DATE POSTED: Wednesday, November 1, 2023, and I was blessed to be at Advent Christian Village, Dowling Park, FL when God inspired me to prepare this devotional. My Footnote will tell you how to find, read or listen to any and all episodes that I have shared over the years.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE FROM THE Living Bible (TLB) IS FOUND IN Luke 20:20-22

THE BIBLE TEXT IS: Watching their opportunity, they sent secret agents pretending to be honest men. They said to Jesus, “Sir, we know what an honest teacher you are. You always tell the truth and don’t budge an inch in the face of what others think, but teach the ways of God. Now tell us—is it right to pay taxes to the Roman government or not?”

APPLICATION OF THE WORD: Wouldn’t it be reassuring if we could hear Jesus tell us that we no longer need to pay government taxes? Wouldn’t it be fun if Jesus would tell us that citizens from all countries can just adopt the same philosophy of that practiced on the autobahn in Germany – with a suggested ‘good safe practice’ speed limit only? However, I wonder what Jesus might respond if we asked Him to help us get our way in each of the above two items on our wish-list. If He gave in to our desires and indicated that we should ignore what our respective government agencies post as laws for us to follow, what might we think about the rest of the commands in His Word? For God teaches in His Word that, as good citizens of heaven, we must first of all learn to be obedient to man’s laws, for He placed these leaders in place to govern us while here on earth under their jurisdiction. Perhaps, too often, Satan will place temptations before us to try and turn our head from the ways of God, just like these hired spies tried to do to Jesus. But friends, the way that the Holy Spirit dealt in my heart on this Scripture as I meditated today, was to allow this response from Jesus to minister and teach me to properly deal with life’s challenges like He did. Think about it, we quickly ‘fly off the handle’ in a rage when things are not going our way, or we are ready to ‘bite back’ to that innocent old man only trying to help us live and act like Jesus, especially when we determine in our minds to do things ‘our way’. Unlike us, in our weak, selfish and mortal ways, Jesus knew what these spies were up to, yet He didn’t call down fire on them, strike them down, or ‘give them a dose of their own medicine’, but He simply helped them draw their own conclusion on what they should do about paying taxes. I’m sure that, like me, you have seen how our responses impact others. That smirk on our face when we respond, shows our apparent adversary that we’re up to something in our response to their question, and it probably ‘ain’t good’. Our snide remarks could easily be interpreted as rude and/or obnoxious. Unfortunately, these are not examples of the character taught and exampled by our Lord. Wouldn’t it be awesome for us to think about that popular saying ‘what would Jesus do’, before we put our mouth in gear and allow the vile thoughts from deep inside of us to spill out and spoil the witness of our relationship with our Lord? So often we worry about how our friends will react after their encounter with us. I believe it would be a thrilling experience to see them stand in awe and marvel at our response, much like the spies did in verse 26 regarding the response from Jesus! What they meant for evil, Jesus gave them reason to leave in awe and wonder. To be like Jesus means that we are looking to imitate Him in all that we do and say, so that He may be lifted up and glorified because of us. Oh if that would be our theme for each day!

PRAYER BECAUSE OF THE IMPACT OF TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: No matter how humble we try to be, it is evident that we just can’t do life like You, Lord. We need You, and we need constant reminders of how precious You are to us. The people we come into contact with today will not benefit from our weakness and our sin. They need You, Lord. Please guide us, protect us, and remind us of Your love for all those we will encounter today. May they be aware of Your presence, Lord, even if they only physically see us. May You be glorified in us, and by them for having been around us, and may we be careful to give You honor and praise for all that is accomplished in our circle of friends and in our encounters today. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There’s another page on my website, entitled ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading or listening to this devotional, please go to this page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin or continue your walk with Jesus. If you would like to read more of my devotionals, or subscribe for a daily email containing each new devotional, please go online to NuggetsFromGodsWord.org. For my podcast, go online to Apple Podcasts or, using the Apple Podcast app, simply search for Nuggets From God’s Word to hear more episodes, or click ‘Follow’ to be notified of Podcast updates. Friends, please allow me to encourage you to find a church home nearby your home and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!