January 3

Morning

This is what the LORD says: “In the time of favor I will answer You, and in the day of salvation I will help You; I will keep You and appoint You to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land, to apportion its desolate inheritances, — Isa 49:8 BSB

Jesus Christ Himself is the essence of the covenant, and He is one of its precious gifts. He belongs to every believer. Can you, as a believer, fully comprehend what you have in Christ? “In Him dwells all the fullness of God.” Think about that: God’s infinite power and perfection are in Him, along with the perfect beauty of humanity. Everything that Christ, as both God and man, ever had or ever will have, is yours, freely given by God’s grace to be your eternal possession.

As God, Jesus is all-knowing, all-present, and all-powerful. Isn’t it a comfort to know that all of these glorious attributes are yours? Does He have power? That power is yours to support and strengthen you, to help you defeat your enemies, and to preserve you until the end. Does He have love? Every ounce of His love is yours! You can dive into the vast ocean of His love and say, “It’s mine!” Does He have justice? Even that is yours, because His justice guarantees that everything promised to you in the covenant of grace will surely be given to you.

Everything He has as a perfect man is also yours. As a man, He was the delight of the Father, accepted by the Most High. And as a believer, God’s acceptance of Christ is your acceptance too! The love the Father had for His perfect Son, He now has for you. Everything Christ did is yours. The perfect righteousness He achieved through His spotless life, fulfilling the law and honoring it, is yours, credited to you. Christ is in the covenant.

“My God, I am Yours — what a divine comfort!
What a blessing to know that my Savior is mine!
In the heavenly Lamb, I am truly blessed,
And my heart dances at the sound of His name.”

Evening

as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him. — Luke 3:4 BSB

The voice crying in the wilderness called for a path to be prepared for the Lord—a road made ready, even in the wilderness. I want to heed the Master’s call and prepare a way for Him in my heart, a path built by His grace through the desert of my soul.

The four instructions in the text deserve my serious attention:

1. Every valley must be lifted up. Low and unworthy thoughts of God must be given up; doubts and despair must be cast out; selfish desires and worldly pleasures must be abandoned. Across these deep valleys, a glorious road of grace must be built!

2. Every mountain and hill must be leveled. Pride and self-reliance must be brought low to make a highway for the King of kings. Fellowship with God is never promised to those who are proud and arrogant. The Lord looks with favor on the humble and the broken-hearted, but He opposes the proud. My soul, ask the Holy Spirit to correct you in this area.

3. The crooked paths must be made straight. A wavering heart needs to be set on a straight path of commitment to God and holiness. Double-minded people don’t know the God of truth. My soul, make sure that in everything, you are honest and true, as if you were standing before the God who sees your heart.

4. The rough places must be made smooth. The stumbling blocks of sin must be removed, and the thorns and weeds of rebellion must be uprooted. Such a great visitor must not find muddy roads and rocky paths when He comes to honor His chosen ones with His presence. May the Lord find, in my heart this evening, a road prepared by His grace, so that He may enter and journey through every part of my soul, from the beginning of this year to its end.