April 6 Devotion - The Resurrection: Does It Matter?

if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. ¹¹ For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”

لانك ان اعترفت بفمك بالرب يسوع وآمنت بقلبك ان الله اقامه من الاموات خلصت.

10 لان القلب يؤمن به للبر والفم يعترف به للخلاص.

11 لان الكتاب يقول كل من يؤمن به لا يخزى

Romans 10:8-11

Believing that the Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead is essential for Christians. Merely recognizing that He died for our sins is not enough; we must accept His resurrection in order to receive eternal life. Christ paid our debt, but His sacrifice on the cross means nothing if He possesses no power over the grave. In vanquishing evil and death, the Lord made our salvation possible.
Jesus’ resurrection proved He was able to remove sin and its penalty. Assuming Christ remained dead would mean accepting the opposite—that believers are still in sin. And the inevitable end of a sinful life is death. Consequently, a person who denies Christ’s eternal nature looks toward a void future.
Instead of enjoying Christian liberty and anticipating a home in heaven, those who reject resurrection are slaves to the present, with no real hope or meaning in life. Career, family, and good works can offer brief pleasure but not the kind of joy that comes from knowing we are right with the Lord and working in His will.
Resurrection is not a denominational issue or a point for theological debate. Either we believe Christ rose from the dead and ascended to heaven or we do not. If we reject His victory over the grave, we deny ourselves a place in eternity. But if we accept the truth, Paul assures that we will be saved.
I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for all Your abundant blessings and inseparable love. Jesus I confess that You are my Lord, and believe in my heart that God raised You from the dead. Jesus I thank you for saving me through your atoning death on the cross at Calvary and for making me righteous in the eyes of God our Father. Thank you Jesus that because I believe in Your resurrection I am granted eternal life. I pray in Jesus’ Holy Name. To Him be the power, the glory, the majesty, the blessings, and the dominion forever and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

April 3 Devotion - Good Friday - The Cross

The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. 21 And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know— 23 Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death;

 تتحول الشمس الى ظلمة والقمر الى دم قبل ان يجيء يوم الرب العظيم الشهير.

21 ويكون كل من يدعو باسم الرب يخلص

22 ايها الرجال الاسرائيليون اسمعوا هذه الاقوال. يسوع الناصري رجل قد تبرهن لكم من قبل الله بقوات وعجائب وآيات صنعها الله بيده في وسطكم كما انتم ايضا تعلمون.

23 هذا اخذتموه مسلّما بمشورة الله المحتومة وعلمه السابق وبايدي اثمة صلبتموه وقتلتموه.

Acts 2:20-23

Christ's suffering on the cross was fore-ordained, and was the only payment of our debt that God would accept—this is the great sacrifice on which the eternal life of believers depends. If Christ had not gone to the cross and suffered in our place, the just for the unjust, there would not have been a spark of hope for us. There would have been a mighty chasm between us and God, which no man ever could have crossed.

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings and inseparable love. Lord thank You for loving me so much that You let Your Son die on the cross to redeem me, a sinner. As Jesus said: “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” John 15:13  God, I thank You, I praise You, and I glorify You in the name of Your precious Son, my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ to whom be honour and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

April 2 Devotion - Humility

but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. ⁸ And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

Philippians 2:7-8

 بَلْ أَخْلَى نَفْسَهُ، مُتَّخِذاً صُورَةَ عَبْدٍ، صَائِراً شَبِيهاً بِالْبَشَرِ؛

⁸ وَإِذْ ظَهَرَ بِهَيْئَةِ إِنْسَانٍ، أَمْعَنَ فِي الاِتِّضَاعِ، وَكَانَ طَائِعاً حَتَّى الْمَوْتِ، مَوْتِ الصَّلِيبِ.

Being made in the likeness of man, Jesus laid himself as low as possible laying aside the brilliance of His glory. He took upon Himself human form assuming the lowest character, that of being the servant of all. He accepted to die for us, and He accepted to die the lowest and most disgraceful kind of death, the death of the cross; the punishment of the meanest of criminals.

What must sin have been in the sight of God, when it required such humiliation in Jesus Christ to make atonement for it, and undo its influence and malignity! (Adapted from Clarke's Commentary on the Bible.)

We learn from the above scriptures that Jesus was obedient, humble and loving. He loved us and died on the cross in our place, to offer us the opportunity to be forgiven, redeemed and declared righteous in the eyes of God.

Humility frees us to love and serve others selflessly, for their sake, rather than our own. 

Today (according to the most widely used Gregorian calendar) marks the day before the crucifixion of Christ. The night of the ‘last supper’. The night Jesus humbled himself to do the work usually done by a servant in those times, He washed the feet of the disciples (instead of vice versa)

¹² So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? ¹³ You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. ¹⁴ If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. ¹⁵ For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. ¹⁶ Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. ¹⁷ If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

 وَبَعْدَمَا انْتَهَى مِنْ غَسْلِ أَقْدَامِهِمْ، أَخَذَ رِدَاءَهُ وَاتَّكَأَ مِنْ جَدِيدٍ، وَسَأَلَهُمْ: «أَفَهِمْتُمْ مَا عَمِلْتُهُ لَكُمْ؟ ¹³ أَنْتُمْ تَدْعُونَنِي مُعَلِّماً وَسَيِّداً، وَقَدْ صَدَقْتُمْ، فَأَنَا كَذَلِكَ. ¹⁴ فَإِنْ كُنْتُ، وَأَنَا السَّيِّدُ وَالْمُعَلِّمُ، قَدْ غَسَلْتُ أَقْدَامَكُمْ، فَعَلَيْكُمْ أَنْتُمْ أَيْضاً أَنْ يَغْسِلَ بَعْضُكُمْ أَقْدَامَ بَعْضٍ. ¹⁵ فَقَدْ قَدَّمْتُ لَكُمْ مِثَالاً لِكَيْ تَعْمَلُوا مِثْلَ مَا عَمِلْتُ أَنَا لَكُمْ. ¹⁶ الْحَقَّ الْحَقَّ أَقُولُ لَكُمْ: لَيْسَ عَبْدٌ أَعْظَمَ مِنْ سَيِّدِهِ، وَلاَ رَسُولٌ أَعْظَمَ مِنْ مُرْسِلِهِ.  

¹⁷ فَإِنْ كُنْتُمْ قَدْ عَرَفْتُمْ هَذَا، فَطُوبَى لَكُمْ إِذَا عَمِلْتُمْ بِهِ.

John 13: 12-17

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings and inseparable love. Lord Jesus, thank You that You humbled yourself to die in my place and to grant me the forgiveness of my sins. Jesus, You became a servant for my sake to set me free from the bondage of sin, selfishness and conceit. Jesus, I pray that out of Your glorious riches You strengthen me with power through Your Spirit in my inner being, so that I can be humble as You are humble and to love others freely and graciously. Teach me Lord to be ‘kind and compassionate to others, forgiving them, just as Christ God forgave me.’ Ephesians 4:31-3  I declare Jesus as my Lord and Saviour and I pray in His Holy Name. To Him be the power, the glory, the majesty, the blessings, and the dominion forever and ever, Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

April 1 Devotion - Jesus Prays for All believers - Part 2

“I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; ²¹ that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 23 I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.

وَلَسْتُ أُصَلِّي مِنْ أَجْلِ هؤُلاَءِ فَقَطْ، بَلْ أَيْضاً مِنْ أَجْلِ الَّذِينَ سَوْفَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِي بِسَبَبِ كَلِمَةِ هؤُلاَءِ،

 ²¹ لِيَكُونَ الْجَمِيعُ وَاحِداً؛ أَيُّهَا الآبُ، كَمَا أَنَّكَ أَنْتَ فِيَّ وَأَنَا فِيكَ، لِيَكُونُوا هُمْ أَيْضاً وَاحِداً فِينَا، لِكَيْ يُؤْمِنَ الْعَالَمُ أَنَّكَ أَنْتَ أَرْسَلْتَنِي.

 ²² إِنِّي أَعْطَيْتُهُمُ الْمَجْدَ الَّذِي أَعْطَيْتَنِي، لِيَكُونُوا وَاحِداً كَمَا نَحْنُ وَاحِدٌ.

 ²³ أَنَا فِيهِمْ، وَأَنْتَ فِيَّ، لِيَكْتَمِلُوا فَيَصِيرُوا وَاحِداً، حَتَّى يَعْرِفَ الْعَالَمُ أَنَّكَ أَرْسَلْتَنِي وَأَنَّكَ أَحْبَبْتَهُمْ كَمَا أَحْبَبْتَنِي.

John 17:20-23

Jesus asked for unity amongst believers. He desires that we have a deep connection with Him and The Father and also with other believers.

He gave us a new commandment:

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.”

وَصِيَّةً جَدِيدَةً أَنَا أُعْطِيكُمْ: أَحِبُّوا بَعْضُكُمْ بَعْضاً، كَمَا أَحْبَبْتُكُمْ أَنَا، تُحِبُّونَ بَعْضُكُمْ.

John 13:34

Both unity and love have the same purpose “that the world may know”. Jesus commands us to be united in Him. As believers in Jesus Christ, as Lord and Saviour, we need to be united with each other in every family, in every Church and across all denominations, churches and counties, and lift up ‘The Church’ as one church, because Christ loved The Church and gave himself up for her Ephesians 5:25.

The unity that Christ offers brings peace within and between believers. In the world system we may have tribulations and persecution but we have Jesus’ assurance:

“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

أَخْبَرْتُكُمْ بِهَذَا كُلِّهِ لِيَكُونَ لَكُمْ فِيَّ سَلاَمٌ. فَإِنَّكُمْ فِي الْعَالَمِ سَتُقَاسُونَ الضِّيقَ. وَلكِنْ تَشَجَّعُوا، فَأَنَا قَدِ انْتَصَرْتُ عَلَى الْعَالَمِ!»

John 16:33

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings.

Thank You Father for Your inseparable love,

Thank You Jesus for praying for me, to our Father.

Thank You Jesus for granting me eternal life through the Cross.

Thank You Jesus that you are in me and I in You.

Thank You Father for Your love.

Thank You Jesus for revealing God to me, because I have these wonderful resources, I can persevere in my faith.

Abba Father, please set me apart for your service so that I may fulfill Your mission for me on this earth.

Help me Jesus to carry out Your commandment to love others and be united with all my Christian brothers and sisters.

Help me God to demonstrate unity with fellow believers through love, obedience and commitment to Your will.

Thank you Jesus for the peace You give me and the assurance that You have conquered the world.

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein