Daily Devotional For Monday, February 10, 2025
Welcome back to Marvelous Monday. For some of you, you have returned to either work, school, or both or you’re retired and taking it easy. We live in a country where the law and justice are supposed to be the rule of the land. Sometimes, it seems evil and injustice triumphs and the righteousness of God gets ignored for selfish and corrupt reasons. Jeremiah 24:7 says, “I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the Lord; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart” (NASB). Wouldn’t it be great if this happened today?
Would you rather live in a nation of bad people with good laws or a nation of good people with bad laws? The answer is simple: Bad people will tear down good laws, but good people will work to repair bad laws. Because the root of our problems is spiritual, our bigger goal should be to change people’s hearts.
None of our opportunities to combat evil have been particularly successful. In order to bring real and lasting change, we need more people with a heart for God, people who want to uphold His principles and see them influence our world. We’re going to need to do more than study and talk about religious doctrines. We’re going to need to live our faith in a way that introduces people to Jesus and, in turn, sparks a passion in them to lead others to Him.
In a recent issue of CT Magazine, Astronomer David Block tells how he learned that the same God who numbered the stars knew and loved him personally:
“I grew up a Jewish boy in a South African gold-mining town known as Krugersdorp. I remember sitting in (synagogue), enthralled as our learned rabbi expounded how God was a personal God—he would speak to Moses, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to many others. Growing up, I often pondered how I fit into all this.
By the time I entered the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, I was deeply concerned that I had no assurance that God was indeed a personal God. I was confident that he was a historical God who had delivered our people from the hands of Pharaoh. But he seemed so far removed from the particulars of my life. Where was the personality and the vibrancy of a God who truly could speak to me?
I became friendly with Professor Lewis Hurst. He had a great interest in astronomy, and we would discuss the complexities of the cosmos for hours at a time. I remember attending a meeting of the Royal Astronomical Society graced by Stephen Hawking. The atmosphere there was intellectually stimulating, but inwardly I could tell that something, or someone, was missing. To be brutally honest, I did not know God.
Back in South Africa, my friendship with Professor Hurst grew, and I started sharing with him my thoughts and feelings about the cosmos. I said, “The universe is so beautiful, both visually and mathematically.” The idea of the universe being designed by a Master Artist continued to resonate with me, but I struggled to find evidence that this artist had any interest in knowing me personally.
I shared further doubts: “Are we,” as Shakespeare said in Macbeth, “just a fleeting shadow that appears and then disappears? What is our reason for living? What is the purpose of life? Is it possible to have a personal encounter with the creator of the cosmos?”
Hurst listened intently. He said, “There is an answer to all the questions you are asking. I am well aware that you come from an Orthodox Jewish family, but would you be willing to meet with a dear friend of mine, the Reverend John Spyker?”
My Jewish parents had taught me to seek answers wherever they might be found, so I consented to meet with this Christian minister. Taking the Bible in his hands, Spyker turned to Romans 9:33 where Paul affirms that Y’shua (Jesus) is a stumbling stone to the Jewish people but that those who freely choose to believe in him will never be asham
By divine grace, suddenly everything became perfectly clear. Y’shua was the stumbling stone—my stumbling stone! Jesus had fulfilled all the messianic prophecies in the Hebrew Scriptures (where the Messiah would be born, how he was to die, and much else besides). While most Jewish people today are still awaiting the Messiah’s coming, I knew I had found him and that all I had to do was respond to his free offer of grace.
Immediately, I asked Spyker to pray for me, which he did. And on that day, at the age of 22, I surrendered my heart and my reason to Christ Jesus. His Spirit spread through every cell of my being.
(Reflecting on my early days), I realize they had been infused by God’s grace. He had been planting spiritual seeds every time I gazed up into the heavens. And I still marvel that a God so majestic and powerful would know my name—and love me as intimately as his own begotten Son” (Source: David Block, “What the Heavens Declared to a Young Astronomer,” CT Magazine (March, 2021), pp. 88-89).
When we do what Professor Lewis Hurt and Reverend John Spyker did , we open the door for people to turn to God with all their hearts and this helps us see true societal change for the glory of God. Astronomer David Block discovered the personal God and the Lord Jesus Christ in Psalm 19:1, “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands” (NASB). What I love about David Block’s story is that this Jewish boy, fulfilled God’s words in Jeremiah 24:7.
Questions To Consider
- In what way has the Lord Jesus Christ been a personal God to you?
- How can you help people have a heart for God so that everyone, our culture, and country, benefit from it?
- Reverend John Spyker was very patient with Astronomer David Block. He did not let fear that Block was Jewish stop him. He simply shared with the Scriptures the void in his heart was due to his unwillingness to see and accept Jesus Christ as the Messiah. Notice, it took 2 people to get David Block there – his professor and the pastor. Both were willing to listen and give their time to him. What lessons does this teach you in helping others with their questions about Jesus Christ?
Scripture To Meditate On: Jeremiah 33:3, “Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know” (NASB).
Prayer To Pray: “Heavenly Father, thank You for those in our former generations who walked with You in such a way that You could abundantly bless them. Today, help us boldly lead with our faith in the public arenas. Forgive us for having been timid, embarrassed, or distracted. Grant us courage and strength for new responses, resulting in new outcomes, so Your abundant blessings might be upon the next generation. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
I love you Southside!--Pastor Kelly