Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 9:1-6
Ps 9:1-6
1 I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. 2 I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. 3 My enemies turn back; they stumble and perish before you. 4 For you have upheld my right and my cause; you have sat on your throne, judging righteously. 5 You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked; you have blotted out their name for ever and ever. 6 Endless ruin has overtaken the enemy, you have uprooted their cities; even the memory of them has perished.
Col 3:1-4
1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
One of the great problems with God’s people during the days of Jesus on earth was that many of the leaders were hypocrites. They pretended to be serving God while all the time they were only interested in looking good before others. Jesus often rebuked them for this, because in their hypocrisy they were judgmental of others and looked down on them with contempt. They taught the truth on many subjects but did not live it themselves. They also often made their own rules.
But this was not new. The Old Testament prophets spent a lot of time rebuking the leaders of Israel and other nations because they claimed to be following God but in reality, they were serving themselves and false gods. They called that which was evil, good and called good, evil. They classified the commands of God so that some of them were important but the ones that they did not like, they considered as being unimportant and these were ignored and not kept.
There is nothing more harmful to the cause of Christ in our world today than pretend Christians. People who have their names on church roles and attend some (or all) of the services but their heart is not in serving God. Jesus wants us to die to ourselves and live for him. No pretense, just trust and obey him.
Heavenly Father I want to have a pure heart that is wholly devoted to serving you in every part of my life. I know I get sidetracked at times and I get lax so I need your continued forgiveness every day. Keep me from boasting in my own doing or my own righteousness but rather to put all my trust in Jesus and his blood. Help me live in such a way that others will see Jesus living in me as I show forth his love and his joy. Thank you for allowing me to have so many Christian friends who are a constant encouragement to me. I pray in the name of Jesus my Lord.
Robert
