A New Commandment – CAC Living Water Devotional
CHRIST APOSTOLIC CHURCH
THE LIVING WATER (January-December, 2024)
DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE
DATE
Wednesday, October 23, 2024
(Mole Day & International Snow Leopard)
TOPIC:
A NEW COMMANDMENT (I)
MEMORISE
And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment (Mark 12:30).
READ
Mark 12:28-34
[28]. Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, “Which is the first commandment of all?”
[29]. Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.
[30]. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.
[31]. And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
[32]. So the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He.
[33]. And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
[34]. Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” But after that no one dared question Him.
EXPOSITION
Today commemorates Mole Day And International Snow Leopard Day. A foremost truth of life is, Change is inevitable’. God sent the first commandment through Moses, but there arose the need for a revision, which is what Jesus came to do (Heb. 8:6ff). A new commandment is a shift from the usual that may have been deficient, old, bastardised and no more fitting for its original purpose. God gave Moses the 10 commandments at Sinai (Exod. 20:1ff) for His people. Based on these clear instructions, He gave the people a constitution that would moderate their lives as a people and nation; they would have to be different from the Egyptians where they were liberated, as well as the Canaanites whose land they would possess. The books of Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy spell this out. But humanly speaking, it is difficult to fulfil all the requirements of the Law. Thank God for the coming of Christ (God-in-man) to salvage the situation (Gal. 4:4-7).
Jesus has come to give us a new commandment that summarises and simplifies, so to say, the earlier 10 commandments into 2-love the Lord your God, and love your neighbour. Check Deuteronomy 5:1-22 and how these summarises the 10 commandments into 2: First (commandments 1-4); second (commandments 5-10). With the help of Christ’s Spirit and seed in us, we can now live according to this new commandment (1 Jn. 3:8-10). Are you born again? Do you have the Spirit of this new commandment?
PRAYER POINTS
1. Lord, help me to love You passionately and wholeheartedly, come what may.
2. Lord, help me to love my neighbour the way You want it with the love of Christ.
3. Pray for CAC Odusona Region, our father in the Lord, the Regional Superintendent, and other officers at the various levels as led by the Spirit of God.
SUGGESTED HYMN FOR TODAY
CAC GHB: 663
1. Come, let us all unite and sing-
God is love!
While heaven and earth their praises bring
God is love!
Let every soul from sin awake,
Each in his heart sweet music make,
And sweetly sing for Jesus sake-
God is love!
2. O tell to earth’s remotest bound-
God is love!
In Christ is full redemption found-
God is love!
His blood can cleanse our sins away;
His Spirit turns our night to day,
And leads our souls with joy to say-
God is love!
3. How happy is our portion here-
God is love!
His promises our spirits cheer-
God is love!
He is our Sun and Shield by day,
By night He near our tents will stay,
He will be with us all the way-
God is love!
4. In Zion we shall sing again-
God is love!
Yet, this shall be our highest strain-
God is love!
Whilst endless ages roll along,
In concert with the heav’nly throng,
This shall be still our sweetest son-
God is love!
Amen
EXTRA READING FOR TODAY:
Luke 2, 3, 4
AUTHOR
CAC Worldwide
Remain blessed
