LENT--DAY 30
SCRIPTURE
Judges 9:7-15 (NRSV)
When it was told to Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim, and cried aloud and said to them, "Listen to me, you lords of Shechem, so that God may listen to you.
The trees once went out
to anoint a king over themselves.
So they said to the olive tree,
'Reign over us.'
The olive tree answered them,
'Shall I stop producing my rich oil
by which gods and mortals are honored,
and go to sway over the trees?'
Then the trees said to the fig tree,
'You come and reign over us.'
But the fig tree answered them,
'Shall I stop producing my sweetness
and my delicious fruit,
and go to sway over the trees?'
Then the trees said to the vine,
'You come and reign over us.'
But the vine said to them,
'Shall I stop producing my wine
that cheers gods and mortals,
and go to sway over the trees?'
So all the trees said to the bramble,
'You come and reign over us.'
And the bramble said to the trees,
'If in good faith you are anointing me king over you,
then come and take refuge in my shade;
but if not, let fire come out of the bramble
and devour the cedars of Lebanon.'
DEVOTION
My heavens!
Today's scripture is a parable about what happens when you allow the unrighteous to rule over you!
In the case of Judges 9 Abimelech made himself King of Israel. In order to attain and then secure the throne he went on a murderous rampage, killing 69 of his 70 brothers, as well as anyone else who dared to stand in his stead.
Abimelech dared to usurp the power of God. His reign did not last long, but he did much damage in the few short years that he ruled by force.
All of this reminds us that when we allow people and things to sit on the throne of our hearts, no good thing will come of it. As we prioritize earthly things, over heavenly ones, we displease God and break God's heart.
This is the very nature of sin. It is when we allow what we want to trump what God wants.
And what does God want? God wants all of us to know--and believe--that Love gave Jesus to die on the cross to save us from our sin and gift us with eternal life.
That's not much to ask, is it?
As we near the end of our Lenten Journey, I find that there is yet much for me to confess. I'm not proud of this...
Will you join me in confessing to God all of the ways that we have attempted to find shade under "bramble bushes" allowing "false kings" to establish themselves in our hearts and minds?
If so, please pray with me:
Holy God, you alone are king. I will bow down to no one but you. Please forgive me for the many times that I have bowed down before false idols and/or allowed others to take your place. I love you and acknowledge you as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. I pray this in Jesus' Name, Amen.
INVITATION
If you have questions about how to become a friend and follower of Jesus, please see the devotion entitled, “Come to Jesus” @ http://bit.ly/JVhaL
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