Wed.’s Devo -Israel Will Be Born in a Day

Read: Isaiah 66:1-24; Philippians 3:5-21; Psalm 74:1-23; Proverbs 74:1-23 The Lord declares that he built his own resting place. He made his throne in heaven and his footstool on the earth. How could we build him a temple better than that? Everything in the heaven and the earth his his. *** Then, the Lord moves to the individual. He will bless the person who is humble and has a contrite heart and who trembles when they read his Word. But, to the one who goes their own way, and who delights in sinning he will not accept their offerings. Their attempts to please him will be offensive to him. He will send them their greatest fears because they had chosen to do what they knew God hated. They oppressed those who did honor God’s name but they would hear the voice of the Lord taking vengeance against his enemies. *** God says that when it comes time for Israel to be born again it will happen so quickly it will be a miraculous. Jerusalem will be a conduit of peace and prosperity and the wealth of the nations will flow to her. She will be comforted by the Lord himself. Everyone will see the Lord’s hand of blessing on her and the righteous will be glad to see it. The Lord will punish the world with his fire of fury. Many will be killed by the Lord. *** Those who survive God’s judgement will become missionaries to other lands. They will tell of the things the Lord did in Israel and they will cause the remnant of God’s people to come home. Many of them will be anointed priests and Levites to the Lord. *** All humanity will come to worship the Lord and they will see the dead bodies of those who rebelled agains the Lord and look with horror at their end. *** In Philippians, Paul gives his resume which is very impressive as a zealous follower of the law. But he discarded all of it for Christ. He came to see that being all the right things and doing all the right things meant nothing. The way to righteousness was through having faith in Christ, alone. It was to know Christ and experience the power that raised him from the dead. It was to suffer with him and share in his death so that he could experience the resurrection from death. *** Paul learned that it was a day by day walk of forgetting the past and looking forward to the future. It was about living as citizens of heaven while we are living on earth. *** Lord, may we do that very thing: live as citizens of heaven while we walk on this earth. May we live for the future that we have been given in Christ. May we honor what Christ did on the cross by walking in the power he gained in the resurrection. All to your Glory, Lord.