Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 64:6-10
Ps 64:6-10
6 They plot injustice and say, "We have devised a perfect plan!" Surely the mind and heart of man are cunning. 7 But God will shoot them with arrows; suddenly they will be struck down. 8 He will turn their own tongues against them and bring them to ruin; all who see them will shake their heads in scorn. 9 All mankind will fear; they will proclaim the works of God and ponder what he has done. 10 Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD and take refuge in him; let all the upright in heart praise him!
Matt 5:43-46
43 "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44 But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
In the sermon on the mountain, Jesus deals with the heart of mankind and not just the outward actions and appearances. Beginning with the beatitudes, he reveals a radical difference between the teaching of the rabbis of his day and that revealed from God. In other places he says that much of their teaching is correct but what they do is not. This was because they did not have the heart or mind of God but were filled with pride and greed. In fact, it was these very attitudes that lead them to oppose Jesus so much and ultimately put him to death.
Our heart is to be set on doing the will of God. Jesus said that he came to earth to do the will of God. When teaching his disciples to pray, he said “your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Can we imagine one of the angels or heavenly host being told by God to do something and then they begin to argue with him or question if he really means what he says? This is absurd! If it is God’s will, it is done in heaven without question, arguing or hesitation and this is how it should be done in our lives. This is not “rule keeping” or legalism, it is humble obedience and recognition that God is God, Jesus is Lord and we are but his servants.
So we praise him because of his grace shown to us in Jesus Christ.
Lord God, creator of heaven and earth and all that exists today, I praise you and magnify your holy name in all the earth. Thanksgiving and adoration is yours for your matchless power, your infinite wisdom and your wonderful grace. Thank you for loving me, protecting me and providing all my needs on a daily basis. Thank you for your forgiveness in Jesus Christ so I can be in your family with the promise of living with you in eternity. Help me have the heart of Jesus in doing your will and in my love toward others and to show it in my attitude toward you, toward others around me and toward myself. I pray in the name of Jesus my Lord.
Robert
