October 4 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Psalm 8:

¹O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.
²Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.
³When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
⁴What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
⁵For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
⁶Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:
⁷All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;
⁸The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
⁹O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

Devotional

What is man? Man once was the noblest creature on earth, the crown of creation. He was created in the image of God, in per­fect righteousness and holiness. He was created to know God, to glorify him, and to enjoy him for ever. But man gave ear unto Satan, a murderer from the beginning, a liar and the father of lies. Man believed the devil rather than God. He willfully transgressed God's command, and by so doing separated himself from God and fled from him. He sank into the depths of sin, and became the vilest creature on earth, so vile and wicked that he is capable of the worst crimes and has actually committed them.

What is man? What is man after he sinned against God? The Bible says, "God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." He is incapable of doing any good, and is prone to all evil. So it is to this day. Why did not God wipe sinful man from the face of the earth? Why did He not create other beings that would serve him? Why should He still be mind­ful of fallen man?

We cannot explain the "why" but He was and He is mindful. God's love was so great; the gift of his Son so unspeakable; the redemption through his blood so marvelous. We can only stand in awe and adore. God has redeemed his people from the lowest degradation, and exalts them to the highest glory. His name be praised for ever.

Prayer

O Lord our God, we would hallow Thy name, we would magnify Thy grace, we would show forth Thy praises; for Thou hast called us out of darkness into Thy marvelous light. Thou hast brought us from death unto life eternal. We beseech Thee grant us grace, that we may present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy acceptable unto Thee. May Thy Spirit rule in our hearts so that we may walk humbly before Thee, remembering not only what we are in ourselves, but also what Thou hast made us in Christ Jesus. In his name we pray. Amen.

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Scripture in Devotional: Gen. 6:5.

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