"May Christ our Intercessor be, And through His blood and merit, Read from His book that we are free, With all who life inherit. Then we shall see Him face to face, With all His saints in that blest place, Which He has purchased for us.

"O Jesus Christ, do not delay, But hasten our salvation; We often tremble on our way, In fear and tribulation. O hear and grant our fervent plea: Come, mighty Judge, and set us free, From death and ev'ry evil."

While many people like to share their daily experiences on social media, there are those who prefer a more traditional record of events and keep a written journal of their thoughts and the events in their lives. Even if we don't keep a daily diary, our lives are on record, written by the Lord's hand before we were even born. The psalmist expresses the wonder of God's all-knowing care: "In Your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them" (Psalm 139:16b). It is comforting to know that our lives are held so closely in God's hand. He knows our days before we experience them. But would we like to be judged according to our detailed diaries?

In a vision of the Day of Judgment, the apostle John sees the nations summoned to stand before Jesus, the Judge and King. John writes, "And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened" (Revelation 20:12a). The dead are judged according to what is written in the books. It is a vision that inspires more terror than comfort, but those books are not the only written record to be opened on that day. John writes, "Then another book was opened, which is the book of life" (Revelation 20:12b). Jesus our Judge has another book, His own book, the Lamb's Book of Life. The names of all who trust in Jesus for salvation are written in His book and, by God's grace, our names were recorded in that book before we were born, "written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain" (Revelation 13:8b).

When Jesus was crucified, the dreadful record of our sins was nailed to the cross and our sins were washed away in the blood of the Lamb who was slain. When we write in our daily journals about days of trembling "on our way in fear and tribulation," we have the comfort and hope of knowing that our sins are forgiven and our names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. When our mighty Judge and Savior returns on the Last Day, the books will be brought out. The Lamb's precious book will be opened, and He will "read from His book that we are free." Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!

WE PRAY: Lord Jesus, Savior and Judge, keep me safe in Your care until You return. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Carol Geisler. It is based on the hymn, "The Day Is Surely Drawing Near," which is number 508 in the Lutheran Service Book.

Reflection Questions:

1. Do you keep a journal? If so, do you hand write it or do it on your computer?

2. How do you envision the appearance of the books mentioned in Revelation?

3. Though we all sin greatly, what has God done for us so we need not fear His eternal judgment?

Today's Bible Readings: Ezekiel 14-15    2 Timothy 1

To Download Devotion MP3 to your computer, right click here and select "Save Link As" or "Save Target As" or "Download Linked File As"