Thurs.’s Devo- The Feasts

Read: Deuteronomy 16:1-17:20; Luke 9:7-27; Psalm 72:1-20; Proverbs 12:8-9 God spoke about his feasts over and over. He was inviting the people to celebrate with him in his feasts because these feasts are observed in heaven. The first was Passover which happened in the spring on the fourteenth of Abib or Nisan. It was to remind them that on that date, God brought them out of their slavery of Egypt. It was to point to the time when Jesus would die on the cross to bring us out of our slavery of sin. They were to bring a lamb to sacrifice. On the fulfillment of this feast, God would bring his lamb to Calvary. They were to eat the lamb with unleavened bread which would begin the festival of unleavened bread. It would last a week and represented the process of sanctification - getting sin out of our lives. Unleavened bread was fulfilled when Jesus was buried, went down to Sheol and preached captivity captive and set the righteous free, to go with him to heaven. The third feast which isn’t named here is First Fruits. It is referred to in verse 9. It is the day they first begin to cut the grain at harvest. It is the first fruits of their labor which are offered to the Lord. Jesus fulfilled this by rising from the dead on this day. Fifty days from First Fruits they were to celebrate Festival of Harvest or Pentecost. This was a celebration of the harvest. It was fulfilled when God poured out his Spirit on his disciples and they began preaching the Word with boldness and the harvest came in. (Acts 2) The last group of feasts were celebrated in the fall. The only one that was mentioned at this time was the Feast of Shelters or Tabernacles. It would occur after the fruit and olive harvests. It will be fulfilled when God comes down to tabernacle with us and set up his kingdom on earth. We call this the last millennium or the seventh day. Each year the men were to come to Jerusalem, bringing gifts to the Lord for these three set of feasts. God was serious about justice. They must appoint fair, honest, God-fearing men to act as judges and officials. Justice was never to be twisted or unfair. They were never to take a bribe or show partiality. They were never to set up Asherah poles or sacred pillars for worship because God hated them. They were never to offer sick or blemished animals to the Lord. Anyone found worshipping idols or other gods were to be stoned to death. They could only be condemned by two or more witnesses against them. If a case arose of murder or assault, it was to be taken to the Levites in the cities of refuge for the Levites to decide. They would investigate the crime and seek the Lord for a verdict. Whatever they decided must be carried out to the letter. When they got to the promised land, if they decided they wanted a king like everyone else then they must be sure to ask God to choose the king. He must be an Israelite and not a foreigner. He must not build up horses and chariots or accumulate lots of silver and gold for himself. He must copy the covenant himself and keep his copy with him at all times. He must read it daily so he will know how to govern the people as God wants them governed. If he does this then he and his descendants would reign for many generations. In Luke, Herod Antipas who had beheaded John the Baptist started hearing stories of Jesus and his miracles. He was afraid that John had risen from the dead. Herod lived in such guilt for his lifestyle and for killing John that he was delusional. Jesus had to stay away from Herod and his people so he went to the countryside to teach as many people as possible. One day he was teaching in Bethsaida and the people had been listening to him all day. The disciples urged Jesus to send them home so they could eat but Jesus fed the 5,000 men with only two fish and five loaves. They picked up 12 baskets of left-overs. One day, Jesus was talking with his disciples and asked them who people were saying he was. They responded, John the Baptist, or Elijah or other prophets that had risen from the dead. Then he asked them who they thought he was. Peter responded, “the Messiah, sent from God.” Jesus warned them not to tell anyone because he was to suffer and be killed. Then he would rise from the dead on the third day. He encouraged the crowd to lay down their lives also and follow him. Lord, we are truly crucified with You and buried with you. But, we are also risen with you and are on this earth to let your life shine through us. May we decrease and may You increase.

Wed.’s Devo - The Law is Spiritual

Read: Deuteronomy 13:1-15:23; Luke 8:40-9:6; Psalm 71:1-24; Proverbs 12:5-7 Moses warned them of people who dreamed dreams of the future and they came to pass, and of people who did signs and wonders. If they then enticed the people to follow other gods, they would know that they were not true prophets of God; they were false prophets. If they pointed them to God, then they were true prophets of God. False prophets were to be put to death or they would encourage rebellion against God. Other people might try to entice them to follow other gods, like someone in their immediate family. They were to have no mercy on them but put them to death. A scoundrel in their town might rise up and try to entice the citizens of the town to follow other gods, but they were not to follow him. If the town did follow him into idolatry, then the people of Israel must attack them and kill them and burn the whole town. God promised to have mercy on only those who listened to him voice and kept all his commands. God gave them a list of the animals that were unclean. They could eat any animal that had completely split hooves and chewed the cud. This is a picture of what we as Christian’s should eat. We are to eat the Word which divides soul and spirit. joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12) It is the split hooves that we stand on. We are to chew the meat of the Word and meditate upon it day and night. This is a picture of chewing the cud. We don’t swallow everything we hear without using discernment and asking the Lord his opinion. The marine animals were to have fins and scales. Which means to us that we must walk unwavering and straight. Fins allow a fish to swim balanced. Scales are coverings. We are covered with the blood of Christ. They were not to eat birds of prey that ate dead animals for food. We are to eat things that bring us life not death. Winged insects that walked upon the earth stood for things that were suppose to fly but chose to walk on the earth. That could mean not to participate with people who were earthly, fleshly Christians who didn’t live by the spirit but by the flesh. They were not to eat anything that died a natural death. This could represent a person who refused to repent and died in their sin. We are not to follow their example. They were told repeatedly not to cook a young goat in its mother’s milk. I think this means not to label a person according to the sins of their mother. Don’t put them in the same category but let them answer for themselves and choose to become their own person. They were to give the Lord a tithe of everything. At the end of every seventh year they were to cancel all debts. They were to be generous and compassionate toward the poor and needy. All slaves were to be released every seventh year unless the slave chose to stay with its master. Then the owner would take the slave and pierce his ear to the doorpost of his house. In that way the owner is applying his slave’s blood his door showing that he is now a part of his family. That is what we do when we choose to die to our lives and become a bond slave of the Lord’s. In Luke, Jesus was just on the other side of the lake where a demon-possessed man had begged to have his demons not be cast into the pit and now we have a leader of the synagogue begging Jesus to heal his daughter who was going to the pit. Jesus pulled them both out of the pit and saved them from eternal death. The synagogue leader was named Jairus which means “he will enlighten”. Jesus required faith from him and he did have faith. His daughter who was 12 years old, was brought back from death. At the same time a woman who had been bleeding for the same amount of years came to him and secretly touched the bottom of his robe. Jesus made it public that she was healed. Both of these people represented Israel. Jesus came to bring Israel back to life and those who sought him found new life and healing. Those who didn’t just sunk deeper into deception. Jesus gathered his disciples and sent them out to do the same thing he was doing. Lord, may we do the same things that you did on the earth and even more. May we take your Kingdom into the world and spread it.

Tues.’s Devo - Deliverance

Read: Deuteronomy 11:1-12:32; Luke 8:22-39; Psalm 70:1-5; Proverbs 12:4 Moses addressed the people who had lived through the time of the exodus from Egypt. He reminded them that their children had not seen the great plagues of Egypt that the Lord brought and how he parted the Red Sea for them. They hadn’t experienced how the Lord cared for them in the wilderness and what God did to Dathan and Abiram when they rebelled against him and Moses. God had opened up the ground and swallowed them alive. They had seen all this with their own eyes and they had no excuse but to follow the Lord and fear him. The land God was giving their children was not like the land of Egypt where they had to irrigate to water their crops. God watered this land from heaven with rain and gave them seasons. If they obeyed the Lord, he would give them the proper seasons at the right time so that their crops would prosper and grow. They would have lush pastureland for their cattle. If they did not obey the Lord, he would shut up the heavens so the rain would not fall and their crops would not prosper. It was their job to teach all these things to their children so they would obey the Lord and walk in his ways. God would drive out the nations ahead of them and give them the land. God was giving them a choice between blessings and curses. They were not to worship the gods of the people living in the land now. When they took possession of the land they were to meet in the valley between Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerizim and pronounce the curses on Mt. Ebal and the blessings on Mt.Gerizim. It was to remind them to walk with the Lord and obey his commands. They were to set up one place where they would meet to worship the Lord. they would celebrate and sacrifice their offerings there. They could butcher and eat their sacrificial animals in any town they wanted. The only stipulation was that they were never to eat the blood of the animal; they were to pour it out on the ground. They were to share their food with the Levites and care for them. When they came into their land they were not to inquire about how the heathen worshipped their gods or want to participate with them because their worship was detestable to the Lord. They burned their sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods. In Luke, Jesus took his disciples to cross the Sea of Galilee. On the ride, Jesus fell asleep in the bottom of the boat. A storm arose that he disciples were afraid for their lives so they woke Jesus up. He spoke to the waves and rebuke them. They were calm and the disciples were in awe. They arrived on the shore of the Gadarene’s and were met by the town demoniac. He housed the principality of the region which is why the storm arose. He was trying to keep Jesus from coming there. He was homeless and naked living in the tombs outside the town. The demons in him begged to not be cast into he bottomless pit so Jesus sent them into a herd of swine. They pigs ran off the cliff and drown in the water below. The herdsmen of the pigs ran back to town reporting what they saw. The people came out and saw the demoniac acting sane and were afraid. They begged Jesus to go away from them. The delivered man begged to go with Jesus but Jesus told him to go back and be a witness for him in his hometown. The man did and the next time Jesus showed up, the town was eager to receive him. It is comical that the people of the town were more afraid of Jesus who brought peace and deliverance than they were of a crazy man who was full of demonic power. It just proves that people are afraid of the unknown. They are more comfortable with their own disfunction than with freedom from it. Lord, help us to make the transition from disfunction to function. Help us to know the difference. We choose life and blessings.

Mon.’s Devo - Trees of Righteousness

Read: Deuteronomy 9:1-10:22; Luke 8:4-21; Psalm 69:19-36; Proverbs 12:2-3 Moses addressed Israel as they were about to enter into their promised land. The inhabitants of the land were much more mighty and greater in number than them. They had cities with great tall walls and giants who lived in them. God was going before them like a consuming fire to destroy them. God was not doing this because they were so good and deserved it because they didn’t. They had been a stubborn and obstinate people the whole forty years through the wilderness. He was doing this because the people they would be displacing were evil and God had made a promise to Abraham and God keeps his word. God reminded them of his righteous anger when they rebelled at Mt. Sinai and made the golden calf. He wanted to destroy them then, but Moses prayed for them. God was angry with them when they complained of no food at Taberah and God sent them manna. At Massah when they had no water, God brought water out of the rock. At Kibroth-hattaavah they lusted for meat and God sent them quail. Then at Kadesh-Barnea where they chose to listen to the fear of the spies that went to spy out the land. He sentenced them to forty years in the wilderness where that whole generation was sentenced to die in the wilderness. God had saved them and brought them here this day for his own reputation on earth. They continued on to the Jordan and at Moserah, Aaron died and was buried. Eleazar took his place as high priest. God set apart the Levites to carry the Ark and to minister to Him for the people. Moses told the people what the Lord required of them: fear Him, live their lives to please him and to serve him with all their heart and soul. They must always obey the law which would bring them good things. God had chosen them above all the other nations of the world to be his people. He would be fair and make sure that the orphans and widows received justice. God showed mercy to the foreigners living month them so they should too. Their hearts should be toward the Lord and they should fear and worship him because he is the only God. He had done so many miracles in their sight and he was the one who prospered and multiplied their descendants. In Luke, Jesus gave the parable of the seed and the sower. He explained the parable to his disciples and told them that many would not understand his teachings because they were the fulfillment of the parable. The seed is scattered in many hearts but only the hearts that welcome the seed would mature and grow into trees. These trees are to be lights to the world that are not ashamed of what they know and who they are. Jesus told them to be careful how they heard. The more they listened to Jesus, the more they would understand. All who listen to God’s word are like his mother and his brothers. Lord, may we listen with our hearts and our spirits. May we discern rightly and grow up to be trees of righteousness.

Sun.’s Devo - Remember God

Read: Deuteronomy 7:1-8:20; Luke 7:36-8:3; Psalm 69:1-18; Proverbs 12:1 There were seven nations that occupied the promised land that were to be completely destroyed. They were not to marry their sons or daughters or keep any of their idols or ways of worship or gods. If they obeyed the Lord and his laws they would not experience any infertility or miscarriages, nor would their cattle. They would not suffer from any of the diseases of the land. They were to destroy them and show no mercy because if they did, these people would do so much harm to them as a nation that it would destroy God’s plan for them. They were not to fear them because the God who delivered them from Pharaoh in Egypt would fight against their enemies and would drive them out with terror. He would do this little by little so they would have enough time to settle in their land. For forty years, God had tested them in the wilderness so that they would learn to trust him for their daily bread and all their needs. Their clothes hadn’t worn out, nor their shoes. When they got into their land and had built their new houses and were enjoying the abundance of the land, they were not to get proud and forget God. They were not to forget all the trials and deliverances they experienced in their walk through the wilderness. If they did forget God then they would be destroyed just like the nations they were about to destroy. This is a good word for us. We are about to walk into the time of the greatest time of abundance and wealth we have ever known. These warnings are just as important for us. We cannot forget all God has done for us and how we lived on every Word that he gave us and depended upon him for every ounce of hope. He is worth so much more than the riches of this world. Jesus was invited to the house of a Pharisee to eat supper. This Pharisee was probably rich and lived in a nice house. He was appalled when a lady that was probably a prostitute came in and began pouring expensive perfume on Jesus feet and kissed his feet while wiping them with her hair. Jesus didn’t see her as a prostitute but saw a humble loving heart that was full of gratitude. Jesus knew that the Pharisees were judging her and most of all him, so he told them a parable about forgiveness. The story was about two men who owed a man different amounts of money. The man forgave both of the men their debt. Jesus asked the Pharisee which one of the men loved the man who forgave them the most. Simon, the Pharisee answered that probably the one who had owed him the most. Jesus said that she was the one who owed God more because she had been forgiven the most. Then Jesus forgave the woman of her sins and sent her on her way. They Pharisees were now appalled that Jesus thought he could forgive sins. He couldn’t win for losing with them. In the last paragraph we get a bit of interesting information. Joanna was the wife of Herod’s business manager. He was no doubt very rich. She had become a great follower of Jesus and gave him lots of money from her husband’s salary to fund Jesus’ ministry. Lord, may we never forget all you have done for us. May our wealth be of our hearts and not our pocketbook. May we choose the things that bring life and hope.

Sat.’s Devo - Moses and John

Read: Deuteronomy 5:1-6:25; Luke 7:11-35; Psalm 68:19-35; Proverbs 11:29-31 Moses made his address to the people that had witnessed God at Mt. Sinai. They might have just been children then or adults that would soon die before they crossed over Jordan, but he made it clear that God spoke to them audibly his commands then wrote them on tablets of stone so they would have them to refer to. They saw the fire on the mountain and the smoke as God showed them his glory. The tribal leaders asked Moses to tell God not to do that again because it scared them. They asked for God to speak to Moses and then Moses could tell them what he said. This pleased the Lord that they would have so much reverential fear of him and that is how God did it from then on. He told Moses the rest of his commandments and Moses told the people. They were about to enter into the land God had promised them and if they obeyed his commands they would live long in the land and prosper. They must love the Lord with all their hearts, soul and strength. They were to repeat the words of God to their children and teach them to obey them. They were to surround themselves with reminders of what God’s Word said. When they became prosperous, they were not to forget that God had delivered them from slavery. They were to continue to fear him and remember the covenant they made. They were never to worship the gods of the people around them or God would get so angry he would wipe them off the face of the earth. Obedience equals righteousness. In Luke, Jesus gave us a precursor to his future. He came upon a funeral of a widow’s only son. He was so filled with compassion that he reached out, touched the man and told him to get up. The boy came back into his body, sat up and began to talk. I would have loved to know what he talked about. I wonder if Jesus saw his own mother in this widow. His mother would be a widow and watch the brutal murder of her son and he would also rise from the dead and talk to her again. John the Baptist was in prison probably wondering when Jesus was going to come and get him out since the prophets said he would open prison doors and set the prisoner free. John sent his messengers to ask Jesus if he was the Messiah probably to remind Jesus of his plight. Jesus probably understood this but only could do what his father wanted him to do. Jesus reminded John of all he was doing and told him not to be offended. Sometimes it is so easy to get offended at God because He is not doing the one thing we want him to do when he has done so many other things for us. John was the last of the old covenant prophets. He had to be killed in Jerusalem. He, himself had said, “I must decrease and He (Jesus) must increase. John got his reward in heaven and I’m sure it was great. Jesus acknowledged that John was the prophet sent ahead of him who Malachi (3:1) had prophesied about. He said that of all that had ever lived, John was the greatest. That was Jesus’ eulogy about John. Then, Jesus added that even the least person in the Kingdom of God is greater than he is. In other words, in heaven everyone is greater than the greatest on earth. The Pharisees had rejected John’s ministry and his baptism so Jesus had some words to say to them. A generation is known by its leaders and heaven would remember their generation as the ones who were indifferent to anything God did. They had found fault in John because he fasted and didn’t drink wine and they found fault in Jesus who did both. Then he said, “Wisdom is justified of all her children.” He was saying that the fruit of John, Jesus and the Pharisees would be the proof of their teaching. What did their followers become? Lord, may our lives prove your wisdom. May we not be guilty of forgetting all the wonderful things you have done for us.

Fri.’s Devo - Good Seed

Read: Deuteronomy 4:1-49; Luke 6:39-7:10; Psalm 68:1-18; Proverbs 11:28 The Lord told them not to add or subtract from the laws he had given them but to obey them. When Jesus arrived on the earth they had so added to the law that they had lost the real meaning of the commandments. Jesus kept referring to the original law which most of them didn’t even know. God told them that if they obeyed his laws they would look wise and intelligent to the surrounding nations who would be jealous of their laws because they were so just and fair. He told them not to forget what God did to the people who worshipped Baal at Peor or the voice they heard as God proclaimed his commandments at Mt. Sinai. They didn’t see the Lord so they were not to try to make an image of what they thought he might look like. God would send down his exact image in the face of Jesus Christ, his son. (Hebrews 1:3) Moses would not cross over with them into the land but he called heaven and earth to be a witness against them. If they broke God’s covenant they would quickly disappear from the land and be destroyed and only a remnant would survive to be scattered among the nations. In those nations they would be forced to worship dead gods of stone and wood. They would eventually cry out to the living God to rescue them. No other nation in all of time had heard the voice of God as a nation and seen all the miraculous signs and wonders they had seen. God chose them to be his own people and he had never done that before to any people. The laws God gave them were good and would insure them a long prosperous life. For the three tribes that had their land east of the Jordan, Moses set apart three cities of refuge. They were Bezer in Reuben’s land, Ramoth in Gilead for Gad and Golan in Bashan for Manasseh. In Luke, Jesus addressed their blindness. They were spiritually blind and needed someone who could see to lead them. If they wanted to see they had to first get the blinders out of their own eyes instead of trying to judge others. Jesus explained that people are like trees and the seed they came from was either good or bad. If it was good then it would produce good fruit but if it was evil it would not be able to produce good fruit - only bad. Those who listened to Jesus and believed were like builders digging deep into the ground and pouring a firm foundation and then building on it. That house would not be able to fall. The next thing that happened was an example of this very teaching. A Roman officer had a slave that he highly valued who was fatally sick. He came to Jesus to beg him to come and heal his servant. The people told Jesus how good this Roman officer was. He loved the Jewish people and even built them a synagogue. He was a tree from a good seed. Jesus perceived this and went to his house. On the way he was stopped by a friend who had a message from the officer for Jesus. It said that he was unworthy for Jesus to come to his house but he could send his word and it would heal the servant. Jesus was amazed at his faith and healed his servant right then and there. Lord, may we trust in your unfailing love for us. Thank you that your Word is good and your commandments are just and fair.