Zechariah 7:9-10
The one thing that we
must exercise as a Christian is love; in demonstrating this one word throughout
our lives we encompass the desires of God for us and through us… The bible
declares in 1 John 4 that God is love… We bring this passage into today’s devotional
to make clear the command that God has for His people… When we walk in love, we
are living as God has called us to live and therefore we are children of God by
exercising His very being… Love keeps us from oppressing the widow and the
fatherless; love opens up our door to a stranger and feeds the poor… This is
why Jesus said the greatest commandment
is that we love one another… The love you have for Christ is not a love that you speak, it is
not declared by mere words but actions; notice that it is the Lord who spoke to
Zechariah and has given him this message for the people… If you want to please
the Lord, don’t speak of His goodness; demonstrate His goodness to others… The
enemy has a lot of us actually believing that we can have a relationship with
God without walking in His will and divine plan for our lives… So many of us
walk this earth holding on to things which really are just tearing us down and
separating us from God’s plan which is how the enemy prevails in your life… You
go to church and don’t even leave differently than you came because you are
busy holding on to a pass scar or wound… There are so many of us who have gone
unhealed because we haven’t forgiven our brother or sister… This lack of forgiveness
builds a wall between you and your maturation in Christ which is why Zechariah
says let none of you imagine evil against his
brother in your heart… This is the only
reasoning that can be fathomed to how someone can say that they love God and
allow animosity and resentment to build up within toward their fellow man…
You’re heart is vital to your being not only physically but also spiritually…
Proverbs 4:23 tells us“Above all else, guard your heart, for it is
the wellspring of life.” You have to guard your heart and this is
accomplished by ensuring that you align yourself with the will of God… The Lord
commands us through the writings of Zechariah that we are to execute true
judgment and show mercy and compassion to every man… Whether we realize it or
not, every person that we encounter is a (n) opportunity that is presented
before us to demonstrate our devotion to the Lord… Executing true judgment
means that we are to be fair and just no matter what the situation is or who it
involves… So often we try to “pay people back” for the wrong
they have done to us and we are reminded in today’s scripture that a true child
of God can look beyond faults and still showcase God’s love and
provisions… When you are able to love those who don’t love you back, when
you are able to forgive those who have wronged you, when you are able to serve
in the humblest of capacities than you are executing true judgment and showing
mercy and compassion… Jesus was the greatest demonstration of executing
mercy and compassion when He died on the cross, the true judgment came also
when He laid down His life for us and gave us another chance to get back on
track… Often times we equate
judgment with evil intentions or a negative idea; however, true judgment paves
the way to accountability and exaltation… We are accountable for our actions on this earth, but by the
judgment of Christ we have been given a (n) avenue to turn back to the Lord and
follow Him…To know that we were made in God’s image teaches us that we were
made to be royalty and in good standing with the Lord… His desire is that we
come back to Him and His judgment is that we are given a chance to learn from
our mistakes and overcome our bad choices… We were made in perfection, yet we
became imperfect; we lost sight of God but He never lost sight of us. Our fate
had been sealed, but Christ overruled the verdict and came down from heaven to
shine light into a dark and confused world. Many times people talk about the
miracles He performed and how much He sacrificed, but His ultimate goal was to
show us how to live. He didn’t come to show
us how to turn water into wine, He didn't come to show us how to give
sight to the blind, no; He came to show us how to love and be obedient to His
father’s word. Think about all He
endured from His own people (only in his own town is a prophet without honor),
think about how much He went through for a love He had for us that we never
gave back. He never turned His back on us, He never left us alone, and He never
refused to look in on us. This passage reminds us that we are to love
unconditionally just as Christ does and did... This passage reminds us that we
are to show mercy just as Christ has and is... The bible tells us to love your
enemy and pray for those who despite-fully use you. You want to know
a true child of God, see how they act around mixed company, examine the mercy
they bestow and the compassion that they have on the weak, abused and confused
of our societies! Christ died not because He had to, but because He chose too… The choice is yours and it’s shown by how you
execute judgment, show mercy and display compassion…
BE BLESSED!!!
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