Reading your Bible for Today September 20

September 20: Matthew 16:13-17

KJV Key Verse: Matthew 16:17
And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou , Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. 

Devotion:
Is it right that each of the people who are in the same classroom will learn the same things? Is it right that when it comes to exams they will all be able to answer the same questions? In theory, that should be the way it is, but in real life we find how each of the children in the class listen in a different way to what is being taught – they each concentrate of different words and phrases and come up with a different conclusion or theory at the end of any lesson.

We have our effective hotline to God through prayer where we can plead with God for things in our lives and especially in the lives of others. We also have God talking to us through the things He does for us in our lives and through His Word. How we listen to Him will be how we learn from Him! The better we listen, the better we will be at remembering His Word and His will in our lives. The better we are, the more able we will be able to pass each of the tests which Christ allows into our lives.

We may think that tests are unfair at school, but without some sort of assessment we would never have to apply the learning and would get lazy and even forgetful about the knowledge we should be taking on. But with tests we are kept more alert to the knowledge and be more able to apply it when the time comes for us to use it. Christ wants each of us to be effective Christians so we are able to take His word out to the people around us. Unless we are going to listen to Him in our lives, we are not going to learn much!

When you begin to think you are struggling with your understanding or with you listening, don't let go and pretend you have understood. Stand up and ask for help while you can. When you leave your classroom you can no longer ask your teacher for help (unless you go find them). When we need some understanding, we need to stand up and ask Christ for understanding – that way He knows you mean it and will be more willing to teach you!

Points to Ponder:
Do you listen in class or just copy other peoples’ notes?

Are you trying to understand God without His help?