December 18 Daily Devotional

Monthly Theme:

The Prince of Peace, the Son of David, was announced by Isaiah. The story of his coming was proclaimed by the evangelists, each with a different emphasis. Jesus made God's kingship real in this world. Today, the kingdom is here—and it is coming.

Bible Reading:

Luke 3:1–6

Bible Text:

He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins (Luke 3:3).

Devotional:

God sent John the Baptizer to prepare people for the meeting with his Son. John expected the Messiah to come with judgment. In order to meet him, John said, people should repent of sin, be washed and cleansed.

The surprise of Jesus' coming was that he did not appear with an outward show of power and judgment. He came to suffer and die for our sins. It was love-power that set up his kingdom.

But he will come back to drive all evil away. Then we will all be judged by what we did with his love.

We are all going to see Jesus. And the only right way to prepare for that meeting is by listening to John the Baptizer. None of us can get around him on our way to Jesus. All of us must confess sins, be washed, and be forgiven.

John's ministry is taken up into the message of the church of all ages. The church must make sure that "repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in Jesus' name to all nations" (Luke 24:47). John's baptism with water was a prophetic sign of the forgiveness we find in the blood of Jesus.

The road of repentance brings us to Jesus. Repentance is not so much an emotional thing as a practical decision to turn. It's a change, a commitment. A person who repents turns from one way and goes in another direction.

If we want to be with Jesus, his way must be ours, his will our desire.

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published in 1994. This edition is copyright by Faith Alive Christian Resources, from whom may be ordered Daylight, the predecessor of Twilight.

A man of many accomplishments, Andrew Kuyvenhoven is probably best known for his contributions to Today (formerly The Family Altar), a widely-used monthly devotional booklet associated with the Back to God Hour. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations for this edition of Twilight are from the New International Version

Be sure to read the "Preface" and the "Acknowledgments" by the author.