John 18: 36 “Jesus answered. ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.’” “……’you say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.’”
Dear God,
The blessings You bestow upon me are abundant, precious and undeserved. I thank You for every gift, for answering my prayers, and for keeping myself and family safe.
I am very grateful for the freedom and peace I have to to be able to read Your precious Word. Today the portion I have read has been about the mockery of a trial that took place for Jesus, Your Son. The treatment meted out was abominable, even if it had been perpetrated upon one of us, but for Your, Son: beyond belief. You and Jesus both knew it was ahead, as well as the cost for Him, and yet went through with it anyway!
He had spent three years in ministry, after having grown up in a humble, poor home, in which His parents loved and obeyed You faithfully.
Later when Jesus took up His ministry, His disciples and those, to whom He ministered and accepted Him, were mainly poor folk. The educated religious leaders hated and wanted to kill Him, and had plotted to do so, for most of His three years of public life. When the timing had come for the trial planned by the priests designed to get the Romans to put Jesus to death; then it took place. They could not honestly find just cause, and instead had to rely on deceit and paying bribes for trumped up evidence, to be able to proceed with the hearing.
Jesus had always known who He was and His purpose. Jesus and You both had planned, that after His death and resurrection He would return to heaven, to be acclaimed as King because of His victory over sin and death. He truly did/does deserve to be called our King. He also knew according to plan and on a date that You alone know, He would on that day come back to get His faithful children. How precious, that because of Jesus all of Your followers are estimated to be worth taking to heaven. We truly owe everything to You, and there is nothing You have not done or given, so that each could be saved out of sin.
Today again I choose You, which also means that I ask that You guide me and run my life. I know as the Holy Spirit leads me to repent and confess my every sin, I in Your strength alone will be able to obey You; and go tell others that the good news of salvation through Jesus is for them also.
Amen