January 20 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

When Paul wrote his first letter to Timothy, he was most concerned that the sound teaching be preserved: "Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care" (6:20).

This apostolic teaching which Timothy must expound and preserve concerns Jesus Christ. On this witness to Jesus the church is built, and by this teaching the people of God continue to live. No wonder the aging apostle is so passionate both in recommending the sound gospel truth and in warning against deceivers.

In the Bible verse quoted above, Paul gives a brief statement of the purpose for which Jesus came into the world—"to save sinners." Moreover, he says that this word is "trustworthy," and that it deserves full acceptance.

It is wonderful that the heart of the gospel can be stated in such simple and reliable terms: "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners." All the talk about Jesus can become very confusing. More books have been written about Christ than any one of us can ever read. But whenever we become confused, we must remember to return to the basic truth. We must find our resting point on the reliable rock bottom of the Christian faith: "Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners."

This saying is not comforting only because it is so brief and clear. What comforts us especially is that Jesus came to save sinners. Perhaps we all go through moods when we feel quite acceptable to God, while there are other times when we know that we are "not good enough." But it is exactly when we realize that we are unworthy of his love that we may believe he came for us. Christ Jesus came to save sinners. Those are the people who are "not good enough."

Reflections

Sing the first verse of "Amazing Grace," John Newton's expression of the truth that Jesus came to save sinners.

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published by Paideia Press in 1977. This updated edition is copyright 2009 by Faith Alive Christian Resources. You can order a copy of this revised version of the book directly from the publisher.

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 updated edition of Daylight are from the Holy Bible: Today's New International Version copyright 2001, 2005 by the International Bible Society.