Month: January 2025

So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David.
1 Samuel 16:13

You Are Anointed

Daily Devotion – January 14, 2025

Devotion based on 1 Samuel 16:13


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When was the last time you anointed something? Do you get up in the morning and say, “I shall now anoint this pan with oil before I scramble my eggs for breakfast”? Or do you go to the beach and say, “Before sitting in the sun, I shall anoint my skin with SPF 50 sunscreen”? We don’t talk about anointing things or people. It’s not a thing we do. Anointing sounds like something reserved for kings and Old Testament prophets, but nothing to do with you or me.

Anointing is kind of a big concept in the Bible, though. It comes up frequently. The name “Christ” even means “The Anointed One.” And really, it’s because of Christ, that “Anointed One,” that you also get tied into an anointing of your own. That’s essentially what your baptism is—an anointing by the Holy Spirit.

At your baptism, the Spirit of the Lord rushes on you with power from that day forward, echoing what happened to David when he was anointed by Samuel. At your baptism, the Holy Spirit stirs and strengthens his gift of faith in your heart. At your baptism, you’re anointed with the cleansing forgiveness of sins. At your baptism, you’re anointed into Christ and his redeeming work on your behalf. At your baptism, you’re anointed into office—the office of the priesthood of all believers, as you now take up the role of being a messenger of good news for broken sinners.

That’s the anointing we still take part in today. At your baptism, you’re anointed—not just with water but with the Holy Spirit. God knew we humans are creatures who rely on our senses, and so he connects his grace, power, and blessing to something we can see—visible and concrete: the anointing waters of baptism.

Prayer:
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing Spirit to sustain me. Amen. (Psalm 51:10-12)

Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, “The Lord has not chosen these.” So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?” “There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.”. . . He sent for him and had him brought in. [David] was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”
1 Samuel 16:10-12

Not an Afterthought

Daily Devotion – January 13, 2025

Devotion based on 1 Samuel 16:10-12


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The prophet Samuel had come to Bethlehem so that God could choose the next king of Israel. The king would be one of the sons of Jesse. So, Jesse had seven of his sons pass in front of Samuel. Right away, Samuel noticed Eliab, who likely had a tall, kingly stature. Samuel thought to himself, “Surely this man will be the one God chooses.” But God wasn’t choosing Eliab, Abinadab, Shammah, or any of the other four sons Jesse had with him that day.

Samuel said, “Are all your sons here?” Jesse replied, “Well, there’s still the youngest.” Jesse didn’t even think it was worth bringing his youngest son, David, in from the field for the prophet’s visit. He was an afterthought. But David was not an afterthought to God. He was the next king of Israel.

God doesn’t always operate the way we think he would. He doesn’t choose or prefer only those who have high earthly standing. He cherishes the lowly, the afflicted, the humble. The afterthoughts of the world are not afterthoughts to God.

No matter who you were or where you stood in the pecking order of life, at your baptism, God lifted you up as his own. He claimed you as his child. Even if you feel like an afterthought to the world, you are God’s treasured possession and an heir of his kingdom. You’re never an afterthought for God!

Prayer:
Gracious Lord, thank you for lifting me up. Thank you for never treating me like an afterthought. Thank you for choosing me to be your own and live under you in your kingdom. Amen.

And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
Luke 3:22

My Son!

Daily Devotion – January 12, 2025

Devotion based on Luke 3:22


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John’s parents were bursting with pride. Their son had finally obtained his high school diploma. Although this may not seem like an extraordinary accomplishment, for John, it was the triumph of a lifetime.

He was never a model student. As a matter of fact, he despised school. Before he completed three years of high school, he dropped out. This led to a series of failures. Dead-end jobs, battles with alcohol and drugs, even a little time on the streets—these were all part of his resume.

John’s parents were cautious when he showed up on their doorstep and announced he was going back to school. Still, they supported him. In the end, he gave them something to be proud of. He not only graduated with honors, but he also kept his promise to change his life.

God the Father announced his pleasure with his Son. But this was no ordinary parent’s proud proclamation. This was the Almighty God acknowledging the perfect obedience of his Son.

Jesus came at his Father’s command to live the life we could never live. He was perfect. No sin, charge, or blame could ever be brought against him. At the Jordan River, God the Father put his stamp of approval on everything Jesus had done and would continue to do.

Jesus came to be our substitute to secure what we could never achieve—God’s pleasure. Because of Jesus’ sinless life and the gift of faith, which takes his life and makes it ours, God now declares us sinless and announces his love for us. God’s pleasure in Jesus is our guarantee of God’s pleasure in us. Through Jesus, God says to you and me, “You are my child whom I love.” Through Jesus, God declares, “With you I am well-pleased.”

Prayer:
O precious Savior, words can never express the deep debt of gratitude I owe you. You came to live for me, to die for me, and to secure for me God’s love and good pleasure. Keep me in your love, so that I can look forward to the home you have prepared for me in heaven. Amen

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said . . . “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.”
Genesis 17:1,4,5

An Everlasting Covenant

Daily Devotion – January 11, 2025

Devotion based on Genesis 17:1,4,5


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In the past, the Lord made covenants with his people. When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord renewed that covenant he made a quarter century before. Abram and his wife would have a son, even though his wife was barren, and he was ninety-nine. Not only would they have a child, but many nations would come from him. Kings would also be among his descendants.

The Lord then assured Abram that this covenant would take place. Only instead of signing his name to it, he changed Abram’s name as an assurance that what was promised would happen. So, the Lord changed his name from Abram, which means ‘exalted father,’ to Abraham, which means ‘father of many nations.’ What a testimony this name change would be to everyone Abraham met.

Many different nations did come from Abraham. But it wasn’t until almost 2,000 years after God made this covenant with Abraham that the Lord completed it. One of Abraham’s many descendants was born. He was a king named Jesus. Jesus came to fight the battle against evil and win the victory over death. He brought peace between God and people through the forgiveness of sins, and he establishes his kingdom in the hearts of people as he turns them to faith in him as their Savior.

Through Jesus, we also become descendants of Abraham, spiritual children who trust in God by faith, just as Abraham lived by faith. As descendants of Abraham, we share in the everlasting covenant the Lord made that he is our God. What a comfort it is to know that the God who fulfilled his covenant with Abraham by making him the father of many nations is the same God who is our God through the forgiveness of sins given through Jesus!

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I praise and thank you for fulfilling your covenant with Abraham by sending Jesus to be my Savior and King. Give me the peaceful assurance that he rules in my heart by faith to guard and guide me as one of your own dear children. Amen.

For this is what the Lord has commanded us: “‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”
Acts 13:47

A Gift To Share With All

Daily Devotion – January 10, 2025

Devotion based on Acts 13:47


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A friend has Christmas gifts for your whole family, but they won’t be there to deliver them, so they put the gifts into a box and ask you to give them to your family.

What would you do? You would share those gifts with the people for whom they are intended, right? They are counting on you to deliver the gifts.

The gift of God has come into the world in the person of Jesus Christ. The words of our Bible verse for today were first spoken about him: “I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.” God gave us Jesus to be a light for all people living in the darkness of sin. God gave us Jesus to bring salvation—rescue from death and eternal punishment—to the ends of the earth. God sent his Son to be a gift for all people.

But how do they receive that gift, especially now that Jesus has risen from the dead and ascended into heaven? Early Christian missionaries, Paul and Barnabas, recognized that God spoke these words to them. They were not the light themselves. They could not save anyone from death and hell. But God had a mission for them—to shine the light of Jesus for all to see, to hand out the gift of salvation to the whole world.

Think about the person who first told you about who Jesus really was. Think about all the people who have given you the gift of helping you see more clearly how Jesus saved you and forgives all your sins. Jesus is God’s gift for all the world, and those people made sure to deliver the gift specifically to you. Like them, you now get to give others the greatest gift of all—life and hope through Jesus their Savior. With whom will you share that gift today?

Prayer:
Jesus, use me to share you with others as the greatest gift of all. Amen.

For this is what the Lord has commanded us: “‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”
Acts 13:47

Light for All

Daily Devotion – January 9, 2025

Devotion based on Acts 13:47


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Are your Christmas lights still up? Many turn them off in the few days after Christmas. For others, their tradition is to leave them up until the New Year begins or until the Festival of Epiphany. But now we are past New Year’s and the Festival of Epiphany. If I drove around my community, I’m guessing I’d find a few homes still lit up, but not many.

On Christmas night, the brilliant light of the glory of the Lord appeared over Bethlehem, as angels announced the birth of the Savior to lowly shepherds. But only a few saw the light that night, and it was gone almost as quickly as it appeared.

Later, the Magi followed a star in the sky to find the child and worship him. But they may have been the only ones who noticed that unique messenger star that served as their GPS.

But the light that appeared to Jewish shepherds and the light that led non-Jewish or Gentile Magi to Jesus illustrates a truth predicted by prophets centuries earlier. The Messiah—the Savior the Lord promised to send—would be a light for all people.

Outdoor Christmas lights may be especially enjoyed because they light up homes and streets when the days are short and the nights are long in the northern hemisphere.

Without the Messiah, we live in spiritual darkness. We know there is a God out there, but we can’t see him on our own. And so, we foolishly make up our own paths out of the darkness. Prideful paths that are paved with our own best efforts and that define right and wrong by how it feels. Those dark ways of our own making will only lead to one deadly dead-end after another.

But Jesus came into the world to be light. The light that reveals the perfection God requires of us. But, also, the light that lives out that perfection in our place and destroys sin’s darkness as it does. Jesus is the light we need because he is the path out of this world’s darkness into heaven’s eternal light that will never go out.

Prayer:
Jesus, be the light in my heart every day. Amen.

On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
Matthew 2:11

A Gift That Inspires Our Gifts

Daily Devotion – January 8, 2025

Devotion based on Matthew 2:11


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Have you ever received one of those gifts? The kind of gift that made you say, “Wow, you shouldn’t have.” (And not the way you say it to the relative who gave you that sweater that you wouldn’t be caught dead in.)

Have you ever received one of those gifts that was so generous that you truly didn’t expect it and had no idea how to respond? If selfish thoughts don’t take over first, don’t such gifts inspire you to look for ways to give something back to the person who gave it to you or to pay their generosity forward to others?

We know little about the men who came to Bethlehem looking for the infant Jesus. We don’t even know how many there were. But we do know this: their gifts were generous gifts fit for a king. Gold is a valuable gift in every era. Frankincense was burned in ritual worship and may have had medicinal uses as well. Myrrh was used to anoint kings and priests or wrapped with bodies in ancient burial customs.

Their gifts showed that they knew that Jesus was no ordinary baby. These men traveled great distances and brought generous gifts. Why? Because they recognized that the baby was God’s gift to them—a gift more precious and valuable than any other gift ever given or received.

Jesus was born to keep ancient promises and bring eternal treasures. He came to bring the abundant love and mercy of God as he conquered spiritual foes and set sinners free from the torture of hell. He came to earth to open heaven, an eternal paradise where pain, sorrow, and death are gone forever.

Jesus is God’s gift to you and me, too. How will we respond to this generous gift? We live our lives to serve him. We joyfully and generously serve those God brings into our lives. We give to support churches that share the gift of Jesus with our communities and the world. We give ourselves as gifts to him.

Prayer:
Jesus, you are the greatest gift. Accept my life as my gift of thanks to you. Amen.

May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him. For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help.
Psalm 72:11,12

One Size Fits All

Daily Devotion – January 7, 2025

Devotion based on Psalm 72:11,12


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Little in this world is universal. People speak different languages. They have different abilities and come in different shapes and sizes. One-size-fits-all clothes are too big for some and too small for others. Laws meant for all often have loopholes and exceptions. Political policies that help the poor may hurt the rich and vice versa.

Imagine a leader lauded by kings and loved by peasants. Picture a king who truly cares for the greatest and the least, for those who have it all and those who have nothing. A king so wise that he understands what every single person needs. A king that is so powerful that he can provide exactly what everyone needs.

Who wouldn’t choose such a candidate? But you won’t find his name on any ballot. You won’t see him signing bills in the White House or your local city hall.

The Bible describes a King that all kings bow down to and all nations serve. Such a thought would horrify us if he were merely a human king. Rulers with far less influence have been corrupted by such power.

But this is not just any king. He’s not just a king that rich kings bow down to because he acts in their best interests. He’s a king who “delivers the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help.”

Jesus is that king. As the Son of God, he rules over all kings and nations with unmatched wisdom and limitless power. But when he came as a human being, he experienced what it was like to be needy and afflicted with no one to help. And he rules to help people in their most desperate time of need.

That means no matter who you are, he rules for you. He rules to rescue you from your desperate need for mercy and hope. He fights to free you from the oppression and affliction of death itself. He listens to your cries and reigns to bring you safely to a perfect, peaceful kingdom that never ends. A one-size-fits-all-perfectly King.

Prayer:
Jesus, my perfect King, hear my cries and help me trust and worship you in every time of need. Amen.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
Matthew 2:1,2

A King for All

Daily Devotion – January 6, 2025

Devotion based on Matthew 2:1,2


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Imagine the conversation. It may be happening through an interpreter. These men are from out of town. They probably don’t speak Aramaic like most of the people in Jerusalem.
“Where is he?”
“Where is who?”
“The King of the Jews.”
“Oh, you mean Herod? He lives in that palace over there.”
“No, not Herod. The new king. We are here to worship the one who was born king of the Jews.”

At this point, maybe you wonder if there’s something lost in translation. It is not entirely unheard of for people to worship kings. Some kings even demand it. But not usually the Jewish kings. And, even if they did, why would foreigners want to worship them?

But the king they are looking for isn’t just the King of the Jews. He was born to be their king, too. They heard prophecies predicting his coming. And now he has come. A careful search of those prophecies is made. Maybe it is even their idea.

And the scholars find a prophecy about a king who would come from Bethlehem. The men from out-of-town hurry to Bethlehem and worship him whose name is Jesus.

Today some people might happily look for a new king or ruler to guide their nation. Others are perfectly happy with the one they have. But these men come looking for a different kind of king—a heavenly King who rules over an eternal kingdom. This king is not just for them but for all. He’s your king, too—God’s gift for all people.

Jesus was born to rule with perfect justice, to bring true freedom from guilt, shame, and even death. He came with perfect love for all—mighty and lowly, rich and poor, young and old, Jew and Gentile. He came for Magi from the east and for Jewish locals. He came for you to be your powerful, loving, and merciful King.

Prayer:
Jesus, the King that I need and long for, move me and all people to find you and worship you in joy! Amen.