Month: January 2020

[S]ince you are his child, God has made you also an heir.
Galatians 4:7

An Amazing Inheritance

Daily Devotion – January 3, 2020

Devotion based on Galatians 4:7

See series: Devotions

I was adopted into my family. My brother was born naturally into it. I am the executor of my parents’ estate, so I have seen their will. It’s split evenly between the children. I am receiving the same inheritance that my natural-born brother is receiving. Isn’t that remarkable?

As remarkable as my inheritance from my parents is, the inheritance Christians receive is far more remarkable. The Bible says that although Jesus is God’s natural born Son while Christians are adopted sons and daughters, they still receive a wonderful inheritance.

What will that inheritance include? It starts with the forgiveness of our sins. This was purchased not with gold or silver, but with the holy, precious blood of Jesus in his innocent suffering and death. Everyone connected to Jesus by faith receives that forgiveness, more precious than any earthly inheritance.

Our spiritual inheritance continues with resurrection from the dead. Our actual souls and our actual bodies, separated at death, will come together again. The disciples saw it happen with Jesus, and they realized that it would also happen to them. Our bodies will be glorified, ageless, unable to die. It’s an amazing inheritance.

And that inheritance continues with heaven. That’s where the Son of God lives, and that’s where we will live eternally with him. We can look forward to an eternal existence without sorrow or pain, in the company of all those have been adopted into God’s family. Jesus, our brother, is preparing our place for us right now.

Prayer:
Lord God, thank you for making me your child. I delight in your inheritance, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

“Abba, Father.”
Galatians 4:6

Child of God

Daily Devotion – January 2, 2020

Devotion based on Galatians 4:6

See series: Devotions

It’s amazing how quickly and deeply children become attached to their parents. Mothers and fathers carry out their roles, and children learn to depend on them for nourishment, comfort, support, and boundaries. When children have stable parents, emotional bonds to one another last for a lifetime.

God, our heavenly Father, creates similar emotional bonds in us when he feeds us with his Holy Word and Holy Supper. He comforts us with his promises, and those promises support us when we are weak. He sets boundaries for us, showing us the blessings of keeping his laws, and the curses for breaking them.

Although we do not see him, God sends his Spirit into our hearts, and the emotional bonds to God that the Spirit creates in us last a lifetime.

It’s also amazing how children learn language from their parents. Parents speak, and children imitate the sounds. If bilingual parents speak both languages, their children grow up bilingual. You can often hear the speech patterns of parents in children’s speech even after the children move away.

The Holy Spirit teaches us the speech patterns of God, our Heavenly Father. We learn to speak about him and to him in an endearing way. The same way that English-speaking babies say “Dada,” and Galatian babies said “Abba,” we call God our Father in heaven. With these words, God tenderly invites us to believe that he is our true Father and that we are his true children so that we pray to him as boldly and confidently as dear children ask their dear father.

Prayer:
Dear Father in heaven, thank you for making me your child through faith in Christ Jesus. Keep me close to you all of my life until I join you in eternal life. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.

God sent his Son . . . that we might receive adoption to sonship.
Galatians 4:4,5

Making It Possible

Daily Devotion – January 1, 2020

Devotion based on Galatians 4:4,5

See series: Devotions

It’s a new year! No matter what happened in the previous year, this new year opens with all kinds of opportunities. People make New Year’s resolutions because it’s a good time for starting over. It feels like anything is possible, right?

And it’s not just a new year that can make us feel excited. New shoes make kids feel like they can run faster and jump higher. A new car has a special feel and smell. New books and movies intrigue us no matter our age.

If a new year or new things are exciting, imagine what it would be like to join a new family. That’s what anyone who has been adopted has experienced. They will tell you that joining a new family by adoption is an adventure. Most children adopted into a family feel like they have been given a new lease on life. A former family had disintegrated, but this new family offers opportunities and possibilities. Being adopted into a family offers security and love.

But no family offers more security and more love than God’s family. Sadly, none of us has the authority or ability to join God’s family. Thankfully, God does have the authority and ability to adopt us into his family. This is why he sent his Son, Jesus, into the world, to make all of the arrangements necessary for us to be adopted into his family. Jesus earned forgiveness for us, declaring himself to be our brother. He did everything to make it possible for us to be adopted into the family of God.

When someone is baptized, and the name of the only true God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—is pronounced over them, God is writing that name on them and claiming them as his own. They get his family name, and God promises that all of the privileges of being a family member come along with faith in Jesus.

And when you are in God’s family, all kinds of wonderful things are possible.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank you for loving me enough to send Jesus to do everything necessary for me to be adopted into your family. Amen.

Daily Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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.