Morning Devotion
May 7, 2022
Today's Bible Verse
1 Peter 1:13
Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Today's Bible Study
In today's verse, Peter tells Christians who have been exiled throughout Asia Minor to have hope. Even though they are suffering, they can have joy and peace in the Lord. They can have hope that a full experience of grace and redemption will come upon Jesus' return and that, in the meantime, they can prepare their hearts and minds.
What does it mean to gird up your mind and be sober? For Peter, it meant to have the right mindset. Rather than dwelling on their own suffering as if it were interminable, he wanted the exiles to find solace and hope in the truths they knew about Jesus. He didn't want them to be disillusioned or frustrated, becoming discouraged when it seemed as if God was not working. Instead, they needed to focus on serving God right where they were, keeping their minds on Christ at all times.
What does it mean to gird up your mind and be sober? For Peter, it meant to have the right mindset. Rather than dwelling on their own suffering as if it were interminable, he wanted the exiles to find solace and hope in the truths they knew about Jesus. He didn't want them to be disillusioned or frustrated, becoming discouraged when it seemed as if God was not working. Instead, they needed to focus on serving God right where they were, keeping their minds on Christ at all times.
The ultimate reason for their hope was future restoration. They had already experienced the grace of God through the forgiveness of their sins. Now, they had the revelation of Jesus Christ to look forward to. They would see Him when they died and they would dwell with Him forever. In addition, they could look forward to Jesus' return to Earth. They had hope for their futures with the Lord!
We are much like those exiles. We all have our own reasons to become discouraged or frustrated; we all have, at some point, experienced the struggle of making the decision to honor God with our thoughts despite the temptation to succumb to negative emotions. We can return to Jesus again and again, intentionally reflecting on the truths that we know about Him. We will see Jesus, He has defeated death, and one day we will dwell with Him in a new kingdom. All these reasons help us establish an unwavering hope in our God.
We are much like those exiles. We all have our own reasons to become discouraged or frustrated; we all have, at some point, experienced the struggle of making the decision to honor God with our thoughts despite the temptation to succumb to negative emotions. We can return to Jesus again and again, intentionally reflecting on the truths that we know about Him. We will see Jesus, He has defeated death, and one day we will dwell with Him in a new kingdom. All these reasons help us establish an unwavering hope in our God.
Today's Prayer
Dear Lord, help me to keep my eyes on Jesus and hope in Him every day of my life. I want to honor you, Lord, and I want to serve you well. Give me wisdom and peace as I live for you in a world that does not know you. I love you, Jesus, and I thank you for everlasting hope and life in you. In your name, amen.
If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.
-C.S. Lewis
God will not look you over for medals, degrees or diplomas but for scars.
-Elbert Hubbard
The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us.
-C.S. Lewis
If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.
-Dorothy Parker
Yesterday's Devotional
May 6, 2022
Yesterday's Bible Verse
John 17:23
I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
Yesterday's Bible Study
Today's verse is taken from Jesus' High Priestly Prayer, His final prayer before His arrest and crucifixion. Jesus prays for unity among future believers, that the world would know that He was the Messiah, and that they would experience His love. Today, we will consider the importance of unity and love among Christians.
Unity means being as one. At the beginning of the verse, Jesus uses His relationship with God as an example of unity; He is in God and God is in Him. Through this oneness, they are in complete unity. In much the same way, Christians can be in unity with each other by being one with God first. When each of us seeks God and dwells in Him, we will naturally be in unity because our desires will be conformed to those of the Lord.
Unity means being as one. At the beginning of the verse, Jesus uses His relationship with God as an example of unity; He is in God and God is in Him. Through this oneness, they are in complete unity. In much the same way, Christians can be in unity with each other by being one with God first. When each of us seeks God and dwells in Him, we will naturally be in unity because our desires will be conformed to those of the Lord.
To be honest, when I look at this picture of perfect unity and then at our own religious institutions today, I get kind of discouraged. There are so many churches at odds with each other, disputes among Christians, and more. What have we missed? Of course there will be different interpretations and ideas about secondary issues that the Bible does not perfectly clarify—but when our ideas about God are held onto more fervently than God Himself, division will be inevitable. But when we focus on God above all else, unity happens.
The solution is to embrace love. That doesn't mean we refrain from standing up for anything, but rather, that we prevent disagreements from dividing us by acknowledging them and then choosing to build each other up. As long as Jesus is placed at the center of everything, our diversity will not lead to division. Instead, it will be evidence of the powerful, unifying love of Jesus Christ.
The solution is to embrace love. That doesn't mean we refrain from standing up for anything, but rather, that we prevent disagreements from dividing us by acknowledging them and then choosing to build each other up. As long as Jesus is placed at the center of everything, our diversity will not lead to division. Instead, it will be evidence of the powerful, unifying love of Jesus Christ.
Yesterday's Prayer
Dear Lord, I am so grateful for your goodness and love. Help me to be in unity with other Christians as much as possible, and help me to love other people with the same love that Jesus loves me. In Jesus' name, amen.