Daily Devotions

[Jesus answered] “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
John 3:6-8

The Miracle and Mystery of Faith

Having faith in others doesn’t come naturally to us. We instinctively trust ourselves, not others. We learn to mistrust others because so often frail humans are not trustworthy. They don’t earn our trust.

But God is always trustworthy, whether we believe that or not. So, our lack of faith in him is not a result of his failures; it’s a direct result of the brokenness we inherit from our parents. Jesus could not have been more right when he declared, “Flesh gives birth to flesh.” In other words, sinners give birth to sinners. We’re sinful from the time our mothers conceive us” (Psalm 51:5). And because we’re born sinners, we’re also born without true fear of God and true faith in him. We can’t help ourselves; we’re born spiritually dead (Eph 2:1).

So, how can we ever come to trust God if we’re spiritually stillborn at birth? It’s both a mystery and a miracle performed entirely by the Holy Spirit. Jesus explained that “the Spirit gives birth to spirit.” He means the Holy Spirit, and what does the Spirit do? He gives us new spiritual life by kindling our faith in God and fanning it into flame.

How does he do it? In so many ways, his work of bringing sinners to faith in Jesus is a sacred mystery. Jesus compared it to the comings and goings of the wind. “The wind blows where it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

But this much we can know: the Spirit uses God’s Word and sacraments, especially Holy Baptism, to work Christian faith and to save us eternally.

How can a few words and splash of water do such powerful things? Because God can do all things. Why would we trust him if he couldn’t?

Prayer:
Jesus, grant me your Spirit through Word and sacrament that I might trust you more each day. Amen.

“How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.”
John 3:4,5

God’s Hidden, Saving Power

Jesus had told his visitor Nicodemus that he needed to be born again to see the kingdom of God, that is, to see and understand how God works and rules in our broken lives to save us forever. The problem was Nicodemus didn’t understand. Born again? “How can someone be born when they are old?” he scoffed. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”

It’s no wonder he reacted the way he did. How else can a person be “reborn”? Like us, Nicodemus naturally figured that God always works and saves in ways we can see with our eyes. His kingdom is certainly visible, right?

In some ways, yes. The psalmist David once marveled, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge” (Psalm 19:1,2). In other words, we can certainly see God’s kingdom—his ruling power—in the vast, starry heavens. We can feel God’s kingdom in raging winds and blustery storms. We can spot God’s kingdom when a tiny seedling explodes into a flowery burst of color.

But God works most powerfully in ways we can’t see with our eyes. Take baptism, for instance. It’s a splash of water and a few simple words, “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Yet that combination works the forgiveness of sins, delivers from death and the devil, and bestows eternal salvation on all who believe its promise!

Jesus explained, “no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.” He was pointing specifically to the hidden power of baptism, but he had an even greater lesson in mind: God works powerfully to save us in ways our eyes can’t fathom.

What’s left for us to do? Nothing. Just trust him.

Prayer:
Jesus, remind me daily how powerfully you’re working to save me in ways I simply can’t see. Amen.

Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”
John 3:1-3

Seeing Isn’t Believing

The Pharisees were not Jesus’ friends. They were an ultra-conservative sect who considered themselves the gold standard of piety. They were “true believers” who made sure they followed the letter of God’s law to a tee, even adding their own restrictions to demonstrate just how holy they were.

But Jesus constantly upbraided them for their self-righteous attitudes and failure to show mercy toward others. They hated him for it. Even from the earliest days of Jesus’ ministry, they plotted to kill him.

That’s why the conversation between Jesus and the Pharisee Nicodemus—recorded in John chapter 3—is so fascinating. Nicodemus came to Jesus at night, undoubtedly to avoid detection by his associates. He admitted to Jesus, “we know that you are a teacher who has come from God.” And how did they know? Because “no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” In other words, as much as the Pharisees hated Jesus, they had to concede he had a divine mission because they witnessed his miracles.

But Jesus would teach Nicodemus an important lesson that bears repeating. Seeing isn’t believing. In other words, true faith is not a matter of what we see with our eyes, even when we see miracles. It’s a matter of trusting God’s promises despite what our eyes see. Jesus explained, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”

A person who is born again trusts Jesus and his promises unconditionally, even when doing that doesn’t seem like a sure bet.

And when you trust him, guess what you’ll see? You’ll see God’s kingdom–how he rules behind the scenes to safeguard your salvation forever.

Prayer:
Jesus, give me the eyes of faith so that I always trust your promises, no matter what. Amen.

The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.
Romans 8:15

No More Slavery to Fear

An Oscar-winning film, “The King’s Speech” is based on the true story of Albert Windsor, a shy, stammering member of the British royal family. Albert had a severe stammering problem all his life, and the very idea of giving a speech in public filled him with terror. Then, the unthinkable happened. His older brother, the King, abdicated his throne in the 1930s. Albert was the next in line. Duty demanded that he accept the crown. Not long after, World War II broke out. Suddenly, the stammering man who feared public speaking more than anything had to give a radio speech broadcast to millions of people.

By a seeming miracle, he did it. In fact, he did it with hardly a stammer. The secret was his speech therapist. Over time, his speech therapist had removed much of Albert’s fear of public speaking. When the paralyzing fear left, Albert was able to do what needed to be done.

The day the Holy Spirit brought you to faith in Jesus was the day you didn’t have to be afraid anymore. But the devil hopes you won’t remember that. Satan hopes that you’ll still stay paralyzed in your old fears, your old guilt, your old regrets, your dark memories of past failures. After all, if he can get you to forget what you have in Christ, he’s won the battle for the day.

Today, give the devil a bad day. Remember the forgiveness you possess in the Son of God. Stop and recall that you are a child in God’s family by faith. Take your old fear and have it washed away in the blood of the Lamb.

When you do, you can live free of the old slavery to fear. And fluently with your life, you can do some of the wonderful things God desires for you to do.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, apart from you I am afraid. In you, however, I have nothing to fear. Empower me by your Spirit to remember that. Use me to do your good work. Amen.

The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “O Sovereign LORD, you alone know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.'”
Ezekiel 37:1-6

Can these bones live?

Have you ever gone into a natural history museum that had bones of dinosaurs, birds, and other creatures displayed? As you look at these bones, your mind may start to put flesh on them, give them a personality and imagine what it would have been like to see these bones covered by flesh and alive. But, of course, you know this can’t happen.

As the prophet Ezekiel stared at a valley of human bones in a vision God gave him, The LORD asked him, “Son of man can these bones live?” The natural response would have been, “No way!” However, Ezekiel said, “O Sovereign LORD, you alone know.” Ezekiel knew that he could not do something so miraculous, but the true God could. And he did. God gave Ezekiel the words to speak, and life came into the bones.

Ezekiel’s vision was a picture of what God can do for spiritually dead people, people like you and I were by birth. We had no spiritual life. But, through his promise of forgiveness and eternal life in Jesus, God creates faith in our hearts to believe what he has promised. And, just like that, we are spiritually alive.

Be thankful today that yours is a God who can make the dead live!

Prayer:
Jesus, keep me spiritually alive by believing all that you have promised. Amen.

“We hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”
Acts 2:11-13

The Wonders of God

If you’ve ever walked through a busy international airport terminal, you’ve been bombarded with the discord of multiple foreign languages. The words you cannot understand sound like gibberish. And when you hear your native tongue, it is a welcome relief.

Foreigners crowded the streets and temple in Jerusalem for the Feast of the Harvest. Different languages and dialects filled the air. Suddenly, those foreigners could understand someone speaking to them in their language.

It was amazing to hear their own language. It was also perplexing because the ones speaking were from Israel, not from all over the ancient world. But what was truly refreshing was the message they heard. The disciples of Jesus were declaring the wonders of God. They shared the good news of God sending the Messiah, Jesus Christ, into the world. They spoke of the many proofs of Jesus’ divinity, culminating with his death and resurrection from the grave.

As is always the case, though, there were some who rejected this message. It was gibberish to them, and they excused this miraculous event as drunkenness.

There will always be some who reject the wonders of God. Without the Holy Spirit, those words will always be gibberish. But there will be others who hear the wonders of God and to them, there is no greater relief or comfort. The Holy Spirit comforts them with the message of the forgiveness of sins. The Spirit reassures them of God’s grace and love for them. The Spirit helps them to delight in God’s law and commands. They never tire of hearing of God’s wonders.

When you hear the wonders of God, may they be a welcome relief to you. May you find comfort and reassurance in Jesus—the Savior from your sin.

Prayer:
Holy Spirit, come and make known the wonders of God to me. Help me always to delight in your Word and work. Amen.

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Acts 2:1-4

Powered by the Spirit

You can’t miss them as you drive through the heartland of America. They’re the tallest structures in miles and miles of farmland. They’re windmills. Modern windmills can be as tall as a 32-story building when you count the turbine at its apex. And they’re built to do one thing: catch the power of the wind.

You can’t see the wind. You can’t hear it. You can see the things the wind blows. You can hear the leaves as the wind rushes through them, but the wind is invisible and silent. You don’t know where it comes from or where it goes.

In some ways, the wind is similar to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the force that powers God’s Church on earth. God’s Church acts like the turbines of a windmill. The Church is powered by the Holy Spirit.

This started on the Day of Pentecost. In a dramatic way, the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples. Peter, the same disciple who had denied knowing Jesus to a little servant girl, suddenly had the courage to preach to thousands of people.

The other disciples, who had fled from Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, went into all the world proclaiming the resurrection of the Savior Jesus. The Church of God continues this work by preaching the forgiveness of sins found in Jesus alone.

On Pentecost, the Spirit rested as a tongue of flame on each disciple. We don’t see the Holy Spirit work that way today, but the Spirit does work through the water of baptism and the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper. The Spirit works through the preaching of the God’s Word. God continues to power his Church through the Spirit.

Prayer:
Dear Lord, continue to power your people through the gift of the Holy Spirit. Amen.