March 2

Matthew 2

Mary and Joseph flee with Jesus to escape Herod’s murderous attack.

INSIGHT

When Herod asks the scholars where the Messiah is to be born, they answer without hesitating: “Bethlehem of Judea, for so it has been written by the prophet. “The odds against anyone other than Jesus being the Messiah are staggering. There are 60 major prophecies that are fulfilled in the life of Christ. Josh McDowell writes in Evidence That Demands a Verdict that, by using the science of probability in reference to all 60 major prophecies, the chances that any man might have fulfilled all 60 is humanly impossible. Reason demands that we accept Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah.

PRAYER

As you rest in the security that Jesus is the Messiah, offer the Lord praise:
O Lord God of Israel, the One who dwells between the cherubim,
You are God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth.
You have made heaven and earth (2 Kings 19:15).
I will praise the Lord according to His righteousness,
And will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High (Psalm 7:17).

As you seek to keep your life free from sin and its awful effects, pray this confession to the Lord:
Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the Lord,
And He will have mercy on him; and to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon (Isaiah 55:7).

Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind.

Now pause to pray to the Lord this affirmation of His mercy in your life:
He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust” (Psalm 91:1-2).

As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

• Greater sensitivity to sin
• The ministry of your church in the local community
• Your activities for the day

Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:
I will remember the works of the Lord;
Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.
I will also meditate on all Your work,
And talk of Your deeds (Psalm 77:11-12).