Jesus has been speaking with his disciples, trying to impart some final wisdom and direction before his death, leaving them with words of comfort for the trying days ahead that they can’t even comprehend yet. And then he follows that by praying with them and over them.
He starts off his prayer by glorifying God and asking that God be glorified through him. He’s requesting that everything he’s about to say and do be done for God’s glory, for his plan that he had from the very beginning of the world. From the very start of our existence God planned for his son to save us all. And Christ is recognizing that here, acknowledging that God’s plan and God’s glory come first.
Then he prays over his disciples, his closest of friends and followers. He has been pouring into them all that God has given him, and he’s praying that it all takes root, that his disciples take the message of salvation and spread it everywhere. He’s praying out his hopes for them, his love for them, his joy in them. How beautiful to see his love and passion for the people God has placed into his care and for his purpose. He prays not that they have it easy, not that they will live perfect lives, but that God will protect them so that they can do his good and perfect will. He prays they are in the world but protected, different from society and so like Christ.
And then, my favorite part. He prays for us! Jesus Christ prayed for each of us. He prayed for all believers, all those that would hear the message of salvation. He prayed that we, as believers, would be unified.
This is beautiful and also a little disheartening when I read it. Because I see how little we are unified sometimes. I see how we lose focus. Jesus spent this entire prayer to God focused on God’s plan and God’s glory. He wanted us to be unified in that. But how unified are we? Churches and Christians are so frequently distracted by the little arguments, the differences of opinions, that we lose sight of what Jesus’s greatest hope for us was. He wanted us to be unified in our faith, actively working to show God to others.
Personal confession time. I have some major personal issues with some people in my church. Some bitterness. Some anger. Some hurt. And I asked myself a few months ago how I was supposed to keep dealing with these people over and over again if all they were going to do was insult me and hurt me? And one Sunday morning, before I was supposed to be leading others before God in worship and adoration, I asked God. “How do I do this? I’m so tired of coming into church Sunday after Sunday and feeling like this. What should I do?” And I had the very clear image of Jesus smiling and welcoming Judas into his disciples. He walked and talked and worshiped and interacted with that man for months. And I thought, “Did he know? He knew he would be betrayed, but had God revealed to him who it would be even from first meeting? And if he knew, how did he do it!?”
But if Jesus could love Judas and interact with him on a near-daily basis, then I could love this person who angers and hurts me so.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m still bitter, probably more often than I should be. But it’s something I’m dealing with and learning to set aside. Usually. It’s going to take more prayer I think. But maybe you have something in your life, or someone, that is keeping you from being unified with your fellow believers as well.
Take some time today and prepare yourself in prayer with me. Ask yourself:
What kind of prayer life do I have? Do I have a healthy practice of placing everything before God?
Am I putting God’s plan first in my prayers and in my actions?
How can I better pray for those around me? For the message of salvation to be spread through me?
Am I so focused on the tiny disagreements that I have with other believers that I lose sight of how I should be working alongside them?
What should be my specific prayer to God that would help unite me in his great purpose with other members of our church body?
My prayer for you today is that you spend time deep in prayer with God. Be specific. Analyze your heart and align your plans with God’s plan so that you can better show God’s love and glory to others. Pray that God’s plan be first. Pray over your family and friends that they show his glory and put God’s plan first. And pray over other believers, that they all be unified in spreading the gospel message of salvation to all nations.
Life is hard. There are terrible things that all people, even Christians, experience simply because we live in a fallen and sinful world. Some of the hard things people experience are because of their own poor choices, others are because of someone else’s poor choices, and still others are simply things that cannot be controlled. Financial stress comes to those who are unwise with their money, car accidents happen when people are paying attention to their phone instead of the road, sickness such as cancer can occur in the healthiest and best people. Life is hard.
This Psalm (88) is written by Heman the Ezrahite, and unlike most other laments in Psalms, it doesn’t end on a positive, hopeful, note. Instead, it concludes with darkness. This psalmist equates his life’s troubles to nearing Sheol (v.3). He feels weak, overwhelmed, desperate, rejected, and lonely. Heman writes that his eyes are worn out from crying out all day long (v.9).
If you’re like me, you may be wondering why in the world this Psalm is included in Scripture… it offers no hope and seemingly no connection to an amazing God. Why would this be allowed in the Bible?? Doesn’t it turn others off our faith to have someone just writing about how hard life is, even after worshiping God? How does this chapter bring me anything for my faith walk if it’s just about sadness?
Well, despite being credited as one of the saddest psalms, after some prayerful consideration I also see how important this psalm can be. Throughout the psalm Heman writes about coming to God, crying out to Him, raising his hands to the Lord, and continually praying (vv.1, 9, 13). It seems that even with his world crashing down around him and when he feels like he is drowning, his first reaction is to reach out to God. What an example of faithful living!
The life of a Christian is never stated to be easy. In fact, there are times in everyone’s life that I would expect them to be in a similar place as Heman was when writing this psalm. Overwhelmed, exhausted, alone, in the dark. If God ‘allowed’ this psalm to be part of his God-breathed Scriptures, then we have to believe it holds value for our lives. There must be value in the pain and hardship that Heman describes, and the pain we still go through in the modern day. The lesson we can take away from Heman’s writing is that in all the pain, we can always come to God. Whether it’s through prayer or simply crying out, God is there to hear us no matter where we are in our life.
Questions:
Heman wrote this psalm long before Christ came around. While he had hope of a coming Savior, our hope resides in a Savior who came, and is coming again. How does this change our laments or prayers to God?
Balancing hopeful positivity and the real difficulty of life is truly an art. How does what we know about God impact this balance in your life?
What did God reveal to you about his character in this passage?
Prayer:
Lord, we live in a broken, sinful world. This life is hard. Today we pray for you to comfort those who are struggling, to give strength and hope to those who need it. But we also pray that no matter what life circumstances they are in, they ultimately know that they can go to you in any form. God, thank you for the hope we have in Christ Jesus. We are excited for your Kingdom to be brought to earth where there will be no more suffering. We longingly look to that day. Amen.
Paul had asked one of his best supporters, Timothy (Philippians 2:19-22), to stay at Ephesus and address false teaching (1 Timothy 1:3-7). In 6:20-21 Paul warns against “the opposing arguments of what is falsely called ‘knowledge’ – which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith.” (NASB). By writing of “knowledge” (gnosis in Greek) this way Paul suggests the presence of “gnostic” thought in Ephesus. “Gnosticism” covers a range of belief systems from the early centuries of the Christian era and grasping all of that history isn’t the point here, but I will mention some possible links to a gnostic group later.
The chapter begins with a support for prayer, highlighting its benefits for good order. The Jews had an exemption from sacrificing for the emperors and gave prayer for the emperors. The Romans accepted this compromise in part because they knew the strength of the Jewish conviction in their one God, and the risk of rebellion if they rejected it. For a time Christians were accepted under that compromise by the Romans, being seen as a category of Jewish believers. But Paul was not necessarily speaking of the compromise at all, but just of the benefits of prayer itself.
Paul goes on to state that he wants all to know the truth: “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time.” (verses 5-6). The fact of Jesus being a mediator between God and humanity doesn’t come up often – the word for mediator only shows up six times in the New Testament, here, in Galatians 3, and in Hebrews 8, 9 and 12. Mediation is relevant for Jesus in his position as High Priest, one of the three tasks tied to being the Christ / Messiah, the anointed one. Once a year the High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies (where the Ark of the Covenant was) and pray on behalf of the nation. This text in 1 Timothy addresses how Jesus is also the ransom, the sacrifice, which permitted the High Priest to enter the Holy of Holies. The High Priest did not perform a sacrifice inside that room, he brought in blood from a sacrifice of a lamb that had taken place outside the room, and sprinkled it in the room. And so Jesus, our High Priest, is able to enter the true Holy of Holies in heaven and remain there – not one day but perpetually – based on having provided his own blood as the lamb (Revelation 5:9; Hebrews 10:11-25).
I also see Jesus as a proper mediator in how he understands the perspectives of both sides – he is the one sinless human being (1 Peter 2:22), better fit than anyone else to speak for God’s concerns (and, of course, God’s chosen representative as the Christ), but he is a human who suffered temptations as we do (Hebrews 4:15).
The later part of the chapter may explain why Paul was giving a brief explanation of the true faith – I would suggest he made his statement when he did in contrast to the teachings being presented by those he was having issues with in Ephesus. Sometimes people have argued about whether these statements should be taken as universal to all churches. I do not see them as universal, nor do I see them as restricting all women in Ephesus, because of inconsistencies this would create and because of an alternate explanation I perceive. But first the inconsistencies.
Some translations say “teach or have authority” in verse 12, but texts like 1 Corinthians 11 show that Paul accepted women as teachers (and he named various female co-workers in his letters, such as the well-known Priscilla, Phoebe, etc.). It seems better from the Greek to see this phrase as “teach with authority” which means it is not two issues but one, guided by whatever type of authority we are dealing with – because this is not the normal word for “authority” in the New Testament. The Greek word used in 1 Timothy 2:12 for “authority” only appears here in the Bible, telling us little, but its extrabiblical uses suggest it is more like a kind of stolen authority which Paul would not wish any Christian (male or female) to obtain. The reason that this passage links it to women will be made more clear shortly. The text says that Adam was created before Eve but does not state why this is significant – many have suggested this should relate to some greater authority for Adam due to being made first, an authority extending to men in general. But this is not discussed elsewhere in the Bible, and commonly greater responsibility results in greater punishment upon failure, not a continuation of such responsibility after failure. Next, the text says that Adam was not “deceived”, which has sometimes been thought to mean (in supposed context of Paul’s point) that Adam handled the truth about the tree better than Eve so men were to be able to handle the truth better than women. But both Adam and Eve sinned regarding the tree, and most texts about this Bible event refer to Adam, not Eve, as key to the punishment of humanity for sin (even if they are only using his name symbolically because he was the first human). And lastly, verse 15, in some readings, makes it sound like a woman’s salvation depends on bearing children rather than upon her relationship with Jesus. This seems to be a complete absurdity, particularly considering Paul’s stated support for Christians remaining unmarried (1 Corinthians 7:8).
Now to a proposed alternative, that there were female teachers in Ephesus advocating for a gnostic sect who had infiltrated the church. Such sects cover a range of ground, but they included those who claimed that the physical universe in which we live was created by accident as an off-shoot from the powers of a purely spiritual being too different from us to even interact with us or to create matter. They would propose that this far away being self-generated a lesser spirit (like a plant gives off fruit) which in turn generated a lesser spirit, and so on (some versions went through hundreds of levels, possibly mocked as the “endless genealogies” of 1 Timothy 1:4). Eventually the story would arrive at a being that was weak / foolish enough to produce matter rather than spirit, and that being created our universe. The result was the trapping of fragments of spirit in matter – souls stuck in bodies – which needed to be retrieved to re-merge with the higher beings. Thus one of the higher spirit beings gets sent to provide the necessary knowledge to these fragments (which are unaware of their own origins) for them to escape their reality.
It was popular in some gnostic circles to steal the writings of other groups, Jewish, Christian, Zoroastrian, philosophy, etc., and rewrite it to present the beliefs of the gnostic group. The Genesis account of the tree of knowledge of good and evil was popular to twist, given the tree’s name. One particular group we know of presented that tree as a positive thing to eat from to gain understanding, and described the snake as a heroic spirit-being who came to convince Eve to eat from it. They described the God of the Old Testament as the creator of the physical universe who was blocking information about higher reality from the creation. Eve was presented as having been the original human (not Adam) and, since the snake supposedly told truth, she was also specifically not deceived. This type of switch in Eve’s origin story also plays into the fact with some gnostic groups of favoring priestess figures over priests.
You can see how what Paul says in verses 13 and 14 may be a repudiation of teachings by people in Ephesus who supported gnostics. Paul is asserting truth from Genesis. Adam was created first. Adam was not deceived by God about the tree, Eve was deceived by the serpent.
Verse 15 caps things off – among gnostics there were two views on sexuality. Some groups said that they should be celibate to avoid physical attachments, since their goal was to leave the world behind as spirits. Some groups said that since they were going to leave their bodies behind it didn’t matter what they did with them at all. But all gnostics agreed on one thing as being an unforgiveable sin – to have a child. They saw having a child as trapping a fragment of “soul” in flesh within the creation. I see verse 15 as offering reassurance to women who had been told they were not allowed to have children that doing so was fine. What actually mattered was continuing in faith, love, and sanctity with self-restraint.
I can’t demonstrate that the particular gnostic group I discussed was active in Ephesus – I can’t even demonstrate that the writing I was discussing about Genesis 3 had already been written at that point – but the details do seem to match together pretty well. If my proposed alternative were certainly incorrect, the inconsistencies I am concerned with would continue to concern me. And, of course, the ministry of the many women who worked alongside Paul would continue to be notable and compelling.
Lord, thank you for the opportunity to write these devotions. It has been difficult, but it has been useful to me as a demonstration that I can still be of use. I pray that I have not offended unnecessarily by anything I wrote, and that I have not mislead anyone or made an error in emphasis that would put them on the wrong course. I know that you are able to guide what people perceive in my words by your Spirit to take them where they actually need to go, and so now that my part is finished I entrust the next steps to you. Not that I did not rely on you to have been helping me along the way already. Please forgive my pride whenever I thought I was writing well, I was only writing about your words in the first place. Thank you for taking care of me, and for letting me know that you do. In the name of your son Jesus I pray these things, Amen.
-Daniel Smead
Questions:
Do you make a practice of praying for worldly leaders? Do you pray only for your own leaders, or also for the leaders of other areas? Do you expect these prayers to matter?
What do you think of 1 Timothy 2:5-6 as a possible stand-in for John 3:16? John 3:16 has a ring to it, but I wonder if these verses would be more likely to get people looking for the details they need. Sometimes the idea of “believing in him” sounds vague, without the context. Saying there is “testimony” might remind people to find out what the testimony said. Of course no one is meant to be a Christian without context. What do you think is your “key” verse or verses for your faith at the moment?
Verse 8 says, after Paul’s statement about faith and truth, that he wants prayer everywhere “without wrath and dissension” – do you think this might be another reference to the unity of the believers being a testimony to the world? Does prayer with wrath and dissension sound appealing?
The fact that Paul kept saying what he wanted from the believers may suggest that he wasn’t always getting it from them, or that he was warning them, or that he was aware how many other people would read his letters. It really isn’t clear. Which do you think is the most likely situation? How often do you read something Paul said to do and think about applying it directly to yourself? How often do you read something Paul said to do and object to the idea of applying it to yourself? How much of that is based on you thinking your circumstances are different now?
My Bible notes explain that Psalm 74 is from the time of the exile, after the nation of Israel had been destroyed and the temple left in ruins and the promised land completely ravished. The first half of the Psalm is a recounting of how the sanctuary of the Almighty was decimated by the enemy. The second half of the Psalm is a cry out to God to do something about it. Verse 12 is the pivot point between the two halves.
As I read Psalm 74, my inner first-born older-sister voice says something like, “Well, what do you expect? Your insolent behavior was basically an invitation to the enemy to come and wreak havoc. You opened the door to the temple wide open with your disobedience. And now you realize your mistake and want God to fix it???”
As if I never did anything foolish. Not once have I been disobedient. And I never have had to deal with the consequences of my poor choices. Nor have I ever asked God to come to my rescue and defend me when I got in over my head. Nope, not at all. Not me.
Maybe this Psalm hits a little too close to home. Because there have been so many times when my disobedience has left me on my knees. I said something that shouldn’t have been said; I ignored God’s voice telling me to walk the other way; I refused to forgive; I thought too highly of myself. And when I realized what I got myself into, the only thing I could think of doing was crying out to God for help.
While God fully desires us to be obedient, he knows our human nature and capability to mess things up from time to time. He wants us to call out to Him. He longs for us to recognize our need for Him. So even when we open the door of our hearts to something less than God’s best and our lives are turned inside out and upside down, He will come and restore us to who we are meant to be.
Thank you God, for being full of mercy and grace and hearing me when I call out. Thank you God, for not turning your back on me when my mess is a result of my foolishness. Thank you God, for loving me unconditionally, that even though I may have to suffer the consequences of my actions, you redeem me.
-Bethany Ligon
Reflection Questions
When has your disobedience caused the need for restoration?
Is there an area of your life that you have already experienced God’s restoration? What did it look like when it was in ruins? What does restoration look/feel like?
What has God revealed about Himself in today’s Bible reading?
What is the longest that you have prayed for something? A couple of days? A few weeks? Multiple months? Several years? Maybe a decade or two?
For me, I prayed for something for over ten years. The words may not have been on my lips each day or recorded in my journal on a regular basis, but it was in my heart for a very long time. There were times when I looked around and wondered why God wasn’t answering this prayer. Why did he seem to be responding to others before me? Why did it appear that even nonbelievers were ‘living their best life’ and here I was, trudging along, waiting for God to do something.
Eventually, I saw an answer to my prayer. It didn’t come in a way that I anticipated, but God answered. Hallelujah!
I find myself in another long-term praying situation. Every once in a while I see a glimpse of what I hope for, but it doesn’t last for long. It’s frustrating. At times I feel powerless because nothing I seem to do makes any difference. At other times, I am jealous of others who have what appears to be what I am asking God for.
As I read Psalm 73, I identify some with the author in his observations that life just doesn’t seem fair. But I have come to realize that when I am looking at ANYTHING other than God, my perspective, my attitude, my desires, become skewed.
When I am intentionally seeking after God, my confidence in His plan and timing grows; my heart’s desires change, my thoughts are transformed. I become spiritually stronger and sustained when I stop comparing my life to the world and start trusting that God has bigger and greater plans in store for my future.
So for now, I will lift up my hands and reach out to my Father who will take hold and provide all that is needed while I wait for an answer. And even if that answer doesn’t make sense, doesn’t seem fair or doesn’t match my timeline, I can trust that His way is better than my way and He alone is enough.
-Bethany Ligon
Reflection Questions
What is the Psalmist’s attitude and focus in the first half of Psalm 73? What is his attitude and focus in the second half? What is the turning point? What are your favorite verses in this Psalm?
When does life seem unfair to you? What is your typical response? Even when the situation remains the same, how can your attitude and focus change?
What do you learn of God and His characteristics in today’s Bible reading?
New Testament: 1st & 2nd Chronicles Introduction – see below
Psalm 47 is all about praising God and realizing His power. In my Bible (ESV), it is titled, “God is King over All the Earth”. When the sons of Korah wrote this psalm/song, perhaps they had just completed a great military victory, or maybe there was some other big event that called for a celebration!
It’s easy to praise God when things are going well, right? Or… do we even remember to praise Him in the good times? A lot of us probably come before God most often when we need something. Sometimes we treat him like a cosmic genie or Santa Claus, asking for the things we want. Sometimes, we simply get busy and forget Him during the good times, but when we need His intervention, then we remember to pray.
It is so important to remember (and I am speaking to myself here too!) to praise God regularly, and talk with Him often. No one likes having that “friend” who only calls when they need something; however, if we have a dear friend in need, we want to help them! God is our Father who cares greatly for us, and He wants a relationship with us. So instead of just asking Him for what we need, we should remember to praise Him regularly and get to know Him better by reading His Word and listening for His still, small voice to speak to our souls.
-Rachel Cain
Reflections:
Rewrite Psalm 47 into your own words, using actual examples from your own life. Sing or pray the psalm to your Heavenly Father!
What picture do you get of God from your reading today?
In preparation for beginning 1st Chronicles tomorrow in our New Testament reading, here is our…
Introduction to 1st & 2nd Chronicles
Paul wrote the books of 1 and 2 Corinthians to the church in Corinth which he had personally founded. The city of Corinth was rich and sinful, and the church was struggling to resist the ungodly influences of the pagan society. Paul wrote 1 Corinthians to the church in Corinth specifically to address division and sin in the church.
The most well-known chapter is 1 Corinthians 13, also known as the love chapter. This is sandwiched between two other chapters focusing on spiritual gifts and their use in the church.
The other well-known chapter is 1 Corinthians 15, also known as the resurrection chapter.
In 2 Corinthians, Paul defended the fact that he was an apostle. He emphasized the suffering he had endured for the gospel. He explained that he had not visited the church in Corinth again because he didn’t want to have to come down hard on them publicly. He was happy they had addressed the sin in the church. He emphasized the need to financially help other believers, and pointed out that “God loves a cheerful giver”.
Paul warned in 2 Corinthians 13:5, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you – unless, of course, you fail the test?”
I suspect that if Paul were to write to Christians today, he would write something very nearly like 1 & 2 Corinthians, so pay attention as you read it.
Can you imagine if you lived in Bible times and the son of God handpicked you to be a part of his very exclusive inner circle? How amazing that would have been to be chosen as one of the twelve disciples! Spending time in conversation with him daily, watching him perform many miracles, listening to him teach the people and reveal the coming kingdom, and just being around the most awesome dude ever would have been incredible. Surely, that group of twelve would be so devoted to him that they would never turn against him. Or, maybe they would.
Let’s start with Judas. I’m not making excuses for him, but Luke 22:3 does say that Satan entered into Judas right before he went to the chief priests and officers to devise a plan to betray Jesus so he could be put to death. Although, how in the world could one of the twelve disciples get to the point where Satan would be allowed to have so much influence over him. He didn’t have to go along with the temptation Satan presented to him, but he willingly did turn his back on Jesus. I don’t really understand how he could have justified in his mind such an evil plan, but clearly, he was weak in the faith department and not strong enough to not give in to the temptation.
I think we accept the fact that Judas betrayed Jesus – because he was Judas. Who has anything good to say about Judas? It’s not like he was John, James, or Peter, some of the most impressive disciples. They would never turn their back on Jesus, until Peter did.
Peter showed over and over that he loved Jesus and was totally onboard for the cause. His faith was pretty strong also – strong enough to walk on water for a little bit. So what went wrong? How could he have denied Jesus three times in one night. Furthermore, to make it worse, Jesus even told him right beforehand that he was going to deny him three times. It seems like after the second time he would have thought, “Okay, that was two times, but there’s no way I’m messing up a third time. I’m not falling for that one.” But one of the most devoted of Jesus’ inner circle was not strong enough to not give in to the temptation.
Let’s fast-forward to today. How strong is your faith? Are you onboard with the cause 100% or are you a fair-weather Christian? What can you do to make sure you don’t give into temptation when tough times hit? There is one suggestion from Jesus that he stated in verse 40 and again in verse 46. He told the disciples to pray that they wouldn’t enter into temptation. I find it interesting that he didn’t tell them to pray to not enter into sin; he told them to pray to not enter into temptation. Temptation is not wrong. Jesus was tempted in the same way we are tempted, but he did not give into the temptation and sin. That is deep, at least to me it is.
-Rick McClain
Time to ponder:
Many of us spend time figuring out how we are not going to enter into sin, but have you ever thought about what you could do (or not do) to not enter into temptation? That seems like a great place to be because you will probably not sin if you are not tempted to sin.
Is there anything else you can do to prepare yourself to be strong enough to not give in when strong temptations arise?
I’m not going to give you a third question because I think it would be wise to use your time to keep thinking about the first two questions. There really is a lot there to think and pray about.
Pushy people can be annoying. They’re relentless until they get what they want. But you must admit, they usually get what they want. Luke 18 is loaded with chunks of wisdom, but one of the teachings throughout the chapter is that pushy people get what they desire, and Jesus says we should be just like them.
Jesus started with a parable about prayer. He talked about a widow that kept coming to a judge asking for legal protection. For a while the judge was unwilling to give her what she wanted, but the woman kept pushing and he finally gave in. He said that the reason he gave her what she wanted was because the widow kept bothering him and he was concerned if he didn’t help her, she would continually come to him and wear him out. It may be surprising to you that we are told to be like the pushy widow when it comes to prayer. Don’t just pray for something one time and forget about it. God wants to see how bad you really want it. It’s Christmas today and I am reminded of when my kids were young and would ask for a particular gift for Christmas. If they were relentless and asked for it over and over, there was a pretty good chance they were going to get it. Furthermore, it was more exciting as a parent to watch their reaction when they opened that gift that they really really wanted because they were extra appreciative when they saw what it was. God is the same way. He likes to give us what we want and need, and I am sure he enjoys our reaction when we show Him how appreciative we are.
A little later in the chapter, parents were bringing their babies to Jesus so that he would touch them. Apparently, they were being a bit pushy, so the disciples started to rebuke them. Jesus saw what was happening and told the disciples to back down and let the children come to him because “the kingdom of God belongs to such as these”. The aggressive parents got what they wanted, and Jesus was happy to give it to them.
Lastly, Bartimaeus was a blind man who was sitting by the road begging. He heard a crowd go by and asked what was going on. They told him that Jesus was passing by, so he called out to Jesus asking for Jesus to have mercy on him. Those who led the way sternly told him to be quiet…so he gave up and sat quietly as to not bother anyone. Not! He kept crying out even more! Jesus heard him and asked that he be brought to him. Jesus asked Bartimaeus what he wanted Jesus to do for him. He said he wanted to regain his sight. Jesus said, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.” Immediately, he regained his sight and began following him and praising God. What do you suppose would have happened if he kept his mouth shut after he was told to be quiet? I think we know the answer to that, and it doesn’t have anything to do with regaining sight. It was because he was pushy, and dare we say a bit obnoxious, that he received his sight.
I don’t think the lesson here is that it is a good idea to be rude and bad-mannered to others; rather, when you really want something from God, be persistent in your prayers and tell God how badly you really want it. And then ask Him again and again. It pleases Him to see that we are reaching out to Him and depending on Him instead of relying on ourselves.
-Rick McClain
Time to ponder:
What messages are we giving to God when we continually ask Him for something? Conversely, what messages are we giving to God when we don’t continually ask Him for something?
Is there something you really want from God, but you haven’t spent much time letting Him know that? What are you waiting for?
How can you bring children to Jesus, rather than being like the disciples who tried to keep them from Jesus?
How are you doing at showing appreciation for God’s greatest gifts? Specifically this holiday season, how will you show thanks for the gift God gave – his Son born to die (and welcome children, and show the Pharisees a better way, and heal the blind, and open the way to eternal life …) – and rise again (Luke 18:31-34) – and come again!
In Luke 11 the disciples ask Jesus how to pray and he gives them the Lord’s prayer, which you probably heard before.
1 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
2 He said to them, “When you pray, say: “‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread. 4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’”
There are several parts of this prayer that are important and that I think we sometimes miss. First he praises God and asks for the kingdom to come. I think it is important to start our prayers by focusing on God, because he deserves the respect and it helps to remind us that he is more important and greater than our problems. Then it is important to remind ourselves that we are sinners in need of forgiveness and that we need to forgive others as well. Also, when praying for ourselves we need to keep it simple, by only asking for the basics of our physical needs and for God to guide us spiritually.
Then later he goes on.
9 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
God is very good at giving gifts, and he is not looking to hide himself from us. If you need something then ask for it. If you need more wisdom or patience to deal with an issue in your life, then ask God for it, and keep on asking God for it. Just make sure to check your motives as it says in James 4:3. If you are asking for your own selfish reasons then you may need to rethink your request. But if you are asking for something for the reason of helping to further the kingdom and the gospel then God is excited to give to his children.
-Chris Mattison
(Originally posted here December 14, 2017)
Reflection Questions
Who has taught you how to pray? What have you learned about prayer? What do you think you could still learn about prayer?
In what areas can your prayer life use another lesson from Jesus?
Are there any sections/topics of Jesus’ short sample prayer in Luke 11:2-4 that you do not often include in your prayers? How could you remember these things better while praying?
At the beginning of chapter four Peter says to “arm yourself with the same way of thinking” aligning this directive with Jesus suffering in the flesh. While Jesus’ suffering was likely to exceed what these Christians endured, they were still facing a culture that might ostracize, if not outright persecute or kill them.
Peter points out distinctions in how the gentiles live according to the flesh (perverting many things that God intended for good), and how we as believers are to pursue the will of God – this means among other things giving up things that might feel good or make us feel like we belong.
We’ll home in on what Peter writes in verses 7-11:
“The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” (1 Peter 4:7–11 ESV)
Considering the coming kingdom (which is immanent, but we don’t know when it will come): Exert Self-Control! Many times, we see this attribute called for in the life of believers (at least 18 times in the ESV). Looking in the letter of James (which I preached from yesterday), lack of self-control can lead to self-deception. When we allow our thoughts to be clouded by worldly things or self-centered behaviors, we are going to miss what God would have us do. By being sober (or clear) minded we can think critically, and we need to think clearly so that we can be effective in our prayers. Jesus gave us a model by which to structure our prayers, but our prayers are not meant to be mindless or rote… We need to be looking at things through the lens of God’s spirit, which allows us to see things that our physical eyes cannot see. Think back to 1 Peter 3 where it says a man should live with his wife in an understanding way as not to have his prayers hindered – the way that we think, live, and act has a direct impact on how we pray and the effectiveness of our prayers.
We’re instructed to love one another earnestly, because love covers a multitude of sins. (Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13). “…in the face of extreme social hostility, love will be necessary for spiritual survival. For Peter the primacy of love is accompanied by a qualification, and this qualification is a partial citation of Proverbs 10:12 similar to James 5:20—’love covers over a multitude of sins,’ rather than magnifying the faults of others. After all, love is patient and doesn’t keep a record of wrongs (1 Corinthians 13:4, 5)” (J. Daryl Charles, “1 Peter,” in Hebrews–Revelation, vol. 13 of The Expositor’s Bible Commentary Revised Edition).
How does the Church expect to thrive if we let piddly little things (or even larger disagreements) get in the way of caring for each other? How are we to expect to overcome the world through Jesus if we don’t exercise with others the grace that we have been shown (we all kind of stink at times, to put it mildly)?
We need to show hospitality in a world that that is oft inhospitable to Jesus’ way of living. If we’re inhospitable to other believers, they might find hospitality in places that will draw them away from the grace of God. We shouldn’t grumble when we have an opportunity to be hospitable, but rather see it as an opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus (Genesis 12 says Abraham was blessed to be a blessing, and through grace and mercy we’ve also been blessed to be a blessing as well).
In everything we do we need to do so viewing ourselves as representatives of God, as ambassadors of the kingdom, and imitators of Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:3-8).
-JJ Fletcher
Reflection Questions
How does my life look like the life of Jesus and how does it look different?
How does hospitality with fellow believers prime me to be hospitable to those who I disagree with?
Am I doing well at being self-controlled? What are my biggest obstacles to living in this way? Who can I ask for help or be accountable to help me in this endeavor?
Seek Grow Love 