Daily Bible Verse

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1 Peter 1:3 KJV
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,


Genuine Hope

In the early 1960s, the US was filled with anticipation of a bright future. Youthful President John F. Kennedy had introduced the New Frontier, the Peace Corps, and the task of reaching the moon. A thriving economy caused many people to expect the future to simply “let the good times roll.” Then the war in Vietnam escalated, national unrest unfolded, Kennedy was assassinated, and the accepted norms of that previously optimistic society were dismantled. Optimism simply wasn’t enough, and in its wake, disillusionment prevailed.

Then, in 1967, theologian Jürgen Moltmann’s A Theology of Hope pointed to a clearer vision. This path wasn’t the way of optimism but the way of hope. The two aren’t the same thing. Moltmann affirmed that optimism is based on the circumstances of the moment, but hope is rooted in God’s faithfulness—regardless of our situation.

What’s the source of this hope? Peter wrote, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3). Our faithful God has conquered death through His Son, Jesus! The reality of this greatest of all victories lifts us beyond mere optimism to a strong, robust hope—every day and in every circumstance.


Reflect & Pray
Whether you’re an optimist or a pessimist, what situations cause concern in you? Why is hope better than either optimism or pessimism?

God, this world is distressing and confusing, and many voices want to drive me to a perspective that feels void of hope. Help me to root my heart in the promise and power of the resurrection of Jesus, who holds the future.


Insight
In the original Greek, 1 Peter 1:3–12 is a single, run-on sentence. Bible scholar Scot McKnight notes in The NIV Application Commentary:1 Peter that despite the sentence’s length, “Peter’s grammar is wonderfully elegant” and his expression of the beauty of our salvation is profound. He goes on to explain that each of the elements in Peter’s singular declaration of praise builds from the previous thought: The expression of praise (vv. 3–5) leads into a declaration of joy despite suffering (vv. 6–7). That joy is focused on an anticipation of our final salvation (vv. 8–9), which is what the prophets all spoke of and looked forward to (vv. 10–12).

Peter’s blessing of God at the opening of this letter draws a circle around all of life. From beginning to end, everything points toward our salvation and the ultimate realization of God’s kingdom.
 

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Leviticus 16: KJV
And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.


Drawn Near

In the wake of the coronavirus, retrieving something from my safety deposit box required even more layers of protocol than before. Now I had to make an appointment, call when I arrived to be granted entrance to the bank, show my identification and signature, and then wait to be escorted into the vault by a designated banker. Once inside, the heavy doors locked again until I’d found what I needed inside the metal box. Unless I followed the instructions, I wasn’t able to enter.

In the Old Testament, God had specific protocols for entering part of the tabernacle called the Most Holy Place (Exodus 26:33). Behind a special curtain, one that “separate[d] the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place,” only the high priest could enter once a year (Hebrews 9:7). Aaron, and the high priests who would come after him, were to bring offerings, bathe, and wear sacred garments before entering (Leviticus 16:3–4). God’s instructions weren’t for health or security reasons; they were meant to teach the Israelites about the holiness of God and our need for forgiveness.

At the moment of Jesus’ death, that special curtain was torn (Matthew 27:51), symbolically showing that all people who believe in His sacrifice for their forgiveness of sin can enter God’s presence. The tear in the tabernacle curtain is reason for our unending joy—Jesus has enabled us to draw near to God always!


Reflect & Pray
In what ways are you aware of being drawn near to God? How does that truth bring you joy?

Thank You, Jesus, for making it possible for me to be drawn near to God always.


Insight
The book of Leviticus was “God’s guidebook for His newly redeemed people, showing them how to worship, serve and obey a holy God” (Talk Thru the Bible, Wilkinson and Boa). Indeed, the most significant word in the book of Leviticus is holy, a translation of the Hebrew qados, which means “apartness, separateness, sacredness.” In its various forms this word appears in Leviticus more than in any other book of the Bible. The tangible presence of the holy God of Israel in the midst of His people required certain protocols and codes of conduct. God’s words to Moses for the people He set apart for Himself were: “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy’ ” (Leviticus 19:2; see also 11:44). And His word to believers in Christ, those He indwells by His Spirit today, is nothing less (see 1 Peter 1:15).
 

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1 Corinthians 6:11 KJV
And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.


Washed

My friend Bill described Gerard, an acquaintance of his, as being “very far from God for a very long time.” But one day, after Bill met with Gerard and explained to him how God’s love has provided the way for us to be saved, Gerard became a believer in Jesus. Through tears, he repented of his sin and gave his life to Christ. Afterward, Bill asked Gerard how he felt. Wiping away tears, he answered simply, “Washed.”

What an amazing response! That’s precisely the essence of salvation made possible through faith in Jesus’ sacrifice for us on the cross. In 1 Corinthians 6, after Paul gives examples of how disobedience against God leads to separation from Him, he says, “That is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ” (v. 11). “Washed,” “sanctified,” “justified”—words that point to believers being forgiven and made right with Him.

Titus 3:4–5 tells us more about this miraculous thing called salvation. “God our Savior . . . saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth.” Our sin keeps us from God, but through faith in Jesus, sin’s penalty is washed away. We become new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17), gain access to our heavenly Father (Ephesians 2:18), and are made clean (1 John 1:7). He alone provides what we need to be washed.


Reflect & Pray
Why is it vital for you to be washed and sanctified by Jesus? What has it meant or what will it mean for you to put your faith in Him?

Dear Jesus, I know I’ve sinned against You. And I realize that the penalty for my sin is separation from You. Thank You for the salvation You’ve made possible and for drawing me close to You forever.


Insight
Paul’s reference to spiritual rebirth in Titus 3:5 echoes what John described in his gospel (John 1:12; 3:1–21). In John 3, we read of a religious leader who is dumbfounded with Jesus’ emphasis on the need to be born again. Initially, Nicodemus, who’d come to Jesus under the cover of darkness, finds the idea laughable. Later, he takes the risk of speaking a word on behalf of Jesus (7:47–52). And the last time we see him, he’s helping another secret believer care for Jesus’ body (19:38–42). Jesus said there’s something real and mysterious about being born from above or “born again” (3:3).
 

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Psalm 103:12 KJV
As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.


Etch A Sketch Forgiveness

The little red rectangular box was magical. As a kid, I could play with it for hours. When I turned one knob on the box, I could create a horizontal line on its screen. Turn the other knob and voila—a vertical line. When I turned the knobs together, I could make diagonal lines, circles, and creative designs. But the real magic came when I turned my Etch A Sketch toy upside down, shook it a little and turned it right side up. A blank screen appeared, offering me the opportunity to create a new design.

God’s forgiveness works much like that Etch A Sketch. He wipes away our sins, creating a clean canvas for us. Even if we remember wrongs we committed, God chooses to forgive and forget. He’s wiped them out and doesn’t hold our sins against us. He doesn’t treat us according to our sinful actions (Psalm 103:10) but extends grace through forgiveness. We have a clean slate—a new life awaiting us when we seek God’s forgiveness. We can be rid of guilt and shame because of His amazing gift to us.

The psalmist reminds us that our sins have been separated from us as far as the east is separated from the west (v. 12). That’s as far away as you can get! In God’s eyes, our sins no longer cling to us like a scarlet letter or a bad drawing. That’s reason to rejoice and to thank God for His amazing grace and mercy.


Reflect & Pray
Why do you think God chooses to not treat you as your actions might deserve? How can you thank Him for separating your sins from you?

Loving God, thank You for forgiveness. Remind me that You no longer remember my sins.


Insight
Book Four of the Psalms (Psalms 90–106), is the shortest of the five collections in the Hebrew Psalter. In Books One–Three, the primary focus is on David’s experiences as presented through songs and prayers (though other psalmists—such as the Sons of Korah and Asaph—also appear). Nevertheless, the focus is on David and his journey of faith with all the highs and lows and successes and failures that are part of his story. Book Four responds primarily to the failures of David’s rule and lineage by reasserting that God is the one true King that Israel needs. As such, the prayers and songs of this Book focus on God’s faithfulness and goodness and the hope Israel could experience because of who their God truly is. Book Five (Psalms 107–150) calls the people to faithfulness, then closes with a flourish of hallelujah (“praise”) songs in Psalms 146–150.
 

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1 Kings 8:45
Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.


Hearing Us from Heaven

At eighteen months old, little Maison had never heard his mother’s voice. Then doctors fitted him with his first hearing aids and his mom, Lauryn, asked him, “Can you hear me?” The child’s eyes lit up. “Hi, Baby!” Lauryn added. A smiling Maison responded to his mother with soft coos. In tears, Lauryn knew she’d witnessed a miracle. She’d given birth to Maison prematurely after gunmen shot her three times during a random home invasion. Weighing just one pound, Maison spent 158 days in intensive care and wasn’t expected to survive, let alone be able to hear.

That heart-warming story reminds me of the God who hears us. King Solomon prayed fervently for God’s attuned ear, especially during troubling times. When “there is no rain” (1 Kings 8:35), during “famine or plague,” disaster or disease (v. 37), war (v. 44), and even sin, “hear from heaven their prayer and their plea,” Solomon prayed, “and uphold their cause” (v. 45).

In His goodness, God responded with a promise that still stirs our hearts. “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). Heaven may seem a long way off. Yet Jesus is with those who believe in Him. God hears our prayers, and He answers them.


Reflect & Pray
What troubling situation can you pray about today, believing God is hearing you from heaven? What help from God can you thank Him for because He hears your plea?

Heavenly Father, during my toughest struggles and troubles, I thank You for hearing my humble cry.


Insight
It’s interesting to note the “funnel of contexts” in 1 Kings regarding Solomon’s temple. At the top—the broadest context—is the account of the dedication of the temple (7:51–9:9). Down one layer is Solomon’s speech (8:12–61). The final layer is the prayer of dedication (vv. 22–53), where Solomon rehearses the circumstances in which God is bound by His covenant with His people to act on their behalf.
 

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Jeremiah 32:8-9

8 So Hanameel mine uncle's son came to me in the court of the prison according to the word of the Lord, and said unto me, Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin: for the right of inheritance is thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I knew that this was the word of the Lord.

9 And I bought the field of Hanameel my uncle's son, that was in Anathoth, and weighed him the money, even seventeen shekels of silver.


A Ludicrous Investment

In 1929, as the US economy crashed, millions of people lost everything. But not Floyd Odlum. As everyone else panicked and sold their stocks at cut-rate prices, Odlum appeared to foolishly jump in and purchase stocks just as the nation’s future disintegrated. But Odlum’s “foolish” perspective paid off, yielding robust investments that endured for decades.

God told Jeremiah to make what seemed like an absolutely ludicrous investment: “Buy [the] field at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin” (Jeremiah 32:8). This was no time to be buying fields, however. The entire country was on the verge of being ransacked. “The army of the king of Babylon was . . . besieging Jerusalem” (v. 2), and whatever field Jeremiah purchased would soon be Babylon’s. What fool makes an investment when everything would soon be lost?

Well, the person who’s listening to God—the One who intended a future no one else could envision. “This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Houses, fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land” (v. 15). God saw more than the ruin. God promised to bring redemption, healing, and restoration. A ludicrous investment in a relationship or service for God isn’t foolish—it’s the wisest possible move when God leads us to make it (and it’s essential that we prayerfully seek to know He’s behind the instruction). A “foolish” investment in others as God leads makes all the sense in the world.


Reflect & Pray
Where do you sense God asking you to make a ludicrous investment in someone or something? How will this step require you to trust God in ways that appear foolish?

God, it’s a good thing You see the future because sometimes all I see is ruin and disaster. Show me where to go, where to give my life.


Insight
One of the main features in the book of Jeremiah is that the prophet primarily records the message God is giving directly to His people. This was the main role of a prophet, for prophets stood before the people to represent God and His purposes to the nation. In Jeremiah’s writings, this is clearly evidenced in that the phrase “thus saith the Lord” (kjv) appears no fewer than 147 times in this book! That’s 147 of the 431 times that phrase appears in the entire Old Testament. Clearly, Jeremiah was committed to communicating God’s message to His people.
 

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James 1:22 KJV
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.


Practice What You Preach

I started reading the Bible to my sons when my youngest, Xavier, entered kindergarten. I would look for teachable moments and share verses that would apply to our circumstances and encourage them to pray with me. Xavier memorized Scripture without even trying. If we were in a predicament in which we needed wisdom, he’d blurt out verses that shined a light on God’s truth.

One day, I got angry and spoke harshly within his earshot. My son hugged me and said, “Practice what you preach, Mama.”

Xavier’s gentle reminder echoes the wise counsel of James as he addressed Jewish believers in Jesus scattered in various countries (James 1:1). Highlighting the various ways sin can interfere with our witness for Christ, James encouraged them to “humbly accept the word planted in them” (v. 21). By hearing but not obeying Scripture, we’re like people who look in the mirror and forget what we look like (vv. 23–24). We can lose sight of the privilege we’ve been given as image-bearers made right with God through the blood of Christ.

Believers in Jesus are commanded to share the gospel. The Holy Spirit changes us while empowering us to become better representatives and therefore messengers of the good news. As our loving obedience helps us reflect the light of God’s truth and love wherever He sends us, we can point others to Jesus by practicing what we preach.


Reflect & Pray
In what ways have you struggled to obey Scripture? In what ways has God transformed you?

Loving God, please make me more like You so I can use every opportunity You give me to share Your love with others.


Insight
When we think of the Beatitudes, we rightly think of the sayings in Matthew where Jesus declared that certain kinds of people are “blessed” (see Matthew 5:3–12). The word translated “blessed” is the word makários, which means “fortunate, favored, well-off.” The word is sometimes rendered “happy.” Three times in the book of James some form of the word makários is used (1:12, 25; 5:11). In 1:12, a blessing is pronounced on those who persevere under trial. In 1:25, those who hear and act upon the words of God are declared blessed: “Whoever looks intently into the perfect law . . . will be blessed in what they do.” This echoes the words of Jesus in Luke 11:28: “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” And, finally, in James 5:11, the verb form of the word blessed is used.
 
 

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Exodus 12:13
And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.


Life by Death

Carl was battling cancer and needed a double lung transplant. He asked God for new lungs but felt odd doing so. He confessed it’s a strange thing to pray, because “someone has to die so I might live.”

Carl’s dilemma highlights a basic truth of Scripture: God uses death to bring life. We see this in the story of the exodus. Born into slavery, the Israelites languished under the oppressive hands of the Egyptians. Pharaoh wouldn’t release his grip until God made it personal. Every eldest son would die unless the family killed a spotless lamb and slathered its blood across their doorposts (Exodus 12:6–7, 12–13).

Today, you and I have been born into the bondage of sin. Satan wouldn’t release his grip on us until God made it personal, sacrificing His perfect Son on the blood-spattered arms of the cross.

Jesus calls us to join Him there. Paul explained, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). When we put our faith in God’s spotless Lamb, we commit to daily dying with Him—dying to our sin so we might rise with Him to new life (Romans 6:4–5). We express this faith every time we say no to the shackles of sin and yes to the freedom of Christ. We’re never more alive than when we die with Jesus.   


Reflect & Pray
Why is death the only path to life? How have you shown that you’ve received Jesus’ death on your behalf?

Jesus, Your death brings me life. Help me die to sin today and live my life through You.


Insight
One of the wonders of Jesus’ crucifixion is that it happened on Israel’s national remembrance of Passover. In one eventful day, the stories of Moses and Jesus merged. From then on, the world had a new way of thinking about the mysterious language of killing and eating the Passover lamb. It was on this date on the ancient calendar of Israel that the God of creation judged the gods of Egypt by bringing to light their inability to protect anyone. It was on that first Passover that the God of gods used the sacrifice of a lamb and a sacred meal to show that He alone was the source of life and freedom. Yet it wasn’t until Jesus’ death that people would understand the connection between Him and the Passover lamb and what it meant to eat and drink from God’s own self-sacrifice.
 

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John 8:12 KJV
Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.


Darkness and Light

As I sat in the courtroom, I witnessed several examples of the brokenness of our world: a daughter estranged from her mother; a husband and wife who’d lost the love they once had and now shared only bitterness; a husband who yearned to be reconciled with his wife and to be reunited with his children. They desperately needed changed hearts, healed wounds, and for God’s love to prevail.

Sometimes when the world around us seems to hold only darkness and despair, it’s easy to give in to despair. But then the Spirit, who lives inside believers in Christ (John 14:17), reminds us that Jesus died for that brokenness and pain. When He came into the world as a human, He brought light into the darkness (1:4–5; 8:12). We see this in His conversation with Nicodemus, who furtively came to Jesus in the cover of darkness but left impacted by the Light (3:1–2; 19:38–40).

Jesus taught Nicodemus that “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (3:16).

Yet even though Jesus brought light and love into the world, many remain lost in the darkness of their sin (vv. 19–20). If we’re His followers, we have the light that dispels darkness. In gratitude, let’s pray that God will make us beacons of His love (Matthew 5:14–16).


Reflect & Pray
When has your hope been renewed through remembering that God loves you? How can you share Christ’s light with others?

Thank You, God, for coming to save me from the darkness of sin and despair. Help me to remain in Your light.


Insight
The theme of light versus darkness is fundamental to John’s telling of the story of Jesus in John’s gospel and is also prominent in his letters. In 1 John 1:5, we’re reminded that God Himself is light—so it follows that those who put their faith in Christ are seen as “children of light” (John 12:35–36). Bible teacher Warren Wiersbe says that “the coming of Jesus Christ into the world was the dawning of a new day for sinful man” for Jesus, the Light of the World (8:12; 9:5), would conquer the powers of darkness. The problem in the arrival of this light that Jesus came to bring is humanity’s response—or lack thereof: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (1:5). Nevertheless, as Jesus gave sight to a man born blind (ch. 9), He can bring light into our darkness as well.
 

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Hebrews 12:2-3
Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

3 For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.


Brave Your Storm

It was the evening of April 3, 1968, and a fierce thunderstorm was lashing through Memphis, Tennessee. Weary and feeling ill, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. hadn’t intended to give his planned speech in support of the striking sanitation workers at a church hall. But he was surprised by an urgent phone call saying a large crowd had braved the weather to hear him. So he went to the hall and spoke for forty minutes, delivering what some say was his greatest speech, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop.”

The next day, King was killed by an assassin’s bullet, but his speech still inspires oppressed people with the hope of “the promised land.” Likewise, early followers of Jesus were uplifted by a stirring message. The book of Hebrews, written to encourage Jewish believers facing threats for their faith in Christ, offers firm spiritual encouragement to not lose hope. As it urges, “strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees” (12:12). As Jews, they would recognize that appeal as originally coming from the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 35:3).

But now, as Christ’s disciples, we’re called to “run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12:1–2). When we do so, we “will not grow weary and lose heart” (v. 3).

Certainly, squalls and storms await us in this life. But in Jesus, we outlast life’s tempests by standing in Him.


Reflect & Pray
How do you respond to life’s spiritual storms? As you look to Jesus and His promises, how does He encourage you?

Jesus, You calm every spiritual storm. When tempests rage, speak peace to my soul as I put my hope in You.


Insight
Because of severe persecution (see Hebrews 10:32–39; 13:3), Jewish believers were pressured to abandon their faith in Jesus and revert to Judaism. Based on Hebrews 13:24, the unnamed writer of Hebrews probably wrote from Italy to discouraged believers, encouraging them to remain faithful by “fixing [their] eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith” (12:2). The author emphasized the superiority and sufficiency of Christ through His position as God Himself (chs. 1–4) and His once-for-all sacrifice for sin (chs. 5–10). In chapter 12, the writer used the imagery of a long-distance foot race where a stadium full of supporters cheer on the runners to complete it. The apostle Paul also used the foot-race metaphor to encourage believers to persevere by keeping their eyes on the finish line—to “[finish] the race” (2 Timothy 4:7; see 1 Corinthians 9:24–27; Philippians 3:12–14).