And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

Devotion based on Luke 3:22

Deep down, virtually every child wants to please their parents. When they’re still little, they want to hear their parents say, “Good job!” or “Wow, you are so big!” As they grow older, children crave to hear their parents say, “I’m so proud of you” or “You mean the world to me.” Children crave their parents’ approval and praise.

God the Father is well pleased, positively delighted, with his Son, Jesus. That’s good news for us who want to please our Father in heaven, too because Christ shares God’s delight with you. By faith in Jesus, you also gain access to God’s delight. The sins that make you look like worthless chaff are blown away. God sees you as good wheat to be stored with him. God is positively delighted with you because he’s positively delighted in what his Son has done and who he is—the substitute for sinners.

If you want further proof that you are God’s delight, look to your own baptism! Baptism is your connection to Christ and his saving work. In baptism, your sinful identity, your chaff-like appearance, is put to death, and your sins are hidden in Jesus’ tomb. But even as your sins are washed away in baptism, you are also being raised with Christ to walk in his footsteps, bringing delight to God. In baptism, God the Father’s voice calls out to you like it did for Jesus, “You are my son, my daughter, whom I love. With you, I am well pleased. You are my delight.”

Prayer: