Devotion for Friday, January 16, 2026

And He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far away from Me.  ‘But in vain do they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men’ (Mark 7:6-7).

Things do not seem to have changed much.  Some will do what they do only for themselves.  The Lord seeks our heart and desires that we humbly walk with Him.  He will lift us up and out of the mire of sin to learn how to love as He first loved us.  It is not just what we do or say on the outside, but who we are from the inside out that matters.  Our Lord will lead us into righteousness.

Lord, You know the wickedness that is in my heart.  You know the places where Your grace needs to wash away my sin so that I have a heart that loves You and my neighbor.  Guide me out of the mess of sin that is within me to see things through Your eyes.  Help to love You and others the way You do.  Teach me these things and, by grace, forgive me where I get snared in what is wrong.

Lord Jesus, Your grace is sufficient.  Through the trials of this age, You will teach me what it means to love others.  Guide me now and always to humbly walk in the way You would have me go.  Guard my tongue and help the cleanness You give come from within me and for Your sake.  Let my precepts be Your precepts.  Teach me to live faithfully and not in the vanity of this age.  Amen.