Month: January 2024

And now the LORD says—he who formed me in the womb to be his servant to bring Jacob back to him and gather Israel to himself, for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD and my God has been my strength—he says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”
Isaiah 49:5,6

Small Things

Daily Devotion – January 13, 2024

Devotion based on Isaiah 49:5,6


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A leading expert on stress, cardiologist Robert Eliot, gives the following prescription for dealing with stress: Rule number one is—don’t sweat the small stuff. Rule number two is—it’s all small stuff.

Looking back at your celebrations of Christmas and New Year’s, do you feel like much of what you did was hurried and stress-filled, yet ultimately all small stuff? Perhaps you are even feeling remorseful regret over not having made more of a season filled with opportunities for witness and worship. If you have sinned through selfish indulgence or wasted worship time, then behold, “I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people” (Luke 2:10).

Entering our lives is the God of our salvation—Jesus, servant of the Lord. Jesus is the one who brings salvation to the ends of the earth. He came to rescue the world from sin.

That means he brings salvation to the homes of those who gathered and gifted until they had their fill but let Christmas and Christ pass by with little notice. It is a new year, and it is not too late to shake things up and change–to reflect upon the smallness of life here and the greatness of life hereafter.

The game-changer is Jesus. His plan and purpose is to bring salvation to the ends of the earth and gather us to himself. Don’t settle for small when you can marvel at great!

Prayer:
Gracious God, I marvel at the task you laid upon your Son to rescue and save me. By the Spirit, cause me to embrace and receive that salvation as my own. Amen.

And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love.”
Mark 1:11

He Knows

Daily Devotion – January 12, 2024

Devotion based on Mark 1:11


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In our sinful weakness, there are times when you and I can slip into falsely accusing the God who loves us. The temptation can be strong when you and I face tragedy and grief. “God doesn’t know. God doesn’t understand. God has no idea how it feels to carry such difficulty, pain, and loss. And so, why should I listen to what he says? Why should I pay attention to his nice words? He doesn’t get it anyway.”

When such thinking creeps into my mind, I need to stop. First, I need to remember that God the Son not only knows all about real life in this fallen world; he has fully experienced the very worst that this world can dish out. He knows pain, grief, and loss.

God the Father understands, too. At Jesus’ baptism, God the Father spoke up. He spoke up because he had something to say—something he wanted you and me to know. In that moment, God the Father said to Jesus, “You are my Son, whom I love.”

“You are my Son, whom I love.” These are not words of some abstract theological concept. This is a Father speaking to his Son. This is a Father telling his Son that he loves him. It is this same Father who watched his Son sacrifice himself on a cross for the sins of the world. God the Father endured this loss because of his love for you and me. As Jesus himself says, “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son.”

And so God loves us beyond what we can grasp. And he also understands.

Prayer:
Lord God, I sometimes forget that you understand the pain that sin and death can bring. Forgive my false presumptions. And thank you for your love for me. Amen.

For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him.
Romans 6:9

Former Master

Daily Devotion – January 11, 2024

Devotion based on Romans 6:9


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The time is during the American Civil War. A man has lived his entire life in slavery under the rule of his master. Now, however, the man is free. He chooses to serve as a soldier in the Union Army. Months go by. One day, the man’s unit is near a camp that contains Confederate prisoners of war. Suddenly, he sees a familiar face. He sees the face of his former master. It is then that the man walks up to his former master and famously says, “Hello, master. Bottom rail on top this time.”

His point could not have been more clear. In their previous life together, one was the master, and the other was the slave. But that reality no longer existed. His old master was now a prisoner of war. His days of owning slaves were over. If anything, the former master now had to answer to his former slave.

Ever since our first parents, Adam and Eve, fell into sin, death has ruled as a master in this world. It has ruled us with fear, grief, and dread. It has ruled us with the awful reality that one day, sooner or later, death comes for each of us. It comes for our grandparents. It comes for our parents, siblings, children, and friends. It comes for you and me.

But then Jesus came. And he changed everything. On our behalf, he lived a life of perfect goodness. In our place, he carried our every sin to Calvary’s cross. As our substitute, he suffered and died to wash us clean. And three days later, he did something to make a point. Three days later, he walked away from death and raised himself back to life.

And because Jesus lives, death is no longer our master. Because Jesus lives, death now serves as a door to eternal life. Because Jesus lives, you and I can walk up to death and say, “Hello, Master. Bottom rail on top this time.”

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, because you live, death now must answer to you. Thank you. Amen.

For we know that our old self was crucified with [Christ].
Romans 6:6

Official

Daily Devotion – January 10, 2024

Devotion based on Romans 6:6


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For a young woman by the name of Anne Greene, the year 1650 was a year she would never forget. Falsely accused and wrongly convicted of murder, Anne Greene faced the gallows. The hangman carried out her execution. Immediately afterward, the coffin bearing her body went to a team of doctors for medical research. Upon lifting the lid, however, the doctors detected faint breathing. They rushed to do everything possible to revive her, and in so doing, they saved her life.

The consensus among all involved was that her official execution had taken place; there was no need to pursue the matter further. As a result, Anne Greene enjoyed a full and free pardon. Displaying an extraordinary sense of wonder about her indescribable experience, she took her coffin as a souvenir, settled in another town, got married, and raised a family.

In Romans chapter 6, the apostle Paul tells us that our official execution has taken place as well. When Jesus went to the cross outside the city walls of Jerusalem, God took all the sins of my old self and placed them on his Son. This means that, as far as God is concerned, my old identity as a lost sinner is no more. It’s no more because a first-century crucifixion detail carried out my execution just outside the city walls of Jerusalem. And now, through faith in Jesus, I enjoy a full and free pardon. Jesus’ death has washed my old identity away. I stand forgiven. A fresh, bright future now awaits me. And beyond that is eternal life in heaven.

One more thing. On the day of her execution, Anne Greene labored under massive debt. Afterward, however, Anne received more than enough contributions from others to wipe her debt away. In our crucified and risen Lord, the debt of our sin is gone, too. It’s official.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, in God’s eyes my old identity as a guilty sinner is no more. The old debt of my transgression is gone. My life is now fresh and clean and new. Move me to live it for you. Amen.

We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
Romans 6:4

New Life

Daily Devotion – January 9, 2024

Devotion based on Romans 6:4


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Martin Pistorius was a happy twelve-year-old boy living with his family in their home country of South Africa. One day, he came down with a mysterious illness. The illness placed Martin in a deep coma, completely unresponsive to everything around him. He remained in this state for so long that, eventually, the medical team told Martin’s family that they should take him home, as his death would now be just a matter of time.

But Martin did not die. His body kept going. Each morning, his father fed him, got him dressed, and took him to the care center for the day. In the evening, he brought him home, fed him, bathed him, and got him ready for bed. This went on for twelve years.

What no one knew was that Martin was aware of everything going on around him. He could see, hear, feel, smell, and taste. His body was incapable of showing any response in any way. However, he knew precisely what was going on.

It’s the stuff of nightmares: To live as a prisoner in plain sight, completely isolated from others for any affection, any attention, any meaningful relationship. It’s also a jarring illustration of what sin does—your sin and mine.

Because of sin, you and I, by nature, languished in prisons of our own making. These prisons isolated us from each other and from God.

But then came Jesus. Through his perfect life in our place and his suffering and death on our behalf, he threw open the prison doors. He cleansed us. He clothed us in his holiness. In Holy Baptism he claimed us as his own. And now, through his gospel, new life is ours. We are forgiven. We are his. And we are free.

Twelve years later, Martin’s imprisonment came to an end. His body woke up, and he’s happily married, living his new life. In Christ, our imprisonment is over too. And our new life lasts forever.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank you for rescuing me from my prison. Thank you for my new life. Amen.

“I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”
Isaiah 49:6

Every Faraway Place

Daily Devotion – January 8, 2024

Devotion based on Isaiah 49:6


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Try this on for a fun fact. There are twice as many mobile devices in the world as there are people. And you can find mobile devices everywhere. Everywhere! You can find them in the South American jungle. You can find them in the mountain villages of Tibet. You can find them among nomadic tribes in the Sahara. You can find them in isolated huts with dirt floors.

For this reason, there are Christian volunteers who prepare memory cards for missionaries to take to these faraway places—memory cards the missionaries can easily install in people’s mobile devices. The memory cards include Bible studies, songs, an audio New Testament, and a movie about Jesus—all in the language of their region. Thanks be to God.

But faraway places do not just include remote villages on the other side of the world. To anyone who’s living a life without Jesus—that life is also in a faraway place—the aide who cares for your dad at the nursing home; the new friend you’ve made at Thursday night volleyball; the girl who cuts your hair; the mechanic who maintains your car; the couple who’s moved in across the street; the co-worker in the cubicle next to yours; the old friend you’ve known since high school; a member of your own extended family.

In other words, people who live in faraway places include souls you and I see in our lives all the time.

When God the Son came to this earth, he had you and me in mind. When he lived a perfect life on our behalf and suffered and died for our every sin, he had you and me in mind. When he rose from the grave, he had you and me in mind. He also had in mind everyone else living in faraway places, whether that faraway place is in a primitive village on a tiny island or a lonely life someone is living right before your eyes.

And maybe, just maybe, the Lord will reach that faraway place through you.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank you for touching lives in faraway places. And thank you for touching mine. Amen.

What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
Romans 6:1,2

Dead To Sin

Daily Devotion – January 7, 2024

Devotion based on Romans 6:1,2


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Sometimes Christianity doesn’t make sense to people who are not Christians, even though they have a general idea about its core belief system.

For example, if it’s true that Jesus died on a cross 2,000 years ago and paid for everyone’s sins, wouldn’t that encourage people who claim to be Christians to keep on sinning if they are forgiven anyhow? If you gave someone a credit card and said that they would not have to pay for whatever they bought, wouldn’t that encourage them to go on a spending spree? That is how a greedy person would think to take advantage of the credit card owner’s generosity.

But Christians, out of love for Jesus as their Savior, do not think, “Let my life be a life of immorality and self-indulgence and of doing whatever sinful thing comes to mind because I’m forgiven!” Christians do not live to sin in order to have more of God’s grace. The truth is that we love God because he has so richly blessed us. And our love for him prevents us from seeking to take advantage of God’s great love for us by living a sinful life.

Therefore, the attitude of Christians is, “We died to sin.” We don’t approve of sin! Our relationship with sin is over. Why? Because Jesus loves us and has freed us from sin’s guilt. Christians show their love for Jesus by striving not to have any relationship with sin—we are dead to sin.

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for paying for my sin with your life. Now I am dead to sin. I don’t want to have a relationship with sin. Help me in my struggle against it. I love you for loving me. Amen.

“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations.”
Luke 2:29-31

Getting Ready

Daily Devotion – January 6, 2024

Devotion based on Luke 2:29-31


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Think back to when you were in second grade. When the bell rang, what would the students do? They’d put their books in their desks, they’d make sure the floor around them was clean, and they’d sit quietly, waiting for the teacher to fulfill her promise of “When you are ready, you will be dismissed.”

God made a promise to a man named Simeon that was similar, but not identical, to the grade school teacher. Instead of “When you are ready, you will be dismissed,” God promised Simeon, “When I am ready, you will see the Christ-child; then you will be dismissed.” The Lord didn’t give Simeon a detailed timeline—Simeon needed to trust God’s perfect timing instead. So when would this happen? When would he see Jesus and be dismissed?

Second graders only need to wait a few seconds; Simeon had to wait a few decades. Yet, when God was ready, Jesus was born, Simeon saw him, and Simeon fully trusted that God’s salvation was in front of his own eyes. Now, he would be dismissed in peace. That means he would die, leave earth and go to heaven because of what this baby Jesus would do.

Would you like to be dismissed in peace? Would you like your death day to be calm and not scary, like Simeon? Then, listen carefully to God’s promises. God has guaranteed that “Whoever believes in [Jesus] shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). The Lord has prepared his salvation for the eyes of all people. That includes you.

When you believe in Jesus as Savior, being dismissed from this earth is peaceful. It is no scarier than being dismissed from a second-grade classroom. And the best part? In second grade, when you are dismissed, you go home for the night, but then you have to come back to school. But when you are dismissed from this earth, you go home to heaven, and you stay there forever.

Prayer:
Dear Jesus, thank you for coming to earth so that I could be dismissed in peace. Help me to wait patiently until the day you are ready to dismiss me and take me home. Amen.