Daily Devotions

Tuesday, April 1

Covenant Confirmed

Exodus 24:9-11 - "Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank."

Moses threw the blood of the covenant sacrifice upon the altar and the people. Similar to the angel that had passed over every house marked with blood, so the Lord did not lay His hand on the elders.  Because the Lord sanctified them by the blood, they ate and drank in the peace of this covenant as they beheld God.

We could not stand before the Lord without being covered by the blood of Christ.  Yet even today He gives us His blood in the Lord's Supper.  Christ's sacrifice on the cross is the blood that cleanses us eternally as saints who "have washed their robes an made them white in the blood of the Lamb" (Revelation 7:14).  AS people covered by the sacrifice of Christ by faith, behold, the Lord dos not lay His hand on us but feeds us with His very body and blood.  By faith in Christ, no matter how weak our faith may be, this meal heals, brings forgiveness, and strengthens faith.  On the Last Day, we will eat and drink together in God's presence at the great wedding feast of the Lamb in His kingdom (Revelation 19:9-10 - "Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
    the Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
    and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
    and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
    with fine linen, bright and pure”—

for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.")

Dear heavenly Father, thank You for covering me in the blood

of Christ so that I may eat and drink in the presence of Your

altar. In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Wednesday, April 2

The Lord's Plans and Human Hands

Exodus 25:8 - "And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst."

The Lord's strong hand has led His people out of Egypt, given them His Commandments, and established His covenant with them.  Now the Lord lays out the blueprints for the ark of the covenant, furniture, tabernacle, altars, and court.  He lays out the materials and designs exactly to His specifications for a place that is befitting of His presence.  God does not need human hands to make a tabernacle for His dwelling.  However, He graciously condescends to dwell among Israel.  The Lord is thus instructing His own people how to use their hand and resources for His service, while it is His presence alone that brings life to this place.

The greatest fulfillment of the Lord's presence comes to us in Christ.  God is present in an intimate and special way, unlike anything else in all of history.  Both God and man, Jesus saves us from our sinful conedition.  He does not need the work of hour hands to be present among us and in the world.  But He still comes to us for our benefit in Word and Sacrament.  Furthermore, Jesus dwells in our hearts today by faith in His Words (Ephesians 3:17 - "so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love,"). He makes our hearts the abode of His presence and uses our hands for the sake of serving our neighbors in this life.

Dear Jesus, thank you for being present among us in Word

and Sacrament.  Use our hands for Your service in the world,

and use our mouths to proclaim Your Gospel.  Amen.

Thursday, April 3

Woven Priestly Garments

Exodus 28:2-3 - "And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty.  You shall speak to all the skillful, whom I have filled with a spirit of skill, that they make Aaron's garments to consecrate him for My priesthood."

Those garments "for glory and for beauty," made by skilled hands, were to cover the Lord's priesthood in the presence of the Lord with the symbols for the whole people Israel.  The coverings were both for the priests' intercession on behalf of the people and for their protection before the holiness of the Lord.  These consecrated garments were a constant reminder that this was the Lord's priesthood and that it was the Lorde who made them holy.

This covering of the Old Testament priesthood foreshadowed the priesthood of Christ.  Christ has given Himself as the perfect sacrifice for our sins through His blood shed on the cross.  He has thus removed our need for the temporal priesthood of the Old Testament.  In Holy Baptism, we are clothed with Christ and His righteousness.  We can go before our Father in heaven with confidence because we are covered by Christ (Hebrews 4:16 - "Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.").

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for clothing me in Christ.

Help me to let my requests be made known because

of Him.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Friday, April 4

Consecrated Priests

Exodus 29:43-46 - "There I will meet with the people of Israel, and it shall be sanctified by my glory. I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar. Aaron also and his sons I will consecrate to serve me as priests. I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God."

The Lord established the tabernacle and priesthood as a way or mediating His holiness so that He might dwell among His people.  The Lord instructed Moses that before the priests could utilize their hands for work within the sanctuary of the Lord, sacrifices needed to be made.  But sacrifices did not stop at ordination.  Continual sacrifices and rituals before the Lord were necessary for the service of the tabernacle to be acceptable in the sight of the Lord.

In order to stand before the Lord, we need someone to intercede for us.  The Old Testament priesthood, however, was only a shadow of Christ's priesthood.  Christ did not need to make sacrifices for Himself (Hebrews 5:1-10 - "For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people. And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him,

“You are my Son,
    today I have begotten you”;

as he says also in another place,

“You are a priest forever,
    after the order of Melchizedek.”

In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.").

His sacrifice was for us.  Christ comes from the eternal order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 5:6; 7:1-3, 15-22 - "as he says also in another place, “You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.”; - For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,  and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace.  He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever. -  This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. For it is witnessed of him,

“You are a priest forever,
    after the order of Melchizedek.”

For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God. And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him:

“The Lord has sworn
    and will not change his mind,
‘You are a priest forever.’”

This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant.)

He is both the priest and the eternal sacrifice that is once for all time. (Hebrews 9:11-15, 24-28; 10:12-14 - But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.  For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.  Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.  But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.)  Christ she His blood upon the cross as the perfect sacrifice for the whole world's sins.  He alone is our intercessor.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for Jesus, our great

High Priest, whose sacrifice has made us acceptable

in Your sight.  In His name.  Amen

Saturday, April 5

The Hands of the Artists

Exodus 31:1-5 - The Lord said to Moses, “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft.

All of the plans for the tabernacle, its furniture, and the priestly garments have been laid out as the Lord had commanded.  Now He declares how He will bring them into fruition.  He blessed some men with the know-how abilities, and skills to fashion items according to His plans for the tabernacle, in which He would be present with His people.

While the nature of Bezabel and Oholiab's artistic vocations were unique to them alone, the Lord still does bless some men and women with the knowledge, abilities, and skills to work with His creation in beautiful ways.  Our sin easily corrupts all of God's gifts, all that was meant to be good, turning each in on itself.  Our ugly sin can even masquerade as a "beauty."  Yet Christ took our sin upon Himself on the cross in order to pour our His beautiful love, which redeems us.  As such, the Lord can and still does use artists and craftsmen to testify to our God, who creates, redeems, and sanctifies.  Moreover, art within the sanctuary can serve as continual reminders and instruction that derive from and point back to God's Word.  Bless be our beautiful Lord and Savior, Jesus.

Dear Jesus, thank you for taking our ugly sin upon the cross 

in order to pour out Your beautiful saving love for us.  Amen.

Saturday, November 30

The Unchanging Christ: The Same Yesterday

The Unchanging Christ: The Same Yesterday

All of my life I have heard the plea for a relevant “new Christ for a new age.”

The truth is Jesus Christ is God’s final word to men in all ages. He is relevant for every age. He is “the same yesterday, today and forever” (Heb. 13:8).

The same Jesus sits today “on the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Heb. 1:3). He is the same person as He was when here on the earth.

When we read the words, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday” we are carried back to the long ages before He became flesh. I can point to a date, time, and place when I was born. However, Jesus did not begin to live when He was born in the flesh of the virgin Mary in Bethlehem. He simply changed His robes.

The apostle Paul tells us Jesus was in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, divested Himself of His garments of glory that had been His from all eternity and clothed Himself in the garments of a common household slave in the flesh and was obedient unto death. He was God-man. He was fully God and fully human (Phil. 2:5-8).

The absolutely essential fact is He was the same in past eternity; He changes not.

I search for an absolute in an age of change; He changes not, and I therefore have security.

He came from the Father and He returned to the Father. He dwelt in the ageless past in the bosom of His eternal Father. The apostle John tells us, “in the beginning was the Word.” When everything else had a beginning He already existed and He had no beginning. His beginning had no beginning. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men” (John 1:1-4).

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday . . .” His eternal existence is declared in these words, “in the beginning was the Word.” He is no vacillating whim of the age. “The Word was with God,” a distinct personality of the true and perfect deity because “the Word was God.” His personal relationship with the Father is unchangeable. He “was in the beginning with God,” and because of His resurrection and ascension, He still is in the presence of the Father in a perfect relationship.

Moreover, His understanding of man never needs to change. No one knows me like the one who made me. “All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.” “In Him is life.”

Where would you turn for a relevant Christ that is not found in the historic Christ? Would you, like the modern self-made cults, turn to your own making, or to some new age “enlightenment”?

God in Christ has already become one of us in order to demonstrate His love for us, and to show us what God is really like. God came and revealed Himself to sinful and disobedient rebellious men.

I don’t need a greater “light.” I only need to respond to the One true and all supreme Lord of all creation. Why should I turn to some lesser “light”? All other spiritual lights are only creepy shadows of the one who masquerades as “the angel of light,” Satan himself.

We don’t have to look afar to discover what evil lurks within the heart of man. God has fully revealed Himself (Heb. 1:1-3), and man in his stubborn rebellion cries for something greater and better like selfish, pampered, narcissistic children whining for something new.

God has spoken. He has not changed and He will not. He is the same as He was yesterday, and I find stability for my soul and eternal peace with God. Because He is the same I have eternal security of a right relationship with Him, not of my self-making, or choosing, but in His all-sufficient wisdom and grace.

Because He is the same yesterday, I know that what He has said will still remain true for you and me today. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

That great truth will not change, because our Savior changes not. His word and eternal promises remain the same throughout all eternity. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” Thank God.