humility’s reward

But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you.

Luke 14:10

Jesus recognizes that true humility is a mark of exceptional character. God can do the most with those who think of themselves the least. He exalts the person who is truly humble.

This was something that Jesus Himself modeled. He humbled Himself. He made Himself a servant. Jesus was obedient to the Father in every way, even submitting to the cross as an act of supreme love, humility, and sacrifice.

Pride was the original sin. It would make sense that humility is the mark of a repentant, obedient, forgiven heart in Jesus. It is amazing how much regular humility from one person can affect so many others for the good over time. It may be the ultimate dividend with blessings into eternity!

“The reward for humility and fear of the LORD is riches and honor and life”. Proverbs 22:4

many believed

And many believed in him there.

John 10:42

So many believed

in the miraculous gift

of a Savior

born a man

yet clearly divine

So many believed

as He spoke the truth

Master and Teacher

words so strong

words of life

So many believed

the sacrificed Lamb

grieving Man of Sorrows

dying our death

to bring us peace

So many believed

now around the throne

a throng of the redeemed

praising forever a mighty God

home… from pain and sin released

Jesus demands repentance.

No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

Luke 13:3

These are true words from Jesus, true to His mission as Savior, and true for us today. A brief summary of the context for repentance (the statement is made twice in a three verse section) helps us see the urgency Jesus is expressing. First, Jesus is speaking to a large crowd. This is all part of an extended sermon starting in Luke 12:1 and ending in Luke 13:9. So this call to repentance is setting up the conclusion and application to all Jesus has said thus far.

Secondly, a common theme of this sermon involves judgment, the last days, the return of the Son of Man, and persecution that will come to His people. It is clear that Jesus and His kingdom will meet worldwide opposition and only those who repent and believe in Him will escape at the Master’s return to judge (Luke 12:35-48).

The response to Jesus can only be acceptable if it involves true repentance (turning from sin, aware of His holiness and our unworthiness before Him that deserves judgment) and faith (complete assent to Jesus as Savior from sin, giver of new life, and Lord to be obeyed). This is the final appeal of the gospel even today. It isn’t a feel-good soft sell positive affirmation. It is a life or death passionate plea from the lips of Jesus Himself.

more than I worry about

For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.

Luke 12:23

The longer I live on this earth, the more the wisdom of Jesus’ call to not be anxious about the stuff of this life calms me. We live in a world obsessed with stuff. We miss out on the relationships that God wants to bless us with as we toil in vain for the temporary. Life can’t be about air-fryers, athletic shoes, and 401K’s.

Jesus points us to the real things that matter most: His kingdom driving our ambitions and needs. He who clothes the lilies of the field and feeds the birds of the air will supply all our needs! It is the Father’s great joy to bless us with His kingdom (Luke 12:32). Do we really need anything else?

And so, Lord, I rest in the promise that You are giving me Yourself and Your kingdom that cannot be shaken. I will trust what this life gives me, through Your gracious and good provision, because it all eventually opens up to so much more in You, Lord! Amen

lamp on a stand

No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.

Luke 11:33

A lamp on a stand is probably the most common of household items, perhaps overlooked even as it is in constant use. I just did a mental run through of my own home: there are four lamps on stands to give light in four different rooms. Jesus took such a common circumstance and infused it with spiritual significance to teach us about our own utilitarian importance.

The purpose of a lamp is to give light, and the source of that light isn’t nearly as significant as the substance (the light) it produces. It could be a simple candle, an oil lamp, or an electric light. The purpose of the lamp is to be visible so that in turn it makes things visible. What burns from this source is what gives the helpful light.

And so, believers in Jesus are sources of the light of the life of the gospel as we let God’s work and truth shine through us. Each day of our lives we are strategically placed on the stand of God’s own choosing to brighten a dark world, point out the dangers of the darkness, and lead away from it to a much better way and place. Be the light and shine, wherever God has you placed!

harvest labor

And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

Luke 10:2

Lord,

You commanded these 72 to serious prayer for Your harvest field to be filled with needed laborers, even as You sent them to do powerful ministry, serving in Your name. Today, we Your people, have not always served You with this same prayer driving us.

Forgive our narrow-minded view of the kingdom. Forgive our Christian consumerism, selfishness, and “me-first” thinking. Move us to serve and see the bigger need for laborers in a plentiful world-wide harvest. As You supply laborers, may we together reap what the gospel has sown and You are nurturing!

May the day to day circumstances we each face become kingdom-expanding harvests as You save souls. Keep us harvest obsessed, working, unified, and willing to train all willing new hands for Your harvest, O Lord of the harvest!

Amen

He goes before

When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

John 10:4

No matter what we face

whether less or more

we have a loving Shepherd

Who always goes before

When the path is easy

and the road’s level and sure

it was all laid out by our Savior

Who walked it all before

Sometimes the valley’s dark

and our feelings are unsure

we can still take courage

that our Shepherd leads before

And in the pastures verdant

we rest safe and secure

it’s because Jesus took us

where He has been before

At the end of the journey

as death opens its black door

His light will stream through beckoning

because Jesus has gone before