First Baptist Church, Mount Pleasant, Michigan

Devotional: Luke 2:1-7

Today’s passage: Luke 2:1-7

Helpful thoughts:

  • Merry Christmas!
  • God sovereignly used the most powerful man in the world (And all those who were employed to carry out this decree) to fulfill His perfect plan.  (Micah 5:2, Proverbs 21:1)
  • The God who spoke the universe into existence, was now a baby boy laying in an animal’s feeding trough. (Colossians 1:16, Philippians 2:1-11)

Questions to consider:

  1. What would we have assumed the birth of the Messiah should look like?  How was this different?  In what ways would this birth story seem mundane or even sad/disappointing?
  2. How would you feel if you had become responsible to raise God the Son?  To teach Him to walk, talk, work, etc.?
  3. Why did God the Son take on flesh and dwell among us?

Devotional: Luke 1:57-80

Today’s passage: Luke 1:57-80

Helpful thoughts:

  • Zechariah and Elizabeth had to break social custom and risk disappointing their family to obey God.  The fear of man doesn’t always reside out there in the big world.  It can even dwell in our homes and in the church among well-meaning people who are doing things because, “That’s how we’ve always done it.”
  • At the birth of his firstborn son, having been born by a miracle of God through his barren wife, just having received his voice back, Zechariah’s first words are about…Jesus.  Then, Zechariah gives an announcement of what John’s God-given role was to be.
  • Why did John (And any of us) get to proclaim salvation through the forgiveness of sin?  Because of the tender mercies of our God! (Verses 77-78)

Questions to consider:

  1. Are there any customs or habits that we might have (In the culture of our nation/region OR in the culture of our church) that are not wrong in and of themselves, but that prevent us from doing the things that God has commanded us to do?
  2. Why was it right for Zechariah to speak first of the coming Messiah?  Why was John’s role as a forerunner and as a supporting act more significant than trying to be the star?  When do we find our greatest joy and reward, when we do for ourselves, or when we become servants to the God of the universe?
  3. Have you become a recipient of the tender mercies of God?  Please check out this website to learn more!

 

Devotional: Luke 1:34-56

Today’s passage: Luke 1:34-56

Helpful ideas:

  • This birth was going to be miraculous.  The Son of God would not be the biological son of a man.
  • It had been about four hundred years since God had spoken or worked in any way like this in Israel.  Gabriel told Mary of Elizabeth’s pregnancy to remind her, nothing will be impossible for God.  Miracles were happening.  God was on the move.
  • The Spirit gave Elizabeth understanding.  The child in Mary’s womb was her Lord.
  • Mary’s response was similar to the words used by Hannah in 1 Samuel 1.  They both called themselves the servants (“Bond slaves”) of the Lord. The main difference was, Hannah’s pregnancy would take away her felt shame in her barrenness.  Mary was about to receive a source of shame in the eyes of man (Being an unwed pregnant young woman).
    • By God’s grace, Mary’s great faith was displayed in her response to Elizabeth in verses 46-55.

Questions to consider:

  1. How might God have used Elizabeth’s welcome to encourage Mary’s heart?  What would Mary have been concerned about as new people continued to discover her pregnancy?  What did Elizabeth’s Spirit-controlled words reinforce for her?  What could we learn from this?  How do our words of welcome (Think: Fruit of the Spirit) affect others?
  2. When Mary said, “Let it be to me according to your word,” what did she willingly give of herself to do?  What trust did she need to put in her Lord?
  3. How was this trust displayed in her response?  What did she believe was going to happen?  What did her faith and joy in God cause her to want to do (Verse 46)?  What has God promised us through Christ?  How does your trust in God give you reason to magnify the Lord?

Devotional: Luke 1:26-33

Today’s passage: Luke 1:26-33

Helpful thoughts:

  • Mary was shown favor…she was a favored one.  This means Mary was not given the role of mother to Jesus because she was full of grace to bestow, but because God poured out favor/grace on her.  Mary needed a savior just like we all do.
  • Isaiah 7:14 – Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
  • The mention of Joseph being of the house of David was a hint at who Jesus was going to be (Joseph adopted Jesus as his own, therefore Jesus was Joseph’s legal heir).  Then, verses 31-33 come right out and tell us exactly who Jesus is!
    • Jesus means, Jehovah (Or Yahweh) saves.  Jesus is our salvation!
    • Jesus is the Son of God, God the Son.
    • Jesus is the King of Kings.
    • Jesus is King forever!

Questions to consider:

  1. What made Mary special?  What did Gabriel tell her?
  2. What did Gabriel tell Mary about the baby she was going to have?  What is Jesus?  Who is Jesus?
  3. What was Jesus going to do before he reigned forever?  How was He to become our savior? (Isaiah 52:13-53:12)

Devotional: Luke 1:1-25

Today’s passage: Luke 1:1-25

Helpful thoughts:

  • The goal of this gospel? That you might have certainty (Exact truth) concerning the things you have been taught.
    • Luke compiled the content of his gospel carefully from the eyewitnesses (The Apostles) and wrote everything out in an “orderly manner.”
  • This gospel was initially written to one person!  Theophilus was (And we are) able to read the Gospel of Luke knowing that we are reading a detailed, historically accurate, precisely depicted account of the life, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Our faith should be strengthened as a result!
  • John the Baptist was to have a ministry of repentance.  Israel was not ready for their Messiah to come.   They needed to return to the Lord.

Questions to consider:

  1. What can we learn from Luke’s painstaking attention to detail when seeking to communicate these important truths?
  2. What can we learn from the size of the original intended audience?  How many people do we need to like our posts, watch our videos, attend our talks, in order for them to be worth putting forth 100% effort?
  3. John the Baptist was great in the sight of the Lord.  What made John the Baptist great?  What makes a person “great in the sight of the Lord” and what do those characteristics do for our reputation here on earth?  How can this encourage our boldness to proclaim the Gospel?

Devotional: 1 Samuel 31:1-13

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 31:1-13

Helpful thoughts:

  • While David and his men were fighting the Amalekites, Saul and his men were being defeated by the Philistines.
  • It was a terrible day for Israel (Verse 6).  The defeat was so thorough the king’s dead body was just left on the battle field.  The Philistines took land and cities all the way to the other side of the Jordan!
  • Saul preferred suicide to what he knew the Philistines would do to him.  His act encouraged his armor-bearer to do the same.
    • Saul and his sons’ bodies were displayed within the newly acquired territory in a grotesque way.  The people of Jabesh-gilead would later be commended for their efforts to respect Saul and his sons (2 Samuel 2:5-7)

Questions to consider:

  1. If David was about to become king of Israel, what kind of nation was he going to be leading (In the world’s eyes)?  What is the condition of the nation?  What crisis are they in?
  2. What might have been running through Saul’s mind as all this transpired?  What had Samuel told him would happen? (1 Samuel 28:19)
  3. What had been the final fruits of the king Israel asked for?  Why is this book able to end with such tragedy, while at the same time have an undercurrent of hope?  What is God about to do? (2 Samuel 7:12-16, Matthew 1:1)

Devotional: 1 Samuel 30:16-31

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 30:16-31

Helpful thoughts:

  • God’s promises are true.  David’s army defeated the Amalekites and everyone was rescued.
  • The spoil was to be shared among those who stayed with the supplies because (Verses 23-24):
    • God was the one who gave them the spoil in the first place.
    • The victory over the Amalekites and the preservation of their lives by God were greater gifts than the spoil.
    • Every aspect of the battle, including the care of what must be left behind, is important.
  • David’s gift to the leaders in Judah would have served as an announcement.  The Israelites were used to people being used by God to save them from their enemies.  Those people would then judge Israel.
    • A transition in leadership was about to take place.

Questions to consider:

  1. What promises has God given us through Christ?  Why can we be completely confident they will come to pass?
  2. Why should someone who stays home with the kids so that their spouse can go serve be encouraged by this passage?  What are some different ways we work together to accomplish ministry?  What are some ways we still “stay with the baggage” today?
  3. What was the greatest reward for David in this passage?  How would it compare to Paul’s reward in 1 Corinthians 9:18?  What is more important than the “spoil”?

Devotional: 1 Samuel 30:1-15

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 30:1-15

Helpful thoughts:

  • When these warriors returned to their new hometown, all of their possessions, and more importantly all of their wives and children were gone.  They wept until they were too exhausted to to weep anymore.
  • “David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.”
  • The Amalekites left this Egyptian man for dead.  David obeyed the Lord during his own distress and blessed the man (Leviticus 19:34).
    • David’s kindness and obedience yielded fruit.

Questions to consider:

  1. What had all these men just experienced?  As we read through this passage, be careful not to let the quickness of the movement in the narrative take away our understanding of the pain they were in.
  2. What would you be thinking about as the leader of all these men, having just taken them all away for battle?  What was available for David to trust in at this time?  What might he have been tempted to rely upon to try to “fix” this?
  3. Why would David trust the man who just helped to raid his city and people?  What did David know?  Whom did David trust?

Devotional: 1 Samuel 29:1-11

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 29:1-11

Helpful thoughts:

  • Perhaps at the same time Saul was seeking a medium to hear from Samuel, King Achish was hearing from his Philistine commanders.
  • The Philistine commanders were right to question David’s inclusion.  Their memory was not short (1 Samuel 14:21).  They had already been fooled once.
  • David’s words to Achish are once again ambiguous.  When David referred to “my lord the king,” he could have meant Achish, Saul, or even the LORD!
    • David served Saul, and Saul rejected David.
    • David pretended to serve Achish, and Achish trusted David.
    • However, the lord whom David would ultimately be “reconciled to” and serve was neither of these kings. (Verse 4)

Questions to consider:

  1. Considering what Samuel has just told Saul, what has David been kept from being involved in once this battle gets going?  How has God used the Philistine commanders to bring about His will?  Is anything too hard for the Lord?
  2. This battle that is coming is critical to the life of David, and he is not able to fight it.  He must trust God to win this battle.  How does this pattern remind you of the Gospel message?  What victory has Christ won for you that you could not win on your own?
  3. How does this pattern also apply to prayer?  When we pray, what are we asking God to do and what are we acknowledging we cannot do?

Devotional: 1 Samuel 28:1-25

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 28:1-25

Helpful thoughts:

  • There are two play-on-words instances in verse 2.
    • What King Achish was about to see David do could have been against Israel or against the Philistines.
    • The phrase, “I will make you my bodyguard for life” in Hebrew is literally, “I will make you keeper of my head.”  David had already captured the head of one Philistine from Gath.
  • Anyone in Israel who consulted a medium was to be “cut off” from Israel (Leviticus 20:6).  Saul clearly knew this as he had previously outlawed and removed all of the mediums.
    • Saul had disrespected and disobeyed God, Samuel, and killed the priests.  Now that he’s in distress, he wants God to speak to him…and when Saul gets what he wants, he’s certainly not happy about it.
    • In his promise to not allow harm on the medium, Saul truly used the Lord’s name in vain.
  • It seems as though this deceiving medium realized she had been deceived when her divining appeared to actually work!  Certainly, she was not the one who successfully brought Samuel to Saul, the Lord allowed this.

Questions to consider:

  1. What kind of situation is David in?  What kind of trouble have his double-meaning statements gotten him into?
  2. How could Saul’s actions show us that being spiritual and religious does not automatically mean a person is following Jesus?  Why did Saul want to hear from the Lord and from Samuel?  What was he willing to do in order to get it?
  3. How might people cut off God from their lives today and then expect Him to arrive to save the day when their consequences approach?  Is that cry to God an act of repentance?  What would repentance look like?  What has Christ provided for us in our repentance?