Readiness of the Promise Keeper’s Love (9/24/26)

 James enjoyed his birthday last Saturday, from his birthday presents to the extended family celebration. He helped us prepare by letting us know ahead of time some items he needed and wanted (such as a new lunch container, a new bike helmet, and Christian t-shirts). He also selected the dinner menu and picked out the cakes.

God helps us prepare ahead of time for the great day of the Lord. He gave us His laws to follow and promised to send “Elijah” beforehand.  

Malachi 4:4-6 “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel.

⁵ “See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. ⁶ He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.”

The people of Israel in Malachi’s day had again abandoned God’s laws. They expected blessings as His chosen people but failed to recognize all the ways they had disobeyed His laws (as we’ve seen in previous weeks). In these final verses of Malachi (and of the entire Old Testament), God called His people to remember and follow His commands. He also promised to send the messenger “Elijah” to help them see, understand, and return to the covenant of their ancestors.

This promise of “Elijah” appears to have been partially fulfilled when God sent John the Baptist.

Matthew 11:13-14 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. ¹⁴ And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.

The angel told Zechariah, John the Baptist’s father, that “John…

Luke 1:16-17 …will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. ¹⁷ And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus’s first coming, just as God promised through Malachi. Then, in the future, the two witnesses described in Revelation 11 will prepare the way for Jesus’s second coming.

In His great love, God readies us not only for this life, but for the life to come! How are you taking advantage of His preparations for living life? What about His promises for our future in Heaven? Which of those do you need to remember regularly?

Alice

Thursday Devotional - God is With Us in Labor and the End Times 3/24/22

God helped my sister, Jane, give birth to twins (Michael and Margaret) on Monday night! There were several different days Jane thought she was going into labor, but it wasn’t quite time. However, when it was finally time, it happened quickly and was obvious!

Jesus said it will be similar for His second coming and the end times.

Matthew 24:3-8, 26-27   ³ As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” ⁴ Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵ For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. ⁶ You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁷ Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are the beginning of birth pains…

²⁶ “So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. ²⁷ For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”

We might think it is close, but it won’t be quite time. Then, when Jesus returns and it is time, it will be evident to all!!!

There will be tough times before Jesus returns, but God will be with us through it. We can be certain of that and certain of Jesus’s return!

P.S. – please pray for Michael, as he has been in the NICU. We know God is with him and we’re trusting God will help his body regulate all he needs to function properly.

Alice