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[Jonah] prayed to the LORD, “Isn’t this what I said, LORD, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”
Jonah 4:2-3

Too Much Grace

Jonah was a messenger God sent to Nineveh, a city known for its wickedness, cruelty, and immorality. Jonah’s message was, “God is going to destroy Nineveh because of your wickedness.”

Jonah was from Israel, a nation that witnessed that wickedness firsthand. You would think he would be eager to go and tell them that God was going to destroy them. But instead, he ran the other way.

After Jonah fled, was swallowed by a fish, and was spit out on the shore, he finally went where God told him to. And when he preached, something amazing happened. The people were sorry for what they did and prayed for God’s mercy.

When he saw this, God decided not to destroy them. Instead, he had mercy on them. And Jonah’s reaction? “It’s not fair. I knew you weren’t going to punish them. That’s just the kind of gracious, compassionate God you are. You show too much grace.”

Do we ever think like that? Wickedness spreads like an unstoppable virus. It infects our schools, our communities, even our families. We experience hatred and hurt from other people. And hatred grows in our hearts against them. We don’t want to forgive, and we don’t think God should either.

But if God’s grace had limits, if there are things God won’t or can’t forgive, will he forgive me for holding a grudge or harboring hatred in my heart? Will his grace reach the selfish corners of my heart that only God can see?

Praise God that his grace is for all! It is never too much. It is just what we need. Because of God’s grace, we are forgiven. That’s great news to hear and to share!

Prayer:

God, thank you for loving and forgiving me in your amazing grace. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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.

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Why do the nations say, “Where is their God?” Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him. But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands.
Psalm 115:2-4

He Does Whatever Pleases Him

“Where is your God?” Those who deny God’s existence may taunt Christians with that question. “If what you call sin is bad, why doesn’t God do something about it? If your God is real, why doesn’t he help you when you are hurting or in trouble?” Maybe we struggle with the same questions.

The writer of our Bible reading today asks an important question: “Why do the nations say, ‘Where is your God?’” Isn’t it because we think too highly of ourselves? We think we know better than God about how things should be. And so, we criticize God for failing to act or for acting in ways that don’t seem right.

How foolish and arrogant! Our God is not absent or powerless. He is not unjust or uncaring. He’s in heaven, far above everything else we might put our trust in. He wasn’t made by human hands or invented by human imagination. And he does whatever pleases him. He doesn’t need to answer to us.

The good news is that what pleases God is to have a relationship with the people he created. When that relationship is broken by our selfish disobedience, what pleases him is to restore that relationship by sending his Son to suffer in our place. What pleases him is to demonstrate amazing grace by showing mercy to every sinner for the sake of his Son. If God were limited in any way, if God operated according to what we think is right, we could only fear him. But instead, he is pleased to love, forgive, and restore. And nothing can stand in his way.

Prayer:

Gracious God, in all of life’s circumstances, I know that you will do what pleases you and bless me by your amazing grace. Help me to trust your loving care. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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.

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[Jesus said] “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
Matthew 20:16

God’s Unique Way

I thought for sure I would be first. But I ended up being last.

It happened some years ago at a wedding reception. I made a special effort to sit at a table very near the buffet line. I thought for sure my table would get to eat first after the bride and groom. In a cruel twist, our table ended up eating last. I wasn’t very happy.

Some people think that they will certainly be the first to enjoy heaven. They smugly say to themselves, “I’m a pretty good person. Sure, I’m not perfect. But at least I haven’t killed anyone or robbed a bank.”

Oh, what a big surprise awaits them. Those who boast in themselves or who refuse in stubborn arrogance to repent of their sins and cling to Jesus’ cross as their only real way will be last. They will be completely shut out of God’s heaven. They won’t be happy, but that’s God’s unique way.

Mindful of our utter sinfulness and the many sins that we have committed against a holy God, may we ever remain sorry for our wrongs and kneel humbly before him. May we daily confess, “Lord, I don’t ever deserve to enjoy the buffet line of your blessings and grace in heaven because I am the chief of sinners!” Let us remember and believe that through faith in Jesus, who lived perfectly, died innocently, and rose triumphantly, our sins are fully paid, and our guilt is forever removed. As sinners we are “last” in God’s eyes. But by the grace of God through Jesus Christ, we get to be “first” one day in heaven. Then we’ll be eternally happy, all because of God’s unique way!

Prayer:

Lord, thank you for your unique way! I admit that I am a terrible sinner which makes me “last” before you. But I believe that Jesus has died for all of my sins. I am forgiven, because you have told me so. By your great love for me in Jesus, I rejoice to know that I will be “first” one day in heaven. Amen.

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“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
Genesis 50:20

God Guides All Things for Good

A man named Joseph spoke the words in our Bible reading today. Many years earlier, his own brothers had plotted first to kill him, then instead had decided to sell him into slavery. Can you imagine how much that must have hurt?

Have other people hurt you? I know I have been hurt by other people. The truth is, every one of us has been hurt by someone. Hurt as badly as Joseph? Perhaps. Perhaps not.

Regardless, what was true for Joseph is also true for you and me. God has promised to rule all things for the good of his people. If you believe that Jesus is your Savior, then you’re one of God’s people, and therefore, God is ruling all things with your best interests in mind. And so even when another person intends to harm you, even when they sin against you horribly, God’s promise is that he will use it, somehow, someway, to bring blessing to you.

He did it with Joseph. After being sold into slavery in Egypt, God guided things so that Joseph ended up becoming the second most powerful person in the kingdom, and through Joseph, many lives were saved from starvation. He could see clearly how God had guided things for his good and for the good of other people.

Perhaps we will not be able to see it so clearly. That is okay. It’s not that we can SEE that God is guiding things that matter. What matters is that God has promised to do it. And God NEVER fails to keep a promise!

Prayer:

Almighty God, you have promised to guide all things for my good. Fulfill that promise! Assure me that, even when others sin against me that you will use it for my good and for the good of your people. Use that truth to heal me when I hurt and to enable me to forgive those who have sinned against me, even as you have forgiven me. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’”
Matthew 18:32-33

Canceled Debt

Jesus once told a story about a servant who owed a king an enormous amount of money. The debt was so large that the servant could never repay it. When the king demanded payment, the servant fell to his knees and begged for more time.

Then the king did something surprising. He did not give the servant more time. He canceled the debt completely. The servant walked away owing nothing.

Soon afterward, that same servant found another man who owed him a much smaller amount. Instead of showing mercy, he grabbed the man and demanded his money. When the man could not pay, the servant had him thrown into prison.

When the king heard what happened, he was furious. The servant had received incredible mercy, but he refused to show mercy to someone else.

Jesus told this story to teach us about forgiveness. When someone hurts us, it can be difficult to forgive. The pain may be real. The offense may be serious. Forgiveness does not mean pretending that what happened was okay.

But Jesus wants us to remember how much God has forgiven us. Every time we disobey God, we add to a debt we could never repay. We fail to love God as we should. We fail to love other people as we should. We think, say, and do things that go against what God wants.

But God does not tell us to work harder until we have paid him back. Jesus paid our debt for us. On the cross, Jesus took the punishment our sins deserved. Because of what Jesus did, God forgives us completely. Our debt is canceled.

That changes the way we look at people who sin against us. We do not forgive because their sin was small. We forgive because God’s mercy toward us is so great. The more we remember how much we have been forgiven, the more ready we will be to forgive others.

Prayer:

Merciful Father, thank you for canceling my debt through Jesus. Help me remember your mercy and show that same mercy to others. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”
Matthew 18:21-22

No Keeping Score

Three strikes and you’re out. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. We all have limits for how often we will allow someone to offend us. We can understand and forgive one offense. Maybe even two. But if someone offends or hurts us three times? That’s it.

So when Peter asked Jesus how many times he should forgive a brother who sins against him, he thought he was being generous by offering to forgive seven times. Jesus had just been teaching his disciples about forgiveness. Peter thought his question showed the lesson was sinking in.

Jesus’ response showed Peter, and us, just how much we need to grow in our understanding of forgiveness. He turned Peter’s generous offer of seven into a fraction. “Not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”

Jesus wasn’t giving Peter a bigger number to keep track of. Imagine getting to offense number seventy-eight and saying, “Finally! Now I don’t have to forgive you.” Jesus’ point was the opposite: stop keeping score.

That is hard. When someone hurts us repeatedly, we remember. We keep a mental record. We can recall what they said, what they did, and how many times they have done it. Eventually, we decide they have used up their supply of forgiveness.

Thankfully, that isn’t how Jesus treats us. How many times have you committed the same sin? How many times have you lost your temper, spoken selfishly, entertained the same sinful thought, or failed to love someone? Yet you have never reached the limit of Jesus’ mercy. He carried every one of those sins to the cross and paid for them completely.

Jesus doesn’t stand over you with a tally sheet. He stands before you with nail-scarred hands and says, “You are forgiven.”

Because his forgiveness has no limits, we don’t need to put limits on ours. We can put down the scorecard and forgive again.

Prayer:

Jesus, thank you for forgiving me again and again. Help me stop keeping score and freely forgive others as you have forgiven me. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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.

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“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
Genesis 50:20

God Meant It for Good

Joseph didn’t call evil good. His brothers had betrayed him and sold him into slavery. Joseph described their actions honestly: “You intended to harm me.”

But their evil intentions were not the only intentions at work. Joseph continued, “God intended it for good.”

Through Joseph’s suffering, God placed him in Egypt. Through Joseph’s position in Egypt, God provided food during a severe famine. Through that food, God preserved Joseph’s family, including the family line through which the Savior would eventually come.

The brothers intended harm. God accomplished salvation.

That does not excuse what the brothers did. God did not approve of their sin. But their sin could not defeat his gracious plan.

The same is true at the cross. Jesus’ enemies intended to silence him. Judas intended to betray him. Religious leaders intended to destroy him. Roman soldiers intended to execute him. Yet through their evil actions, God carried out his saving purpose. Jesus’ suffering became the means by which God rescued sinners.

We cannot always see what God is accomplishing through the wrongs committed against us. We should not minimize evil or pretend that suffering is painless. But we can trust that evil never gets the final word.

The God who turned Joseph’s suffering into the saving of many lives turned Jesus’ death into the salvation of the world. He is still able to bend what others intend for harm toward his good and gracious purposes.

Prayer:

Lord God, when I cannot understand the evil and suffering around me, help me trust your saving wisdom and your gracious purposes in Christ. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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.

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But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God?”
Genesis 50:19

In God’s Place

Joseph had the power to make his brothers pay. He was a ruler in Egypt. His brothers had betrayed him and sold him as a slave. Because of them, Joseph had endured years of hardship, false accusations, and imprisonment. Now they stood helpless before him.

Joseph could have acted as judge, jury, and executioner. Instead, he asked, “Am I in the place of God?”

Joseph was not denying that his brothers had sinned. He was refusing to claim a position that belonged to God. Judgment and vengeance were the Lord’s responsibility, not his.

When someone hurts us, we often want to take God’s place. We replay the offense, pronounce the person guilty, and decide what punishment would be fair. We may refuse to speak to them, hope that they suffer, or look for an opportunity to hurt them back.

But God has not called us to be his executioners. He calls us to forgive.

That does not mean pretending that sin does not hurt. It does not always mean immediately restoring trust or removing appropriate consequences. It means releasing our personal claim to revenge. We place the matter into God’s hands.

We can do that because God did not treat us as our sins deserved. Jesus stepped into our place and received our punishment. God’s undeserved forgiveness frees us to surrender our desire for revenge and show mercy to those who have wronged us.

Prayer:

Merciful God, keep me from taking your place as judge. Help me entrust justice to you and forgive others as you have forgiven me. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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.

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When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?”
Genesis 50:15

Forgive the Unforgivable

Years had passed, but Joseph’s brothers were still afraid. Long ago, they had been jealous of Joseph. Their jealousy turned into hatred, and their hatred led them to do something terrible. They sold their own brother into slavery and let their father believe Joseph was dead.

But Joseph did not stay a slave. Through a remarkable series of events, God eventually placed Joseph in a position of great power in Egypt. Years later, Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt looking for food during a famine. They were shocked to discover that their brother was alive and in such a position of power. Their father was thrilled to learn that his long-lost son was alive. All was well.

But then their father died. The brothers were terrified. Maybe Joseph had only been kind to them in order to please their father. Maybe now he would finally get revenge. They could imagine punishment. They could imagine Joseph making them pay.

What they could not imagine was forgiveness. Guilt can do the same thing to us. It reminds us of the worst things we have done. It tells us that some sins are too serious, too shameful, or too deliberate to be forgiven. We may believe that God forgives sins in general, yet still wonder, “But will he forgive this?”

The answer is yes. God does not forgive reluctantly. He is not pretending to forgive while secretly planning to punish you later. Jesus already took the punishment your sins deserved. On the cross, he paid for every sin completely.

Joseph did not take revenge on his brothers. He reassured them, cared for them, and spoke kindly to them.

Your Savior does even more. When guilt tells you that God must still be angry, listen to Jesus instead. His cross says the punishment has been paid. His empty tomb says the payment was enough. What seems unforgivable to you is not beyond the forgiveness of Jesus.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, when guilt makes me doubt your forgiveness, direct me to your cross and assure me that my sins have been paid for completely. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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.

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“The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.”
Matthew 18:27

Forgiven

How many times, just today, have you and I failed to love God with all our heart? Do you know? I don’t. Yet, every one of those failures was a sin. Or similarly, how many times, just today, have you and I failed to trust God completely? Do you know? Again, I don’t. Probably a whole bunch. Or again, how many times, just today, have you and I failed to focus our attention on God’s Word? Or failed to love our neighbor perfectly? Or failed to realize that someone needed a helping hand from us?

Wow! How many sins have we piled up, just today? It’s probably quite a list. Hundreds? Thousands? More? Who knows?

Well, God knows. And he knows not only about today, but about yesterday. And the day before that, and the day before that, and … well, you get the picture. And it isn’t pretty.

What’s amazing is what God has done with all of those sins. He’s wiped them ALL away. Every single one of them. He placed all of them onto the back of his Son, Jesus, at the cross and paid for every single one of them. In doing so, Jesus canceled our debt because he paid for it in full. What a loving and gracious God we have!

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, to you I make confession of all my many sins. Thank you for paying the price for them at the cross. Help me live today in a way that reflects my gratitude for your great gift. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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.

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“Say to them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways!'”
Ezekiel 33:11

What does God want from me?

“What does God want from me?” We’ve probably heard it; perhaps we’ve thought about it.

In our Bible verse today, God first tells us what he DOESN’T want. He doesn’t want to send us to hell. He doesn’t want to condemn us. Oh, it’s true, that’s what we deserve, because of our sinfulness. And if we consistently, stubbornly rebel against God, refusing to believe in him, then God has no choice, and he will send us to hell. But truly this isn’t what God wants

So, what DOES God want? In short, he wants us. He wants our heart, our affection, our trust. He wants us to spend eternity with him. He wants you and me so badly that he—Jesus—became one of us, dying on the cross to pay for our sins in full.

God wanted you that badly; God loved you that dearly. And God wants you to have the benefits of Jesus’ work—forgiveness of sins, peace with God, and much more—for all eternity. That’s what God wants for you!

Prayer:

O Savior, thank you for claiming me as one of your children. Although I’d rebelled against you, you wanted me. What grace! Lead me to always turn to you, to focus on you, to live in a way that makes clear that I appreciate what you’ve done for me. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. . . “[We] know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.”
Galatians 2:11,16

Hard Conversations

The apostle Paul had to have a hard conversation with Cephas, better known as the apostle Peter. You know the kind of conversation—the one that puts your stomach in knots and that you’d really rather avoid. Paul had to call Peter out in front of the whole church because Peter’s actions were damaging the church.

As more and more Gentiles came to faith in Jesus, cultural questions naturally arose. Did these non-Jewish believers have to follow Jewish customs to belong to the Christian church? Did they have to live like Jews in order to be true Christians? The Bible’s answer is clear: of course not.

Yet Peter had stopped eating with Gentile Christians and ate only with Jewish Christians. By his actions, he was sending the message that faith in Jesus was not enough. If you wanted to be a true believer, you needed faith in Christ and obedience to the Old Testament ceremonial laws.

Paul saw what was happening and recognized the effect it was having on the other believers. Without hesitation, he confronted Peter. Paul was not concerned about fitting in, hurting feelings, or offending people. He was concerned for the spiritual welfare of the entire church. He recognized Peter’s actions for what they really were: a threat to the very message of forgiveness through faith in Jesus alone.

So, Paul reminded them that we are justified—acquitted in God’s courtroom—not by what we do, how we act, or how we live, but solely by what Jesus has done for us.

Jesus calls us to confront a brother or sister’s sin not only for that person’s sake, but also for the good of the whole church. When we refuse to have those difficult conversations, our silence can strengthen others in their sin as well.

Confronting sin is never easy. Yet God gives his people the privilege and responsibility to have these hard conversations for the greater good of his people.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, please keep me mindful of the importance of having hard conversations about sin. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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

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“As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, people of Israel?”
Ezekiel 33:11

God Wants Sinners to Live

It’s the middle of the night. Loud banging pounds on your front door. The doorbell rings without stopping. Small stones tap against your bedroom window. Then your phone starts ringing and doesn’t stop. The ruckus is anything but welcome. But when you look out the window, you discover your house is on fire, and your neighbor has been desperately trying to wake you up and save your life.

Thank God he did! And wouldn’t you do the same for him? Wouldn’t you do whatever it took to rescue him from the flames?

That is what God is talking about through the prophet Ezekiel. Warning fellow believers about the danger of sin is rarely appreciated at first. But just as a neighbor makes a racket to save someone from a burning house, God sounds the alarm because he loves us.

Through Ezekiel, God made it clear that a warning about sin is not intended to be an unwanted disturbance. It’s a message of life!

God rings our doorbell, pounds on our door, and sends fellow Christians to get our attention. Maybe it is your parents. Maybe a Christian friend. Maybe your pastor. However the warning comes, it comes in love, because God wants sinners to live.

How much does he want that? He chose the death of his own Son over the death of the wicked. Jesus’ death gives you forgiven life. Jesus’ resurrection gives you eternal life. And as surely as Jesus lives, he wants nothing more than for us to be alive with him, forever, in heaven.

That is why God sounds the alarm. Not to knock sinners down, but to lift them up with the gospel. Not to condemn, but to call them to the Savior who forgives.

So, whichever end of the warning you are on, remember God’s purpose. His goal is never your death. His goal is your life!

Prayer:

Sovereign Lord, thank you for turning me from my sin and giving me life in Christ. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to the wicked, ‘You wicked person, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade them from their ways, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the wicked person to turn from their ways and they do not do so, they will die for their sin, though you yourself will be saved.”
Ezekiel 33:7-9

Sound the Alarm

It was two o’clock in the morning when I was treated to one of the most unsettling sounds ever invented: a tornado alarm blaring from the cell phone on my nightstand. As unpleasant as it was, it served a good purpose. A tornado had touched down nearby, and the alarm warned me to take cover.

When God told the prophet Ezekiel that he was a watchman, he was giving him the responsibility to sound the alarm about sin so that the wicked would not die in it. If Ezekiel failed to warn them, the sinner would die for his own sin, but Ezekiel would be held accountable for failing to speak. If the warning was sounded and the sinner refused to listen, then the sinner alone would bear the guilt.

Here God lays before his people an unsettling but loving responsibility. Whether you are a pastor, a parent, a child, a brother, a sister, or a friend, God calls you to warn sinners and urge them to turn from their wicked ways.

That is not a responsibility to take lightly. To remain silent is not merely to leave someone in danger. It is neglecting the call God has given you.

But when you sound the alarm, you are speaking God’s Word, not your own. Your motivation is love. The goal is life, not condemnation. Just as no one seeks shelter from a tornado they never knew was coming, a sinner will not turn to the Savior without first seeing the danger of sin.

And what a privilege it is to say to those who turn from their wickedness: “God completely forgives your sin because of Jesus.”

Prayer:

Lord, forgive my silences and make me a vigilant watchman for your people. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

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.