Psalm 67:1-2 - May God be gracious to us and bless us and make His face to shine upon us, that Your way may be known on earth, Your saving power among all nations.
God chose the offspring of Abraham, the children of Israel, to be His own people: "You shall be My treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (Exodus 19:5b-6). The promised Messiah would be born among them, but He would not only be the Savior of Israel. In His covenant with Abraham, God said, "In your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed" (Genesis 22:18). The Lord chose His people and made His face to shine on them so His way would be "known on earth" and His "saving power among all nations." God said to His Son, the Messiah: "I will make You as a light for the nations, that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth" (Isaiah 49:6b).
God loved the world and sent His Son as a light for Israel and for the nations, to bring salvation to the ends of the earth. Jesus the Messiah was crucified to atone for the sins of all people, raised to life and exalted as the Lord of every nation. He is the Good Shepherd who said of His sheep, "I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice. So there will be one flock, one Shepherd" (John 10:16). The crucified and risen Lord Jesus sent His followers to make disciples of all nations, to baptize in the Name of the Triune God and to teach all that He commanded. All who trust in Jesus for salvation are "a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession" (1 Peter 2:9a).
Having received the blessings of forgiveness and eternal life, we are to make God's saving power known, to "proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9b). This is our task today, to be witnesses for Jesus and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to bring Christ to the nations and the nations to the church. Some of us may never travel to distant nations to teach the Good News of Jesus, but we can offer financial support for missionaries and other Kingdom workers and pray for them. We can speak of the Savior's love to lost sheep who live near us, to a family member or friend, to a co-worker or neighbor. We pray that the Holy Spirit will enlighten them through the Gospel as sheep near and far, sheep from every nation, and are brought into the Shepherd's fold.
WE PRAY: Jesus, I pray that my words and actions will reflect the light of Your love. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Carol Geisler.
Reflection Questions:
1. How does God show that He loves the whole world and not just the people of Israel?
2. What did God mean when He told Abraham that all the nations of the world will be blessed by his offspring? What offspring was He referring to?
3. Can you think of at least five different ways you can help make God's saving power known to others?
Today's Bible Readings: 1 Chronicles 10-12 1 Corinthians 8
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