Daily Reading: 2 Peter 1
Scripture Focus: He has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature. (2 Peter 1.4)
Devotional Thought: Yesterday, we read about how we are partakers in the glory to be revealed - the glory of tomorrow. Today, we read how we can be partakers of the realized glory of today. How? Through the promises of God!
God make promises to us. He promises his love and faithfulness. He promises to answer our prayers. He promises to fill us if we are hungry and thirsty for him. He promises that if we seek him with all our hearts, we will find him. He promises that no good thing will he withhold from us. He promises that nothing will ever separate us from his love.
God's promises are precious. To be precious has two aspects. First of all, it is to be valuable. God's promises are valuable because they are sealed with the blood of his only Son. We were redeemed from our empty way of living by the blood of Jesus! But, to be precious also means to be valued. God's promises are precious because we cherish them. They remind us of his love. This week was my Mom's birthday. She has been in heaven for 13 years now, but I still have some of her things tucked away in a safe place: her Bible, her old thick glasses, some unusual gifts. Are they precious? Not according to this world's economy, but they are cherished by me, so that makes them precious.
We are partakers of those promises. The promises of God are not simply universal or hypothetical. They are personal. What he promises, he promises to me. Most precious of all, of course, is that I can become a partaker of his nature. By the blood of Jesus, I am adopted into the family of God! My soul has a home!
Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for your great and precious promises. I believe them, and I receive them for myself and my loved ones. Amen.
Psalm of the Day: Psalm 61:1-8
1 Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; 2 from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I, 3 for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy.
4 Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings! Selah 5 For you, O God, have heard my vows; you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.
6 Prolong the life of the king; may his years endure to all generations! 7 May he be enthroned forever before God; appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!
8 So will I ever sing praises to your name, as I perform my vows day after day.
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