Mark 11:27-28 And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?”

Who/what is the king of your life?
What evidence is there to demonstrate the presence of this king?

Confess areas in your life where you have lived by your authority rather than Christ’s.

E-devotion by Benny Stofer (Worship Pastor)

In today’s devotion, the question is asked, “Who or What is the king of your life?” That is a very good question because it’s answer is pivotal in our faith walk. Somehow, the religious leaders in Jesus’ day knew that there was something different about Him, but His authority just didn’t fit into their formula for life. Everything was orderly and structured in their position on the hierarchical religious ladder as those who knew the law, interpreted the law, and enforced the law.

Our experience with authority is not that much different. Everything within us wants to control our environment, but we often realize that our lives are not really within our control at all. There has to be One in our lives who is competent to “call the shots.” There has to be One who has proven His love for us, proven His faithfulness to us, and proven His wisdom to know what is best for us. That “One” is Jesus. He proved these things by forgiving our sins, washing us clean within, giving us peace, giving us direction, and giving us eternal life.

Let’s surrender our need for control to His authority. Today, let’s live as those who have been created and redeemed for a better way: under the loving, caring, and wise authority of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.

[Weekly Scripture] Matthew 28:6–7  He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.

Matthew 21:12-13 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”

What in your life needs cleansing?
What do you think Jesus desires to change in your life?

Pray for the willingness to allow God to cleanse your body, His temple.

E-devotion by Jeff Carlisle (Mission Pastor)
There were all kinds of wrong going on in the temple when Jesus entered.  It was being used improperly.  It was supposed to be a house of prayer, but instead it was a den of robbers. One dictionary says that a den is ‘a place where people meet in secret, typically to engage in some illicit activity.’  That day, Jesus cleansed the temple of this ‘illicit activity.’

The Bible mentions that your body is a temple.  Is it a holy temple of prayer or a den of ‘illicit’ activities?  Daily, believers have to cleanse their temple.  During the first two weeks of this devotion, you prayed through scriptures to pinpoint different sins in your life.  Are any of them still present in your life?  Why?  Spend time today looking for sins in your life.  As you find them,  repent and seek to come closer to God as you prepare to celebrate Easter.

[Weekly Scripture] 1 John 1:8–9 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Psalms 118:26-27 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD. The LORD is God, and he has made his light to shine upon us.
Bind the festal sacrifice with cords, up to the horns of the altar!

Mark 11:4-10 And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!”

Are you thankful for He who has come in the name of the Lord?
What is the most recent blessing that you thanked Him for?

Pray thanks to God for your blessings.

E-Devotion by Dennis Strom (Elder)
Today’s verses tell us of the light God provided to shine on us and they tell us of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem. The verses call our attention to our Savior and the celebration of the people as they shouted “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord”. Have you reflected on the blessedness of our Savior? He who comes in the name of the Lord loves you, He wants you to know Him more and He has provided an eternal future for you. He came on your behalf and paid the sacrifice required for your eternal future. Take time today to reflect on the blessedness of Jesus, thank Him for the love He has for you and celebrate His presence as the people did on that triumphant day in Jerusalem.

Truly we are blessed by the love, grace and mercy of our Savior, Jesus

[Weekly Scripture] 1 John 1:8–9 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Matthew 16:24-25 Then Jesus told his disciples, If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Romans 6:6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.

What is keeping your from picking up your cross daily?
What is keeping you enslaved to sin?

Pray that you will not “think more highly of yourself than you ought.”  (Rom. 12:3)

E-devotion by Jay Berryman (Deacon)
The challenge Jesus is giving us in Matthew 16:24-25 above is not how to become a mediocre Christian, rather how to become His disciple. Everyone I know who has been greatly used by God has gone through an experience of “dying to self” described in both Galatians 2:20 and referenced above in Romans 6:6. So how do we do this and what does it look like? Holy living involves a daily decision to surrender to the lordship of Christ. It involves yielding our will to God and adopting His perspective. God wants our minds and hearts to be filled with His holy qualities. As our lives are transformed, we will project the light of His holiness into the darkness of our world. DL Moody said the world has yet to see what one person fully dedicated to God can do. 2Chronicles 16:9 tells us that the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal toward Him. Real life….Abundant life….Begins with dying to self.

[Weekly Scripture] 1 John 1:8–9 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

James 1:23-24 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.

Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

Do you feel that you truly live what the Bible teaches?
Are you seeking God?

Pray that you can give your heart over to God and live what His Word teaches.

E-Devotion by Dwight Vincent (Deacon)
If the Word of God does not cause us to see our true spiritual condition, then there is something wrong with our understanding of its principles or its applications.
How many of us would find a black smudge on our face in the mirror and go to church without wiping it off? Yet we do that spiritually. We move about with spiritually dirty faces, with lives out of sync with God.
The Bible will reveal our sin to us when we would like to deny the reality of who and what we are. Therefore, we do not transfer the principles of God’s Word to our life. We are afraid of their implications and don’t want to let go of our sin.
The issue here is that we believe in the value of our sin over the value of God’s Word so we adjust our living to our own set of values rather than God’s values. We want to forget as quickly as possible how we look to God. We cannot stand the thought that we live inconsistently with God’s plan so we deny it to ourselves. This is an issue of honesty with self.
What is your attitude toward the Word of God? James puts it quite simply: hear the Word, receive the Word, and apply the Word. There are no hidden secrets to living the Christian life. If you are a believer, then hear, receive, and obey. Seek God with all your heart and He will wipe away that sinful smudge on your face and give you peace.