Category: “Listening to God” Devotional

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Luke+005

Luke 5 English Standard Version (ESV)

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

¹ On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, ² and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. ³ Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. ⁴ And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” ⁵ And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” ⁶ And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. ⁷ They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. ⁸ But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” ⁹ For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, ¹⁰ and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” ¹¹ And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.

 

REFLECTION:

1. After a whole night’s labour, the fishermen didn’t want to listen to Jesus to try again. They were depressed and exhausted. How similar this is to our own lives.  We all have experienced failure which often left us feeling guilty, shameful and self-distrust.   Then, we wanted to quit, withdraw and to be away from people.
2. Jesus won’t ask us to do something entirely new. He’d send us back to what we’ve been doing all along, but this time with Jesus. God wants to be in command of our lives – our work lives, our family lives, our leisure lives.  It’s the same boat, same commands and same nets.  But now Jesus is with us – and that makes all the difference.
3. Is Jesus on your LIFE boat? Who’s in command of your journey?  What are you experiencing right now?  Be quiet before God and allow the Holy Spirit speak to your heart.  Respond and speak to God as you are touched by the Holy Spirit.

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Luke+004

Luke 4 English Standard Version (ESV)

 

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth

¹⁶ And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. ¹⁷ And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,

¹⁸ “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
¹⁹ to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

²⁰ And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. ²¹ And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” ²² And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. And they said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” ²³ And he said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Physician, heal yourself.’ What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.” ²⁴ And he said, “Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. ²⁵ But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land, ²⁶ and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. ²⁷ And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.” ²⁸ When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. ²⁹ And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. ³⁰ But passing through their midst, he went away.

 

REFLECTION:

1. Jesus applied five Old Testament promises to his mission on earth (vv18-19). Which of them can you identify with the most?

• The poor (downtrodden, underprivileged) to receive hope and dignity
• The captives (physically, psychologically or politically imprisoned) to receive freedom from bondage
• The blind (physical disability often meaning spiritual darkness) to receive new sight to recognize God’s perspective and new life
• The oppressed (political and economic disadvantage) to receive release and new freedom from forces holding you down

2. Read the above list slowly. Recall your situations before and after receiving Christ.  Meditate on Jesus’ salvation for you.
3. Give God thanks for all the things He’s done in you.

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Luke+003

Luke 3 English Standard Version (ESV)

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar,Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, ² during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas,the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. ³ And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁴ As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.
⁵ Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall become straight,
and the rough places shall become level ways,
⁶ and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”

⁷ He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. ⁹ Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰ And the crowds asked him, “What then shall we do?”¹¹ And he answered them, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.” ¹² Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” ¹³ And he said to them, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.” ¹⁴ Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”

¹⁵ As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ,

 

REFLECTION:

1. John was not a smooth, comforting preacher. He was blunt and confrontational.  He preached the message of the coming wrath of God and “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins”.  This wasn’t an easy message to take, but people kept coming to hear him and even wondering if John might be the Christ.
2. Likewise, when we hear messages such as John’s, our masks and pretenses are stripped away, and we are forced not only to face our need, but given hope in God’s word. And only when we face our own sinfulness, would we seek forgiveness, and find the new life in our Saviour Jesus.
3. Are you in the habit of “direction change” (repentance) in your daily life? What has the Holy Spirit been speaking to you lately on certain wrong “directions”?
4. Take a moment to think about it. Then pray for God’s forgiveness.  Pray also for the Holy Spirit to “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”(Matt 6:13)

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Luke+002

Luke 2 English Standard Version (ESV)

Jesus Presented at the Temple

²² And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord ²³ (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) ²⁴ and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the Law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.” ²⁵ Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. ²⁶ And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. ²⁷ And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, ²⁸ he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,

²⁹ “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace,
according to your word;
³⁰ for my eyes have seen your salvation
³¹   that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
³² a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to your people Israel.”

³³ And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. ³⁴ And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed ³⁵ (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

³⁶ And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, ³⁷ and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. ³⁸ And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.

 

REFLECTION:

1. Simeon (righteous and devout, v25) spent a long life of hopeful prayer and faithful witness. What he has been praying for all his life is now present in this infant.  He took the child in his arms and blessed him, and the parents.  And he was ready to die.
2. The prayers of Mary and Simeon are complementary to each other: the young Mary starting out in submission to God’s word; the old Simeon ending in submission to God’s word.  Mary and Simeon submissively and believingly spoke the prayer: “according to your word”(1:38, 2:29).
3. Read the two prayers by Mary and Simeon (1:38, 2:29). Focus on the words “according to your word”.  Listen to what God is speaking to you.  How could you use this phrase “according to your word” in your response prayer today?

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Luke+001

INTRODUCTION

 

The books of Luke and Acts are two volumes of a single work (see the Invitation to Acts for a more detailed introduction to Acts). Together they tell the story of how God first invited the people of Israel, and then all nations, to follow Jesus. In the first volume, the movement is toward Jerusalem, the center of Jewish national life. In the second, the movement is from Jerusalem to other nations, closing with Paul proclaiming the kingdom of God in Rome, the capital of the empire.

 

Luke addresses his history to most excellent Theophilus, most likely a Roman official. His volumes are stocked with details from sources Luke had available: letters, speeches, songs, travel accounts, trial transcripts and biographical anecdotes. Luke’s purpose is to show the fulfillment of God’s plan to bring his light to the world through Israel. The earliest Jesus-followers take up this calling by announcing Jesus’ victory over sin and death to all the nations.

 

The first volume, Luke’s telling of the story of Jesus, has three main sections:

• First, Jesus ministers in Galilee, the northern area of the land of Israel.
• Next, he takes a long journey to Jerusalem, during which he welcomes people into the way of God’s reign and challenges Israel’s current understanding of the kingdom.
• Third, Luke tells how Jesus gives his life in Jerusalem and then rises from the dead to be revealed as Israel’s King and the world’s true Lord.

 

www.bible.com/zh-TW/bible/111/LUK.INTRO1.NIV

 

 

Luke 1 English Standard Version (ESV)

Mary’s Song of Praise: The Magnificent

⁴⁶ And Mary said,

“My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷ and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
⁴⁸ for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹ for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
⁵⁰ And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
⁵¹ He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
⁵² he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
⁵⁵ as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

⁵⁶ And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.

 

REFLECTION：

1. Mary praises and glorifies God, through her prayer-song, for He will accomplish what He has planned for the world through her. It describes that God lifts up the poor, comforts the oppressed, and cares for the despised.   Mary’s prayer reminds us that we are participating in what God has been doing and is yet to do.
2. Prayer is our way of being attentive to God, who is present to us in the Holy Spirit. Our prayer is always the second sentence.  First God speaks; we respond by prayer.  Just like Mary in this prayer, God spoke first through the angel, Mary heard and received, believed and submitted to the Word that conceived Christ in her.
3. Have you ever had an experience of being an active participant in carrying out God’s plan? How has this experience impacted you?
4. Are you aware that you are present to God in prayer just as God is ever present to you? What will this awareness change you in your attitude and actions in everyday life?

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Leviticus+027

Leviticus 27（ESV）

 

1 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, If anyone makes a special vow to the Lord involving the valuation of persons……

 

9 “If the vow is an animal that may be offered as an offering to the Lord, all of it that he gives to the Lord is holy. …….

 

14 “When a man dedicates his house as a holy gift to the Lord, the priest shall value it as either good or bad; as the priest values it, so it shall stand. …….

 

16 “If a man dedicates to the Lord part of the land that is his possession, then the valuation shall be in proportion to its seed. A homer of barley seed shall be valued at fifty shekels of silver. …..

 

30 “Every tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the trees, is the Lord’s; it is holy to the Lord. 31 If a man wishes to redeem some of his tithe, he shall add a fifth to it. 32 And every tithe of herds and flocks, every tenth animal of all that pass under the herdsman’s staff, shall be holy to the Lord. 33 One shall not differentiate between good or bad, neither shall he make a substitute for it; and if he does substitute for it, then both it and the substitute shall be holy; it shall not be redeemed.”

 

34 These are the commandments that the Lord commanded Moses for the people of Israel on Mount Sinai.

 

 

REFLECTION

1. Regulations of Vows
2. The law set a minimum amount that the Israelites were to contribute to support ministers (vv30-33). But each individual had the privilege of making a special vow to the Lord.  The person making a vow might give anything he possessed – himself, one of his family, an animal, his house, his family land, or a field he had purchased.  In effect, the person making the vow paid the value of the dedicated thing into the tabernacle or temple treasury.
3. “These are the commandments that the Lord gave…for the people of Israel” (v34). This book begins with divine presence and urges the people to avoid the effects of sin and uncleanness, so that God will continue to be present among them and give them life – hence all the instruction on purity and holiness.  It also provides means of restoring that relationship.  It is divine grace that educates the ancient Israelite, as well as the modern day Christians, how to live a life of holiness.

 

PRAYER

Lord, I thank you that you are holy, righteous and gracious.  You have instructed me to be holy.   I thank you that I can trust and rest in you, and I ask that I would live in sanctification and honor.

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Leviticus+026

Leviticus 26（ESV）

 

40 “But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers in their treachery that they committed against me, and also in walking contrary to me, 41 so that I walked contrary to them and brought them into the land of their enemies—if then their uncircumcised heart is humbled and they make amends for their iniquity, 42 then I will remember my covenant with Jacob, and I will remember my covenant with Isaac and my covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land. 43 But the land shall be abandoned by them and enjoy its Sabbaths while it lies desolate without them, and they shall make amends for their iniquity, because they spurned my rules and their soul abhorred my statutes. 44 Yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not spurn them, neither will I abhor them so as to destroy them utterly and break my covenant with them, for I am the Lord their God. 45 But I will for their sake remember the covenant with their forefathers, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the Lord.”

 

46 These are the statutes and rules and laws that the Lord made between himself and the people of Israel through Moses on Mount Sinai.

 

 

REFLECTION

1. Blessings and Curses
2. This chapter concludes the Holiness Code. Holiness is distinctiveness.  God is holy or set apart, different from any other.  Ancient Israel is called to be holy, to reflect that divine holiness.  In following divine instruction, Israel will demonstrate holiness or difference or distinctness as people of the holy God.  All of this instruction is part of the covenant material in the Pentateuch.  Covenant is a way of speaking of the divine-human relationship in which God initiates relationship with Israel and Israel responds.  God first says, “I will be your God” and Israel responds, “We will be your people”.  In living out that covenant relationship persons and communities find wholeness or blessing.  In rejecting that relationship they find trouble.
3. For those that have attended the “Victory in Christ” retreat, it would be helpful to dig out the old notes and go over each step for victory and cleansing from time to time.

 

PRAYER

Refer to the Chinese article next page for the prayers of the seven steps of “Victory in Christ”.  Find the most relevant prayer and pray the prayer.  Ask God for help and strength to live a life of victory and holiness.

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Leviticus+025

Leviticus 25（ESV）

 

1 The Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you come into the land that I give you, the land shall keep a Sabbath to the Lord. 3 For six years you shall sow your field, and for six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in its fruits, 4 but in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a Sabbath to the Lord. You shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. 5 You shall not reap what grows of itself in your harvest, or gather the grapes of your undressed vine. It shall be a year of solemn rest for the land. 6 The Sabbath of the land shall provide food for you, for yourself and for your male and female slaves and for your hired worker and the sojourner who lives with you, 7 and for your cattle and for the wild animals that are in your land: all its yield shall be for food.

 

 

REFLECTION

1. The Sabbath year
2. Sabbath and work aren’t in opposition. They are integrated parts of an organic whole.  Either apart from the other is crippled.  Work doesn’t take us away from God; it continues the work of God through us.  Sabbath is the final day in a series of workdays, each of which God declared good.  There is more to work than work; there is God – God completing, God resting, God blessing, God sanctifying (Gen 2:2-3).  The majority of us spend most of our time in the workplace.  When we work, it must be congruent with the way God works.  If there is no Sabbath in our lives, we soon become absorbed in our own work as an end in itself, and God’s work is either forgotten or marginalized.
3. So how do we get these Sabbath-keeping rhythms into our lives so that we can work congruently with God, living more in step with him and his creation? The way we are to do it is to embed Sabbath keeping in weekly acts of worship.  We keep Sabbath best when we enter a place of worship, gather with a congregation, sing and pray and listen to God.  When we walk out of the place of worship, we walk with refreshed eyes and re-created hearts into the world in which we are images of God participating in his creation work.  And this practice should be so embedded in our lives that even the land – even our places of business – participates in this joyous, life –giving rest.

 

PRAYER

What’s my work habit and philosophy? What’s my rhythm? Is it in step with God’s?  Remain silent for a while, enjoy Sabbath for a moment.  Converse with God; listen to what God wants to tell me.

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Leviticus+024

Leviticus 24（ESV）

 

1 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Command the people of Israel to bring you pure oil from beaten olives for the lamp, that a light may be kept burning regularly. 3 Outside the veil of the testimony, in the tent of meeting, Aaron shall arrange it from evening to morning before the Lord regularly. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. 4 He shall arrange the lamps on the lampstand of pure gold before the Lord regularly.……

 

13 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 14 “Bring out of the camp the one who cursed, and let all who heard him lay their hands on his head, and let all the congregation stone him. …….

 

22 You shall have the same rule for the sojourner and for the native, for I am the Lord your God.” 23 So Moses spoke to the people of Israel, and they brought out of the camp the one who had cursed and stoned him with stones. Thus the people of Israel did as the Lord commanded Moses.

 

 

REFLECTION

1. Regulations of the tabernacle and sin of blasphemy
2. This first part of this chapter (vv1-9) emphasizes “continually”, “lasting ordinance”, and “regularly”. They speak of repeated patterns in each believer’s life.  We are to make sure that the ordinary things in our daily lives are in harmony with God’s will.  The second part (vv10-23) describes a crisis.  A young man “blasphemed the name of the Lord with a curse”.  The implication is that he used God’s name in a magical incantation intended to harm an enemy (v10).  Here was a situation very out of the ordinary!  So the people wisely sought a ruling from God.  When the ruling was given, the people obeyed and stoned the blasphemer to death.  When we face a crisis situation, we too need to wait until the will of the Lord is made clear, and then act on it.
3. Both habitual obedience to God’s known will and seeking God’s direction in crisis are ways we demonstrate a commitment to obedience that God welcomes as acceptable worship.
4. What about me? Do I habitually obey God in my daily life?  Or do I tend to cry out to God in crises?

 

PRAYER

Take an inventory of myself.  Ever since the beginning of 260 Devotions, have I been faithful in following it?  Has the daily Bible reading become a habit for me?  What about the practice of the 5 short prayers?  From my replies, can I see how obedient I am to God, to the church God established, to the church’s leaders/pastors?

What about my obedience to God in my daily living, even in crises?

Tell God about all these and wait for his response.

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Leviticus+023

Leviticus 23（ESV）

 

4 “These are the appointed feasts of the Lord, the holy convocations, which you shall proclaim at the time appointed for them….

37 “These are the appointed feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim as times of holy convocation, for presenting to the Lord food offerings, burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its proper day, 38 besides the Lord’s Sabbaths and besides your gifts and besides all your vow offerings and besides all your freewill offerings, which you give to the Lord.

39 “On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the produce of the land, you shall celebrate the feast of the Lord seven days. On the first day shall be a solemn rest, and on the eighth day shall be a solemn rest. 40 And you shall take on the first day the fruit of splendid trees, branches of palm trees and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days. 41 You shall celebrate it as a feast to the Lord for seven days in the year. It is a statute forever throughout your generations; you shall celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 You shall dwell in booths for seven days. All native Israelites shall dwell in booths, 43 that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.”

44 Thus Moses declared to the people of Israel the appointed feasts of the Lord.

 

 

REFLECTION

1. Important festivals
2. Festivals in ancient Israel’s worship are very important. They emphasized memory.  They remembered the exodus when God delivered and guided the people out of bondage and preserved them through the wilderness and eventually brought them into the land of Canaan.  The purpose of worship is to remember, to live it, rehearse and reenact it, and to bring it into the present.  The people can then see that God still delivers and guides.  They can structure their lives on that basis and move into the future with hope.  This is important to our spiritual life.  For the spiritual journey includes high points and low points.  Remembering God’s work in the past has a sustaining and renewing effect during times of spiritual drought.  Memory and worship are keys to spiritual formation.
3. Learning from the Israelites, we have our own memories and worship: at Christmas, we remember the incarnation of God’s son. On Good Friday, we meditate on Christ’s death for us.  Each Easter, we rejoice in His resurrection.  There are other traditional church festivals, or important dates of individuals or families.  We can choose to focus on the spiritual meaning of these dates, and so make them times of celebration and spiritual renewal.  Through memories, thanksgiving and worship, relationships with God and people may be renewed and spiritual lives strengthened.

 

PRAYER

Recall an especially important date of mine.  Tell God about it, what was the situation, what’s my feeling, who were there, their roles, the impact on me.  Anything to be thankful for?   Any unfinished business?  Give to God and ask him to finish it for me.