Reading for today
Old Testament: Genesis 4, 5, 6
New Testament: Matthew 2
Thoughts from today’s reading
Genesis 4:12-14. Cain lamented his judgement that said the face of the ground would not be favourable to him, but he was also concerned that the face of God would also not be favourable to him. In other words, Heaven and earth would show him no favour. Cain is stuck between both realms and this makes him a wanderer in the earth.
Thanks be to God that Jesus hung between Heaven and earth on the cross to deliver man from the wandering place. He has revealed to us the face of God and we can find favour from the face of the earth through Christ.
Matthew 2:7-8. King Herod was determined to kill the child Jesus who the wise men said would be the next great King. So, why didn’t he go with them to see where the child was? Or why didn’t he send his guards?
God in His wisdom knew that Herod would not do that, for in doing so he would have been validating the claims of the wise men and declaring to all Israel that a new King is born.
This pride of men delayed Herod from taking action and it gave Joseph the chance to escape with Jesus from the hands of The king.
Prayers
1. Let us give God thanks for his indescribable gift of mercy through Jesus Christ which has redeemed us from being hopeless wanderers.
2. Pray that the protocol of men would work in your favour to buy you time or provide a way of escape from trouble when you need it. All things will work together for your good through the wisdom of God.
Matthew 2:13-14, shows the importance of hearing God’s voice and obeying it as this could either preserve destiny or destroy it.
As parents, we pray for grace to walk in obedience and truthfulness with God, so we can understand each time and season in our lives and be great custodians of the children he has given us, in Jesus name, Amen.
It’s interesting that Cain had access to God, just as Abel and his parents did. Genesis 4:14 he said to God I will be hidden from your face. Even though he was constantly in God’s presence, he did not allow himself to be transformed by God to be able to overcome sin and live righteously. We need to ensure we are actually allowing God’s word transform us by making godly choices every that empowers us to live after the Spirit and not after the flesh
Genesis 6
Noah walked closely with God. He placed his faith in God and that made him righteous.
He was so sensitive to God’s speaking that God was able to give him detailed instructions and description of the ark and detailed instruction of who was meant to go in it etc let us draw closer to the Holy Spirit through fellowship in the word and in prayer that we are able to receive distinct detailed clear instructions and guidance from Him at all times