DAILY BREAD READING (Published Daily by Our Daily Bread Ministries)
OCTOBER 3, 2026
READ: Hebrews 4 (Focus vs. 14-16)
MEMORY VERSE
“[Our high priest] has been tempted . . . just as we are—yet he did not sin.” Hebrews 4:15
BACKGROUND
My father-in-law was a gunner in a bomber over Europe during World War II. His plane was shot down and he was captured, spending several months as a prisoner of war.
Jim rarely spoke of the experience, but those who knew him before the war said that he’d been a happy-go-lucky young man with a beaming smile. His war experiences turned him into a moody, withdrawn person.
Trying to understand his experience, I read Masters of the Air, Donald Miller’s description of the air war over Europe. Miller helped me grasp the physical and psychological price paid by these airmen. His book increased my compassion for my father-in-law.
The writer of Hebrews wrote of our “great high priest” (4:14)—Jesus Himself—who did much more than merely gain understanding of our struggles. He lived among us, learning how we feel in every situation.
Hebrews tells us, “We do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin” (v. 15). Think of it! Jesus knows what we endure. He’s been tempted just as we are.
Learning to have a heart of compassion like Jesus is a great way to show His love to those who need Him. May God give us, by His Holy Spirit, an understanding heart that reaches out to others in love and mercy.
Bill Crowder
INSIGHT
The letter to the Hebrews explains what Jesus did for us, but to better appreciate that, it’s important to understand the system of sacrifice instituted in Leviticus (4:1–7:10).
In Hebrews, the writer affirms the humanity of Christ who, though fully God, “had to be made like [humans], fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God” (2:17).
The writer explains, “If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood . . . why was there still need for another priest to come?” (7:11).
Jesus’ humanity and His divine nature enable Him to “empathize” with us in “our weaknesses” (4:15) and to redeem us once for all from our sins. Because He empathizes with us, we can seek His help as we reach out to those around us. In the process, we point them to Christ, our once-for-all sacrifice.
Tim Gustafson
APPLICATION
Who do you struggle to have compassion for? How can you develop a more understanding heart?
PR’s (Pastor Richard) RE-EMPHASIS (From Today’s Post)
“Learning to have a heart of compassion like Jesus is a great way to show His love to those who need Him.”
PR’s TAKE
“We are all different (and respond differently to trauma in life.) Don’t judge, understand instead.” Roy T. Bennett
“We must learn to regard people less in the light of what they do or omit to do, and more in the light of what they suffer.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer
PRAYER
“Dear Father, please forgive me for being harsh with others. Teach me the grace of compassion so they might see Your love in me.”
TODAY’S HYMN/WORSHIP/PRAISE/GOSPEL SONG
“THE SAVIOR OF MEN CAME TO SEEK AND SAVE”
The Saviour of men came to seek and to save
The souls who were lost to the good;
His Spirit was moved for the world which he loved
With the boundless compassion of God.
And still there are fields where the labourers are few,
And still there are souls without bread,
And still eyes that weep where the darkness is deep,
And still straying sheep to be led.
Except I am moved with compassion,
How dwelleth thy Spirit in me?
In word and in deed Burning love is my need;
I know I can find this in thee.
O is not the Christ ‘midst the crowd of today
Whose questioning cries do not cease?
And will he not show to the hearts that would know
The things that belong to their peace?
But how shall they hear if the preacher forbear
Or lack in compassionate zeal?
Or how shall hearts move with the Master’s own love,
Without his anointing and seal?
Except I am moved with compassion,
How dwelleth thy Spirit in me?
It is not with might to establish the right,
Nor yet with the wise to give rest;
The mind cannot show what the heart longs to know
Nor comfort a people distressed.
O Saviour of men, touch my spirit again,
And grant that thy servant may be
Intense every day, as I labour and pray,
Both instant and constant for thee.
Except I am moved with compassion,
How dwelleth thy Spirit in me?
In word and in deed Burning love is my need;
I know I can find this in thee.
