Daily Devotion June 1

June 1: John 3:9-17 KJV Key Verse: John 3:12 12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe , if I tell you of heavenly things? Devotion: When Nicodemus asked for an explanation about being born again it was because he had been so entrenched in the ways of the Pharisees he lost sight of the relationship God wanted to have with His people. Being caught up in something which sounds so good and keeps you away from sinful ways is always very attractive; but when it is taking you away from a personal relationship between you and Christ, then you need to stop and take notice! The Pharisees were using their knowledge and power to remain in control and try to make sure the people did not sin against God. This is what God wanted, but not at the expense of love. Christ came to show His love to all mankind and to show us we need to know Him personally before we can get to heaven. That personal link was being left out as the Pharisees taught about the law and tried to maintain the law through their own teaching and through physical ways. God’s link to us is through the Spirit and not through any physical things we must do; a relationship built on love and respect. Leaving love out of the relationship will lead to a physical link with an unknown God. We could go round to someone’s house and talk about all sorts of things, but unless we open up and talk about them and us, we are not going to really get to know them. Getting to know God means getting to know Him spiritually and not just physically through the law. Yes we need the law for us to identify how we can get closer to God, but getting to know Him is much more personal than that. Whether Nicodemus fully grasped what this was all about it not shown to us here; just like Nicodemus we also need time to get to know Christ. It is not going to be like a light switch being turned on unless the Holy Spirit works miraculously in our lives. Getting to know someone else does not just happen but takes time and effort from our side to open things up slowly by surely. Getting to know God is going to take effort from our side as we open up the scriptures and get to know God’s rules. Points to Ponder: Do you know all of God’s Law? Are you beginning to unravel Christ’s love?