Liz’s Morning Devotional based upon Upper Room
August 15, 2021
Read John 14:15-31
15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 I will ask the Father, and he will send another Companion, who will be with you forever. 17 This Companion is the Spirit of Truth, whom the world can’t receive because it neither sees him nor recognizes him. You know him, because he lives with you and will be with you. 18 “I won’t leave you as orphans. I will come to you. 19 Soon the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Because I live, you will live too. 20 On that day you will know that I am in my Father, you are in me, and I am in you. 21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them loves me. Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.” 22 Judas (not Judas Iscariot) asked, “Lord, why are you about to reveal yourself to us and not to the world?” 23 Jesus answered, “Whoever loves me will keep my word. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24 Whoever doesn’t love me doesn’t keep my words. The word that you hear isn’t mine. It is the word of the Father who sent me. 25 “I have spoken these things to you while I am with you. 26 The Companion, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I told you. 27 “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you. I give to you not as the world gives. Don’t be troubled or afraid. 28 You have heard me tell you, ‘I’m going away and returning to you.’ If you loved me, you would be happy that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than me. 29 I have told you before it happens so that when it happens you will believe. 30 I won’t say much more to you because this world’s ruler is coming. He has nothing on me. 31 Rather, he comes so that the world will know that I love the Father and do just as the Father has commanded me. Get up. We’re leaving this place.
Good Morning! God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son! Hallelujah!
Jesus taught us to Love God with all of our heart, soul, and mind, and to love our neighbors as ourselves. Those who believe will be one with God, in a relationship with God. Even though we can’t see God directly, we see God through the miracles of nature when we take the time to open our eyes and our hearts. When we are feeling weak, we have the scriptures to read so that we can remember. Blessed are those who believe without seeing!
In today’s world, our society has become cynical of believing something without seeing it. This has been fueled by the ability to capture every moment of every day with cameras on our cell phones. However, we have learned that videos can be altered to present things in a totally different way than the actual event. As a result, even when we see clear evidence before us, we often doubt the authenticity of what we see. The other problem occurs when we get video clips without context. i.e. images and videos where we don’t see what happens immediately before or after the recording. These snippets of footage often cause unrest and discontent as they go viral on social media.
Over the years, there have been religious groups who do the same things with the Bible. They use verses out of context to support their own agenda. Sadly, many people only have this experience with God. As Christians, we must light the way for the world as we teach the word of God through our daily walk. The Bible is always there as our map to guide us, but we must enlighten the world through our love and mercy. We must allow the Holy Spirit within us to show us the way.
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord
And we pray that our unity will one day be restored
And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
Yeah they'll know we are Christians by our love
We will work with each other, we will work side by side
We will work with each other, we will work side by side
And we'll guard each man's dignity and save each man's pride
And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
Yeah, they'll know we are Christians by our love.
Loving God, Thank You for loving us. May we show the world Your endless love and mercy as we continue on our faith journey. Let others see Christ in our daily actions. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen
Thought for the day: We are the mirror of God for the world.
Share God’s love with someone today! Pastor Liz
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