ESOCS Devotional 11 December 2022
TEXT: HEBREWS 6:1-12
MEMORY VERSE: “that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” Hebrews 6:12
0 And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. 11 But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing. 12 When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted lace ”
Paul once said to the Corinthian Christians, “Imitate me, just as I imitate Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1). Christ came to do the will of the Father. In John 6:38 He said, “For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of Him who sent me.” He pursued that goal with all sense of seriousness and determination. In John 4:34 H said, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent me, and to finish His work.” In the end, He won the victory on the cross at Calvary. He conquered sin, Satan and death; and He became the Lord of heaven and earth. Today, we rejoice in that victory because we now enjoy the eternal liberty delivered to us in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Paul and the other disciples had the attitude of perseverance and steadfastness despite the persecution they suffered and the threat of death. In 2 Corinthians 4:8-12 he said, “We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair, persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed– always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus… For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake … So then death is working in us”; and “For indeed, when we came to Macedonia, our bodies had no rest, but we were troubled on every side. Outside were conflicts, inside were fears” (2 Corinthians 7:5).
Let us always remember Abraham and other triumphant saints who walked with God patiently and obtained the eternal crown. The Scripture advises us to “imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promise” (Heb. 6:12). We “have need of endurance, so that after [we] have done the will of God, [we] may receive the promise” (Heb. 10:35). Joseph had one of the most important virtues we need in our relationship with God. He had the fear of God in him. This quality in him enabled him to run away from doing what was evil in the sight of God (Gen. 39:12). In the end, he became the Prime Minister of Egypt. He said to his brothers later, “Do this and live, for I fear God” (Gen. 42:18). Today, we bear witness that he truly feared God.
Chastity is a virtue that would give us a good place in God’s scheme of things; and make us produce the best of good things in life. Mary had this quality and she incubated the Lord of heaven and earth; and she became the mother of the world! The angel said to her, “”Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God.” (Luke 1:30). Chastity will always bring us favour from God. We should remain chaste and undefiled both in sexual immorality and from the other pollutions of the world.
The excellent spirit was found in Daniel (Dan. 5:12). His friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were also upright in heart. The four young men refused to worship any other God apart from Jehovah, even at the risk of their lives. Let us imitate them and all the other men and women of God who maintained a great relationship with God. If there are around us people of noble character, let us make them our role models and imitate their good lifestyle.
CHALLENGES
- Who is your role model?
PRAYERS
- Pray that God may help you retain the essential quality of sainthood in you.
Read Yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
Thank you for reading the ESOCS Devotional today. Please share and follow us on all our platforms to contribute to the spread of the Gospel.
ESOCS Devotional 11 December 2022
