Category: Daily Prayer

Our scripture this morning is Hebrews 5:7-10.

During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

Jesus the Son had a special relationship with God the Father but He was never “the boss’s son” in how He spoke or acted with us. He never used His connection for Himself, only for us! Instead “He became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.”

Because He was fully obedient to God, Jesus became our high priest “in the order of Melchizedek”, whom we meet in Genesis 14:18 and hear mentioned again in Psalm 110:4 – “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.” This character is a “type” of Christ, meaning an example or pointer to Jesus.

God validated Christ’s qualification as our high priest and intercessor through the obedience He showed while He was here. No one stands between us and God (except us!), we can come to Him ourselves without any other human intervention. We can all be saved through Christ’s sacrifice for us and our acceptance of Him as our Savior.

Gracious God, we are sorry for the times we have gone our own way instead of following Your loving guidance. Forgive us and bless us to be bearers of the Good News to the world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Matthew 20:25-28.

Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles Lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Jesus warns that power and control are not what the children of God should seek. Earlier in this chapter the mother of James and John asks that her sons be seated at Jesus’ right and left hands. He tells her “to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father” (Matthew 20:23). We don’t get to determine our place in the kingdom, only God does.

In the kingdom of God the organizational chart is pretty flat: God -> everyone else. Jesus shows that in His humanness He is not above serving by washing the feet of His disciples (John 13:4). Serving one another is a hallmark of our faith and we must follow the example Jesus has given us.

Someone once suggested that if the cross were not the symbol of our faith, the basin and towel would be a suitable replacement, showing the world why we are here. Jesus told us “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. We are to follow in faith, content with our position to help wash the world.

Loving Lord, help us to see that by serving the world, we serve You. Bless us to be energetic servants, loving Your children because You loved us first. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Psalms 143:8-10.

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. Rescue me from my enemies, Lord, for I hide myself in you. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

Every day we have a chance to begin again. God is there waiting for us, no matter what situation we face. Even if we have totally messed up the day before, God is there in the new day to welcome us to a new opportunity.

We can’t save ourselves, but we can as the psalmist says, entrust our lives to God. God is the very source of our being and without Him we are literally nothing. Asking for His guidance strengthens our relationship with Him and our brothers and sisters.

This passage ends with a request that “Your good spirit lead me on level ground.” When we follow the path intended for us, it may not always be easy, but because we place our trust in God, we know it is the right path. Teach us to do Your will, Lord!

Heavenly Father, we often choose our own ways instead of Yours. Forgive us, help us to give up our selfish sin, and send us to share Your love with everyone. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Matthew 6:2-4.

So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Jesus teaches us about giving and what we expect in return, perhaps not repayment but at least recognition. He tells us this is a human failing, that we should “not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.” Being applauded or even thanked is not part of the equation, only sharing what God has given us is important.

God gave us all of creation and told us to manage it for Him. This includes caring for those who for whatever reason don’t have enough. Giving has been part of His plan for us all along. Proverbs 11:25 tells us ”A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.“ 

Because we have free will, God guides us but doesn’t force us in how we use our gifts. We must give in the same way. Our giving is between us and God, and what the receiver does with that gift is between them and God. God gave us everything in love and we are expected to give to others out of our love for Him.

Gracious God, You created us in Your own image that we might love each other as You first loved us. Bless us to be generous givers, seeking only good for those in need and not the acclaim of the world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is John 14:6-7.

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you had really known me, you would know who my Father is. From now on, you do know him and have seen him!”

In the Gospel of John Jesus makes seven “I am” statements to help us understand who He is and what He came to do.  The first five are the bread of life (6:35), the light of the world (8:12), the door (10:7), the good shepherd (10:11, 14), and the true vine (15:1). All of these teach us about our relationship with Him.

The other two are are perhaps more difficult for us to process. Jesus says in John 11:25 “I am the resurrection and the life”, and in today’s passage “I am the way and the truth and the life”. While His other “I am” statements speak to our needs and how He fulfills them, these speak directly to eternal life and the fact that without Jesus, we can’t get there.

While all of scripture is important to us, Jesus makes a statement here that we simply can’t ignore: “No one comes to the Father except through me.” God has given us the gift of His son and His sacrifice. Only through repentance of our sin and acceptance of our Savior can we be redeemed.

Loving Lord, when we chose our own way instead of obeying You, sin came into the world. You sent Your son to destroy that evil and made a way for us to return to You. Bless us to be Your rescued children and go in Your name that all may know You. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Romans 1:16-17.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

Paul writes to Jews and Gentiles in Rome with the hope they will work together for the Gospel, which is given for everyone. Paul was known as “the apostle to the Gentiles” for the missionary work he did in predominately non-Jewish areas. In this passage he teaches that salvation only comes through our belief in Jesus Christ and not through anything we can do ourselves.

He describes this as “a righteousness that is by faith from first to last.” Only our acceptance of God’s gift of His son can reconcile us to Him, and only Jesus can wash us clean of our sin. Through sharing the Good News, all may come to faith and receive this gift.

He quotes an Old Testament prophet who wrote “Behold, as for the proud one, his soul is not right within him; but the righteous will live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4). The old hymn says “Faith of our fathers, holy faith! We shall be true to thee til death!” By living in faith here, we can be assured of God’s mercy, being ready when Christ returns.

Loving Lord, when we fell into sin You made a way for us to be redeemed through Christ’s sacrifice. Help us to live in true faith and tell the world of Your coming kingdom. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Mark 16:14-16.

Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen. He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”

The Great Commission contained in the Gospel of Mark appears in a section known as the longer ending, which was added later. There are many debates about this historically, too many to cover here. However, the material in these verses agrees with what has been recorded elsewhere and most importantly, agrees with what Jesus said and did.

The Great Commission from Matthew (Matthew 28:16-20) is longer and a little more eloquent, but the message is the same – we are all called to share our faith with the world that they may believe and be saved. He has entrusted His ministry to us, using the gifts God has given us. Jesus showed us what a life in God can be like and now it is our turn to live and love as He did.

We have a responsibility as the disciples of today to continue to tell His story to everyone and care for each other according to God’s plan. Our Father needs no help, but He has called us to be part of what He is doing in creation from the very beginning. He sent His son to save us and we are to carry the Good News everywhere.

Loving Lord, we are often led astray by the lies of the world, but Your word is the eternal truth. Help us to see Your face in all we meet and to be Your hands to those who need You. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Ephesians 2:8-10.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Paul writes that we are “saved by grace through faith”. God loves us and is willing to forgive us when we recognize our sin, give it up to Him and do the work He has for us. The FaithLife Study Bible puts it this way: “While the Bible’s theme of “faith” can be understood in a variety of ways, it can be summarized as active trust and belief displayed through obedience.”

What we must remember is that this is not of our doing – no human thought, word or action can save us. We get it backwards when we think we can earn our way into eternity. We receive God’s gift of grace by faith, good works are our response to being saved, our thankful reaction to God’s eternal love for us.

God created us for a purpose and gave us the gifts we need to accomplish His plan. Paul reminds us we are “God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” God made us in His image to love Him and one another, and to prepare for the coming of His kingdom.

Gracious God, in Your mercy You sent Jesus to love and save and free us. Bless us to go in Your name that all the world may know Your love. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Psalms 145:17-19.

The Lord is righteous in all his ways and faithful in all he does. The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.

This morning I need to share about putting together today’s post. Psalms are always interesting but as I did my study I wanted to add the “God is love” verse as part of “faithful in all He does”, and had to look up the reference (1 John 4:16). Then, I also remembered I hadn’t done the reading from the plan my daughter and I are doing. Guess what – 1 John 4:16 for today!

A few minutes later as I was working on “all who call on Him in truth” and thinking “sincere faith”, my wife read me a quote from the Dan Brown book “The Lost Symbol”. It dealt with filling in the cracks and imperfections in a sculpture with wax and stone dust. If a sculpture was without this it was called in Latin “sine cera”, without wax, meaning no flaws were hidden. Now I’m sure not advocating we get our theology from works of fiction, but the point struck me.

God is always ready to help us, but we must be sincere in our desire to be connected with Him. As humans, we always want to cover our flaws, but God knows everything about us and loves us anyway! I think the Lord was trying to get my attention today. I hope He gets yours too.

Loving Lord, we are often distracted by the ways of the world, putting on a front when inside we know it’s not the truth. Help us to admit our failings, coming to You for forgiveness and reconciliation. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Joshua 1:8-9.

Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

The children of Israel are preparing to enter the Promised Land with a new leader. It was likely hard for them and especially hard for Joshua. However, God tells them (and us) “Be strong and courageous.” They were still to follow Him, no matter who was “in charge”.

Joshua had accompanied Moses before and heard God’s voice but now God was speaking directly to him. This is about accepting the call God places on our lives. Like Joshua, we are to spend regular daily time with God, following His guidance and going with confidence.

God gives Joshua and the people His assurance that “the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” As the Bible Knowledge Commentary puts it “God never walks out on His promises.” Jesus reminds us of this at the end of the Great Commission, saying ”And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). We have been commanded to go in His name, but we never go alone.

Heavenly Father, we are often fearful of what the future holds, but You have promised to always be there for us. Help us to trust in Your strength and go in faith. Amen.