DEVOTIONAL

Prayers:

Scripture Reading for Prayer and Praise: Psalm 9:1-2

"1 “I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.” 2 I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.” 

Worship Song Sung or Said: Stand Up For Jesus

https://youtu.be/xUII9PabHPE

Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
Ye soldiers of the cross;
Lift high his royal banner,
It must not suffer loss.
From victory unto victory
His army shall he lead,
Till every foe is vanquished,
And Christ is Lord indeed.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
Stand in his strength alone;
The arm of flesh will fail you,
Ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospel armour,

Each piece put on with prayer;
Where duty calls or danger,
Be never wanting there.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
The strife will not be long;
This day the noise of battle,
The next the victor's song.
To those who vanquish evil
A crown of life shall be;
They with the King of Glory
Shall reign eternally.

God’s Word for Today: Luke 21: 16-38

"16 You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death.” 17 Everyone will hate you because of me.” 18 But not a hair of your head will perish.” 19 Stand firm, and you will win life.” 20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near.” 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city.” 22 For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written.” 23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people.” 24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations.” Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.” 25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars.” On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.” 26 People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.” 27 At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” 29 He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees.” 30 When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near.” 31 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.” 32 “Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.” 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.” 34 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap.” 35 For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth.” 36 Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”” 37 Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple, and each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives, 38 and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple.”

Devotional/Study: Part 2 

As we continue looking at Luke 21 Jesus tells his disciples that they would be betrayed by friends and families and will be hated because they follow Jesus. We read in v16 “You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death.” Jesus knows what it feels like to be betrayed as he was betrayed by Judas who had been with for around three years. 

I wonder how the disciples were feeling at this point. If you were one of Jesus disciple, how would you have felt after listening to what Jesus had said?

After spending some time teaching and warning his disciples about what will happen before his second coming, Jesus begins to describe the signs of his second coming and calls them to stand firm In the midst of all the suffering and pain they would experience. 

After spending some time teaching and warning his disciples about what will happen before his second coming in v20-24 Jesus talks about the signs that will point to His second coming. In v25 He says “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars.” Jesus tells them while this is happening above, on the earth the nations will be in anguish when they see the roaring and tossing of the sea. When it talks about the roaring of the sea it shows that nature will be in chaos from one end of the earth to the other. 

If this ever happens in our times we must not be terrified or surprised by it because we will know the second coming of Christ is near. Then in v27 Jesus tells them how he will come we read in v27 “At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.”

Up to now Jesus has been describing the signs of his coming, perhaps his followers found this frightening. So, he says to them in v28 “stand up and lift up your heads.” 

In saying this he was encouraging his disciples not to be discouraged with their heads bowed low. But instead, stand up and lift up their heads because the kingdom of God is drawing near. If we are following Jesus we can stand up and lift up our heads and have nothing to fear. We can hold our heads up because God is with us and therefore, we are to continue following in the footsteps of Christ even in the midst of the storms. 

Brothers and sisters when the world seem to be falling apart. Don't fix your eyes on the circumstances. Instead, lift up your heads look to God.

As the psalmist said in Psalm 121:1-2 “1 lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.” Jesus than in v29-33 uses the illustration of a fig tree as an example to show how to know when His coming is near. The idea is that when a fig tree buds, there is a result – summer is near, and fruit is coming. In a similar way, when they see all the different things that He talked about, wars, rumours of wars, disturbances in the Creation then they and we will know that the coming of Jesus is near.

Then Jesus reminds them although Heaven and earth will pass away; his words will not pass way and will always remain. In other words, everything may change, and eventually everything will pass away. But Jesus' words will by no means pass away. 

Everything he said will come true. Jesus concludes his teaching with some warnings to His disciple’s v34-36. He tells them to not allow the worries of this life or the pleasures of the world distract them from watching and being ready for his return. 

It’s same for us today we must not allow the things of the world distract us from being ready for the second coming of Jesus. In v36 Jesus says “Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.” 

As we journey in life with all the joys and sorrows that life brings, let us watch, wait and be alert to the signs of Jesus second coming and live as Jesus is going to come any moment, watching and praying and waiting for his return. 

For some life has been difficult and painful, however the signs of the second coming are also filled with hope and reassurance that one day we will be with God and he will be our God, we will be his people and at last He will wipe every tear from our eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, Now I don’t know how close we are to the end times, and the Second Coming of Christ. It may be just hours away, or it may be way off in the future still. 

In the meantime, we are to live as if the last day is upon us because Jesus is coming again and as we wait let us with joy and anticipation look forward to that day and through the power of His Holy spirit live as Christ lived serving Him and His people. 

Personal Prayers: