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Intention
Prayer begins and ends with us beholding the supremacy of Christ in all things.

Scripture

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.”—Colossians 1:15-18

Reflection
Our one central and all-consuming focus today is the unrivalled preeminence of the risen and living Christ. Jesus Christ is first in everything.

The risen and living Christ is deserving of absolute and unchallenged preeminence in all things: in life, in work, in love, in marriage, in money, in business, in the halls of government, in our universities and elementary schools, and most of all, in the hearts of all people.

All things were created through Him and for Him, meaning that our lives exist for the spread of His fame, for the extension of His reign, for the increase of His gain, and for the honour of His claim of all that rightfully belongs to Him!

Our hope is found in Christ alone! Hope is the anticipation of God’s goodness in every area of our lives. Our ultimate hope in the goodness of God is in seeing and savouring, praising and prizing, recognising and relishing the glory of God in the face of Christ.

Christ is our hope! He is the summation of all the promises of God, the source of all the riches of God, now and forevermore. In Christ, we have been given an inheritance of hope. Our hope is in hearing the music of the future, and dancing to that music, by faith, now. The song being sung is the beauty and majesty of Jesus Christ.

Let us enter into the power and pleasure of being obsessed with the magnificence of Jesus today! As Paul wrote:

“I count everything as loss compared to the possession of the priceless privilege (the overwhelming preciousness, the surpassing worth, and supreme advantage) of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord…[For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognising and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly.”—Philippians 3:8-9 AMP

Prayer
Father, too often we fall woefully short of this glorious obsession. Therefore we repent, individually and on behalf of all your people.

We repent for how we have diminished your Son, regarding Him more as our mascot than our Monarch. We repent for how we have manipulated your Son, coming to Him to use Him. As far as we think we need Him—that far and no more.

We repent for how we have hoarded your Son, seeking His blessings for ourselves, with little thought about bringing those blessing to others. We’ve assumed that He was there only for us. We’ve acted as if He was not Lord of neighbours and nations.

We repent for how we have resisted your Son, withholding our affections from Him because we were afraid of what it would cost us to draw near to Him—and thus we denied His lordship over all.

We repent for how we’ve replaced your Son with creeds and programs, and organisations, and causes performed in His name—but without the all-consuming passion He deserves as the Lamb who was slain!

To that end, Father, awaken us. Awaken us to see all that the Lord Jesus Christ is—to see who He is as the Son of God; to see where He is leading in the purposes of God; to see how He imparts the resources of God; and to see what He must receive from the people of God.

Father, help us recover all the hope we are meant to have in our Sovereign Saviour. Do this for the revelation of Your glory in Him, throughout this nation, and among all the nations. AMEN!

31 Days Prayer Points
1. Pray for five people and share the Good News of Jesus with them.
2. Pray that God would use His people to reach one billion people this May.
3. Pray for an end to the coronavirus pandemic, both in Australia and globally.

Dr. Jason Hubbard is a pastor, Bible teacher and prayer leader from the USA. His goal in life is to be an extravagant worshiper of God, an anointed deliverer of men and a godly husband and father. He is the Executive Coordinator of the International Prayer Council.

www.ipcprayer.org

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Daily devotions brought to you by the Canberra Declaration.