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Ephesians 1:4-8

“Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.”

How could God love us before he made the world? We didn’t even exist yet, but he loved us. Have you ever daydreamed of something you hoped would happen someday? Perhaps prayed for your children or grandchildren before they were born? God’s been doing that since before time existed. He decided he wanted to adopt us into his family before we ever knew we needed one.

Why did God love us? Why bother? For reasons likely far beyond our understanding, it brings him pleasure to love us. It makes him happy. And it is for his pleasure, happiness, and glory that we are designed to exist. He showers us with kindness because he loves doing it. We don’t earn those gifts, he just wants to give them.

Here’s your freedom for today: God is generous by nature. People have a lot of ideas about who God is, and those ideas come from a lot of different places. But if we explore what the Bible says about God, we find a whole lot about how kind, generous, and loving he is. What about his anger? He’s like a protective dad whose kids got bullied on the playground. Injustice and oppression burns fury within him. But his children — those who say “yes” to his offer of adoption — he loves and defends fiercely. Open yourself to God’s generosity today. He wants to shower you with kindness — will you say “yes” to his offer of adoption?

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Ephesians 1:1-3

Share FreedomForToday.com with your friends and invite them to join us for Ephesians!

“This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus. I am writing to God’s holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus. May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.”

Paul is writing a letter to the Christian believers in Ephesus, which is made clear in these introductory verses of Ephesians. We may tend to skim through the opening lines of Paul’s letters, but they provide key historical information as well as a sense of what is most important to Paul.

Paul does not waste any time getting right into spiritual language that is pretty significant. These words are easy to gloss over but they are packed with meaning. I notice the words “all” and “every” — these are not small words. Paul wants to remind his readers that every single thing we have is because God has given it to us (and he’s not talking about material possessions — he’s talking about a whole new spiritual reality that Jesus has made possible).

Here’s your freedom for today: you can always count your spiritual blessings.

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Here’s your freedom for today: you can always count your spiritual blessings. No matter what condition you find yourself in here on earth, you have one thing Satan cannot rob from you: unity with Jesus. He can steal your possessions, physical health, or even friends and family members. But if you are a follower of Jesus, Satan can’t pry you from his grasp. Jesus is constantly providing us with spiritual blessings that matter far more than anything Satan can take. Count your spiritual blessings today — how is Jesus helping you grow spiritually and deepening your faith?

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Exodus 40

Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Exodus 40 before reading the devotional below. 

You did it! If you have read Freedom For Today daily, you have worked your way through a major book of the Old Testament. Now is a great moment to invite your friends to join us as we begin a new series tomorrow! Sharing on social media is a great way to spread the word, but your friends may read the Bible more consistently if you invite them to read with you through conversation. I hope that these devotionals can be a resource that helps people partner together through the Bible.

To finish out the book of Exodus, God moves into the Tabernacle. It’s been a year since they left Egypt, and to celebrate the first day of the first month of their second year God shows up in a big way. The cloud of his presence comes to inhabit the Tabernacle. Throughout their journey they will bring God’s tent along with them and he will continue to camp among them.

Here’s your freedom for today: the presence of God never leaves you.

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Here’s your freedom for today: the presence of God never leaves you. No matter where you go in life, no matter how many different seasons and paths you walk through, God’s presence will go with you. But just as God’s people had to do some work to carry God’s Tabernacle and establish it in each new camping spot, we have to keep making room for God in our lives. When we take God for granted, we forget about his presence. He is still there, but we ignore him. What can you do today to remain aware of God’s presence? In what ways have you seen him go with you this year?

What can you do today to remain aware of God’s presence?

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Exodus 39

Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Exodus 39 before reading the devotional below.

In today’s chapter, we see the completion of the work that God instructed the people to do. The Tabernacle is built according to his specifications, with everything laid out and crafted exactly as he said. In addition, the priestly garments are woven, with stones placed on the shoulders to represent the tribes of Israel. Aaron as the head priest will wear a gold medallion that reads, “Holy to the Lord.”

The Bible does not say how long it took to complete the Tabernacle and the priests’ garments, but I noticed the phrase “with great skill and care” a few times. Bezalel hammers out sheets of gold so thin he can make thread out of it. That’s not a quick project in and of itself, nevermind the entire project start to finish. (And I don’t know too many builders who can also embroider… this is one talented guy!)

Here’s your freedom for today: God gives you permission to slow down.

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Here’s your freedom for today: God gives you permission to slow down. We Americans tend to want to rush projects and we value mass production over a slowly handcrafted item. It’s cheaper, it’s easier, and it makes us feel more productive to produce a lot of “stuff.” We are disconnected from things that take a long time, such as growing our own food or building our own houses. God values good workmanship and excellence, not speed or high productivity rates. Take your time and be diligent at your work. It may not make you a YouTube sensation, but it will develop your character and godliness.

Take your time and be diligent at your work.

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Exodus 38

Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Exodus 38 before reading the devotional below.

With the Ark of the Covenant, table, lampstand, and incense altar complete, the interior of the Tabernacle is decorated. Recall that all of these items were either crafted of gold or were gold-plated. Today we focus on the altar of burnt offering, the washbasin, and the Tabernacle courtyard. These elements are crafted from bronze.

Note the contrast between the gold elements inside the Tabernacle and the bronze elements. One interesting perspective is that bronze represented sin and judgment, whereas gold represents God’s glory and brilliance. The items placed inside the Tabernacle were symbolic of God’s holiness, and the items outside the Tabernacle showed the sin of the people that kept them from entering into God’s holy place.

Here’s your freedom for today: God has a purpose for your offering.

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Here’s your freedom for today: God has a purpose for your offering. Some of the Israelites contributed gold, some bronze, some wood, some fabric. No offering was better than another — all the materials were needed and useful. Some materials represented God’s holiness, others represented sin and the need for a sacrifice. God had a purpose and a plan for every material, and he crafted his dwelling place from the materials they had. No matter what you have to give to God, he can use it for a purpose. Whether it is a small or big amount of money, skill, or talent, give it to God willingly and watch what he can make from it.

No matter what you have to give to God, he can use it for a purpose.

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