Thurs.’s Devo - Count the Cost

Read: Joshua 3:1-4:24; Luke 14:7-35; Psalm 80:1-19; Proverbs 12:27-28 The children of Israel came to the Jordan River. God told Joshua to have the priests carrying the Ark go first and after they had gone a mile, the rest of the people could go. That way they could all keep their eyes on the ark. The people of the land could see that their God was revered above all. *** The priests were to step into the water and stand still. As soon as they did this the water would be cut off from upstream and stop flowing. Instead of flowing, the water stood up like a wall from the city Adam and the people there were cut off from crossing the river. But the children of Israel could walk over on dry land. *** A man was to be chosen from each tribe and when the people had passed over the Jordan, these chosen men were to take a stone found at the feet of the priests and carry them over to the place they were staying that night. They would be heaped up as a memorial of what God did for them. They were also to place 12 stones in the midst of the Jordan to be a witness when the Jordan was not overflowing its banks. *** The last to pass over were the warriors from Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh. There were about 40,000 men prepared for war that passed over. *** On that day, Joshua was magnified in the eyes of the people and they revered him like they feared Moses. *** When the priests came out of the water, the water flowed again. Joshua told the people that the heap of stones they brought out of the Jordan were to be a reminder of what God did for them on that day. *** Jesus taught them that if they were invited to a banquet, they should sit in the lowest seat and let the master of the party ask them to sit closer to him. If they sat in the most important place first, then they might be asked to sit in a lower place if someone more honored came. *** The moral of this parable is to humble yourself and let God exalt you in his timing. *** Jesus also told them to not just entertain their friends who will invite them back, but to feed those who have no way of paying them back. Then the host would be blessed by God in heaven. *** One of the men listening said, “Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God.” *** Jesus then gave a parable about a man who had a great banquet and invited many to his party. But, the ones he invited started making excuses why they couldn’t come. This made the master so angry he told his servants to go to the highways and the byways and compel anyone to come to his banquet until it was full of people. *** Jesus told them that if they didn’t love him more than their families and even themselves, they could not be his disciple. They had to be willing to carry their own cross and follow him. These are the costs that they must consider before becoming his disciple. Even kings consider if it is prosperous to go out to war. *** We are to be the salt of the earth but if we lose that saltiness, then we are not good for God’s kingdom or anything else. *** Lord, may we stay salty, may we choose you above all else. May our lives be an example of sold out hearts.