Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion

Mark 9:42
[Jesus said:] “If you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone hung around your neck.”
In saying this, Jesus may have been talking about children, but it’s quite likely that he was talking about new Christians. His concern was to protect the vulnerable, and he had some very challenging things to say. He was fiercely angry at the thought of anyone deliberately tripping someone up in their faith. Whether a person is young, disabled, poor, illiterate or simply new to the faith, it is totally unacceptable for anyone to take advantage of them.
I am delighted that we live in days when safeguarding is such a high priority. A vast amount of energy is expended in churches and charities in order to ensure that good practice is followed. It is hugely expensive in money and time but it is all worth it because everyone matters and we need to have a special care for those who are most vulnerable. That’s Jesus’ way. He is the one who offers good news to everyone, not just the strong and confident.
Jesus then went even further by telling his disciples that if their hand or foot caused them to sin, they should cut it off, and if their eyes were the problem, they should gouge them out (Mark 9:43). I have never heard of a church that practised this, and I don’t believe that was Jesus’ intention. I believe he wanted to impress upon his followers, then and now, that we mustn’t play games with the kingdom of God. Following Jesus is so serious that we need to ensure we do everything we can to obey his commands, and if we need to completely change our lives in order to align them to his will, that’s what we should do.
Question
In what ways do you need to care for the vulnerable in your own community?
Prayer
Loving Lord Jesus, thank you that you invite me to follow you. Help me to do so with my whole heart and never to do anything that might cause someone else to stumble. Amen

Mark 9:37
[Jesus said:] “Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes not only me but also my Father who sent me.”
I often think that the most crucial ministry in any church is in the hands of the welcomers, those wonderful people who stand at the door and welcome people as they arrive. This verse helps us to understand the importance of welcoming. When we welcome people, what we are actually doing is welcoming the Lord himself, and if we are welcoming him, God the Father is also being welcomed.
Jesus used the illustration of a little child for a very clear reason. At the time, children were seen as being of no significance. They had no power and lacked any legal status. The attention that Jesus gave to children was completely out of line with the thinking of his day. When the disciples famously tried to push them away, it was their way of showing respect to their rabbi. They assumed that Jesus wouldn’t want to be bothered by noisy children. How wrong they were. Jesus turned their thinking upside down and said that when they welcomed the people who were considered the lowest and least in their society, they were actually welcoming him.
The test of any church is how well it welcomes the lowest and the least. James identified the problem of churches discriminating between the rich and the poor. He agonisingly described the warm welcome that was given to a rich person and the surly rudeness meted out to a poor person in dirty clothes. The rich person was given an important seat and the poor person was told to “sit over there, or else sit on the floor” (James 2:2-4). James was appalled by this attitude and made it clear that God has no time for discrimination. Everyone needs to be loved and welcomed.
We can all share in the ministry of welcome, but I do encourage you to acknowledge and thank God for those who head up this vital ministry in your church. Remember that they are not just welcoming people but Jesus himself.
Question
What could you do to encourage the ministry of welcome in your church?
Prayer
Lord God, thank you for welcoming me. Help me to welcome everyone but especially the lowest and least. Amen

Mark 9:28-29
Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, “Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?” Jesus replied: “This kind can be cast out only by prayer.”
The transfiguration of Jesus was an incredible experience, but it didn’t last long. Jesus and his disciples needed to go back down the mountain and, sure enough, they were pitch-forked into the middle of a dispute. A man had come to the disciples with his son, who likely suffered from epilepsy. He had asked them to heal the boy, but they had failed miserably. Jesus was in despair and said: “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy to me” (Mark 9:19). He then healed the boy. All of this stirred up questions in the disciples and, later in the day when they were alone with Jesus, they asked him why they had failed. He responded that this kind of evil spirit could only be cast out by prayer.
By this stage, the disciples had spent some time with Jesus and were clearly convinced that they now had the power to heal people. What they had to learn was that they still needed to lean on God through prayer. That’s an important lesson for anyone who gets involved in Christian ministry. You may have the gift of the gab and the ability to speak with great clarity and power, but if your preaching and teaching are not soaked in prayer, they will be powerless. You may have gifts of administration, but if you are not continually praying for the filling of the Holy Spirit, God will never be able to use you in the way that he would want. You may be a naturally caring person, but without prayer, your gifts will never have the effectiveness that God would want.
Prayer is vital for all of us. However gifted we may be and however much experience we may have, without prayer we will be powerless.
Question
In what ways have you found prayer to be important in the work that you have done for God?
Prayer
Lord God, help me never to lean so heavily on my own abilities and experience that I forget to pray. Amen

Mark 9:5-6
Peter exclaimed, “Rabbi, it’s wonderful for us to be here! Let’s make three shelters as memorials – one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” He said this because he didn’t really know what else to say, for they were all terrified.
Peter, James and John had just had the most incredible experience. They had been with Jesus as he was transfigured in front of them. We are told that this happened on a high mountain. This is often thought to be Mount Tabor in southern Galilee, although it may well have taken place on the constantly snowy Mount Hermon not far from Caesarea Philippi, where they had just spent time together. Mount Hermon is the highest peak in the area, rising to nearly 3,000 metres. The disciples saw Jesus’ clothes transformed into dazzling white and he was accompanied by Moses and Elijah. Moses was the great lawgiver and Elijah the first and greatest of the prophets. What an incredible experience it must have been. It’s hardly surprising that the disciples were all terrified!
Peter’s response was so typical of him. Terrified as he was, he didn’t know what to say, but that didn’t stop him from blurting out a response! He said it was great to be there and suggested that they should build three shelters for Jesus, Moses and Elijah. It was a generous idea, but it totally missed the point. The transfiguration was simply a precious holy moment in the ministry of Jesus. It wasn’t something that needed to be preserved or prolonged. In that amazing moment, God spoke out of the cloud, saying: “This is my dearly loved Son. Listen to him” (Mark 9:7). Then, the disciples looked around and Moses and Elijah had gone. They were alone with Jesus once again.
I am sure we can all think of precious moments of worship which we would have loved to prolong. Perhaps we were in a great cathedral, or at a Christian festival. We may have been on holiday in a beautiful place with God seeming incredibly close to us. We were sad when we needed to move on, but that’s precisely what we had to do. It was the same for Jesus and the disciples. They’d had their mountaintop experience and now they needed to return to the cut and thrust of everyday life.
Question
Why is it important that we don’t prolong mountaintop experiences?
Prayer
Loving God, thank you for special moments when you feel incredibly close to me. May they be a constant source of strength and encouragement. Amen

Proverbs 10:19-21
Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut. The words of the godly are like sterling silver; the heart of a fool is worthless. The words of the godly encourage many, but fools are destroyed by their lack of common sense.
I love the straightforward and down-to-earth language of this amazing book. Written nearly 3,000 years ago, the words leap off the page as if they were written yesterday, and the writer forces us to sit up and take note. He offers wise advice on a wide range of life issues, and all of it is intended to help us to keep our eyes fixed on living life to the full by walking in the ways that please God.
God loves it when we use our words carefully. Words can build or they can destroy. They can leave people encouraged or depressed. Opening our mouth is always a huge responsibility, so we need to ensure that our tongue is under control. If we can’t do that, we ought to keep our mouths shut. The writer encourages his readers to see the immense value of speaking in a godly way. When we do, our words can be compared with pure silver and will have the effect of encouraging many. What could be more desirable than that?
It is good to reflect back on our life and recall those people who have spoken godly words to us – words of love, peace and encouragement. I can think of many occasions when just the right words were spoken and I was left feeling stronger and more confident. Such experiences need to give us renewed determination to look hard at the way in which we speak to ensure we are using our words to build in the way that God would want. If not, we know what God asks us to do – shut up!
Question
In what ways have people’s thoughtful and kind words to you helped you to encourage others?
Prayer
Lord, help me to always speak in a way that will build up the people I meet. Amen