The Authority of King Jesus..Craig Denison Ministries

 The Authority of King Jesus

Craig Denison Ministries

Weekly Overview:

We have a great High Priest who constantly intercedes on our behalf. The Son of God and Man loves you more deeply than you can fathom. He prays for you, that you might walk in the abundant life his death affords you. And in John 17 we get a glimpse into the fullness of his desire for all those who would believe in him. As we dive deeply into the riches of Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer this week, may your heart be awakened and your life be transformed by the riches of God’s love.

Scripture:“When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you,since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.’” >John 17:1-2

Devotional:

John 17:1-2 marks the beginning of one of the most powerful passages in all of Scripture. Jesus prays to the Father and says, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.” Jesus knows that his time on the earth is coming to a close. He knows that he must sacrifice his life so that the door to restored relationship with the Father would be flung open to all who would put their faith in him.

What good news it is that the Father has given the Son “authority over all flesh.” You and I serve the one true King of all mankind. Jesus is King of all the earth. And our King is one who would ask the Father to send him to die that we might live. Our King willfully lays down his life for us who have done nothing to deserve his kindness. Colossians 1:15-20 says:

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

And later Paul writes in Colossians 2:13-15, “And you, who were dead in your trespasses

and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.”

What does it mean for us today to serve the High King in whom all authority and kindness dwells? What would life look like if we would submit ourselves to his authority completely? All of creation answers to his name. All of humanity will one day bow before him. But what would your life look like if you made the decision today to willfully lay down your life in response to his lordship? What would it look like to crown him as King of your plans, efforts, emotions, relationships, finances, past present, and future? You were not created to be the king of your own life. You were not created to bear the burden of doing life apart from the lordship of Jesus Christ. And you will never know true peace, joy, purpose, and love until you submit all you are to all God is.

Take time in guided prayer to meditate on the authority and power of Jesus. Thank him for his loving sacrifice and crown him King of your life today.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on the authority and power of Jesus. Allow Scripture to call you to a lifestyle of obedience and worship.

“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you,since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.” >John 17:1-2

“On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.” Revelation 19:16

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” >John 3:16

3. Crown Jesus as Lord of your life. Commit to surrendering everything to him today. Hand over control of your plans, relationships, finances, and emotions to the one who will guide you daily into the abundant life he died to give you.

“I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” >John 10:10

“I know, O Lord, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.” >Jeremiah 10:23

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” >Romans 12:1

To take authority over your own life is to pluck yourself out of a life filled with the unimaginable graces of God. God will not bless that which is not his will. He waits patiently day after day for us to simply choose to submit ourselves to him and follow. He longs for the day when we will stop submitting to our own pride, yield ourselves to him, and discover the wealth of life available to us in him alone. May you have the courage and humility to surrender to God and follow him today.

Extended Reading: Colossians 3

Devoted to God..Dr. Charles Stanley

 Devoted to God

Dr. Charles Stanley

Psalms 62:1-2

Having been saved by faith in Christ, we express our love and gratitude through devotion to Him. Regular Bible study and prayer will be an integral part of our daily lives. In addition, our commitment to the Lord will be revealed through a passion to obey, a spirit of humility, and a servant's heart.

1. Obedience. David sought to obey God all his life. As a shepherd boy, he faithfully tended the animals in his father's fields. While king, he set aside his desire to build the temple and let Solomon lead the effort, as God had commanded. Although David lived imperfectly, his desire was to do what the Lord asked. We see from Jesus' words in John 14:15 that obedience should be our high priority as well: He said, "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments."
2. Humility. After David killed Goliath, the crowds shouted praise about the young man. However, he did not become prideful. Instead, he remained in King Saul's service and waited for God to make him the ruler of Israel. Even as king, he remained humble. He knew that what had been accomplished was because of the Lord's actions and not his own (2 Sam. 7:18).
3. Service. Whether David was a lowly shepherd or a mighty king, his goal was to obey God and serve Him.

This man after God's own heart was devoted to his Lord. He sought to know Him and longed to carry out His will. David's actions reflected His humble attitude of servanthood and his longing to please his heavenly Father. Take steps each day to be sure your life expresses commitment to Jesus.

Homesickness for Heaven..Greg Laurie

 Homesickness for Heaven

By Greg Laurie

BIBLE VERSE OF THE DAY: My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? - John 14:2

Deep inside us, there is a sense of something more in life that drives us on. No matter what experiences you’ve had, no matter how wonderful they were, they were just a glimpse of what is still ahead. You are really homesick for a place you have never been before, and that place is Heaven. You were wired this way.

The Bible says that God has put eternity in our hearts (see Ecclesiastes 3:11). This simply means there is a sense inside of us that there is more to life. That is what keeps us moving forward.

It is sort of like the homing instinct we see in the animal kingdom, like the salmon making their way upstream with such determination. We see it in the way the swallows return every year to San Juan Capistrano. It’s a homing instinct that drives them.

We have the same thing, but it is a homing instinct for a place we haven’t seen yet. It is a homesickness for Heaven. Until that day, there is nothing that will completely satisfy our lives. No matter what happens to us on Earth, it pales in comparison to this great hope.

The apostle Paul wrote, “For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever” (2 Corinthians 4:17–18).

This is the hope of the Christian—the hope of a place called Heaven. There is a better world ahead. There is something greater than what we’re experiencing now.

Heavenly Father, we praise you that this world is not our home! Everything seems broken and laden with sin, but we take great comfort in your patience and mercy toward us, and that you have prepared a place before us. Whatever joys or trials we face in this life, help us to remember our true home lies elsewhere. Please keep us strong until our time on Earth is done. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

A Prayer for Friendships..Emma Danzey

 A Prayer for Friendships

By Emma Danzey

Proverbs 17:17 says, "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity."

Maybe you have many friends, you might have one close friend, or you could be lonely and in need of a friend. God designed relationships to be a benefit to us and to others. It is important that we take time to pray for our current friends and future friends. Whether we are in a new city hoping to develop new friendships or we have lived in the same town for many years with close-knit friends, the Lord values friendships. 

Jesus, Himself calls us friends in John 15:15. As believers in Christ, we have this privilege to be friends of God Himself. This means that He wants an active and personal relationship with us. The way that He modeled friendship is a great way for us to follow. Jesus loved all people and he had a variety of friends, but his closest friends were believers. We, of course, want to be friends with everyone, but today we are going to spend some time praying over those core friends who we can point to Christ, and they can share Him with us.

Let's pray:

Dear Lord,
Thank You for friendships. Thank you that You created us to be in community. We pray over those who are lonely and in need of friendship. You say in Ecclesiastes 4:10, "If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.” Would you please help them to see that You are their friend? Would you open their eyes to potential relationships around them? Give them the courage to initiate with others. Heal where there has been hurt or rejection in the past. We pray for others to take a genuine interest in friendship with them and pray that they would feel seen and loved by the church and You.

We pray for those friends in our lives who are closer than brothers and sisters. Help them to sharpen one another like iron sharpens iron. Give them Your help in the ways that we speak truth in love, pray for one another, and laugh together. We ask for blessings and growth in these relationships to be deeply rooted in You and to be faithful witnesses of Your love to those around. 

Psalm 133:1 says, “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” We pray for those who need reconciliation in friendships. Relationships are hard to navigate, and it can be such a struggle to love other sinners well. Please help those who are holding hurts and grudges to release them to You. Mend what is broken and reunite them in Your name Jesus.

Jesus, You said in John 15:12-13, "My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” We pray for the Holy Spirit's power to love well and to be genuine with others. We ask for the Holy Spirit to fill us up so that we can love with the sacrificial love that You have loved us with. 

God, please protect us from friends that would pull us away from You. Proverbs 12:26 says, “A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.” Help us to be kind to everyone but not enable the enemy to have a foothold over us in this area. Give us discernment in who we hang out with and when. Reveal to us any boundaries that need to be set up. 

Lord, You tell us in 1 Thessalonians 5:11 to encourage one another and build one another up. We pray that our friendships would not just be shallow fun but would be in-depth relationships that are encouraging to each other and build up each other in faith. Thank You for giving us friends as close as family. These are sweet gifts from you, and we pray that we would never take them for granted but regularly praise You in them.

One Encounter Can Change Everything..Rachael Adams

 One Encounter Can Change Everything

By Rachael Adams

“Now He had to go through Samaria….Jesus, tired as He was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon” (John 4:4-6).

My first job out of college was as a community liaison for the government. I was responsible for a large region, and I had a long list of contacts in various communities across the eastern part of the state. With so much to learn, I was assigned a veteran liaison to train me for the first several months. Each day Emily and I spent significant time together in our rental car, traveling from city to city. 

Though I didn’t realize it initially, I was receiving much more than training for my new job. I looked up to Emily professionally, but before long, I also began to look up to her spiritually. She became the mentor I didn’t know I needed. I had a daily passenger-seat view into the way she lived out her faith—her countenance, choices, and character consistently aligned with the Word. I quietly observed her listening to Christian music, bringing Scripture into conversation, sharing godly wisdom, praying before meals, working hard, and loving people. While I had a salvation moment as a preteen, Emily opened my eyes to what having an active relationship with God actually meant. She helped me to realize I could encounter him personally each day, not just in eternity. 

Eventually, the time came when I had to start traveling without Emily, but I now had the assurance of a new companion. God took the driver's seat, and I joyfully remained in the passenger seat. Slowly, the behavior Emily had modeled became my behavior. Over time, I too found myself listening to Christian music, bringing Scripture into conversation, sharing godly wisdom, praying before meals, working hard, and loving people. I’m so grateful for this encounter with her during that season of my life. Though Emily likely didn’t realize the positive impact she had on me when our lives intersected, God certainly knew what he was doing when he placed us together for those few months. He knew how much I needed her example.

As I reflect on this experience, I’m struck by the fact that, because my encounter with Emily changed me, all the people I’ve encountered since that training nearly two decades ago have also been impacted. Many people have been touched because she was an ambassador of Jesus’ love—and an encounter with Jesus changes everything.

This was certainly the case for the woman at the well. This woman is never named, yet her encounter with the Son of God is the longest exchange Jesus had with an individual in the Gospel of John (4:1-42). The story begins with Jesus traveling through Samaria on the way to Galilee. Tired from his journey, he sat down at a well in the town of Sychar. Most Jews avoided this city, but Jesus purposefully traveled there to encounter this woman who represented the lowest of the low—a female in a society where women were both demeaned and disregarded, a member of a race traditionally despised by the Jews, and a social outcast living in shame because of her lifestyle.

This woman came to draw water during the heat of the day, likely because she was trying to avoid encounters with other people due to her situation. How divine that she had a holy encounter with Christ instead. It’s no coincidence Jesus was there at the exact place and exact time. 

During their interaction, he asked her for a drink, and, by the end of the conversation, Jesus had given her living water. The Samaritan woman gave him well water, but she gained so much more. Though she didn’t initially understand the magnitude of this little encounter, she experienced the eternal effects. Jesus did more than satisfy her physical thirst, he satisfied the spiritual thirst she didn’t even realize she had. After this single encounter with Jesus, she led many more Samaritans from that town to encounter him and believe.

It is astounding to consider how many encounters we have on any given day. It is even more astounding to think about the potential significance each of those encounters can have. Whether these occurrences are scheduled or by surprise, frequent or rare, ongoing or once in a lifetime—God uses them all. What if we viewed every encounter as a divine appointment from him with the purpose of leading one another closer to him? Could your next encounter change the trajectory of your life, the other person’s life, or both? May every encounter with you be an encounter with him. How exciting to someday see where those encounters will lead no matter how insignificant they may seem at the time.

Intersecting Faith and Life:
View the next encounter you have with a person as one that has the potential to change everything! Consider how an encounter with you could lead to the other person having an encounter with Christ.

Prayer:
Lord, thank you for the people you have placed in my life. I choose to believe every encounter is ordained and designed by you. Help me to realize that because I have encountered you, everyone I meet is an opportunity to share your love and Good News. Use me in every interaction to allow others to experience you through me. Amen.

Further Reading:
John 4

 knew how much I needed her example.