each have a different insight into the things of God. To the “little children, because your sins have been forgiven” in 1 John 2:12 and it is little children that first come into an awareness of sin as they pass from the age of innocence. Then to the “fathers, because you have known the One who is from the beginning” in 1 John 13 and it is older men, fathers, that have experienced the presence of God, the salvation of God, the eternal faithfulness of God. Finally, he writes to “young men, because you have conquered the evil one” in 1 John 2:13 and it is those who have moved beyond the control of sin. The young men have learned God’s word and have become strong in faith, overcoming the evil, no longer driven by the desires of the flesh but as it says in

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another with all wisdom, with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God,

You Have an Anointing from the Holy One

1 John 2:18–27 

Now We Are Children of God

1 John 2:28–3:10
At one time we were lost and without hope, as it says in

Ephesians 2:12 that you were at that time apart from Christ, alienated from the citizenship of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, not having hope, and without God in the world.

but now it says in

1 John 3:1 See what sort of love the Father has given to us: that we should be called children of God, and we are! Because of this the world does not know us: because it did not know him.

God loved us and made a way for us to become his sons and daughters even though many are still lost. And we do not yet see the fullness of what God has for us as it says in

1 John 3:2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that whenever he is revealed we will be like him, because we will see him just as he is.

but what we do know is that God is righteous and holy and pure so if we are his children, then we also have this same nature in us, as it says in

1 John 3:9 Everyone who is fathered by God does not practice sin, because his seed resides in him, and he is not able to sin, because he has been fathered by God.

And This is His Commandment

1 John 3:11–24 

By this You Know the Spirit of God

1 John 4:1–6
There is a simple test we can use to “test the spirits to determine if they are from God” in 1 John 4:1 and it is found in

1 John 4:2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,

and if this isn’t clear enough, there is the negative test as well in

1 John 4:3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God, and this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.

There is natural knowledge and wisdom that is “from the world” in 1 John 4:4 and it says in

Proverbs 16:25 There is a way that seems upright to a man, but its end is the way of death.

and there are many that offer this way of the world as the way of life. But it is by this test, “Jesus Christ has come in the flesh” that we know whether someone is giving us God’s truth or the deceit that is in the world in

1 John 4:6b “By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit.

Love is From God

1 John 4:7–21

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • 1 John 2:12-29
  • 1 John 3:1-24
  • 1 John 4:1-21

References

Devotions

The Blood of Jesus His Son Cleanses Us

by  • 

Jesus came to bring salvation to man. He came to make the way for us to be free from sin and death, as it says in Romans 8:22 “For we know that the whole creation groans together and suffers agony together until now”. So, the admonition is in 2 Peter 3:14 “Therefore, dear friends, because you are waiting for these things, make every effort to be found at peace, spotless and unblemished in him”. Until Jesus returns, until the day of the Lord comes, we are here on the earth as witnesses of the love and goodness of God, if perhaps some will listen and acknowledge their sin. So, let us also continue to say, as John did in John 1:29 “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

The Lord is Not Delaying the Promise

2 Peter 3:1–7

Come to Repentance

2 Peter 3:8–13 

Make Every Effort

2 Peter 3:14–18
As Peter closes this letter, he says in

2 Peter 3:14 Therefore, dear friends, because you are waiting for these things, make every effort to be found at peace, spotless and unblemished in him.

The things they are waiting for are “the day of judgement of ungodly people” in 2 Peter 3:7 and the “new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness resides” in 2 Peter 3:13. And, Peter assures them, the Lord will not delay forever. But, as long as we are here on this earth, Peter says “make every effort to be found at peace”.

There are other similar exhortations recorded, for example, Paul says in

1 Timothy 6:6–8 But godliness with contentment is a great means of gain. 7 For we have brought nothing into the world, so that neither can we bring anything out. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these things we will be content.

If we stop reading here, we might take this to mean that we are simply to pass the time of this life with contentment. But what Paul is saying is that we shouldn’t be caught up in the lust of things. As we read on, he says in 1 Timothy 6:11–16 “flee”, “pursue”, “Fight”, “I command you”, “observe”, “irreproachable until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which he will make known in his own time, the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of those who reign as kings and Lord of those who rule as lords”.

For Paul, there is an expectation of strength, and faith, and authority and that we will reign and rule until Christ returns. 

Eternal Life Which Was With the Father and Was Revealed

1 John 1:1–4
God was doing something spectacular through Jesus Christ, “life was revealed”, but not just life as we had known it. God was sharing, revealing, eternal life in

1 John 1:2 and the life was revealed, and we have seen and testify and announce to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was revealed to us—

And what John witnessed was not only for his own benefit, but so that he could “announce to you also, in order that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ” in 1 John 1:3. 

The Blood of Jesus His Son Cleanses Us

1 John 1:5–10
Jesus Christ came according to God’s plan in

1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, in order that he could bring you to God, being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit,

and as John the Baptist testified in

John 1:29 On the next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

Yet, not all will be saved. How is it that the gift of forgiveness and eternal life through Christ can be offered and not accepted? It is for us to recognize and confess our sin in

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, so that he will forgive us our* sins and will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

and it is for us to walk in the light, to walk in the truth of our salvation, free from sin in

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • 2 Peter 3:1-18
  • 1 John 1:1-10
  • 1 John 2:1-11
Devotions

You May Become Sharers of the Divine Nature

by  • 

Peter tells us that God, in 2 Peter 1:3 “has bestowed on us all things that are necessary for life and godliness” and then says in 2 Peter 1:4 “he has bestowed on us his precious and very great promises, so that through these you may become sharers of the divine nature”. But we are born into this world where people are described as being in 2 Peter 2:12 “like irrational animals born only with natural instincts for capture and killing” and many in 2 Peter 2:19 “are slaves of depravity”. It is only by, in 1 Peter 5:12 “the true grace of God” that we can be free and come into the, in 1 Peter 2:2 “royal priesthood” that God has for us.

Shepherd the Flock of God Among You

1 Peter 5:1–11 

This is the True Grace of God

1 Peter 5:12–14
The purpose of Peter’s letter is written in his closing comments in

1 Peter 5:12b I have written to you briefly to encourage you and to attest that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it.

This grace that Peter talks about is “a living hope” in 1 Peter 1:3 and “an inheritance” in 1 Peter 1:4. He tells them to “be holy” in 1 Peter 1:15 and to “long for the unadulterated spiritual milk” in 1 Peter 2:2 because they “are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s possession” in 1 Peter 2:9. So, he says, “do good” in 1 Peter 3:11 because in

1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.

When Peter closes with “This is the True Grace of God”, “The word this is best understood to refer to the entire way of life described in the letter as a whole. The entire Christian life is one of grace—God’s daily bestowal of blessings, strength, help, forgiveness, and fellowship with himself, all of which we need, none of which we ever deserve. All is of grace, every day. From continual trust in that grace and from continual obedience empowered by it Christians must not move: rather, they must stand fast in it—until the day of their death.”1

And Peter wrote this to, in the introduction in

1 Peter 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the chosen who are residing temporarily in the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,

These were all of the “dispersion”, those that had escaped the persecution in Jerusalem and moved North. These are also regions Paul had covered in his missionary journeys, yet wherever Christians go, we carry this God kind of life that is foreign to the way of the world. 

You May Become Sharers of the Divine Nature

2 Peter 1:1–7
Peter makes profound statements in the opening of this letter. He says “his divine power has bestowed on us all things that are necessary for life and godliness” in 2 Peter 1:3 and then says “he has bestowed on us his precious and very great promises, so that through these you may become sharers of the divine nature” in 2 Peter 1:4.

Peter says that God “has bestowed”, that means that God has provided something for us, he has given something to us. And what he has given is “all things that are necessary for life and godliness” so there isn’t anything we need that we can’t have. But even better than that is we “may become sharers of the divine nature” because God has given us his Holy Spirit. We simply apply the knowledge of Christ with diligence and let the supply of the Holy Spirit rule in our hearts and minds bringing forth the fruit in 2 Peter 1:5-7.

Make Your Calling and Election Secure

2 Peter 1:8–15

This is My Beloved Son

2 Peter 1:16–21

The Lord Knows How to Rescue the Godly

2 Peter 2:1–11 

They Have Escaped From the Defilement’s of the World

2 Peter 2:12–22
The way of the world comes naturally to a man in his fallen state. They are described as “like irrational animals born only with natural instincts for capture and killing” in 2 Peter 2:12 and “having eyes full of desire for an adulteress and unceasing from sin” in 2 Peter 2:14. These draw others after themselves “by speaking high-sounding but empty words, they entice with desires of the flesh and with licentiousness” in 2 Peter 2:19 “although they themselves are slaves of depravity” in 2 Peter 2:19.

Yet “through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” in 2 Peter 2:20 they were set free and “escaped from the defilements of the world”. But not all continue in “the holy commandment that had been delivered to them” in 2 Peter 2:21. How is it that someone could taste the goodness of God “and have known the way of righteousness” and turn back. But isn’t this what happened with Satan? He was in the presence of God, and yet, he turned away.

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • 1 Peter 5:1-14
  • 2 Peter 1:1-21
  • 2 Peter 2:1-22

References

  • 1. Grudem, W. A. (1988). 1 Peter: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 17, p. 208). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
Devotions

Equip Yourselves With the Same Way of Thinking

by  • 

How does God think? What is important in His mind? Peter says of women, 1 Peter 3:3–4 “Let your adornment not be the external kind, braiding hair and putting on gold jewelry or putting on fine clothing, 4 but the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is highly valuable in the sight of God” and he also says, in 1 Peter 2:15 “For the will of God is as follows: by doing good to silence the ignorance of foolish people”. Everyone has their opinion, everyone has something they want or need, it is in our flesh to need food and comfort and company, yet God did not create us to be driven by our flesh. God created us for a higher level of thinking, the “same way of thinking” Jesus Christ demonstrated that we could in 1 Peter 4:2 “live the remaining time in the flesh no longer for human desires, but for the will of God”. 

By Doing Good to Silence the Ignorance of Foolish People

1 Peter 2:13–25
Have you noticed, everyone has an opinion. But where is wisdom? What is the right answer? What should you do? It is a very simple answer, “Do Good”. Peter says it this way in

1 Peter 2:13–14 Subject yourselves to every human authority for the sake of the Lord, whether to a king as having supreme authority, 14 or to governors as those sent out by him for the punishment of those who do evil and the praise of those who do good.

Of course, he is speaking of those that are ruling as God intends, “for the punishment of those who do evil and the praise of those who do good”. But whether they have it right or not, they are still the authority. Peter is using this, not to suggest blind and mindless obedience no matter what the abuse, in fact, it is another point altogether in

1 Peter 2:15 For the will of God is as follows: by doing good to silence the ignorance of foolish people.

Use your freedom for good, “and not using your freedom as a covering for evil” in 1 Peter 2:16. Then he goes on to describe the behavior expected of every human being and especially we who are Christians in

1 Peter 2:17 Honor all people, love the community of believers, fear God, honor the king.

But then he makes an odd statement. It is odd as in unusual, or unexpected. Peter says when “someone endures sorrows while suffering unjustly”, “this finds favor”. What? How can you find favor when you are being oppressed or abused? It isn’t that you find favor with the abuser, it is that “this finds favor with God” in 1 Peter 2:20. When you choose to endure and as Jesus did, he “entrusted himself to the one who judges justly” in 1 Peter 2:23. Now read Peters statement in

1 Peter 2:19 For this finds favor, if because of consciousness of God someone endures sorrows while suffering unjustly.

There is injustice in the world, and sometimes we are faced with it. Endure it, “because of consciousness of God” and trust Him as savior, deliverer, the righteous judge who will repay. 

They May be Won Over Without a Word

1 Peter 3:1–7
As much as we try, people are not easily changed by what we tell them to do. They may do what we tell them, but more often, we are likely to get a reaction, defensiveness, self-justification, an argument, as it says in

James 3:6 And the tongue is a fire! The world of unrighteousness, the tongue, is set among our members, defiling the whole body and setting on fire the course of human existence, being set on fire by hell.

So why do we keep trying to tell people what to do? There is another way, and it is so simple. First, demonstrate “the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is highly valuable in the sight of God” in 1 Peter 3:4b and in

1 Peter 3:2 when they see your respectful, pure conduct.

and then, “they may be won over without a word by the conduct of their wives” in 1 Peter 3:1b.

The Eyes of the Lord are on the Righteous

1 Peter 3:8–12

Set Christ Apart as Lord in Your Hearts

1 Peter 3:13–22 

Equip Yourselves With the Same Way of Thinking

1 Peter 4:1–6
Jesus Christ has already come. He lived on the earth and demonstrated a sinless life. There is an unruly nature in our flesh that suffers when it can’t have what it wants. Our flesh has a voice, the voice of natural human physical desires. And the way Peter says it is “the time has passed” in

1 Peter 4:3–4 For the time that has passed was sufficient to do what the Gentiles desire to do, having lived in licentiousness, evil desires, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties, and wanton idolatries, 4 with respect to which they are surprised when you do not run with them into the same flood of dissipation, and so they revile you.

But, Peter says, there is a reason Jesus came, there is a reason for the gospel and it came to those that were dead and dying in their dissipation in

1 Peter 4:6 Because for this reason also the gospel was preached to those who are dead, so that they were judged by human standards in the flesh, but they may live in the spirit by God’s standards.

Now, though our flesh may not like it, we are to “also equip yourselves with the same way of thinking, because the one who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin” in 1 Peter 4:1b and when we have equipped ourselves with “the same way of thinking” as Jesus, it is in

1 Peter 4:2 in order to live the remaining time in the flesh no longer for human desires, but for the will of God.

If Anyone Speaks, Let it be as the Oracles of God

1 Peter 4:7–11

The Spirit of Glory and of God Rests on You

1 Peter 4:12–19

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • 1 Peter 2:13-25
  • 1 Peter 3:1-22
  • 1 Peter 4:1-19