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\ / WHAT JESUS DID! --
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Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Honor God!
A man was there from the Jewish town of Arimathea. His name
was Joseph. He was a good man, who lived the way God wanted.
He was waiting for God's kingdom to come. Joseph was a member
of the Jewish council. But he did not agree when the other
Jewish leaders decided to kill Jesus. Joseph went to Pilate
to ask for the body of Jesus. {Pilate let Joseph have the
body.} So Joseph took the body down from the cross and
wrapped it in cloth. Then he put Jesus' body in a tomb
(grave) that was dug in a wall of rock. This tomb had never
been used before. This was late on Preparation day. When the
sun went down, the Sabbath day would begin. The women that
had come from Galilee with Jesus followed Joseph. They saw
the tomb. Inside they saw where the body of Jesus was put.
Then the women left to prepare some sweet-smelling spices {to
put on Jesus' body}. On the Sabbath day they rested. The law
of Moses commanded all people to do this.
-- Luke 23:50-56 (ERV)
KEY THOUGHT:
What do you do when all seems lost and life makes no sense? Joseph and
the women are our example to follow in the worst moments of horror in
our lives. They do the decent, kind, and generous thing -- they honor
Jesus in his death with a decent and honorable burial even though it
involved personal cost and great danger. Second, they honored the will
of God as they knew it from Scripture even though all seemed lost --
they honored the Sabbath as required by the Law. We will all face times
of desperation and trial. Let's remember the examples of Joseph and the
women. Often these actions, infused with the help of God's Spirit, are
what we most need to get us through the time of horror and to prepare
us for the joy that is on the horizon.
TODAY'S PRAYER:
Holy and tender Father, please give me the courage to not give up my
faith in the difficult times I will face in my life. Give me the faith
to live with honor and decency even though no one else seems to value
these qualities. In addition, dear Father, help me have the discipline
and the will to honor you in simple obedience. In Jesus' name I pray.
Amen.
>> NEW: Phil's What Jesus Did devotional is now
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>> The WJD! web page has related scriptures and the
>> full text of today's key passage. Read it at:
http://www.heartlight.org/wjd/luke/1225-wjd.html
>> For further study of today's passage, use our
>> online Bible study site: SearchGodsWord.org!
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Luke+23:50-56&sr=1&t=erv
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THE SECRET MESSAGE OF JESUS: UNCOVERING THE TRUTH THAT COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING, by Brian McLaren
Unafraid of controversy or the uncomfortable gray areas of life,
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