11th July 2025

11th July 2025


Pray (ACts)


Read (Philippians 2:25-30 focus v28-30)


Message (Alan Burke)


I did a wee check through the devotions because I started this one and thought to myself that I think I’ve written an introduction similar to this one before so I did a wee check through the over 1,600 devotions that Scott and I have written over the past five years and I had. Between us Scott and I have written over 1,000,000 words and to put that into persecutive the KJV has approximately 783,137 words, so we have written a volume bigger than the bible. I then scrapped the introduction I had and wrote this one. Why though are we doing this? Is it because we want the adulation we get? No it’s not that because we don’t get much adulation for doing them. Is it for the money? Well now what do you think! It’s not for the money unless a publisher decides to put them in a book and pay us the big bucks which ain't going to happen because neither Scott and I have big names that are going to sell books so no publisher would be interested.


We’ve talked about stopping before and then we get someone who’ll say how much they appreciate them who we never knew even read them. I even had some randomer thank me in a shop in Belfast one day (You’re probably reading this and sorry I don’t know your name) who got sent a devotion and had been reading them since, they knew who I was but I had no idea. Those things are encouragement to us but you know ultimate we are doing this for Christ and his glory. Neither of us know if they will make a lasting impact on anyone but if it is the Lord’s will yet we do what we do as ministers of the gospel for Christ. 


We don’t want fame or adulation for what we do, we simply want to honour our saviour who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! (Php 2:6–8). The motivation of Paul was doing all he did for Christ his saviour, he was languishing in prison because he lived for Christ. He was sending back Epaphroditus to the church a man who was doing all that he did for Christ his saviour and Paul tells them to welcome him with great joy. He tells the church to honour men like him. 


Why should we honour those like Epaphroditus? Because he was one who was willing to give his life for the sake of the gospel, for the work of Christ, he went where the church in Philippi did not go, he went on their behalf. There are those who leave their homes, who go today in the work of the gospel of Christ where we could not, they had been called by God to go at a cost to themselves, for Epaphroditus that almost lead to his death but for many who go the cost is great and they should be honoured in the Lord. Epaphroditus, for the Love of his Lord had went, he almost died, risking his life to help Paul on the church in Philippi’s behalf, he wasn’t doing what he did out of greed, his own self interest, vain conceit, he was doing all that he did for the sake of Christ. For all those who serve Christ they should be honoured, and for each and everyone of us who are in Christ, we should be those who are seeking to do all that we do for Christ and his glory, let us look to Christ, live for him, let the love of Christ lead us to live a life worthy of the gospel in every way. 


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q18 Wherein consists the sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell? 
A. The sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell, consists in the guilt of Adam’s first sin, the want of original righteousness, and the corruption of his whole nature, which is commonly called original sin; together with all actual transgressions which proceed from it.
​