Daily Devo

Listen to today’s devo!

The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness. (Rom. 4:23–24)

Expanded Passage: Romans 4:23-24

Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. This faith was not mere intellectual belief in historical facts about God but was his willingness to live as if God is real. Abraham left his home and family, set out for a land he didn’t know, and he even did not withhold his only son from God. God still looks for this kind of faith: not intellectual acceptance of historical facts about Jesus but a deep and vibrant conviction that Jesus lives, combined with a willingness to live as if that is the deepest truth in the universe.

Sometimes this can make us nervous. We begin to wonder, “Do I believe enough? Is my conviction unwavering like Abraham’s?” Certainly, we can always improve. But if you look back over the last days, weeks, or even years of your life, you’ll likely see a time when you dared to live as if God was real instead of reacting to what seemed real in the moment. Maybe you followed God’s calling to a church or job when that choice seemed counterintuitive. Maybe you dared to love an unlovable person. Maybe you gave your all to a task that others did halfheartedly, if at all. These successes can remind you that God gave you the grace to act faithfully then, and he can help you live with deep and vibrant faith today!

Sketch a timeline of the last year and plot your grace moments.

Michael Jordan is the dean of the chapel at Houghton University (NY), an ordained Wesleyan pastor, and enjoys singing, crossword puzzles, and distance running.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God. (Rom. 4:20)

Expanded Passage: Romans 4:18-22

My wife is a wonderful baker and is renowned especially for her pies. Shortly before we got married, she taught me a new phrase: “piecrust promises.” These are promises that are easily made and easily broken. All of us have to deal with piecrust promises sometimes: someone gives their word and fails to keep it. Sometimes this is a mere inconvenience; sometimes it hurts us deeply.

It is wise to be patient with those who make piecrust promises because we do the same thing sometimes. We keep a friend waiting past the appointed time, or we forget a birthday amid a busy season. We can fail even those we love most deeply: we say an unkind word to a spouse or lose patience with our children. We can fail them through our human weakness when we simply forget what we promised to do. Because of this, we must always realize that human promises are, after all, only human.

It’s hard to imagine the love and power of someone who never breaks a promise. Yet that is the love given freely to us. Beyond our ability either to reproduce or fully comprehend, this is God’s gift to us. Because of this, we can live hopefully in a fearful time, for we know that the One who has promised us is faithful.

Name the promise of God that gives you hope today.

Michael Jordan is the dean of the chapel at Houghton University (NY), an ordained Wesleyan pastor, and enjoys singing, crossword puzzles, and distance running.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring. (Rom. 4:16)

Expanded Passage: Romans 4:16-17

Many of us live each day as a series of battles: we have tasks to accomplish in which we must excel. We have people to deal with, some of whom are easy for us to take and some not so easy. We have places to go, mouths to feed, jobs to do.

What if the most important thing in all of creation isn’t the things we do? What if grace is really the heartbeat of the universe? What if God’s gifts are all around us, sustaining us, breathing new life into our churches, communities, and families despite our daily battles?

If that is true, then the most important thing in all the world must be to discern grace, to recognize the pattern of God’s activity so we can recognize it and revel in it. The trouble is that we often are so consumed with our to-do lists that we never notice the grace. We gain the admiration of others when we accomplish our tasks well, and so we’re afraid to point away from ourselves and to God.

Yet what joy there is for those who can discern grace. How confident they can be that God loves them. How joyfully they can live each moment, confident there is enough for every tomorrow. If you want to know that you are a beloved child of God, learn to recognize his grace.

Name three signs of God’s grace in your life.

Michael Jordan is the dean of the chapel at Houghton University (NY), an ordained Wesleyan pastor, and enjoys singing, crossword puzzles, and distance running.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

It was not through the law . . . but through the righteousness that comes by faith. (Rom. 4:13)

Expanded Passage: Romans 4:13-15

Friends of mine who live in Israel tell me that many public buildings have a Sabbath elevator, one that can be set to stop automatically on every floor during the Sabbath. This way, riders can avoid pushing the button, which they believe would break the fourth commandment.

I am thankful that, as a Christian, I can know that scrupulously keeping the law doesn’t save me. Indeed, as a Western Christian, the Sabbath elevator seems a bit crazy to me. How could people think that God really cares whether or not they push a button on the Sabbath? Yet as I reflected on this, I began to wonder what I do that might be similarly crazy. Do I think that preaching a particularly good sermon somehow impresses God? Is he impressed by me being a good husband or father? If I think a Sabbath elevator is a little odd, then why am I so invested in my ability to please God by doing everything right?

God invites me out of that craziness and tells me that the only way I can receive his promises is to have faith: the deep inner conviction that what is most real is not my goodness, but God’s. He invites me into the world of faith—simple trust that all things are from him, and all blessings come from following his way.

Say to God, “Thank you for loving me anyway.”

Michael Jordan is the dean of the chapel at Houghton University (NY), an ordained Wesleyan pastor, and enjoys singing, crossword puzzles, and distance running.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you—I whom you have delivered. (Ps. 71:23)

Expanded Passage: Psalm 71:19-24

There is nothing like the confident prayers of God’s faithful children lifting their requests and praises heavenward toward him. Psalm 71 gives us a peek into what these prayers may sound like. The psalmist started in a lament, but he concludes by praising God for protecting and redeeming him. What is the psalmist’s message? When life is closing in all around you, look to God. Since God has saved you, don’t stop praising him.

Our Scripture study this week has revealed that God’s grand plan of salvation isn’t just the latest fad, meant for just a select few or given just to make you feel good about yourself. God’s salvation should cause you to sing praises, talk of his glorious righteousness, and trust him with all areas of your life. If God would go to great lengths to save you by giving up his own Son, why would he abandon you now? God loves it when you call on him. If there is one thing we can say about God it’s that he knows what you need before you ask him. Not only is he for you, but he is actively working on your behalf in ways you don’t even realize.

When you feel discouraged by your circumstances, remember that God is active. He is always at work in the world and in your life.

Today, turn off the radio and sing your own praise to God.

Devon Smith is district superintendent of the Tri-State District of The Wesleyan Church and founder/director of the CROSS Training ordination program at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

He did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time. (Rom. 3:26)

Expanded Passage: Romans 3:1-8; 21-26

In order to understand the depravity, hopelessness, and separation produced by sin, one needs to have something to measure it against. In the same way that we wouldn’t know light if we didn’t have darkness, or what cold is without heat, or love without hate, we wouldn’t know what sin is if we didn’t have the law. Without justice, or the administration of the law, we wouldn’t know what sin is. Without God’s justice, the law would be, at best, a list of suggestions.

God’s ability to enforce his law is what gives it power. God has the wherewithal to judge each one of us. However, although God has the power to condemn us, he doesn’t want to! Though our punishment is clear, God’s grand plan of salvation is to both save us from that punishment and to restore us to a relationship with him. He so desires to enter into a relationship with us that he pronounced that all who faithfully ask— based on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ—are acquitted of their sin.

According to Paul, we have been given a window of time in which to repent. God has allowed a literal grace period, a time during which his judgment is delayed so we can receive his pardon. What should your response be to this graciousness of God?

Thank God for not giving you what you deserve.

Devon Smith is district superintendent of the Tri-State District of The Wesleyan Church and founder/director of the CROSS Training ordination program at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

All are justified freely by his grace. (Rom. 3:24)

Expanded Passage: Romans 3:24-26

A religion professor in college told me that if there was anything people could do to earn their salvation, there would be a lot more people in heaven. God’s grand design for salvation is indeed grand. It is grander than any other religion or worldview could even conceive. Since all other religions are made in the image of humankind, the only hope they can offer is the use of human effort to attain heaven, or whatever the final goal of that particular religion is.

Christians know that we cannot get to heaven by hitting a magic number of good thoughts or works. Simply put, you will never be good enough to get to heaven on your own. So what is a person to do? Look to God! He has provided a way of salvation, just like he always does. Redemption is not for a select few; it is for anyone. Salvation is God’s idea and can only be accomplished on God’s terms. Those terms are by faith in Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf.

Remember, the law that Paul spoke about in this passage reveals a lawgiver who is just. God does not compromise any part of himself to suit us. We are to submit to God. When we don’t, our condemnation is just. Are you working to please God?

Do something good today, not because you must but because you can.

Devon Smith is district superintendent of the Tri-State District of The Wesleyan Church and founder/director of the CROSS Training ordination program at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (Rom. 3:23)

Expanded Passage: Romans 3:23

Our key verse is well known as a part of the “Romans Road,” a way of presenting the gospel using selected texts from the book of Romans. As a result, we have a tendency to miss this verse’s context and the bigger picture of what the Holy Spirit is trying to teach us. That is too bad because Romans 3:23 is part of a larger passage of Scripture that shows us more about God than it does us. In our egocentric world, we can be quick to jump at the idea that sin is what we do, and therefore all that we will ever be. “I am just a poor sinner, that’s who I am,” some say. This statement flies in the face of God’s Word because it prevents us from seeing God.

Part of God’s amazing plan of salvation is to show us who he is and what he can do in our hearts! After all, if it is true, as is often said, that our chief goal is to love God and enjoy him forever, then we should expect that, by saving, God isn’t just handing out fire insurance. The God who created us in his image wants more for us than to be perpetual sinners. We didn’t just need to be saved from hell’s fire, we needed to be restored to God.

Ask, “Do I do right because I trust God or because I fear punishment?”

Devon Smith is district superintendent of the Tri-State District of The Wesleyan Church and founder/director of the CROSS Training ordination program at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. (Rom. 3:22)

Expanded Passage: Romans 3: 21-22

For anyone who would care to notice, there is one theme that weaves its way through Scripture, and it is a sure-fire way to please God. The law was not given as a suggestion. Obedience is the duty of those who follow God. However, there is one thing that quickly catches God’s attention. This one thing reveals the reason God gave the law in the first place. The one thing? Faith.

Jesus’ biggest problem with zealous law keepers, the ones he bumped shoulders with almost daily, wasn’t that they kept the law. After all, any casual observer almost certainly would have been impressed with how closely they followed the law. Jesus’ issue with these zealous law keepers was that they missed God’s intention in giving them the law in the first place. The one thing that they left out is the one thing we often miss as well.

Keeping these laws was never meant to be an end in itself. It is not something done to impress onlookers and give us a personal feeling of satisfaction from following God’s commands to the letter. How do we know this? Because Paul simply but profoundly stated that the law and the prophets take a back seat to all those who have faith in Jesus Christ. Without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6).

Recognize who you are in Christ.

Devon Smith is district superintendent of the Tri-State District of The Wesleyan Church and founder/director of the CROSS Training ordination program at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? (Rom. 3:3)

Expanded Passage: Romans 3:3-8

If you would like a living illustration of this passage, look no further than to those who deny God or, at the very least, who scoff at him and his commandments. People who don’t care for God’s law try to justify their actions. Their argument is that if, by sinning, they can prove that there is no such thing as morality and a lawgiver (God), then they cannot be punished for their sin. In other words, they believe they are doing you a favor by showing you how to live—even as their lives fall apart in front of you.

This thinking represents the best thought the sinful mind is capable of, really. Those who live this way often say things like, “I am just being real; accept me for who I am.” Perhaps that is true, but let’s face it, a life lived like this exposes the reason that God came to save us in the first place. We were lost in the darkness of sin.

The answer to this lifestyle and faulty reasoning is simple, according to Paul. The law reveals both a sinner in need of grace and a lawgiver who is just. God simply will not ignore the law just because we believe our actions are justified on account of an event or circumstances that have happened in our lives.

Ask yourself, “Am I a better example of sin or of grace?”

Devon Smith is district superintendent of the Tri-State District of The Wesleyan Church and founder/director of the CROSS Training ordination program at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.