Devotion – Wednesday, 31 March
Dear Readers and Listeners, Friends in Jesus Christ,
Our watchword for today is taken from the Book of Proverbs, Chapter 23 verse 17, “Do not let your heart envy wrong doers, but always continue in the fear of the Lord,” (NRSVB). The wise sayings collected in this book teach those who are seeking wisdom to not be tricked into thinking that those who choose to do wrong will be able to continue in their wrong ways without being called to account. It may look as if those who are deliberately doing wrong are getting away, even prospering, but this is a temporary situation. People grow despondent when their hard work and good intentions do not produce the desired outcomes. The way of wisdom is to follow in the steps of those who work towards goodness and to shun the wrong roads to riches and fame of the wicked, for it will ultimately lead to disaster. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of all wisdom. Applying this rule as a yardstick to our actions and deliberations will bring good outcomes and future blessings from the Lord. Those who do evil and benefit from their wrongs are not to be envied, but to be pitied, for they have forsaken the way of the Lord.
The Apostle Paul in his letter to the Galatians in Chapter 6 verse 9 writes, “Let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing.” There are times when we have to wait much longer than we thought possible to see God’s deliverance. Praying to God for his intervention and continuing to faithfully do what is right is not easy when it appears as if nothing is changing. We grow disheartened when it seems as if our prayers and work are not producing any harvest. However, when we lay our heavy hearts and unanswered prayers at the foot of the Cross, we witness the break-through. We witness God’s hand and work bringing about a blessed outcome as the crowning glory to our prayers and our faithful work. God will pronounce the final word on the ceaseless work and prayers of his children at the precise moment when the greatest harvest will be gathered.
When Jesus was being nailed to the cross He prayed: “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing,” Luke 23 verse 34. Jesus prayed to his Father to pardon those who were crucifying him, as well as those who allowed him to be crucified, for they did not realize they were crucifying the Son of God. Christ’s prayer was also spoken on behalf of all humanity, for all have to be saved through the Son. Some of the onlookers thought, like the Scribes and Pharisees, that Jesus was a blasphemer, for he called himself the Son of God. His true followers never thought that the hatred of the temple authorities would amount to this crucifixion. They must have felt that the evil doers were successful in their plans and purposes against Jesus. Seemingly, there at the foot of the Hill of Golgotha, it looked as if the ministry of Jesus was coming to an end. It was as if his teaching, preaching and healing across the region, had met with the final cruel blow, the death of Jesus. Even in his death he blessed those around him, he called out that he had thirst, a deep thirst that could not be stilled, the thirst for God’s righteousness. Then he called out in a loud voice, “It is finished!” This was not the cry of someone who lost the battle of life on earth, but the victor’s cry, for death was vanquished as Christ took the death penalty for humanity in his own body. God strengthened Christ to fulfil his work on earth, to save us to the uttermost with his life. Death, where is your sting? Christ did not grow weary of blessing those around him, even when his blessings were met with curses and crucifixion. Let us continue to follow in his footsteps.
Father, thank you for creating in us hearts that will not grow weary to call on you! Amen.
