Devotion – Monday, 1 March
Dear Readers and Listeners, Friends in Jesus Christ,
Our watchword for the month of March is taken from the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 19 verse 40, “And Jesus replied, I tell you that if these keep silent, the very stones will cry out,”(Amplified Bible). The background to this verse is Jesus’ triumphant entry into the city of Jerusalem. The people waved with palm branches and draped their clothes on the ground, crying out: Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! The scribes and Pharisees told Jesus to tell his disciples and followers to be quiet. Jesus quoted the prophet Habakkuk who rebuked the people who plundered the house of the Lord! The Pharisees were angered as they were learned in the Scriptures and understood Jesus’ quote as a reference to their unjust practices in the temple. “Woe to them who obtained wicked gain, for the stone shall cry out of the wall and the beam out of the woodwork will answer it,” Habakkuk 2 verses 9 to 11. As Jesus started his journey to the Cross, there were many following him and seeing him as a great prophet, as he came closer and closer to the trial, the verdict and the sentence, the followers became less and less; even his own disciples left him out of fear for the temple leadership.
Today we remember a follower of Christ who was martyred, the early Czech reformer, Johannes Hus. The Unity of the Brethren in Bohemia was formed on 1 March 1457, honouring his sacrifice. The Moravian Church grew out of this devote group, and our daily watchwords have grown from practices of this movement. We have been given these watchwords to use as a spiritual discipline and tool for applying God’s word to our daily context. Through the ages people have found comfort and encouragement from Scripture in the form of the Watchwords. God’s word is timeless and applicable to all situations. Despite bitter times, God’s words taste sweet, Psalm 119 verse 103.
Our watchword for today is taken from Genesis 37 verse 16, “Jacob said to Joseph, “Go now, see if it is well with your brothers, and with the flock,” (NRSVB). Little did Jacob know that it would be more than a decade before he would see his beloved son, Joseph, again. As Joseph approached his brothers, their anger against him rose to boiling point, for they perceived him as their father’s favourite. The eldest brother persuaded them not to kill him, and finally they sold him to slave traders. The brothers took his special coat, smeared it with blood from their flock, and told their father that Joseph was killed by wild animals. Jacob mourned Joseph for years. Then, during the drought that endangered their lives, the brothers went to Egypt to try and buy grain from the Egyptians who were prepared for the drought. Unbeknown to them, their slave brother rose to second in command. Joseph recognized his brothers and was filled with deep compassion for them, and longing for his father Joseph and his younger brother. Ultimately, when the brothers realized who this Egyptian was, they were overcome with desperation and self-loathing. Joseph told them: “As for you, you thought evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring about that many people should be kept alive, as they are this day,” Genesis 50 verse 20. Jesus, like Joseph, changed the lives of those who gave him up for death, to give them life! Jesus’ suffering gave life! The Apostle Paul in Philippians, Chapter Two verse 4 writes, “Let each of you look not to your own interest, but to the interests of others,” (NRSVB). In this time of uncertainty, we as Christians can look out for those around us and protect their persons, and possessions with our acts and words of love.
Father, you gave your prophets and apostles power and authority to witness to your Son. You change the plans of humans to fulfil your perfect life-affirming work, Amen.
