Going Along With the Crowd – February 28, 2023

When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
Genesis 3:6

Going Along With the Crowd

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Daily Devotion – February 28, 2023

Devotion based on Genesis 3:6

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There you were. You were part of the crowd—surrounded by all your friends. It started off as a great evening. Everyone was having fun, and life was good. But then things started to take a turn. Things got out of control and a fun evening crossed the line. Things happened that should not have happened. You wanted to speak up and to tell them all that this wasn’t right.

But there you stood, doing nothing. Sometimes doing nothing or saying nothing is just as wrong as doing the bad or evil thing. And God holds us accountable for our inaction. Adam stood-by and did nothing as Eve was led down the wrong path. He went along with it, and his silence had consequences that were bigger than he ever could have imagined. His inaction cast the whole world into sin and now we are all born with an innate desire to sin.

This makes Jesus all the more remarkable. He never went along with the crowd when they were on the wrong path. He always spoke when things were headed in the wrong direction. Jesus lived a perfect life in our place, and then at the end, he let the crowd put him to death so that you and I and the whole world could be saved from our sins. Because of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, we have been set free from sin and through faith in him, we now have the gift of eternal life.

That means we no longer have to go along with the crowd! We can now say no to the evil in this world and live our lives for our Savior, Jesus, who gave his life for us. We can now be a positive influence in this world and lead others to the light of Jesus.

Prayer:
Dear Jesus, thank you for giving yourself as my Savior from sin. Empower me to say no to the crowd and to live my life for you. Help me be a positive influence for others. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
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Did God really say? – February 27, 2023

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
Genesis 3:1

Did God really say?

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Daily Devotion – February 27, 2023

Devotion based on Genesis 3:1

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Did God really say you shouldn’t indulge in this behavior? Did God really say you shouldn’t live your life the way you want? Did God really say you shouldn’t do whatever makes you feel good? After all, wouldn’t God want you to be happy?

Satan has succeeded with that line of reasoning for centuries. It is a tried and true approach to leading people into sin. It worked on Eve in the Garden of Eden and has been working on mankind ever since. It works on us too. We are too eager to believe that life really is about us and that our top priority is to make ourselves happy. It does not take much convincing for us to make life about our desires rather than what God wants or to make it about pleasing ourselves rather than seeking the good of other people. This is the society we live in, and there is only one way that can end. (Spoiler alert: it doesn’t end well.)

Thankfully there is One who did not believe the devil’s lie. Thankfully there is One who did not pursue his own desires but instead pursued what was best for the rest of us. Jesus came into this world not to look out for himself but to see that we would get what we need. He easily could have made his life all about himself and could have used his almighty power to please himself. But instead, it was all about us. He came to save us, and that meant doing what no one else could. It meant living a perfect life in our place and dying so that we could be saved now and forever.

Because of Jesus, God now really says that we are his forgiven children. He says that through faith in Jesus, we will have eternal life. He says that we are his children now and always.

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for your selfless work on my behalf. As your forgiven child, help me to live for others and not for myself. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
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An Unlimited Guarantee – February 26, 2023

“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Genesis 3:15

An Unlimited Guarantee

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Daily Devotion – February 26, 2023

Devotion based on Genesis 3:15

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When purchasing a product, we are interested in the manufacturer’s warranty. What does the company promise to repair or replace? How long is the warranty good for? How reliable is the business making the guarantee? Usually warranties are limited to varying degrees and cover only certain items for a specific period of time. Manufacturers do not issue warranties that cover their products without exceptions. Every guarantee is limited.

Except one, God’s guarantee of rescuing us from death and hell. God made a promise to the first people on earth. They had fallen into sin and lost the perfection with which God created them. Their sin condemned them to eternal separation from God in hell and not only them, but the whole human race. But God made a promise. He declared that a descendant of those first sinful people would come and destroy the devil’s power over them. That mighty offspring of the woman would deliver them from death, by being delivered to death himself. Yet he would overcome hell and guarantee for his people life forever.

Unlike a manufacturer’s limited warranty, God promise of salvation is full and free and offered to the whole world. The reliability of this promise is as sure as the existence of the eternal God who loves all people so much that he came into our world to fully accomplish what he promised.

Look at your Savior, Jesus, on the cross. He is your guarantee of unlimited life with God.

Prayer:
Lord, thank you that in your mercy you do not condemn me as my sins deserve but rather give me your ironclad guarantee of forgiveness and eternal life through Jesus. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
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Real – February 25, 2023

We did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
2 Peter 1:16

Real

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Daily Devotion – February 25, 2023

Devotion based on 2 Peter 1:16

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In 2001, director Stephen Spielberg and actor Tom Hanks paired up to produce the miniseries Band of Brothers. The ten-part drama followed a company of World War II soldiers from their basic training through the end of the war.

In this miniseries, the characters were colorful. The plot twists were riveting. The battle scenes were beyond intense. For those who watched the entire program, however, perhaps the conclusion of the final episode packs the most powerful punch. You see, each episode of Band of Brothers began with an old man talking to an off-screen interviewer. Over the course of the series, the various old men became familiar faces as they quietly spoke of their days as young soldiers. Only at the end of the ten-part story did you learn their names. They are the very men depicted in the miniseries. They are the Band of Brothers. Their story was not fiction. Their story was real.

When the apostle Peter sat down and wrote his second letter, he was an old man too. He wanted his readers, including you and me, to understand something about what he and all the other writers recorded in the Bible about Jesus. They did not write it down for entertainment. They did not write it down to tell a rousing story. They did not write it down to keep us spellbound with colorful characters and riveting plotlines. They wrote it down because that’s what happened. They wrote it down because they were eyewitnesses. They wrote it down because it really happened.

That means your forgiveness in Jesus and his guiding hand in your life is real. It means his promise to uphold you and your security in him is real. And that is really comforting.

Prayer:
Holy Spirit, as I read your Word, fill me with the awareness that Jesus’ life and death and resurrection took place in real time, for me and for all. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
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God Invites His People to See His Glory – February 24, 2023

Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel went up and saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of lapis lazuli, as bright blue as the sky. But God did not raise his hand against these leaders of the Israelites; they saw God, and they ate and drank.
Exodus 24:9-11

God Invites His People to See His Glory

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Daily Devotion – February 24, 2023

Devotion based on Exodus 24:9-11

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Would you like to see God? I think most people would say, “Yes, that would be amazing to see God with my own eyes!” We may want to see God, but we probably forget that our eyes are not qualified to see him in all his glory. Many times in the Old Testament, when a person came face to face with God’s glory, they trembled with fear. For a puny human sinner to gaze upon the full perfection and glory of God is beyond our pay-grade.

That’s why what happened at Mount Sinai in Exodus chapter 24 is so unexpected. Moses, Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and the seventy elders of Israel went up and saw the God of Israel. It’s stated so simply and matter of fact. They saw God. And he looked glorious. But here’s the most amazing thing–God did not raise his hand against them. Even though they should have had no business standing before God in all his glory, God let them be there in his presence. They even ate and drank there as they saw him.

Standing in the presence our glorious and perfect God is above our pay-grade. God should hide his face from us because of our unworthiness and sin. But instead, God smiles his face upon us and looks on us with favor and kindness. Because of the cross on Mount Calvary we are allowed into the presence of our God. Jesus, God’s Son, has made the imposing God of Mount Sinai approachable. God invites his people to see his glory because Jesus has already draped us in his robe of perfection and holiness. We can approach God without fear. And one day, we will be able to eat and drink with God at the banquet table of heaven.

Prayer:
Dear glorious Lord, thank you for inviting me into your presence and letting me share in your glory. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
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Pay Attention to the Light – February 23, 2023

We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.
2 Peter 1:19

Pay Attention to the Light

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Daily Devotion – February 23, 2023

Devotion based on 2 Peter 1:19

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What would you do if the batteries of your flashlight died while exploring deep in a dark cave? There are only a couple of options, neither of which sounds great. You could either sit there and yell out, hoping someone with a light comes to rescue you. Or you could try to feel your way through the darkness and hope you don’t get lost further in the cave or stumble down a pit. Either way, your chances of getting out of that cave aren’t great.

But if someone started coming toward you in the dark cave with a light, what would you do? You wouldn’t just sit there and ignore it. You’d put all your attention and focus onto that light. That light is your way out. Your life depends on it! That light would be all you care about at that point.

In our Bible verse for today, the Word of God, is compared to a light shining in a dark place. As people living in the darkness of this world and of our own sin, we do well to pay attention to that light above all else. We look to the Word of God as something completely reliable. That Word of God lights up our world and lets us walk on the right path. Most importantly, God’s Word shows us Jesus and what he has done to save us from our sins. It’s no wonder God wants us to pay attention to the light of his Word!

Prayer:
Dear heavenly Father, I thank you for giving me your reliable Word to be a light for me in the dark. Keep my attention focused on that Word each and every day. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
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Just Jesus – February 22, 2023

When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.
Matthew 17:8

Just Jesus

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Daily Devotion – February 22, 2023

Devotion based on Matthew 17:8

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Peter, James, and John had just seen their humble teacher, Jesus, transfigured into a shining and glorious version of himself. Jesus showed them a glimpse of who he truly was as the Son of God. The three disciples also saw two great prophets from long ago: Moses and Elijah. Seeing Jesus in all his glory and hearing the voice of God the Father speak from the heavens must have made the three disciples feel very small and unworthy. In fact, after they heard the voice from heaven, “they fell facedown to the ground, terrified.”

But Jesus came over to them, touched them, and said, “Get up. Don’t be afraid.” At that point they looked and saw no one except Jesus. Moses and Elijah were gone. The voice from the cloud was gone. Jesus wasn’t shining with the light of the sun anymore. He was normal looking Jesus again. But he was all Peter, James, and John really needed. The bright glory of heaven they glimpsed on the mountain would be theirs again one day. But right now, they needed their Savior and the humiliation of death he was about to undergo for them. They didn’t need all that glory yet. They did need their Savior now. As great as it was seeing all the glory of God there on the mountain, what they really needed to see was…just Jesus.

This is ultimately what we need to see—just Jesus. The glory of God is too bright and overwhelming for us poor sinners. We needed God to come to us when we could never approach him. So, he did. Jesus, God himself, came to earth in our flesh and blood to be one of us so he could die for us in our place. If we want to know God, we look to Jesus. He is the one who allows us to come to the Father. He is the one who makes us worthy of all the glory of God by sharing the glory of his resurrection with us. This is what we need—just Jesus.

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for coming as one of us in order to save me. Thank you for being our Way to the Father and glory everlasting. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
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