Feb 28

“And let us bring again the ark of our God to us…” 1 Chronicles 13:3

No sooner was David made king over Israel, that he renewed the nation’s consciousness for the presence of God. Revival comes to God’s people, when we determine to return to a close relationship with God, and enquire from Him how to direct our lives! Israel had not sought God’s directives during the reign of Saul. They had contented themselves to worship elsewhere, or not to worship at all. They had all but forgotten the importance and place of the ark of God. This remarkable piece of furniture, which had travelled with Israel through the wilderness journey to the Promised Land, had been the earthly ‘seat’ of the presence and glory of God and the centre of worship for the Israelites. Without a temple for it to be housed in, it had become neglected and with that neglect, had come also the negligence and failure of enquiring at the face of the Lord. David fully intended to change all of that! His zeal and enthusiasm to restore the ark to its rightful place, as the soul and centre of Israelite worship, was contagious, appreciated and agreed to by the people over whom he now reigned. The whole instance speaks to us of the importance of keeping God in the centre of our lives and focus. How easy it is to get so busy with life, work, family and a host of other mind occupying things, and pay little attention, or forget altogether, the One to whom we owe all else we have! How typically human is the trait of feeling capable to captain our own lives, and fail to ask God and enquire from Him what He wants us to do and how He wants us to do it. This shifting of the patterns established by God, from spirituality to carnality, sets us back in our relationship with the Lord, and costs us and our families very dearly! Like David, we must be champions for the consciousness and worship of Yahwah. Like him, we must always work to restore and maintain Jesus as the centre and focus of our lives; as the priority and prime purpose of our existence.

http://www.pentecostalfamilychurch.com.au/devotion

Jan 25

“…from the presence of the Lord…” 2Thessalonians 1:9

The everlasting destruction of those who persevere in their wickedness against God is an act of justice. The Word of God presents this topic over and again, as a standing warning to all, and no man will be able to claim ignorance of the love and just severity of God, at the judgment bar. The devastation mentioned in these verses is interesting, in that it is an explanation of at least one aspect of what it means for the wicked to be everlastingly ‘destroyed’. The context presents this punishment as a permanent separation from the presence of the Holy God and all He provides, a continual banishment from the benefits and faithfulness of His endowing power. In a very small measure it would be something like the doom of those poor wretches who, for the term of their lives, were imprisoned in dark, damp cells, deep in the bowels of the earth, away from the warmth, light and beneficial effects of the sun. Sin against the Everlasting and Infinite God, unless repented of, will reap the wages of everlasting and infinite punishment. This is the awful consequence of sin. Yet in spite of the mess and chaos we bring into our lives through sin, so many still largely choose to ignore, mock and decry God’s warnings as mere fables, and religious make-believe. By the time these same people face their eternal destiny, it will be too late to re-frame their belief system. Their minds will be changed in spite of themselves, as they stare at the reality of God face to face. Their knees will bow in acceptance and confession that Christ is indeed Lord, but it will be too late to benefit from this submission. The time of salvation will be past. They will be expelled from the presence of God, to spend a dark eternity in the dreadful torment and realisation, that all they had ever wanted in life was in fact just that – the wonder, beauty and blessing of the presence of the Lord!

http://www.pentecostalfamilychurch.com.au/devotion

Jan 10

“…Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people….” Joshua 3:6

Filled with the symbols of God’s provision and protection for His people, but most of all a vehicle of the presence and glory of God, the Ark of the Covenant was in its correct place and its rightful position, when it was borne by the priests to be in front of the people. There, the power of God was most evident and performed the greatest of miracles for His people. Our eyes should ever be set on the presence of the Lord and all He holds in His Word for us. His rightful place in our lives, is not as an ‘optional extra’, or a piece of luggage we drag around ‘just in case’, but as the central feature of our eyes, and heart’s desire. He should be the One at the focus of our thoughts and plans, and should be at all times in view of our spiritual eyes. In Israel it was recognised that the ark leading the people in battle meant protection, power, victory and conquest. We also should know assuredly that seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness in everything we do or desire, will bring victory, cause us to overcome and see all the things necessary to our lives, added by the power, provision and compassion of the Lord. We struggle unnecessarily to seek the temporal and the mundane, when true satisfaction, fulfilment and permanency is found in putting Jesus in the right and most prominent place of our heart, mind and soul!

http://www.pentecostalfamilychurch.com.au/devotion

Jan 2

 “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High….” Psalm 91:1

Probably spoken with reference to the Holiest of Holies in the tabernacle, the ‘secret place of the most High’, was a place where only designated priests would be able to visit, and then only once a year! There the chosen minister would have an encounter with God and experience the joy of His presence. How blessed we are in this dispensation of time, when unlike then, whosoever chooses God, can have the privilege to not merely ‘visit’, but to daily live in the glorious presence of the Almighty! In Christ, we can make our abode closest to the heart of God and occupy a place of intimacy with Him. Our personal relationship with the Lord can be as close as we will choose and allow. No longer need we employ the services of another to enquire or hear from the Lord, now we individually and without reference to our social position or status in life, have access into the most holy place. If we do not develop a close connection with Jesus; if the quality of what we have and feel in God is poor or wanting, the fault can only be laid at our feet. It is the greatest privilege to find our right place in God, and discover the comfort, protection, provision and blessing that a near and dear heartfelt closeness with Jesus will afford.


http://www.pentecostalfamilychurch.com.au/devotion