Good Morning Friends,
Today on the Monday of Epiphany week 2021 we have a series of texts on asking God for help. It starts with a Psalm on the power given by God to the King and us too through adoption. And we have passages in the Gospel reading on Jesus beginning His ministry in Galilee, calling his first Disciples, and ministering to the crowds of people. All related to decision making Finally, in John’s first letter we have a passage on testing the Spirits to help us decide what to ask for from God. The instruction is clear and is all about today’s question. So, How Do We Exercise The Gift Of Discernment?
Scripture: I will tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to me, ‘You are my son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron, and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.’ Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, with trembling kiss his feet, or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way; for his wrath is quickly kindled. Happy are all who take refuge in him.
Psalm 2:7-12 (NRSV)
Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the lake, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: ‘Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.’ From that time Jesus began to proclaim, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’ As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the lake—for they were fishermen. And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.’ Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him. Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people. So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought to him all the sick, those who were afflicted with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics, and he cured them. And great crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.
Matthew 4: 12-25 (NRSV)
and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him. And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. All who obey his commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us. Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God; for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. And this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming; and now it is already in the world. Little children, you are from God, and have conquered them; for the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world; therefore what they say is from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us, and whoever is not from God does not listen to us. From this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
1 John 3: 22 – 4: 6 (NRSV)
Message: Today’s lesson is all about loving God and others as a means of discerning what we are to ask of God. Here we are called to believe that what we ask for in the name of Jesus we will receive because Christ, as the Son of God, has been given the Kingship that rules the world. The key is to love, and it is not phrased as a suggestion or a good idea but as a command that links what we are to ask for with what pleases God. It is a good idea to read John’s letter a little more closely, so we do not conclude that this is about asking God for all the creature comforts of life, great looks, health, and money as the focus. Oh, they may come too but the focus is about understanding how to live a life that promotes happiness and fulfillment. The problem is that our bad decisions sometimes fuel the evil to double down. Sin can spiral us out of control with an anger that is not of God. But, when we commit ourselves to Christ, we commit to love God and others as Jesus has loved us to become victorious over the evil in the world. The Bible says that everyone who asks, receives and everyone who seeks, finds. Everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. The catch is to understand that the request is not about us but about Christ and glorifying God. That is why we pray the Lord’s Prayer to remind us of the perspective we are to have.
And So, we are to realize that the only really important objective in our lives is to imitate Jesus as our Lord and Savior, receiving what we ask for because we ask for what we actually need to live being sanctified and to share the good news of the Gospel. That is our daily bread spiritually, but also the grace to forgive and to resist temptation and to have the right words to share to help others. What is necessary is that we are not distracted from our ultimate end of being in union with God and until then abiding to the Spirit of Christ not the spirit of deception and evil. The guidance on discernment is clear. It is a gift to discern properly. Still, John shares with us some excellent advice so we might improve as we mature. He tells us to not believe everything we hear that stirs a spirit in us. We are to test the spirits to see whether they are of God. We need to understand that the world is filled with many false prophets that would lead us astray. Improving how we decide what is objectionable is the goal and sometimes it is confused with who is speaking and whether it is a person in authority. But even people like teachers, and ministers and elected politicians can encourage us to do both good and evil. And the thing is that usually we typically know the difference. It helps to imagine ourselves doing what is being encouraged and having done it discern whether it was only stroked our egos for a temporary satisfaction or had a deeper. If it is about helping others it typically is a good spirit. Not all self interest is bad and certainly God can and does use evil for good. Often it helps to take the idea presented in especially major decisions to someone we know to be wise and has a history of being giving and centered on helping others.
Pray our priorities are in order. Pray we repent for the kingdom of God has already been decided. Pray we test to discern what is of God and what is not. Pray we exercise the prophetic gift of discernment every time we encounter those in need by sharing the love we have experienced. Pray we that those we love to turn to Jesus Christ and take refuge in Him from the evils of this world. Pray we are blessed to choose wisely.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 