Today's Verse from Heartlight

Today's Verse - Romans 1:16 (KJV)

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 02:00:00 -0500

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

—Romans 1:16 (KJV)

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

For the rich and poor, young and old, weak and strong, thin and heavy, there is still just one message, one name, and one story that makes the eternal difference. It's the good news of Jesus - the gospel. That one message, story, and name are announced in the gospel - God's good news to the world in Jesus Christ. God's good news of life in Jesus Christ is the story, message, and hope for us all. As Paul the apostle tells the Galatians:

So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:26-28).

We must not be, cannot be, will never be, ashamed of the gospel because it is the power to bring people to salvation in Jesus, and bring us together as God's family.

Video Commentary...

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My Prayer...

Great Redeemer, please empower me to be bolder in proclaiming your good news. Please give me eyes to see people from all walks of life and all nations who are waiting to hear about your love and grace in Jesus. Please fill me up with your Spirit so that I will not be ashamed but will gladly and effectively proclaim your gift of Jesus. Please fill my life with the assured hope of Jesus' glorious and victorious return so that I might share your message - your good news, your gospel - with passion, and others will know of your redeeming grace. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.

Today's Verse - Colossians 2:9-10 (KJV)

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 02:00:00 -0500

For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

—Colossians 2:9-10 (KJV)

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

If we had known Jesus' address when he was a boy in Nazareth, we would have found him apprenticing as a carpenter, and could have said, "That boy with wood shavings in his hair is God come to live among us!"
I believe that the doctrine of Jesus being fully God and fully man is impossible to grasp completely, yet it is taught in the New Testament and is something we must believe. Beautiful explanations, like our verse today, exist. Another is the beautiful Christ-Hymn Paul quotes in Philippians 2:5-7. This song reminds us that Jesus was equal with God, but emptied himself of divine prerogatives and became human and suffered death on the cross. God taking on human flesh and being Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23), is an awesome reality of grace. God chose to be like us because we could not make ourselves like him. God came to us because we could not go to him. In Jesus, God took on human flesh so we could be given fullness in Christ. By faith and in baptism, we were joined to Jesus in his death, burial, and resurrection (Colossians 2:12, 15). That faith experience means God's victory in Jesus over sin, death, demons, and hell, and also delivered us from these things as well (Colossians 1:13-14). What's more, our future glory with Christ is fully assured (Colossians 3:1-3). Jesus Christ is head over every power and authority for us!

My Prayer...

Almighty God, I acknowledge that you are too great for me to comprehend fully. You are far greater than my mind can grasp. Your grace amazes me. Thank you for sending Jesus so I can be forgiven, delivered from the evil one, and go home to you and live forever. In your name, Christ Jesus, I confidently pray. Amen.

Today's Verse - James 1:21 (KJV)

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 02:00:00 -0500

Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

—James 1:21 (KJV)

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

Isn't it true! When we find ourselves caught in the clutches of the moral filth of our culture, we can find the Word of God boring and irrelevant. Yet even in those moments when the evil one uses sin to harden our hearts, God's Spirit calls us to change at a level deeper than just the mere understanding of the words of Scripture. James, the brother of Jesus (Matthew 13:55; John 7:2-5), reminds us we've got stuff we must get rid of, even though it is all around us in our culture. We need to go back to the seed of faith, the good news of Jesus, that was planted in us. Through the Spirit, this seed calls us back to righteous living, and this repentance can save us! Thank God for his Spirit, who uses the Word that he inspired like a surgeon's scalpel, and does the needed surgery on our hearts (Hebrews 4:12-13).

My Prayer...

Holy God, with the help of your Holy Spirit, today I willingly and decisively give up the immoral habits in my life. I recognize that these not only offend your holiness and grace, but they also harden me to your will, pull me away from your character, and blunt my witness to others. Please forgive me, please sustain me, as I seek to live a life wholly pleasing to you, empowered by the Holy Spirit. In Jesus' name, I promise and pray to get rid of the moral filth that is so prevalent around me, and to humbly accept the message you have given me, and that calls me home to you. Amen.

Today's Verse - John 15:10 (KJV)

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 02:00:00 -0500

If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.

—John 15:10 (KJV)

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

Love is much more than just a feeling. Love is action. Jesus told us as disciples, believers who seek to genuinely follow our LORD and Savior, that the action that most shows our love for Jesus is for us to be obedient to his words, his will, and his example, and to love each other. The foolish person is not just the one who disbelieves in God (Psalm 53:1), but also the one who knows Jesus' words and maybe even claims to believe in Jesus, but doesn't obey them (Matthew 7:21-23, 26-27). Let's choose to be different, to be true disciples, to live our lives by abiding in the love of Jesus and by obeying what our Lord says, motivated by our love for him and for others (Matthew 22:36-40).

My Prayer...

Father, thank you for showing your love by sending Jesus, who faithfully lived out your will. Thank you, LORD Jesus, for showing us how to love our Father by obeying his will and honoring his words. Thank you, also, LORD Jesus, for your teaching and living as an example for us to follow so we can know how to honor God. I choose to live in conscious obedience to the Father's will - just as you did, LORD Jesus - and I seek to follow your example and obey your teachings. Please receive my thoughts, words, and actions as my offering of loving praise to you. I pledge this obedience under the authority and in covenant with my Savior, Jesus of Nazareth, my LORD and Messiah. Amen.

Today's Verse - Philippians 2:9-11 (KJV)

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 02:00:00 -0500

Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

—Philippians 2:9-11 (KJV)

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

When Jesus is exalted, when his name is praised, and his glory confessed, God - as Father, Son, and Spirit - is honored and blessed. All will honor Jesus this way at the end of time, whether they want to or not! But when we praise Jesus now, we share in praise with the host of heaven and speak the truth. Praise be the glorious name of Jesus of Nazareth, our great Messiah, the Christ, Savior, Son of God, and coming conquering King! We join the angels and beings in heaven and proclaim Jesus LORD for who he is and what he has done to save us and what he means to us. We await his coming in glory with great anticipation!

My Prayer...

Precious Savior, Jesus Christ my LORD, your name is wonderful! Your sacrifice for my sin was loving and generous. I am so thankful that our Father raised you from the dead and that through you, I will be able to be with God and worship you for all of eternity! You are glorious, Jesus my LORD! In your marvelous name, I bring this praise to God. Amen.

Today's Verse - Matthew 4:4 (KJV)

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 02:00:00 -0500

But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

—Matthew 4:4 (KJV)

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

Like Esau, we get so diverted, distracted, and disturbed by the mundane things of life - things like growling bellies and petty jealousies. The evil one uses these to lead us to forget the longer-range view of things and the important promises of God's Scriptures. God's incarnate Word (Jesus), his written Word (the Scriptures), and his proclaimed Word in the Gospel are what can sustain us eternally. These are the nourishing sustenance of God's living bread we seek, the true daily bread we need God to supply (Matthew 6:11).

My Prayer...

True and Faithful God, please create in me a hunger for your true and enduring Word, your living Bread. Please help me recognize that your Bread is much more necessary for my life than any physical food. I confess that at times I have been distracted by mundane things in my life and have not sought your Word, your Living Bread, to nourish my soul. Please forgive me as I recommit myself to be more attentive to your leading and your truth in your Word, as I am led by your Spirit. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray and make this commitment. Amen.

Today's Verse - Jeremiah 32:17 (KJV)

Sat, 11 Jul 2026 02:00:00 -0500

Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:

—Jeremiah 32:17 (KJV)

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

In the immense expanse of our universe with its billions upon billions of stars, we recognize that Earth is just a tiny blue planet in the great expanse of all that is. We are little more than a speck of sand on an inestimable seashore we call the universe. Yet God, the Creator, has chosen to know each of us personally and created each of us for a specific purpose (Psalm 139:13-16). Such a lovingly knowledgeable Creator may seem too wonderful to be true; it may feel impossible, yet he is that and more! God has shown his love for us in Jesus. Jesus is God's reminder that he not only knows us as our Creator, but also knows us as we are in human flesh - existentially, empathetically - because he came to us in human flesh as Jesus (John 1:14-18). The Sovereign LORD loves us, and his great power and outstretched arm are working for our eternal good (Romans 8:28).

My Prayer...

Great God of creation, thank you for caring for me even though I am such a small part of your great work in our vast universe. Your love is beyond my comprehension, yet it thrills me to know that you know me and are working to bring me home to you so I can see you face-to-face, know you intimately, and see you as you truly are (1 John 3:1-3). In Jesus' name, I praise you. Amen.