by George Runyan | Dec 20, 2016 | Devotional, George Runyan
Luke 2:15 – Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this great thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.
The shepherds did not hesitate to seek out Jesus once informed of what the Lord had done for them. The Scriptures tell us that they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary, Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger.
The Lord has many ways of informing people of what He has done. The shepherds responded correctly by immediately searching out the Christ child. Some people want to get more information, while others need to think about their experience for a while to decide whether to believe it or not. When the Lord reveals Himself, He expects an immediate response. The degree of the revelation is not the issue. Some may think if God revealed Himself to me like He did to the shepherds, I too would believe and immediately respond. Human nature is strange and sometimes hard to figure out in terms of how one might respond under similar circumstances.
There are many distractions in life to keep us from running hard after God and His purpose. Even supernatural experiences can be a momentary excitement. I have been in many gatherings over the years and have watched the power of God touch people dramatically. It has always been curious to me how quickly and easily the excitement of the Lord’s presence can be forgotten and the normal routines of life are simply picked up as if nothing had taken place. These shepherds were transformed by their encounter.
After seeing the babe in the manger, they immediately made known what the angels had declared to them about this child. Those who heard the shepherds wondered at the things told them. Mary treasured those reports in her heart. The shepherds went back to tending their sheep, but glorified and praised God for all that they had heard and seen.
The spirit of Christmas is in telling others the wonderful story of God’s love for man and His provision of salvation through Jesus the Christ. We give gifts as a symbolic gesture as we remember the greatest gift ever given. Reflect on the many occasions the Lord revealed Himself to you in some supernatural way. Ask Him to remind you of the times He has made His presence known. Like the shepherds of old, you knew the joy of the Lord’s presence. Glorify and praise God for He is altogether worthy.
Father, I thank You for the message of Your grand love for all mankind. Help me to run hard after You to discover Your treasures in Christ. Cause me to be as the shepherds, a witness of the things I have been told and have seen.
by George Runyan | Dec 19, 2016 | Devotional, George Runyan
Luke 2:14 – A multitude of the heavenly host appeared praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.
At the birth of Jesus the whole of heaven’s hosts joined in the celebration. The angel of the Lord appeared many times throughout the Old Testament to bring to men messages from the throne of God. Daniel the prophet experienced numerous occasions when Gabriel the archangel appeared to him with messages from God. Never before did a multitude of the heavenly host come declaring words from God as recorded in the book of Luke.
The Scriptures can be so clear at times and this verse is one of those occasions, “Glory to God in the highest.” God is Spirit and His throne is in heaven. We cannot comprehend either God or His throne. God is mystery to man, so God revealed His nature by sending His Only Begotten Son in human form. Not only did He do this, He has made it possible, through Christ, for His Holy Spirit to live inside every believer. In this verse the angels say, “In the highest,” there is no height higher than the Throne of God.
The angels also made it abundantly clear concerning God’s will: “On earth peace among men with whom He is well pleased.” As we look back in Scripture, there was a time when God was not pleased. “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was evil continually. The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart” (Genesis 6:5-6). What an indictment against mankind! God’s heart is fully revealed in Luke’s record of Christ’s birth. He reconciled His grieving over creating man as revealed in Genesis with His “Great Love” revealed through His Son Jesus and the “new creation” in the Spirit He was bringing forth.
God the Father is pleased with man, not because man is good, but because of “the man Christ Jesus.” “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time” (1 Timothy 2:5-6). Now was the proper time. The angels began the proclamation that awesome night. The Apostles continued the proclamation as they preached Christ in “faith and truth” ( 2:7).
It is now our turn! As we celebrate His birth and remember what the angels declared, make sure you represent heaven well. God wants peace among men. God is well pleased with us as He sees Christ revealed in all men and women who have put their trust in God’s first new creation man.
Father, I thank You for Your declaration of peace and pleasure of man. Thank You for Your heart of love and mercy shown toward fallen man who had no hope. You have given hope to the world through the birth of Your Son Jesus. Help me to be joined with the angels in proclaiming Your great love.
by George Runyan | Dec 17, 2016 | Devotional, George Runyan
Luke 2:30 – My eyes have seen Your salvation.
Simeon was a resident of Jerusalem. The Scriptures record that he was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel. The Holy Spirit was upon him. Israel had been in difficulty for centuries. From the days of the Babylonian captivity, they had been under the domination of a number of nations. For a couple hundred years, they had experienced the cruelty of Roman rule. The nation was looking for and expecting the promised Messiah. They knew that the Messiah would bring comfort through deliverance to the covenant people.
The Holy Spirit came on Simeon, and He revealed to him that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. “He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God” (Luke 2:27-28). Simeon knew he could now die in peace because his eyes had seen God’s salvation. He prophesied saying, “You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light of revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel” (Luke 2:30-32).
Under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, Simeon blessed Joseph and Mary. He spoke to Mary, “Behold this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed—and a sword will pierce even your own soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed” (Luke 2:34-35).
The fall of many speaks of those whose hearts were evil. In His earthly ministry, Jesus revealed the evil hearts of many of Israel’s religious leaders. In Matthew 23, Jesus condemned these evil men and pronounced eight woes upon them. In the Book of Revelation, Jesus, in symbolic language, speaks of these religious leaders as “the false prophet” (Revelation 19:20). The rise of many, speaks of the new creation man that Jesus is bringing forth, first in Israel and then among the Gentiles. It is those who were dead in their trespasses and sins, but are now raised from the dead and made alive in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit.
What a powerful word Simeon gave to Mary! Jesus was opposed, but overcame all His enemies through death on the cross. Indeed, Mary was pierced in her soul as she watched her Son die on the cross for the sins of the world. Overwhelming joy must have filled her heart when she beheld Him after the resurrection.
Father, I thank You for the consolation of Israel. I thank You for the rise of all those who have put their trust in Christ. I pray for the salvation of many during this Christmas season as they hear of the Savior’s birth and learn of His death on the cross for their sins and the gift of eternal life.
by George Runyan | Dec 16, 2016 | Devotional, George Runyan
Luke 2:7 – She gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in clothes, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
Luke records the greatest event in all human history. Mary, a virgin, gave birth to the Son of God. Of all things, He was laid in a manger because there was no room in the inn.
Isaiah the prophet, 700 years earlier, prophesied Jesus’ birth. “Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; make it deep as Sheol or high as heaven . . . The Lord Himself will give you a sign: behold a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:11, 14). The Old Testament prophet Micah pinpointed the place of Immanuel’s birth. “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity” (Micah 5:2).
The creator of the worlds was laid in a manger because there was no room for Him. To think about the events of the first Christmas defies all the rational thinking of man. Christ, who created all things, came as a baby and lay in a manger. “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:15-18).
From the fall of man in the garden, there has not been room for the living God. He has had to break into human history. He has had to reveal Himself through signs and wonders. He chose to hide Himself in human flesh and reveal His love through humility and brokenness. Only by His Holy Spirit can one see who He is and embrace His love.
At this particular season of the year, it is good to ask ourselves, “Will I make room for the risen Christ in every area of my life”? He not only wants to be in the inn of your heart, but He wants ownership because He bought your spirit, soul, and body with His precious blood spilt thirty-three years after His birth. You cannot truly celebrate Christmas without celebrating His resurrection from the dead and His habitation among humans through His Holy Spirit. The complete story is that He is coming again in bodily form for “We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure” (1 John 3:2-3).
Father, I thank You for the babe in the manger, Jesus Christ the Lord. I thank You for His willingness to be rejected of men. I thank You for Your love that has drawn me to the Savior and enabled me to partake of His sufferings. I thank You for Your precious Holy Spirit and for the promise of Christ’s return and our gathering unto Him.
by George Runyan | Dec 15, 2016 | Devotional, George Runyan
Luke 1:76 – You, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways.
John the Baptist was the greatest of all the Old Testament prophets. Jesus testified of John saying, “This is the one about whom it is written, Behold I send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way before You” (Luke 7:27). Today, we hear the term “forerunner.” John was the “true forerunner.” In John was a powerful anointing of the Holy Spirit and when he spoke, great conviction came upon the people. Many responded to his call to be baptized. His ministry of baptism was a preparatory response to the coming Messiah. Some thought that John was the Messiah, but he was only preparing the “way” for the Lord.
One reason for the confusion about John’s prophetic ministry was that Moses had spoken of a prophet like himself. “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, and you shall listen to him” (Deuteronomy 18:15-16). Some were questioning whether John was “that prophet” of which Moses spoke. John was chosen by God to point out the “true prophet,” the Lord Jesus Christ.
It is interesting to note in Zacharias’ prophetic word, that he speaks of the Lord’s ways. Jesus fulfilled the purpose of God in many different respects. One of which is that He is the true Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, and Teacher. All those ministries come from the Lord Jesus Christ. In the New Testament, it is Christ who is the true prophet. If one is called to the office of “Prophet,” Jesus takes of His prophetic anointing and places a portion on the one He has called. Jesus’ ways are altogether righteous. He makes the one who believes on Him, altogether righteous. Jesus is our High Priest who is ever-living to intercede on our behalf. When a believer enters into the ministry of intercession, the anointing of Jesus for intercession comes upon that one.
John the Baptist was the first forerunner in the New Testament. He prepared the way for our Lord’s entrance into ministry. Jesus speaks of the “least” in the kingdom of God as being greater than John. “Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he” (Matthew 11:11-12). Each believer is a forerunner as they live a kingdom lifestyle before a Christ-rejecting world. Some are called, like John, to live lives that are separated from the world in a profound way. Some give up the comforts of the culture they have known and go to live among people from a completely different culture to bear witness of Christ and His love.
The Holy Spirit has come to show us the “ways” of the Lord. He leads individuals into various experiences and expressions of Christ’s life and love. The Spirit of God is the One who prepares us for the life He has chosen to reveal in us. He gives gifts to enable us to more accurately represent the Lord Jesus and His love for people. Accept the call of God to be His representative in your sphere of influence. John fulfilled his call to present Christ to Israel. I choose to accept the call of God in my life to reveal Christ and His love to those around me.
Father, I ask for the Holy Spirit to anoint me to be a forerunner. Let my life represent Christ in such a way that Your ways are manifested through me. I pray for the love and compassion of Christ to be evidenced in my daily walk before others, that they might be drawn to the Savior.
by George Runyan | Dec 14, 2016 | Devotional, George Runyan
Luke 1:72 – To show mercy toward our fathers, and to remember His holy covenant, the oath which He swore to Abraham our father, to grant us that we be rescued from the hand of our enemies.
Today, we continue looking at the prophecy of Zacharias. God is the God of “mercy” and the God who makes a “covenant” with His people. He never fails in mercy and He never breaks His covenant. What He promised Abraham hundreds of years before, now is coming to pass. Zacharias was His instrument to declare the time had come. Zacharias’ son, John was God’s chosen servant to introduce the One who would establish mercy and a New Covenant sealed in Christ’s blood.
Beloved, God never forgets what He promises. Zacharias spoke of God “showing mercy toward our fathers.” Although the fathers of Israel failed again and again, the holy one of Israel did not. So Zacharias looked back saying “our fathers.” This new thing God was about to accomplish was not only for the present generation and those to come, but also for those who had gone before. The record is clear concerning this. “The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they appeared to many” (Matthew 27:52-53). Again we note what Paul wrote, “When He ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, and He gave gifts to men” (Ephesians 4:8). Paul referred to the fact that Christ first descended into what the Jews called “paradise,” where the righteous dead were waiting His appearing and the hope of resurrection. He led them to heaven with Him. Some gave testimony before ascending to the Throne of God.
God’s mercy, which has been given to us through the New Covenant in the blood of Christ, is the means by which we are rescued from our enemies. These include the spiritual enemies of Satan’s kingdom and the enemies of the gospel in human form, who have rejected God’s means of salvation and persecute God’s redeemed people. Many times, we are privileged to see victories in the now through salvations, through deliverance from evil spirits, through healing of sick bodies, and the overcoming of circumstances. There are yet greater victories to be experienced when Christ returns with His saints and those who remain are caught up with Him in the air forever to be with the Lord. Together with Christ, judgment will be poured out on all those who have rejected His offer of salvation and mercy.
Now is the acceptable time to receive salvation and mercy. God is pouring out His Spirit around the world. The individuals who will trust Christ and receive God’s gift of salvation will also receive God’s mercy, both now and in the future. This includes the nations. The nation of Israel rejected the mercy of God provided through Christ and experienced God’s judgment at the end of the first century. Today, God’s mercy is being offered to Jew and Gentile, and many are receiving the Gospel. We trust for many more to receive God’s mercy and grace in our generation. We look forward to the day of the Lord’s return when those who have trusted Christ will experience the fullness of God’s blessings in His Son.
Father, as I celebrate the birth of Christ with family and friends, I give You praise for Your great mercy and faithful covenant. I pray for my family and friends, who yet need to know You by receiving Your offer of salvation. I pray that this season will provide opportunity for them to consider Your offer of mercy and grace.
