Morning Devotion
January 18, 2025
Today's Bible Verse
Hebrews 10:38
Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. <br><br>
Today's Bible Study
In this verse of Hebrews, the writer is paraphrasing Habakkuk, who is emphasizing the importance of faith among the righteous. The Lord is pleased when we choose to have faith in Him, and we should seek to always be growing in our faith.
Living by faith means we rest knowing that God's promises are true—even when it seems like they aren't. It is what steadies us when we go through difficult times or find ourselves confused. Faith in the Lord's goodness and love for us is what helps us remain tender to His voice and gives us the strength to continue following the Lord in all circumstances.
The Lord takes faith very seriously. If we do not have faith, the writer of Hebrews says, then the Lord will not have any pleasure in us. It does not matter if we do good things if we do not do them unto the Lord because He is concerned primarily that we do things unto Him out of loving obedience. He can see through us when we do things for external recognition instead of out of love. He knows our real motivation, and if it is not faith, it is not pleasing to Him.
Living by faith means we rest knowing that God's promises are true—even when it seems like they aren't. It is what steadies us when we go through difficult times or find ourselves confused. Faith in the Lord's goodness and love for us is what helps us remain tender to His voice and gives us the strength to continue following the Lord in all circumstances.
The Lord takes faith very seriously. If we do not have faith, the writer of Hebrews says, then the Lord will not have any pleasure in us. It does not matter if we do good things if we do not do them unto the Lord because He is concerned primarily that we do things unto Him out of loving obedience. He can see through us when we do things for external recognition instead of out of love. He knows our real motivation, and if it is not faith, it is not pleasing to Him.
We are able to grow in our faith on a daily basis because the Lord has given us many resources. Christian fellowship, reading the Bible, and an active prayer life are among them. We can ask the Lord to show us thoughts that drift away from faith and veer into questioning His love or goodness. When He does, we can lift those thoughts up to Him, over and over again, and in time these thought patterns will break.
We can take comfort in the fact that because the Lord wants us to be ever-growing in our faith, He will help us get there. We can begin to pray for the Lord to give us opportunities to exercise faith, and He will answer. We can have a faithful expectation that He will honor our efforts to become as He has designed us to be.
We can take comfort in the fact that because the Lord wants us to be ever-growing in our faith, He will help us get there. We can begin to pray for the Lord to give us opportunities to exercise faith, and He will answer. We can have a faithful expectation that He will honor our efforts to become as He has designed us to be.
Today's Prayer
Dear Lord, I thank you so much for the faith that you have given me. I want to grow my faith, exercising it on new levels and growing deeper in my relationship with you. Give me opportunities to put on a new level of faith today. In Jesus' name, amen.
If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.
-C.S. Lewis
God will not look you over for medals, degrees or diplomas but for scars.
-Elbert Hubbard
The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us.
-C.S. Lewis
If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.
-Dorothy Parker
Yesterday's Devotional
January 17, 2025
Yesterday's Bible Verse
Ephesians 2:12
That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world. <br><br>
Yesterday's Bible Study
In this verse, even though Paul is referring to the Gentiles, we see a picture of ourselves before we knew the Lord. We were aliens from the Kingdom of God and strangers to His promises. We had no hope beyond that which we found in ourselves, and there wasn't much hope there!
Think about your life before you came to know Jesus. What were you like? What sins did you frequently fall into? You were living without the hope that Jesus offers each of us, but today you live a different story. Think about the ways that knowing Jesus has changed your life. He offers us so much—confidence in Him, not being afraid, peace in all moments, and assurance of eternity with Him.
In our natural, fallen state, we could never have had a relationship with the Lord. Our unholiness made it impossible for us to approach the Lord, but we could never make ourselves holy or cleanse ourselves of our own sins. Jesus' death was the perfect sacrifice that paid for our sin in full. By living a life that no one else could, He made it possible for us to live the lives that He had for us.
Think about your life before you came to know Jesus. What were you like? What sins did you frequently fall into? You were living without the hope that Jesus offers each of us, but today you live a different story. Think about the ways that knowing Jesus has changed your life. He offers us so much—confidence in Him, not being afraid, peace in all moments, and assurance of eternity with Him.
In our natural, fallen state, we could never have had a relationship with the Lord. Our unholiness made it impossible for us to approach the Lord, but we could never make ourselves holy or cleanse ourselves of our own sins. Jesus' death was the perfect sacrifice that paid for our sin in full. By living a life that no one else could, He made it possible for us to live the lives that He had for us.
Jesus' death was costly. We know from Luke that He sweat blood and asked God to take the cup away from Him. In the end, though, Jesus went to the cross willingly. He was abandoned and alone—even God the Father forsook Him—and subject to one of the most painful types of execution ever invented.
But Jesus did it because He loved us. He did it because He did not want us to be hopeless strangers because He wanted us to be surrounded by His love and mercy. Today, the best response to Jesus' death is not mourning, but rather, rejoicing in His resurrection three days later and the transformation that He has brought into our lives.
But Jesus did it because He loved us. He did it because He did not want us to be hopeless strangers because He wanted us to be surrounded by His love and mercy. Today, the best response to Jesus' death is not mourning, but rather, rejoicing in His resurrection three days later and the transformation that He has brought into our lives.
Yesterday's Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for transforming my life through the Gospel. Thank you for reaching down into the depth of my being and making me see your love for me. Thank you for not letting me remain an alien, but instead making me into someone who gets to walk in sweet fellowship with you. In Jesus' name, amen.