God has promised us several things when we set our affections on Him. This daily devotional ends our look at the benefits promised by discussing the benefit of the path of life and the benefit of having a purpose.
Nuggets
- God directs our lives, which lead to joy and pleasure when we are in His presence.
- We are rewarded when we choose God to be our Sovereign Lord.
To read devotions in the Redo for Godliness series, click the appropriate button below.
Devotions in the On Things Above series
Before we get started, I wanted to tell you that my minor surgery I talked about in the last devotion went well. I had no problems with the anesthesia and am not experiencing any pain. Thank you for your prayers. They were answered!
We have been looking at Beveridge’s sermon entitled Setting the Affections on Things Above. We are still in section five looking at the why we are to set our affections above. To me, these looked like benefits for obeying God.
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Let's Put It into Context #1
Here is a running list of what we’ve discussed previously.
Let's Put It into Context #2
When we look up the definition of affection in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, it says, “the state of being affected.” Affect means “to act on and cause a change in (someone or something).”
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The Benefit of the Path of Life
“You reveal the path of life to me; in your presence is abundant joy; at your right hand are eternal pleasures” (Ps. 16: 11 CSB)
God directs our lives, which lead to joy and pleasure when we are in His presence.
Varley had an interesting comment. He wrote, “BUT NONE CAN SAY WHAT LIFE IS, any more than we can say what electricity is, what gravitation is. We see it, we feel it, we are conscious of it; but that is all. We know it only by its manifestations …”
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Okay. There is an uncertainty to life. We make our plans, but we aren’t sure what is really going to happen.
Only God knows the past, present, and future. He is in control.
Notice the joy and pleasure is only found in the presence of God. It we aren’t in God’s presence — communicating with Him — we don’t have it.
Mankind is made in God’s image, but we are not all children of God. God is not a dictator, forcing us to worship Him.
Aitken reminded us that there are two paths in life. He called them the way of life and the way of man. We’ve talked before calling them the narrow gate and the wide gate.
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Glossary
What is the same is that it is our choice which path we will go down.
In order to make the choice, we need to know about where the two paths lead. One leads to Heaven and joy and pleasure. The other leads to hell and torment. The way to Heaven is right while the other way only seems right, but isn’t.
Holme brought up a good point. The path of life starts with the death of Christ. If He hadn’t sacrificed Himself to pay the debt for our sins, we would still be spiritually dead.
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Life only really starts when we become disciples of Christ.
The Benefit of Having a Purpose
“The LORD has prepared everything for his purpose — even the wicked for the day of disaster” (Prov. 16: 4 CSB)
We are rewarded when we choose God to be our Sovereign Lord.
One of my favorite verses is Jeremiah 29: 11. “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jer. 29: 11 ESV).
God has plans for providing for us. Yes, some may be for us to prosper, as the New International Version translates it. But while we always benefit from those plans, we may not consider the trials we go through as prosperity.
Go back to Proverbs 16: 4. Light wrote, “The Lord Jehovah hath wrought, performed, all things for Himself. The final end of all Divine proceeding is God’s own glory.”
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The creation of us was for God’s glory and honor, not our prosperity. Clarke said it as “The good pleasure of God is the only reason why things were brought into being at all.”
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But let’s look at what the King James Version says. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end” (Jer. 29: 11 KJV).
It is more than God has a road map of how our lives are supposed to go. It is more than we are to be successful in our lives.
It is that every thought God has for us are ones that promote peace. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (Jn. 14: 27 ESV).
A peace — not as the world gives — not a successful, prosperous life.
A peace — “… peace of mind and heart …” (Jn. 14: 27 NLT).
How do we get a peace of mind and heart? We ABCD and rock the D part.
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to
live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
It is all about redemption. God’s #1 priority is the condition of our soul. Is it spiritually dead or spiritually alive?
So, then, that last part kind of flys up and hits us in the face, doesn’t it? God created “… even the wicked for the day of disaster” (Prov. 16: 4 CSB).
But — when we sit down as process it — we’ve said that before — sort of.
God knew before He even created us that we would disobey Him and let sin into the world. He knew the consequences of that sin would be spiritual death and separation from Him.
God made us anyway.
To rectify that, God designed the Plan of Salvation. He asked Jesus to be the Sacrifice to pay the debt for our sins. Jesus said yes!
But God knew that not all of mankind would accept His gift of salvation. He knew that some who said they accepted the gift of salvation really didn’t.
God made us anyway.
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Glossary
One of the terms used in Scriptures to describe non-believers is wicked. God doesn’t want any of us to choose to be wicked. “Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other” (Isa. 45: 22 ESV).
God knows that there will be those who choose to be wicked. There would have to be a judgment day.
But, still. Everything God has created is tied into His purpose. Waterland said, “… He makes use of all things as He pleases …”
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God uses the believers and the non-believers to further His plans. He uses the good things and the bad things to reveal Himself to us.
Making the Connections
Maclean reminded us that God did not create us to be sinners. When He created us, we were made in His image.
Mankind was the one who let sin into the world. We disobeyed God and brought the punishment on ourselves.
What God did, as Maclean said, was “… made all things for Himself. He is the origin, and He is the end. There are, indeed, subordinate ends, but they lose themselves, as it were, in God, the great end of all.”
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God is the beginning and the end. Jesus is the Alpha and Omega.
How Do We Apply This?
Bottom line is we have to communicate with God. Aitken wrote, “The highest faculty of our nature is that spiritual capacity which enables us to hold communion with God. And also because it is the way in which alone life can be sustained. And further, because it leads to life.”
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- Varley reminded us that to achieve a true spiritual life, we must live in balance with God and our environment.
- It is part of the disciple’s job to help others as they are walking their paths to find the narrow gate. Holme said we do this as we live our own lives.
- We have to watch as we are walking our paths that we don’t take a fork in the road and shoot off in the wrong direction.
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Being disciples of Christ brings us benefits. Maybe we won’t get the good stuff until Heaven, but we will have them for eternity.
Father God. You promised to reward us when we obey You. Thank You for the leading us through this life and giving us a purpose. We pray that we will be obedient to You. Amen.
What do you think?
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