Today Daily Devotional

The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed . . . meaning . . . Christ.

— Galatians 3:16

Disappointment can shrivel hope. A grandmother can pray for years, and yet her grand children may leave the faith. A man can work decades in a job and be let go. People can struggle for years in pain or mental distress, with no relief in sight. We may ask, “Where is the joy? Have God’s promises failed?”Sarah knew that kind of heartache. God had promised her husband, Abraham, a child, but over 24 years had gone by, and there was no baby in her womb. Her laugh grew hollow, hardened into cynicism (see Genesis 12:4; 17:17-18:15).But God did give them a son, Isaac (Genesis 21:1-7). And God didn’t just fulfill a promise or set redemption in motion (which he did!); he also healed Sarah’s laugh.In addition, Isaac, whose name means “laughter,” became a pointer to Jesus. Isaac brought joy to one family, and Jesus brings joy for all the nations.When Jesus was born, angels rejoiced, shepherds rejoiced, old Simeon and Anna rejoiced, and wise men from the East came to worship him (Matthew 2; Luke 2). Earlier, another baby, John, leapt in his mother’s womb, and Jesus’ mother, Mary, sang: “My spirit rejoices in God. . . . He has . . . remember[ ed] to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever” (Luke 1:41, 47, 54-55).Jesus, the ultimate promised Son, took all of our disappointments and hollow laughs onto himself. He died and rose to heal our dried-up hopes. And we can laugh again.

Lord, may we always see you keeping your promises in Jesus. Heal our hearts, we pray, and bring us joy in him. Amen.

Christ Jesus . . . is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.

— Romans 8:34

What is Jesus doing now, since he has ascended to heaven? Hebrews 7:25 (like Romans 8:34) says that he is always interceding for us. Jesus prays for us constantly!What a gift this is. We cannot enter God’s presence on the basis of our own goodness. We need the one, perfect Mediator/ High Priest to speak for us. As an old hymn puts it:Before the throne of God aboveI have a strong and perfect plea,a great High Priest whose name is Love,who ever lives and pleads for me.Jesus’ intercession is spoken and visible. Jesus speaks to the Father on our behalf, and his scars bear the testimony of his sacrifice for us. As the prophet Isaiah said, “By his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).So, through Jesus’ work for us, we are reconciled with God. And he mediates a new covenant for us with God so that God’s law is in our minds and in our hearts always. By living within us through his Spirit, Jesus impresses on our minds and hearts how to live for God each day. This is the new life Jesus makes possible for us, guiding us, through his Spirit, to live faithfully, as he did. And because of Jesus, we can have the confidence to draw near to God our Father always, anytime (Hebrews 10:19-23).Without Jesus, God would be a distant power. In Jesus, we have a Father. And nothing can separate us from his love!

Thank you, Lord Jesus, our faithful mediator and intercessor, for giving us new life in the Father’s love forever. Amen.

Since we have a great high priest who ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.

— Hebrews 4:14

Sometimes clothes tell a story. A letterman jacket. An apron. Baby shoes, never worn. Medals on a veteran’s uniform.The clothing of the Old Testament high priest told a story. The ephod was a vest made of gold, woven with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn—the same colors used inside the tabernacle (the special tent of God’s presence). On each shoulder of the ephod was an onyx stone, engraved with the names of the tribes of Israel. The ephod told the people that the priest was their mediator when he went into the presence of God.The high priest also wore a breastpiece over the ephod. It bore 12 gemstones, each engraved with a tribe’s name. In addition, a gold plate that read “HOLY TO THE LORD” was attached to the front of the high priest’s turban (see Exodus 28:6-30).The story these clothes told was that through the service of the high priest, God showed his love by promising forgiveness and a new start for his people. Today we know that Jesus Christ is the true and ultimate High Priest, mediating for us always. He is God’s presence in our midst (John 1:14). As High Priest, Jesus carries us before God, bearing our names and our guilt so that we can be forgiven and receive new life in him. What’s more, our great High Priest gave his own life as the final, perfect sacrifice. What amazing love!

Lord Jesus, how glorious you are! Thank you for being our perfect High Priest and for giving yourself as the perfect sacrifice for us, once for all. Hallelujah! Amen.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit. . . ."

— John 15:5

Before I married, I did not own a car. I did not know how to fix vehicles or install plumbing. (Still don’t.) But with a vow, suddenly I had access to all those riches through my husband.Being united to Jesus works in a way like that—only better. Jesus describes himself as a vine, and he says we are like branches—deeply connected to him and blessed with all the benefits of life in him.John Calvin wrote that through Christ all heavenly gifts flow to us. From him we get life, righteousness, holiness, and every true blessing. Imagine! Jesus’ joy, peace, strength, and reward. An old hymn proclaims: “How vast the benefits divine that we in Christ possess!”At the beginning of our reading for today, Jesus calls himself “the true vine.” There really is no other with whom we can have this flourishing relationship. Apart from him, we cannot bear fruit, so we need to remain in Jesus.What does “remaining” look like? I saw a short video called “If we treated our Bibles like our phones. . . .” As soon he woke in the morning, a man opened his Bible; he read it as he brushed his teeth, cooked his eggs, and ran on a treadmill. He even kept checking his Bible throughout the day.We know what it means to “remain” with our phones. Perhaps remaining in Christ looks something like that? We need to stay close with him, all day long.

Lord Jesus, how blessed we are to be united in you! Help us to remain in you always, in all we do, that we may bear your fruit. Amen.

He is the head of the body, the church. . . .

— Colossians 1:18

My daughter plays percussion for the Des Moines (Iowa) Youth Symphony. As we take our seats for a concert, the warmup sounds like cacophony and chaos. Every musician is doing their own thing as they tune up and warm up.Then . . . tap-tap-tap. The conductor calls everyone to attention, and everything changes! The mess becomes music. The chaos turns coherent. Every instrument finds its place in the unity of the written score. And beauty results.The church too has many parts, many “instruments.” Left to ourselves, we naturally do our own thing. We can also be competitive and chaotic, often resembling “a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal,” without love (1 Corinthians 13:1).But because we have Jesus as our Head, our Lord and Savior, we can “live in harmony with one another” (Romans 12:16). He directs us with his song.The picture of Jesus as a conductor doesn’t go far enough, though. A symphony can survive without a conductor. But a body can’t survive, even for a moment, without a head. The head sends the signals that animate and orchestrate every part and every function of the body.In the same way Jesus, our Head, gives his life to his church. By his Spirit, he transmits to his body forgiveness, righteousness, selflessness, and love. What he gives is more than direction; he gives himself.

Lord Jesus, our Head, make us, as your body, a beautiful symphony for you. May we tune our lives to be in harmony with you always. Amen.

“He calls his own sheep by name and leads them. . . . I am the good shepherd. . . .”

— John 10:3,14

Our family lived for ten years in a border town of the Navajo Nation. We learned a little about herding sheep and tending cattle from our Navajo friends. We learned that different animals are led differently.Cattle are driven. Dogs or horses are used to spook them from behind so that they trot where you want them to go. We saw something similar with goats when we visited Israel. The goat herder constantly threw small stones just beyond and to the side of the goats, in order to startle them and drive them in the direction he wanted them to go.With sheep, it is often different. Sheep generally follow behind. Sheep learn the shepherd’s voice. And they follow the shepherd because they trust the shepherd.Jesus says he is the good shepherd. He does not use fear or tricks to drive his sheep. “He calls his own sheep by name . . . and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.”Do we know our Shepherd’s voice? How do we learn it? We learn Jesus’ voice by going to where he speaks, in the Bible, and spending time listening to him each day. There we grow familiar with his cadence and tones. There we learn his ways and grow to trust him.Then, when he leads us in and through dark valleys, we will not fear, even when we can’t see him. For we know he is with us.

Good Shepherd, no one is as good as you. We follow you, and we trust you—even when it is dark. Guide us to trust you always. Amen.

The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven.

— 1 Corinthians 15:47

Have you ever played the game “Grab the Bacon?” Two teams face each other in an open field, and a sock or towel (the “bacon”) is placed on the ground between them. A runner from each team races out to grab the “bacon,” and the one who brings it back gains a point for the whole team. The team’s success depends on one representative.Romans 5 teaches that our original “representative” was Adam (Genesis 2-3). And when Adam sinned, we all lost, taking on the curse of sin and death. But God sent a second Adam, Jesus. And for all who trust in him, Jesus puts right what Adam put wrong.The first Adam bore God’s image but marred it, seeking self-exaltation. The second Adam, Jesus, is the true image of God, “the exact representation of his being” (Hebrews 1:3), and Jesus puts his Father first.The first Adam gave in to temptation and lies. The second Adam, Jesus, defeated temptation by declaring the truth (Matthew 4:1-11). The first Adam brought misery. The second Adam brought mercy, forgiveness, reconciliation, and life everlasting.Jesus is the representative head we need.Have you heard him calling? He says, “Follow me!” (Matthew 4:19; John 21:19).

Dear Jesus, thank you for showing us how to live. Thank you for the victory you have won for us. Guide us to follow you as our head. We owe everything to you. Amen.

“They will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

— Matthew 1:23

After the First World War, British soldiers returned from the front lines devastated. Many were shell-shocked, disfigured, wounded, and scarred.Among the pastors who ministered to those hurting veterans was Edward Shillito. He wrote a poem, in 1919, in which he speaks as a soldier, seeking God. The poem expresses dismay and doubt: “The heavens frighten us; they are too calm. . . . Our wounds are hurting us; where is the balm?”Yet it shows that in seeing the scars of Jesus, Immanuel, hope and faith can be restored: “To our wounds only God’s wounds can speak, And not a god has wounds, but Thou alone.”For any of us who is suffering, we need to see Jesus, the one true God who came to be “with us” and who offered his life as the ultimate sacrifice for our sake. “By his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). Scripture proclaims this holy mystery: God is not distant from us, sealed off, light years away. He is “with us.” Wounded, abused, with his flesh ripped open, “like one from whom people hide their faces” (53:3)—that’s Immanuel.What a holy mystery it is that the risen Jesus bears eternal scars on his eternal flesh (John 20:19-29). “He had to be made . . . fully human in every way . . . [to] make atonement for the sins of” us all.

See the scars. Scars of pain. Scars of victory. Scars of Immanuel. “Oh, love, how deep, how broad, how high”! Thank you, Jesus, for becoming “God with us.” Amen.

“Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected. . . .’”

— Acts 4:11

Rejection. We see it when grandparents are cut off from grandkids over politics. Or when siblings haven’t spoken in years. In the church, a difference in conviction can be met with a cold shoulder, and a cutting off of friendship.Rejection hurts. I remember a group question: “What is the worst pain that people have known?” Some participants said, “a torn ACL,” “childbirth,” “kidney stones.” But one woman replied, “Relational pain is the worst, because bodies heal faster than hearts.”The God of the universe knows relational pain. Scripture says that Jesus “came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him” (John 1:11). His family members thought he was crazy; his hometown ran him out (Mark 3:21; 6:4). The Son of God lamented all of this, saying, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem . . . how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing” (Luke 13:34). Jesus told parables about feasts that people would not come to and about a father rejected by both of his sons (Luke 14:16-24; 15:11-32).Rejecting Jesus continues today. We reject Jesus when we are ashamed to stand up for him or his words. Or when we fail to pray or take time with him.Let us return to Jesus—who bore rejection for us so that we can have forgiveness and new life. And may we be peacemakers and forgivers too.

Lord Jesus, forgive us when we snub you or act ashamed of you. May we honor you in all we do and say—whether in public or in private. Amen.

A man of suffering, and familiar with pain . . . he took up our pain and bore our suffering. . . .

— Isaiah 53:3-4

What gives hope when our hearts break?Five years ago, my sister-in-law, only 47 years old, died of a brain-stem tumor. I helped to care for her and her young family during six years of decline, dementia, hospice, and devastating pain. At times like that, many of us may wonder, “Where is Jesus? Does he even care? We can do nothing. He could do something—and yet it seems like he stays away.”The Lord gave me a gift in an unexpected place—a passage in a C. S. Lewis children’s book. A boy’s mother is dying. The boy seeks help from the Christ figure, Aslan. Aslan doesn’t heal in that encounter, but he shows the boy his heart, even great tears, showing that he hurts as much as the boy himself. I needed that insight.Perhaps you know how lonely and terrible grief is. Perhaps you have wondered if God cares.In Jesus, we see the tears and the heart of God. Jesus’ heart went out to a grieving widow whose son had died (Luke 7:13). He wept with Mary at her brother’s tomb (John 11:35). Jesus is gentle with the hurting: “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out” (Matthew 12:20). Jesus suffered, for our sake, all of the pain and sorrow caused by everyone’s sin. And he promises to remove all mourning and crying and pain when he comes again (Revelation 21:4).

Lord of bruised, smoldering hearts, thank you for your tears. Thank you also for the promise that our tears won’t last forever. Amen.