“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”

Devotion based on Revelation 22:16

You need critical surgery. You are given the choice of two surgeons to perform the delicate task. The first one says, “I have successfully performed this exact surgery 68 times and the results have always been excellent.” You meet with the other surgeon who tells you, “I read about this surgery in a manual once. I’m sure it can’t be that hard.”

Your choice? It’s obvious. You go with the one with the proper credentials.

At times, we are forced to entrust our lives to the hands of skilled surgeons. But only when we need to. The rest of the time, we are in charge of our own lives. At least we feel that way, and we might act that way.

The Bible reminds us today who really is in charge. Jesus gives himself some interesting titles in this verse. He calls himself the Root of David. The mighty King David, for all his power and splendor, still needed someone to give him life. He needed someone to create him. Jesus is the Root, or source, of King David.

Jesus is also the Offspring of David. While Jesus is the eternal God, he also took on human flesh and blood so that he could take all the failings of humanity upon himself. Eternal God willingly set aside his power and glory as God so he would be the source of its salvation. He was a human descendant of David. In this way, Jesus is also the Offspring of David.

Jesus also calls himself the Morning Star. Like the last bright star that still shines as night gives way to the light of a new day, Jesus is the bright star that will shine until he returns at the dawn of the Last Day.

This means that day by day we can confidently be assured that our lives are placed into the hands of Jesus. Could there be a better place than that? We have nothing to fear because Jesus has all the credentials to give us what is best for now and for eternity.

Prayer:

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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.