Devotionals

John 18:7-9, NIV
Again, he asked them, “Who is it you want?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” “I told you, I am he,” Jesus answered. “If you are looking for me, then let these men go.” This happened so that the words he had spoken would be fulfilled: “I have not lost one of those you gave me.”

Over the past two days a new world hero has emerged from the icy waters of the Hudson River, New York. I watched live on television on Thursday night as a crashed US Airways plane was struggling to remain afloat on the surface of the water. It’s thought that the plane had run into a flock of geese shortly after take-off and both engines failed as a result.

Without any power from the engines, the pilot nevertheless managed to bring the plane down in one piece and do a text-book emergency landing on water. The emergency doors opened one by one and within minutes all the passengers and crew were seen standing on the slowly submerging wings of the aircraft or in life rafts. Ferry boats in the area came rushing to the aid of the stricken plane and its passengers. No-one who saw it happening will ever forget the emotion of realising that, instead of watching a horrendous disaster, we were witnessing a miracle take place before our very eyes.

When every one of his passengers and crew were safely off the plane the Captain personally walked the full length of the plane twice to satisfy himself that not one of the passengers who had committed their lives into his care remained on board. Every single person was saved – not one was lost. The Captain was undoubtedly an amazing hero.

As I listened to the news report of the Captain’s incredible feat of landing a powerless plane safely on the water, and then personally ensuring that no-one was lost, I could not avoid turning to this Scripture and thanking God from the bottom of my heart that Jesus is the Captain of my soul. He is the Captain of every single person who has committed their lives unto him. And just as he was careful to ensure that the lives of none of those who had been given into his care would be lost in that Gethsemane encounter with the Roman soldiers, he is equally concerned for you and me right now.

Yes, one day there will be a time to die a physical death. But what joy to know that in Christ, the Captain of my vessel, I have a Redeemer who did even more than walk the length of the plane to see that no-one would be lost. He gave his life that we may be saved and was then raised again from the dead by Father God. Hallelujah, what a Saviour! What a Captain we have on board!!

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, that all those lives were saved from the Hudson River and for the Captain of the plane who did such an outstanding job. But thank you even more that you, Lord Jesus, died that I might live and that as Captain of my life I know you are caring for me every step of the way home to my final destination, the security of life with you in eternity. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Living the Life – Book by Peter Horrobin

Shepherd Love CD

Deuteronomy 23:14, NIV
For the Lord your God moves about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you. Your camp must be holy, so that he will not see among you anything indecent and turn away from you.

The Hebraic understanding of life tells us that everything we do is either directly or indirectly an act of worship. If we are doing those things that please God, then God rejoices to bless us with his presence. But if we are doing things that are shameful, then ultimately we are worshipping the god of this world and it is not surprising that God would turn his face away from us at that time.

When my children were young it was always necessary to keep a close eye on them when they were adventuring. For what was great fun for them could also take them into a place of danger. There were many occasions when a watchful parental eye led to a loving, but warning, call and on some occasions it was that watchful eye that prevented a potential disaster. What would have happened if the parental eye was turned away at a critical moment? The consequences could have been too awful to contemplate.

In this Scripture we read how God says He will turn away from anything indecent that is found in our “camp” – that could mean our home, our activities, our holidays or wherever we go. What a challenge this is to keep ourselves pure in heart motive and action. Jesus put it this way, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matt. 5:8). We generally interpret this verse as meaning that because our eyes are pure we will be able to look on God, who is holy. I am sure that is a correct interpretation, but could it also be that the impure in heart will not be able to see God, because He is not looking at them? And he is having to look away from them because of the impurity they are nurturing? You cannot look into the face of someone who is not looking at you!

If God’s eye is not upon us, we are in danger of losing the protection of our Heavenly Father. What an encouragement this must be to keep ourselves pure and not allow the lust of the eyes to lead us into dangerous temptations.

Prayer: Lord, I need your loving care and protection. I choose to not only walk in your ways but to seek after purity with all of my heart so that indecency will not cause you to turn your eye from me at any time. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Healing & Destiny – Teaching CD

No Other Way – Teaching CD

Revelation 3:20, NIV
“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”

This is one of the most well-known verses in Scripture. Thousands of evangelists have used these words, from Jesus’s letter to the Church at Laodicea, to close the deal, as it were, when making an appeal for people to accept Jesus as their Saviour by opening the door of their heart to Him. Countless millions must have come into the Kingdom of God, impacted by the Saviour’s words. I thank God for every single one of them.

There is, however, a big but about how this Scripture is often used! For, the message to the Church at Laodicea was to believers, not those who were outside the fellowship of the Church. This verse was, in reality, an appeal from Jesus to Christians to give Jesus access to all of their life. The Church at Laodicea thought it was rich, but the devastating words spoken to them in verse 17 said that far from being rich (in God’s eyes), they were poor, blind and naked!

Sometimes our perception of things is distorted by our own sinfulness, greed, pride and even arrogance, as was the case with the Laodiceans. An important prayer for each of us to pray is “Lord, open my eyes – that I may see things as you see them.” I rejoice that so many people have come into the Kingdom of God, challenged by evangelists to open the door of their heart. But I do wonder what would be the effect on the Church if all believers responded to the Lord by giving Him access to every area of their lives? It is well said that if Jesus is not Lord of all, he is not Lord at all.

I believe miracles would happen in all our churches, and even our nations, if we were to respond enthusiastically to the knocking of the Saviour on the door of His Church, turn the key in the lock and welcome Him in – giving Him His rightful place. What a challenge that is for each of us as we look to Him as the source of Life (in all its fullness) for 2009.

Prayer: Thank you Lord that you still knock on the door of our hearts, even when we have turned our back on you in the past. I want you to be Lord of my whole life and I invite you to come in and reign in every area of my being. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Kingdom Choices – Teaching CD

Philippians 3:13-14, NIV
One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Every day we depend on the memory of things we …

Luke 2:29-32, NIV
“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, dismiss now your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel….

Luke 2:11-12, NIV
“Today in the town of David, a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Isaiah had prophesied that when the Messiah came his arm …

Matthew 1:22-23, NIV
All this took place to fulfil what the Lord said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”, which means, “God with us.”

There are many names and phrases use…

1 Samuel 17:45, NIV
David said to the Philistine, ‘You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied’.

As we stand back from the story of ‘small boy slays huge giant’, we can see that this is a picture of Jesus winning the victory over Satan. He too was ‘despised and rejected by men’ (Isaiah 53:3), but nevertheless He went ahead and finished the job to be done.

As David undertook his assignment against Goliath he became the representative for Israel. Israel’s present and future rested in David. At that moment David ceased to be merely an individual. He had put his trust in the God of the Covenant. Whatever the outcome was to be, whether victory or defeat, it affected everyone there. David represented Israel as an Israelite, but, more than that, he had also become God’s representative.

Jesus was truly God and yet truly man. He represented mankind on the cross when he bore the sins of us all. The future of the human race and its salvation rested on Jesus. When Jesus defeated the ‘giant’ Satan, He was the representative for man but also for God. Jesus completed the job and declared ‘It is finished’. The once-and-for-all sacrifice for sin established the New Covenant in His blood. Mankind can now enter into a covenant relationship with God the Father, through Jesus Christ the Son. Jesus is the representative who totally fulfils every promise of God. He fulfils the Covenant of God’s love. And he invites you to be a beneficiary of His Covenant love! What amazing grace!!

Prayer: Father God, I want to thank You today for the truth that You initiated the New Covenant of Your love and mercy to me. Thank You that I’m in Covenant relationship with You, through Jesus Christ, Your Son. Thank You for all that this means. Amen.

What are Your Giants? – Teaching CD

Living the Life – Book by Peter Horrobin

1 Samuel 17:42, NIV
He looked David over and saw that he was only a boy, ruddy and handsome, and he despised him.

The final ‘giant’ David had to confront before facing Goliath was the ‘giant’ of general concensus. David refused to give in and, remember, he was probably only a boy of 15 at the time. Nobody, absolutely nobody, believed he could do it! Saul didn’t. His family didn’t. The Israelite army probably thought it was a bad joke!

As he walked on to the battlefield towards Goliath there was probably derisory laughter from the Philistines. They probably thought he was going to ‘be toast’ in the next ten minutes! The giant Goliath certainly didn’t believe David could do it. He looked David over.

Have you ever been looked over? It’s not a nice experience. The giant despised him. He sneered at David saying, ‘am I a dog that you come at me with sticks?’ And the Philistine giant cursed David by his gods. He despised him, then he cursed him, and then he tried to intimidate him. He said ‘I’ll give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!’ (1 Samuel 17:44). David was having none of it. He shouted ‘I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied… the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel’ (1 Samuel 17:45).

My! What a declaration! David may have looked completely out-classed by the giant, but he knew that God was on his side. David knew his God and knew the power of His name. He went on to say ‘For the battle is the Lord’s and He will give all of you into our hands!’ (1 Samuel 17:47).

So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him (1 Samuel 17:50). What a story of how God can use weak-looking people who have great faith in Him and He will give them victory over the ‘giants’.

David had to push through the ‘giant’ of general consensus or he could never have slain Goliath. How about you? Does it feel sometimes that no-one understands the call of God on your life and no one is believing in you or cheering you on?

William Carey was a simple cobbler from Northampton who knew God’s call to be a missionary to India. The elders of his church said, ‘young man, if God wants to save the heathen in India, He can do it without you!’ They didn’t support him. William Carey too had to face the ‘giant’ of general consensus. As a poor man he raised the money to take himself and his family to India and he became the father of modern missions. You too can go and slay ‘giants’ for God!

Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, please help me to know Your will for my life and help me to have complete faith that You will give me the victory. Help me not to rely upon man’s affirmation, and be able to sing: ‘Though none go with me I still will follow. No turning back! No turning back! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

What are your giants? – Teaching CD

Sex…God’s Truth – Book by Jill Southern

1 Samuel 17:38, NIV
Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armour on him and a bronze helmet on his head.

The second ‘giant’ David had to face before he met Goliath was ‘the giant of tradition’. David talked to King Saul and the conversation was very revealing. Who should have gone out and faced Goliath? Saul, of course! Where was he? Trembling with fear in his tent!

Physically David was on the small side because he was still young. It would seem to anybody that he was incapable of defeating a nine-foot giant. But God had been preparing David while he was out on the hills protecting his father’s sheep. He had been able to kill both a lion and a bear. God prepares us as we are doing things which seem small and insignificant. God had been preparing David with a sling and stones while he was in the fields. He had become a crack shot. Do you think David thought he was doing anything ‘spiritual’ when he was practising with his sling, day after day? God will use everything He has invested in you – even those things you think are unimportant.

Saul was threatened by David’s courage and vision. Insecure leaders can be intimidated by passionate, radical followers of God who are even willing to risk their lives serving God. Jealousy destroys ministries. It can also destroy our very relationship with God.

Saul told David if he was going over there to face the giant he would have to do it the traditional way. He dressed David in his own armour and, of course, David looked ridiculous. But David resisted this pressure to conform. There will be people who will tell you how to do it, but, remember David. He had to use the unique gifts, talents and experience that God had invested in him.

It must have taken a lot of courage to stand up to the king when he was only a boy and hadn’t even fought in the army. This battle was far too important for David to forget God’s preparation and to try and do it the traditional way. David had to conquer the ‘giant of tradition’ before he could slay Goliath. David chose his own method of warfare which God had shown him. Let God direct you. Do what He says today and stay focussed on that.

Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, please show me those things that are merely tradition and are not relevant to what you have asked me to do. I don’t want anything to take my focus away from walking in Your Kingdom purposes. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Leaders are for Leading – Teaching CD

Ellel Ministries Training Schools