Based on “Don’t Make Idols” by Pastor Mark Balmer; 2/14-15/09,
Message #2472; Daily Devotional #6 - “Life on Easy Street”
Preparing the Soil (Introduction): It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1) As Americans we tend to take our freedom for granted. For over two centuries we have prided ourselves in the fact that we are a nation driven by the freedom to pursue our own dreams and passions. It is strange to me that I am, at times, out there looking for a new master. What is the deal with that? Peter tells us that a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him (2 Peter 2:19). In other words, I create my own masters by enslaving myself to the things that lead me away from God. I create my own idols. These idols literally stand between me and God. This is not what God wants. He desires my whole heart, not just a part of it. I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. (Ezekiel 11:19) Apparently my problem is a heart problem. I really need to do something about it. How about you?
Planting and Watering the Seed (Growth): God spoke through Jeremiah to people in the same situation I sometimes find myself in. …See how each of you is following the stubbornness of his evil heart instead of obeying me. (Jeremiah 16:12) The heart of a man usually tends to take the “easy road.” Jesus said that those walking the easy road were on their way to destruction, but those who walked the “narrow” road would inherit eternal life (Matthew 7:13-14). I am a visual person. I like to think about the imagery in this passage. The wide/easy road is one that most of us would like to use when we do our exercising. There are no potholes or sharp inclines. It has a Starbucks on the corner and even will allow for an occasional rest in a soft leather recliner while we watch others struggle. In contrast, the narrow road is one that runs up a mountainside. It is filled with difficult struggles, and if you make it very far you will be exhausted and torn up. Contrasts are God’s specialty. If we want to save our lives, we must lose them for Him (Matthew 16:25). He makes the foolish ones confound the wise ones (1 Corinthians 1:27). We should all choose to walk a difficult road!
Harvesting the Crop (Action/Response): "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." (Isaiah 6:5) Isaiah realized that, when he was compared to God, he fell way short of what he should have been. He understood his position as one of weakness and brokenness. That is where God wants us. Jesus told a story about that very thought. "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: `God, I thank you that I am not like other men--robbers, evildoers, adulterers--or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, `God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." (Luke 18:10-14) The key is not to be perfect and without problems, but rather to identify those problems and pour them out at the foot of the King. Oh God, forgive me, a sinner! That is the cure for our “easy road” lives. We need to allow the Spirit of Holiness to infuse us with His Holiness and power, so we will seek to please Him as our one and only Master.
Cultivating (Additional Reading): Judges 6:25-32
TCH
Calvary Chapel of Melbourne; 2955 Minton Road; W. Melbourne, FL 32904; 321-952-9673
All Bible references are from the New International Version (NIV) unless otherwise noted.
New King James Version = NKJV, King James Version = KJV.