Good Morning Friends,
Yesterday we shared in worship the collective unison experience of the Lord’s Prayer. I imagine you have said these words in a group as well. And sometimes they are words and sometimes a prayer. But when it is a prayer in a group, we might just hear that the purpose in its sharing is for God’s kingdom to come and God’s will to be done and you might want to consider in the expression of the wording its deep meaning. We might just remember how God provides us with our daily bread and how humbling that is. Then we might be reminded that this truth helps us to be thankful and to cultivate lives of gratitude. At the center of the prayer is about how God has already forgiven all our sins—past, present, and future, and expects us to share that forgiveness by being forgiving of others. But the devil and demons are in the details. We need to be released from the evil of the world and have a personal relationship with Jesus and cut through all the clutter and have a heart for God that we share. So, Are You Ready To Be Freed?
Scripture: A messenger came to David, saying, “The hearts of the Israelites have gone after Absalom.” Then David said to all his officials who were with him at Jerusalem, “Get up! Let us flee, or there will be no escape for us from Absalom. Hurry, or he will soon overtake us, and bring disaster down upon us, and attack the city with the edge of the sword.” But David went up the ascent of the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went, with his head covered and walking barefoot; and all the people who were with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they went.
When King David came to Bahurim, a man of the family of the house of Saul came out whose name was Shimei son of Gera; he came out cursing. He threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David; now all the people and all the warriors were on his right and on his left. Shimei shouted while he cursed, “Out! Out! Murderer! Scoundrel! The Lord has avenged on all of you the blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned; and the Lord has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. See, disaster has overtaken you; for you are a man of blood.” Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and take off his head.” But the king said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the Lord has said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who then shall say, ‘Why have you done so?'” David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “My own son seeks my life; how much more now may this Benjaminite! Let him alone, and let him curse; for the Lord has bidden him. It may be that the Lord will look on my distress, and the Lord will repay me with good for this cursing of me today.” So David and his men went on the road, while Shimei went along on the hillside opposite him and cursed as he went, throwing stones and flinging dust at him.
2 Samuel 15:13-14, 30; 16:5-13
They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. And when he had stepped out of the boat, immediately a man out of the tombs with an unclean spirit met him. He lived among the tombs; and no one could restrain him any more, even with a chain; for he had often been restrained with shackles and chains, but the chains he wrenched apart, and the shackles he broke in pieces; and no one had the strength to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always howling and bruising himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and bowed down before him; and he shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me.” For he had said to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Legion; for we are many.”He begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country. Now there on the hillside a great herd of swine was feeding; and the unclean spirits begged him, “Send us into the swine; let us enter them.” So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea, and were drowned in the sea. The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came to see what it was that had happened. They came to Jesus and saw the demoniac sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the legion; and they were afraid. Those who had seen what had happened to the demoniac and to the swine reported it. Then they began to beg Jesus to leave their neighborhood. As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed by demons begged him that he might be with him. But Jesus refused, and said to him, “Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy he has shown you.” And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.
Mark 5:1-20 (NRSV)
Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.
Matthew 6:9-13 (NRSV)
Message: Today we focus on how we face the tests and temptations and evil that is part of our everyday lives. And the thing is that as we live in the reality of God’s kingdom and seek to live out God’s will, it is not always easy to overcome the temptations and evil that we encounter. The experience can be either something that seeks us to fail or a test with the hope that we will succeed. We, because we all seek comfortable lives, would prefer to avoid the trials and tests of life. Such desires though are unrealistic. We know that they will come, and when they do, we pray that we will succeed rather than fail. We are praying that we will live faithfully and obediently in God’s kingdom of love and grace. Frequently, we are too narrow in our understanding of temptations and demons. We focus on not cheating on our income taxes or forgiving our neighbor who throws loud parties and allows his dogs to poop in our front yard. There are greater temptations than these. Not only do we pray that God would not lead us into temptation, but also that we would be delivered from evil. Perhaps the most poignant story of being rescued from evil is that of the deliverance of the demoniac in today’s text. Meditate on what is happening here. That man was a danger to others and himself. He was excluded from society and considered unclean. But friends, we are to see ourselves here as well, for each of us can be a toxic presence. What is interesting here is that whatever separated the man from others did not separate him from Jesus. Friends, nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus—not even the evil of this life. In fact, we might find that our demons already know Jesus and that our relationship with them might be caught up in a false impression of love.
And So, though the Bible presents the Devil as a powerful and cunning opponent, it also tells us that Christians can have victory over this enemy. To gain this victory it is important to learn who we are and to be intentional about understanding our identity in Christ. We are to awaken to our purpose and mission and commit to growth, seeking wise counsel and choosing to connect with the power of God. Friends, there is a time to give up our demons so we can embrace the dream. We are to be freed for a mission purpose.
Pray we are not our own worst enemy. Pray the Holy Spirit might keep us from despair, unbelief, or false belief. Pray we embrace the abundant life that we have been given through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Pray not for easy lives. Pray we live in a way that honors God, and bears witness to God’s steadfast love, unconditional forgiveness, and overwhelming grace. Pray we share with others facing trials and evil how we have been able to face the tests of life and walk in the strength and encouragement of Jesus. Pray we are freed with the drive, principle, and intention of glorifying God.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 