SUNDAY
Easter Brings An Empty Tomb!
The main thing that separates Christianity from other religions is the fact that Jesus came from heaven, the Son of God, and lived a life without sin, to give His life as a sacrifice to pay for our sin, then rose up from the grave on the third day. The false man-made gods never lived at all, they were the work of man's hands. And people who claimed to be gods died just as any other man. Jesus Christ is the only true and living God. The first proof was in the empty tomb. Jesus then appeared to many. As we celebrate Easter today, we celebrate the risen Lord, who lives forever in heaven and has promised to come back and receive His children unto Himself where He is preparing us a home in heaven.
"1 The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.
2 Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him.
3 Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre.
4 So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre.
5 And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in.
6 Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie,
7 And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.
8 Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed." (John 20:1-8)
The women and apostles saw and believed. We don't have to see the empty tomb to believe. We have the Word of God and the Holy Ghost that lives in our hearts. God has blessed us with saving faith to believe. "Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." (John 20:29)
MONDAY
Easter Brings Peace Over Fear
When our first son was about three years old he started being afraid of the dark when we put him to bed. We explained that Jesus was watching over him and taught him memory verses. I can still hear his little voice say, "What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. Psalm 56 verse 3." Children are not the only ones who experience fear. I remember quoting the same verse in my head when I had surgery. There are times we have fears in our life, but because Jesus lives, He can give us peace over our fear. Jesus taught His disciples that He would give them peace over their fear. "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27) Again we see this at the tomb after His resurrection. "And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay." (Matthew 28:5-6) "Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord. Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you." (Matthew 20:19-21) I close with this blessing and prayer from the writer of Hebrews... "Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." (Hebrews 13:20-21)
TUESDAY
The Lord Was With Moses
We took a break from our topic to look at some Easter devotions, and now I want to continue with, “The Lord Was With Moses”. God spoke to Moses from the burning bush as he took care of sheep in the mountain.
“2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.
4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.” (Exodos 3:2-6)
God sent Moses to deliver His people out of Egypt. God used Moses to show great miracles before Pharaoh. “Then the LORD said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land.” (Exodus 6:1) God gave Moses the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, written by the hand of God. When Moses came down from the mount, the people had made a golden calf and were worshiping it. Moses threw the tablets with the commandments down and broke them. He was surely broken and discouraged. These are my favorite verses about Moses. “And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.” (Exodus 33:14-15) That is my prayer, that God will go with me, and if not, then He will keep me from going. And at his lowest point in life, Moses cries out, “I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.” That’s what we need. We need to see, and live in the glory of God.
“11 And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle.
12 And Moses said unto the LORD, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight.
13 Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight: and consider that this nation is thy people.
14 And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.
15 And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.
16 For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? is it not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth.
17 And the LORD said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name.
18 And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.
19 And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.
20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.
21 And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock:
22 And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by:
23 And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.” (Exodus 33:11-23)
“And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, In all the signs and the wonders, which the LORD sent him to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land,” (Deuteronomy 34:10-11)
WEDNESDAY
The Lord Was With Joshua
Moses led the Israelites over dry ground when God parted the waters of the Red Sea. After the death of Moses, God chose Joshua to lead the people across the Jordan River on dry ground. God promised to be with Joshua.
“7 And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee.
8 And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the brink of the water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan.
9 And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of the LORD your God.
10 And Joshua said, Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites.
11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth over before you into Jordan.
12 Now therefore take you twelve men out of the tribes of Israel, out of every tribe a man.
13 And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of Jordan, that the waters of Jordan shall be cut off from the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand upon an heap.” (Joshua 3:7-13)
They came to Jericho and God caused the walls to fall down. “So the LORD was with Joshua; and his fame was noised throughout all the country.” (Joshua 6:27) The Israelites fought many battles as they claimed the Promised Land and God was with them! God will be with us to fight our battles.
THURSDAY
The Lord Was With The Judges Who Followed Him
When I began this series I was familiar with verses that said, “The Lord was with Joseph.” But, until I started going through the scriptures, I did not realize how many times the Bible says, “The Lord was with…” We have come to the book of Judges. In Judges 17:6 and also in Judges 21:25 we read, “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” The people sinned against God, and God delivered them into the hands of their enemies. They repented and turned to God and He gave them a judge and delivered them. This cycle continues throughout the book of Judges. “And when the LORD raised them up judges, then the LORD was with the judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented the LORD because of their groanings by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them.” (Judges 2:18) Moses told the people that God would bless them when they followed Him, but when they sinned against God and turned to other false gods, they would be cursed. We want God to be with us, and we need to be with Him.
“26 Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse;
27 A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you this day:
28 And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.” (Deuteronomy 11:26-28)
FRIDAY
Samson Wist Not That The Lord Was Departed From Him
Today we have the sad story of Samson, one of the judges of Israel. Samson was a Nazarite and he was to follow three specific vows. “But he said unto me, Behold, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and now drink no wine nor strong drink, neither eat any unclean thing: for the child shall be a Nazarite to God from the womb to the day of his death.” (Judges 13:7) “And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him. And the Spirit of the LORD began to move him at times...” (Judges 13:24-25) In 14:5 Samson went to the vineyards of Timnath, but maybe Samson did not drink of the wine. In 14:9 he ate honey out of the carcass of the lion. And in chapter 16 Samson told Delilah that his strength came from his Nazarite vow to God and he had never cut his hair.
“16 And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death;
17 That he told her all his heart, and said unto her, There hath not come a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother's womb: if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.
18 And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up this once, for he hath shewed me all his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought money in their hand.
19 And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him.
20 And she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him.
21 But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison house.” (Judges 16:16-21)
What a sad ending for such a mighty man, who was used by God. He didn’t even know that the LORD was departed from him. We can be going along with the blessings of God, but if we turn away from God, then we may not realize that we are not longer walking in the Spirit, until it is too late.
SATURDAY
The Lord Was With Samuel
Hannah wept and prayed for a son and she vowed to give him back to the Lord.
“9 So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the LORD.
10 And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore.
11 And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.” (I Samuel 1:9-11)
“But Samuel ministered before the LORD, being a child, girded with a linen ephod… And the child Samuel grew on, and was in favour both with the LORD, and also with men.” (I Samuel 2:18 & 26) We read in I Samuel 3:19, “And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.” Samuel and Samson had very similar beginnings. They lived during the time of the Judges. They may have known one another. They both started out doing what they could to serve the Lord. But, Samson turned away from God and his vows, while Samuel followed God and was a great prophet and judge over Israel. He anointed Saul to be the first king over Israel and also anointed King David. We have seen the lives of two Sams. Let us be like Samuel and keep serving the Lord.
