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Today Daily Devotional

Religion & Spirituality Podcas

Today is a daily devotional that helps God's people refresh, refocus and renew their faith through Bible reading, reflection, and prayer.

Location:

United States

Description:

Today is a daily devotional that helps God's people refresh, refocus and renew their faith through Bible reading, reflection, and prayer.

Language:

English

Contact:

616-942-9383


Episodes

Jesus Brings Us Into Truth

3/18/2024
“I am the way and the truth and the life.” — John 14:6 It is sometimes hard to face the truth, especially when the truth is that we have messed up. Instead we make excuses. We think we are exceptional: “I didn’t really mean it that way.” “I thought it would be OK if . . .” And so on. But the truth is the truth. And Jesus is the Truth. The worst thing we can do is to ignore or deny this absolute and final Truth—that Jesus is the one and only Son of God who saves sinners. Though the truth about God’s nature and presence is clear to all, people tend to suppress it (Romans 1:18-20). We are all guilty of doing this. When we recognize the truth, we don’t like what we see. So we think it isn’t true for us, or that it doesn’t matter. But the truth does matter. Lying to ourselves matters, and it matters most if we lie to ourselves about God. Today we live in a media storm of falsehoods. Many, many voices today lie or bend the truth to suit their own views or preferences. But beyond all the deceptions in this world, the final authority is God in Jesus—the Truth himself. Believe what he says, and believe that he died and rose again so that you may have life everlasting. Dear Jesus, forgive us for our lies. We lie to try to prove we are right. We lie to try to make ourselves look good. Forgive us especially if we lie about who you are and what you have done. Amen.

Duration:00:03:02

We are Adopted

3/17/2024
We ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption. . . . — Romans 8:23 This passage in Romans says that we become adopted into God’s family through the finished work of Jesus Christ and the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit. This makes us “heirs of God and coheirs with Christ.” Amazing! So, while blood relation can determine who is part of a family, so can adoption. And this involves love—unconditional love—as well as deep, lasting, faithful commitment. God’s love and commitment to us provide the best possible foundation for our lives. It is indeed good news that we are adopted by God the Father through the work of Christ Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit. Through Jesus and the Spirit, we become full sons and daughters in the family of God. Jesus, our older brother, brings us into the family. His commitment to us is so great that he gave up his life to free us from the curse of sin and death so that he could bring us into full life as children of God the Father. In our adoption God says yes to us: “Yes, you are mine. Yes, I am with you. Yes, I love you forever.” God’s love and commitment are immeasurable. Thanks to Jesus and the guiding work of the Spirit, we are heirs to all of God’s promises and blessings. Brother Jesus, thank you for making our adoption as children of God possible. We know that you are now seated at the right hand of the Father, claiming us as part of God’s family. We are no longer estranged, but beloved children. Amen.

Duration:00:03:23

Jesus Breaks the Power of the Devil

3/16/2024
He . . . shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. — Hebrews 2:14-15 In the beginning, when the first human beings brought sin into the world (Genesis 3), we became enslaved by the power of death—and that put us under the tyranny of the devil. But that is not the end of the story. Ever since that time, God also promised to redeem us. In other words, God would somehow pay our debt of sin and free us to live as he intended. And one day Jesus, God’s Son, accomplished that for us. As the apostle John put it, “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work” (1 John 3:8). Jesus willingly laid down his life, giving himself over to death because death was the payment for sin. As Romans 6:23 puts it, “The wages of sin is death.” What’s more, Satan held us captive by the power of death because we had fallen for his temptation. And by falling into sin, we became subject to the curse of death. Jesus, however, did not fall for Satan’s lies. Jesus remained sinless. So when he gave his own life to pay for our sin, the devil could not hold Jesus in his grasp. Jesus broke through the power of death with new life. He conquered death. He annulled the binding contract that subjected us to Satan’s power. He gave the devil his due—a perfect human life, and that ransom payment set us free, bringing us back to enjoy life with God the Father forever. Jesus, thank you for redeeming us from the power of Satan. Help us to live for you. Amen.

Duration:00:03:00

Jesus Saves Us From Hell

3/15/2024
Just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. — Romans 5:18 Hell is not an easy subject to discuss when we are talking about faith in Jesus. It’s much more pleasant to focus on the love of God through Jesus that saves us from death and hell. Nevertheless, the subject of hell is mentioned in Scripture, and it is probably best described as condemnation or complete separation from God. Romans 5 helps us understand that “sin entered the world through one man”—that is, Adam (see Genesis 3)—and that death, or condemnation, “came to all people” because of that. But Jesus, the Son of God, who became human, came to turn that problem around. Jesus never sinned when he was tempted, so through his obedience all who believe in him are “made righteous.” God’s “abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness” are made possible “though the one man, Jesus Christ!” Sadly, all of us sin, so it is fair to say that we all deserve condemnation. Romans 6:23, for example, says that “the wages of sin is death”—and then it adds, “but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”! All who have been rescued by Jesus have no need to fear. We will not be condemned. Jesus took on himself all of the sins that condemned us. So instead of being condemned to hell, we are promised new life forever with Jesus in the new heaven and new earth. Jesus, thank you for rescuing us from sin, death, and hell. Help us to share this good news with everyone! Amen.

Duration:00:04:01

Jesus Spares Us From Death

3/14/2024
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” — John 3:14-15 In John 3, Jesus teaches that the strange story about a bronze snake in Numbers 21 points to him and his work of healing. Jesus saves us from sin and death. The book of Numbers includes many stories about the Israelites’ complaining to God as they trekked through the wilderness. In Numbers 21 they complain again about the food. And in this case God punishes them for their rebellion and disobedience. Like many Bible stories, this one continues with a plea for forgiveness, and God provides a merciful response. But the response is very unusual. God says, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole. Then whoever looks at it can live.” The bronze snake that Moses made represented a sort of antidote to the venom of the snakes that were biting people. Looking to the bronze snake that was lifted up spared the people from death. Jesus brought up this old story while he was teaching about the work he had come to do. Jesus came to save us from the death we brought on ourselves by sinning and rebelling against God. Lifted up on a cross for our sake, Jesus died to pay the price of our sin. And when we look up to Jesus in faith, believing in the power of his sacrifice to save, “we may have eternal life in him. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Jesus, thank you that we can look to you in faith and be saved. Amen.

Duration:00:03:35

Jesus, the True Temple

3/13/2024
“It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” But the temple he had spoken of was his body. — John 2:20-22 Did you know that the tabernacle in the Old Testament (Exodus 36-40), and the temple afterward (1 Kings 6-8), were made from heavenly blueprints? Hebrews 8 helps us to see this. All the features and furnishings were meant to show that the temple on earth was just a copy of the sanctuary in heaven. When Jesus came to live among us, he brought the temple with him—in his person. The temple was the place where God met his people. It was where the Israelites presented themselves and their sacrifices before God. When the Son of God became human, God and humankind were united as never before. God himself lived among us and was one of us. In fact, the original Greek text of John 1:14 tells us that Jesus “tabernacled” (“made his dwelling”) among us. Since God himself is present with us through Jesus, why would we need to meet with God anywhere else? The temple building in Jerusalem became obsolete after Jesus came, because God was present on earth in Jesus himself. And now a perfect human, Jesus, is present in heaven with God. The book of Revelation adds that in the new heaven and earth God himself will dwell among us, and there won’t be a temple structure because “the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb [Jesus] are its temple” (21:3, 22). And we will live there forever with God! O God, we long to be with you. Bring us into the holy place you have prepared for us. Amen.

Duration:00:03:58

Jesus, the Ideal Priest

3/12/2024
Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. — Hebrews 7:26 Priests had a very important role in ancient Israel. They served as mediators between the people and God. They stood between the holy God and his sinful people, enabling these people to approach the Lord. But the priests themselves were also sinners. So even the best of them, the High Priest, had to purify himself before making sacrifices for the people. Jesus, however, was pure and sinless, the Son of God who took on human flesh and came to live among us. He came to perform the role of the ideal High Priest for us all. Whereas the Old Testament (Old Covenant) priests were sinful and mortal, Jesus is pure and immortal. Jesus therefore serves as the perfect High Priest forever for our sake. Now ascended and ruling in heaven, Jesus serves as our ultimate High Priest in the holiest place. He is the mediator at the right hand of God the Father in heaven, interceding for us. When God sees us now, he sees pure and blameless children of the new covenant mediated by the perfect High Priest, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Jesus, you are pure and blameless. You alone can be the mediator between us and God. Thank you for taking this role and for continuing to exercise it as you intercede for us in heaven. Amen.

Duration:00:02:58

Jesus, the One and Only Sacrifice

3/11/2024
We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. — Hebrews 10:10 The book of Hebrews looks at Jesus’ life from the perspective of the Old Testament system of sacrifices. Today we will reflect on Jesus as the one and only sacrifice for sin. In ancient Israel, God commanded that sacrifices be made to cover the sins of the people. These sacrifices were symbolic, representing the sinner. By making a sacrifice, the sinner was saying, “I have done wrong and deserve punishment, but please accept this offering in my place.” The Israelites were required to make sacrifices for many things. If they touched a dead animal—make a sacrifice. If they harmed their neighbor—make a sacrifice. If they accidentally hurt someone—make a sacrifice. Making sacrifices was a part of everyday life. Why were there so many sacrifices? Because there were so many sins, and each sacrifice only (symbolically) covered one sin.When Jesus came, however, he gave up his life as a sacrifice. Though he was pure and perfect, he gave up his body in place of all our bodies. And his sacrifice did not symbolize just one man dying for his sin; Jesus, the perfect Son of God, offered himself as a sacrifice for all human sin. And because he committed no sin, Jesus’ sacrifice covered all the sins of all people, including you and me. Thank you, Jesus, for putting an end to the Old Testament system of sacrifices. We could never offer an acceptable sacrifice. But your perfect sacrifice makes us acceptable to God forever. Amen.

Duration:00:03:29

Jesus Passes the Test for Us

3/10/2024
Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. — Matthew 4:1 Since the beginning, human beings have failed God’s test. In Eden, Satan asked, “Did God say . . . ?” and then misquoted God’s words. Adam and Eve responded by questioning the word of God and then doing what seemed right in their own eyes. So do we. Jesus, the Son of God, came to live among us as a human being. And, in his case, the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted. There Satan made some suggestions that sounded rather reasonable—“have something to eat; show your power; fall into the arms of God.” Jesus responded to each temptation with a quote from the Scriptures. Rather than twisting God’s words, he said, in effect, “No, I live by the Word of God.” This is still our challenge as well. Will we live by God’s Word, or will we do what seems right in our own eyes? Like Adam and Eve, we are experts at twisting God’s words to suit our own purposes. We lie, we lust, we get angry, we are greedy, we gossip—and so on. Rarely does a day pass in which we don’t yield to some temptation. We need to rely on the only one who passed the test. Jesus was “tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15). What’s more, Jesus also laid down his life to pay the price for our sin—so that we can live forever with God. What a Savior! Father, forgive us, for Jesus’ sake, when we fail to live your way when we are tempted. Lord Jesus, thank you for living faithfully and giving your life for our sake. Amen.

Duration:00:03:41

Jesus Makes Us Into His Followers

3/9/2024
“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” — Mark 8:34 Following Jesus means more than listening to him and agreeing with his teachings. Jesus says that whoever wants to be his disciple “must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow” him. Notice that Jesus says we must deny our selves, not that we must deny ourselves something—like chocolate or a new car. We are to deny our own self-interest, self-absorption, and pride. The misguided self must be replaced with a new self that is being shaped to be like Jesus. And, like Jesus, this new self is not here to be served, but to serve, and to give its life for others (Mark 10:45). What does it mean to take up our cross? It means being willing to sacrifice our own desires and to give of ourselves so that others may come to know Jesus and want to follow him. That’s what he did for us, and he calls us to follow his example, even to the point of suffering and giving up our own life, if necessary. Jesus took up his cross and let himself be crucified, once for all, so that our old selves could be crucified, set free from sin, and made new through him (Romans 6:6-7; Galatians 5:24). And by the power of the Holy Spirit, who gives us new life in Christ, we are called to take on the self-sacrificial life of Christ. Jesus explains: “Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.” Jesus, help us to follow you. Fill us with your Spirit so that we may deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow you. Amen.

Duration:00:03:04

Jesus Removed Our Shame

3/8/2024
No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame. . . . — Psalm 25:3 Shame is different from guilt. If you are guilty, you did something wrong, and you realize you are responsible for it. You can feel shame from being guilty, but feelings of shame are not always tied to guilt. Shame has more to do with a lack of self-worth, and that can come from not measuring up to a standard, from feeling insecure, from being bullied or abused in various ways, from public disgrace, ridicule, and more. When you are ashamed, you may or may not have done something wrong, but when others see you, you feel exposed, dirty, unworthy of respect. When Adam and Eve fell into sin, they realized they had done wrong. They saw that they were naked. They were exposed and felt shame. They tried to cover up and hide. But they couldn’t hide from God—and that was a good thing, because God loved them and valued them, despite what they had done wrong. God loves us all too, despite any bad we have done. Jesus came to take away the guilt and shame of our sin. And he did that by taking on the most shameful death possible: crucifixion on a Roman cross. He hung there naked, in public disgrace, exposed to the abuse of the jeering crowd. And yet he was innocent. “He endured the cross, scorning its shame” (Hebrews 12:2), so that we can be freed from all shame and live fully with him. Now, because of Jesus, we are forever clean. Lord Jesus, thank you for taking on the shame of all the world to free us from shame forever. In your name, Amen.

Duration:00:04:25

Jesus Suffered for All

3/7/2024
He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. — Isaiah 53:5 Never was someone treated so unjustly as Jesus was. Absolute good was attacked by absolute evil. And that evil was our evil, shared by all humanity. Our sins, along with those of the whole world, were like the nails that pinned him to the cross. Sometimes in our churches we skip over the excruciating suffering that Jesus endured for us on the cross. When he took our place to pay the price of our sin, Jesus was pierced and crushed and afflicted, “led like a lamb to the slaughter.” He was mocked and ridiculed. He was forsaken by God. Yet Jesus chose to take on that suffering for us. Even the thought of the agony he would experience caused him to sweat drops like blood (Luke 22:44). Our salvation was made possible through Jesus’ agonizing physical pain. Our salvation is a very physical event. God did not just “save souls”; he saved whole human beings. In the new heaven and earth we will have perfected and restored bodies (1 Corinthians 15). We will live in a renewed, physical creation. Christ’s salvation for us was a gruesome, physical affair. Thank God that our bodies and our physical world are saved through Jesus, who not only died for our sins but also suffered for them. Jesus, you suffered excruciating agony for us. You did so because of the joy it brought you to welcome us back into fellowship with our Father. Thank you for bearing our pain. Amen.

Duration:00:04:39

Jesus Brings Us Out of Darkness

3/6/2024
You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. — 1 Peter 2:9 A World War II veteran told me that he had never experienced complete darkness until he was on a ship in the Pacific Ocean during the war. There were no stars at night, and the ship’s lights were off so that no enemies could see it. When it is pitch dark, you can’t see your hand in front of your face. You have no idea what lies ahead of you or what might be near you. You have no idea of the risks you could face with every move. That is a compelling picture of being lost in sin. If Jesus had not come into our world, we would still be lost in the darkness of sin. We would have remained in hopeless blindness. But Jesus is “the light of the world.” He is the one who comes to us in our darkness and leads us into his glorious light. He shows us the way out of hopeless darkness and continues to guide us by the light of God’s mercy. “Whoever follows me,” he promised, “will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Into the darkness a light has shined. That light is the light of life and the light of the world. Do not walk in darkness; follow Jesus’ radiant light. Lord Jesus, you are the light of the world. Yet many people walk in darkness. Help us all to seek and to see your light. Help us to walk in your light faithfully, that we may live with you always. Amen.

Duration:00:03:37

Jesus Delivers Us From Slavery

3/5/2024
Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. — Galatians 5:1 Pharaoh was the most powerful man in the world at the time of the Exodus, when God freed his people from slavery in Egypt. Pharaoh reigned over the prosperous civilization of the Nile. He had huge temples built in honor of his gods. His gravesite is still visible today in the Valley of the Kings at Luxor. Yet Pharaoh was unable to stop God from liberating his people. Through Moses, who had no army or political standing in the Egyptian court, God freed his people from slavery. Today God frees us from slavery too. Until we are saved through Jesus, we are slaves to sin. We are subjects of the world’s great powers; we are at the mercy of Satan. We have grown accustomed to our addictions. We need liberation. Moses showed Pharaoh that God had more power than all of the Egyptian gods combined. The gods of the Nile, of the cattle, of the harvest, and so on were all shown to be powerless in comparison to the God of Israel. Today false gods inhabit power structures as well. There are political powers, economic powers, military powers, familial powers, and corporate powers that oppress people. Yet God is stronger than all of them. Jesus, God’s Son, delivers us from all these powers, and he has already freed us from their grip, paying the price of sin and canceling the power of death for our sake. Lord Jesus, help us to trust in you to deliver us. Free us from the oppressive powers we face today. Strengthen us to follow you. Amen.

Duration:00:05:30

Jesus Provides Rest and Peace

3/4/2024
“Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” — Matthew 11:29 Did God rest after creating the world because he was tired? No. When God rested, he set up a pattern for his people to follow so that they could take time to rest and to worship him (see Exodus 20:8-11). Finding our rest in God provides peace, as God intends for us all. God wants his people to be able to live in a good, peaceful place where they can rest—that is, where they can flourish and have full life. God brought his people Israel out of slavery for that purpose. But Israel rebelled and failed to believe that God could provide that for them. So they did not inherit God’s promised rest even though God eventually brought them to the land he had promised them (Numbers 13-14; Judges 2; Hebrews 3:7-4:11). Later God sent Jesus to show the way. Jesus knew that God could overcome any enemy that tried to prevent him from living God’s way and entering God’s promised rest. Jesus lived faithfully, trusting in all of God’s promises. And he finished the work God had sent him to do. We all work, and we all need rest. But none of us can do the job that will bring us eternal rest. Jesus has done that for us, however—so now all we need to do is follow him. We can rest and find peace in God through the work that Jesus has completed on our behalf. Dear God, forgive us when we fail to believe and trust that you will bring us into your rest. We cannot find the way to full life on our own. Help us to follow the Savior, Jesus. Amen.

Duration:00:03:16

Jesus Does What is Right

3/3/2024
Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’” — Matthew 4:10 It’s easy for us to be tempted. There are temptations everywhere—within our hearts and coming at us from all sides. Satan provides a master class on temptation in Genesis 3. He begins by suggesting that God is keeping us from enjoying something good. “Did God really say you can’t eat anything in this garden? Poor soul.” And when we feel we are missing out on something, the devil adds, “You can do this. Nothing bad will happen.” Then the thing we want looks good, and we think it will do us good. And we say, “Yes, that’s what I want. I’ll try it. It won’t hurt.” But it doesn’t work out that way. Right and wrong are really built into the universe. Just as God created limits for the waters and times for light and dark, he also created limits for our moral behavior. The first command—don’t eat the fruit of that one tree, was the initial moral law testing our parents’ obedience. That has since been expanded into God’s law for his people, summarized in Exodus 20, Micah 6:8, Matthew 22:37-40, and other passages. And we are tempted to break all of it. We dishonor God and hurt people. We lust, we envy, we get angry over trivialities. And yielding to these can lead into adultery, theft, and violence. Thank God that Jesus resisted all of Satan’s temptations (Matthew 4:1-11). He represents us in all his perfection before God’s throne. Father, thank you for sending Jesus and for crediting us with his perfection. Through his finished work we can stand before you. Amen.

Duration:00:03:33

Jesus Crushes Satan

3/2/2024
Having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. — Colossians 2:15 We can tell from the story in Genesis 3 that a conflict was already going on behind the scenes when Adam and Eve sinned. As Revelation 12:7 describes it, “War broke out in heaven.” The devil, or Satan, rebelled against God and was thrown out with his rebellious followers. And they have been trying ever since to rule the world in their way, battling against God and trying to drag us humans along with them. The serpent who tempted Adam and Eve to sin is described in Revelation 12:9 as “that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray.” He tempted God’s children, created in God’s image, to disobey the Lord, and we caused a lot of grief for our Father. But the devil and his destructive forces are really no match for God. God sent his own Son, Jesus, to be born as a human being. And Jesus’ mission was to rescue his siblings from the mess they got into when they fell into sin. He laid down his own life to pay the price for human sin. As he did that, he disarmed the devil’s “powers and authorities . . . triumphing over them by the cross.” Then Jesus rose again, victorious over death, so that we can have eternal life with him (1 Corinthians 15:55-56)! We still face battles with temptations today. What do you struggle with? Alcohol, greed, porn, abuse, power? These and more create spiritual battles. Call on Jesus, who won the battle for us. Lord Jesus, help us to share in your victory over evil today. Amen.

Duration:00:04:47

Jesus Recreates Us

3/1/2024
If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! — 2 Corinthians 5:17 God loves, reasons, and creates. So do his children, made in his image and likeness. But instead of honoring the good, doing the right, and creating the lovely, we fell into sin (Genesis 3). As a result, we despise, pervert, and destroy our world and our relationships. Though we are still able to do some good (by the grace of God), it is painfully obvious that we do not live up to our created potential. We willfully do wrong, hurt others, and destroy. It is hard to imagine the disappointment and heartbreak God must have felt when we first turned against him. God might well have destroyed humanity and started over. And in a way he did make a new start. God sent his Son, Jesus, to bear his image without falling into sin; Jesus was fully human, like us in every way (see John 1:14; 3:16-18; Hebrews 2:17; 4:15). He loves and thinks and creates as a human made in God’s image should. He hit the restart button on human nature. The miracle of salvation through Jesus is that we can become part of the new creation and the new world he creates. We can become part of God’s family again. With the new life he makes possible for us, Jesus saves! Dear Jesus, thank you for being the first responder for all of creation. You have given us a new start. Help us to live faithfully in your name. Amen.

Duration:00:03:40

Take These Words to Heart

2/29/2024
“Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done.” — Revelation 22:12-13 The closing words of Revelation 22 provide a fitting conclusion to our study of Jesus’ letters to the churches—and all of this applies to his worldwide church today. The churches in Revelation 2-3 were praised according to their faithfulness, and they were challenged to continue in spite of opposition and persecution to the point of death. Here Jesus blesses his followers and urges them to await his glorious return. “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done.” The Revelation of Jesus Christ has been given to supply the church with courage and hope, grounded in the One who is the Son of God. He gave his lifeblood as payment for our sin, and he is the Son of Man who sits at the right hand of God the Father, reigning over the church and ruling over all the kings of the earth. Jesus is Lord over all. Nothing has happened or will happen apart from his rule. The church, by faith in Jesus Christ, will gather at the banquet of the kingdom and will live forever with him in the new heaven and new earth. “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” Lord Jesus, thank you for your letters to the churches, encouraging us and giving us hope, calling us to repent, serve, and stand strong in you. Guide us into your future for your church today. Amen.

Duration:00:04:39

Knock, Knock!

2/28/2024
“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.” — Revelation 3:20 Knock, knock jokes can be fun and amusing—and yet some can induce groans. But Jesus’ knock at the door in his letter to Laodicea was no joke. As we have learned, the Laodiceans were so bad off that Jesus threatened to spit them out of his mouth. But he also graciously knocks, wanting to provide forgiveness and to join with his followers in the banquet prepared for everyone in God’s eternal kingdom. This invitation has continued throughout history. Believers who respond are sinners saved by God’s amazing grace, restored and revived through Jesus. He is at the right hand of God the Father, who is, and was, and always will be. We can find comfort in this today and tomorrow and forever. As Jesus explained, he rebukes and disciplines those whom he loves. When you sense his love toward you, he is knocking at your door, calling for repentance and offering real, full life. Do not wait or be slow to remember. Repent and obey. The repentant person is met by the presence of Jesus, “the Amen, the faithful and true witness,” standing at the door of their heart, awaiting their response. When his call is received by a repentant heart, Jesus promises to come in and eat with that person, enjoying the kingdom banquet. The scene is that of victory, salvation, and full life with the Lord of lords and King of kings. No joke! Loving Savior, thank you for coming not only to invite me to your banquet but also to lay down your life to pay for my sin. Help me to live faithfully for you. Amen.

Duration:00:02:49