Author: Bruce

I have been in Japan as a missionary since 1995. I'm currently going to a church called Crossroad Nishinomiya, an international church in Nishinomiya, a city right between Kobe and Osaka. Check out their website: www.crossroad-web.com. #crossroadnishinomiya

１９９５年に宣教師として日本に来ました。　今、西宮クロスロード教会という国際の教会に行っています。どうぞ、そのホームページを見てください：　www.crossroad-web.com. #西宮クロスロード教会

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1 Peter Devotionals

Unfair

1 Peter

For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring you to God. (1 Peter 3:18)

“It’s so unfair! I don’t deserve this!”

Have you ever felt that way? I have.

But as I read verse 18, it struck me that Jesus suffered the greatest injustice. He was righteous. He never sinned. Yet he suffered on a cross for us who are unrighteous. He suffered for our sins.

Why?

To bring us to God.

What if Jesus had only been concerned about what was “fair”?

Where would we be?

Thank God that he wasn’t only concerned about what was fair.

He was concerned about us.

He wanted our relationship with his Father to be restored.

And so he put aside the need for “fairness,”

Lord, let me have the attitude you had when others treat me unfairly. Give me the love and concern for them that you have.

You have given me an example. Now let me follow in your steps (1 Peter 2:21-23), not repaying evil for evil, or insult for insult, but seeking peace.

Peace between me and them. But more importantly, peace between them and you.

In your name I pray, amen.

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1 Peter Devotionals

Sprinkled by his blood

1 Peter

To those chosen…to be obedient and to be sprinkled with the blood of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:1-2)

Peter’s words seem to come from Exodus 24:7-8. At that time, the Israelites were agreeing to the covenant God had written out.

At that time, they said,

We will do and obey all that the Lord has commanded. (Exodus 24:7)

After they said that, Moses took the blood of the bulls, sprinkled it on the people, and said,

This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you concerning all these words. (Exodus 24:8)

Just like the Israelites, we have been chosen to be obedient to Jesus Christ.

Just like the Israelites, we often vow to God that we will be obedient.

And just like the Israelites, we often fail to keep that vow.

But while the Israelites were sprinkled with blood that could not truly cleanse them (Hebrews 10:4), we have been sprinkled with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect (19).

And by his blood we have been cleansed and forgiven (Matthew 10:28, 1 John 1:7).

Because of that, we have grace and peace with God. And not just grace and peace, but grace and peace in abundance. (2)

Are you always feeling guilty for failing to measure up as a Christian?

Set your hope not on your ability to be perfectly obedient to God.

Instead, set your hope on the grace that will be given you when Jesus Christ comes back. (13)

And until that day, keep on walking, following after our Lord.

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James Devotionals

Because Jesus is coming

James

In a lot of ways, James is circling back to his point in chapter 1, encouraging people who were facing trials in their lives.

And the main point he gives in this chapter is that Jesus is coming back.

When he does, he will judge those who have unfairly treated us, for all who have done injustice. (James 5:1-6)

And so James tells us: justice is coming. Wait for it. Wait for the Lord as Job and the prophets did. And as we do, we’ll find out that God is indeed good. (7-11)

So until he comes back, keep your eyes on him, in the good times and the bad. (13)

Also, watch how you yourself live, especially in your relationships, knowing that you too will be judged. (9, 12)

Finally, remember you don’t have to stand alone in your struggles. So let your brothers and sisters in Christ support you, and just as importantly, support them, especially when they seem to be falling away from Christ (14-20).

What struggles are you going through now? Let us sing with King David:

I am certain that I will see the Lord’s goodness
in the land of the living.

Wait for the Lord;
be strong, and let your heart be courageous.

Wait for the Lord. (Psalm 27:13-14)

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James Devotionals

Living by the law that gives freedom

James

Speak and act as those who are to be judged by the law of freedom. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has not shown mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. (James 2:12-13)

Lord, you have called me to live by the law that sets people free: the law of love and mercy.

Let me be a person that shows love and mercy to others, and in so doing, setting them free.

Free from feelings of inferiority, of being somehow less valuable than others. (1-4, 6)

But even more importantly, free from their bondage to sin, and fear of your judgment. (Romans 6:5-7; 1 John 4:17-18)

And as I show your love and mercy to those around me, may they all come to know the glorious freedom of the children of God. (Romans 8:21)

I can claim to have all the faith in the world. But without love, love that shows itself through my words and actions, that “faith” is nothing. I am nothing. (14-26, 1 Corinthians 13:2)

So today, Lord, and every day, let my life be marked by the love and mercy you have shown me.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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James Devotionals

Our attitude in the midst of trials

James

Life isn’t always easy. We all go through trials and hardships. But in this passage, James tells us the attitude we should have in the midst of those trials.

What attitude should we have?

1. Remember that God is good. He is not trying to make us fall (James 1:13).

He is not a capricious God, one moment loving toward us, and the next being angry at us for no reason. Even when we are faithless, he is faithful (17).

And when he does allow trials in our lives, his end goal is that we will be mature and complete, lacking nothing (4).

And when this life is through, and we have passed through our final test, he will give the crown of life for all of us who love him (12).

And so with that in mind…

2. Trust him.

Like I said, his goal is to make us mature and complete, lacking nothing.

But in our trials, we sometimes lack wisdom. And so James says in those times, ask God, and he will give without hesitation. But we need to ask with a heart of faith. (8)

What does that mean?

Again it means believing that God is good. That he wants our best. And that his way is best.

So be slow to speak, complaining to God about our trials. Be slow to get angry at God for allowing our suffering and trials.

Rather, be quick to listen to him. And be quick to obey him. As we do so, ultimately, we will find God’s blessing, even in the midst of our trials. (17-25)

Finally,

3. Look outward.

There are other people suffering in this world too. Paul mentions the widows and the orphans (27).

But take note of those who are hurting around you and touch them too.

It’s easy to always look inward at our problems in times of trials. But let us be people that look outward.

Are you struggling through trials right now? What is your attitude?

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2 Thessalonians Devotionals

Honoring God’s word

2 Thessalonians

In addition, brothers and sisters, pray for us that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you. (2 Thessalonians 3:1)

I think that whatever country you live in, this is something we all pray as Christians. That God’s word, and especially the word of his gospel would spread and be honored.

But I think it’s worthwhile to ask: “Are we, his people, honoring his word?”

If we are going to pray that his word would be honored in our nations, that needs to start with us.

Do we love his word? Do we read it? Do we think on it during the day?

And most importantly, do we obey it?

I read something interesting yesterday.

Where you find a church, you find a community committed to the Bible. If not, you have not found a church. — Al Mohler

I pray that all our churches would be a people committed to the Bible. If we truly want to see revival in our nations, it starts with us honoring God and his Word, and saying each day, “Lord, speak to me. What do you want to say to me today?”

Lord, you are faithful even when we are not. Thank you for that.

Help us to be people that honor your word. And may your word, and especially your gospel be honored in this nation.

Each day, direct our hearts to your love for us. And when things get hard though we are following you, direct our hearts to Jesus’ endurance that he showed on the cross.

Thank you for your love. We rest in that love. And we rest in your goodness toward us. Now, speak to us. We want to hear your voice. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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2 Thessalonians Devotionals

Loving the truth

2 Thessalonians

They perish because they did not accept the love of the truth and so be saved. (2 Thessalonians 3:10)

We live in a world where the idea of truth, especially moral truth, is disappearing.

Things once considered morally wrong are no longer looked upon that way. Especially when it comes to sex, sexual orientation, and gender. This leads to “freedom” and “happiness,” people claim.

But the truth is, the end result will be that they perish.

And when Antichrist comes with all his miracles, signs, and wonders, they will be easily deceived because he will preach everything they already believe.

He himself will delight in unrighteousness just as they do, and so they will embrace him.

Paul’s words to the Romans ring truer than ever.

Although they know God’s just sentence—that those who practice such things deserve to die,—they not only do them, but even applaud, others who practice them. (Romans 1:32)

So what is the answer? Embrace truth. When God’s word conflicts with the “truth” the world is teaching, hold tightly to God’s word. As Paul said,

So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold to the traditions you were taught, whether by what we said or what we wrote. (15)

If you embrace God’s truth, you will never have to worry about being deceived.

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1 Thessalonians Devotionals

Putting on the helmet of hope

1 Thessalonians

But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled and put on the armor of faith and love, and a helmet of the hope of salvation. (1 Thessalonians 5:8)

Those last few words struck me. “Put on the helmet of hope.”

We live in a world where there isn’t much hope. Where there seems to be a lot of despair, even among Christians. We see the problems of this world. We see our own personal problems. And we start to lose hope.

But Paul says to put on the helmet of hope to protect us from those thoughts of despair. What kind of hope, though?

The hope of our salvation.

Hope that judgment will come to this world for all the evil we see. But hope that we will not share in God’s wrath on judgment day.

Hope that because Jesus died for our sins, our relationship with God has been restored. And because of that, whether we live or die, he will always be by our side. (9-10)

Hope that though we are imperfect, constantly struggling with our sins and weaknesses, God will sanctify us completely, keeping our whole mind, soul, and body sound and blameless until Jesus comes.

We may not always be faithful.

But the God who has called us is faithful. And he will do it (24).

So let us put on the helmet of hope.

And may our faith that God is good and that he loves us always guard our hearts.

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1 Thessalonians Devotionals

Keep on walking. Keep on growing.

1 Thessalonians

Additionally then, brothers and sisters, we ask and encourage you in the Lord Jesus, that as you have received instruction from us on how you should live and please God—as you are doing—do this even more…

For this is God’s will, your sanctification…

About brotherly love: You don’t need me to write you because you yourselves are taught by God to love one another. In fact, you are doing this…

But we encourage you, brothers and sisters, to do this even more… (1 Thessalonians 4:1,3, 9-10)

I’ve mentioned before that as Christians, we never truly arrive. As long as we are in this world, we will never be perfect.

And yet, as we see here in Paul’s words, we are called to keep on walking. To keep on growing.

Why?

Because God’s will is our sanctification. In other words, his will is that we would become more and more like him, in the way we act, and especially in the way we love.

Are you walking with God? Great! Do it even more.

Are you pleasing God? Great! Do it even more.

Are you loving God and others? Great! Do it even more.

Not to earn God’s love.

But because by his grace we have already received it. (1 Thessalonians 1:4)

So beloved children of God, let’s keep on walking! Let’s keep on growing!

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1 Thessalonians Devotionals

What drives me?

1 Thessalonians

We recall, in the presence of our God and Father, your work produced by faith, your labor motivated by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you… (1 Thessalonians 1:3-4)

As I was reading Paul’s words, I thought, “What motivates me? Is it the fact that God loves me? That for some reason, he chose me to be his child?

“Why do I do the things I do? Is it born from my belief that God is good?

“As I serve the Lord, am I motivated by my love for God and for others?

 “Why do I endure when things get hard? Is it because I have been inspired by the hope I have in Jesus?”

Faith. Hope. Love. These are the things that make the Christian life a joy and not a burden.

Lord, increase my faith. Root me in your love. And when things get hard, remind me of the hope I have in you. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

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Colossians Devotionals

Why pray?

Colossians

Devote yourselves to prayer; stay alert in it with thanksgiving. (Colossians 4:2)

Why pray?

I think we see several reasons in Paul’s instructions on how to pray.

“Stay alert in it.”

Those words remind me of Jesus’ words to his disciples.

Stay awake and pray, so that you won’t enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. (Matthew 26:41)

We pray so that we can be aware of how Satan is trying to attack us during the day.

We pray because we are weak. And we need God’s strength as we face Satan’s attacks and the trials we face each day.

But just as importantly, we pray so that we can see what God is doing around us and join in with what he’s doing, making the most of every opportunity he gives us. (5)

There’s one more reason to pray, though. To remember God’s goodness. To remember his grace and toward us. And as we remember and rest in those things, we start to live each day with gratefulness and joy.

So let us pray each day, staying alert in it, full of thanksgiving.

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Colossians Devotionals

Complete in him

Colossians

and you have been filled by (Christ). (Colossians 2:10)

I like the NASB rendering of this verse.

and in Him you have been made complete. (10)

Do you ever feel inadequate? As if you are somehow lacking as a Christian?

You have been filled with Christ.

In him, you have been made complete.

The Father has wiped out your debt of sin, nailing your certificate of debt to the cross.

You are holy, faultless, and blameless before him. (Colossians 1:22)

He has qualified you for a heavenly inheritance. (Colossians 1:12)

You are his child.

So when the devil tries to accuse you, tell him to buzz off.

And when your own heart accuses you, know that God is greater than your heart. (1 John 3:20)

Your feelings of guilt and inadequacy do not nullify his grace and love toward you.

So rest, child of God. Rest.

You are complete in him.

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Philippians Devotionals

In all things, strong

PhilippiansHope

I have come to understand the secret of dealing with any and every circumstance: I can do all things through the One who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:12-13, English translation of the New Japanese Bible, 2017)

I’ve always loved that phrase, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

You could also translate it, “I am strong to deal with all things, because of Christ who strengthens me.”

I am strong. Not because of my own innate strength. But because of Jesus pouring his power into me.

Strong to deal with not only good times, but bad times.

Strong to deal with whatever life or Satan might throw at me.

In all things, strong.

Lord, I look at my life and see so many weaknesses. It seems so strange to look at those weaknesses and say, “I’m strong.”

But in you, I am strong. Your strength is made perfect in my weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).

And so whatever my circumstances, good or bad, I am content because you are with me. Thank you for your goodness. In Jesus’ name, amen.”

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Philippians Devotionals

Not there yet

PhilippiansHope

Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus.

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.

Therefore, let all of us who are mature think this way. (Philippians 3:12-15)

As Christians, we are always growing, but as long as we are on this earth, we will never “arrive.”

Paul certainly never thought of himself as having “arrived.” But each day he sought to know Jesus more and to become more like him in every way.

But even in his “reaching forward” and “pursuing,” Paul remembered two things.

First, he was accepted by God not because of his own righteousness, but because of Christ’s. By Paul putting his faith in Jesus and His work on the cross, Christ’s record of righteousness became Paul’s record of righteousness (9).

Put another way, his “report card of righteousness” showed all “A”s .

And because of that, he was not striving to attain God’s love and acceptance. He already had it.

Rather, he was overjoyed that God had taken hold of him and had a plan for his life. And out of that joy, he wanted to take hold of everything in life God had prepared for him.

Second, he remembered all his efforts would not be in vain. That though he would never attain perfection in this world, the day would come when he would become just like the Lord he loved. (21)

Paul lived each day in that hope.

Let us all live in with that same hope as well, living in his grace each day, growing to be more like Jesus, and taking hold of the good plan for which he took hold of us.

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Philippians Devotionals

That we might shine as lights in this world

PhilippiansHope

…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life. (Philippians 2:12-16)

Father, you have given us the gift of salvation. Just like you saved Joshua and the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, you have saved us from slavery to Satan’s kingdom.

Now like Joshua, we fall before you in worship and awe, saying, “What does my Lord want to say to his servant.” (Joshua 5:14)

Lord, we are your church, your people. Now work in us to will and to work for your good pleasure, to bring about your kingdom here in Japan. Help us to join in with what you’re doing today.

We live in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation.

Help us to shine like stars in in this world, not compromising your Word in any way as so many people in this world are doing.

Instead, help us to hold fast to it. Because it is your word that gives us and this world life.

Lord, let us, your church, be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish. Let our lives not be marked by grumbling and disputing among ourselves, but by your love.

And as the people around us see the love we have for each other, let them be drawn to you.

We pray for this nation. We pray for our loved ones. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Ephesians Devotionals

Grieving the Spirit

Ephesians

And don’t grieve God’s Holy Spirit. (Ephesians 4:30)

A lot of times, people recognize the personality of the Father and the Son. But they don’t often recognize the personality of the Spirit.

But the Holy Spirit is not a mere power like the Force is in Star Wars. He has personality. And he can be grieved.

He grieves when we harden our hearts against him. (18)

He grieves when in our pride we break the unity of his people. He grieves when our words are filled with bitterness, anger, wrath, slander, and malice toward each other instead of grace. (29, 31)

Let us not grieve the Spirit. Instead, let us always keep humble, softened hearts toward him and toward his people.

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Ephesians Devotionals

More than we can ask or think

Ephesians

Now to him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us. (Ephesians 3:20)

Lord, may I never make you too small in my own mind.

You are able to do so much more than I could even ask or think. The power that raised Jesus from the dead is working in me. (Ephesians 1:19-20)

So don’t ever let me shy away from praying for what seems impossible.

And if as I’m praying for people and situations, you want me to do something, please make that clear.

At times, I feel like my faith is so small. But you said that even the tiniest amount of faith is enough (Matthew 17:20).

So use what faith I have. And Lord, increase my faith.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Ephesians Devotionals

Created to serve God’s kingdom

Ephesians

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do. (Ephesians 2:10)

As I read that verse today, I thought about the phrase “good works.”

Paul says that we were created in Christ Jesus for good works.

But what does he mean by “good works?” Does he simply mean, reading our Bibles, praying, going to church, and showing random acts of kindness?

Certainly, all those are good things. But Paul goes on to say, “which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.”

Which seems to go far beyond reading our Bibles, praying, going to church, and doing random acts of kindness.

God has a work he has prepared for each one of us. So let us all take time to seek him and find out what he would have us do.

Father, before I was even born, you had plans for me.

Plans for good works in which I would touch the people around me with your love.

Plans in which I make a difference for your kingdom.

Holy Spirit, speak to me. What does my Lord want to say to his servant?

Show me the good works you’ve prepared ahead of time for me to do.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Galatians Devotionals

Led by the Spirit

Galatians

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. (Galatians 5:25)

Holy Spirit, it is because of you that I have life.

You have washed me of my sins, making me new, (Titus 3:5)

Now lead me. Whisper to me the direction that I should go. And help me walk each moment in step with you.

Because I know that as I do that, things like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control will naturally flow from me.

And more than anything else, I want to please you.

When I start to go down the wrong path, lead me back to the right one.

Keep my eyes ever on you.

Keep me following you, every single step.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Galatians Devotionals

Losing our sense of blessedness

Galatians

Where then is that sense of blessing you had? (Galatians 4:15, NASB)

Father, let me never lose the sense of blessing that comes from being your child.

Let me never fear losing my salvation because of my sins, failures, and weaknesses. Let me never feel like I need to somehow earn your approval.

I am no longer a slave, fearing punishment from a tyrant god.

I’m the child of a loving Father.

Abba, Father. I come to you today with full confidence in your love toward me.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Galatians Devotionals

A child of God

Galatians

So often, we live under a cloud of doubt as to whether God truly accepts us as his children. We doubt because we see all our sins and our failures and wonder how in the world God could possibly accept us.

But Paul asks an important question in verses 2.

Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by believing what you heard? (Galatians 3:2)

Put another way, “Why did God accept you in the first place? Why did he send his Spirit to dwell in you? Was it because you had somehow managed to perfectly keep all his laws for a year? A week? A day? An hour?

“No. It was because you put your faith in Jesus.”

And don’t think for a moment that God accepts us as his children only on a trial basis.

Many companies may hire people that way.

But God does not adopt his children that way.

So remember who you are, Child of God.

for through faith you are all sons (and daughters) of God in Christ Jesus. (26)

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Galatians Devotionals

Marveling at our salvation

Galatians

How often do we stop to marvel at our salvation?

Paul did.

But when God, who from my mother’s womb set me apart and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me… (Galatians 1:15-16)

Paul was speaking of himself, but his words also apply to us.

When we were still in our mother’s womb, God set us apart for himself.

Then in his timing, he called us by his grace.

And by that same grace, he uses our lives to reveal his Son to those around us so that they might find him too.

Take some time and think on those words.

Think of God’s eyes on you as you were in your mother’s womb. And as you see him looking upon you in love, hear him saying, “I choose you.”

Then think of all the things God did, the little “coincidences” he used to bring you to himelf.

Finally, consider how incredible it is that he would choose to use you, imperfect though you are, to reveal his Son to those around you.

Marvel at these things.

Marvel at God’s grace.

Marvel at your salvation.

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Joshua Devotionals

Single-hearted devotion

Joshua

As I read today’s passage, the words that came to mind were “single-hearted devotion.”

God cannot accept anything less, any more than a husband or a wife can accept a spouse who keeps many other lovers.

And yet, our hearts so easily wander.

It’s so easy to say, “We will serve the Lord” as the Israelites did.

To declare our devotion for Jesus as Peter did. (Matthew 26:33-35)

But whether because of “the worries of this age, the deceitfulness of wealth, or the desires for other things,” that devotion often gets choked out. (Mark 4:19)

O Lord, you know my fickle, wandering heart. Lord, give me an undivided heart that I might fear your name. (Psalm 86:11)

Lord, your faithful love toward me is great. (Psalm 86:13)

Though I am faithless, you are faithful. (2 Timothy 2:13)

Help me to be so filled with your love that I can’t help but be singularly devoted to you.

In Jesus’ name, amen.”

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Joshua Devotionals

God’s great and precious promises

Joshua

I am now going the way of the whole earth, and you know with all your heart and all your soul that none of the good promises the Lord your God made to you has failed.

Everything was fulfilled for you; not one promise has failed. (Joshua 23:14)

Lord, just as you gave the Israelites promises that never failed, you have given me great and precious promises as well (2 Peter 1:3-4).

Promises that your Spirit would dwell within me, changing me and transforming me into your likeness. (John 14:16-17; 2 Corinthians 3:17-18)

Promises of strength to overcome the sin in my life that would be “a snare and a trap” for me, “a sharp stick” for my side, and “thorns” in my eyes. (Joshua 23:13)

Promises of an eternal inheritance with you. (John 14:1-3)

Thank you for your glory. Thank you for your goodness to me.

Thank you for your great and precious promises that never fail.

In Jesus’ name, amen.  

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Joshua Devotionals

Seeking the Lord’s counsel

Joshua

…but [the men of Israel] did not seek the Lord’s decision. (Joshua 9:14)

Lord, it’s so easy to lean on my own understanding. To think I have all the information I need, and yet fail to seek your counsel.

I don’t know everything. There’s so much I cannot see.

But you know all. You see all.

So help me to trust you, acknowledging you in all my ways, and leaning on your wisdom and understanding.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Joshua Devotionals

Repentance

Joshua

It has never struck me until today that God did not point out Achan as the one who had sinned until the next day. Why not? Why not deal with the problem right then and there?

I don’t know. But perhaps the answer is found in verse 13.

Go and consecrate the people. Tell them to consecrate themselves for tomorrow… (Joshua 7:13)

In telling the people to consecrate themselves, God was telling the people to prepare their hearts, and give themselves wholly to God.

Certainly part of that process was confessing their sins.

I think God was giving Achan the chance to repent that night. He had a full night to search his heart and get it right before God.

Even the next morning, God did not expose him right away. First his tribe was chosen, then his clan, then his family. But despite multiple chances to confess his sin and repent, Achan remained silent until finally he was singled out by God.

And by then, it was too late.

Had he repented, would he have still been killed? I can’t say for sure, but my guess is he would have found mercy.

So let us not hide our sin. Rather, let us confess it and repent before it’s too late.

As John said,

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  (I John 1:9)

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Joshua Devotionals

Rebuilding what God has torn down

Joshua

At that time Joshua imposed this curse:

“The man who undertakes
the rebuilding of this city, Jericho,
is cursed before the Lord.

He will lay its foundation
at the cost of his firstborn;
he will finish its gates
at the cost of his youngest.” (Joshua 6:26)

Years later, someone would rebuild Jericho, and he paid the price for it just as Joshua had said. (I Kings 16:34)

How often do we rebuild the strongholds of sin in our lives that God has torn down?

So often, when we become Christians, God gives us victory over different sins in our lives, and we rejoice because of it.

But then we start to remember the pleasures of our sin while forgetting all the damage and destruction it caused.

And so we start rebuilding what God has torn down to our harm.

Lord, let me never rebuild what you have torn down. It’s so easy to go back to my old, sinful habits. But those habits will destroy me. Help me not to look back, only but forward, following you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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Joshua Devotionals

Our attitude toward God

Joshua

It seems from the fact that this “commander of the Lord’s army” accepted Joshua’s worship (unlike the angel in Revelation 19:10; 22:8-9) and that his words mirrored God’s words to Moses in Exodus 3:5, that this commander was actually Jesus.

When Joshua found out who he was, he instantly dropped his “Are you with us or with our enemy” question, and said, “What does my Lord want to say to his servant?”

That’s the attitude we should take with our Lord. Not questioning whether he is on our side or not, or demanding he do as we ask.

But rather coming before him humbly, and saying, “What does my Lord want to say to his servant.”

Lord, I come before you now. I make no demands. I don’t question your love or loyalty to me. I simply kneel quietly before you today, and say, “What does my Lord want to say to his servant.”

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Joshua Devotionals

A prayer for God’s leading

Joshua

When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God carried by the Levitical priests, you are to break camp and follow it…so that you can see the way to go, for you haven’t traveled this way before. (Joshua 3:3-4)

Lord in so many ways, I need your leading. There’s so much I don’t know. I don’t know what’s ahead. I haven’t traveled this way before. But you have. So Lord, help me to keep my eyes on you today and to follow you.

Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, because the Lord will do wonders among you tomorrow.” (5)

Lord, I give my life to you today. My life is yours. My time is yours. Everything I have is yours. I want to join in with what you’re doing today. Let me see what you’re doing around me. Let me see your wonders as you work in my life and in those around me.

Come closer and listen to the words of the Lord your God…You will know that the living God is among you… (9-10)

Lord I long to know your presence in my life. I need to hear your voice. So I draw near to you now. Help me to hear what you’re saying to me.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Joshua Devotionals

God’s kindness and mercy

Joshua

When we heard this, we lost heart, and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and earth below…

Now please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my father’s family…

Give me a sure sign that you will…save us from death. (Joshua 2:11-13)

God, you are God in heaven above and earth below. You are holy. And because of our sins, we feared you, deserving death.

But Lord, by your kindness and mercy, you saved us, not because of our righteousness, but because of your mercy. (Titus 3:4-5)

Now you have given us a sure sign of our salvation by giving us your Holy Spirit who dwells within us. (Ephesians 1:13)

Thank you so much for your kindness and mercy to us.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Joshua Devotionals

Aligning our thoughts with God’s

Joshua

Above all, be strong and very courageous to observe carefully the whole instruction my servant Moses commanded you.

Do not turn from it to the right or the left, so that you will have success wherever you go. (Joshua 1:7)

Lord, give me a heart to observe your whole instruction. Not just the parts of it I like, but all of it. Let me not turn from it to the right or the left.

And may I not be conformed to the pattern of this world, whose way of thinking is becoming more and more corrupted by the day. Rather, renew my mind and align my thoughts completely with yours. (Romans 12:2)

In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

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Numbers Devotionals

Taking sexual sin lightly

Numbers

If there was any doubt if Balaam served God or not, the answer is found in this chapter. It was he that led the Israelites into idolatry and sexual sin. (Numbers 31:16)

As a result, 24,000 Israelites died.

This was the second time the Israelites fell into this kind of sin (Exodus 32).

More, this is what we saw in Numbers 15. This wasn’t unintentional sin. This was defiant sin.

That was clearly seen in the man that Phinehas the high priest killed in verses 6-9.

While people were dying because of the plague God had sent, and Moses and the other Israelites were mourning before God, this man defiantly went into his tent to sleep with this woman in an act probably related to Baal-worship.

It’s interesting that sexual sin was tied so closely to idolatry in that time. Interesting because sexual sin has become the idol of this age.

So many in society take sexual sins lightly to the point they no longer consider them sins at all. (Romans 1:24, 26-27, 32)

But to God, these are sins worthy of death. (Romans 1:32; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10)

That’s why Paul in looking back on these two incidents wrote,

Don’t become idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and got up to party. 

Let us not commit sexual immorality as some of them did, and in a single day twenty-three thousand people died. (1 Corinthians 10:7-8)

How about you? Do you take sexual sin as lightly as this world does?

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Numbers Devotionals

Truly seeking God?

Numbers

Balaam and Barak sounded very pious didn’t they?

“I’m going to seek the Lord.”

“Great! I’ll wait…So what did he say? I want to hear.” (Numbers 23:15, 17)

And yet, when God spoke, both Balaam and Balak were upset.

Balak was frustrated because he wanted God to curse Israel.

Balaam was frustrated because he wanted to get paid and desperately wanted God to change his mind, something God refused to do. (Numbers 23:19)

How often are we like Balak and Balaam?

We say we want to hear from God. But when he speaks, we want nothing to do with his words.

Are we only willing to listen to God when we like what he says?

Or are we willing to listen to God even when we don’t like what he says?

Are we trying to bend God to our will?

Or are we yielding to his?

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Numbers Devotionals

According to what God says

Numbers

Balaam said to him, “Look, I have come to you, but can I say anything I want? I must speak only the message God puts in my mouth.” (Numbers 22:38)

As someone who gives messages on Sundays at my church, I was really struck by those words.

I’m not at liberty to simply say whatever I want. I need to speak the message God puts in my mouth.

But the same is true for all Christians. There are times we receive a lot of pressure from those around us to say what they want to hear.

As Paul put it,

For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear. (2 Timothy 4:3)

Our Lord received that same sort of pressure all the time. But he always spoke according to his Father’s Word. (John 7:16-17)

And unlike Balaam, he always sought to honor his Father. (John 7:18)

May we always follow our Lord’s example, speaking to people in grace and truth.

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Numbers Devotionals

Standing between the living and the dead

Numbers

(Aaron) stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was halted. (Numbers 16:48)

Those words really struck me today.

On one side of Aaron, thousands were dead because of their rebellion.

On the other, thousands were saved through his intercession.

As God’s priests, we stand in the same position as Aaron.

Many around us are dying because of their sin. And we have a choice.

We can just do nothing and watch God’s judgment fall.

Or like Aaron, we can pray. We can intercede. We can reach out to them, sharing God’s gospel of repentance and forgiveness.

Lord, give me the heart of Aaron. There are so many people hurting and dying because of their sin.

Give me Aaron’s compassion. Give me your compassion. Show me what I can do to reach out.

And use me to bring your salvation into their lives. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Numbers Devotionals

Defiant

Numbers

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the story of the man violating the Sabbath directly follows God’s instructions found in verses 27-31.

In those verses, God makes a clear distinction between those who sin unintentionally and those who sin defiantly.

For those who sinned unintentionally, atonement could be made and the person was forgiven.

But for the person who sinned defiantly, there was no forgiveness.

That seemed to be the case with the Sabbath-breaker.

It wasn’t that he had simply forgotten it was the Sabbath. When his sin was pointed out, he wasn’t saying, “Oh, no! I messed up. What should I do?”

Rather, he simply didn’t care.

He despised God’s word and by his defiant action blasphemed God.

The result? Death.

For the submissive, repentant heart, God is gracious, and there is always forgiveness.  

But for the defiant, unrepentant heart, there is no forgiveness.

Let us always keep hearts that are soft to our God.

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Numbers Devotionals

Encouraging each other to trust and follow God

Numbers

…none of the men who have seen my glory and the signs I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tested me these ten times and did not obey me, will ever see the land I swore to give their ancestors. None of those who have despised me will see it.

But since my servant Caleb has a different spirit and has remained loyal to me, I will bring him into the land where he has gone, and his descendants will inherit it. (Numbers 14:22-24)

It’s worth your time to read Hebrews 3 along with this passage, because there, the writer of Hebrews draws out the practical application of this story.

What is the practical application?

Watch out, brothers and sisters, so that there won’t be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. (Hebrews 3:12)

That was the problem of most of the Israelites: an evil, unbelieving heart.

One that despised the Lord who had redeemed them from Egypt.

One that refused to trust him despite all he had done for them.

What kind of heart do we have?

A heart that is hardened to God? One that refuses to trust him?

Or one that is soft? Hearts like that of Joshua and Caleb, who not only trusted God, but urged their brothers and sisters around them to do the same.

It can be so easy to be deceived by sin.

It’s so easy to let our hearts be hardened.

That’s one reason why Christian fellowship is so important.

So let’s surround ourselves with Joshuas and Calebs. And may we ourselves be Joshuas and Calebs to those around us.

As the writer of Hebrews says,

But encourage each other daily, while it is still called today, so that none of you is hardened by sin’s deception. (Hebrews 3:13)

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Numbers Devotionals

Hearing and heeding Jesus’ voice

Numbers

[Moses] is faithful in all my household.
I speak with him directly,
openly, and not in riddles;
he sees the form of the Lord.

So why were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses? (Numbers 12:7-8)

Needless to say, God was pretty upset with Aaron and Miriam for their attitude toward Moses.

But the writer of Hebrews makes a very interesting application.

Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s household, as a testimony to what would be said in the future. But Christ was faithful as a Son over his household…

Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says:

“Today, if you hear his (i.e. Jesus’) voice,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion…” (Hebrews 3:5-8)

As much as the Israelites were to heed Moses’ voice, we are to heed Jesus’.

Moses was merely a faithful servant, and the people had to heed him.

But Jesus is the faithful Son. More, he is our apostle and high priest. (Hebrews 3:1)

So let us not harden our hearts to him, but always keep hearts that are soft and obedient to him.

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Numbers Devotionals

Too weak?

Numbers

Is the Lord’s arm weak? (Numbers 11:23)

Those words struck me today.

Unlike Moses (14), unlike us, God is not weak.

Certainly not in his ability to keep his promises.

Certainly not in his ability to care for his people.

Certainly not in his discipline.

He shows all these things in this chapter.

But there’s one other area in which he is not weak.

Verse 23 reminded me of what God said in Isaiah 59:1.

Indeed, the Lord’s arm is not too weak to save, and his ear is not too deaf to hear. (Isaiah 59:1)

I wonder: do we ever despair of ever seeing God’s salvation?

In our own country?

In the lives of those we love?

When we look at all the sin and evil in this world, when we see the hardness of people’s hearts, it’s easy to despair.

But remember: the Lord’s arm is not too weak to save.

Remember this too:

Just as God poured his Spirit on the elders in Israel, he has also poured his Spirit on us. (Isaiah 59:21, Acts 2:17-18)

And he has poured his Spirit on us to proclaim his words of life to those around us. That’s not just our pastors’ job.

It’s ours.

Lord, pour out your Spirit in me as you did with Moses and the elders of Israel. As you did in the book of Acts.

Your arm is not too short to save. You saved me.

Now fill me with your Spirit and use me to save those around me. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Numbers Devotionals

Following God’s lead

Numbers

At the Lord’s command the Israelites set out, and at the Lord’s command they camped.

As long as the cloud stayed over the tabernacle, they camped. (Numbers 9:18)

This was my prayer this morning.

Lord, help me to have a heart that always follows your lead.

It’s easy sometimes to get comfortable. And so when you start out in a new direction, I sometimes hesitate to follow.

Other times, I have all these plans and get tired of waiting. I want to do something now. And yet you’re telling me, “Not yet. Rest. Enjoy my presence. Seek my face. And wait for my timing.”

So Lord, let me not go ahead you, nor let me linger behind you.

Rather each day, let me keep in step with you, going when you go, stopping when you stop.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Exodus Devotions

Doing things God’s way

Let’s be honest: chapters 36-39 can make for a lot of dry reading. Especially when you consider that much of it is a repetition of what was written about in chapters 25-30.

Chapters 25-30 were the instructions.

Chapters 36-39 were the Israelites following those instructions.

That seems to be the main point in chapter 39.

Again and again, we see the words, “just as the Lord had commanded Moses.” (1, 5, 7, 21, 26, 29, 31, 32, 43)

God had given the Israelites all the wisdom, understanding, and skill necessary to do the job. (Exodus 35:31-36:2)

But they didn’t just do things as they saw fit. They didn’t do what simply seemed expedient.

They did things God’s way.

No shortcuts. No compromise.

Can we say the same about ourselves in our work? In our ministry? In everything we do?

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Exodus Devotions

What God desires

Let everyone whose heart is willing… (Exodus 35:5)

Everyone whose heart was moved and whose spirit prompted him… (21)

And all the women whose hearts were moved… (26)

all the men and women whose hearts prompted them… (29)

What does God want from us?

Have you ever wondered that?

I think the above words make the answer crystal clear.

More than anything else, God wants our hearts.

When it comes to giving, when it comes to serving, in everything we do, God wants our hearts.

Does he have yours?

Lord, you have done so much for me. You have shown your love and mercy to me time and again. You are so good.

May your love and joy be at the root of everything I do. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Exodus Devotions

God’s character

“The LORD—the LORD is a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and abounding in faithful love and truth, maintaining faithful love to a thousand generations, forgiving iniquity, rebellion, and sin.

But he will not leave the guilty unpunished, bringing the consequences of the fathers’ iniquity on the children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:6-7)

This is one of the most famous passages in the Old Testament and is constantly repeated throughout it.

Why? Because it shows the Lord’s character.

It’s easy to look at some of the stories in Exodus and the other books of the Old Testament and to see God as a God of wrath.

There is some truth to that. God hates sin and he will punish it.

After all, can a good God love sin? Can a just God leave sin unpunished?

But God is also “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in faithful love and truth.”

Have you ever noticed that for all the times that God judges people, he always tells his people about it first?

He did that with Abraham (Genesis 18).

He did that with Moses. (Exodus 32).

Why tell them? Simply so that they could observe God’s justice?

No, he told them so that they could intercede. And both of them did.

In both cases, justice still came. The unrepentant were judged.

But in both cases, people were saved because of Abraham and Moses.

God will judge evil. But he would much rather show mercy than judge.

That’s why he sent Jesus. Jesus paid the price for our sin so that God could show us mercy.  

So like Moses, let us boldly draw near to God with unveiled faces.

We don’t need to fear his judgment and wrath as we approach him.

Instead, as we draw near to him, by his grace, God transforms us more and more into the likeness of his Son. (2 Corinthians 3:12, 18)

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Exodus Devotions

Taking a breath

The Israelites must observe the Sabbath, celebrating it throughout their generations as a permanent covenant.

It is a sign forever between me and the Israelites, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, but on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed. (Exodus 31:16-17)

Interesting phrase there at the end: The Lord rested and was refreshed.

It almost sounds as if he was tired and needed to recharge.

But of course, him being God, that was not the case.

Rather, he simply ceased his work and took a breath, not because he was tired, but to enjoy his creation.

How often do we stop what we’re doing, take a breath, and enjoy our Creator?

Of course it’s good to do that every day. But it’s especially good to do it on Sunday.

Sometimes people ask, “Do I have to go to church every Sunday?”

But that question shows a wrong way of thinking.

Going to church isn’t a “got to.” It’s a “get to.”

For a couple of hours every Sunday, we get to step away from our work, from our studies, from the drudgery of every day life, and enjoy our Creator. To remember his goodness toward us.

More, we get the chance to bless and be blessed by others in God’s family.

What is church to you?

A “got to?”

Or a “get to?”

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Exodus Devotions

Our mercy seat

Very detailed instructions for the tabernacle, aren’t they?

Why all the detail? What does it matter? The writer of Hebrews tells us.

These serve as a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was warned when he was about to complete the tabernacle.

For God said, “Be careful that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown to you on the mountain.” (Hebrews 8:5)

What did the author of Hebrews mean by “these serve as a copy and shadow of heavenly things?”

There are several examples we can take from Exodus 25, but the one that struck me most today was verse 22.

I will meet with you there above the mercy seat, between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the testimony; I will speak with you from there about all that I command you regarding the Israelites. (Exodus 25:22)

Inside the ark were the ten commandments God had given the people. (16)

The ten commandments were a reminder of God’s holiness. They were a reminder that we are to be holy as God is holy. And they were a reminder of how far short we fall of that holiness.

It’s a good thing we don’t meet God on the basis of our keeping of the ten commandments.

Rather we meet him above the mercy seat.

In the Old Testament, once a year, a sacrifice of atonement was made and the blood from that sacrifice was sprinkled on that mercy seat, providing forgiveness for the people. (Leviticus 16)

But now Paul says this,

God presented (Jesus) as the mercy seat, by his blood…(Romans 3:25)

Jesus is our mercy seat.

Through his blood, our sins are forgiven. And by his blood we can now draw near to God.

So as you read this passage, remember Paul’s words…and rejoice!

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

God presented him as the mercy seat, by his blood…(Romans 3:23-25)

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Exodus Devotions

Sprinkled by his blood

Moses took the blood, splattered it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you concerning all these words. (Exodus 24:8)

Whenever I see those words, I can’t help but think of Jesus’ words to his disciples at the last supper.

For this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. (Matthew 26:28)

Because they were sprinkled with blood, Moses, the priests, and the elders could have fellowship with God without fear of judgment. (9-11)

So with us. Not just Christian leaders. But all believers.

According to Peter, we are chosen by the Father, sanctified by the Spirit, and sprinkled with the blood of Christ. And because of that we have grace and peace with God. (1 Peter 1:1-3)

It’s worth reading Hebrews 9 together with this passage because the author of Hebrews quotes it and explains some of what we read in Exodus 24.

But if nothing else, it’s good to meditate on these awesome words:

For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow, sprinkling those who are defiled, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works so that we can serve the living God? (Hebrews 9:13-14)

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Exodus Devotions

Seeing beyond the written law

It’s easy to see all the laws in Exodus and Leviticus and think, “What do these laws have to do with me?”

Take verses 4-5, for example.

If you come across your enemy’s stray ox or donkey, you must return it to him.

If you see the donkey of someone who hates you lying helpless under its load, and you want to refrain from helping it, you must help with it. (Exodus 23:4-5)

What do you  think the odds are that you’re ever going to see any stray ox or donkey on the road, no less an enemy’s one?

But it’s important to see beyond the letter of the law to the principle behind it. What’s the principle behind it?

Jesus tells us.

But I say to you who listen: Love your enemies, do what is good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you…

But love your enemies, do what is good, and lend, expecting nothing in return.

Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High. For he is gracious to the ungrateful and evil.

Be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful. (Luke 6:27-28, 35-36)

So as we look at all these commands in the Old Testament, look beyond the actual words, going to their heart.

And then most importantly, ask God, “What are you trying to tell me?”

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Exodus Devotions

Not a tame God

Moses responded to the people, “Don’t be afraid, for God has come to test you, so that you will fear him and will not sin.” (Exodus 20:20)

A paradoxical statement to be sure.

“Don’t be afraid,” Moses says.

But in the next breath, he says, “Fear God.”

How do we balance the two statements?

Perhaps the best way to balance them is with this truth: God is good. But he is not a tame God.

We cannot control him.

We cannot manipulate him.

When dealing with a holy and all-powerful God, people should be afraid. We don’t dare take him lightly.

For the day will come when he will judge all those who hate and rebel against him. (5)

And when we see that judgment fall on people, we should fear. Because all of us have sinned. All of us deserve that judgment.

But God is also good. He is never capricious. He is never malicious.

More, he sent his Son so that we don’t have to be judged.

Now to those who love God and receive his Son, God shows his faithful, never-ending love. (6)

When we sin, God may discipline us, but as with Solomon, he will never take his love away from us. (2 Samuel 7:14-15)

And because of that, we don’t have to be like the Israelites, standing at a distance from God, fearing his judgment.

Rather, like Moses, we can draw near. (18, 21)

So let us fear God. But let us not be afraid of him.

Instead, let us draw near. As John said,

In this, love is made complete with us so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment, because as he is, so also are we in this world.

There is no fear in love; instead, perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. (1 John 4:17-18)

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Exodus Devotions

Remembering who we are

“Now if you will carefully listen to me and keep my covenant, you will be my own possession out of all the peoples, although the whole earth is mine, and you will be my kingdom of priests and my holy nation.”

These are the words that you are to say to the Israelites. (Exodus 19:5-6)

Amazing words, aren’t they?

But over a thousand years later, Peter took God’s words to the Israelites and applied them to us.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises, of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:9-10)

Let us always remember who we are.

We are God’s chosen, beloved people.

But not only that, we are priests of the great King, called to proclaim his praises.

Not just so that God is blessed. But so that those around us might hear our story and that they too may come out of darkness into his marvelous light.

So I say it again: “Remember who you are.”

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Exodus Devotions

He took the blow

How often do we question God, “Are you really with me or not?”

That’s what the Israelites did with God in the desert.

And so for the first and only time in the Old Testament, God stands before the people to be tried.

Usually in a trial, the people would stand before God to be tried (Deuteronomy 19:17).

But this time, it is God who stands on the rock (possibly symbolized by the pillar of cloud) before Moses and the elders of Israel.

And there, since a cloud cannot be struck, the rock on which God stands is struck and he gave them water, proving to the people he was truly with them.

God didn’t deserve to be struck. The people did for their sin of disbelief. But God took the blow, and in doing so, gave them life.

According to Paul, that rock was a symbol of Christ. (1 Corinthians 10:4)

And over a thousand years later, in Jesus, God became a man and stood before men to be judged again.

Once again, he stood trial, not because of any sin of his, but because of the sins of the people.

There on the cross, he took the blow once more. And now through his blood shed on the cross, we have life.

What struggles are you going through now? Are you questioning if God is truly with you or not?

Look to the cross. Remember what he did there for you. And believe.

He is Immanuel.

He is “God with us.”

So let us sing as David did when remembering this incident.

Oh come, let us sing to the LORD;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! (Psalm 95:1)

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Exodus Devotions

Give us this day our daily bread

Then the LORD said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day.

This way I will test them to see whether or not they will follow my instructions.” (Exodus 16:4)

I couldn’t help but think that Jesus was referring to this passage when he told his disciples to pray,

Give us today our daily bread. (Matthew 6:11)

It never really struck me before what we’re really saying when we pray that.

Not only are we asking God to provide our needs. But we are praying, “Lord teach me to trust you daily. Teach me to trust you enough that I will obey you in everything.”

Lord, thank you for rescuing me from slavery to sin. Each day, may I know you more deeply, seeing your glory. (6-7)

And as I do, teach me to daily trust and obey you…in everything.

Give me today my daily bread.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Exodus Devotions

A time to pray. A time to move.

The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. (Exodus 14:15)

In our lives, there are times we face things that are too big for us. And our natural response is to cry out to God, “Help!”

There is, of course, a time for that.

But the time also comes when we must simply trust God and his promises and move forward. To do the things that he has told us to do, believing that ultimately we will see his salvation.

That does not mean we will always see that deliverance here on earth.

Jesus never promised to take all our problems away. There are many people who have suffered and even died for his sake.

But Jesus won the ultimate victory on the cross.

And because of that victory, no matter what sufferings we may go through on this earth, we can be assured that we will eventually see his salvation.

So let us move forward in faith, doing all God has called us to do.

As Paul said,

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. (I Corinthians 15:57-58)

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Exodus Devotions

Sealed

The blood on the houses where you are staying will be a distinguishing mark for you; when I see the blood, I will pass over you.

No plague will be among you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. (Exodus 12:13)

Throughout the Bible, you see this theme of God judging people for their sin, and yet keeping his own people from that judgment.

You see it in Ezekiel 9:4. You see it also in Revelation 7:3 and 9:4.

But it is here that we see a picture of what that mark is which separates us from those being judged. It’s the blood of an innocent lamb.

For us, Jesus is our Passover lamb. (1 Corinthians 5:7)

You and I have been sealed with his blood shed for us on the cross.

And when this world is judged, God in his grace will pass over us.  

So each day, let us draw near to him with no fear of punishment, but rather in full assurance of his love and grace toward us. (1 John 4:17-18, Hebrews 10:19-22)

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Exodus Devotions

Angry

And (Moses) went out from Pharaoh’s presence fiercely angry. (Exodus 11:8)

Those words struck me today.

Why was Moses angry?

He was angry at Pharaoh’s hardened heart. He was angry at how Pharaoh had treated God’s people.

Was Moses’ anger purely righteous?

It’s hard to say. He was human. And his anger did get him into trouble more than once. (Exodus 2:11-12, Numbers 20:10-12)

There is room for anger in a Christian’s life. When we see people’s hardened hearts. When we see injustice in this world.

Jesus got angry. (Mark 3:5, 11:15-17)

The question is: what do we do with our anger?

Paul wrote,

Be angry and do not sin., Don’t let the sun go down on your anger, and don’t give the devil an opportunity. (Ephesians 4:26-27)

I think the thing to remember is that when we see the hardness of people’s hearts and the injustice that’s in this world, God still has a plan in it all.

And ultimately, it’s a plan to save.

We see that with Pharaoh and the Israelites.

We also see it when because of the hardness of the Jewish leaders’ hearts, Jesus was crucified for our salvation.

So what do we do?

Be angry. But do not sin. Don’t give the devil an opportunity to use your anger in wrong ways.

Rather, join in with God’s work of salvation.

Salvation does not come by arguing politics, railing at the falling standards of morality in society, or screaming at the hardened hearts of people.

It comes by taking the love of God into the lives of the people around us.

And we do that by following Jesus’ example of grace and truth.

Jesus never compromised on truth. He pointed out people’s sins (John 4:16-18).

He pointed out when they were ignorant of or twisted God’s word (Matthew 5:43-44, 22:29).

And yet, he was the friend of sinners. (Matthew 11:19)

Can the same be said of us?

What are we more known for? Our anger? Our political positions?

Or for being the friend of sinners?

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Exodus Devotions

Empty repentance

Pharaoh urgently sent for Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you.

Please forgive my sin once more and make an appeal to the Lord your God, so that he will just take this death away from me.” (Exodus 10:16-17)

That seemed like pretty sincere repentance didn’t it?

And yet, ultimately, it was but empty words.

Why?

Because it didn’t accompany a heart that would humbly and gladly hear and obey God.

All Pharaoh wanted was relief from God’s judgment.

Repentance is more than just saying, “I’m sorry.”

It’s more than just saying, “Please forgive me.”

It’s a true turning of one’s heart toward God in love and obedience.

And without that turning, repentance is not truly repentance.

How about you? Do you have a true heart of repentance?

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Exodus Devotions

God’s wrath and mercy

For this time I am about to send all my plagues against you, your officials, and your people. Then you will know there is no one like me on the whole earth.

By now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with a plague, and you would have been obliterated from the earth.

However, I have let you live for this purpose: to show you my power and to make my name known on the whole earth. (Exodus 9:14-16)

This passage really struck me today.

For all the judgment that God poured out on the Egyptians, he also showed mercy.

He could have wiped them out in an instant for their sin. And yet, he didn’t.

More, he gave them warning on how they could save their own lives from the hail he was going to send. (19)

For all the wrath that God pours out on people for their sin, he still shows mercy.

He’s patient. He gives them time to repent.

Ultimately, his desire is that people will come to know and love him.

Pharaoh had said mockingly to Moses, “I don’t know the Lord.” (Exodus 5:2)

So God showed him the kind of God he was. That he is a God of justice who punishes sin. But also that he is a God of mercy to those who will fear him.

But even more interesting to me, we see the truth of God’s words in the life of Rahab.

By letting the Pharaoh live, he showed his power and made his name known to the surrounding nations, particularly when he split the Red Sea.

The result? Rahab and her family were saved. (Joshua 2:8-14, 6:25)

So even in the wrath God poured out on Pharaoh on his army at the Red Sea, the result was mercy shown to Rahab and her family.

Not only that, Rahab ended up in the family tree of Jesus. (Matthew 1:5)

God shows mercy to us all in a sense. He shows mercy to all in not wiping us out right now.

But mercy that leads to salvation comes only with repentance.

God warns us. God gives us time to repent.

The question is what will you do with it?

For he says:

At an acceptable time I listened to you,
and in the day of salvation I helped you.

See, now is the acceptable time; now is the day of salvation! (2 Corinthians 6:2)

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Exodus Devotions

When we’re discouraged

Moses told [all God’s promises] to the Israelites, but they did not listen to him because of their broken spirit and hard labor. (Exodus 6:9)

Let’s be honest. When we’re discouraged, when we’re feeling beaten up by the world, we often don’t want to hear it when people try to give us God’s words of encouragement.

It’s so easy to get jaded because we think, “I’ve heard these promises before, but I’m worse off than I ever was.”

But the thing we need to remember is God is Yahweh.

God’s name itself implies that he is the one who never changes. That he is the one who always keeps his promises. And that he is the one who is always faithful.

That was his point in saying, “I am the LORD; I am Yahweh.” (2, 6, 8)

So if you’re struggling right now, meditate on that truth: “I am the LORD; I am Yahweh.”

And know that the God who was with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God who was with Moses and the Israelites…this same God is with you.

He was faithful then. He is faithful now. And he will be faithful for all eternity.

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Exodus Devotions

Rejecting our Lord’s authority

Who is the Lord that I should obey him…? I don’t know the Lord… (Exodus 5:2)

I doubt many Christians would be so bold as Pharaoh was in outright rejecting the Lord’s authority in their lives and saying, “Who is the Lord that I should obey him? I don’t know him!”

But how quick are we to make excuses as to why we won’t obey him?

To reject what he has so clearly said in his word?

To ignore his Spirit when he convicts us of sin in our lives?

We might as well say, “Who is the Lord that I should obey him? I don’t know the Lord.”

If there are two words that do not fit together, they are “No, Lord.”

If Jesus truly is our Lord, how can we say no to him?

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Exodus Devotions

What God asks of us

But Moses replied to the Lord, “Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent—either in the past or recently or since you have been speaking to your servant—because my mouth and my tongue are sluggish.”

The Lord said to him, “Who placed a mouth on humans? Who makes a person mute or deaf, seeing or blind?

Is it not I, the Lord?

Now go! I will help you speak and I will teach you what to say.” (Exodus 4:10-12)

We all have weaknesses and limitations. And when God asks us to do something, it’s easy to use those weaknesses and limitations as an excuse not to obey.

But God is not limited by our limitations. He only asks of us two things: our availability and our obedience.

And by relying, not on ourselves, but on him, we can do anything he has asked of us.

Lord, you made me the way I am, with all my weaknesses and limitations. But you are not limited by my limitations.

So I simply offer myself to you as I am and say, “Here I am. Send me.”

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Exodus Devotions

He hears. He remembers. He sees. He knows.

God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob, and God saw the Israelites, and God knew (Exodus 2:24-25)

In what way were the Israelites groaning? Perhaps Asaph’s words in Psalm 77 reflected their feelings.

Will the Lord reject forever
and never again show favor?

Has his faithful love ceased forever?
Is his promise at an end for all generations?

Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has he in anger withheld his compassion?” (Psalm 77:7-9)

How often do we feel that way?

Wondering if God has rejected us?

Wondering if we have exhausted his love, patience, and grace?

But God hears us.

He remembers the new covenant in Jesus’ blood that was poured out for us. And in all our struggles, he sees us and knows what’s happening.

But most importantly, he saves.

He proved it in Egypt. And he proved it at the cross.

So let us reflect on what he has done.

Let us meditate on all his actions.

And as spiritual descendants of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph, let us sing with Asaph,

God, your way is holy.
What god is great like God?

You are the God who works wonders;
you revealed your strength among the peoples.

With power you redeemed your people… (Psalm 77:13-15)

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Exodus Devotions

God’s imperturbable plans

Road to Emmaus

Then beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, Jesus interpreted for them the things concerning himself in all the Scriptures. （Luke 24:27）

When Jesus began with Moses’s writings, I wonder if he pointed to Moses and how Moses’s life itself pointed to Jesus’.

Like Jesus, Moses was born to be a savior.

Like Jesus, his life was endangered from the start because of a king’s command (Matthew 2:8, 16).

And as in Jesus’ case, people disobeyed the king’s order and obeyed God so that God’s plans of salvation might prevail. (Matthew 2:12-15)

I recently read a quote that went something like this: “God’s plan of redemption is imperturbable.”

Satan certainly fought against it from the beginning.

He fought it from the time God expelled Adam and Eve from the garden. And at the cross, Satan thought he had finally won.

But God’s redemption plan is imperturbable.

Though Jesus died on the cross, God raised him from the dead.

And through Jesus’ death and resurrection, we now have forgiveness and eternal life.

Even now God’s redemption plan is imperturbable.

No matter how badly we sin, no matter how badly we fall, no one is beyond God’s ability to save.

That’s the hope of Easter.

Let us stand each day on that hope.

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Praise him!

A few days ago, my old church in Hawaii had a throwback worship night. They were singing a bunch of songs from back when I was there nearly 25-30 years ago.

Not only that, many of the old worship leaders were there, and so were many of the people I once knew. Many of them have long since been led by God in other directions and to other churches. But for this one night, they were back.

I wish I could have been there. Unfortunately, being in Japan, all I could do was watch the video and see all the pictures people posted. But it brought me back to the days when I first fell in love with Jesus.

Interestingly enough, one of the songs they sang came straight from this psalm, particularly verses 1-2. And this psalm encapsulates what that night was about: praise.

Thirteen times the word, “praise” is used in Psalm 150 (including the ‘Hallelujahs’ depending on your translation).

This world is full of division and trouble right now. And it’s so easy for Christians to get caught up in all that.

But maybe it’s time to get our eyes off of these things and back on to Jesus. And one of the best ways to do that is through praise.

Praise him for his powerful acts and his abundant greatness. Especially in this season, praise him for his death on the cross and his resurrection that bought our redemption.

Praise him with song. Praise him with the flute. Praise him with the guitar.

And when we do, everything around us becomes but insignificant shadows in the light of him.

So whatever you’re going through right now, get your eyes off these things and onto Jesus…and praise him.

Praise him!

Praise him!

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Psalms Devotionals 2

A reason to rejoice

Psalms

Do not trust in nobles,
in a son of man, who cannot save. (Psalm 146:3)

Reading that as Christians, that second line is really striking, isn’t it?

Do not trust in a son of man, who cannot save.

Yet as Christians, we do trust in a Son of Man to save. We trust in Jesus.

Why?

Because he is not just a Son of Man.

Rather, Jesus was “appointed to be the powerful Son of God according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection of the dead.” (Romans 1:4)

So unlike mere men whose plans die when they do (4), Jesus rose and lives forever.

While he was on earth, he gave food to the hungry, gave sight to the blind, and raised those who were oppressed.

Now because of the cross and his resurrection, all we spiritual prisoners have been set free.

And the day will come when he will bring justice to this earth, reigning forever in righteousness.  

That’s a reason to worship, don’t you think?

Hallelujah!
My soul, praise the Lord.

I will praise the Lord all my life;
I will sing to my God as long as I live. (1-2)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Blessing God.

Psalms

I exalt you, my God the King,
and bless your name forever and ever.

I will bless you every day;
I will praise your name forever and ever. (Psalm 145:1-2)

Those words struck a chord with me this morning, particularly verse 2,

I will bless you every day.

The word translated “bless” is very interesting. Usually, it’s used in the sense of God blessing us. And in this psalm we see many examples of this (8-9, 14-16, 18-20).

But there is a sense in which we bless God. The way we bless God, though, is different from how he blesses us.

When God blesses us, he fills a need that we ourselves can’t fill.

But with God, he has no needs. He doesn’t need our worship. He doesn’t need our love.

And yet because he created us and loves us so much, he takes great pleasure in our worship and our love. In that sense he is blessed by us.

So may our prayers not always be, “Lord, bless me.”

Rather from a heart of love and gratitude, may we say each day, “Lord, as you see me today, as you hear my words, see my thoughts, and see my actions, be blessed.”

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Starting off the day right

As I write this, it’s cherry blossom season in Japan. And I couldn’t help but think of this verse as I saw all the cherry blossom trees around my neighborhood.

I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all you have done;
I reflect on the work of your hands. (Psalm 143:5)

How often do we start the day thinking on these things?

When David wrote this psalm, he was facing many troubles. He apparently was on the run, perhaps from Saul or Absalom.

But in a time of despair, he says, “I remember. I meditate. I reflect.”

What does he remember? He remembers the days of old. He remembers all the old stories of God being with his people and delivering them: Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Deborah, Gideon,  and Samson.

What does he meditate on? He meditates on what God has done. Not just in the lives of those that came before him. But in his own life.

What does he reflect on? The work of his God’s hands. The heavens. The animals. The trees and plants. All of creation.

And in all this, he remembers God’s power and his goodness toward his people.

What is his response? A heart of God-dependence.

Let me experience
your faithful love in the morning,
for I trust in you.

Reveal to me the way I should go
because I appeal to you…

Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God.

May your gracious Spirit
lead me on level ground. (8, 10)

May we all start each day with that kind of heart.

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Never alone

Psalms

There are times when we feel totally alone. David did. (Psalm 142:4)

His words in the first two verses really strike me.

I cry aloud…

I plead aloud…

I pour out my complaint…

I reveal my trouble…

To whom did he do all these things?

To the Lord.

Alone as he felt, he was never truly alone.

And so David could say,

Although my spirit is weak within me,
you know my way. (Psalm 142:3)

And again,

I say, “You are my shelter,
my portion in the land of the living.” (Psalm 142:5)

Are you feeling alone right now? Abandoned?

Jesus knew what that was like. (Matthew 27:46)

Yet God didn’t abandon him to the prison of his grave. (Acts 2:25-32)

He won’t abandon you either.

So cry to him.

Plead with him.

Pour out your heart and reveal your troubles to him.

He will hear.

And he will raise you up.

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Guarding our words

Psalms

James said that no one could tame the tongue (James 3:8).

I suppose the one area I really question myself the most about is my words. Are my words, not only in speech, but in social media always pleasing to God?

In Psalm 140, David talks about how evil people’s words are like a snake’s bite or viper’s venom. (Psalm 140:3)

In Psalm 141, though, he prays,

Lord, set up a guard for my mouth;
keep watch at the door of my lips. (Psalm 141:3)

And so that was my prayer today.

Lord, guard my tongue. Watch the door of my lips.

And search me and know my heart. If any of my words are offensive to you, make it clear to me.

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart always be acceptable to you (Psalm 19:14).

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Opening our hearts up to God

Psalms

Depending on how you look at it, Psalm 139 can either be very comforting or very frightening.

After all, in this psalm, we see a God who knows every little detail about us. Who knows everything we think, say, and do.

If we have the image of a God who loves and cares deeply for us, that can be very comforting.

But if we have the image of a God who is stalking us for reasons unknown (but probably not for anything good), that’s very scary.

Throughout this psalm, though, it’s very clear how David saw God. He was fully confident in the love God had for him.

And because of that, he fully opened up his heart to the searching eyes of God. Not because he was confident in his own goodness. But because he was confident in God’s.

With that confidence, he could pray,

Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my concerns.

See if there is any offensive way in me;
lead me in the everlasting way. (Psalm 139:23-24)

How about you? How do you see God?

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Because the Lord is faithful and merciful

Psalms

The Lord will perfect that which concerns me;
Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever. (Psalm 138:8, NKJV)

I really like how the NKJV translates verse 8. It brought me right back to the verse I mentioned yesterday.

I am sure of this, that he who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)

Why could David and Paul be so certain of this? Because of their own goodness and faithfulness?

No. It was because the Lord’s mercy, his steadfast love endures forever.

So let us sing with David,

I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise;

I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness. (1-2, ESV)

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2 Corinthians Devotionals

Examining ourselves

2 Corinthians

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves.

Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! (2 Corinthians 13:5)

These are hard words. But I think it’s helpful to remember the context.

Some of the Corinthians, while claiming to be Christians, were rejecting God’s authority in their lives by rejecting Paul and were refusing to repent for their sin. (Chapters 10-12)

You cannot do these things, and claim to be a Christian.

True Christians may struggle with sin. But they will not reject God’s authority in their lives.

And when they sin, they don’t make excuses for it. Rather, they mourn over it. They repent. In short, they have a soft heart toward God.

Is that you?

If not, then you have to really question whether you’re truly a Christian.

But if that is you, then no matter your struggle with sins, you have nothing to worry about. Because God will never give up on you. What he has started in you, he will complete. (Philippians 1:6)

And though you are weak, though you may fall, the grace of the Lord Jesus, the love of the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit will be with you into eternity.

Let us rest each day in these things.   

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2 Corinthians Devotionals

Humble God-reliance

2 Corinthians

I see in this passage a remarkable parallel to chapter 1, verses 8-10. In both passages, Paul faced a trial that was too much for him. A trial that overwhelmed him.

In both passages, the lesson was the same: humble God-reliance.

Too often we fool ourselves into thinking we are wise. That we are strong enough to handle whatever may come.

But God never created us to be self-reliant. He created us to be God-reliant.

That’s why he sometimes allows us to face the trials we do. To remind us we’re not as wise or strong as we think we are.

And to bring us back humbly to his feet, hands raised in dependent, childlike trust.

When we do, we find out his grace is sufficient for us. That his power is made perfect in our weakness.

And we can say with Paul,

Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me.

So I take pleasure in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and in difficulties, for the sake of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9b-10)

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2 Corinthians Devotionals

That I many know your approval

2 Corinthians

For we don’t dare classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves.

But in measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves to themselves, they lack understanding…

For it is not the one commending himself who is approved, but the one the Lord commends. (2 Corinthians 10:12, 18)

Lord it’s so easy to measure my performance by others’. To compare myself with others.

But that way of thinking is empty. Because ultimately, there’s only one thing that matters: what you think.

And you’re not comparing me to others. All you’re looking at is how faithful I’m being to you.

So Lord, let me be faithful to you. I want to hear your commendation. I want to hear you say, “Well done.”

In your name I pray, amen.

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2 Corinthians Devotionals

No healing? No forgiveness?

2 Corinthians

All of us have regrets in life. And sometimes as we look at the consequences of our sins and failures, our guilt threatens to crush us.

Certainly our enemy Satan would love to see that.

But what does God want?

In a lot of ways, Paul mirrored the heart of our Father.

Paul wrote a letter to the Corinthians confronting them with their sin. And that letter caused them much guilt and grieving. But what does Paul say about that?

I now rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because your grief led to repentance. For you were grieved as God willed, so that you didn’t experience any loss from us. (2 Corinthians 7:9)

Sometimes when people wrong us, we want them to suffer. We are happy that they are being crushed by their grief. Sometimes, we even want them to be destroyed by their grief.

But Paul didn’t want that for the Corinthians. He didn’t want them to suffer any loss. Rather, he wanted them to repent.

That’s what our Father wants.

When we sin, the consequences can be painful. And the guilt can be crushing.

But God doesn’t want to crush us. He wants us to repent. And with that repentance comes not death, but healing.

Paul says,

For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly grief produces death. (10)

Some of you may be feeling crushed by guilt right now. It may seem that there can be no healing, that there can be no forgiveness.

But let me tell you now: There is forgiveness for you. And there can be healing.

All you need to do is repent. Admit your wrong. Ask God for forgiveness. And he will forgive.

“Come, let’s settle this,” says the Lord.

“Though your sins are scarlet,
they will be as white as snow;
though they are crimson red,
they will be like wool.” (Isaiah 1:18)

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2 Corinthians Devotionals

That our ministry might not be slandered

2 Corinthians

We are not giving anyone an occasion for offense, so that the ministry will not be blamed.

Instead, as God’s ministers, we commend ourselves in everything… (2 Corinthians 6:3-4)

Those words really struck me this morning.

The gospel message will cause offense. Whenever we confront people with their sin and God’s holiness, whenever we proclaim Jesus as the only way to salvation, we risk offending them.

But while people may be offended by our words, they should see an integrity in us that they cannot question.

Just as importantly, they should see the fruit of the Spirit in our lives, God’s love, kindness, patience, among other things.

Why did Paul’s words strike me? I wonder sometimes if I ever give people occasion for offense, an opportunity to disparage the gospel I proclaim.

The truth is, there are times I have. And I’ve had to repent.

But all of us, not just me, are called to be Christ’s ambassadors.

By his grace and his strength, may we all live up to that calling, giving people no room to disparage the gospel because of our words and actions.   

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2 Corinthians Devotionals

That I may please you

2 Corinthians

Therefore, whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to be pleasing to him…

For the love of Christ compels us, since we have reached this conclusion, that one died for all, and therefore all died.

And he died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the one who died for them and was raised. (2 Corinthians 5:9-10, 14-15)

Lord, it is my desire to be pleasing to you. That in everything, in all my thoughts, in all my actions, I would please you.

But so often I look at my life and see how I fall short. And I realize again that is why you had to die on the cross.

But now through what you did for me on the cross, I have become the righteousness of God.

When you see me, you don’t see my sins or failures. Rather, I am now clothed in Christ’s perfect righteousness. And because of that, you accept me and say, “You are my child whom I love. I am well pleased with you.”  

Your love for me is amazing.

Let that love be the driving force in my life. Let it shape the way I see my life. Let it shape the way I see others.

Let me live each day not for myself, but for you.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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2 Corinthians Devotionals

Seeing God’s glory

2 Corinthians

Then Moses said, “Please, let me see your glory.”

He said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim the name ‘the Lord’ before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”

But he added, “You cannot see my face, for humans cannot see me and live.” (Exodus 33:18-20)

There are a lot of ties between that passage and 2 Corinthians 3.

For sinful humans like us, the glory of God can be a scary thing. Because he is so holy and we are not, people could not see God’s glory and live.

And so for Moses, God provided a rock to hide behind. (Exodus 33:21-23)

In the tabernacle, there was a curtain that blocked the priests and everyone else from the Most Holy Place where God revealed his presence. (Leviticus 16:2)

Even when the high priest entered the Most Holy Place on the Day of Atonement, he burned incense creating a cloud that prevented him from seeing God’s glory directly. (Leviticus 16:12-13)

Just to see the remnants of God’s glory on Moses’ face was too much for the Israelites. And so Moses put a veil on his face, even as that glory gradually faded away. (Exodus 34:29-30)

But when Jesus died on the cross, the temple curtain was torn. And now, when we turn to the Lord, the veil is taken away. And in the face of Christ, we see God’s glory.

But in seeing God’s glory, we are not destroyed. Rather, we are transformed into his likeness.

Sinful though we are, God is gradually changing us. And when Jesus comes, in an instant, we will be like him. (1 John 3:2)

And unlike the glory that faded from Moses’ face, we go from glory to glory. (2 Corinthians 3:18)

So like Paul, let us be bold. (2 Corinthians 3:13)

Bold in drawing near to God. (Hebrews 10:19-22)

And bold in sharing the message that gives life with those around us. (2 Corinthians 3:4-6)

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2 Corinthians Devotionals

That we might place our trust (and hope) in God

2 Corinthians

When we face trials and difficulties, it’s so easy to rely on ourselves. To depend on our own strength and wisdom to deal with them. I know I do.

And perhaps that is one reason that God sometimes allows things that are too big for us. That overwhelm us. He allows them so that we stop relying on ourselves and start relying on him.

Paul certainly thought so.

He said,

We don’t want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, of our affliction that took place in Asia. We were completely overwhelmed—beyond our strength—so that we even despaired of life itself.

Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death, so that we would not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead. (2 Corinthians 1:8-9)

And in learning to trust and rely on God, he found hope.

He has delivered us from such a terrible death, and he will deliver us. We have put our hope in him that he will deliver us again. (10)

What trials or difficulties are you going through now?

In whom are you placing your trust? In whom are you placing your hope?

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

Though we live in troubled times

1 Corinthians

Looking at the daily news, it clear that we live in troubled times. And sometimes, it’s hard not to feel depressed, fearful, or discouraged.

But it’s in these days that I think Paul’s words are particularly apropos.

Be alert, stand firm in the faith, be courageous, be strong. Do everything in love. (1 Corinthians 16:13-14)

“Be alert.”

Why? Because the devil will try to discourage us. To make us fearful.

As Peter said, Satan is like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. So watch out for him. (1 Peter 5:8)

“Be courageous. Be strong.”

Why? Because Jesus who is in us is greater than our Enemy who is in the world (I John 4:4).

And through Jesus, we already have the victory. (1 Corinthians 15:57-58).

And he is coming again.

The first time, he came to deal with sin.

The next time he comes, he will end all evil and bring salvation, making all things new. (Hebrews 9:28)

“Do everything in love.”

Why? Because it is love that distinguishes us from this world. And it is only through our loving those around us that we can make a difference in these troubled times.

So let us stand firm in the faith. As David sang, “We will see the goodness of the Lord.”  (Psalm 27:13)

Wait for the Lord;
be strong, and let your heart be courageous.
Wait for the Lord. (Psalm 27:14)

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

Building each other up

1 Corinthians

In this passage, we see a lot of instructions Paul gives the church, particularly concerning the use of the gifts of tongues and prophesy.

These instructions are important, but if that’s all we see, I think we’re missing something.

What is Paul’s main point?

His main point is that in the church, we should not be primarily thinking about ourselves and building ourselves up. Rather, we are to think of others and how to build them up.

Again and again, he talks about building up the church. But he’s not talking about building up the church as an organization. He’s talking about building up God’s people. For God’s people are the church.

Paul essentially says that when we go to church, if all we’re thinking about is if we’re being built up, we’re thinking like children. (1 Corinthians 14:20)

So many people come to church saying, “I want to be built up. I want to be encouraged.”

I hope you are built up and encouraged at your church. But Paul tells us that each person should bring something to build others up. (1 Corinthians 14:26)

So if you’re going to church this week, look for someone you can build up. Intentionally reach out and touch them. Encourage them. Pray for them.

And if you can only attend an online service, think of someone you can call or do a video chat with. Again, be intentional about it.

Let us be a church where we intentionally touch and build one another up.

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

What’s most important

1 Corinthians

It strikes me that as much as Paul is talking about the spiritual gifts, it is not his primary concern. He never goes into details on the gifts as he would have if the gifts themselves were his primary concern.

His concern is that the schisms in the church be taken out.

He reminds them again and again, “You are one body. You share the same Spirit, the same Lord, the same God. The gifts you have are to benefit all in the church. You need each other. You are to honor each other.

“Is one of you suffering? Their pain is your pain. Is one of you honored? Rejoice with them! They are part of you and you are part of them.

“You desire all these spiritual gifts. Great! But remember that you are one. So cast out the divisions among you.”

And that leads straight into 1 Corinthians 13.

How about you?

Do you value God’s church and the people in it as much as Paul did?

Or are you thinking like the Corinthians?

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

Judgment and discipline

1 Corinthians

One of the problems in the Corinthian church was that while they were supposedly remembering the Lord and his sacrifice on the cross through communion, at the very same time they were despising his body.

That is, they were despising the poor Christians in their church. As a result, some were being judged by the Lord, some getting sick, others even dying. (1 Corinthians 11:22, 30)

It was a very severe judgment they received, and so Paul warns the church, “Search your hearts before you take communion so that you can avoid such judgment.” (1 Corinthians 11:28, 31)

God’s discipline can be severe. But it would be good for us to remember something important: the judgment we receive from the Lord is different from the judgment unbelievers receive from the Lord.

Paul says,

but when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined, so that we may not be condemned with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:32)

No discipline we receive from the Lord, no matter how severe, leads to eternal death. In that sense, we do not need to fear the Lord’s wrath.

Still, make no mistake: God does not take sin lightly. Neither should we. When we do, his discipline can be quite painful. In that sense, we very much do need to fear the Lord.

God loves us, but that does not mean we can escape his discipline. So remember the words of the writer of Hebrews.

My son, do not take the Lord’s discipline lightly
or lose heart when you are reproved by him,
for the Lord disciplines the one he loves
and punishes every son he receives. (Hebrews 12:5-6)

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

Who and what we live for

1 Corinthians

It’s been interesting reading these chapters this past week. And I think it’s important that we see them as one whole set.

There are two running themes throughout these chapters.

One is the way the Corinthians were thinking, “Everything is permissible for me as a Christian.” (1 Corinthians 6:12; 10:23)

For them, that meant sexual sin was okay and eating food offered to idols was okay. As we’ve seen, Paul strongly disagrees with the first (6:18, 10:8) and gives a qualified agreement to the second. (I Corinthians 8).

The second theme running through these chapters is Paul’s correction of the Corinthians way of thinking. And it comes down to two questions: Who do we belong to? And what do we live for?

Who do we belong to? We belong to the Lord who bought us with his blood on the cross. (I Corinthians 6:19-20, 10:14-20).

What do we live for? We live for God and his kingdom.

And that should shape our thoughts on marriage (chapter 7), ministry (chapter 9), and our own freedoms and rights in Christ (chapters 8 and 10).

When we make decisions on these and other life issues, our primary concern shouldn’t be ourselves.

Rather, it should be how we can best serve God and his kingdom. How can we reach as many people as possible for him?

Paul sums all this up with this word:

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.

Give no offense to Jews or Greeks or the church of God, just as I also try to please everyone in everything, not seeking my own benefit, but the benefit of many, so that they may be saved. (1 Corinthians 10:31-33)

Let’s also remember Jesus’ own words.

But seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things (that is, all your needs) will be provided for you. (Matthew 6:33)

What shapes your way of thinking? What shapes your life?

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

Pleasing God

1 Corinthians

I have written on this passage before, so I won’t bother to go into the detail that I did then.

But it does strike me that this passage has a strong connection to what Paul wrote in chapter 6.

(It is worth pointing out by the way, that Paul wrote this letter without any chapter or verse numbers.)

As you may recall, he quoted a pet phrase the Corinthians had, namely,

Everything is permissible for me. (1 Corinthians 6:12a)

But right after that, Paul answers by saying,

but not everything is beneficial. (1 Corinthians 6:12b)

And here, we see another example of how some Corinthians were applying their pet phrase: “Because idols are nothing, it is permissible for me to eat food eaten to idols.”

Now Paul actually agrees with this. (1 Corinthians 8:4-6, 8)

But the problem was that their eating food sacrificed to idols was not beneficial to the church because Christians whose consciences were weak were having their faith destroyed because of it. (1 Corinthians 8:10-11)

So even as Paul agrees with them that eating food offered to idols is not in itself sinful, he reminds them,

…for us there is one God, the Father. All things are from him, and we exist for him. (8:6)

I don’t think Paul said this just to make a theological point. I think he was reminding them of what he said in chapter 6.

You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. So glorify God with your body. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

And so he warns them,

Now when you sin like this against brothers and sisters and wound their weak conscience, you are sinning against Christ. (1 Corinthians 8:12)

In this case, an action that in itself was not sinful became sinful because it caused their fellow believer to fall.

So let us remember again, “What is permissible” is the wrong question.

What is the right question?

The right question is: “Who do I belong to? And what is pleasing to him?”

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

The wrong question

1 Corinthians

The Corinthian church had a lot of problems. People were cheating each other. There was also sexual immorality in the church.

And a lot of it seems to have come from this saying that had spread throughout the church: “All things are lawful for me.” (1 Corinthians 6:12)

This appears to be a twisting of Paul’s teaching that “we are no longer under law, but under grace.” (Romans 6:14-15)

A lot of Christians today twist Paul’s teaching the same way the Corinthians did. They turn God’s grace into a license for sin. (Jude 1:4)

But Paul makes clear that so-called “Christians” who willfully sin this way with no hint of repentance have no part in God’s kingdom. (1 Corinthians 6:9-10)

There are other people, however, that are always wondering, “Where is the line? How close can I get to sin without sinning.”

For example, “How much touching is allowed between boyfriend and girlfriend?”

But that’s the wrong question.

As Paul said, some things may be “permissible,” but they are not beneficial. (12)

And if we’re not careful, they may just lead to sin.

What then is the correct question?  

The correct question is, “Who do I belong to? And what is pleasing to him?”

If you’re a Christian, the answer is clear.

You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. So glorify God with your body. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

Who do you belong to? Are you doing what is pleasing to him?

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

A willfully sinning “Christian”

1 Corinthians

“Don’t judge.”

“We must be tolerant.”

Those are the words of many in this world today.

There is a sense in which those words are true.

Jesus warns against hypocritical judging. (Matthew 7:1-5)

Paul warns against judging those outside the church. (1 Corinthians 5:11-12a)

But then he specifically tells us we are to judge those who claim to be Christians and yet live in unrepentant sin. (12b)

Specifically, he says,

Remove the evil person from among you. (13)

This is not to say that our primary response should be anger and self-righteousness. Rather, we are to grieve. (2)

We are to desire and pray for their restoration. (5)

But we are not simply to tolerate their behavior. Rather, we are to remove that person from among us.

The principle comes from God’s law in Deuteronomy 17:12-13. In talking about dealing with sin and judging God’s people, Moses said,

The person who acts arrogantly, refusing to listen either to the priest who stands there serving the Lord your God or to the judge, must die.

You must purge the evil from Israel. Then all the people will hear about it, be afraid, and no longer behave arrogantly. (Deuteronomy 17:12-13)

In those times, the punishment for such arrogance was death.

In these times of the church, the punishment is excommunication.

But the principal is the same: arrogant, unrepentant sin is not to be tolerated in the church.

Unfortunately, the Corinthians were arrogant. They were boasting about being so “accepting.” And so Paul rebuked them sharply for it.

It is one thing for a person to fall into sin and yet mourn over it and repent. It is one thing for a person to struggle with certain sins in their life, the key word being: struggle.

We are to help, pray for, and encourage such people.

It is another thing altogether to say, “I will live however I like, regardless of what God says.”

No person who says that can honestly call themselves a Christian. And God’s church cannot simply “tolerate” such a person.

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

A clean conscience

1 Corinthians

Paul says something very interesting in verse 4.

For I am not conscious of anything against myself, but I am not justified by this. It is the Lord who judges me. (1 Corinthians 4:4)

I think Paul would say that it is important to keep a clean conscience before God. That is what he strove to do.

But he also realized that the human heart can be deceitful. We can fool ourselves into thinking we’re okay, when in reality we’re not.

In fact, when he wrote these words to the Corinthians, Paul seemed to be thinking of what God had said through the prophet Jeremiah.

The heart is more deceitful than anything else,
and incurable—who can understand it?

I, the Lord, examine the mind,
I test the heart,
to give to each according to his way,
according to what his actions deserve. (Jeremiah 17:9-10)

Compare those words to what Paul says in verses 4-5.

So what am I saying? Should we always be worrying about whether we are clean before our Lord?

Should we always be thinking to ourselves, “Is there some hidden sin that I’m unaware of? Is there some wrong motive that I haven’t noticed in my own heart?”

No. I don’t think God wants us to live in a state of perpetual fear and guilt.

Nevertheless, it is good to have a heart of humility before God.

It’s good to pray each day as David did, “Search my heart. Show me if there’s anything wrong there.” (Psalm 19:12-13; 139:23-24).

If God shows you something, then confess it and ask for forgiveness.

If not, then thank God for the grace you stand in.

The truth is, if God were to show us all our sins at one time, we’d be overwhelmed.

But by his grace, he will strengthen us until the end, and we will stand blameless before him on the day of judgment. (1 Corinthians 1:8)

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1 Corinthians Devotionals

The foundation of our salvation

1 Corinthians

God is faithful. (1 Corinthians 1:9a)

Think about those words for a minute.

God is faithful.

If there is one reason that our salvation is sure, it’s those three words:

God is faithful.

Through his great love, he called us into fellowship with his Son. (9b)

By his grace, he sanctified us. He called us as his saints. (2)

And because of his faithfulness, he will strengthen us to the end so that we will stand blameless before him on judgment day. (8)

I’m so glad my salvation doesn’t depend on my faithfulness. Because there are so many times I am unfaithful.

But as Paul wrote Timothy,

if we are faithless, he remains faithful,
for he cannot deny himself. (2 Timothy 2:13)

So if you’re ever feeling down on yourself for your faithlessness to him, remember those three little words:

God is faithful.

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Genesis Devotions

Our obedience, our hearts

Genesis

The scepter will not depart from Judah
or the staff from between his feet
until he whose right it is comes,
and the obedience of the peoples belongs to him. (Genesis 49:9-10)

This is the first prophesy that points to a ruler coming from the line of Judah, a ruler who would reign over the whole earth.

Ultimately, this was fulfilled in Jesus, the Lion of Judah. (Revelation 5:5)

But the words that strike me are those last: “the obedience of the peoples belongs to him.”

That includes ours. We owe Jesus our obedience. Why? Because he is our rightful King and Lord.

But Jesus doesn’t want a mere obedience of rules.

He wants our hearts. Hearts that love and trust him. Without that kind of heart, even our “obedience” is not pleasing to him. (Hebrews 11:6)

How about you?

Does God have your heart?

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Genesis Devotions

A prayer for our children

Genesis

As I read Jacob’s blessing on Joseph’s sons, I prayed for my own daughter this morning.

Lord, you were the God before whom my father walked.

Not only that, you have my shepherd all my life to this day.

Throughout my life, you have redeemed my life from harm.

You saved me from my sin, and from the Enemy who would have destroyed me.

Now Lord, bless my daughter.

As you have been my shepherd, be hers.

As you have redeemed me, redeem her.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Genesis Devotions

Few and hard

Genesis

Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How many years have you lived?”

Jacob said to Pharaoh, “My pilgrimage has lasted 130 years. My years have been few and hard, and they have not reached the years of my ancestors during their pilgrimages.” (Genesis 47:8-9)

As I read Jacob’s words, I thought about the psalm Moses wrote.

Perhaps as Moses wrote Psalm 90, he thought about Jacob.

Jacob had been through many hard times. Some of his problems he had brought upon himself, deceiving his father and his brother.

Later on, God would teach him the pain he had caused his father and brother when his own sons deceived him concerning Joseph.

In his life, short in comparison to Abraham’s (Genesis 25:7) and Isaac’s (35:28), Jacob had gone through many trials.

By the time of Moses, lifespans had shortened even further than Jacob’s. But I think Jacob would have agreed with Moses when he sang,

Our lives last seventy years
or, if we are strong, eighty years.

Even the best of them are struggle and sorrow;
indeed, they pass quickly and we fly away. (Psalm 90:10)

And yet, by the end of his life, Jacob had seen God’s faithful love. (Psalm 90:14)

Though God had humbled him and Jacob had seen adversity, God also caused him to rejoice. (Psalm 90:15)

Jacob saw God’s work and power in his life. (Psalm 90:16)

And he saw God’s incredible grace toward him. (Psalm 90:17)

We too are on a journey. This world is not our home. This journey is short, and we often face sorrow and struggle.

But let us keep our eyes on God, remembering his faithful love and grace toward us.

And as we face each day, let us pray with Moses,

Teach us to number our days carefully
so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts. (Psalm 90:12)

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Genesis Devotions

God’s gracious plan

Genesis

In a lot of ways, Joseph was a picture of Jesus.

Beloved by his father. (Genesis 37:3, Matthew 3:17)

Rejected by his own people. (Genesis 37:8, John 1:10-11)

Sold for silver. (Genesis 37:28, Matthew 26:14-16)

Falsely accused. (Genesis 39:16-18, Matthew 26:59-61)

Raised to power. (Genesis 41:37-44, Philippians 2:9-11)

Bringing salvation to his people. (Genesis 45:7, Matthew 1:21)

And here in chapter 45, we see a picture of our own salvation.

Like Joseph’s brothers, one day we will stand before Jesus, so aware of our own guilt, knowing we deserve death.

But like Joseph, Jesus will say to us gently, “Please, come near me. God sent me ahead of you to establish you as a remnant within the land and to keep you alive by a great deliverance.” (Genesis 45:4, 7)

As with Jacob and his family, there is now a remnant of Jews saved by grace. (Romans 11:5)

And by God’s grace, we are part of that family too, saved by the great deliverance Jesus brought about. (Ephesians 2:11-13)

None of this was an accident either. As in Joseph’s case, it was all part of God’s gracious plan toward us. (Genesis 45:5-8; Acts 2:13-18, 4:27-28)

So let us sing with Paul, rejoicing in our salvation:

Oh, the depth of the riches
and the wisdom and the knowledge of God!

How unsearchable his judgments
and untraceable his ways!

For who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor?

And who has ever given to God,
that he should be repaid?,

For from him and through him
and to him are all things.

To him be the glory forever. Amen. (Romans 11:33-36)

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Genesis Devotions

How can we plead? How can we justify ourselves?

Genesis

“What can we say to my lord?” Judah replied. “How can we plead? How can we justify ourselves? God has exposed your servants’ iniquity.” (Genesis 44:16)

Aren’t those words representative of us all? When we stand before God, and God opens up the books that show our entire lives, there will be nothing we can say. No defense we can give.

Judah’s words to his father Jacob in verse 32 also strike me.

If I do not return him to you, I will always bear the guilt for sinning against you, my father. (32)

It seems to me there was a double meaning there, although Jacob didn’t see it at the time.

It was Judah who had suggested selling Joseph as a slave. (Genesis 37:26-27)

And we see in this chapter how heavily he wore the weight of that guilt.

He had sinned against his father by selling Joseph. There was nothing he could do to change it. And I think he was trying to atone for his sin by guaranteeing Benjamin’s safety.

I think his hidden message to his father was, “If I do not bring Benjamin back to you, I will always bear the guilt for sinning against you by selling Joseph.”

But the truth is, even if he had brought Benjamin back safely, it would not have truly paid for his sin.

How often do we try to do what Judah did? We try to “make up” for the wrong we did.

But nothing we do can take our sin away. God exposes our iniquity and there is no way to justify ourselves.

But the good news is that Jesus lifted the weight of our sin, put it on himself, and paid for our sin at the cross.

All we have to do is trust and rest in what Jesus did for us.

And so Paul tells us,

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

We have also obtained access through him by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we boast in the hope of the glory of God. (Romans 5:1-2)

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Genesis Devotions

God’s discipline

Genesis

This is truly a fascinating chapter when you think about it.

For in it, you see Joseph being confronted with his past hurts.

He sees his “honest” brothers (verse 11) for the first time in 20 years. (“Honest? Did you tell Father the truth about me?”)

He is confronted with how they sold him into slavery. “One of our brothers is no longer living.” (Genesis 42:13)

Then you have his brothers. God confronts them with the guilt that they have tried to bury for years. “Obviously, we are being punished for what we did to our brother.” (21)

And finally Jacob. Ever since Joseph disappeared, his life has basically stopped because of his grief. And he is probably wondering where God is in all his pain.

“Joseph is gone, and Simeon is gone. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything happens to me!” (36)

Often times we confront pain in our lives.

Sometimes it’s things people have done to us.

Sometimes it’s the consequences of our own guilt.

And so we wonder, “Does God really hate me that much?”

And yet, God does not confront us with our pain to make us suffer. He does it to bring about our healing and salvation.

For Joseph, he finds out for the first time that Reuben was not involved in selling him. That he in fact had defended Joseph.

More, Joseph finds out his brothers were not as callous as he had thought. That all these years they had been wracked with guilt for what they had done to him. (21-22)

All that, I think, helped him to forgive.

For his brothers, they thought they were seeing God’s judgment. (21, 28)

In reality, they were seeing his salvation.

And for Jacob, though God had been silent during those 20 years of pain without Joseph, he would soon find out that God had been working for his good all along.

So let us remember the words of exhortation from the author of Hebrews:

“…we had human fathers discipline us, and we respected them.

Shouldn’t we submit even more to the Father of spirits and live?

For they disciplined us for a short time based on what seemed good to them, but he does it for our benefit, so that we can share his holiness.

No discipline seems enjoyable at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

Therefore, strengthen your tired hands and weakened knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated but healed instead.” (Hebrews 12:9-13)

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Genesis Devotions

The hope we have

Genesis

Since the dream was given twice to Pharaoh, it means that the matter has been determined by God, and he will carry it out soon. (Genesis 41:32)

Those words of Joseph are very interesting.

He had gone through so many hardships, one wonders how he held on to hope.

From what he said to Pharaoh, I think it had to be those two dreams he had when he was a young man. Dreams that showed the future hope he had. A hope based on the goodness and faithfulness of God.

Joseph’s “soon” took roughly 20 years. But it did come.

We too, have a hope. And that hope is certain.

Why? The writer of Hebrews tells us: God’s unchangeable promises and oath. (Hebrews 6:17)

We could probably add one more unchangeable thing to that: God’s unchanging good purposes.

Through these unchanging things, we have a high priest in Jesus who has become our source of eternal salvation. (Hebrews 5:5-10, 7:11-28)

For this reason, the writer of Hebrews tells that we who have fled to God for refuge have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us.

For this hope is “an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” (Hebrews 6:18-19)

So whatever struggles you may be going through, hold on to the hope we have in him, just as Joseph did.

For you need endurance, so that after you have done God’s will, you may receive what was promised.

For yet in a very little while,
the Coming One will come and not delay.

But my righteous one will live by faith;
and if he draws back,
I have no pleasure in him.

But we are not those who draw back and are destroyed, but those who have faith and are saved. (Hebrews 10:36-39)

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Genesis Devotions

Remember me

Genesis

“But when all goes well for you, remember that I was with you. Please show kindness to me by mentioning me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this prison.”…

Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph; he forgot him. (Genesis 40:14, 23)

It must have been discouraging to Joseph that the cupbearer forgot him.

How much hope did he have those first few days after the cupbearer was released, especially when Joseph undoubtedly heard that he was restored to his position, just as Joseph had said?

But days passed. Weeks passed. Nothing happened.

People are fallible. They will fail us.

The good news is, God doesn’t.

Four times it says in chapter 39 that he was with Joseph.

And he would continue to be with Joseph throughout his life, even though Joseph couldn’t always see it.

Thousands of years later, another man begged, “Remember me!”

And on the cross, Jesus said to him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43)

But unlike the cupbearer, Jesus remembered him and interceded for him before the Father.

He does the same for us. (Hebrews 7:22-25)

So whatever we’re going through, let us always hold on to the hope we have in him.

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Genesis Devotions

Why all the ugliness?

Genesis

Why does the Bible tell such ugly stories sometimes?

Have you ever wondered that? The story with Judah and Tamar certainly is a horrible story. And there are other horrible stories recorded in the Bible too.

The short answer is: it’s human history. And human history is filled with ugly stories.

The Bible doesn’t show us an idealized humanity. It shows humanity in all its sinfulness.

But it also shows a God who is able to redeem humanity, no matter its ugly sinfulness.

As ugly as this story is, ultimately, our Savior himself came through the line Judah and Tamar produced. (See Matthew 1).

You may see a lot of ugliness in this world. You may see a lot of ugliness in your life.

But there is no person or situation that God cannot redeem, if we’ll just put our trust in him.

As Paul wrote,   

For I am not ashamed of the gospel,, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes… (Romans 1:16)

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Genesis Devotions

Unseen, but present

Genesis

What was Joseph thinking when his brothers seized him at Dothan and sold him to the Ishamelites?

“Where is God?” would be the likely response.

Strangely enough, it was at Dothan hundreds of years later that another person was wondering, “Where is God?”

The prophet Elisha and his servant were surrounded by the enemy’s army, and his servant was filled with fear. But Elisha reassured his servant,

Don’t be afraid, for those who are with us outnumber those who are with them. (2 Kings 6:16)

Then Elisha prayed,

Lord, please open his eyes and let him see. (2 Kings 6:17)

Suddenly the servant saw that they were protected by the Lord’s army. God hadn’t abandoned them. He had been there all along.

So he was with Joseph.

And so he would be with Jesus thousands of years later even as Jesus cried out, “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?”

And just as he used the evil of the brothers to save Jacob’s entire family including those brothers, he used the evil of the Jewish leaders to save us from our sin.

So whatever you’re going through remember: You may not be able to see God in your circumstances. But he is present. And he is working for your good. (Romans 8:28)

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Mark Devotionals

Watching and praying

Mark

Therefore be alert, since you don’t know when the master of the house is coming—whether in the evening or at midnight or at the crowing of the rooster or early in the morning.

Otherwise, when he comes suddenly he might find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say to everyone: Be alert!” (Mark 13:35-37)

He said to them, “I am deeply grieved to the point of death. Remain here and stay awake.”…Then he came and found them sleeping. (Mark 14:34, 37)

It’s interesting to me that in the garden of Gethsemane, the disciples lived out the parable Jesus had just told them.

In the parable and in the garden, Jesus told them, “Be alert. Stay awake.” (In the Greek, those two commands are exactly the same.)

But when their Master returned, the disciples were sleeping. Why? Luke tells us the reason: they were exhausted from grief. (Luke 22:45)

Grief from hearing Jesus was leaving them (John 16:5-6).

Grief that one of them would betray him (Mark 14:18).

Grief that all would forsake him. (Mark 14:27)

And because of their grief, they failed to watch and pray. So when the time of trial came, they fell. (50)

Sometimes, we are so burdened by our problems that we say, “I can’t pray. I’m too exhausted. I’m feeling too weak.”

But it’s precisely during those times that we need to watch and pray the most.

Jesus was exhausted. He was emotionally drained. But in the garden, he watched and he prayed. So when the time of trial came, he was able to stand.

Are you feeling exhausted? Are you feeling emotionally drained? Now especially is the time to watch and pray.

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Mark Devotionals

Watching and waiting for our Lord

Mark

In the same way, when you see these things happening, recognize that he is near—at the door… Watch! Be alert! For you don’t know when the time is coming. (Mark 13:29,33)

None of us know when Jesus is coming. But we know that his return will come in difficult times.

The problem with difficult times is that we often end up focusing on our own problems. We become very internally focused, and we forget to watch for his return.

But watching for his return does not merely mean looking to the sky waiting for him to come.

It means doing the things he has called you to do. (Luke 12:42-43)

And one of the main things he has called us to do each day is to touch the people he’s put in our lives with his love.

At the end of each day, can we look back and say that we have done that? Or will we look back and see a day totally focused on ourselves?

May we never waste a day as we watch and wait for our Lord’s return.

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Mark Devotionals

What brings a smile to Jesus’ face

Mark

Mark doesn’t tell us so, but I imagine two people brought smiles to Jesus’ face in this chapter.

The first, surprisingly, was a scribe. Surprising because most scribes were hostile to Jesus.

The second was a poor widow.

Why do I think they brought smiles to Jesus’ faith.

They both had something in common. They understood that more than our keeping a bunch of rules, God is interested in our hearts.

For the scribe, he understood that though God had commanded the Jews to give burnt offerings and sacrifices, God desires people who love him with all their hearts, minds, soul, and strength even more.

And God also desires people who values those God values, namely, every single person God has created.

For the widow, she understood that though she had so little to give, God was more interested in her love and trust in him than how much money she put into the offering box.

So many people that day were probably keeping the letter of the law, tithing and giving much more than that widow. But this woman’s heart belonged to God. And Jesus saw that.

May we all bring a smile to our Lord’s face.

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Mark Devotionals

Where our power comes from

Mark

After he had gone into the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we drive [the demon] out?”

And he told them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer.” (Mark 9:28-29)

The disciples were embarrassed. Many times before they had cast demons out of people. But this time, they couldn’t. Why not?

I think it was because after casting so many demons out, they were starting to think that their power to do so came from within themselves.

Oh, maybe they didn’t actually say so, but their attitudes and actions showed it.

Frustration that the demon wouldn’t leave. And a failure to come to God in prayer.

Often times, the more we do ministry, the more our confidence grows. We start thinking, “I can do this!”

But what is our confidence in?

In ourselves? In our gifts?

Or in God?

If we put our confidence in ourselves and our gifts, things may go well for a while. But in the end, we’ll face frustration and failure just like the disciples did.

Remember where your power comes from. As Jesus said, without him, we can do nothing. (John 15:4-5)

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Mark Devotionals

Ashamed?

Mark

For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. (Mark 8:38)

There is a certain irony in Jesus’ words that I had never noticed before. He calls the people in our world, “an adulterous and sinful generation.”

That is something they should find great shame in. But the truth is, nowadays, many people boast about their sin. Not only that, they cheer on those who engage in it. (Romans 1:21-32)

And if that weren’t enough, they try to put to shame those who follow Christ and his words.

But Jesus said,

If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. (34)

The cross was perhaps the most painful and shameful kind of death ever. People were nailed naked on a cross. And when Jesus was on the cross, people mocked him.

To be a disciple of Christ means taking up our cross and experiencing the suffering and shame he did.

Not everyone will like us.

Some will mock us.

But Jesus said in our shame, we find blessing. (Matthew 5:10-12)

More, through our boldness, some of the very people that mock us now may find salvation.

So let us say with Paul:

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes… (Romans 1:16)

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Mark Devotionals

Abandoning God’s commands

Mark

“This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me.


They worship me in vain,
teaching as doctrines human commands.”

Abandoning the command of God, you hold on to human tradition…You have a fine way of invalidating God’s command in order to set up your tradition!” (Mark 7:6-9)

It’s hard not to look at Jesus’ words and think about current culture, especially among those claiming to be Christians.

More and more people who claim to be Christians honor God with their lips, claiming to love God and follow him, but have abandoned God’s commands when it comes to morality.

They invalidate God’s commands in order to set up their own morality, teaching as doctrines what the world teaches.

This is becoming increasingly true when it comes to issues of sexual morality and gender. More and more people are abandoning God’s teaching on these issues to embrace the world’s.

More, they twist God’s clear teaching to make it match the world’s.

Jesus made it very clear his opinion of those who would do such a thing.

You cannot claim to honor and love God while at the same time abandoning his commands and following the teaching of the world.

Do you honor God with your lips while rejecting what he commands?

Or does your heart truly belong to him?

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Mark Devotionals

A world full of hurting people

Mark

After reading this passage, I just thought about all the people in this world who are hurting.eople who are hurting because death has come to this world and touched those they love. (Mark 5:22-23, 35)

People who are hurting because death has come to this world and touched those they love. (22-23, 35)

People who are hurting because of problems that only get worse no matter what they do. (25-26)

People who are crying out in their souls night and day. (5)

Jesus had compassion on them. He touched them. He healed them.

Now, he has called us to do the same. We are his eyes, his ears, his mouth, his hands, and his feet in this broken world.

Lord, open my eyes to those who are hurting around me. Use me somehow to touch them with your love and bring healing to them.

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Mark Devotionals

Why so afraid?

Mark

Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith? (Mark 4:40)

Those words struck me this morning.

How often do we look at our problems with fear or worry?

How often does Jesus say to us, “Why are you afraid? Why are you worrying? Don’t you trust me yet? Don’t you believe I love you and am working for your good?”

How much less stress would we have if instead of focusing on our problems, we looked at Jesus and said, “Who then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him! If he is that powerful, and if he truly cares about me so much, then what am I worrying about?”

Lord, increase my faith. Teach me to trust you.

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Mark Devotionals

Chosen to be with him. Chosen to do battle.

Mark

He appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him, to send them out to preach, and to have authority to drive out demons. (Mark 3:14-15)

What does it mean to live the Christian life? I think we find the answer in these two verses.

We are chosen to be with Jesus.

This doesn’t mean just spending time with God during your quiet time (important as that is) and then living the rest of the day for yourself.

It means being with Jesus every moment of every day. It means walking with him, constantly listening for his voice, and following his lead. (John 15:4-5)

But we aren’t just chosen to be with Jesus. He sends us out into the world to do spiritual battle. (Ephesians 6:11-12, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5)

Oh, we may not be driving out demons. But we are called to do battle against Satan and his kingdom. And we mainly do that by sharing the gospel with those around us.

For it is through the gospel that the gates of hell are torn down and people are set free from Satan’s kingdom.

That’s the Christian life: to be with Jesus and to touch others with his gospel.

And as we do so, I believe Jesus looks at us, smiles, and says,

Who are my mother and my brothers?…

Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:33-35)

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Mark Devotionals

Because God loves us

Mark

In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan by John.

As soon as he came up out of the water, he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.

And a voice came from heaven: “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well-pleased.”

Immediately the Spirit drove him into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. (Mark 1:9-13)

It always strikes me that just one sentence after we see the Father saying to Jesus, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased,” it says the Spirit drove Jesus out into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan.

Sometimes we think, “Though God loves us, he sometimes lets us go through deserts.”

But the thought that came to me today was this: “Because God loves us, he sometimes drives us into the deserts.”

Why?

I think we see the answer in Hebrews 12:6-7.

for the Lord disciplines the one he loves
and punishes every son he receives.,

Endure suffering as discipline: God is dealing with you as sons. For what son is there that a father does not discipline?

Even Jesus, who never sinned, experienced the Father’s discipline. And we see it here in Mark. But why did Jesus have to undergo discipline if he never sinned? 

That answer is also in Hebrews.

Although he was the Son, he learned obedience from what he suffered.

After he was perfected, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him... (Hebrews 5:8-9)

As a man, Jesus had to learn obedience just like we do. And obedience is tested not in the easy times, but in the difficult.

It’s easy to obey God when all is going well. It’s hard to obey God when we’re going through a desert. Through his time in the desert, Jesus learned obedience. It was an obedience that would be tested again in Gethsemane. (Mark 14:36-40)

But now, because Jesus has learned obedience, the writer of Hebrews says,

For since he himself has suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted. (Hebrews 2:18)

So don’t get discouraged when you go through deserts. God doesn’t drive you there because he hates you. He does it because he loves you.

Just as he disciplined Jesus, he disciplines us. Not to destroy us. But for our good. (Hebrews 12:10-11)

And if you’re struggling through a desert right now, know that Jesus understands you. Because he has experienced the Father’s discipline too.

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:14-16)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Reflecting on God’s faithful love

Psalms

This will probably be my final blog entry for 2021. And it seems appropriate to end this year with this psalm.

In it, the psalmist reflects on God’s goodness and faithful love to Israel. In fact, those are his very first words.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His faithful love endures forever. (Psalm 136:1)

How often do we reflect on God’s goodness and faithful love in our lives?

I probably don’t do it enough.

But today, I took the time to write my own version of Psalm 136.

Here’s a condensed version:

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His faithful love endures forever. (1)

Before I was born, he drew my parents to himself.
His faithful love endures forever.

When I was 7 years old, he drew me to himself.
His faithful love endures forever.

At a time when I had lost interest in church, he made himself real to me.
His faithful love endures forever.

He led me into children’s ministry.
His faithful love endures forever.

When I burned out from children’s ministry,
His faithful love endures forever.

when I was going through a spiritual desert,
His faithful love endures forever.

he brought me through and refreshed my spirit.
His faithful love endures forever.

He led me to Japan,
His faithful love endures forever.

bringing my wife into my life,
His faithful love endures forever.

and my daughter.
His faithful love endures forever.

When I lost my job,
His faithful love endures forever.

and went through years of financial struggle,
His faithful love endures forever.

he provided every need.
His faithful love endures forever.

He has led me through 25 years of ministry here in Japan,
His faithful love endures forever.

despite my weaknesses, my stubbornness, and my failures.
His faithful love endures forever.

I give thanks to the God of heaven.
His faithful love endures forever.

That’s my story. (Part of it, anyway).

What’s your story? Write it out.

Remember God’s goodness.

Remember God’s faithful love toward you.

And share what you’ve written with others, with your husband, your wife, your kids, your friends.

Share it so that they may see God’s goodness and faithfulness too. 

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His faithful love endures forever. (1)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Encouraging our spiritual leaders

Psalms

Now bless the Lord,
all you servants of the Lord
who stand in the Lord’s house at night!

Lift up your hands in the holy place
and bless the Lord! (Psalm 134:1-2)

As the people completed their pilgrimage into Jerusalem, they would sing the above words to those serving in the temple.

In turn, the people working in the temple would call back a blessing on those coming into Jerusalem. (3)

It might seem strange to encourage people who worked in the temple to lift up their hands and bless the Lord. After all, wasn’t that their job?

And yet the danger for anyone serving the Lord is that they get so involved in the work of the ministry that they forget to have hearts turned to the Lord in worship.

So if you’re a leader in the church, remember to not just spend time working for the Lord. Remember to spend time worshiping him.

And if you are someone who continually receives blessing from those working for the Lord (3), remember to pass on words of encouragement to them. Thank them for the ways they have blessed you.

But more importantly, remind them to spend time worshiping the Lord themselves, keeping their eyes on him.

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Psalms Devotionals 2

The significance of Christmas

Bethlehem

We heard of the ark in Ephrathah; 
we found it in the fields of Jaar.

Let’s go to his dwelling place; 
let’s worship at his footstool.” (Psalm 132:6-7)

In the Old Testament, the ark of the covenant was a symbol of God’s presence with the Israelites.

But at a time when the Israelites had turned their backs on God, it got captured by the Philistines. And even when the Philistines returned the ark, it was ignored by the Israelites for years.  (I Samuel 4-7, I Chronicles 13:3)

But in this psalm, the poet recounts how David took the ark of the covenant from Kiriath-jearam and brought it to Jerusalem. (1 Chronicles 15) 

The poet also recounts the promises God made to David to keep his dynasty alive forever. 

There are two Ephrathahs in the Old Testament. This psalm probably is referring to the one in Kiriath-jearam.

But I do find it interesting that hundreds of years later, God kept his promise to David through the birth of Jesus in another Ephrathah: Bethlehem. (Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:5)

And after he was born, wise men from the East said, 

Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star at its rising and have come to worship him. (Matthew 2:2)

And because of the cross, now we are clothed with salvation as God’s priests and we shout for joy because of it. (16)

More, the day will come when God will put all Jesus’ enemies under his feet. (I Corinthians 15:24-27).

And on that day, his crown will indeed be glorious. (18)

So let us remember that Christmas is not just about Jesus coming 2000 years ago. He will come again. 

On that day, we will all sing,

The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever. (Revelation 11:15)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

A rich redemption

Psalms

Israel, put your hope in the Lord.

For there is faithful love with the Lord,
and with him is redemption in abundance.

And he will redeem Israel
from all its iniquities. (Psalm 130:7-8)

When I read those  words, I couldn’t help but think of the angel’s words to Joseph:

[Mary] will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. (Matthew 1:21)

We live in a world broken by sin.

Your own life may be broken because of your sin and failures.

If God kept track of all of them, there is no way we could stand before him. (Psalm 130:3)

But put your hope in the Lord.

With him, there is grace, a love that is faithful to us even when we are faithless. (2 Timothy 2:13)

And by Jesus’ blood, we have received redemption.

But not just redemption.

Redemption in abundance.

Indeed, we have all received grace upon grace from his fullness, for the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. (John 1:16-17)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Because Jesus was afflicted.

Psalms

Since my youth they have often attacked me
let Israel say—
since my youth they have often attacked me,
but they have not prevailed against me.

Plowmen plowed over my back;
they made their furrows long.

The Lord is righteous;
he has cut the ropes of the wicked.” (Psalm 129:1-4)

Here in this psalm, the poet laments his afflictions, yet finds hope in that the Lord will ultimately deliver him and curse his enemies.

Years later, Jesus would also be afflicted. He knew what it meant to be despised. He knew what it was like to be afflicted, his back plowed by whips, furrows cut into his back. More, he knew the pain and humiliation of crucifixion.

But God raised him from the dead, delivering him from the grave.

More importantly, it was because of Jesus’ afflictions that we now have peace with God. (Isaiah 53:4-5)

That’s the reason why on the day of Jesus’ birth, the angels didn’t call down a curse on us. Rather, they raised their voice in worship to God, pronouncing his blessings on us.

Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and peace on earth to people he favors! (Luke 2:14)

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Genesis Devotions

Son of sorrows. Son of the Father’s right hand.

Genesis

I suppose it’s because Christmas is near, but the word “Bethlehem” in verse 19 caught my eye today.

While Jacob’s family was on their way there, Rachel gave birth to Jacob’s youngest son, but in doing so, she died.

As she was dying, she named her son “Ben-oni,” which means “son of my sorrows.”

Jacob would rename him “Benjamin,” which means “son of my right hand.”

Nearly 2000 years later, another baby would be born, this one in Bethlehem itself.

In a sense, he was “Ben-oni.” When he died on the cross, a sword pierced his mother’s soul. (Luke 2:34-35).

More than that, he himself was a man of sorrows, knowing pain, suffering, and rejection. (Isaiah 53:3)

But on the cross, he willingly submitted himself to death, bearing our sin, and interceding for us who had rebelled against God. (Isaiah 53:12)

And then the Father raised him from the dead, seating him at his right hand, “far above every ruler and authority, power and dominion, and every title given.” (Ephesians 1:20-21)

Son of sorrows.

Son of the Father’s right hand.

That’s Jesus.

And that’s what Christmas is all about.

Joy to the world!
The Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King!

Isaac Watts
Categories
Genesis Devotions

Putting ourselves in bad situations

Genesis

This is one of the ugliest stories in the Bible, from the rape of Dinah to the response of her brothers.

All of it might have been avoided, though, if Jacob had done one thing: go back to Bethel to fulfill his vows to God (Genesis 28:18-22).

Instead, he stopped a day’s journey away from Bethel, and purchased land outside the city of Shechem.

They apparently lived there long enough for his young children (33:13-14) to grow up into young adults.

It was probably more convenient for them living near a city. And maybe Jacob felt they were close enough to Bethel and he could fulfill all his vows there.

But apparently, he never really did until after the incident at Shechem. (35:1-4)

How often do we put ourselves in bad situations because we don’t put God first in our lives?

God is the God of second chances. God gave Jacob another chance after Shechem.

But how much pain would we be spared if we gave God our whole hearts from the beginning?  

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Genesis Devotions

Seeing the face of God

Genesis

[Jacob] himself went on ahead and bowed to the ground seven times until he approached his brother.

But Esau ran to meet him, hugged him, threw his arms around him, and kissed him. Then they wept…

Jacob said… “I have seen your face, and it is like seeing God’s face, since you have accepted me.” (Genesis 33:3-4, 10)

Sometimes we wonder how God sees us.

Like Jacob sinned against Esau, we have sinned against God. And we wonder how in the world he could ever accept us.

The amazing thing is, though we may come head down, fearful, and awaiting punishment, God comes running to us like Esau, hugs us, throws his arms around us, and kisses us. In short, he accepts us.

In a lot of ways, Esau’s response to Jacob mirrors the father’s response in a famous parable Jesus told.

But while the son was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion. He ran, threw his arms around his neck, and kissed him. (Luke 15:20)

That’s what we see when we see our heavenly Father’s face:

Compassion.

Forgiveness.

Acceptance.

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Genesis Devotions

God fights

Genesis

Your name will no longer be Jacob,” he said.

“It will be Israel because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed.” (Genesis 32:28)

When blessing Jacob, God gave him a new name: Israel.

The name “Israel” can mean either “He struggles with God” or “God fights.”

I could always understand the first meaning. All his life, Jacob had struggled with God trying to gain his blessing and favor.

Instead of waiting for God’s timing, he stole Esau’s birthright and blessing.

Instead of trusting God and simply telling Laban he was leaving, he ran away secretly with his family.

But today, I finally came to understand the second meaning of that name.

The thing that Jacob had to learn was he didn’t have to fight to obtain God’s blessing and favor.

God was already on his side. God was fighting for him.

God was fighting for Jacob in his struggles with Laban (Genesis 31:6-13, 24, 42).

And God would fight for him in reconciling him with Esau. (Genesis 33)

So many times, we feel like we have to struggle to gain God’s favor and blessing. But in doing so, we end up fighting God and others.

Sometimes, just like Jacob was trying to buy Esau’s favor and forgiveness, we try to do the same with God.

But God tells us, “I am already on your side. I am already fighting for you.”

And Jesus showed us that most vividly on the cross. (Colossians 2:13-15)

So remember the words of Paul.

What, then, are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He did not even spare his own Son but gave him up for us all. How will he not also with him grant us everything?

Who can bring an accusation against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies.

Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is the one who died, but even more, has been raised; he also is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us.

Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Can affliction or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? …

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:31-35, 37-39)

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Genesis Devotions

For the insignificant and despised

Leah

It’s interesting to me that God chose Leah as the one through whom Jesus would ultimately be born.

Rachel was the “loved one.”

Leah was not.

Rachel was the beautiful one.

Leah was the homely one.

And yet God chose her instead of Rachel.

It reminds me of what Paul told the Corinthians.

Brothers and sisters, consider your calling: Not many were wise from a human perspective, not many powerful, not many of noble birth.

Instead, God has chosen what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen what is weak in the world to shame the strong.

God has chosen what is insignificant and despised in the world—what is viewed as nothing—to bring to nothing what is viewed as something… (1 Corinthians 1:26-28)

Why does God choose such people?

…so that no one may boast in his presence. (I Corinthians 1:29)

It is solely by God’s grace and Christ’s work that we are justified, sanctified, and redeemed. (I Corinthians 1:30)

And so, Paul concludes,

Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord. (I Corinthians 1:31)

Ultimately, that’s what Leah did.

After her first three sons were born, you see her focusing on her wretched state, saying that she was afflicted, neglected, and unloved.

But after Judah was born, she turned her focus away from her wretched state, and instead turned her eyes to God, saying,  

This time I will praise the Lord (Genesis 29:35)

I find it only fitting then that Judah’s line was the one through whom Jesus came.

You might think of yourself as insignificant. As despised. But you are exactly the kind of person that God likes to pour his grace upon.

You are in fact the kind of person Jesus identifies with. According to Isaiah,

He didn’t have an impressive form
or majesty that we should look at him,
no appearance that we should desire him.

He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of suffering who knew what sickness was.

He was like someone people turned away from;
he was despised, and we didn’t value him.” (Isaiah 53:2-3)

But Jesus didn’t just come to identify with the despised and insignificant. He came to redeem them.

…he was pierced because of our rebellion,
crushed because of our iniquities;
punishment for our peace was on him,
and we are healed by his wounds. (Isaiah 53:5)

Christmas isn’t just for the happy, the loved, and the powerful.

Christmas is for people like Leah. It’s for people like you. It’s for people like me.

So with Leah, let us boast in the Lord, singing, “I will praise you Lord.”

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Genesis Devotions

Our stairway. Our gate. Our temple. Our God.

Genesis

A stairway was set on the ground with its top reaching the sky, and God’s angels were going up and down on it. The Lord was standing there beside him, saying, “I am the Lord”…

[Jacob] said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”

He was afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! This is none other than the house of God. This is the gate of heaven.” (12-13, 16-17)

Think about this scene. Jacob, because of his sin, was on the run from his brother Esau.

And yet God reached down in his grace and revealed himself to him. Not only did he reveal himself to Jacob, he blessed him.

Around 2000 years after this event, another man named Nathanael stood in front of Jesus.

I believe that like Jacob, he was somewhat afraid because Jesus had revealed things about Nathanael that only God could have known.

Nathanael named him Messiah that day. But he didn’t yet realize that Jesus was much more.

Jesus told him,

You will see greater things than this…

Truly I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.(John 1:50-51)

In the story of Jacob, the angels descended from heaven on the stairway. Here in John, Jesus says, “I am the stairway. But I am not telling you to come up to me. I have come down to you.”

More than that, Jesus is the new house of God, the new temple where God’s glory is revealed, and people can draw close to him because of his death on the cross (John 2:20, 12:32).

And now, he is the gate to heaven. If anyone enters by him, he will be saved. (John 10:9)

That’s the meaning of Christmas. Jesus is our stairway, our temple, our gate, and most importantly, our Lord and God.

And whether we know it or not, he is in this place.

He is Immanuel, God with us.

So together with Jacob and Nathanael, let us stand in awe in his presence.

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Genesis Devotions

I will be with you. I will bless you.

Genesis

…stay in this land as an alien, and I will be with you and bless you… I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you. (26:3, 24)

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob didn’t belong to this world. They belonged to God and his kingdom. But for a while, they were called to live on this earth as aliens, as temporary residents. (Hebrews 11:13-16)

They weren’t to live like the people around them, taking on their values or way of life. They were to be different from the people of this world.  

And God promised them that though they would be living like aliens in a foreign land, he would be with them and bless them.

As long as they remembered that, they did well. When they forgot, they got into trouble.

When Abraham and Isaac forgot, out of fear of their neighbors, they claimed their wives were their sisters.

In Jacob’s case, perhaps he wasn’t sure those promises were really for him, so he resorted to deceit in order to gain God’s blessing.

Like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, we are like foreigners in a strange land. (1 Peter 2:11, John 17:14-16)

The question is, do we truly believe that God is with us and will bless us? And does that truth shape the way we live?

Take some time to mediate on these words of Paul. Think about what they really mean.

On the contrary, we speak God’s hidden wisdom in a mystery, a wisdom God predestined before the ages for our glory…as it is written,

What no eye has seen, no ear has heard,
and no human heart has conceived—
God has prepared these things for those who love him. (I Corinthians 2:7, 9)

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Genesis Devotions

The God who sees and comforts

Genesis

It’s always amazing to me how I can read something in the Bible over and over and never really notice its significance.

I’ve read this passage hundreds of times before, but today, this verse stuck out at me:

Now Isaac was returning from Beer-lahai-roi, for he was living in the Negev region. (62)

A pretty inconspicuous verse, right?

But that name “Beer-lahoi-roi” rang a bell with me. And I suddenly realized that it was the same place where God had met Hagar years earlier when she had been running away from Sarah. (Genesis 16)

And after her encounter with God, she called him, “El-roi”, “The God who sees me.” The name “Beer-lahoi-roi” means “the well of the Living One who sees me.”

Perhaps as Isaac was wandering out there, he was praying, “God, you were with Hagar when she was pregnant with my brother Ishmael. You saw her when she was hurting. Will you now be with me in my hurt? My mother has died. And right now, I am feeling incredibly lonely.”

And God was. In his gracious provision and impeccable timing, God brought Rebekah to Isaac. It says at the end of this chapter,

And Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah and took Rebekah to be his wife. Isaac loved her, and he was comforted after his mother’s death. (67)

Christmas season is usually a happy time. But it can also be a hard time for many people, especially if you have lost someone you loved this year.

But remember that God is “El-roi”, the God who sees you.

And remember that Jesus is “Immanuel,” God with us.

So if you’re struggling right now, turn to him.

God is the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our affliction (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).

And through whatever pain you may be feeling, his Son is right there by your side.

For a child will be born for us,
a son will be given to us,
and the government will be on his shoulders.

He will be named
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)

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Genesis Devotions

Foreigners and temporary residents

Walking together

I am a sojourner and foreigner among you. (4, ESV)

When Sarah died, perhaps the truth of those words really hit home for Abraham.

He was in the land God had promised to give him and his descendants, but the only part he owned was the place he purchased to bury Sarah.

He was in a land where he was a mere sojourner and a foreigner.

We too are sojourners and foreigners in this world.

The culture of this world is different from ours as citizens of God’s kingdom. The way the people think and act is different from how we think and act. And so we feel out of place.

On top of that, when we see all the pain in this world, when we see how death reigns here, we start to feel homesick for heaven.

Our hearts are not truly here. We’re looking for something better.

And we have something better. We have a hope, an inheritance promised by a God who never breaks his promises.

So let’s hold firmly to that hope, taking on the attitude of Abraham, Sarah, and all who have come before us.

These all died in faith, although they had not received the things that were promised.

But they saw them from a distance, greeted them, and confessed that they were foreigners and temporary residents on the earth.

Now those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a homeland.

If they were thinking about where they came from, they would have had an opportunity to return.

But they now desire a better place—a heavenly one.

Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. (Hebrews 11:13-16)

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Genesis Devotions

The Scriptures testify about me

Genesis

When Jesus said the Scriptures talked about him (John 5:38-39), I can’t help but think Genesis 22 was one of those Scriptures he was talking about.

God told Abraham,

Take your son…your only son Isaac, whom you love, go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about. (Genesis 22:2)

While God ultimately kept Abraham from sacrificing Isaac, God did not hold back his own Son from the cross.

And so the apostle John wrote these words,

God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his one and only Son into the world so that we might live through him.

Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice, for our sins. (1 John 4:9-10)

And again,

For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

As Abraham and Isaac went up the mountain, Isaac asked, “Where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

To which Abraham replied,

God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son. (Genesis 22:8)

Many years later, John the Baptist would say of Jesus,

Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29)

As Isaac carried the wood of the sacrifice, Jesus carried the wood of the cross.

As Isaac “rose from the dead,” so too did Jesus. (Hebrews 11:19)

And now through Jesus, Abraham’s offspring, all the nations of the world have been blessed. (Genesis 22:18, Matthew 1:1-16)

Sometimes people wonder why we should read the Old Testament. The main reason is we see Jesus there.

So as we read the Old Testament, let’s look for Jesus together.  

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Genesis Devotions

When God visits

Genesis

Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. (Genesis 21:1, NIV)

The NIV translation is very interesting when it says, “the Lord was gracious to Sarah.”

Most translations say “The Lord came to Sarah” or “The Lord visited Sarah.”

After a little digging, what I found was that in the Old Testament, the words “The Lord came” or “The Lord visited” often has the nuance of the Lord coming either to bless or to curse.

And in this case, he came to bless Sarah, just as he had promised, giving her a son.

Hundreds of years later, the Lord would visit another woman named Mary. And in doing so, he kept another promise: to send a Savior to save us all.

And as John tells us, from Jesus, we have received “grace upon grace.” (John 1:16)

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again,

Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift! (2 Corinthians 9:15)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

A reason to give thanks

Psalms

Happy Thanksgiving all!

Psalm 100 is titled, “A psalm of thanksgiving” so I thought it was very appropriate for the day.

As I was reflecting on this psalm, however, it occurred to me how unusual it was. It seems much more a New Testament psalm than an Old Testament one.

Why?

It is a call not just for the Jews, but for all people to worship God.

Prior to the cross, it was the Jews who had reason to worship. They were the ones who could truly claim to be God’s people, God’s sheep. They were the ones who had special access to God.

But this side of the cross, everyone who believes in Jesus, both Jew and non-Jew, can now enter into God’s presence. All have the right to say, “I am God’s sheep. I belong to him.”

So let us serve him with gladness, coming before him with joyful songs.

Let us boldly enter his presence with thanksgiving and bless his name.

For the Lord is good, and his faithful love endures forever;
his faithfulness, through all generations. (Psalm 100:5)

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Genesis Devotions

At the appointed time

Genesis

I don’t know why, but maybe because Christmas is right around the corner, I’m seeing a lot of things through that lens.

The Lord asked Abraham,

Why did Sarah laugh, saying, “Can I really have a baby when I’m old?”

Is anything impossible for the Lord?

At the appointed time I will come back to you, and in about a year she will have a son. (13-14)

Those words rang a bell with me, and I thought of Gabriel’s words to Mary.

The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.

Therefore, the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

And consider your relative Elizabeth—even she has conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called childless.

For nothing will be impossible with God. (Luke 1:35-37)

And then I thought of Paul’s words to the Galatians.

But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. (Galatians 4:4-5, NIV)

The birth of Isaac was the first step to God fulfilling his promise that Abraham would be a blessing to all nations. It seemed impossible, with Sarah already being 90 years old.

But she did give birth to a son, turning her laughter of doubt into laughter of joy.

Then at the right time, God sent Jesus in an equally impossible situation, with Mary, a virgin, giving birth to a son.

But now, through him, we rejoice as children of God.

For as Paul wrote,

And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba, Father!”

So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then God has made you an heir. (Galatians 4:6-7)

So let us rejoice with Paul, saying,

Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift! (2 Corinthians 9:15)

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Genesis Devotions

The God who hears. The God who sees.

Genesis

Here in this passage, we see two names that describe God.

Ishmael: God hears.

El-roi: God sees me.

That’s who God was to Hagar.

And it wasn’t like she deserved it. She messed up badly, and so she was forced to run away.

But God heard her.

God saw her.

And he went chasing after her in the desert.

That term “angel of the Lord” is very interesting.

Sometimes it refers to a mere angel.

But the word “angel” itself means “messenger.”

And sometimes it seems that messenger spoke as if he were God himself.

He does so here:

The angel of the Lord said to her, “I will greatly multiply your offspring, and they will be too many to count.” (10)

Some Bible scholars think this messenger may have been Jesus himself, hundreds of years before he appeared on earth as a baby.

And to Hagar too, Jesus was Immanuel: “God with us.”

The God who sees. The God who hears.

Like Hagar, you might be in a spiritual desert right now. Like Hagar, it might be your own fault.

But God is not giving up on you. He’s chasing after you.

He sees.

He hears.

He is and will always be…Immanuel.

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Genesis Devotions

I choose to believe you!

Genesis

After these events, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision:

Do not be afraid, Abram.
I am your shield;
your reward will be very great…

Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. (15:1, 6)

I can’t help but think the writer of Hebrews was thinking of this story when he wrote these words:

Now without faith it is impossible to please God, since the one who draws near to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)

Abram had his doubts. He had his times of self-pity. (15:2-3)

At times, his faith would falter. (Genesis 16-17, 20)

But ultimately, the attitude of his heart was: “I choose to believe you, Lord.”

God can work with people like that. Those are the kind of people he seeks. And those are the kinds of people that please him.

Lord, I believe you are good. I believe you love me and desire my best. And so I say with Abraham today, “Lord, I choose to believe you.”

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Genesis Devotions

Blessed

Genesis

Abram is blessed by God Most High,
Creator of heaven and earth,
and blessed be God Most High
who has handed over your enemies to you. (19-20)

A couple of days ago, I talked about how we as Christians are the spiritual descendants of Abraham and inheritors of God’s blessing. (Galatians 3:8-9).

And as I saw this verse, I couldn’t help but reflect on that truth some more.

As inheritors of God’s blessing, try reading the blessing of Melchizedek with your own name in there.

“<Your name> is blessed by God Most High,
Creator of heaven and earth.”

We are blessed in so many ways. We have received so many spiritual blessings from God. (Ephesians 1:3-14)

More, through Jesus, we have the ultimate victory over our final enemy: death. (I Corinthians 15:26, 50-57)

The amazing thing about it, though, is that the God of all creation would care enough about us to bless us in this way.

Stop and think about that for a moment. Mediate on that truth.

And as we do, let us sing with David:

When I observe your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you set in place,
what is a human being that you remember him,
a son of man that you look after him?
You made him little less than God,
and crowned him with glory and honor. (Psalm 8:3-5)

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Genesis Devotions

Inheritors of God’s blessing

Genesis

I will bless you…and you will be a blessing…all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you. (Genesis 12:2-3)

It’s hard to believe that Christmas is just around the corner.

And in this passage, we see one of the first “Christmas promises.”

God told Abraham that in him all the peoples on earth would be blessed. That was ultimately fulfilled in Jesus, who was a descendant of Abraham.

And we are inheritors of that blessing. (Galatians 3:8-9; Ephesians 1:3-14)

But like Abraham, we are not called simply to receive God’s blessing. We are to be a blessing to others. We are to shine the light of Jesus into their lives so that they too might receive the blessing we ourselves have received.

So as Christ’s church, let us go out into this world and be that blessing to the world.

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Genesis Devotions

Because our God remembers

Genesis

Whenever I form clouds over the earth and the bow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all the living creatures: water will never again become a flood to destroy every creature.

The bow will be in the clouds, and I will look at it and remember the permanent covenant between God and all the living creatures on earth. (Genesis 9:14-16)

What if God were a God that forgets his promises?

That’s a scary thought.

But God doesn’t forget his promises. He is faithful to them.

And that’s why we have hope.

Even when we are faithless, he remains faithful. (2 Timothy 2:13)

That’s why Jeremiah could sing,

Because of the Lord’s faithful love
we do not perish,
for his mercies never end.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness! (Lamentations 3:22-23)

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Genesis Devotions

Not forgotten

Genesis

And the water surged on the earth 150 days…

God remembered Noah…and the water began to subside…

By the twenty-seventh day of the second month, the earth was dry. (7:24-8:1, 14)

Since COVID-19 hit, we in Japan have been asked several times to refrain from going out as much as possible.

Imagine being on a boat (albeit a large one) for just over a year.

That’s what Noah and his family had to do. The flood started on the  17th day of the second month, and the earth finally dried up a year later on the 27th day of the second month. (7:11, 8:14)

How many times did God communicate with Noah during that time? Once? Twice? Never?

And yet, it says “God remembered Noah.”

It’s not as if God had forgotten Noah and suddenly realized, “Wait a minute! Noah and his family are still on that boat.”

Rather, God was watching over Noah and his family the whole time.

We may be going through our own trials and struggles. But remember that we are never forgotten. Rather, God tells us,

Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name; you are mine.

When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you
and the rivers will not overwhelm you,

When you walk through the fire,
you will not be scorched
and the flame will not burn you.

For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, and your Savior.” (Isaiah 43:1-3)

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Genesis Devotions

His blood cries out

Genesis

After Cain murdered his brother Abel, God told him,

Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground!” (10)

Abel’s blood cried for justice.

So God told Cain,

“…now you are cursed…” (11)

And Cain had to depart from the presence of the Lord. (14, 16)

Thousands of years later, another innocent man died. Jesus died on a cross though he had done nothing wrong. But the writer of Hebrews tells us this:

Instead, you have come…to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which says better things than the blood of Abel. (12:22-24)

While Abel’s blood cried out for justice, Jesus’ blood cried out for grace.

And so God looks at us and says, “My Son’s blood cries out to me from the ground. So now you are blessed. The curse has been lifted. And by his blood, you have been forgiven.”

So the writer of Hebrews encourages us,

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus—he has inaugurated for us a new and living way through the curtain (that is, through his flesh)—and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water.

Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:19-23)

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Genesis Devotions

The day the curse is reversed

Genesis

As I was reading this passage, I thought about all the results of our sin.

Guilt.

Shame.

Pain.

Death.

But worst of all, being cast out from God’s presence.

And yet, God said something that gave hope to Adam and Eve.

He told Satan,

I will put hostility between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring.
He will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel. (3:15)

God kept that promise. On the cross, Jesus suffered death, but in doing so, he delivered a fatal blow to Satan. More, Jesus rose from the dead three days later.

And because of that, we look forward to the day the curse is reversed. The apostle John saw it, and he described it to us.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.

I also saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband.

Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look, God’s dwelling is with humanity, and he will live with them.

They will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them and will be their God.

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away.

Then the one seated on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new.” (Revelation 21:1-5)

Amen. Come Lord Jesus. (Revelation 22:20)

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Genesis Devotions

Created male and female

Genesis

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness…” 

So God created man in his own image;
he created him in the image of God;
he created them male and female. (1:26-27)

When I first wrote this blog, I would have never thought to address this issue.

But now we have people saying that “male” and “female” are mere human concepts that have no basis in reality. That we need to get rid of this idea that humanity is divided into male and female.

But we see in this passage that “male” and “female” are not human ideas, but God’s.

Jesus himself affirmed it later. He told the Pharisees,

Haven’t you read…that he who created them in the beginning made them male and female… (Matthew 19:4)

God made us male and female. And God says this is a good thing. (1:31)

One reason he made us this way was so that we could populate the earth. (1:28)

But just as importantly, it was so that we as humans could better reflect his image.

Men and women don’t reflect God in exactly the same way. But together, they show us a pretty good picture of what God is like.

Just think of how he portrays himself as both a father and a mother. (Isaiah 49:15, 66:13; Psalm 131:2;  Psalm 103:13, Galatians 4:6-7, Hebrews 12:5-11)

To reject the idea of male and female is to reject our Creator’s own teaching and intention for us. We will never know who we truly are if we do that.

So let us not buy the lie of the world. It is not the idea of male and female that is human invention.

It’s when we start trying to add other gender identities that we start getting into the realm of human invention.

I know there may be people reading this blog who are hurting and struggling with their gender identity.

Please remember this: God loves you. He has a good plan for you. But the answer is not found in buying the lies of this world.

Jesus tells us,

If you continue in my word, you really are my disciples. You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free…if the Son sets you free, you really will be free. (John 8:31-32, 36)

So let us cling to the truth. Let us cling to Jesus’ teaching: we humans are male and female. And that is good.

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Genesis Devotions

Mere animals?

Genesis

If there is one thing this world tries to convince us of is that we are mere animals.

That there is nothing truly special about us. That we’re no different from any other animal.

But Genesis 1-2 exposes that lie.

I find it interesting that God blessed the animals and humans in similar ways. Both were to multiply and fill the earth. (1:22-26)

But God blessed humans in a special way. He said,

Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth. (1:28)

But it would have been impossible for humans to fulfill that command were it not for one important thing God did, one special quality he gave us.

“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness…”  

So God created man in his own image;
he created him in the image of God;
he created them male and female. (1:26-27)

God created us in his own image.

We can think as he thinks.

We can communicate as he communicates.

We can love as he loves.

We can create things as he does.

We have a sense of right and wrong, warped as it is sometimes by sin.

The next time you’re at a coffee shop, or at a park, or a beach, or a train, stop and look at the people around you.

Just look at the things they’re doing, no matter how ordinary.

And ask yourself, “Are these simply animals, no different from any other, with no greater value?”

Yes there are thing we have in common with animals. But God has made us so much more than they are.

So let us stand in awe at the God who made us. And let us stand in wonder at how fearfully and wonderfully made we are.

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Genesis Devotions

In the beginning, God…

Genesis

Why do we worship God? Why do we trust him?

I suppose the reasons are found in the very first words of the Bible.

“In the beginning God…”

Take some time to think on those words.

Before anything else existed, God was.

Everything that exists comes from him.

In his wisdom he created all things.

By his power all things were created.

His mind is more vast than we can comprehend.

His power…limitless.

That’s is the God we worship.

And amazingly, that is the God who loves us.

So let us sing with all his angels,

Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God, the Almighty,
who was, who is, and who is to come…

Our Lord and God,
you are worthy to receive
glory and honor and power,
because you have created all things,
and by your will
they exist and were created.” (Revelation 4:8, 11)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

When we finally come home.

Psalms

Psalm 126 is another song of ascent, a song the Jews sang when on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. In it, they sing about their joy upon their return from exile in Babylon.

But now they pray again for restoration. And they look forward to the day when their tears will once again be turned to joy.

As Christians, we too are on a pilgrimage…to a new Jerusalem. And in Revelation, John gives us a similar picture to this psalm.

In his vision, the Christians who had suffered much on this earth for Christ, are crying out in joy,

Salvation belongs to our God,
who is seated on the throne,
and to the Lamb! (Revelation 7:10)

And John is told,

…they are before the throne of God,
and they serve him day and night in his temple.

The one seated on the throne will shelter them:
They will no longer hunger;
they will no longer thirst;
the sun will no longer strike them,
nor will any scorching heat.

For the Lamb who is at the center of the throne
will shepherd them;
he will guide them to springs of the waters of life,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. (Revelation 7:15-17)

As the psalmist says, we do indeed sow in tears, but when we come home, we will reap with shouts of joy. And no one will ever take away our joy. (Psalm 126:5, John 16:22)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

If the Lord had not been on our side

Psalms

If the Lord had not been on our side—
let Israel say—
if the Lord had not been on our side… (Psalm 124:1-2a)

Those words made me think of something my pastor said in a recent message: “If God had not been on my side, if God had not saved me, where would I be now? How would my life be different?”

I think my life would be very different.

I’ve seen how God dealt with my father’s anger issues and how that change not only affected my relationship with him, but with my wife and daughter as well.

I see my own sins and weaknesses and how they could have made a total mess of my life if God had not worked in my own heart.

But most importantly, I see how without the Lord, I would still be lost in my sin and on the path to hell.

God saved me from all that.

So all I can say is,

“Blessed be the Lord…

I have escaped like a bird from the hunter’s net;
the net is torn, and I have escaped.

My help is in the name of the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.” (6-8)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Not mere servants

Psalms

Behold, as the eyes of servants
look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maidservant
to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God… (Psalm 123:2-3a, ESV)

It’s easy to look at those words and think, “We as God’s servants are to constantly be looking at God, seeing what he want us to do.”

And that’s true. We should do that.

But that’s what makes the second part of verse 2 so jarring.

till he has mercy upon us. (2b)

The psalmist then cries out,

Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,
for we have had more than enough of contempt. (3)

The wondrous thing about our relationship with God is that he doesn’t look at us as mere servants. He sees us as his precious ones. He truly cares for us.

And when we cry out to him, we can know he’ll hear, he’ll answer, and he will show us mercy.

Categories
Psalms Devotionals 2

Choosing to give thanks…together

Psalms

Jerusalem, built as a city should be,
solidly united,
where the tribes, the Lord’s tribes, go up
to give thanks to the name of the Lord.

(This is an ordinance for Israel.) (Psalm 122:3-4)

That last phrase really struck me.

The people of Israel were commanded to go up to Jerusalem three times a year for special festivals and give thanks to the Lord.

Obviously, as Christians, we don’t celebrate those festivals. But we are commanded to give thanks. And to rejoice. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

We are particularly commanded to do this together with God’s people. (Ephesians 5:18-20)

Why is it important to have a heart of thanksgiving?

I think we see the results of not doing so in Romans 1.

For though they knew God, they did not glorify him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became worthless, and their senseless hearts were darkened. (Romans 1:21)

It is so easy to focus on the problems that we face in life.

When we do that, we often become discouraged or cynical, we start doubting God, and we start thinking the way this world thinks.

And when that happens, our thinking starts to become worthless, and our hearts become darkened.

Let us not fall into that trap.

Rather, let us remember all we have to be thankful for and choose to rejoice.

And let us not avoid the fellowship of other believers, no matter what problems we may be having.

Instead, let us say with David,

I rejoiced with those who said to me,
“Let’s go to the house of the Lord.” (1)

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Psalms Devotionals 2

As we are on this pilgrimage

Psalms

The title of Psalm 121 (and all the psalms from 120-134) is “A song of ascents.”

These were songs the Jews sang on their pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

But it strikes me, we also are on a pilgrimage…a pilgrimage to a new Jerusalem. (Revelation 21:2)

And it is a journey. God does not simply sweep us to heaven once we become Christians.

The journey can be difficult. The journey can at times be painful.

But this psalm reminds us of where our help comes from.

It reminds us that the Creator of heaven and earth is with us. (2)

It reminds us that he never slumbers nor sleeps. (4)

And each and every day, no matter what we go through, his hand is on us.

This psalm reminds me of Jesus’ words to his disciples.

I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you. (John 14:18)

More, Jesus’ prayer for his disciples (and for us) reflects a lot of this psalm.

Holy Father, protect them by your name that you have given me, so that they may be one as we are one…

I am not praying that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. (John 17:11, 15)

Again, this does not mean we will never go through struggle or pain. Many of Jesus’ disciples died for their faith.

But God is walking with us every step of the way. He will never abandon us. And he will lead us home.

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Psalms Devotionals 2

Our need for God’s grace.

Psalms

One thing that always strikes me in this psalm is David’s passion for God and his Word. He loved God and desired to live a life pleasing to him.

And yet, today, I was thinking about just how much David recognized he needed God’s grace as well.

He cried out,

If only my ways were committed
to keeping your statutes! (Psalm 119:5)

And he admitted,

I wander like a lost sheep. (176)

So time and again, he asked for God’s grace.

He asked that God would teach him. (12, 29,33, 66, 68, 108, 124)

He prayed God would open his spiritual eyes. (18)

He asked for understanding. (27, 34, 73, 125, 144, 169)

He asked for help to obey. (35)

He prayed for a heart that was inclined to God and his Word. (36)

He prayed for eyes that would turn away from sinful things. (37)

And he prayed that God would deal with him based on His own grace and steadfast love. (58, 124)

None of us are perfect. All of us need God’s grace in our lives. So each day, let us pray as David did in this psalm.

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Psalms Devotionals

My gate. My righteousness.

Psalms

Father, you have opened up to me the gates of righteousness.

Jesus is my gate (John 10:9). He is my righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30)

And now through him, I have access to you. (Hebrews 10:19-22)

So now, Father, I enter into our presence with thanksgiving, because you have answered me and become my salvation. (Psalm 118:19-21)

The stone that the builders rejected and put on a cross has now become the cornerstone of your church, Father. (Psalm 118:22, Acts 4:10-12, Ephesians 2:19-22)

This is from you, Father, and it is wondrous in our sight. This is the day you have made. I will rejoice, and be glad in it. (Psalm 118:23-24)

You are good, Lord. Your steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 118:1)

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Psalms Devotionals

God’s love and faithfulness

Psalms

I’ve been preparing a message on the latter part of Jacob’s life this past week. Jacob went through a tough time. He lost his wife. He lost his father. And he lost his beloved son Joseph for 20 years.

Perhaps, he could have said at that time very cynically,

Our God is in heaven
and does whatever he pleases. (Psalm 115:3)

But at the end of his life, he realized, “God is not capricious. Everything he does has a purpose. And he is good.”

This song was written long after he died, but I could imagine singing to himself,

Israel, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and shield. (9)

For a long time, Jacob probably thought he had been forgotten. But at the end of his life he could sing,

The Lord remembers us and will bless us.

He will bless the house of Israel…
he will bless those who fear the Lord—
small and great alike. (12-13)

So if you’re going through a tough time, if you’re feeling abandoned, remember Jacob’s story. And with hearts filled with faith, let us sing,

Not to us, Lord, not to us,
but to your name give glory
because of your faithful love, because of your truth. (1)

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Psalms Devotionals

A prayer

Psalms

Lord, you struck our Rock, you struck Jesus on the cross and now through him we have living water.

Quench our spiritual thirst. (1 Corinthians 10:4, Exodus 17:6, Numbers 20:7-11, John 4:10, 7:37-39)

You brought us out of slavery to sin and Satan’s kingdom.

Now, Lord, let us be your sanctuary. Let us be your dominion. (Ephesians 2:16-22, Revelation 1:5-6)

In Jesus’ name amen.

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Psalms Devotionals

The God who came down

Psalms

Psalms 113-118 were traditionally sung during the Jewish Passover feast.

When Jesus and his disciples were singing during the last supper, they were probably singing these hymns. (Matthew 26:30)

With that in mind, verses 4-6 really struck me.

The Lord is exalted above all the nations,
his glory above the heavens.

Who is like the Lord our God—
the one enthroned on high,
who stoops down to look
on the heavens and the earth? (Psalm 113:4-6)

Yet God did not simply stoop down to look. He actually set aside his glory, came down, and became one of us. And he did it to die for our sins. (Philippians 2:5-8)

And because of what Jesus did for us, we have been raised from the dust, from the trash heap of our sin, and are now seated with him as children of the King. (Psalm 113:7-8, Ephesians 2:1-7)

So as we remember that, let us sing with the psalmist,

Hallelujah!

Give praise, servants of the Lord;
praise the name of the Lord.

Let the name of the Lord be blessed
both now and forever.

From the rising of the sun to its setting,
let the name of the Lord be praised. (Psalm 113:1-3)

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Psalms Devotionals

Marked by Christ’s character

Psalms

In verse 1, the psalmist says,

“Happy is the person who fears the LORD,
taking great delight in his commands. (Psalm 112:1)

But what does that kind of person look like?

The Pharisees claimed to be such people. And yet while you could say they had a form of righteousness, you could not say they were marked by graciousness or compassion.

A person who truly fears the Lord, who truly takes great delight in his commands, are marked by all three things: graciousness, compassion, and righteousness.

That’s what Jesus was like.

Too many Christians embrace the commands of God, and yet throw out graciousness and compassion.

On the other hand, other Christians embrace graciousness and compassion at the expense of God’s righteousness.

“Oh, those commands aren’t for today. God does not really expect you to live that way.”

As Christians, we need to be marked by all three.

May we all be marked by Christ’s character.

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Psalms Devotionals

A prayer to our Priest and King

Psalms

Jesus, you were David’s Lord, and you are my Lord. (Matthew 22:41-45)

You sit at your Father’s right hand, and you reign. (Hebrews 1:3, 8:1, 10:12, 12:2)

Not only that, you are my priest forever. You are able to save me completely because you always live to intercede for me. (Hebrews 7:24-25)

So Lord, I freely offer myself to you in this spiritual war we are in.

We are not fighting people. But we are fighting spiritual forces that would destroy people. (Ephesians 6:12)

Use me today to touch those around me with your love.

Here I am, Lord. Send me.

In your name, amen.

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Psalms Devotionals

Our joy. Our hope.

Psalms

This is pure speculation on my part, but I’ve been reading John 14-16 a lot recently.

And I just have to wonder, whenever Peter and the other disciples sang this psalm, how often did their minds go back to what Jesus told him in those chapters.

At that time, Jesus was about to go to the cross, and so he told them he was going to leave. More, he told them they couldn’t follow him to where he was going.

Peter, brimming with self-confidence, couldn’t accept this and insisted that he was willing to die for Jesus.

ut Jesus told Peter that he would instead deny Him three times. Hearing all this, Peter and the other disciples became emotionally distraught. (John 13:33-38)

So Jesus told them,

Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. (John 14:1)

How much did those words ring in their hearts when they sang David’s words in the years after Jesus’ resurrection?

My heart is confident, God;
I will sing; I will sing praises
with the whole of my being. (Psalm 108:1)

Like David, they learned not to be confident in their own abilities, but in God and his faithfulness toward them.

When Jesus told them that he was going to leave for a while, they probably thought as David did.

God, haven’t you rejected us?
God, you do not march out with our armies. (Psalm 108:11)

But Jesus reassured them,

I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Because I live, you will live too. (John 14:18-19)

Years later, filled with the Holy Spirit, knowing Jesus’ presence in their lives, how triumphantly did they sing David’s words.

With God we will perform valiantly;
he will trample our foes. (Psalm 108:13)

And whenever they sang those words, did the recall Jesus’ final words to them that night?

I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.” (John 16:33)

How much did their hearts sing out as they remembered their risen Lord:

I will praise you, Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to you among the nations.

For your faithful love is higher than the heavens,
and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

God, be exalted above the heavens,
and let your glory be over the whole earth. (Psalm 108:3-5)

Like the disciples, we serve a living Savior. Like them, let us always have hearts that rejoice in the hope that we have in him.

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Psalms Devotionals

Let the redeemed of the Lord say so

Psalms

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever!

Let the redeemed of the Lord say so…” (Psalm 107:1-2, ESV)

Those last words really made me stop a moment.

Let the redeemed of the Lord say so.

Say what?

The Lord is good. His steadfast love endures forever.

It’s easy to say that when things are going well.

But how about when things aren’t going so well?

There are times when we sure don’t feel like the Lord is good. There are times when it seems his love has failed.

But our feelings don’t change the truth of those words.

And it is especially during those times when we don’t feel the truth of those words that we need to consciously remind ourselves: “The Lord is good. His steadfast love endures forever.”

We have such short memories. We so quickly forget all the good the Lord has done for us. That was the Israelites’ problem. (Psalm 106)

Let us not follow their example.

Are you struggling right now?

Stop a moment, and think about the good things God has done in your life. Remember his goodness to you in the past. As you do, thank him for his goodness to you.

And choose to speak out these words of faith:

The Lord is good. His steadfast love endures forever.