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Search TAG: James Roosma

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Daily devotional

April 30 – With the Lord forever

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.” - Psalm 23:6 Scripture ...
Daily devotional

April 29 – The pursuing faithful love of the Lord
Daily devotional

April 28 – Overflowing blessings

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.” - Psalm 23:5 Scripture reading: P...
Daily devotional

April 27 – Anointed by Christ

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.” – Psalm 23:5 Scripture reading:...
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Daily devotional

April 26 – Our victorious servant King

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.” – Psalm 23:5 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:5 At this point in the psalm, the imagery changes from Christ being our Good Shepherd, to Christ being our Victorious Servant King. In the first line of this verse, the imagery is quite foreign to our 21st-century minds. In ancient times, when a king conquered an enemy city, he would have a huge victory feast in the royal banquet hall of that city. The king and all his generals and men of valour would sit around the table and eat the spoils of their victory, all in full view of the enemy king or governor and all their children, wives and officials. The conquered enemy would have to watch while the victor feasted. David here is saying that Christ has won the victory and set up a table for Himself to feast at, in full view of His enemies. Christ certainly has won for us a great victory by dying on the cross and rising again so that we sit in victory over sin, death, the world, and the devil. We are reminded of that great victory when we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, where we are invited to the table of Christ and get to partake of the spoils of His victory. We partake of Him and are refreshed and enlivened after the struggles of fighting the enemy. How often do you meditate upon the victory that Christ has earned for you?  How often do you go to Christ, the Servant King, to be fed and nourished with the spoils of His heroic victory? Suggestions for prayer Pray for the Lord to refresh and nourish you with Christ and with all that He has obtained for you by His heroic victory on the cross and the open grave. Pray this for yourself and for all of God’s people. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 25 – Christ’s staff

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” – Psalm 23:4 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:4 The second instrument of comfort that David names is the staff. This is what we normally picture when we think of a shepherd holding a staff, that long stick with a big hook on the end of it. The shepherd’s staff was used to keep the sheep from running away or going astray. If the shepherd saw a sheep starting to wander or run away from the flock, he could reach out with his staff and hook the sheep around the neck and bring it back, close to himself. This too is a great comfort to us, for it describes the type of love our Savior has for us. He will always come after us and bring us back to Himself, keeping us safe as He leads us to our final destination. It is a comfort for us even as we are walking close to Jesus for we are reminded that even if we were to go astray Christ would go after us and draw us back. It is a comfort for us even when we go astray and we feel the crook of his staff gently or even painfully pulling us back. You don’t have to walk with Christ very long to know the feeling of his staff around your neck. Whether it is a gentle tug or a strong and prolonged pull as we try to run away, it is comforting to know Christ will always keep us. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would comfort you with His guiding presence and that Christ would always keep you near Him. Pray that Christ would continue to comfort all of His people, drawing them all closer to Himself. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 24 – Christ’s rod

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” – Psalm 23:4 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:4 In the last part of this verse, we are told that Jesus comforts us and is present with us, armed with His rod and staff. The rod and the staff were the two instruments of a shepherd. Today we will focus on the rod of Christ. The rod was a long, straight shaft, usually made out of wood, that the shepherd would use to defend the sheep from robbers and wild animals. When David describes Christ as being with Him even in the deepest and darkest valleys, and he is comforted by His rod, he is talking about the comfort which comes from knowing that Christ is his defender. Christ is there to protect him from all his enemies, namely the devil, the world and his own sinful heart. People place a high premium on feeling safe and secure. They will pay a lot of money for insurance on a host of things, such as their house, car, phones and even their own life. All of this is done in the hopes of garnering some kind of security (though I am not saying you should not have insurance). During this Covid-19 pandemic, it is amazing to me how silly people are when they are scared and panicked. They will literally grasp at straws to save themselves, whether it is stocking up on toilet paper and bottled water, or wearing their mask in their car. We as Christians never have a reason to fear, for we know that Christ is with us and He will protect us. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would increase your faith to trust in Christ to protect you and that He would remove your trust for security in everything else. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 23 – You are with me

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” - Psalm 23:4 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:4 In ancient times, especially in the land of Canaan, a lot of the best farmland was in the valleys. It was also common that the roads and paths would not often go over the hills, but instead wind around them. However, if a shepherd were to lead his sheep into a deep valley, especially one with steep sides close together, that meant that the sheep were in a very dangerous situation. This is the valley David has in mind here, a deep, dark valley where you cannot see your enemies hiding and waiting to attack. Sheep would be easy prey to robbers and wild animals often hiding in the hills, prepared to attack anything that came by. David, in using this imagery, is explaining something very real to all of us. We all go through times in our lives when we are in danger, when we are scared of what might happen, or where we are even being attacked. We have all experienced going through the deep, dark valley of the shadow of death in one form or another in our lives. However, no matter how terrible the circumstance in which we find ourselves is, we never have to be afraid, for Christ is always with us. Hold fast to that truth dear Christian, even when it feels like you are all alone. Remember this unchanging truth, Christ is with you. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would comfort your heart and the hearts of all of His people with the truth of Christ’s presence with them as their Good Shepherd. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 22 – He leadeth me

“He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” – Psalm 23:3 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:3 Since our Good Shepherd leads us to Himself to refresh us and restore us continually from His Word, by the result of being restored by Christ, He will also lead us in paths of righteousness. Christ will always lead us in righteousness, to do righteousness for the glory of the name of the Father. Following our Good Shepherd on the path of righteousness is for our own good. Our sinful and deceitful hearts would like to believe the lie that sinning will really make us happy and blessed. However, the truly blessed life is lived in communion with God and in obeying Him, for the Lord’s commands are always right, good and true. In the cultural and sexual revolution in which we seem to find ourselves, what has become incredibly obvious to any person with sense, is that the people who are happiest and live the most blessed lives, even from a worldly perspective, are those who even just outwardly follow God’s law. The sheep that stay close to the shepherd always have an easier time of things. The sheep that run off trying to chart their own course and destiny are the sheep that end up in big trouble. For example, a relationship that has taken decades to build can be destroyed in a few minutes. The blessed life, the God-glorifying life, is the life lived following Jesus. Christ our Good Shepherd not only leads us to Himself, but also leads us in righteousness to the glory of God. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would keep you from sin and give you the strength to follow Christ in all of life. Ask the Lord to continually change the desires of His people away from the inclinations of our sinful hearts and to love God and our neighbor. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 21 – Christ restores my soul

“He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.” – Psalm 23:3 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:3 Looking at just the first phrase of this verse, “He restores my soul,” we see what David really had in mind in verse two was not just physical things, though that certainly is included, but the emphasis is on spiritual things. We know we need food and drink. Jesus tells us to pray for that in the Lord’s Prayer. We also know, however, that “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). We need to be spiritually fed and nourished by the Lord as well. Christ as our Good Shepherd, not only provides all we need physically, but also gives us all that we need spiritually. He leads us spiritually to green pastures and still waters. What are those green pastures and still waters?  Where is Christ leading us to restore our souls?  As Jesus said in Matthew 4:4 quoting Deuteronomy 8:3, He is leading us to the Word of the Lord. Christ is leading us to Himself, the Word, as He is revealed to us in the Word of God. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord Jesus would continue to lead you to Himself in His Word that you would be refreshed. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 20 – Christ my daily provider

“He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.” – Psalm 23:2 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:2 Sheep are incredibly helpless and stupid animals. We probably have the image of nice white sheep that just graze in the field. We have these images in our minds because of pictures or movies. But anyone who has had to deal with sheep knows its intelligence level is only slightly above a turkey and quite a bit below a cow. Even goats are far more intelligent, tough and resilient creatures than sheep. Sheep need a shepherd and not just for when they are being attacked by wolves or have fallen into a deep ditch. Sheep need a shepherd even for the basic needs of life, food and water. This was especially true when David was a shepherd, for a shepherd would have to herd his flock long distances to find good pasture lands, wells or oases along the way, in the arid land of Canaan. This is a good reminder for us, that we don’t just need Christ when we are in trouble; we need Him all the time for even our most basic needs. We have a bad tendency to forget Christ when times are good and we feel like we have everything under control. Then when we are in trouble we cry out to Him. Do you realize that apart from Christ you can do nothing (John 15:5) and are nothing?  We need Christ all of the time, not just when we are in trouble. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would humble you to be more dependent upon Christ for all things. Ask for forgiveness for when you have forgotten your dependence upon Christ in the good times and ask for His help to praise and thank Him for His good gifts to you. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 19 – I shall not want

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” – Psalm 23:1 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:1 If Christ is our Good Shepherd it must be concluded that we shall never be in want. However, have we actually given that much thought?  Do we actually live our lives as though we believe that? The tenth commandment is one we probably skip across as we hear it read on Sunday. However, coveting is an incredibly deadly sin. In fact, if we covet, we are breaking every other commandment. If we covet, we do not want to worship God alone; we want to worship something else. We want to worship God with our money, our time, our resources our way, not God’s way. We want something that we think will satisfy us and make our name great, not God’s. We want to find our satisfaction in a person or a thing besides God. We want to be a god unto ourself to get what we want. We are going to hate and not truly love our neighbour, who has what we want. We commit spiritual adultery with what we want. We seek and desire to have what is not rightfully ours. We believe lies that if only we have this thing or this person, we will be fulfilled. Maybe we say, “Well good thing I don’t covet.”  Have you ever sought satisfaction in something or someone other than Christ?  Have you ever thought, “If only I had that, or could do this, then I would be happy?” If you have you are guilty. As Christians, we are to find our all in all in Christ. Suggestions for prayer Ask the Lord for forgiveness for when we have sought satisfaction in other people or things, rather than in Christ alone. Pray that the Lord would give us hearts that are content in all circumstances, being completely and entirely filled with Christ. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 18 – Yahweh is my Shepherd

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” – Psalm 23:1 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:1 Yesterday, we considered the significance of David using the personal name of God, “Yahweh”. We can trust in our God because He is the eternally sovereign One Who is covenantally faithful. This is important now as we come to the fact that Yahweh is our Shepherd. This verse has been consistently and rightly tied to Jesus' statement that He is the Good Shepherd (John 10:11,14). Right at the beginning, David is declaring, and we with him, that Jesus, the covenantally faithful and sovereign God is the One that is our Shepherd. We will get to the various functions of a shepherd and thus our Good Shepherd as we go along. Here it is sufficient to consider that a shepherd is a leader of the sheep. In the days in which we live, we are learning just how important it is to have good leadership because we are surrounded by a lot of horrible leadership. Whether that is leadership in the government, sports teams, artistic productions and in churches, it seems that so many are either too power-hungry to care and love at all, or they are so passive and insecure that they refuse to stand for the truth. Having good leadership that is both loving and truthful is incredibly important. Let us thank God that Christ is the Head of His church and that He does lead us perfectly in truth and in love by His Word, in the power of the Holy Spirit, throughout all of life. Suggestions for prayer Give thanks to our Heavenly Father for giving us our Lord Jesus to be our Good Shepherd, leading us in truth and love. Pray that the earthly leaders Christ has given us in the church, government and various societal functions we attend would be godly. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 17 – Our covenantally faithful God

“The LORD is my Shepherd; I shall not want.” – Psalm 23:1 Scripture reading: Psalm 23:1 Psalm 23, placed between Psalms 22 and 24, is a wonderful reminder to us that as we dwell between the first and second comings of Christ, we are not forgotten. The Lord has not left us in this time to figure life out on our own or to live by our own strength. No! Rather, Christ is with us continually in this life as our Good Shepherd. Before we get to the LORD being our Shepherd, let us call to mind the significance of the fact that it is the LORD Who is our Shepherd. Whenever the Old Testament uses “LORD” for God’s name, the translators are attempting to differentiate between the name “Adonai”, which is translated as “Lord”, and “Yahweh”, which is translated as “LORD”. God never chooses a single word in the Scriptures carelessly. Every word is there for an important purpose. The fact that David, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, chose to use the name “Yahweh” instead of “Adonai”, is significant. The name Yahweh is the personal name of God that not only communicates His sovereignty over all creation, but also His covenantal faithfulness to His people. Have you ever struggled to trust the Lord? My guess is that you have because we all have. In those moments of doubt, we must tether ourselves to this blessed truth, that our God is perfectly faithful to all of His covenant promises. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would cause us to trust Him more. Pray for yourself and for all of God’s people, that when we are filled with doubt, now or at some future time, the Holy Spirit will flood our minds with the gospel promises and strengthen our hearts to believe them. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 16 – The King of Glory shall come in

“Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah” - Psalm 24:9-10 Scripture reading: Psalm 24:8-10 We have many enemies from whom we need to be saved. I mentioned a few yesterday. We have many enemies summarized with the trifecta of Satan, the world and our own sinful flesh. We need Christ to be our Conquering Hero and Mighty Warrior Who will deliver us from all our enemies and all our problems. Think for a minute of all the things from which we need to be saved. We need our image remade, we need to be made alive again, we need a new heart with new desires, we need a new will, we need to be delivered from the curse of sin and given Divine blessing, we need our old nature put to death and replaced with a new one, we need sin taken away from us and righteousness attributed to us. We need to be delivered from the tyranny of Satan and to be issued out of the kingdom of darkness and made citizens of the kingdom of God. Certainly, there are things that we could add to that list; it is by no means exhaustive. We need a Hero who can save us from all of that and more. That is what we have in Christ. He is our Mighty Warrior King Who has won for us the great and decisive victory at the cross. This Psalm celebrates the arrival of the King after His great victory, the King of glory, Who is Himself our Mighty Warrior and the commander of the angelic armies to conquer all our enemies and defend us from them. Suggestions for prayer Give thanks and praise to the Father for sending His Son, our Lord Jesus, to be our Conquering King, Who heroically saved us from all our enemies. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 15 – Christ our mighty warrior

“Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, The LORD mighty in battle.” - Psalm 24:8 Scripture reading: Psalm 24:8 In the previous verse, those who are with the coming King, are calling out to the gatekeepers to open the gates so that the King of glory shall come in. In this verse, we have the response of the gatekeepers, “Who is this King of glory?”  The answer that comes is beautiful and comforting. We read that the LORD is strong and mighty and specifically mighty in battle. This may sound a bit strange; maybe we don’t think of Jesus as being a mighty warrior. Yet, this is exactly how He is described here. This, of course, is what He was prophesied to be all the way back in Genesis 3:15. He would be the One Who would crush the head of the serpent. Christ is also described as such in Psalm 2, where it is said that He will break the nations that have risen up against Him like pottery smashed with a rod of iron. In Revelation, we have visions recorded for us, of Jesus having a two-edged sword coming out of His mouth and of Him riding upon a white war horse (Revelation 1:16; 19:11). This is not the Jesus that is proclaimed in many churches or certainly by many in our culture. Jesus is seen more like a kitten than like Aslan in the Chronicles of Narnia. Yet, this is the Jesus Who we need, the Jesus who will defeat all of our enemies and give us a great victory. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord Jesus would destroy all the works of the devil and that He would continue to plunder his house, saving many unto eternal life. Praise our Lord Jesus Christ for all that He has saved us from by dying on the cross. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 14 – The King is coming!

“Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in.” - Psalm 24:7 Scripture reading: Psalm 24:7 We now come to the third part of the Psalm (verses 7-10), where we see this excited and eager climax – excitement for the King to arrive – the King who can ascend the hill of the LORD and bring us with Him. We see this fulfilled at Christmas, in that Christ arrived on the scene of history to lead us to victory. These words are also fitting as we see the Triumphal Entry of Christ, as He entered Jerusalem and went to accomplish that victory. These words also point us to the Ascension of Christ, in that Christ has gone up before us into the very presence of the Father to intercede on our behalf and also to reign over all things. This section also anticipates the second coming of Christ, when He will finally take all of His people with Him to glory and to the new heaven and new earth. What we have in this section is a conversation between the one who announces the King’s coming and the gatekeepers. Think about how wondrous the Triumphal Entry must have been with Jerusalem all abuzz with Jesus’ entry. How wondrous it must have been to be a disciple of Jesus walking behind Him, as He rode into the city, singing His praises. How much more glorious will it be when Christ takes us with Him after His second coming?  How eager and excited are you for that day?  We cannot even fathom the joy that will fill our hearts in those moments. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would fill you with eager anticipation of Christ’s second coming. Pray that the Lord Jesus would come quickly and finally deliver us and all His people from all sin and this sinful world. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 13 – Seeking the Face of Christ

“This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face. Selah” - Psalm 24:6 Scripture reading: Psalm 24:6 In verse six there is an important point that is made which leads to a very important question that we must ask ourselves. We are told in the first line of verse six, that Jacob or the church, referring back to verse five, is blessed and receives the righteous salvation of the Lord. Continuing on in that line, we are told that those “who ascend into the hill of the LORD'' are those who seek the Lord (Psalm 24:3). Then again in the second line, we find a repetition, “Who seek Your face.” You find throughout the Scriptures and throughout the writings of the saints of church history, that all had an intense desire to see God. Moses asked for such a privilege in Exodus 33. It is the one desire of David as recorded in Psalm 27:4.  We are told in the New Testament, that in the face of Jesus Christ, all the fullness of the glory of God dwells (2 Corinthians 4:6, Colossians 1:15-20). The question then comes to us, do we want to earnestly see Christ now with our eyes of faith, and physically in the life to come?  Is that the greatest desire of our hearts?  Or are there idols that we would rather see? Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would smash all the idols of your heart and that He would be the one desire of your heart. Pray for forgiveness for all the times that you sought your idols rather than seeking the Lord and finding satisfaction in Him alone. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 12 – The righteous acts of God

“He shall receive blessing from the LORD, And righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face. Selah” - Psalm 24:5 Scripture reading: Psalm 24:5-6 In these two verses, we are told that those who place their faith in King Jesus, will be blessed and shall receive from the Lord righteousness. The second line of verse five is not a reference to the imputation of righteousness which one receives from Christ by believing upon Him, but rather refers to the righteous acts of the Lord in keeping His promises of salvation to the believer. Could we, who believe upon the Lord Jesus, as we have been brought near to the throne of grace and dwell in the presence of God, declare anything different?  Truly we, the people of God, are blessed in every way as we think upon the salvation that has been given to us in Christ. “This is Jacob” or we might say, “This is we who seek the Lord.”  We are blessed. For we who have no right to ascend into the presence of God, have been ushered in by Christ. We who only deserve God’s righteous wrath for all eternity, have instead received His righteous grace. This section ends with a “selah,” which means stop and reflect upon what was just said. Upon such a glorious truth, we must stop and reflect! Suggestions for prayer Pray that the grace of Christ would be highly valued by you and the church. Thank the Lord for the blessing and salvation that He has freely given to you by His grace. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 11 – Who may ascend?

“Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully.” - Psalm 24:3,4 Scripture reading: Psalm 24:3-4 These two verses show us our deep need for Christ. As we considered yesterday, God is holy. Here we are presented with the question, “Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD?”  The answer is given in verse four, “He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully.”  In other words, He who is perfect may come into the presence of the LORD. That means none of us, left to ourselves, can come into the presence of God, for we have all sinned (Romans 3:10-18). But praise be to God, for He sent Christ as our only High Priest, who can ascend into the hill of the LORD and stand in His presence. It is the sure hope of all of us who put our faith in Christ alone, that we are justified in the sight of God. Our sin is taken away, for Christ did away with it on the cross and His righteousness is imputed to us. It is in this way, and only in this way, that we may ascend into the presence of the Lord. All other attempts or ways are like the Tower of Babel, which have no chance of working, and will only end in ruins. There is no room for pride; we must in humble faith come to Christ, for He is our only hope of ascending into the presence of God. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would strengthen your faith, so that you trust in Christ alone for your salvation, and remove your trust in yourself, or anything or anyone else. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 10 – The Lord is holy

“The earth is the LORD’S, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.” - Psalm 24:1 Scripture reading: Psalm 24:1-2 Psalm 24 is a Psalm that puts words to the joy and praise that we should have at the coming of the Messiah. It is a Psalm that can rightly be attributed to Christmas, the Triumphal Entry, the Ascension and the Second Coming of Christ. Lord willing, we will see this in the coming days. Verses one and two ground us in a never-changing truth which sets us up for the rest of the Psalm. If we were to summarize these two verses, we would say that the LORD is the King over all things. These verses show us the immensity of our God and just how awesome, majestic, holy and powerful He is. He is the Creator and Ruler over all things from the foundations of the earth to the birds of the sky. This leads us to the question, how do you view God?  When you talk to God in prayer, how do you speak to Him? Casually? Respectfully?  When you hear the Word of God, how do you hear it?  Do you listen intently and with awe?  Or do you listen to Him just like you do to everyone else?  These two verses are reminding us just how holy our God is. Yes, we are adopted into the family of God by Christ, but that does not mean that we should treat Him any less than holy. If anything it should mean that we see Him as more holy. Suggestions for prayer Pray for forgiveness for the times you have not respected the Lord as you should. Pray that God would show you His holiness and that you would have more respect, reverence and awe for Him. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 9 – It is finished

“They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, that He has done this.” - Psalm 22:31 Scripture reading: Psalm 22:30-31 As we close out this Psalm, I want us to reflect on the joy that is so clearly seen in the second half. It started with the greatest of grief, suffering and agony as it prophesied the death of our Saviour. Yet, the second half of this Psalm is filled with praise. Why?  The Lord has answered. He answered Christ on the cross by raising Him on the third day, and thus, every cry for forgiveness we utter is answered. For as Christ died and rose again, so we are dead to sin and alive in Him (Romans 6:4). Think upon those last words of the Psalm, “That He (Christ) has done this.”  Those words are very reminiscent of Jesus’ final words upon the cross, “It is finished” (John 19:30). What joy should fill our hearts in knowing that our salvation is accomplished and secure in Christ. The joy-filled praise in the second half of this Psalm is almost palpable. Is this the joy that you have?  When you talk with others, and especially when you are sharing the truth of the gospel with others, would they sense real joy in your voice?  It is one thing to convey the truth of the gospel to others, it is another thing entirely to tell the gospel with joy-filled praise. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would fill you with the joy that can only be found in Christ and in the salvation He provides. Pray that the Lord would help you to communicate the gospel to others with true joy that leads them to glorify God. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 8 – Proclamation to the next generation

“A posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation.” - Psalm 22:30 Scripture reading: Psalm 22:30-31 As we reflect upon the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ in this Psalm, we see that it comes to an ending with a strong emphasis on telling the next generation of the salvation of the Lord. This is maybe not how we would expect this Psalm to end. However, as is all of God’s Word, it is certainly perfect, isn’t it? As a helpful test to see how important the salvation of Christ is to you, ask yourself how much you desire to teach the next generation about Christ. There are churches that have a hard time finding enough people to teach Catechism and parents who leave the teaching of the Scriptures to the church and/or school. If the gospel of Christ is important to you, then you will declare it and recount it to your children, your grandchildren, and the children of the church. If you are not diligent in prayer and proclaiming the gospel to the next generation, it must conclude that the gospel of Christ is not very important to you and not something over which you really rejoice. You do not have to do big things, you don’t even have to be a Catechism teacher. But you should, in daily life, strongly desire to share the gospel that means so much to you. Suggestions for prayer Pray for a heart that deeply values the gospel of Jesus and loves all people, a heart that wants to share it with everyone, including the next generation. Pray that the children in your family, church and community would come to a saving faith in Jesus. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 7 – Christ’s saving reign

“All the ends of the world Shall remember and turn to the LORD, And all the families of the nations shall worship before You.” - Psalm 22:27 Scripture reading: Psalm 22:27-29 As we approach the end of this Psalm, we see what a glorious ending it is. How glorious it is to reflect on the realities of the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ. We read in verse 27 that God will gather to Himself, in Christ, a people from every tribe, tongue and nation (Revelation  5:9). Not only this, but Christ, in being raised, has overcome the entire world (John 16:33). As we see in verse 28, the LORD’s reign is over all the nations. Everyone is under His dominion, however not all will be saved. Yet, the saving reign of Christ extends not only to all the ends of the earth, but also to the rich, the poor and the dying. When we consider the death and resurrection of Christ, we should be in awe and wonder at not only the sufficiency and effectiveness of Christ to save, but also the extent to which Christ’s salvation is spread. It is not limited to one family or one group of people, but as was promised to Abraham, “And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). Suggestions for prayer Pray that God would continue to spread the gospel to the ends of the earth and that He would be pleased to use us for that end. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

Daily devotional

April 6 – Never forgotten

“For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from Him; But when He cried to Him, He heard.” – Psalm 22:24 Scripture reading: Psalm 22:22-26 Left to ourselves, we are poor. We are spiritually bankrupt. “We all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). This is our most dire problem. However, to add insult to injury, we also suffer great pain as we go through this life as the result of sin. Whether that is the loss of a loved one, broken relationships, physical poverty, or the stresses of the unknown future, we all suffer the effects of this broken world. I hope we see the enormity of the problems that we face. We are completely broken and impoverished as we live in a world that is suffering under the weight of the curse. Yet, as verse 26 says, we are never without a sure and secure hope, for because Christ is risen, we who are poor in our sins are fed and satisfied. Even though we suffer in this life with the effects of sin and the curse, we are never forgotten nor left alone. God will always hear us, answer us and deliver us as verse 24 says. Whatever our affliction, no matter how poor we are in any way, we have reason to rejoice for Christ died and is risen! Praise the Lord for His complete deliverance which He gives to us. The last phrase in verse 26 is often translated as a wish. “Let (or may) your heart live forever!”  However, it is to be translated with much more surety than that. This is your sure hope, “Your heart shall live forever.” Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would continue to open your eyes to the brokenness in your own sinful heart, as well as the brokenness in the world. Pray that He would open your eyes to the wonderful, powerful and eternal salvation provided in Christ. Rev. James Roosma has been serving at Grace Reformed Church in Kelowna, BC for six years. He and his wife Jeni have been blessed with two children, Elijah and Tabitha, and have one on the way. This daily devotional is also available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional....

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