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Christian Devotional – June 24, 2025
Why I Believe in Christ, Day 5 The sacrifice. Read Romans chapter 5. We can’t possibly do anything to save ourselves. As we have seen from the previous chapters, everything is designed to make us understand that we can’t be holy on our own. God is holy and just, and we are sinful. We desperately needed an intervention. God provided that through Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ became the sacrifice on our behalf. He was perfect and lived the perfect life that God was demanding through the law. He was killed as payment for the sins that we have committed. Jesus Christ’s sacrifice was not required, and he certainly didn’t have…
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Christian Devotional – June 23, 2025
Why I Believe in Christ, Day 4 Faith, not the Law. Read Romans chapter 4. Paul continues explaining the importance of the law, and yet the inadequacy of the law to actually save us. He goes back and gives an example that all the Jewish people would know: Abraham, the father of the Jewish people. He was the man that they would have considered as righteous as righteous could be. However, Paul wants the people to understand that it was not Abraham following the law that made him righteous. Abraham didn’t even have the law. That was given to Moses centuries later. But Abraham was still considered righteous because of…
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Christian Devotional – June 22, 2025
Why I Believe in Christ, Day 3 The Law is not in our favor. Read Romans chapter 3. In chapter 3 of Romans, we see Paul spend a lot of time discussing the law from the Old Testament. The Jewish people were taught the importance of keeping the law. They understood the law to be the way into God’s good graces. Keeping the law was how you make God happy. So, Jews would spend every waking moment of their life doing their best to follow every single commandment in the law. However, that’s not possible. Paul says in verse 23 that we’ve all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.…
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Christian Devotional – June 21, 2025
Why I Believe in Christ, Day 2 God is just and fair. Read Romans chapter 2. Paul is continuing to explain the reasons behind his faith in Christ. Today, we see that God is indeed fair and just. Admittedly, it doesn’t always seem that way. We see “good” things happening to “bad” people, and “bad” things happening to “good” people and, in our mind, the world is not fair. However, God sees things from a higher and deeper level. God understands that there aren’t “good” people and “bad” people. We’re all just sinful, which makes us all bad and deserving of judgment. God also is holy and just and he…
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Christian Devotional – June 20, 2025
Why I believe in Christ, Day 1 A declaration of faith. Read Romans chapter 1. The book of Romans has played an incredibly pivotal role in the history of the church. Paul wrote this book appealing to the believers in Rome and asking for their help and support in his ministry. Paul makes a tremendous defense of his faith in the gospel. Versus are used and quoted regularly from this book. Martin Luther was studying this book when he began the protestant reformation. Entire evangelism programs are built around verses in the book of Romans. And, plenty of theological debates and discussions have occurred around the topics throughout this entire…
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Christian Devotional – June 19, 2025
But God, Why? Day 15 Yet, I will rejoice. Read Habakkuk chapter 3, focusing on verses 17-19. Habakkuk has heard all the difficulties and struggles that he and the rest of the Israelites are going to have to endure. Habakkuk understands that this is part of God’s will. Habakkuk even understands that God is going to judge the people for the things that they’re going to do, but that will only happen within his timeline, not Habakkuk’s,. Knowing all of the struggles and the trials and the challenges he’s going to go through, Habakkuk says, “Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord.” Why do we praise God? Do we bless…
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Christian Devotional – June 18, 2025
But God, Why? Day 14 Waiting while terrified. Read Habakkuk chapter 3, focusing on verses 13-16. Habakkuk understands the level of destruction that is coming on those people who have gone against the Lord. Habakkuk also understands the salvation that will come to those who believe in God. He is admittedly terrified to be around and near the judgment of God, but he says that he will patiently wait for God to bring about the salvation that he has promised. Waiting is hard. No one likes to wait and sometimes, waiting can truly be terrifying. As we look at the things that God has for us, do we understand that…
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Christian Devotional – June 17, 2025
But God, Why? Day 13 God’s wrath. Read Habakkuk chapter 3 focusing on verses 7-12. There are things that make God angry. Prevalent sin is one of those things. When God chooses to judge, we see his full anger towards sin on display. The idea that God will judge the nations and put them through a time of harvest to determine what crop is of him, and what crop is not… it’s an incredible thought. God is holy. God will judge everything that is not holy. God, in his righteousness will address everything that has been done. Habakkuk understands that now. He listened to God go through the five things…
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Christian Devotional – June 16, 2025
But God, Why? Day 12 Habakkuk’s response to all God has shared. Read Habakkuk chapter 3, focusing on verses 1-6. God is all-powerful. God is all-mighty. God is completely victorious. In this chapter, we see how Habakkuk responds to all that he has learned about God. He has questioned God, and God has responded. Habakkuk cannot stay the same. His encounter with God has impacted him and he must rejoice and praise God. God has shared with Habakkuk the extent of his holiness, and Habakkuk writes his praises of God. As Habakkuk reflects on what he has learned about God, he sees that God is never changing. He will remain…
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Christian Devotional – June 15, 2025
But God, Why? Day 11 Don’t follow idols. Read Habakkuk chapter 2, focusing on verses 18-20. God shares the final sin with Habakkuk that will punish. Idol worship. At that time, it was very common for people to take wood or metal and cover it with gold and talk to it like it was a living, breathing entity. God is instead saying, how silly are you to ascribe that level of consciousness to something that can’t hear you and can’t speak to you, and certainly can’tdo anytjing for you. God wants people to understand that he is the creator and he is the one to be worshiped, not the creation…