Christ Church Daily Devotion April 13 2024

In today's devotion, we read from Romans chapter 5, verses 6 through 11. It emphasizes that Christ died for us while we were still sinners, showing God's love for us. Through Jesus' death and resurrection, we are given forgiveness and eternal life as a gift from God. The challenge is to grow in this love and learn to love everyone, just as God does. We should pray for each other as we seek to follow Jesus. A hymn called "Lord, Whose Love Through Humble Service" fits well with this message. Welcome to Christ Church's Daily Devotion for April 13th, 2024. Today we will be reading from Romans chapter 5, verses 6 through 11. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this. While we were yet still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through Him? For if while we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life? Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. Tomorrow in our worship services, we will focus on a climactic passage about God's love for us in chapter 8 of this letter. Today, we stop off in chapter 5, where another key verse tells us about this defying love. Verse 8 is our focus today. But God demonstrates His love, His own love, for us in this. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Paul is emphasizing in this part of the letter that we as humans did not do anything to earn God's favor. Before Jesus came, humanity, that's you and me and everyone else, was still in a broken relationship with God. The laws and commandments of the Old Testament had done much to help with that relationship, but we were always coming up short to following them. We could not restore the relationship on our own. Only God could do that, and God did. Through Jesus' death and resurrection, we have been given forgiveness and new life, eternal life, that starts now and goes forever. And it all comes to us as a gift from this God who loves each and every one of us just because that is what God does. I see in this truth about God both great news and great challenge. I have already covered the great news. God loves you, and there is nothing you can do to change that. The great challenge? Growing in this love so that we can, in some small measure, represent this God. Any of us can love those who love us, and most of us learn how to love our family and friends, and maybe a few others, who act in ways that we do not like. But to represent this God by learning to love anybody and everybody, I am not there yet. I just know that is the direction in which I am going because I know that is where Jesus Christ is leading me. Please pray for me, and I will pray for you as we seek to follow Jesus. Your personal worship option today is one of my favorite hymns. It is Lord, Whose Love Through Humble Service, written by Albert Bailey in 1961. Here is one verse of it that fits for our focus today. As we worship, grant us vision till your love's revealing light in its height and depth and darkness dawns upon our quickensight. Making known the needs and burdens your compassion bids us bear. Stirring us to tireless striving, your abundant life to share.