May 28 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of Jesus of Nazareth. In our process of getting to know him, we usually begin with his earthly ministry. Then we must learn to make the connection between his earthly ministry and his heavenly ministry. The same Jesus who was robbed of his clothes and executed on a cross is the One who broke the dictatorship of the prince of this world. We must learn to know him as the One who is now in charge of God's armories. We must believe and experience that he can supply every need of ours, far above what we can pray or desire.

But when we have said this, we have not yet said enough. We must learn to make a connection between Jesus and the world as it existed long before he entered it as a baby. He was "before all things." He existed with God long before his earthly ministry. When the almighty speech of God created the universe, Christ was the heart and harmony of that order. Apart from Christ, the harmony of the created order disintegrates, loses coherence, is void of meaning. For "in him all things hold together." The implications are far-reaching: Jesus, who is the heart of the cosmos, is also the head of the church.

Christ, this divine person, entered into creation when it was falling apart. From the side of the Creator he came to the side of the creature. In his earthly ministry, he allowed the disintegrating forces of sin and death to spend themselves on him. By his death he turned the tide. And he emerged as the new "beginning." He gave the whole world a new direction. Leaving the tomb and entering glory, he represented a new creation, a whole reordering of life in which Christ has supremacy.

Please don't say this is too difficult. It is so tremendously profound that it's worth an hour's meditation, a life of devotion, an eternity of praise.

REFLECTIONS

Perhaps this Scripture and reading opened some new windows for you on who Jesus is and what he did. Meditate on it for a while—you don't have to put in a whole hour, but let its far-reaching truths sink in. Then praise God.

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.