LifeLink Devotional

Monday, August 3, 2020

At the time of writing this I have been home from vacation for less than two hours, and I am ready to drop everything and leave again, this time for a longer time with even less connectivity. I must take some time and review the precious words of my Lord and Savior as He spoke to the spiritual leaders of His day in John 5.

¹⁹  So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.

Are my responses to what is happening in the world, and especially my responses to what the church is doing to best show forth the love of Jesus, a true reflection of what the Father is doing?

²²  The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, ²³  that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.

Where am I judging others who don’t agree with me or support my position, when that role is reserved exclusively for Jesus Christ? How do my attitudes towards those with whom I disagree showing others that I honor Christ and honor the Father?

³⁰  …I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.

Where have my personal opinions, biases, preferences, and desires caused me to prioritize my will over the will of the Father?

³⁹  You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, ⁴⁰  yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

Have I become proud of my knowledge of Scripture and yet have lost my first love for Christ and for others? Am I so convinced of my own theological or political position that I refuse to bring life and love to others, especially those with whom I disagree?

⁴¹  I do not receive glory from people.

Am I prepared, for the sake of the true Gospel of Jesus, to be criticized and rejected by my brothers and sisters in Christ, who, for the sake of personal preferences, social benefits, or cultural acceptance, would turn from the Gospel to gratify the desires of the flesh?

⁴²  But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. 

Would I dare be humble enough to admit that Jesus can say this to me? Is it possible that my love for this world has surpassed my love God? Is it possible that my comforts are of more importance to me than Christ’s compassion for those who may even hate me? Could it be that I have chosen to prioritize my own list of commandments, rather than confidently live out Christ’s list of the two greatest commandments – LOVE GOD WITH YOUR WHOLE BEING, AND LOVE OTHERS AS YOU LOVE YOURSELF?

And why is the eternally precious Body of Christ, the church, having so much trouble with this right now?

Pastor John