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Reformed Devotionals Daily Podcast

Reformed Devotionals Daily Podcast

By: Bringing the timeless truths of Scripture into the everyday lives of believers
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 Bringing the timeless truths of Scripture into the everyday lives of believers. Each day we take the next piece of the Bible and reflect on it together to help you see how Jesus is the hero of every passage of scripture. Each day we also have a spiritual challenge for you to help you grow.

reformeddevotional.substack.comChris Pretorius Christianity Spirituality
Episodes
  • Faithfulness To God Shows Up In How You Handle Everyday Responsibility

    Faithfulness To God Shows Up In How You Handle Everyday Responsibility
    Dec 15 2025
    Exodus 21:33–22:1533 “When a man opens a pit, or when a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, 34 the owner of the pit shall make restoration. He shall give money to its owner, and the dead beast shall be his.35 “When one man’s ox butts another’s, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and share its price, and the dead beast also they shall share. 36 Or if it is known that the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall repay ox for ox, and the dead beast shall be his.22 “If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and cfour sheep for a sheep. 2 1 If a thief is found dbreaking in and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him, 3 but if the sun has risen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him. He2 shall surely pay. If he has nothing, then ehe shall be sold for his theft. 4 If the stolen beast fis found alive in his possession, whether it is an ox or a donkey or a sheep, ghe shall pay double.5 “If a man causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over, or lets his beast loose and it feeds in another man’s field, he shall make restitution from the best in his own field and in his own vineyard.6 “If fire breaks out and catches in thorns so that the stacked grain or the standing grain or the field is consumed, he who started the fire shall make full restitution.7 “If a man gives to his neighbor money or goods to keep safe, and it is stolen from the man’s house, then, if the thief is found, ghe shall pay double. 8 If the thief is not found, the owner of the house shall come near to God to show whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor’s property. 9 For every breach of trust, whether it is for an ox, for a donkey, for a sheep, for a cloak, or for any kind of lost thing, of which one says, ‘This is it,’ the case of both parties shall come before God. The one whom God condemns shall pay double to his neighbor.10 “If a man gives to his neighbor a donkey or an ox or a sheep or any beast to keep safe, and it dies or is injured or is driven away, without anyone seeing it, 11 han oath by the Lord shall be between them both to see whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor’s property. The owner shall accept the oath, and he shall not make restitution. 12 But if iit is stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner. 13 If it is torn by beasts, let him bring it as evidence. He shall not make restitution for what has been torn.14 “If a man borrows anything of his neighbor, and it is injured or dies, the owner not being with it, he shall make full restitution. 15 If the owner was with it, he shall not make restitution; if it was hired, it came for its hiring fee.It is easy to think that faith is mostly about the big moments. The dramatic sins. The public failures. The obvious acts of obedience. But as we move through this section of Exodus, God presses in on something far more ordinary. He shows us that faithfulness to Him is often revealed in the small, everyday responsibilities of life. In how we treat other people’s property. In how we respond when damage is done. In whether we take responsibility or look for someone else to blame. This passage reminds us that God cares deeply about the ordinary details of our lives, because those details reveal what our hearts are really like.These laws deal with situations that feel very normal. A pit left uncovered. An animal that wanders where it should not. Property that is damaged. Something borrowed that is lost or broken. None of this feels particularly spiritual at first glance. But that is precisely the point. God is shaping a people whose faith reaches into every corner of life. He is teaching them that love for neighbour is not an abstract idea. It is worked out in responsibility, honesty, and care.Again and again, the principle is simple. If your actions cause harm, you are responsible. If your negligence leads to loss, you are accountable. God refuses to allow people to shrug their shoulders and say, accidents happen. He is not creating a culture of blame, but a culture of ownership. A people who understand that their choices affect others. A people who are willing to make things right.This is deeply countercultural. We live in a world that is very good at deflecting responsibility. We minimise our part. We justify our behaviour. We explain why it was not really our fault. But God teaches His people a better way. When something goes wrong, the question is not how do I get out of this, but how do I love my neighbour in this moment.Notice too that God makes careful distinctions. There is a difference between theft and loss. Between deliberate harm and unavoidable accident. Between negligence and circumstances beyond control. God’s justice is thoughtful. It is measured. It takes intention seriously. This tells us something important about God. He is ...
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    9 mins
  • God’s Justice Is Kinder And More Compassionate Than We Expect

    God’s Justice Is Kinder And More Compassionate Than We Expect
    Dec 14 2025
    God’s Justice Is Kinder And More Compassionate Than We ExpectWhen people read the laws in Exodus, especially the ones that deal with slavery or harm or conflict, they often feel confused. Some even feel unsettled. But these laws were never random. They were never harsh for the sake of harshness. They were given to a people who had just come out of generations of brutal oppression. They had no courts. No legal structure. No shared understanding of justice. And what God gives them in Exodus 21 is no cold parliamentary legislation. It is a picture of a society shaped by His character. It is justice with compassion. Authority with limits. Power held in check by mercy. And if we listen closely, we discover that God’s heart is far kinder and more protective than we often think.Exodus 21:1–32 (ESV)Now these are the rules that you shall set before them. When you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing. If he comes in single, he shall go out single. If he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out alone. But if the slave plainly says, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free, then his master shall bring him to God, and he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall be his slave forever.When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do. If she does not please her master, who has designated her for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has broken faith with her. If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter. If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, or her marital rights. And if he does not do these three things for her, she shall go out for nothing, without payment of money.Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death. But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint for you a place to which he may flee. But if a man wilfully attacks another to kill him by cunning, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.Whoever strikes his father or his mother shall be put to death.Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death.Whoever curses his father or his mother shall be put to death.When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist and the man does not die but takes to his bed, then if the man rises again and walks outdoors with his staff, he who struck him shall be clear, only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall have him thoroughly healed.When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged. But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money.When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman’s husband shall impose on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth.When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox shall be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox shall not be liable. But if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death. If a ransom is imposed on him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is imposed on him. If it gores a son or a daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule. If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.When we hear the word slave, we immediately think of the horrors of modern slavery or the transatlantic slave trade. But what God describes here is something very different. This is a system meant to protect the poor. To give stability to those who had lost everything. To keep the vulnerable alive in a world without social safety nets. And right at the heart of it is something that shocks us. God builds freedom into the system. Six years of work. Then release. No debt. No ongoing obligation. No strings attached. It is mercy written into law. If only the banks worked...
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    11 mins
  • God Wants Worship That Comes From Your Heart And Not Your Performance

    God Wants Worship That Comes From Your Heart And Not Your Performance
    Dec 11 2025
    There are times when we make worship more complicated than it needs to be. We worry about the right words, the right appearance, the right atmosphere. We start thinking God is impressed by our polish or our presentation. But in this short passage at the end of Exodus 20, God pulls His people back to the basics. He shows them that true worship is not about show. It is not about performance. It is not about our ability to impress Him. True worship is about coming to Him as people who know they have been rescued. People who know their need. People who come with honesty and gratitude. And maybe that is exactly what you need to hear today.Exodus 20:22–26 (ESV)And the Lord said to Moses, Thus you shall say to the people of Israel, You have seen for yourselves that I have talked with you from heaven. You shall not make gods of silver to be with me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. An altar of earth you shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you. If you make me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stones, for if you wield your tool on it you profane it. And you shall not go up by steps to my altar, that your nakedness be not exposed on it.God begins with a reminder. You have seen for yourselves that I have talked with you from heaven. In other words, God says, you do not worship a distant God. You worship a God who speaks. A God who reveals Himself. A God who draws near. Worship is never us trying to climb up to God. Worship is always God coming down to His people.And because of that, God warns them again. Do not make gods of silver or gold. Do not try to create something to stand beside Me. The temptation for Israel is the same temptation we feel in our hearts. To create something physical. Something impressive. Something visible. Something we can control. But God will not be placed beside our idols. He knows that whatever competes with Him will eventually enslave us. True worship begins with letting God be God.Then God gives a surprising instruction. Make an altar of earth. Not of polished stone. Not of carved blocks. Not of impressive craftsmanship. Just earth. Dirt. Something ordinary. Something humble. Something that reminds you that you come to God not because of what you can build but because of what He has done. And if you use stone, He says, do not shape it. Do not cut it. Do not decorate it. Because the moment we begin chiseling the stone, the moment we try to make the altar impressive, the focus moves from who God is, to how skillful we are. Worship becomes performance.And then God says something even stranger. Do not build steps leading up to the altar. Why. Because climbing lifted robes would expose the worshipper. God is telling His people something simple. Come before Me with dignity. Come before Me without show. Come before Me without trying to elevate yourself. Worship is not about rising above others. Worship is about humbly standing before a holy God who loves you.All through this passage God is stripping away the things we add to worship. He is taking away the idols. The decorations. The performance. He is removing anything that might draw our attention away from Him and back toward ourselves. And He replaces all of it with something breathtaking. In every place where I cause My name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you. That is the heart of worship. Not our ability to climb up to God, but God choosing to come down to us.And of course, this reaches its fullness in Jesus. Jesus is the place where God causes His name to be remembered. Jesus is the altar where the final sacrifice was offered. Jesus is the One who removes every barrier. Jesus is the One who brings blessing from heaven to earth. Through Him, our worship is not about what we bring but about what He has already done. We come to God not with impressive stones or perfect steps but with humble hearts that rest in Christ.So maybe your next step today is to let God simplify your worship. To stop trying to impress Him. To stop thinking your performance is what matters. Maybe it is simply to remember that worship is about God coming near to you. And that He delights to meet you when you come with honesty and gratitude. Even if all you bring is the equivalent of an altar made of dirt.PrayerFather, teach us to worship You with humility and honesty. Strip away our idols and our desire to perform. Help us remember that You are the God who comes near. Thank You for Jesus, the true altar and the place where Your name is remembered. Draw our hearts back to You in simple and joyful worship. In Jesus name, Amen. Get full access to Reformed Devotionals Daily at reformeddevotional.substack.com/subscribe
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    7 mins
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