LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

He had established his reign as the most powerful world leader of his day. He had done everything possible to secure his position as both a political and a spiritual ruler. To maintain his control over his country, he used foreign slaves to increase productivity. His management methods were unjust. He treated people as nothing more than tools to be used to accomplish his own agenda and fill his own treasury. In addition, he tapped into the satanic realm to show spiritual power and authority, even demanding that he be considered a god.

The day came when the slaves cried out to their God Jehovah. They begged to be delivered from their four-hundred years of captivity. God heard their cries, and sent them a deliverer who was empowered by God to bring down the mighty Pharaoh from his throne and set the people free. God told the deliverer named Moses to speak to the people and tell them of His plan.

“Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment.”(Exodus 6:6)

When Mary sang her song of praise and mentioned that God had shown the strength of His arm, I wonder if she thought of this story from her spiritual heritage? I think she did, based on the words she sang in Luke 1:52^.

“…he has brought down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of humble estate;”

 Over my lifetime I have witnessed the mighty being removed from their places of power. No matter how much authority they claimed and how much power they wielded, when they had served the purpose of God to accomplish His sovereign plan, they were removed. From small countries to major world powers, there is no ruler whose position is not sovereignly controlled by Jehovah God. NOT ONE!

I find myself getting bent out of shape by the political developments of our day. I find it easy to fall into the “How will this ever turn out well?” mode and I’m set up to worry. Praise is quickly overwhelmed by perceived predicaments. Praise is severely hindered when problematic predictions captivate my mind. Praise ceases when my trust in God’s sovereign control wavers.

But not Mary. She declared that God has shown His strong arm by bringing down the mighty from their thrones. The memory of God’s might is to encourage our praise that God is still mighty, and that He will bring down all those who oppose His purpose. Whether it is in governments, businesses, or churches, God is in control and will accomplish His glorious purpose to bring His kingdom to earth.

Praise Him for how He has and will exalt the humble.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Thursday, December 31, 2020

The principles of God’s Kingdom are many times upside down from the principles by which the world operates. They don’t seem rational to the person who is not controlled by the Spirit of God. The philosophy of the world for human existence is dictated by self-preservation and self-advancement.  That stands in stark contrast to God’s principles of spiritual life which are grounded in self-sacrifice.

My heart is heavy with the reality that so many people are trapped in the bondage of the world’s way of living. We get easily ensnared in the pursuit of personal gain. We become enamored with wealth and power, employing our energy to advance and secure both.  Bitterness caused by unforgiveness builds walls, and only people who agree with us are allowed access to our lives. The pursuit of personal gain has minimized our awareness of the needs of others. But the worst condition we have is that we justify such behavior as beneficial, normal, common, and acceptable to the social majority.

But God’s Kingdom principles turn our behaviors upside down if we follow them. Mary refers to one such principle in her song of praise found in Luke chapter 1.   As she proclaims the ways in which she has seen the strong arm of the Lord in action, she declares, “…he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.”

Mary explains an eternal principle of spiritual life in the Kingdom of God: Pursuing what the world offers ends in emptiness, while remaining empty and pursuing God results in being filled with eternally good things.

The applications of this principle are too numerous to illustrate. The Holy Spirit is already convincing you of where it applies to your personal pursuits in life. My prayer is that you will listen to Him speak to you, and make whatever changes He suggests. There is nothing that this world can offer you that will be carried into God’s presence. There is nothing you can gain from this world that will produce the security you seek. There is nothing to gain from this world that can save your soul.

Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul?(Mark 8:34-37)

Mary praised God because she trusted that He would always provide good things to those who come to Him hungry. May we learn to praise God in the same way. Do not come to Him with your good. Come to Jesus with nothing, and He will give you His good.

Pastor John