March 29 Daily Devotional

"If Thy Hand Offend Thee...."

the Rev. David Freeman

"And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched."
"Mark 9:.4

Devotional

(continued)

Know that the eye, the hand and foot will not allow themselves to be put away. They know how to argue their case well. The idols that are as dear as the hand or eye, speak very eloquently. They say to the natural heart, "You must not give up that which serves you so well. You will only hurt yourself to throw away what is so useful to you. Yea, you must have the dear idol hands and feet. Of what use would you be in the world without hands, eyes, or feet? Necessity knows no law. You will be called a fool for doing it. The world is not easy on those who are so hard on themselves."

But what says God? "CUT IT OFF!" Where should the Christian look, to himself or God? Carnal necessity always sets itself up against God. Worldly wisdom is the devil's whip. He strikes the Christian hard with it.

By obeying God the Christian will be more useful than if he kept his hands. A poor example will undo many a good work, but the example of obedience to God the Lord Himself blesses to the salvation of many souls.

The Lord commands and it is therefore right to do it even though we cannot satisfy ourselves. It is no shame to seek the kingdom of heaven first. It is rather a shame to keep our idols. But the man who ventures most for God will not be confounded.

Will not they be in dire straits who have two hands and go to hell?

What treasures a man lays up in heaven who obeys Christ regardless of cost! But if we are not willing to part with our ease and comfort, we are not worthy of heaven and we have no mind to it at all.

Behold how kind God is in asking and commanding us to give up our dear idols in exchange for a crown of glory!Behold how kind God is in asking and commanding us to give up our dear idols in exchange for a crown of glory!

"Lift Up Your Heart" is a series of devotionals by the late Rev. David Freeman, an ordained minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church for most of his life. These devotionals, in fact, are part of the early history of our denomination. The first of them was published in The Presbyterian Guardian in 1935; the denomination now known as the Orthodox Presbyterian Church was officially formed in 1936. We believe that "the Word of our God stands forever" (Isaiah 40:8; see 1 Peter 1:25). Thus it is no surprise that meditations based on that Word have continued relevance today. Dr. Freeman's devotionals are proof of that fact.

David Freeman was a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary (Th.B., 1928; Th.M. , 1930) and of Dropsie Univiersity (Ph.D., 1951). He served as pastor at Grace (later New Covenant) Presbyterian Church (OPC), Philadelphia, PA (1936-1946), Knox Presbyterian Church (OPC), Philadelphia, PA (1949-1962), and Grace Presbyterian Church (OPC), Fall River, MA (1962-1967). He authored many articles and (along with his son, David H. Freeman) is the author of the book A Philosophical Study of Religion, which appeared in 1964. He went to be with the Lord in 1984.

There is one change from the way the daily devotional was handled in the past with John Skilton's Think On These Things: New devotionals for the new series appear on weekdays only (Monday through Saturday. It is suggested that you use your pastor's sermon text(s) as the basis for your mediations on the Lord's Day.

We trust that you will find these devotionals, once again made available seventy years after they first appeared, to be a personal help in your own Christian walk today!