Daily Devotional: Thursday, April 9, 2020
SCRIPTURE READING
Isaiah 53:11b (KJV)
by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
When you argue with your mother, usually it’s because you are trying to justify yourself. She rebukes you for hitting your little brother and you tell her, “That’s because he kicked down my Lego castle!” You’re saying your mother is wrong and you’re right. You’re saying you were justified to hit your younger brother. You’re saying you were right. You have no sin. You’re justifying yourself.
But how do we justify ourselves when we stand before God? When God rebukes us, is there anything we can say or do to justify ourselves? Will God say we’re fine for hitting our brother as long as it was because he kicked down our Lego castle? Will God listen to us when we argue with Him and try to justify ourselves?
No, God will not listen to us when we try to justify ourselves because there’s nothing we can say or do to justify ourselves. That’s how evil we are. We sin in our thoughts and words and actions every hour of every day. We are sinners. We never stop sinning.
But our verse says the Messiah (“my righteous servant”) shall “justify many.” If we can’t justify ourselves to God, how does Jesus justify us?
We are justified by knowing Jesus.
What do we have to know of Jesus for Him to justify us?
We must know Him as our Savior—as the only One Who can ever save us. We must know He is righteous. We must know He died as a sin offering for us. We must believe He takes our sin on Himself. We must know we can never justify ourselves—only Jesus can justify us. We must shut our mouths before God and point to Jesus. In exchange for our sin, He gives us His righteousness.
That is how Jesus saves us. By knowing Him, He justifies us. He saves us. He Himself bears our iniquities for us.
by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
QUESTIONS
- Who tried to justify themselves at home today? Did you?
- Why do we try to justify ourselves?
- Can anyone justify himself to God?
SONG OF THE WEEK
Stricken, smitten, and afflicted
Stricken, smitten, and afflicted,
See Him dying on the tree!
’Tis the Christ by man rejected;
Yes, my soul, ’tis He, ’tis He!
’Tis the long expected Prophet,
David’s Son, yet David’s Lord;
By His Son God now has spoken:
‘Tis the true and faithful Word.
Tell me, ye who hear Him groaning,
Was there ever grief like His?
Friends through fear His cause disowning,
Foes insulting His distress;
Many hands were raised to wound Him,
None would interpose to save;
But the deepest stroke that pierced Him
Was the stroke that Justice gave.
Ye who think of sin but lightly,
Nor suppose the evil great,
Here may view its nature rightly,
Here its guilt may estimate.
Mark the sacrifice appointed,
See Who bears the awful load;
‘Tis the Word, the Lord’s Anointed,
Son of Man and Son of God.
Here we have a firm foundation,
Here the refuge of the lost;
Christ’s the Rock of our salvation,
His the Name of which we boast.
Lamb of God for sinners wounded,
Sacrifice to cancel guilt!
None shall ever be confounded
Who on Him their hope have built.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
Father, I constantly justify myself and make excuses for my sin. Please help me to grow in humility and in honesty before You and others, such that I can quickly admit when I am wrong and ask forgiveness of those I’ve offended. Because of pride this is really hard for me to do. I despair of ever changing. With me I know it is impossible. But I know that with You, Lord, all things are possible. So please, gracious Father, help me to improve in this area of my life. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
OTHER PRAYER NEEDS
- Hope and joy in the Lord this Easter
- Wisdom and strength for those who have the burden of leadership in this time
- Patience and grace for one another in our homes
SCRIPTURE MEMORY THIS WEEK
Isaiah 53:11-12 (KJV)
11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
