The following devotions are written and shared weekly by Pastor Steve Harmon.
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Day One
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. God is speaking here in Ezekiel 18:14-, 25-32 to folks who have been carried off into exile. They have been uprooted from their land – from the land promised to Abraham’s descendents. Maybe their charges against God stem from the need to blame. How many times have you thought that life would be easier if politicians did a better job of working for the people instead of their own self-interests? How many times have you blamed your circumstances on the failures of friends or family – decisions made by others that brought negative consequences to you? The people in exile are there because of the sins of previous generations and specifically because of decisions made by their kings. So it’s not a surprise that they think that God is being unjust by punishing them for the sins of others. So God reminds them that they too are sinners. He reminds them that they have turned away from Him. They worshipped other gods while living in Judah. They did not turn from that sin. They didn’t return to the one true God. And even in exile, they still grumble against God because He’s not giving them what they think they need – primarily deliverance from their exile. So God calls them to repent (turn away from their rebellious ways) and return to God. His arms are open in welcome to them. By staying away – by refusing to return to Him – they risk being cut off forever. He calls them to return and live for He takes no pleasure in the death of anyone.
Day Two
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Here in Zechariah 9:9-10, God speaks a word of hope – a word of hope that is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. Without speaking a word, He proclaimed who He is. He is the One spoken about by Zechariah. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. He is the reason for our joy because He has triumphed over death by His resurrection. And He has given us the joy of His salvation through the sharing of that resurrection with us. In Baptism, we have been joined together with Jesus in His death and life. And if we have been joined with Jesus in a death like His, we are also joined with Him in a resurrection like His. That is His gift and that is our hope
Day Three
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Zephaniah 3:14-18a echoes Zechariah 9:9-10. God is speaking a word of good news. It is a word of rejoicing. God reminds them that He will be with them and that they will have no need to fear. It is a word that will be fulfilled when the exiles return from Babylon. And it is in sharp contrast to God’s word of judgment spoken against Judah. God also speaks of His work to bring Judah to its knees – to cause them to return to Him. Babylon will be His instrument of judgment. The king of Babylon will come and carry off the people of Judah into exile. Ultimately, this good news spoken by Zephaniah will find its fulfillment in Jesus Christ. He is Immanuel (God with us). He is God in the flesh. And He came to save. The culmination of this good word will come when we all stand before the throne of God and before the Lamb who is Jesus Christ in the heavenly realms. Until that time, God brings times of refreshing to us as we journey through our pilgrimage here on earth. They may be few and far between or they may come daily. But they will always come. They come as reminders that God is indeed with us and will never leave us.
Day Four
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Here in Malachi 3, we see a consequence of pinning our hope in Christ for blessings in this world only. They ask the question (and I’m sure you have): “What have we gained by serving the Lord. Evildoers prosper and
even those who challenge God escape.” We cry out “unfair”! And we are right. With a conscience that tells us good is rewarded and evil is punished, realities like those described in Malachi are most definitely unfair. But who said life is fair. We live in a broken world where nothing works the way it is supposed to. And that’s why our hope in Jesus Christ needs to focus on the empty tomb. He has come to redeem His creation – all of it. And He has. By His life, death and resurrection, sin and death have been overthrown. His saving work was made complete. It was finished – but not yet. We have received the results of His saving work by faith. We have been made children of God. And all that we have by faith in Jesus, God is now at work to bring to completion in our flesh. He is not finished with us yet. He is not finished restoring His creation. He is not finished, but there is nothing in all of creation that can stop His saving work. The tomb is empty. The victory is won. Death has been swallowed up in life – in the life that is Jesus’ gift to us – a life that has been promised to us and is being made complete in us. And so we live in that hope and rejoice in that hope even when life seems unfair. Trust God to bring to completion in your flesh all that He began when He called you to faith. He is faithful and He will do it. The empty tomb is the guarantee.
Day Five
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The last line of Malachi 3:14-18 is speaking of a time when the distinction between the righteous and the wicked will be made clear. The blurring of that distinction will no longer exist. The arrogant won’t be called blessed. Evildoers will not prosper. This certainly is pointing to the last day when God comes to judge all people. At that time the distinction between the righteous and wicked will be made clear. God will sit on His throne and separate the righteous from the unrighteous like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. But there will also be a fulfillment of these words when the faithful return to Judah from Babylon. Those who return will be called blessed and they will once again prosper in the land that God had promised to Abraham’s descendents. That also points ahead to the time when all believers will be gathered before the throne of God – in the midst of His temple – to rejoice in the culmination of all that God had promised to us through Jesus Christ. We will see in our flesh the full reality of what God has promised to us in Jesus. We will be holy. We will be blameless. We will be without any blemish. We will be His completed work. And we will rejoice.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. God is speaking here in Ezekiel 18:14-, 25-32 to folks who have been carried off into exile. They have been uprooted from their land – from the land promised to Abraham’s descendents. Maybe their charges against God stem from the need to blame. How many times have you thought that life would be easier if politicians did a better job of working for the people instead of their own self-interests? How many times have you blamed your circumstances on the failures of friends or family – decisions made by others that brought negative consequences to you? The people in exile are there because of the sins of previous generations and specifically because of decisions made by their kings. So it’s not a surprise that they think that God is being unjust by punishing them for the sins of others. So God reminds them that they too are sinners. He reminds them that they have turned away from Him. They worshipped other gods while living in Judah. They did not turn from that sin. They didn’t return to the one true God. And even in exile, they still grumble against God because He’s not giving them what they think they need – primarily deliverance from their exile. So God calls them to repent (turn away from their rebellious ways) and return to God. His arms are open in welcome to them. By staying away – by refusing to return to Him – they risk being cut off forever. He calls them to return and live for He takes no pleasure in the death of anyone.
Day Two
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Here in Zechariah 9:9-10, God speaks a word of hope – a word of hope that is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. Without speaking a word, He proclaimed who He is. He is the One spoken about by Zechariah. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. He is the reason for our joy because He has triumphed over death by His resurrection. And He has given us the joy of His salvation through the sharing of that resurrection with us. In Baptism, we have been joined together with Jesus in His death and life. And if we have been joined with Jesus in a death like His, we are also joined with Him in a resurrection like His. That is His gift and that is our hope
Day Three
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Zephaniah 3:14-18a echoes Zechariah 9:9-10. God is speaking a word of good news. It is a word of rejoicing. God reminds them that He will be with them and that they will have no need to fear. It is a word that will be fulfilled when the exiles return from Babylon. And it is in sharp contrast to God’s word of judgment spoken against Judah. God also speaks of His work to bring Judah to its knees – to cause them to return to Him. Babylon will be His instrument of judgment. The king of Babylon will come and carry off the people of Judah into exile. Ultimately, this good news spoken by Zephaniah will find its fulfillment in Jesus Christ. He is Immanuel (God with us). He is God in the flesh. And He came to save. The culmination of this good word will come when we all stand before the throne of God and before the Lamb who is Jesus Christ in the heavenly realms. Until that time, God brings times of refreshing to us as we journey through our pilgrimage here on earth. They may be few and far between or they may come daily. But they will always come. They come as reminders that God is indeed with us and will never leave us.
Day Four
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Here in Malachi 3, we see a consequence of pinning our hope in Christ for blessings in this world only. They ask the question (and I’m sure you have): “What have we gained by serving the Lord. Evildoers prosper and
even those who challenge God escape.” We cry out “unfair”! And we are right. With a conscience that tells us good is rewarded and evil is punished, realities like those described in Malachi are most definitely unfair. But who said life is fair. We live in a broken world where nothing works the way it is supposed to. And that’s why our hope in Jesus Christ needs to focus on the empty tomb. He has come to redeem His creation – all of it. And He has. By His life, death and resurrection, sin and death have been overthrown. His saving work was made complete. It was finished – but not yet. We have received the results of His saving work by faith. We have been made children of God. And all that we have by faith in Jesus, God is now at work to bring to completion in our flesh. He is not finished with us yet. He is not finished restoring His creation. He is not finished, but there is nothing in all of creation that can stop His saving work. The tomb is empty. The victory is won. Death has been swallowed up in life – in the life that is Jesus’ gift to us – a life that has been promised to us and is being made complete in us. And so we live in that hope and rejoice in that hope even when life seems unfair. Trust God to bring to completion in your flesh all that He began when He called you to faith. He is faithful and He will do it. The empty tomb is the guarantee.
Day Five
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The last line of Malachi 3:14-18 is speaking of a time when the distinction between the righteous and the wicked will be made clear. The blurring of that distinction will no longer exist. The arrogant won’t be called blessed. Evildoers will not prosper. This certainly is pointing to the last day when God comes to judge all people. At that time the distinction between the righteous and wicked will be made clear. God will sit on His throne and separate the righteous from the unrighteous like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. But there will also be a fulfillment of these words when the faithful return to Judah from Babylon. Those who return will be called blessed and they will once again prosper in the land that God had promised to Abraham’s descendents. That also points ahead to the time when all believers will be gathered before the throne of God – in the midst of His temple – to rejoice in the culmination of all that God had promised to us through Jesus Christ. We will see in our flesh the full reality of what God has promised to us in Jesus. We will be holy. We will be blameless. We will be without any blemish. We will be His completed work. And we will rejoice.