Category: Daily Devotions

[The younger son said to his father] “I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.” . . . The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
Luke 15:19,28-30

Grace in Place of Merits

Daily Devotion – April 4, 2025

Devotion based on Luke 15:19,28-30


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By nature, we operate on the basic assumption that you get what you deserve. If you’ve worked hard, you reap a reward for your labor. You pay the price if you’ve been lazy, dishonest, or wasteful. This basic assumption moves many to approach God based on a merit system.

Both sons in this story were operating under that basic assumption. The younger son, who greedily demanded and then squandered his father’s wealth, thought he wasn’t worthy of returning home as a son. He approached his father with a plan to earn his way back by being a servant. The older son, who remained on his father’s estate and kept his nose to the grindstone, thought he was certainly more worthy than his younger brother. He became upset when his father welcomed his brother back as a son, based on grace in place of merit.

There is only one Son to whom that basic assumption applies. Based on the merits of the perfect Son of God, Jesus Christ, God welcomes us home as his dearly loved and fully forgiven children. We need not work our way back into God’s good graces. Jesus’ perfect work, his life, death, and resurrection, have already earned your spot in the Father’s house. It is by his grace, not by your works. You do not and cannot approach God based on merits. Instead, he approaches you with his grace. Like the father in the story ran out to welcome home his son, your Father in heaven runs to you and welcomes you with open arms and grace in place of condemnation. Welcome home!

Prayer:
Lord, by your grace, you receive me as your child. May I rest in that grace alone! Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. . . So he got up and went to his father. While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.”
Luke 15:11-13,20

Grace in Place of Greed

Daily Devotion – April 3, 2025

Devotion based on Luke 15:11-13,20


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Jesus told a heart-wrenching story. You can read it in Luke 15:11-32. The younger son demanded his share of his father’s estate. Greed lured him away from his father’s home, where he had all he needed. His decision to take his inheritance and squander it eventually left him with nothing. A story like this makes our blood boil. Can you believe the audacity of the son that was so greedy and thankless!

Greed can easily lure our hearts away from the grace of our heavenly Father, which we’ve had at our disposal all along. We’ve felt the tug of a greedy heart that thinks our Father’s love and providence aren’t enough. We’ve given into the allure of material wealth as a replacement for the satisfaction that only our Savior’s love can give. The heartbreaking story of the younger son is our story, too.

Thank God, that’s not the end of the story. More extravagant than the lifestyle of the son who squandered everything is the lavish love of his father, who spared no expense in welcoming his son home. The son came to his senses and decided to return to his father’s house. His father was watching and waiting with open arms to welcome him home as a son.

God’s grace more than covers our sins of greed. Our longing hearts finally find what wealth cannot buy. We find our loving Father always ready to welcome us home with open arms. We find that the gift of our Savior’s forgiveness doesn’t depreciate or become depleted like all our earthly assets. We discover again that our Father’s love and his Son’s sacrifice are always enough.

Prayer:
Father in heaven, how great is the love you lavish on me, that you call me a son and welcome me home with open arms. Grant that I may always trust that your grace is enough. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.
Romans 8:1,2

Grace in Place of Condemnation

Daily Devotion – April 2, 2025

Devotion based on Romans 8:1,2


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What’s it like to stand before a judge, waiting for his verdict? Maybe you know what it’s like, or maybe you’ve only seen it on the news. Whether we have stood in front of a judge in real life or not, all of us are accountable to God, who rightly judges every heart. If we’re honest, we know what God’s verdict should be—guilty as charged, sentenced to eternal condemnation.

But the grace of God in Jesus Christ overrules what should be. In God’s courtroom, we find grace in place of condemnation. Every day we can confess our sins and plead guilty, and God declares us not guilty through Jesus Christ. When Jesus died on the cross, God’s justice was served, and you were saved. Now, God personally declares “not guilty” all who have faith in Christ Jesus. Now, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!

In Jesus and through faith in him, you need not imagine what it’s like to be declared “not guilty” by the judge of all humankind. It’s a very real verdict, and it impacts you right now. Too often, we dwell in the past. We let past sins and past guilt distract us from the present reality of God’s forgiveness. Once we lived under the law of sin and death, we were controlled by sin and condemned to death. But that was then. Now, things are different. Those who are in Christ have been set free by the grace of God.

Prayer:
Lord, keep me always in Christ so that I may live now and forever in your grace. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

“I will praise you, LORD. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me. Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The LORD, the LORD himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.”
Isaiah 12:1,2

Grace in Place of Anger

Daily Devotion – April 1, 2025

Devotion based on Isaiah 12:1,2


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When someone offends or hurts you with words or actions, what’s your most likely response? To show grace or fume with anger? For many of us, too often, we react with anger.

In our Bible reading for today, the author says that God was angry with him because of his sins. God’s anger is different from our anger. God’s anger is rightly directed toward anyone who repeatedly disobeys and disregards his perfect will. God would have had as many reasons to be angry with us as we have sins.

Thankfully, our Bible passage goes on to say, “Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away…” Once, God’s anger was directed toward us because of our sins, but that anger was redirected. Where did it go? It was redirected upon Jesus, the perfect Son of God. God’s anger against sin was redirected entirely upon the one who always did his Father’s will. All the reasons for God to be angry with us were redirected upon Jesus on the cross.

When God’s anger was redirected upon the cross of Christ, so was every reason we would ever have to be afraid of a Holy God. When grace takes the place of anger, we can see God not as an angry and just judge but as our gracious and loving Father. In our lives, we can show and speak grace in place of anger. We can speak and react differently than the unbelieving world does. By this, we can open a door for those who still fume with anger or tremble in fear of God’s anger. By showing grace in place of anger, we open the door to reveal Jesus, who has turned away God’s anger and comforts us with his grace.

Prayer:
Lord God, surely you have saved me; I will trust in you and not be afraid. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
Luke 15:1,2

No Replacements for Grace

Daily Devotion – March 31, 2025

Devotion based on Luke 15:1,2


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When it comes to how we view sin and immorality in the world, there are two extremes. One is to celebrate and condone. The other is to judge and condemn hypocritically. The way of our world is often the first extreme: to deal with sin and those caught up in it by condoning and celebrating it as something good. Others with a more accurate moral compass, or those who don’t struggle with certain sins, can easily fall into the other extreme: hypocritically judging and condemning those who sin differently.

Jesus perfectly avoided both extremes and opted for grace in place of hypocritical condemnation and grace in place of condoning and celebrating. Grace is God’s undeserved love. Grace leads God to give the gift of forgiveness, not earned but freely given through Jesus. Jesus was often criticized for interacting and ministering to people who were publicly known as “sinners.” Those who fell into the extreme of hypocritically judging and condemning had replaced grace with works and outward displays of holiness. They wrongly viewed Jesus’ interactions as condoning sin because they didn’t understand grace. Jesus came not to condemn nor condone but to save and forgive. That’s grace!

Jesus was not shy in calling sin what it was. He was not stingy in offering grace and forgiveness to those who knew they needed it. This is good news for us! We have likely fallen into both extremes at times. We’ve opted for something else other than grace. We’ve approached God or others with something other than grace. But grace calls us back home to our Savior, who forgives our sins on both extremes and everyone in between. That’s grace!

There are no replacements for the grace of God in Jesus Christ. Instead, Jesus shows us grace in place of what we once deserved, in place of things that might distract us from the gift of his forgiveness.

Prayer:
Lord of grace, you are not ashamed to draw near to me and welcome me into your family. Preserve me from any extreme that undermines your grace and renew me daily by your forgiveness. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

If Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness.
Romans 8:10

Out From Under the Crushing Weight

Daily Devotion – March 30, 2025

Devotion based on Romans 8:10


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From time to time, we hear of people doing extraordinary things, like the woman who managed to lift the end of a 3,600-pound car off her son when the jack slipped. In extreme emergencies, people have been known to reach back into a resource of hidden physical strength and mental resourcefulness they didn’t know they had. Can they do this all by themselves? Or is this a miraculous help from God?

The author of the book of Hebrews devotes his 11th chapter to Old Testament men and women who were heroes of faith. It was from God that they drew their strength. In one dimension of life, however, human strength cannot avail. It does not enable us to save others or ourselves from the power and punishment of sin. By the labors of our hands, we cannot fulfill God’s demands, earn salvation, or pull ourselves out of the dilemma of doing things we don’t want to do and not doing the good God demands.

What is more, the psalmist declares, “No one can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for them” (Psalm 49:7). The ransom demanded would be entirely too great. But what we can’t do, our Lord Jesus did for us. He gave his life as a ransom for the whole world of sinners so that all who believe in him as the Savior are freed from the burden of unpaid spiritual bills, from the fear of death, from the crushing weight of sin. Only God could have done for us what we could never have done for ourselves.

Prayer:
God of heaven and earth, please stand near me with your strength that makes me perfect in my weakness. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
1 Corinthians 10:31

Live for the Glory of God

Daily Devotion – March 29, 2025

Devotion based on 1 Corinthians 10:31


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When evil strikes and kills, when people are terrorized and suffer unjustly, they are often united to bring the perpetrators to justice.

About 1,000 years before Jesus was born, a young man’s blood started to boil when he heard the challenge of Goliath that terrorized his nation (1 Samuel 17). Young David didn’t even consider his own comfort and safety but only thought of the cause. No one was going to slander the true God, defy his power, and get away with it. So, he went into combat with Goliath, knowing the battle was the Lord’s and the victory would be for God’s people. Gigantic Goliath fell dead at the hands of the small, courageous David.

Does your blood boil when God is defied and slandered? Realize that the glory of God has shown brightly in sending his Son to fight for us. It is not only others who have defied God’s glory. We have joined them with our own sinful attitudes and actions. But Jesus put aside his heavenly glory and died on the cross to keep us from being terrorized by God’s justice and sin’s power. When we truly comprehend that wonderful truth and come to appreciate all that Jesus did for us, we are inspired to take up our Christian cause of living for the glory of God in whatever we do—both in the small and big things of our lives.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, help me to always live to your glory showing my great appreciation for all my Savior, Jesus, accomplished for me. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

Then [Jesus] told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’ “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”
Luke 13:6-9

Lord, Give Me Patience!

Daily Devotion – March 28, 2025

Devotion based on Luke 13:6-9


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I struggle a little bit with being patient with other people. When I see things not being done as I would do them or when I give instructions to my kids, and they don’t do what I say, that frustrates me.

You might wrestle with this, too. We want to be patient. We know that we should be. But man! People can make that difficult, right?

Whenever I feel myself getting riled up and impatient with others, I try to remember how patient God has been with me. My goodness! How many times have I messed up? How many times have I pledged to God that I wouldn’t do that sin again, only to find myself reoffending? I try to be good. I try to honor God with my life, but there are episodes of my life where godly living would be hard to see.

Thank God, he sent us Jesus! Jesus lived the life that we never could—a perfect one—and he gave that life of perfection to pay for all the times we have frustrated God with our foolishness.

You might find yourself getting impatient with others like your parents, your spouse, your kids, or whomever! Remember the patience God has shown you and mirror that patience with them.

Prayer:
Dear heavenly Father, I have not always lived as I should. I am sorry for all the times I have gone my own way and done my own thing. Thank you for opening my eyes to see the forgiveness that Jesus has gifted me. Thank you for being patient with me. Help me as I seek to show that patience with others. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

Then he [Jesus] told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’ “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”
Luke 13:6-9

God Is Patient

Daily Devotion – March 27, 2025

Devotion based on Luke 13:6-9


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For years, I trimmed and clipped. I watered and fertilized. But despite all my best efforts, I couldn’t get our lemon tree to produce. My patience wore out. I gave up the fight. And I finally chopped it down and cut my losses.

If you have ever tried to grow your own food, you know some of those same frustrations. You spend your time, your efforts, and your money trying to get something to grow, but sometimes, it just doesn’t.

People can be like that stubborn fruit tree. They don’t change their ways. They don’t produce God-pleasing words and actions. That is because we have been infected with something so deadly. The Bible calls it sin. You see, God is holy, he’s perfect. And sinful beings can’t stand before God. We deserve to be chopped down and tossed into the burn pile of hell. But instead, God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to take the punishment for sin that should have been ours upon himself. And through the blood of Jesus, our rottenness, guilt, and sin are covered.

God is the ultimate spiritual gardener, and his heart is filled with patience. He tenderly and lovingly prunes, waters, and cares for us, his children. That care comes through his Word—warning us to turn from our sin and telling us the news of our forgiveness.

Friend, God wants to see this change in you! Confess to God your sin and, with joy and confidence, know that in Christ you have forgiveness!

Prayer:
Dear God, I am sorry for my sin. I know that I deserve your full punishment for it. Thank you for sending me my Savior, Jesus, who has rescued me from death. Thank you for being patient with me. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”
Luke 13:1-5

Repent!

Daily Devotion – March 26, 2025

Devotion based on Luke 13:1-5


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Charlie is in prison. He might be there for the rest of his life. He hurt people, and that’s how he ended up in a cell. He doesn’t like it in prison. However, he is glad that he got caught. It woke him up to see that he had a problem. Charlie has since acknowledged not just the sins that landed him in the penitentiary but all the sins in his heart that warranted him a sentence to hell for eternity. By the grace of God, he knows that Jesus has taken away all his sins, and because of Jesus, he will one day live free forever in heaven! He thanks God that he discovered this before it was too late.

Pain and punishment are, at times, blessings from God. They shake us to our senses. People had come to see Jesus because they were in pain. And when they did, Jesus told the people a vital truth that we all need to remember—we need to repent. We need to acknowledge our faults before God and confess the sin that deserves the full wrath of Almighty God. But then, with joy, we need to turn to the one who has paid the price of our sins. We need to turn to Jesus!

I pray that you don’t end up in prison like Charlie. However, if God allows pain to strike your life, perhaps God is using it to call you to repent. And when you do, he is there with open arms, full of mercy.

Prayer:
Dear God, I confess to you the sins I know and the sins I am unaware that I have done. I beg for your mercy, O Lord. Trusting in my Savior, Jesus, I rest in your grace. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.