Pastor Gary's OYB Devotion Archive for January 21

“So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, ‘A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house'” (Matthew 13:57 NKJV)

From: January 21, 2015

The people of Nazareth were offended at the authority of Jesus’ teachings because of their familiarity with him. They knew his family. They had seen him grow up. “Who does he think he is coming back home preaching to us?” They thought.
Two ways we might relate to this passage:
One, we might relate to the Nazarenes. We sometimes respond without respect to Christ because of familiarity. We’ve been believers for a long time, so we feel we’ve heard it all before. We’ve sung all the songs. Listened to all the sermons. Attended all the holiday events. We lose sight of our “first love.” We become like the people of Nazareth. And we do not see Jesus do mighty works in our lives because of our unbelief.
Two, we might relate to Jesus. We sometimes experience rejection from our family and friends when we bring Jesus home with us. We are able to share our testimony of faith with strangers and see them accept Christ, but our own family members act offended when we offer the same to them. Like Jesus, we have no honor in our own house.
How do you relate to this passage?

“You rescue the humble, but you humiliate the proud” (Psalm 18:27)

From: January 21, 2014

This spiritual principle is found throughout Scripture, that God helps the humble, but opposes the proud. Being humble does not mean having low self esteem. It means to rightly esteem God and others above yourself. It means to give credit to God and others for your success and blessing. The proud person is often truly the one with a low self image or self doubt. As a result they puff themselves up and take credit to make themselves look better. Who gets the credit in your life?

“The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight” (Proverbs 4:7)

From: January 21, 2013

The first step for growing in wisdom is a desire to do so. Those who grow in wisdom, seek after it. There is a kind of wisdom that the world admires, but it does not lead to true understanding and life. The wisdom that God gives is life. Do you want this wisdom? Then, ask, seek, knock… and it will be given to you.

“Every teacher of religious law who becomes a disciple in the Kingdom of Heaven is like a homeowner who brings from his storeroom new gems of truth as well as old” (Matthew 13:52)

From: January 21, 2012

Jesus directs this to His disciples who are able to understand His parables. There is an encouragement here for the preacher to set a table from the storehouse of both Old and New Testaments.

“You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great” (Psalm 18:35)

From: January 21, 2011

And God has stooped down, offering His Son to us, exchanging His righteousness for our sin. In Christ, God stooped down to make us great!