Tag: Service

Luke- Week 2- Day 5- How should we respond to God’s plan of redemption?

On By Ben JenningsIn DevotionalLeave a comment

And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her. 

Luke 1:38

Explanation:

One last detail of this passage gives us an example of how to respond to God’s plan of redemption.  There is a third “behold” in this passage.  The first “behold” was told to Mary by Gabriel when she was told how she was favored by God to carry Jesus.  The second “behold” was told to Mary by Gabriel when he was sharing with her about Elisabeth’s conception in her old age. 

This time Mary says “behold” to Gabriel and declares herself “the handmaid of the Lord”.   The word translated “handmaid” is the female form of the word for “slave”.  Mary describes herself as the slave of the Lord.  She is fulling submitting to the task that has been assigned to her.  Her response to God is complete surrender to what He wants her to do.

Taking on the responsibility would not be easy.  You have the normal burden of childbearing that is challenging enough.  Mary would also have to do this in a culture where unwed pregnancy was the source of all kinds of shame in the community.  Certainly, her relationship with her betrothed would be at risk.  She must have had so many questions.  When I start to show, what do I say?  What will my parents think?  What will Joseph think?  Will he end our engagement?  How will I raise the Son of God without a husband and father?

It is not wrong for her to have these kinds of questions, especially when her first response in those questions having is “Behold, the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.”  All the other concerns were coming under the umbrella of her submission to God.

Application:

What an incredible example to us!  We can certainly see evidence in the life of Mary that she was a wise choice for this task.  If it is true that God initiated the plan of redemption, became flesh so that he could purchase our redemption, and does the impossible as part of his plan, then we He calls on us to be used in that plan the only right response is submission.  That God would choose to use any of us is evidence of His incredible grace and mercy in our lives.


Response:

  • If you are lost, know that God is calling on you to be redeemed.  God sent Jesus to die for you and rise again.  Submit to His plan and be saved today!
  • Believer, God wants to use You.  Who is God asking you to talk to about Him?  Let us submit to God’s will for our lives.
  • May we respond to God today in this way:  “Behold, the servant of the Lord.  Be it according to Your Word!”

Week 13: Day 4- Deuteronomy 34:5-6

On By Ben JenningsIn DevotionalLeave a comment

So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD. And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Bethpeor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day. 

(Deu 34:5-6)

Explanation:

There are three phrases that strike me in these two verses.
First, I’m struck by the phrase “the servant of the Lord”.  If you were to know Moses’ life, you could have called him several things.  He could have been known as Moses, the Leader of the People, or Moses, the former prince of Egypt, or Moses, the prophet of God.  He could have been titled many things, but at the end of His life, the Holy Spirit chose to call him “the servant of the Lord”.  It’s really not a bad title. 

Second, I’m struck by the phrase “according to the word of the Lord”.  This is just saying that what God said about Moses’ death- its’ timing and location- happened.  God is in control, and what He says will happen will certainly come to pass.  Remember what the scripture says.

And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

(Heb 9:27)

Lastly, I’m struck by the phrase “no man knoweth of his suplchre unto this day”.  All we can say for certain about this phrase is that we don’t know specifically where Moses’ is buried.  We don’t know it now, because at the time of that writing no one knew then as well.  Why didn’t God allow the people to know where Moses was buried?  Several options could be submitted, but I believe that at least part of it had to do with the human bent toward idolatry.  Human beings tend to worship, and often worship that which is not God.  This is called idolatry.  Knowing the place where Moses was buried would tempt the children of Israel from moving beyond veneration to worship.  Moses was the servant of the Lord, and would not want himself to be worshiped.

Application:

Three obvious applications to my thoughts.

  1. At our best we are “the servants of the Lord.  If we order our lives to following and serving Him that is what is best for us.
  1. What God has promised He will do.  Knowing that this world is temporal, and that we are eternal we must be wise. 

See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.  (Eph 5:15-16)                

So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.  (Psa 90:12)

        3. We should be careful not to make idols of our leaders.  When we have great leaders that impact us, we must remember that at best they are servants of the Lord.  What impacts us about them is God working in them and then through them.  We ought to worship the Lord because of their leadership and not them.

Response:

  1. In your walk this week could you rightly be called a servant of the Lord?
  2. Are you numbering your days- thinking about how you are using the time that you have for Gospel impact?
  3. What is your heart worshipping right now?  Any answer other than God is out of bounds!

Week 3: Day 3- Numbers 20:7-8

On By Ben JenningsIn Devotional, LeadershipLeave a comment

7 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.

Numbers 20:7-8

Explain

Moses and Aaron had rightly and humbly come before God to ask for his help and seek a solution. God had responded with his presence, and He gave them an answer. God told Moses to speak to the rock. That was different than the last time where Moses had struck the rock (Numbers 17:5-7).

Moses had used his staff throughout Exodus and Numbers to part the red sea, turn the Nile to blood, prove his authority from God by making his staff turn to a serpent. Perhaps God asked him to speak to the rock instead of strike the rock so that he would remember that the staff was not supernatural or powerful in itself. The staff did not deliver, supply, or judge. God did. It, like Moses, was a vessel that God used and no more. This was true of the the staff, of Moses, and it’s true of us as well.

Apply

When God uses us to do good things in his name, it is He who does those things. We are vessels He may choose to use. We must remember who we are and who He is. When we do this, we will be more inclined to obey.

Respond

  1. Have you ever tried to take credit for what God is doing through you or around you?
  2. Take a few moments today to pray and ask God to keep you humble and to use you so that He gets glory.