January 5 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Psalm 139:1-18:

¹O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me.
²Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
³Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
⁴For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.
⁵Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
⁶Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
⁷Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
⁸If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
⁹If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
¹⁰Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
¹¹If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.
¹²Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.
¹³For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.
¹⁴I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.
¹⁵My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
¹⁶Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.
¹⁷How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!
¹⁸If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.

Devotional

"The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." His body, like that of animals, is made of dust; but his soul by reason of the inbreathing of the "breath of life" became a living, that is, an immortal soul. Man was made in the image of God. He was created in righteousness and true holiness. He lived in and through the life giving Spirit of God, that is, the Holy Spirit. Thus "he could rightly know God, his Creator, heartily love him, and live with him in eternal blessedness, to praise and glorify him."

God in his infinite love provided for all that man needs. He gave him a helpmate, creating a woman out of one of man's ribs. Adam, the man, called the woman Eve. God placed Adam and Eve in a beautiful garden, containing all manner of trees, which were pleasant to look upon and good for food. God also placed the tree of life in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." Thus Adam and Eve lacked nothing, and were perfectly happy in intimate communion with God.

Prayer

O God, we thank Thee that Thou didst create man after Thine own image; Thou didst endue him with Thy Holy Spirit and didst place him over the works of Thine hands. We thank Thee that Thou didst design his eternal happiness and blessedness. And we thank Thee that in the creation of man, Thou didst reveal Thine almighty power, infinite wisdom, and everlasting love. We, too, are the creatures of Thine hand. Help us to adore Thee, and to abide in Thy love, that Thy name through us may not be blasphemed, but honored and glorified. Amen.

---

Scripture in Devotional: Gen. 3:20; Gen. 2:16, 17.

Click here for background on Light and Comfort and the author.