DAY 8: The Path to Provision
BY: JESS HAMMOND & ANGELA JOHNSON
“You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me..”
John 5:39
“And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.”
luke 24:27-31
Have you ever watched a movie or read a book with multiple layers of meaning?
I love finding deeper significance behind the story. One of my favorite examples of this is: The Lord of the Rings. Without understanding the profound imagery its author, J.R.R. Tolkein, used, one might simply think this story was about good and evil waging war over a piece of jewelry. But, Tolkein was a devout Christian and filled his best-selling, fantasy stories with deep, spiritual meaning. He borrowed literary context from the best-selling book of all time — the Bible. And, the author of the Bible, The Lord of ALL, did not write an allegorical tale; He wrote absolute truth. From Genesis to Revelation, God has given us so many clues and pictures of His plans through scripture.
After Jesus was raised from the dead, and before He ascended into Heaven, He spent 40 days appearing to His followers. He opened their eyes to the truth that He was the promised Messiah; fulfilling every written word that Moses and the prophets had ever foretold. Through His birth, death, and resurrection, Jesus proved that He was — and is — the long-awaited Savior of the World.
The trouble was that He did not look like what they expected.
Even though they could physically see Him, their preconceived ideas prohibited them from truly recognizing Him. Their contrived notions of who their Redeemer would be, what He would look like, and how He would rescue them kept them from experiencing the fullness of life . Their hearts needed to be opened to receive Him as the provision that God had been promising since His covenant with Abraham. As Jesus walked with them, He revealed the details throughout scripture, and then He revealed himself to them in the intimacy of fellowship around a table.
This week, as we prepare our hearts to receive all that Christmas means, we want to take you on a similar journey through the Old Testament. We will get a snapshot of God’s master plan that has been in motion all along. Together, we will look at the details and pictures that God intentionally gave for us to see His greater plan in it all. At the end of each day, we invite you to sit with Him in divine fellowship so He can reveal Himself to you in a real and personal way.
Let this be your prayer this week:
“Father, we want to see Your hand in everything. We want to know You, Jesus, in ways we have not known before. Open our hearts, open our eyes, and reveal Your truth. Our hands are open, we humble our hearts, and we ask that You break down our preconceptions. Remove any hindrances religion or tradition have caused that have kept us from truly seeing you. You are the one who holds all of history in Your hands. We put our faith in You alone. Thank You for revealing Yourself to us today. We praise You. We thank You. We honor You. We love You. Amen.”
Daily Challenge:
How has praying each day helped open your eyes to Him?
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