Today's Word
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Salisbury PlainClimb a Hill, Look at a Rock Day
Our Lord is so good, He grants us many blessings. We can see Him in the daily course of events, in our homes, our jobs, our lives. I pray that these words help you to grow in your faith and recognize His hand in even the most mundane circumstances.
The picture to the right is of a Celtic Chapel located in Cornwall England. This building is approximately 1700 years old, and contains a holy well known for its healing powers.
(Click for enlarged)
“When the days of their purification according to the law of Moses were fulfilled, they brought him up to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, ‘Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord’), and to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, ‘A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.’” Luke 2:22-24, WEB
The Old Testament is filled with images of God that we do not like to see; they leave us with questions and doubts. We prefer a God who is loving and kind; any stories of death and destruction are difficult for us to juxtapose with our understanding of a gracious God. We don’t really understand why our God would require the death of any animals as a sacrifice of thanksgiving.
As we look at the Old Testament story of the Exodus, we can’t really understand why the God who sent us the baby in the manger could possibly allow the death of all the first-born innocent children of Egypt. That’s what happened at the Passover, when the angel of death passed over the homes covered in the blood of the lamb and took the sons of Egypt as the final plague to convince Pharaoh to set the Hebrews free. There must have been a better way.
The Exodus was the first of many great works and a foreshadowing of the greatest work that God performed in and through Jesus Christ. The deliverance was not easy; Pharaoh’s heart was hardened against the Hebrews, and he refused to let them leave despite his promises. So, God made the ultimate demand, the demand that the other gods had no right to make. The Lord Almighty gives life to all, so only He has the right to take that life away. As a last resort, God took the first born of Egypt, man and beast. But as proof that He is God, He saved the firstborn of the Hebrews. He saved His sons.
After Pharaoh ordered the Hebrews to leave, God gave the people instructions about the journey. He told them to remember the Passover regularly, to remember how God delivered them out of Egypt. Then He called His people to consecrate all their first-born males, human and animal. This consecration is to happen not only in this night, but in all time after they enter into the Promised Land. The animals were sacrificed; but God never demanded death for the first-born human sons. They were consecrated to life. God commanded His people to dedicate their first fruits to God’s service. The first born belonged to God.
The redemption price of five shekels could be paid to a priest when the first-born son of a mother was thirty days old (Numbers 18:16). This redemption price would have “bought” or “redeemed” or “paid the ransom” for the child so that they could be restored to their family. If a father could not pay the redemption price, the child had to do so when he became a man. We don’t hear about Joseph paying the redemption price, but from the beginning Jesus belonged to God. He was sent to pay the price Himself, not with shekels but with His own blood.
In other words, the very command to consecrate the first born was truly fulfilled in the life, ministry, and death of our Lord Jesus Christ. Mary and Joseph dedicated Jesus to God’s service, and Jesus served in a way that only He could serve. Ultimately, we know that Jesus was the final sacrifice and it is His blood that is now painted on our doors.
There is a meme I’ve seen that says, “God did not check inside to see who was worthy. He checked for the blood on the doorpost. None are worthy. The blood of Christ covers us.” In Christ we are among those who have been redeemed. We do not have to pay the price anymore. We were never really able to pay the price. Through Christ, God has saved His sons and His daughters. The angel of death will still take our flesh one day, but when He does, we will be welcomed into the eternal kingdom of our God, to dwell with Him forever.
You are God’s holy and beloved, dedicated by faith to service in His Kingdom. The life you are called to live is not necessarily like those we hear about in the Nativity story. We won’t be like Mary or Joseph, John or Herod, the shepherds or angels, Simeon or Anna. We won’t be like those who died for the sake of the Gospel from the Holy Innocents to Stephen, to all the martyrs throughout history. The sacrifice God seeks from each of us is thankfulness with our whole hearts.
Even though Christmas is past, will you continue to seek Him, to watch for Him, to wait for His coming with your whole being, serving Him with your entire life? It might sound like too much, especially as we return to the hustle and bustle of our normal lives, but when we consider what God has done for us, we know that it will never be enough. Thankfully, Jesus accomplished more than enough. That babe that was laid in the manger became the required redemption because He died for our sake. By His grace we live in word and deed in His name, sharing the peace of God with one another and the world.
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“If I speak with the languages of men and of angels, but don’t have love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but don’t have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but don’t have love, it profits me nothing. Love is patient and is kind. Love doesn’t envy. Love doesn’t brag, is not proud, doesn’t behave itself inappropriately, doesn’t seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil; doesn’t rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will be done away with. Where there are various languages, they will cease. Where there is knowledge, it will be done away with. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when that which is complete has come, then that which is partial will be done away with. When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child. Now that I have become a man, I have put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, even as I was also fully known. But now faith, hope, and love remain - these three. The greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:1-13, WEB
A former editor of Bible Study Magazine named John Barry once wrote, “‘Focus on your relationship with Jesus.’ When my friend said this, I knew it was the answer to all my questions. I had been so focused on God’s calling that I had neglected my relationship with the caller, Jesus. This is precisely Paul’s message when he says to the Corinthian church, ‘If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a ringing brass gone or clashing cymbal’ (1 Corinthians 13:1). Without love, our lives are simply noise.” The article, “From Noise to Music,” reminds us that everything we do is nothing unless God is the focus. Barry wrote, “We’re like an orchestra without a conductor.”
This is a good reminder on this day of new beginnings. There are many things about my life that I really want to change in the coming year. I want to spend more time in my studio and seriously work on and finish the book I have begun writing. I want to continue to work toward healthier living. I want to find a purpose, something new to accomplish this year, a place where I am needed and where I can offer my gifts. I want to continue a project digitizing all my old videos. I want to be a better housekeeper around my house. I want to be more kind and less judgmental of the people who cross my path. These are all good things, positive things, which I can do for myself and for those around me this year.
This past year was a good year. Oh, things are never perfect, but that is because we live in an imperfect world. People disappoint. We get sick. We make mistakes. We lose people we love, both through death and broken relationships. We be lonely at times or confused. We will fail to do what we should do, and we’ll do things we should not do. We are human and we experience the ups and downs of life, no matter how hard we try to make our world happy. Sometimes the greatest success is to face the bad with an attitude of faith, trust, and love.
We don’t do this with our own power. As a matter of fact, our feeble attempts are much like that orchestra without a conductor. We do ministry for the sake of doing ministry, because we think we are called to something, but if God is not the center or the focus of our work, then we are just going through the motions. Whatever we choose to do to make 2026 a better year, whether it is changes in our lifestyle, our purpose, our attitude, the most important thing is to begin with these words in our hearts. It begins with love. Anything we do without God is just noise. Now is the time for us to make music.
Now is the time for us to fall in love again with the God who is our Father, Creator, and Redeemer. As we dwell in His love we will see the world through faith. We may not accomplish our goals, and we will face those times and experiences that we try so hard to avoid. We will probably fail at our resolutions. Through it all, however, the God who loves us will be with us and He will help us through. He will lead us to where He wants us to go, which is far better than anything we can imagine. Our focus might be good, but the best thing we can do is to focus on God, for it is in Him we will truly find love and will make beautiful music.
The following links provide some specially chosen scripture that tell the stories of the Birth and Passion of our Lord as Savior Jesus Christ, as well as a fictional perspective of the Crucifixion. Spend time in God's Word, read about His life and learn of the wonderful gifts He has for you. Know Jesus Christ and honor Him today. Thanks be to God.
The Story of our Savior's Passion
The Crucifixion, a fictional perspective
When researching, I use several versions of the bible, including the New International Version and English Standard Version. Due to copyright restrictions, I have not included quotes for the scriptures on some of the archives, but highly encourage you to open your own bibles to read the scripture passages for yourselves. Where scripture is quoted, it is usually the American Standard Version or World English Bible which belong to the public domain. Any other versions used in quotes are identified.
The devotion posted on Wednesday is based on the Lectionary texts used by millions of Christians each Sunday. The Lectionary consists of four texts: an Old Testament passage, a Psalm, a passage from one of the Epistles and a Gospel text and follows the church calendar. Archives for these writings are found at Midweek Oasis.
You are welcome to use these words to share the Gospel of our Lord Jesus. Please remember to give credit to the Author who has given you these gifts, and keep in remembrance the vessel which He used to bring them to you. We pray that this site may be a blessing to you and anyone with whom you've shared it. Peggy Hoppes
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