The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

— Romans 6:23

Sin is a topic that many people tend to avoid. Others make light of it. Las Vegas, for example, is sometimes called “Sin City,” and foods that are tasty but not healthy are often called sinfully delicious or decadent. Sadly, a world that chooses not to reflect seriously on sin does so at its own peril.

But what is sin? Sin can be described as having two sides, like a coin. One side of sin involves breaking the commands of God. God’s commands are in the Bible—for example, the Ten Commandments and various other passages. The other side of sin involves not living up to God’s good purpose for our lives. Jesus summarized our purpose when he said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and you shall love your neighbor as yourself” (see Mark 12:30-31). Acting contrary to God’s commands and failing to love God and others are the two sides of sin. Sometimes these are called sins of commission and sins of omission.

But is sin really that serious? After all, we are only human, some would say. But the Bible is clear. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), and “the wages of sin is death.”

But the Bible brings good news as well! While “the wages of sin is death,” “the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”!

Lord God, we confess that every day we sin against you in the things we do, and in the things we fail to do. Please forgive us, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

— 1 John 1:8-9

According to psychologists, we all live in denial at some point in our lives. Denial is a coping mechanism that can help us come to terms with difficult situations. It allows us time to adjust to new realities. But denial can also be deadly. Denying medical symptoms, for example, is not wise.

An even more serious form of denial is quite common in our world today. Many people deny that there is an almighty, all-knowing God who is holy and just and to whom we are all accountable. Countless people live their lives denying that God exists, that God sees and knows all things, and that they will meet God face to face after their earthly life is finished. Romans 1:18-21 tells us that God reveals himself clearly to us through creation. God’s power and divinity are on display for all to see, but people ignore and suppress these things and go their own way.

Nonetheless, God makes himself known to us even more clearly in the Bible. The Bible reveals God in great detail and teaches us about our broken relationship with him. It teaches that death—physical and eternal spiritual death—is the result of sin, but also that there is a remedy for sin: Jesus!

Lord God, thank you for making yourself known to us through the beauty of all that you have created. Thank you also that we may enjoy your beauty for all eternity through your Son, our Lord and Savior! Amen.

Your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you . . . . You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

— 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

We live in a world obsessed with comfort. The number of air conditioning units in the world is expected to triple by 2050. Tens of billions of dollars are spent on pain medication every year, and the market is forecast to increase 50 percent by 2032. Myriads of other products offer comforts we “can’t live without.” And yet nearly every day in my work as a college chaplain I meet and pray with people who are anxious and stressed out!

We all need comfort, and we all have important needs, especially for our physical, emotional, and spiritual health. But too often we look for comfort in the wrong places.

Being part of a community and having a sense of belonging is part of the answer to finding comfort for daily living, but the best way to find comfort is in a right relationship with God, who provides the true and lasting comfort of full life forever.

The apostle Paul reminds us that we do not belong to ourselves but have been bought at a price—through the blood of Jesus, God’s Son—who came to offer us new life through the gift of his own life. Belonging to Jesus, we are connected to each other as well.

This world provides only limited, temporary comforts. But belonging to God through Jesus offers true and lasting comfort for both body and soul, during life and in the face of death.

God, thank you that we are not our own but belong, “in life and in death,” to you. Amen.

Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

— Psalm 96:3

As we wrap up our month together, let’s return to our theme passage, Psalm 96. As I read this psalm, I notice something remarkable. It assumes that God is at work at all times in creation and among all the peoples and nations of the world. Sometimes it can be tempting for us to believe that we are responsible to bring God into places where he is not. But the truth is that God is already present wherever we may go. Our call is to bear witness to him and to his work in our midst.

I recently spent a couple of days with a small group of church leaders and members from across my denomination. I heard story after story about God at work in their church communities. It didn’t matter if their church was urban, suburban, thriving, or struggling—every person had stories to tell about God changing lives and communities. There were stories of discipleship, mission, service, worship, and sacrifice.

We began as strangers around the table, and soon we embraced each other as brothers and sisters in Christ. We clearly saw the presence of Jesus in one another. We were all different, but we each had similar stories of the faithful God working through the small and loving actions of his people.

May God use you and me to “declare his glory . . . among all peoples.”

God, guide us to declare your glory and to point out your amazing work that is all around us in every part of the world. May your kingdom come and your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”

— Luke 10:17

Wally was a church member who had a big heart for mission. He and I led a course for several years about the basics of Christian faith, and we saw a lot of good change in people’s lives during that time. I remember thinking sometimes as I drove home, “It doesn’t get any better than this!”

It seems that Jesus’ disciples sensed something like that in their own context when he sent them out in pairs. Jesus celebrated their success by declaring that through their work, Satan himself was being defeated. What a statement! It truly doesn’t get better than that!

This month we have focused on some big mission words: gospel, witness, holistic, and intercultural. These are important words and concepts. But they don’t mean a thing if they remain just ideas. They come alive and truly mean something when they describe how we join Jesus in the work of changing lives and renewing communities.

As Wally interacted with the people he met, whether it was in his greenhouse operation, talking to a visitor at church, striking up a conversation at the coffee shop, or hosting our course, he wasn’t thinking about those big words. He just wanted to make sure that every person knew they were loved with an everlasting love and that they would meet Jesus. Jesus commissions us, his disciples, with the same call.

Jesus, help me to be available to you. In my interactions with others, may I bring your message of life, healing, and hope. Equip me with your Spirit, Lord. Amen.

“. . . the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”

— Numbers 6:26

Last year, my wife and I completed a 900-kilometer (560-mile) hiking trail that stretches from Niagara Falls to Lake Huron in Canada. It took us about 60 hikes over five summers to finish it. One of the things we noticed whenever we would start a new hike was the immediate sense of peace and calm we felt as we followed a path into the woods. We were soon immersed in the beauty of nature. It was our happy place.

Some of the greatest gifts of God are moments when we can catch a glimpse of God’s peace. Where and when have you experienced that gift?

Sabbath is designed to be a day of peace for us—a day when we interrupt our regular routines to focus on God through worship, play, and rest. Thankfully we do not have to be in our “happy place” to receive that peace. The blessing of Aaron in Numbers 6 is God’s promise to turn his face toward us wherever we are and to bring us peace.

We see the same in the ministry of Jesus. After his resurrection, Jesus greeted his grieving disciples with a beautiful message: “Peace be with you!” (John 20:21, 26).

On this Sabbath day, may you experience the gift of God’s eternal peace in Jesus for whatever burden you may be carrying.

Jesus, my life longs for the peace that transcends all understanding. Grant me your blessing of peace today as I give up my worries and anxieties to rest in you. Amen.

Before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.

— Revelation 7:9

This passage is one of the most powerful pictures of heaven in the Bible. John sees a vast crowd of people from every nation and language, and all are celebrating and worshiping Jesus with all their heart. Everyone is dressed in white robes, waving palm branches, and praising God. What a vision! It seems that John himself is so astonished that one of the elders by the throne comes to him and asks, in effect, “Who do you think these people are?” John is unsure, so he replies: “Sir, you know.”

It turns out that every person in the crowd has experienced the forgiveness of Jesus and received new life. The white robes, ironically, are white because they have been washed in Jesus’ blood (v. 14).

This week we have been focusing on the intercultural mission of God, and Revelation 7 is a clear picture of the impact of that work.

A few months ago I met with about 50 church planters and their spouses who represented 15 different countries. We learned together and enjoyed beautiful moments of worship in several languages. I looked around the room at these gifted and faithful leaders, and it seemed like a taste of what John describes here.

May it be so in every one of our churches!

Lord, we long for the day when we will join in with the vast multitude around your throne. May your church increasingly reflect the intercultural beauty of the world you have created and redeemed. Amen.

I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

— 1 Corinthians 10:33

About 15 years ago my wife and I spent time with a small team in a West African country. One day we enjoyed a meal of rice and chicken served on a large platter. We gathered around the food, and each person took a portion with their hand. I did the same, but then I heard a shout and saw fingers pointing at me! I jumped back in shock, wondering what I had done wrong. Then my hosts burst out laughing. I am left-handed, and, without thinking, I had used my left hand to scoop food from the communal platter—and that was a no-no in that culture. We had a good laugh together over my mistake.

To engage with people of other cultures means that sometimes we are going to make mistakes. That’s a part of learning in contexts that we are not familiar with. But when we take on a posture of vulnerability and humility, we also find our lives deeply enriched through our friendship with people whose background is different from ours.

In our passage from 1 Corinthians today, we see the example of Paul adjusting his behavior to the culture of others wherever possible, in order to honor them and to glorify God. We represent God faithfully when we respect other cultures and are willing to learn.

Jesus, help me to grow in curiosity and openness to coworkers and neighbors whose cultural backgrounds may be different from mine. May your love shine through me as I seek to bring your goodness to others. Amen.

This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.

— 2 Corinthians 9:12

The countries of Sudan and South Sudan are among the world’s most difficult places to live in today. Millions of people in these countries have been displaced by civil war, political unrest, and disasters.

Yet Jesus continues to be at work. The mission agency I serve provides a training program for pastors and church leaders called Timothy Leadership Training (TLT). Reverend Patrick, a church leader in South Sudan, recently reported that 43 pastors and ministry leaders completed the TLT program and are making a difference in their communities. Though non-Sudanese people cannot generally enter these countries right now, we can still bless and encourage churches and believers there through programs like TLT.

This reflects the joy that flows through 2 Corinthians 9. Here Paul celebrates the generosity of the church in Corinth as it gives to bless churches in other lands. And their investment in God’s kingdom will result in blessings multiplied for both the giver and the receivers. Most significantly, this work honors Jesus.

As we consider our place in God’s worldwide mission, we cannot underestimate how our partnership with other ministries can benefit people in places we cannot go. Wherever we are, our generosity can bless Christian brothers and sisters around the world in extraordinary ways.

God, help us to grow in the grace of giving. May our generosity minister to others around the world and honor you. Amen.

After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia. . . .

— Acts 16:10

Looking back on my life’s journey, I see a series of doors that God opened and closed to bring me where I am today. Along the way, I experienced not only disappointments but also some great surprises. Though I didn’t always see it at the time, I can see more clearly now how God was guiding me. As you reflect on your life, I wonder if you can see God’s direction in similar ways?

We can see God’s direction at work in the episode that Paul and his companions experienced in our reading for today. Paul and his team were on a significant intercultural missionary journey, bringing the gospel to strategic countries and regions in the Roman Empire. He and his companions had tried to go to the province of Asia (part of present-day Turkey), but the Holy Spirit stopped them, and they changed course. Then, at the border leading into Bithynia, the same thing happened.

That night, Paul had a vision in which he saw a man begging him to come to Macedonia. So the missionaries went there, and God opened a remarkable door for them in Philippi.

I find myself challenged by this passage to pay close attention to God’s leading. What neighbor or coworker or friend is God calling me to love more intentionally? Can I sense that the Spirit is beckoning me to cross the street or a cultural boundary or an ocean to follow and trust his leading?

Dear God, I long to have the clarity that you gave to Paul in this episode. Help me to trust that you are urging me to follow you into places and relationships where I can bring your love. Amen.