Exodus 13:1-2, 11-16; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58; Luke 24:1-12
Even as God required the lives of the firstborn of Egypt because of the sins of oppressive pharaoh, he required the life of his only begotten Son for the sins of the world. By his strong hand, God brought his people out of slavery. And by the strength of him who now sits at his right hand, Jesus Christ the Lord, God has brought out of captivity to sin all those who believe in his name.
Through the ages, the Jews have remembered the Exodus, how God brought them through the Red Sea, delivering them from the house of slavery. Even so, we remember how God has brought us through the waters of Christian baptism, delivering us from sin, death, and the devil—the worst oppressor of them all. Just as the Egyptian soldiers, a certain death to the escaping Hebrews, were engulfed in the waters of the sea, our own oppressor is swallowed up in baptism. So, we are able to proclaim with Isaiah and Paul, “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
“Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Prayer: Thank you, Lord Jesus, for the victory that we have over sin and death, only through you. Amen.
Today’s devotion was written by Mark Ryman, Communications Coordinator for the NALC.