Click here for the DRB Daily Sign Up form! TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: Jeremiah 33–34; Psalm 74; 1 John 5 Click HERE to give! One Year Bible Podcast: Join Hunter and Heather Barnes on the Daily Radio Bible, a daily Bible‑in‑a‑year podcast with 20‑minute Scripture readings, Christ‑centered devotion, and guided prayer.This daily Bible reading and devotional invites you to live as a citizen of Jesus’ kingdom, reconciled, renewed, and deeply loved.

TODAY'S EPISODE:

Welcome to the Daily Radio Bible! On this August 24th episode, Heather joins us as we continue our journey through the Scriptures with Jeremiah 33–34, Psalm 74, and 1 John 5.

In Jeremiah, we hear God’s promises of healing, restoration, and renewed joy spoken into a time of devastation and uncertainty. Even as Jerusalem faces destruction and the people struggle with broken promises, God declares that desolate places will once again be filled with songs of thanksgiving.

Psalm 74 gives voice to the pain of those who cannot understand what has happened around them. The psalmist cries out honestly, asking God to remember his people and act on their behalf.

Then, in 1 John 5, John repeatedly reminds his readers of what they can know. Yet this knowing is not about having every mystery solved or every belief perfectly organized. It is about knowing the love and presence of God deeply enough to trust him when life does not make sense.

Today’s devotion invites us to hold uncertainty with humility, resist the desire to master God, and rest in what has been revealed to us in Jesus: God is love, we belong to him, and he is present with us even in our unknowing.

TODAY'S DEVOTION:

What do you know?

John wants to make sure that you and I know a few things. Before he signs off on his letter, his parting words carry this refrain again and again:

We know.

But John is not telling us that we must know and believe all the right things so that our lives will finally make sense. Many people approach religion this way.

We think that if we try hard enough to understand all the right doctrines, believe all the right things, and do everything correctly, then life will make sense and everything will go well.

But that is simply not how life works.

There are too many things that happen in this world that do not make sense. We all face pain, disappointment, loss, confusion, and circumstances that cannot be neatly explained, no matter how much we think we know about God or how carefully arranged our beliefs may be.

John does want us to know some things.

But the things he wants us to know are the things that help us trust when life does not make sense.

John writes to us with the heart of a loving pastor. He calls us his children. He wants us to know what is true, not so that we can control life, explain every mystery, or win every theological argument, but so that we can trust God when our knowledge reaches its limits.

Know that God is love.

Know that you have fellowship with him.

Know that he is with you now, even in your unknowing.

John ends his letter with a tender warning: “Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.”

Stay away from idols, child.

An idol can be more than a statue or a false god. Even our need for certainty can become an idol. Our theology, our interpretations, and our desire to explain everything can begin to take the place of trust.

Know what you need to know.

And one of the things we need to know is that not everything can be known.

So be careful about trying to nail down every mystery. Do not approach faith, theology, or the Bible as something that can be mastered and controlled.

When John tells us that he wants us to know, he is not inviting us to eliminate all uncertainty. He is inviting us into a journey of faith, one in which we must learn to live with mystery, paradox, and questions that do not yet have answers.

Faith is not certainty about everything.

Faith is trust in the One who is with us in everything.

So know what you need to know.

God is love.

You belong to him.

You have fellowship with the Father, Son, and Spirit.

And even when life does not make sense, you are not alone.

Live as a child of God, because that is what you are.

That’s the prayer I have for my own soul. That’s the prayer I have for my family, for my husband, my daughters, and my son. And that’s the prayer I have for you.

May it be so.

TODAY'S PRAYERS:

Lord God Almighty and everlasting father you have brought us in safety to this new day preserve us with your Mighty power that we might not fall into sin or be overcome by adversity. And in all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose through Jesus Christ Our Lord amen.

Oh God you have made of one blood all the peoples of the earth and sent your blessed son to preach peace to those who are far and...