Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-December 27, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Friday,

“Now so it was after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were astonished at His understanding and His answers.”

(Luke 2:46-47).

Luke gives more detail into the early life of Jesus than the other of the gospel writers. Even with that said, we don’t know very much about the first thirty years of the life of our Savior—what we do know though is a blessing. He worked in Joseph’s carpenter’s shop.

Jesus was born in Bethlehem and spent about two years there. He was taken to Egypt for another couple of years, before settling in Nazareth. Each year the family would travel from Nazareth to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover. One such time occurred when Jesus was twelve years old. It is if Luke takes us on the trip so that we can see and hear what went on.

The family travelled in a large caravan for the Passover, which lasted for fourteen days. When the family returned, the young Boy Jesus lingered behind in Jerusalem. They went a full day’s journey before they knew that He was missing. I’m sure they thought Jesus was among the other boys playing.

When they returned to Jerusalem, they found him in the temple sitting with the teachers of the law, both listening to them and answering their questions. He was so advanced, way beyond His years.

Luke 2:40 says, “And the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.” Even from a young age, He was different from the other kids. He loved the things of God.

Jesus amazed those teachers and those who sat with them with His understanding and His answers. He was a prodigy. He was a scholar at such a younger age, though He never attended the rabbinical schools of the day.

There is a great lesson for us to learn the Word, know it, understand it, and apply it to our lives. And parents, please teach your children about Jesus and the Scriptures. It is never too soon to start. Children have such innocence, inquisitiveness, and inspiration, far exceeding adults.

One of the best ways to learn is to ask questions, and children ask a lot of good questions. They want to know. Let us ask God to teach us today so that we may grow. Jesus grew in His humanity as evidenced by Luke 2:52, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.”

Have a blessed day learning, growing, and maturing in Christ. Stay safe and healthy.

A thirst for knowledge is great as long as you are drinking from the Word of life.

Dean

-December 26, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Thursday,

“Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, ‘Arise, take the Young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until bring you word; for Herod will seek the Young Child to destroy Him.’”

(Matthew 2:13).

Today’s verse is described as the “Flight (or Escape) to Egypt.” It is only found in the Gospel of Matthew 2:13-23. It is a great example of how God protected His Son from death until the time He was to die for us on the cross.

This incident happened right after the visit of the wisemen in Bethlehem. Herod was so angry that they didn’t report back to him where Jesus was that he started killing all the male children from two years old and under who were in and around Bethlehem. Before he began his heinous plan, God carried out His plan of protection.

Joseph was always obedient, and this incident is no different. Imagine having to pack up quickly and take Jesus and Mary to go to Egypt, traveling hundreds of miles. Suffice it to say, it was a long way. God took care of them, provided for them, protected them each step of the way.

Based on Scripture and historical records, they spent some 2-3 years in Egypt. Joseph obeyed by waiting until an angel appeared to him once again in a dream and told him it was time to go back to Israel because Herod was dead.

We don’t know any details of how they lived in Egypt or what they did. Some scholars call these “the lost years.” I would rather call them, “the silent years.” Nothing God does in our lives is lost, wasted, meaningless, or without purpose.

The Lord used another angel to direct Joseph to go to Nazareth to live. As they say, “the rest is history.” Because Joseph is not mentioned again in Scripture, it is likely he died at a fairly young age. God used him greatly to carry out His plan for the birth and early life of Jesus.

As I reflect in this account, it is a beautiful example of how God leads, guides, and directs us in His perfect will. We have the full revelation of His Word, prayer, and godly counsel available to guide us in our decisions. We can fully trust the Lord to protect us and our families as we live in this world until His time to take us home to heaven.

There is a great hymn written by Civilia D. Martin, entitled, “God Will Take Care of You.” Her husband, W. Stillman Martin was a preacher. He was due to speak at an out of town location. His wife fell ill and he was about to cancel the speaking engagement, but his daughter encouraged him to go and that God would take care of mother. He went and the Lord blessed and six people were saved. When he returned, his wife was much better and she had written this great hymn. He then sat down at the piano and composed the music, which he called “God Cares.”

The chorus of this great hymn says, “God will take care of you, through every day, o’er all the way; He will take care of you, God will take care of you.” Let us always remember God has taken care of us in the past, and will continue to take care of us in the future.

Have a blessed day as we press on to the end of the year without fear. Stay safe and healthy.

God protects those whom He selects; He honors those who honor Him.

Dean

-December 25, 2024-

Good morning beloved, Merry Christmas,

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

(John 1:14).

Today we celebrate Christmas once again around the world. It is way more a tradition or mere holiday, it is a holy day. When Jesus was born over 2,000 years ago, He changed the world, He changed our lives.

John was an eyewitness of Jesus, what He did, what He said, how He died, and rose again. He saw and heard it all. He speaks these four glorious words, “We beheld His glory.” Glory is one of the attributes of God.

The emphasis of John’s gospel is, Jesus is the Son of God, God manifested in human flesh. It is a great mystery that God became flesh in order to ransom, redeem, and reconcile us to God through His sacrificial death on the cross and resurrection.

We are all part of the “we.” The shepherds beheld Him, Simeon beheld Him, Anna the prophetess beheld Him, the angels beheld Him, the wisemen beheld Him, the disciples beheld Him, and all believers have beheld Him.

Hundreds of years ago, the prophet Isaiah wrote, “The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken” (Isaiah 40:5). All the OT prophecies of the Messiah were fulfilled in Jesus.

The glory of Jesus was revealed in a special way at His birth, at Cana of Galilee when He performed His first miracle of turning water into wine, and at the Mount of Transfiguration. We as believers have seen His glory by the eyes of faith.

Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:7-8, “That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.”

Let us then behold His glory on this beautiful Christmas morning and worship our King. Have a blessed day with family and friends. Stay safe and healthy.

When we see His glory we can tell His story.

Dean

-December 24, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Tuesday, happy Christmas Eve,

“And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him with swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”

(Luke 2:7).

This was quite a scene; Jesus was born in a manger, a feed trough. Our precious Savior was surrounded by animals with all their sights, sounds, and smells. There were no family or guests present, neither any dignitaries.

There was no palace or family home, just a humble, simple manger. The hymn writer said it so clearly and beautifully, “Away in a manger, no crib for a bed, the little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head. The stars in the sky all looked down where He lay, the little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.”

It should humble us. We have homes, but we complain they are not big enough; we have central heat, but we complain it costs too much; we have doctors and nurses in hospitals, but we complain about our aches and pains.

Mary didn’t complain nor did Joseph. They knew that they were in the center of God’s will. Though the night was cold, their hearts were warmed by the Holy Spirit. Mary and Joseph had some swaddling cloths which were fairly smooth and soft. Swaddling is an ancient practice of wrapping infants in blankets or similar cloths so that the movement of the limbs is tightly restricted. Swaddling bands went out of favor in the seventeenth century.

God took care of the birth of His beloved Son. It is a great lesson for us to trust God no matter what happens, no matter the circumstances, and be thankful. The birth of Christ was both heavenly and divine.

So this Christmas Eve and Christmas morning, when we are tucked in our warm, comfortable beds, let us reflect on how Jesus was born, where Jesus was born, and why Jesus was born. He came into the world that He had created to save us His sinful people.

Which one of us would choose a manger? God’s ways and God’s thoughts are higher and better than ours.

Have a blessed Christmas Eve. Stay safe and healthy.

In the words of hymn writer Joseph Mohr, “Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright, round yon virgin mother and child. Holy infant so tender and mild, sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace.”

Dean

-December 23, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Monday,

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose going forth are of old, from everlasting.”

(Micah 5:2).

Bethlehem was the biggest small town in the world. What it lacked in size it more than made up for in significance. It was the birthplace of Naomi, Boaz, King David, and most notably Jesus, the Son of God.

All the Jews knew from the Scriptures that Messiah would be born there—they had God’s word on it. When the wisemen arrived in Jerusalem they went to King Herod inquiring of where the King of the Jews had been born. Herod was no biblical scholar, far from it, so he called in the priests and scribes to inquire of them where the Messiah was to be born.

These religious leaders responded in Matthew 2:5,6, “So they said to him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel.’” They quoted directly from Micah 5:2.

Most small towns are famous for one or more people who were born there. They sometimes place signs, “The birthplace of…” For example President Abraham Lincoln was born in Springfield, Illinois. Bethlehem of Judah will forever be known as the birthplace of Jesus.

Our Savior was born in Bethlehem, in a manger, because there was no room for Him in the Inn. But really it was God’s will, and the rest is history. Jesus changed the world forever by coming down from heaven to take on human form, growing up to die on the cross for our sins and then to rise again from the dead. The two greatest miracles of all time are the Virgin Birth and the resurrection.

Though one’s birthplace can certainly be important, and how one dies is noteworthy, but how we live our lives is what really counts. We can’t control how or where or to whom we were born, but we can control how we live.

In Jesus’ day, most people didn’t even know that He was born in Bethlehem. They associated him with His residence in Nazareth. Speaking of cities, Nazareth had a very bad reputation and connotation.

For us, what is important is that Jesus was born at just the right time, in just the right place, to just the right young virgin, Mary, by the Holy Spirit. Paul wrote in Galatians 4:4-5, “But when the fulness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”

The hymn writer Phillips Brooks wrote, “O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie! Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by; Yet in thy dark street shineth the Everlasting Light: the hope and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.”

Have a blessed day preparing for Christmas, which is only two days away. Stay safe and healthy.

Bethlehem was the birthplace of Christ in a manger; my heart is His residence and throne forever.

Dean