God Speaks
Jesus Uses Parables to Teach the Importance of Humility and Repentance
Verse of the Day: [Jesus said,] “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (Luke 15:10 NIV 2011)
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We Respond
Luke 14
Reflection: Jesus healed a man with dropsy (This condition is also called edema: a buildup of fluid causing swelling) while He was eating at the house of a leader of the Pharisees on the Sabbath. Various translations say that Jesus took hold of the man, healed him, and sent him away. NLT reads “there was a man there whose arms and legs were swollen.” At the same dinner, Jesus saw that the men were all looking for the seats of honor, so He told the parable of guests invited to the great banquet. He made two points: 1) “For everyone who tries to honor himself shall be humbled; and he who humbles himself shall be honored.” TLB 2) Everyone (no matter their condition in life) is invited to the Great Feast, but people must positively respond to the invitation without excuses. Jesus explained the cost of discipleship–putting our love for Christ far above our love for anyone or anything else including our own lives. To be a true disciple of Jesus, we must live pure lives and be willing to suffer on behalf of others as He did. Otherwise, our promised allegiance is worthless.
Prayer: Dear God who heals and relates to people, thank You for all the ways You have healed me. Please continue to work on the swelling of pride. Instead, I want to be held as an instrument of righteousness in Your hands, sending out beautiful music for Your Kingdom. Show me how to humble myself now so that You can honor me later. Thank You for inviting me to the Great Wedding Feast and enabling me to accept. Help me to urge others to respond as well. I so want to keep You first in my life, and I claim the cross of Christ whenever I don’t. I acknowledge that apart from the indwelling work of the Holy Spirit all my promises and efforts are worthless. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, which one of these He wants you to work on or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will ask the Lord who He wants me to reach out to so that He can heal them (physically, emotionally, or socially) and then do it.
- I will ask the Lord how He wants me to humble myself and then do it.
- I will ask the Lord who He wants me to invite to dinner (or whatever means of service He chooses) and then do it cheerfully.
- I will ask the Lord who He wants me to invite to the Great Wedding Feast and then do it.
Luke 15
Reflection: Luke 15 has been called the “Lost and Found” chapter of the Bible. It contains three parables of lostness: The Lost Sheep, The Lost Coin and The Lost (Prodigal) Son. A sheep is lost when it gets distracted and wanders away from the shepherd. A coin is lost when someone is careless or not paying attention, through no fault of the coin. A son can be lost through willfulness on his part. With diligence, patience, and trust in the Lord, however, the lost things can be found. This brings great joy to those who love and care for the lost ones.
Prayer: Dear All-seeing, all-knowing, all-powerful, all-loving God, nothing is ever out of Your sight or knowledge. Keep Your people from getting distracted by all the interesting things around us. Curiosity can be deadly. Please draw people back to Yourself or go out and rescue them as the shepherd did in this parable. Jesus came to seek and to save the lost; may we, who have been found, do so as well. Please help parents, teachers, and leaders in society to be careful with the lives of children and adults under their care or direction. Help us to stay connected with them. Adult children are a particular concern as they make decisions of their own free will and may or may not seek wise counsel. It is for good reason that You command us to honor our parents. You knew that doing so would save us much grief and also bring us long life in the land You provided. Please bring the wandering, misplaced, and/or rebellious lost ones home, O Lord. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, which one of these He wants you to work on or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will spend less time with people who are “safe in the fold” and more time searching out people who have wandered away from God.
- I will spend time diligently searching for someone who is precious to me who has previously not been exposed to the truths of God.
- I will join friends who have been praying for a long time for prodigals in their lives.
- I will celebrate and praise God whenever lost ones are found.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.