And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide disputes by what his ears hear.
~ Isaiah 11:2-3
What a beautiful description of Jesus filled with the Holy Spirit as our ruler and judge! He is wise and understanding, mighty, and knowledgeable. But above all, He delights in the fear of the Lord and He judges us fairly. We humans tend to judge by what we see and hear. Appearances lead us to believe that the well-dressed man living in a beautiful home is somehow better than the homeless man digging in the dumpster. We hear gossip about a woman and assume she is the immoral person we heard about. But Jesus judges our hearts. He knows us as we really are—not as the image we show to the world or as the words from an unkind person.
Lord God, I am awe of Jesus Who judges me fairly and loves me beyond measure. This passage reminds me of the wonder of the Godhead—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. You judge me on my heart, not on externals. So often I fall short and don’t live the way Your children should live, the way I want to live. But You know my heart is surrendered to You and judge me accordingly. My heart is filled with gratitude and love for You. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
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All author proceeds from the devotionals will be donated to Love for the Least. The mission of L4L is to share the compassion of Christ with an unreached world. Currently they are providing food, mattresses, milk and diapers for babies, and other needs for refugees from ISIS in northern Iraq.