Today Daily Devotional

Scripture Reading: Ephesians 1:15-23 That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ . . . and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms... Ephesians 1:19-20 Some stories are so good that they simply need to be told again and again. The ascension is one of those stories. As Jesus’ followers looked back on that day when he ascended into heaven, they began to see how it marked a turning point in their understanding of him as the Son of God. Until...

Scripture Reading: Acts 1:1-8 “You will be my witnesses...” Acts 1:8 When Jesus ascended into heaven, his work here on earth had only just begun. The book of Acts records the story of the early church. But as a companion volume to the gospel of Luke (compare Luke 1:3-4 with Acts 1:1-2), Acts tells the story of what it means to be a follower of Jesus after the ascension. And it opens with a surprising detail: the “former book”—that is, the gospel of Luke—tells us only what Jesus began to...

Scripture Reading: Matthew 28:16-20 “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples...” Matthew 28:18 Before Jesus ascended, he explained the mission that awaited his followers after he returned to his heavenly Father. “Go and make disciples,” Jesus says. Although this may seem to involve two separate actions—going and making disciples—a better translation of this command is “Make disciples as you go along.” It is assumed that Jesus’ followers...

Scripture Reading: John 21:15-25 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. John 21:19 Are you prepared to die someday? Before Jesus’ betrayal and arrest, Peter had proclaimed his willingness to lay down his life for Jesus. But within a few hours Peter denied that he ever knew Jesus (see John 13:37; 18:15-18, 25-27). Christ addresses this as he prepares his disciples for the ministry he knows they will need to do after his return to the Father. We...

Scripture Reading: John 20:24-31 “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29 As he prepared his followers to live faithfully after his return to heaven, Jesus addressed the challenge of doubt and unbelief. Thomas was a realist. He knew that resurrections were not everyday events, and he feared that his fellow followers of Christ might have gotten it wrong. He wanted evidence. He demanded proof. It’s easy to criticize Thomas for his doubts, but the truth is...

Scripture Reading: John 20:19-23 As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” John 20:21 These words of Jesus to his first followers are remarkable. They had seen many amazing things the Father had done through Jesus: healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, bringing the good news of God’s kingdom. Now Jesus was saying that just as the Father had sent him, he was sending his followers. What does this mean? First, all who follow Jesus are called to participate in God’s mission to...

Scripture Reading: Luke 24:36-49 “Stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” Luke 24:49 Have you ever felt the fear of following Jesus? After all, the story of the resurrection and ascension seems impossibly crazy. How can a first-century Jew be the center of human history? I appreciate that Jesus’ first followers were honest about their doubts and fears. The resurrection and glory of their Lord was not something they understood at first. They had to be...

Scripture Reading: Luke 24:13-35 “Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” Luke 24:26 After he rose from the dead, Jesus began to prepare his followers for his departure. What was the significance of his life and ministry? What did his resurrection mean? As he showed the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, it’s helpful to start with the facts. Jesus is a prophet, powerful in word and deed. But like his disciples, who had hoped for a political savior,...

Scripture Reading: John 16:1-15 “Very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away.” John 16:7 When we first hear these words of Jesus, we may wonder how his going away could be for our good. He often taught, in fact, that following him can bring trouble and hardship. How can that be good? This question may seem especially relevant today. Many Christians around the world face persecution and even death for following Jesus. And in places where persecution is not so obvious,...

Scripture Reading: John 14:25-31 “If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father...” John 14:28 Goodbyes can be difficult. When family members visit from far away, my children are always disappointed to see them leave. “Why can’t they stay longer?” the kids want to know. Jesus’ disciples were similarly troubled by the prospect of his going away. Who would now teach them about God’s kingdom? Yet Jesus insists that his going away will be good for them. Goodbyes come to...

Scripture Reading: John 14:1-14 “They will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:12 Most of us recognize that we live in a world full of trouble. Natural disasters, political divisions, terrorism, war, personal tragedies—all of these color our experience of life. In a world full of challenges, it can be hard to grasp that Jesus’ return to heaven is for our good. Like his disciples, we just want to be near God and to see him at work. And we can...

Scripture Reading: John 13:31-38 “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.” John 13:36 Waiting is difficult. I have young children, and it’s not uncommon for them to ask for something they can’t have until they are older. “Not yet,” I have to tell them. The night before his death, Jesus said something like that to his disciples. They had followed him through many things, but they could not follow him to the grave or to his coming glory in the ascension—at...

Scripture Reading: John 13:1-17 Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. John 13:1 After the resurrection, Jesus’ disciples remembered his words and actions on the night of his betrayal and arrest. John’s gospel records the details of that evening, beginning with Jesus’ act of washing his disciples’ feet. That night they gathered to celebrate the Passover feast, which looked back on God’s deliverance of his people from Egypt (Exodus 12). And...

Scripture Reading: Luke 24:1-8 Then they remembered his words. Luke 24:8 After Jesus’ death on a cross, it must have been hard for his followers to recall his teachings about rising from the dead and being exalted in heaven’s glory. After all, it would have seemed that his life was a failure. How could his vision for the kingdom of God be fulfilled? As long as Jesus’ followers only imagined a kingdom of human power, influence, and wealth, Jesus’ death would have seemed like a crushing...

Scripture Reading: Luke 21:25-28 “At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” Luke 21:27 Even in the days leading up to his suffering and death, Jesus focused steadily on his heavenly origin and his glorious future. In our reading for today he speaks again of his return at the end of time in power and glory! Though Christians have sometimes puzzled over what Jesus meant by “signs in the sun, moon, and stars,” his overall message is clear: the...

Scripture Reading: Luke 9:18-27 “The Son of Man will . . . [come] in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” Luke 9:26 Throughout his teaching ministry, Jesus continued to have a heavenward focus. Even as he looked ahead to his suffering and death, he told his followers of his future glory. But Jesus’ treatment at the hands of sinful people has implications for his followers too. As God’s people, we can expect the powers of evil to attack and try to destroy us....

Scripture Reading: John 6:45-51, 60-65 “What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! John 6:62 It may seem easy, at first, to follow Jesus when we hear his promise of forgiveness, salvation, and new life for us. We naturally latch onto Jesus’ words of encouragement and reassurance. But Jesus is not some sort of a divine cheerleader. He is the Savior who gave his life for our sake. In our Bible reading for today, Jesus has pointed out the victory he would win, explaining...

Scripture Reading: Luke 2:41-52 “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” Luke 2:49 Not long ago, a pastor friend retired after a long and fruitful ministry. And as he retired, he told people, “I am not going to stop serving the Lord; I’m just being reassigned!” In a similar way, the ascension of Jesus was like a reassignment in his mission. It simply reflected where Jesus’ focus had always been. Before he entered human history as Jesus the Savior, the eternal Son of God had...

Scripture Reading: Genesis 3:1-10 The man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day... Genesis 3:8 As a father of young children, I am often struck by the joy and wonder they show at the simple gift of their relationship with me. If I have to leave for a trip, they watch at the window to wave goodbye till I am out of sight. When I return, the house echoes with their delight that I’ve come home. At one time, daily interaction...

Scripture Reading: John 20:11-18 “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” John 20:17 Just a couple of weeks ago, we celebrated the resurrection of Jesus (April 21, Easter Sunday). For Christians, Christ’s triumph over death and sin is the very best news. Jesus is risen! God’s promises of forgiveness and new life for his people have been fulfilled. But the resurrection means more than an empty tomb. Mary saw that morning that the tomb was empty—and that was...