Read
Psalm 49, Job 33:21-28, 1 Peter 1:17-23 (NLT)
Psalm 49
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
Listen to this, all you people!
Pay attention, everyone in the world!
High and low,
rich and poor—listen!
For my words are wise,
and my thoughts are filled with insight.
I listen carefully to many proverbs
and solve riddles with inspiration from a harp.
Why should I fear when trouble comes,
when enemies surround me?
They trust in their wealth
and boast of great riches.
Yet they cannot redeem themselves from death
by paying a ransom to God.
Redemption does not come so easily,
for no one can ever pay enough
to live forever
and never see the grave.
Those who are wise must finally die,
just like the foolish and senseless,
leaving all their wealth behind.
The grave is their eternal home,
where they will stay forever.
They may name their estates after themselves,
but their fame will not last.
They will die, just like animals.
This is the fate of fools,
though they are remembered as being wise. Interlude
Like sheep, they are led to the grave,
where death will be their shepherd.
In the morning the godly will rule over them.
Their bodies will rot in the grave,
far from their grand estates.
But as for me, God will redeem my life.
He will snatch me from the power of the grave. Interlude
So don’t be dismayed when the wicked grow rich
and their homes become ever more splendid.
For when they die, they take nothing with them.
Their wealth will not follow them into the grave.
In this life they consider themselves fortunate
and are applauded for their success.
But they will die like all before them
and never again see the light of day.
People who boast of their wealth don’t understand;
they will die, just like animals.
Job 33:21-28
Their flesh wastes away,
and their bones stick out.
They are at death’s door;
the angels of death wait for them.
“But if an angel from heaven appears—
a special messenger to intercede for a person
and declare that he is upright—
he will be gracious and say,
‘Rescue him from the grave,
for I have found a ransom for his life.’
Then his body will become as healthy as a child’s,
firm and youthful again.
When he prays to God,
he will be accepted.
And God will receive him with joy
and restore him to good standing.
He will declare to his friends,
‘I sinned and twisted the truth,
but it was not worth it.
God rescued me from the grave,
and now my life is filled with light.’
1 Peter 1:17-23
And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as “temporary residents.” For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake.
Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory.
You were cleansed from your sins when you obeyed the truth, so now you must show sincere love to each other as brothers and sisters. Love each other deeply with all your heart.
For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God.
Jesus Storybook Bible:
The Present (p.62)
Meditate
But as for me, God will redeem my life. He will snatch me from the power of the grave. (Psalm 49:15)
Pray
God of all grace, You are Lord over the flood. I will not trust in my own strength but put my confidence in You. I know that You will not abandon me because You gave up Your only Son for my sake. In the midst of my distress remind me that nothing, not even death, can separate me from Your love. Strengthen me with the truth that through Christ I will overcome. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
Take a moment to pray for others.
New City Catechism
Question 29: How can we be saved?
Answer: Only by faith in Jesus Christ and in his substitutionary atoning death on the cross; so even though we are guilty of having disobeyed God and are still inclined to all evil, nevertheless, God, without any merit of our own but only by pure grace, imputes to us the perfect righteous- ness of Christ when we repent and believe in him.
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