Today's Reading: Matthew 16: 21-28
**For a simple and good way of Daily Devotion method please click this link: Subject Shifting Devotion.pdf.
Please click this link to read Matthew 16: 21-28
Bible Study
Yesterday's passage talks about Peter's famous confession of Christ and right away Peter stepped into Satan's trap and gimmick!
Why? Wrong expectation kills!
Peter and the other apostles expected Jesus would give them a sure win strategy when he disclosed his long hidden role as the Messiah. But, instead of giving them a sure win strategy to reclaim David's kingdom, Jesus told them that he was going to be killed and the third day be raised to life.
They did not understand the second part of the sentence and they did not care. What was like thunder in their ears was that Jesus was to be killed and they knew well that same thing would happen to them.
It is in this kind of human thoughts, wrong expectation that Peter rebuked Jesus. Rebuked Jesus? How can a student, a disciple rebuke his teacher?
What Jesus said to Peter is perhaps one of the most important messages to our lives. We listened more to Satan and this world's voice than Jesus voice! We used most of our time trying so hard to gains so many worldly things but at the end we can not take anything away!
So Jesus says, "If you are listening to me, want to follow me, then follow my path to die. You have to deny yourself, do not listen to Satan and to the world to have more, more and more but to give, give and die. Then you will have life and life to the full(John 10:10).
So, what do you expect to get from Jesus?
Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through the passage of scripture we have just read. Offer this time up to Jesus as you listen to him, while listening to "Gabriel's Oboe"
Spiritual Journal
What I heard from Jesus today is: Get away from Satan's gimmick!
What I received from Jesus today is a warning so that we won't step into Satan's trap and gimmick as Peter did. Satan turned every Godly things upside down, he turned good to bad, love to hate, trust to distrust, hope to hopeless, peace to worries, give to get, save to kill...
Jesus comes to turn everything upside down again!
So, what do you expect to get from Jesus?
Do you know what should be your answer? The clue is in this passage, and it is:
The Cross
Jesus expects you can give everything following his way to the Cross so that real goodness can come back to this world!
God is good, Satan is bad!
It's the giving, not the getting!
Don't have a wrong expectation again!
Dear Lord Jesus,
Help us to focus on you and to walk with you that we can get away from Satan's gimmick. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
Please click this link to worship with us - Above All
Chinese praise song - 全地至高是我主 You Are Top No. 1
You can subscribe to my podcast feed here:http://feeds.feedburner.com/discipler123
You may choose to follow my first blog which I started in July 2009:http://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/