Fri.’s Devo - God is Good -

Read: Judges 2:10-3:31; Luke 22:14-34; Psalm 92:1-93:5; Proverbs 14:1-2 The generation who had served under Joshua died and the next generation did not know the Lord or what he had done for them. They went after the Baals and the Ashteroth. They abandoned the Lord and He gave them over to their enemies. He fought against them in battle, just as he had warned them he would if they abandoned him. *** They were oppressed by the nations who ruled over them, and when they could take it no longer, they cried out to the Lord. He would raise up a judge to save them. They would serve the Lord until that judge died, then they would lapse back into worshipping the gods of the land. *** God no longer drove out their enemies and left the five lords of the Philistines, the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites to test them. The Israelites lived among them and cross-bred with their people. Israel followed after their gods of Baal and Asheroth. They were made to serve Cushan-rishathaim, the king of Mesopotamia for 8 years. They cried out to the Lord to save them and he sent Othniel, Caleb’s nephew who married his daughter. Othniel prevailed against the king, and the Israelites had rest for 40 years. When Othniel died, Israel went back into idolatry and sin. *** God brought the Moabites, the Ammonites and the Amalekites against them and defeated them. They served Eglon, king of Moab for 18 years. *** When Israel cried out to the Lord, he raised up Ehud to deliver them. Ehud went to Moab to give Israel’s tribute to Eglon. He had everyone leave the room so he could speak to Eglon privately. Ehud stabbed king Eglon in the stomach. When he did this, Eglon’s bowels released. Since Eglon was so fat, his skin swallowed up Ehud’s sword, so he left it in his stomach and fled, locking the door behind him. Eglon’s servants thought he was relieving himself, because of the smell. This gave Ehud time to escape to Seirah where he blew the trumpet and rallied the troops. They went down and killed 10,000 of the Moabites and seized the fords of the Moabites on the Jordan. The Moabites had not let the Israelites cross the Jordan and now they were free to cross. Israel had peace for 80 years. *** Their third judge was Samgar who killed 600 Philistines to save Israel. *** In Luke, Jesus had his last supper with his disciples. He explained that the wine represented his blood and the bread represented his body. He would not eat again until the kingdom of God comes. He told them to annually observe this meal in remembrance of him. Then he exposed that his betrayer was sitting among them. They questioned who it was, but argued over which them would be regarded as the greatest in Jesus’ kingdom. Jesus clarified that it would be the one who serves that rules. Just as he was serving them now; he would rule later. But, he did tell them that God was giving him a kingdom where they would be invited to eat and drink at his table and sit on thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel. *** Then Jesus told Simon that the devil had a special target on his back. Jesus had prayed for him that his faith would remain strong. When he has gone through his trial, he can use what he learned to strengthen others. When Simon Peter defended his undying allegiance to Jesus, Jesus told him that he would deny him three times that very night. *** In today’s reading we read where God would use his enemies to test the people. Satan would be used in Simon’s life to test him. Our enemies are our tests. God uses their tests to strengthen our faith. We should never blame God for our trials. Satan is the one who attacks us with evil. God is the one who turns this evil to something good. *** Lord, we praise you for turning every evil intention that the enemy has brought against us to something good. You are the good Shepherd and the Faithful Father. We thank you for your love and care.

Thurs.’s Devo - Endure Till the End

Read: Judges 1:1-2:9; Luke 21:29-22:13; Psalm 90:1-91:16 Joshua died after he had made sure everyone knew the boundaries of their land. Now, it was time to go in and take their inheritance. The Lord said that Judah was to go first and since Simeon’s territory was within Judah’s, they took Simeon with them to conquer their land. Then, the rest of the tribes went in and began to take their land. They had victory after victory, but also defeat after defeat because they failed to drive out all the inhabitants of the land. The tribe of Judah couldn’t drive out the inhabitants of the plains because of their iron chariots. The Benjamites couldn’t drive out the Jebusites in Jerusalem. Also, Manasseh, Ephraim, Zebulun, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan could not drive out the Canaanites from their land. Some of the tribes were able to put their enemies to work for them as their slaves. *** The angel of the Lord met them in Bochim and told them that he had brought them from Egypt and given them this land. He would never break his covenant with them, and they were never to make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land. He had told them to break down the altars of their enemies, but they had not done that, so now they would become snares to them and their gods would become a snare to them. The people wept before the Lord and presented sacrifices to him. *** After Joshua had released everyone to go conquer their land, he died. He was 110 years old. He was buried in his land of Ephraim. The people continued to follow the Lord until the elders who had outlived Joshua died. They were the last to have witnessed all the great works God had done for them. *** When God gives us a promise, we will always have to fight the demons guarding our promise. They might be fear, intimidation, lies, etc. We have to fight them to get to our promise. We don’t want to be like the Israelites who gave up before they got their total victory. Another lesson to be learned from what we read today is that if we don’t pass on the stories of what God has done for us to our next generation, they will not walk in the victories we walked in. Our witness should make them press on to have their own stories of what God did for them. *** In Luke, Jesus had been asked by his disciples what would be signs of the end. He used the fig tree as an example. They could look at them and see that summer was coming. In the same way, they would be able to tell it was getting close to the end when they begin to see all the things that he said would be signs. Everything he promised in his Word would be fulfilled. He encouraged them to stay sober and awake. *** Jesus taught everyday in the temple and would sleep on the Mount of Olives. The Feast of Unleavened Bread was near and everyone would be coming to Jerusalem for Passover. The chief priests and scribes were trying to plan how to kill Jesus, but feared the people. *** Satan entered into the heart of Judas Iscariot and he met with the chief priests and the scribes. He was given money to betray Jesus to them. In the meantime, Jesus was sending his disciples ahead of him to prepare the room where they would eat their last Passover together. *** Lord, help us to remember that we have a real enemy who wants to kill, steal and destroy. But, greater are You within us than this enemy in the world. May we rise up and defeat the enemies that come to take our inheritance from us. May we fight strong in you name and defeat his power. Help us to endure till the end.

Wed.’s Devo - Joshua’s Last Words

Read: Joshua 24:1-33; Luke 21:1-28; Psalm 89:38-52; Proverbs 13:20-23 Joshua brought the people together at Shechem and told them how God called Abraham out of a family who worshiped other gods. God had Abraham walk through the land of Canaan and increased his off-spring. Isaac had Jacob and Esau. Esau’s family lived in the hill country of Seir and Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. God sent Moses and Aaron to bring them out. He sent great plagues upon Egypt to deliver his children through the Red Sea. He destroyed the army of Egypt in the Sea and brought Israel through the wilderness. They fought the kings of the Amorites and won. He delivered them out of the hand of Balaam who was hired to curse them. *** God brought them over the Jordan and gave them victory over the giants in the land. They conquered all the “ites” in the land and God gave them cities they didn’t build and vineyards they didn’t plant. They were now blessed beyond belief. *** It was time to decide if they would be faithful to the Lord and serve him or if they would serve the gods of the land or the gods of Egypt. Joshua made his decision for his family; they would serve the Lord. The people agreed that they would serve the Lord too. Joshua reminded them that God was jealous and if they turned away from him to serve other gods, He would turn and harm them and consume them. They promised to remain faithful to the Lord. *** Joshua had rolled a stone to be a witness against them if they failed to do what they had promised. It heard everything he had said. 1 Corinthians 10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. *** Joshua died and was buried in the place Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor at Shechem. Joseph’s bones were also buried there. Shechem became a city of refuge. *** Israel continued to serve the Lord after Joshua died until the elders who had served with Joshua died. *** In Luke, Jesus noticed all the rich people putting their offering into the box by the Temple. Then he saw a poor widow who brought her last two copper coins. Jesus commented that she had given more than all of them because she gave all she had. It isn’t the amount we give to the Lord, whether it is our talents, our time, our money - it is the proportion of our sacrifice. It all goes back to our hearts. *** The people with Jesus were commenting on the grandeur of the Temple and its buildings. Jesus told him that in the future it would all be torn to the ground. When they asked him what sign would come to let them know this was coming He told them things that would come first would be wars, and rumors of wars, nations rising up against nations, earthquakes, famines and pestilences. There would be terrors and great signs from heaven. Christians would be persecuted for their faith and be given opportunities to witness before kings and governors. Families will turn over their own people to be put to death. Followers of Christ will be hated, but those who endure will gain their lives. *** Jerusalem will be surrounded by armies and then it will be time to flee to the mountains. Many will be killed. This will last till it is the end of the days of the Gentiles. There will be so much distress in the earth that the powers of heaven will be shaken Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud of great glory. Jesus encouraged them that when they see these things happening, they could look up because their redemption is on the way. *** Many believe we are at that day right now. I personally believe we are not. There are still so many promises that have not been fulfilled in God’s Word. He will complete every promise. I believe we are about to experience the greatest time on the earth for Christians once we get through this time of transition. Nations are changing and shifting. Lines are being drawn and decisions are being made as to which god they are going to serve just like we read in Joshua, today. *** Lord, we pray for our President that he will have the wisdom of God to make decisions that will bring blessings and prosperity to our nation. We pray for other nations that they will be ruled by godly leaders and choose to follow the Lord. We cast down every demonic force that comes against America to defeat God’s purposes for her. We pray and declare that godliness, integrity and truth will prevail.

Tues.’s Devo- The Memorial

Read: Joshua 22:21-23:16; Luke 20:27-47; Psalm 89:14-37; Proverbs 13:17-19 The priests and heads of the tribes traveled to the Jordan to witness the altar the tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh had erected to find out their intentions. They were prepared to fight them it they built it to rebel against God. *** They gave their answer to why they had built the altar. It was not built to be used to sacrifice on, but a memorial, a witness, to remind the other tribes that they worshiped the same God and were part of Israel. They were afraid that in the years to come, Israel might forget that they were part of them. This memorial was to prove their devotion to God and that they were children of Israel, too. *** When Phinehas and the other chiefs heard their answer they were satisfied and left in peace. They went back and told the people and they were satisfied also. *** Years later, Joshua was very old and about to die. He summoned all of Israel, the leaders and the judges to come and hear his last speech. He reminded them all the Lord had done for them and that everything he had promised, he had done for them. He warned them to stay true and faithful to the Lord or the curses would come upon them and they would be just as bad as his blessings were good. If they turned away from serving the Lord, they would quickly perish from the good land the Lord had given them. *** In Luke, some of the Sadducees came to Jesus. They didn’t believe in the resurrection of the dead. They posed this ridiculous question about a woman whose husbands kept dying. Their question was, ‘whose husband she would be in the resurrection?’ *** Jesus gave them a lesson on eternity. First of all, in eternity, there is no marriage of people. They will be like the angels and will be children of God. Even Moses prayed to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as if they lived in eternity. God was a god of the living, not the dead. The scribes liked his answer because they believed in the resurrection. I doubt the Sadducees liked it. *** Jesus went on further to explain that they taught that the Messiah would be David’s son. But, David referred to the Messiah as his Lord. How could He be both David’s son and his Lord? This gave them food for thought. *** Jesus told his disciples to beware of the scribes who walked around in their robes looking all important. They would receive the greater condemnation in the end. The scribes were the ones who copied the scriptures and kept the truth to themselves. They had access to the truth and yet they lived a lie and withheld the truth from the people. They would have to give an answer for this in the Judgment. *** Lord, help us to guard the truth in our hearts and live what we read in your Word. Thank you for being our truth and living it for us to see. May we follow in your footsteps, doing what you did and living as you lived.

Mon.’s Devo - God is Faithful to His Promises

Read: Joshua 21:1-22:20; Luke 20:1-26; Psalm 89:1-13; Proverbs 13:15-16 The cities given to the Levites from the different land of the 11 tribes were listed by name. All the cities given to the Levites included the pastureland. There were 48 cities in all. *** Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to them had failed to come true. Joshua called the men from Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh that would live east of the Jordan. He told them that they had kept their promise to help secure the land and now they were free to go home to their families. On their way home, they set up a huge altar beside the Jordan. When the other tribes heard of it they sent troops to fight them, thinking they were setting up an altar to a false god. They sent Phinehas the priest along with a chief from head of the tribes of Israel to rebuke them and investigate their crime. *** In Luke, we read yesterday that the priests and scribes were looking for a way to get rid of Jesus for good. Today, we read where they came to Jesus to ask him who gave him the authority to do the miracles he was doing. He answers their question with a question. He asked them if they believed John’s baptism was from God or man. They couldn’t answer him without exposing their hearts and upsetting the people who loved John. So, they said they didn’t know, so Jesus told him that he wouldn’t answer their question. *** He then answered their question in a parable. The parable was about a man who planted a vineyard and leased it out to tenants. He went out of town for a long time. After a set time, he sent a servant to collect on the revenue of his vineyard. The tenants beat him and refused to give him any money. The owner sent another, and another and they did the same to them. Finally, he sent his beloved son thinking perhaps they would honor him. Instead, they filled him to get the inheritance. Jesus asked his audience what the owner would do to the tenants. They answered that he would come and kill the tenants and give the vineyard to others. The people were upset and said, “Surely not!” *** Jesus looked at them and quoted Psalm 118:22 that the stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. He explained that everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him. In other words it is futile to try to fight against God. *** The tribes and chief priests wanted to kill him because they perceived that he was telling this parable against them. But, for the sake of the people, they didn’t do anything then. They sent spies to follow him and try to trap him in his doctrine. *** They asked Jesus a question about taxes to get the Romans on their side, but it didn’t work. Nothing they did gave them a legal right to kill Jesus. *** Lord, I thank you that you will never let one of your good promises that you have given us fail to happen. We trust in your faithfulness and truth. Just like you did for Jesus, you will give us an answer from every hard question we are asked by God’s enemies.

Sun.’s Devo - Release From Death

Read: Joshua 19:1-20:9; Luke 19:28-48; Psalm 88:1-18; Proverbs 13:12-14 The second lot went to Simeon in the middle of Judah’s land because Judah’s land was too large for them. They acquired 17 cities. One of the cities that is familiar to us is Beersheba where Abraham dug wells and made a covenant with Abimelech. Isaac came back and reopened those wells. *** The third lot went to Zebulun with its 12 cities. Bethlehem was one of them. *** The fourth lot was given to Issachar which included Jezreel where Jezebel stole Naboth’s vineyard and then was killed in the same place. His land came with 16 cities. *** Asher was next with 22 cities which touched on Tyre which we read much about. *** The sixth lot went to Naphtali which included 19 cities, a few are familiar. *** Dan was seventh and was given land but thought their land was too small so they went and took Laish or Leshem and named it Dan. *** When they were finished distributing the territories the people of Israel they gave Joshua the city of his choice in the land of Ephraim. He asked for Timnath-serah which means “abundant portion” and rebuilt the city and settled there. *** Next, God told Joshua to appoint cities of refuge for the person who accidentally killed someone. He could run their for refuge until the death could be investigated and the person be found innocent. When the high priest at the time died, the innocent man was then released to go back to his home and the avenger or blood could no longer legally kill him. *** Whenever the high priest would die, there would be a great release of all the people from the cities of refuge. They could then safely return to their inheritance. When our High Priest, Jesus died, there was a great release of righteous people who had died and were in prisons called graves. They were all released when Jesus rose from his grave. *** They designated Kedesh in Naphtali, Shechem in Ephraim, Kiriath-arba (Hebron) in Judah, Bezer in Reuben, Ramoth in Gad and Golan in Manasseh for cities of refuge. *** In Luke, Jesus told his disciples to go to the village and bring back a donkey that had been prepared for him. The owner would ask why he was untying it and they were to tell the owner that the Lord needs it. This was all they needed to say and it went exactly like Jesus said it would go. They brought back the donkey and Jesus rode it into the city with the people praising him as King and spreading their cloaks on the road for him to walk on. When the Pharisees told Jesus to rebuke the people for praising him, he told them that if he didn’t let them praise him, the very stones would cry out his praises. *** As Jesus drew near to Jerusalem he began to weep because the people there didn’t recognize their visitation from God. He saw the day when Jerusalem would be torn down and the people slaughtered. *** He went to the temple and began to drive out the money changers. He proclaimed that his Father’s house was to be a house of prayer, but they had made it a den of robbers. *** He began teaching daily in the temple. While the people were hanging on to every word he said, the priests and scribes were plotting to kill him. *** Lord, we rejoice that we have been set free from the enemy of death, because of our High Priest who died in our place. Thank you for delivering us from sin to walk in righteousness.

Sat.’s Devo - Responsibility

Read: Joshua 16:1-18:28; Luke 19:1-27; Psalm 87:1-7; Proverbs 13:11 Joseph’s allotment went to his sons’ Manasseh and Ephraim. Half of Manasseh’s land was east of the Jordan and half on the west side. Their land was the largest of all the tribes. Ephraim’s portion was south of Manasseh’s land west of the Jordan. Both the people of Manasseh and those of Ephraim were not able to drive all the Canaanites out of their land so they made them do forced labor. *** The people of Joseph complained that they had too many people for the amount of land they were given in the hills. But, they complained that the land in the valley was full of Canaanites with iron chariots. Joshua told them that they were a great powerful nation and that they could take the Canaanites even if the do have iron chariots. *** Now, there were still seven tribes who had yet to receive their land. Joshua rebuked them for not taking possession of their land. He told them for each tribe to send out three surveyors from each tribe to bring him a description of the land. They were to divide the land into seven sections and he would draw lots to see who got what land. *** They brought the map to Joshua and he cast lots for the land and gave it out. *** Benjamin was given the land including Jericho. his land included 26 cities. *** In Luke, Jesus entered Jericho, the home of Zacchaeus who was a hated tax collector. Zacchaeus heard that Jesus was coming and wanted to see him. Since he was short, he climbed a sycamore tree to be able to see. Jesus saw him and told him to come down because he was eating at his house that day. The people criticized Jesus for wanting to eat at the home of a sinner. *** Zacchaeus was so honored he repented immediately and promised to give back all the money and more that he had defrauded from his people. Jesus commented that this was what true repentance looks like. *** Jesus told a parable about a wealthy man who left his home to receive a kingdom for himself. He left his estate to 10 servants, giving them each a mina. He told them to use what he gave them to invest. The citizens of the city hated him and sent a delegation to tell him they didn’t want him to reign over them. *** When he returned he found that the first man had taken his one mina and made 10 more. The master told him because he had been faithful in this small thing, he would make him ruler over ten of his cities in his kingdom. The next man had take his one and made five more. He was commended and given 5 cities. Then another came and gave his mina back saying he knew he would not get anything from making this man rich so he did nothing with it. He was rebuked for not at least putting it in the bank and letting it gain interest. He took the one mina from him and gave it to the one who had 10. *** Jesus then explained that whoever has. more will be given them and whoever has nothing, even what he has will be taken from him. He was saying that if you don’t use what God has given you for the kingdom, you will end up with nothing, but if you use your talents, money, time, etc, to benefit the kingdom, more will be given you. Life is our prooving place. We are all being tested for eternity. *** The master had the ones who wanted him to leave and not rule over them brought to him. He commanded that they be slaughtered. These are those who refuse to want him as their Lord and king. *** Lord, may we take responsibility of the things you put before us. May we learn from this that our lives count for eternity, and may we grow in responsibility and faithfulness.