Luke 5:33-35

Luke 5:33-35

And they said to Him, “The disciples of John fasted diligently and with prayerful consideration.  The Pharisees also do similarly.  But your disciples eat and drink.  But Jesus said to them, “You are all not powerful enough to make the sons of the wedding chamber to fast in the time which the bridge groom is with them, are you?  But a day will come when the bride groom should also be lifted away from them.  At that time – in those days – they will fast.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

The people around Jesus seek an opportunity to ask a question.  Before we dive into the theology, we need to make sure that our lens is correct.  It is really easy to read these words and to assume that the people are arguing with Jesus.  That might be the case.  But keep in mind that it might not be the case, either.  We are told all over the Bible that God’s Messiah will be doing something new.  If Jesus was about something new, people would need to be curious and they would need to question.  In fact, that’s actually the process of discipleship!  As Jesus is going about and teaching, people do take notice.  Now remember the context.  Jesus has called Levi.  Levi has thrown a feast with a bunch of tax collectors and other sinners.  There are no doubt a bunch of people near Jesus who are curious about what Jesus is doing.  As these tax collectors and sinners realize that they are invited to a party to which they’ve never been invited, they might also notice other differences.

Why is it important to consider that this section may have been asked antagonistically?  Why is it important to consider that it might not be antagonistic?

Second Thought:

We are told that most of the known religious people are involved in fasting and prayer.  But Jesus’ disciples aren’t fasting.  Jesus gives us a simple answer.  When Jesus is around, there isn’t much of a need to fast.  When the very Son of god is a part of our life, what reason do we have to mourn?  I think that this is a great lesson to learn.  In those moments when we are walking step-by-step with Jesus, what reason do we have to be sad and mourning?  Jesus is clear.  When Jesus is with us, we don’t need to fast.

Have you ever thought of fasting in this light?  Does this mean that fasting has no purpose in Christianity?

Third Thought:

In a rare moment, I’m going to answer the question to a prior thought.  Of course fasting has value in the faith!  While Jess is certainly always near to us, does that mean that we are always able to sense Him?  Jesus is always with us, but do we always feel that way?  Of course not.  As Jesus teaches here, He has been physically removed from our presence.  In those moments when we struggle to feel close to Him, we have an opportunity to fast.  The fasting can help bring us closer to Him and help us be able to feel Him more deeply.  Fasting absolutely has a time and a place in Christianity.

Have you ever used fasting to help you draw close to God?  How does it work for you?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:36-39

Luke 5:27-32

Luke 5:27-32

And after these things, He came and He looked attentively upon a tax collect by the name of Levi sitting upon the tax booth.  And He said to Him, “Follow Me.”  And after leaving everything, after rising up, he was following Him.  And Levi made a great feast for Him in his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others who were reclining at the table with them.  But the Pharisees and their scribes were muttering to His disciples while saying, “For what reason do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”  And answering, Jesus said to them, “The ones who are in good health have no need of a physician, but rather the ones who have illness.  I have not come to call the righteous but rather sinners into repentance.”

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

I love this exchange between Jesus and Levi (Matthew).  Jesus sees this tax collector – a person that would be seen as a traitor by most Jews – and invites him in.  Here is Jesus offering community to an outcast.  Levi doesn’t hesitate to accept it.

Do you need community?  Who is your community?  How has Jesus offered community to you?

Second Thought:

Can you hear the judgmental attitude of the Pharisees and scribes?  “Why do you hang around them, Jesus?”  I don’t think human beings are really ever aware of how judgmental we are.  I can’t tell you how many times I hear expressions like these:

• That music can’t possibly be Christian.
• That person dressed like that can’t possibly know God.
• Did you see all those tattoos?  They can’t possibly know God.
• That person has so much money, there’s no way they can know God.
• Those people are so poor, if they just knew God they’d make better decisions and have more money.
• You can’t know God with that kind of haircut.

The list goes on and on.  The truth is that we as human beings are really good at making judgments with our eyes instead of making judgments with our ears and our brains.  We like to judge by what we see rather than by what we experience.  Seeing and making snap decisions are our specialty.  Taking the time to get to know things or people intimately takes more effort than we are usually willing to give.  That’s where we make our mistakes.

Are you ever judgmental?  What are you weak places of not being able to accept others?

Third Thought:

Jesus make a really blunt – and rather rude – point in this passage.  Jesus says that He is no use to the people who already think they are righteous.  Jesus is only of great use to the people who recognize that they are sick.  In a nutshell, this is absolutely the conflict between the religious leaders and Jesus.  They believe that they are righteous because of their biological connection to Abraham.  They are blinded by that.  They are unable to see themselves as sick and in need of a healer.  They consider themselves righteous.  So what use is Jesus?  No, for Jesus to be useful, we need to accept our sinfulness and come to God knowing that He will help us in our unrighteousness.

Do you think yourself righteous?  Do you need Christ?  Where in your life do you need Him?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:33-35

Luke 5:21-26

Luke 5:21-26

And the scribes and Pharisees began to reason together while saying, “Who is this that speaks blasphemy?  Who is powerful enough to forgive sins except God only?”  And while Jesus recognized their reasoning, while answering, He said to them, “What are you all reasoning in your hearts?  Which is easier: to say, “Your sins are forgiven to you” or to say, “Get up and walk around?  But in order that you all should have seen that the Son of Man has authority upon the earth to forgive sins,” He spoke to the one who has been enfeebled, “I say to you, get up! And after rising up from your couch walk into your house.”  And immediately after rising up in their presence, after lifting the thing upon which he was laying, he left into his house while glorifying God.  Then astonishment took hold over all and they glorified God and they were being filled with fear while saying that, “We saw incredible things today.”

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

There are two common reactions to being in the presence of the unfamiliar.  We are either inclined to investigate or we are inclined to be a skeptic.  I’m not entirely sure that either is always right or either is always bad.  Rather, I think it is good to recognize that human beings can be in either camp.  In this case, we see both camps.  Certainly there are the ones who desire to investigate.  These are the ones who are bringing the sick and otherwise filled with malady to Jesus.  They are curious as to what Jesus can or will do.  But then there are the Pharisees and scribes.  They are predisposed to be skeptical.  In this situation, we certainly know which is better and which is worse.  When God is acting, it is always best to be curious and willing to learn more rather than being skeptical.

Have you ever been skeptical at a time when God was trying to work within you?  Have you ever been curious when it would have been better to be skeptical?  How can you discern when you should take either position?

Second Thought:

Jesus uses a really interesting argument here.  In one of the rare instances of this in the Gospels, Jesus lowers Himself to human logic.  Jesus asks the gathered crowd, “Which is easier, to forgive sins or to cause a man to get up and walk?”  Of course from the divine perspective we know that forgiveness is the harder of the tasks.  In order for us to be forgiven, God must do all the work for us.  God must send His Son to earth in human form to accomplish forgiveness!  However, from our human perspective we would say that causing a man to walk who was formerly unable to do so is the harder task.  We forgive one another all the time.  But who among us can cause a person to get up and walk?  Jesus knows we would consider physical healing more difficult that accomplishing genuine forgiveness.  So Jesus heals them man, lowering Himself into an act submitted to human logic.  Jesus proves His power while also proving His willingness to be our servant and come to our level of thinking.

Do you ever undervalue forgiveness?  Do you ever consider physical manifestations of miraculous works more difficult than true forgiveness?  What does it mean to you that Jesus is willing to come down to our level of understanding so that He makes sense to us?

Third Thought:

Once more the Bible drives home an important teaching.  When God acts, God is praised.  What is the result of the man’s healing?  He gives glory to God.  What does the crowd do when the man is healed?  The crowd gives glory to God.  It’s that simple.  Things happen for the glory of God.

Are you content if God gets the glory?  Do you ever desire to have some of the glory?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:27-32

Luke 5:17-20

Luke 5:17-20

And it became in one of those days that He was also teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were being seated.  They were coming out of all the villages of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem.  And the power of the Lord to heal was in Him.  And behold!  Men, having a man who was enfeebled upon a couch, were seeking to bring him and to set him in His presence.  And after not finding any manner that they should bring him through the crowd, after ascending up the building, they let him down through the earthen roof upon the couch into the middle of the crowd in the presence of Jesus.  And seeing their faith, He said, “Man, your sins have been forgiven to you.”

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

I think that it is neat to see Jesus blending spiritual skills as they are needed.  Jesus starts out as a teacher.  Then he quickly transitions to a healer as the situation shifts.  He even becomes a bit of a pastor and maybe even an evangelist as he proclaims grace and forgiveness.  Jesus can pour out each of these individual tasks because His identity is in the Father.  Because Jesus has His identity in the Father, he can accomplish all that the Father has for Him to do.

Can you transition in skills as your circumstances change?  What spiritual tasks can you do most comfortably?  Which are the ones that would be less comfortable?

Second Thought:

It is good to have good friends.  It is even better to have friends who stick with you even when the going gets rough.  Think about these friends of this feeble man.  They could have easily given up.  They could have seen the crowd and made excuses as to why to stop.  They could have considered it an impossible task.  They could have looked at their feeble friend, told him that it couldn’t be done, and gone on with their life.  What would it have been to them?  But they don’t do this.  This man’s friends find a way to get the task done.  They go the extra mile for their friend.  These friends are true servants.

Do you have friends in your life who are willing to sacrifice for you?  What lengths are you willing to go for a friend when you truly do not have anything at stake?

Third Thought:

There is always a great debate about Jesus’ words in this passage.  The debate greatly amuses me.  People ask, “Wait, did Jesus forgive the sins of this man based on the faithfulness of other people?”  In other words, “Can my faithfulness save other people?”  People who ask this question can be greatly appeased by looking at the verb tense in Jesus’ expression.  Jesus says, “Your sins have been forgiven to you.”  The verb tense is perfect passive.  In other words, the man has been living in a state of forgiveness in the past, that state of forgiveness continues into the present, and it is expected to continue into the future.  The point that Jesus is making here is that the man’s forgiveness isn’t happening because of anyone’s faithfulness!  The man’s forgiveness is happening because God has grace.  None of us are forgiven because of faithfulness.  Our righteousness is never enough!  We are all forgiven because God has grace.  That grace started well before we came into existence and it will last well after each of us are no longer around.

Have your sins been forgiven?  Why?  What does God’s grace mean to you?  What does the eternal nature of God’s grace mean to you?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:21-26

Luke 5:14-16

Luke 5:14-16

And He commanded him to say nothing, “But after departing, show yourself to the priest and bring something regarding your cleansing just as Moses assigned into a testimony for them.”  But word regarding Him went throughout and many crowds were gathering around to listen and to be healed from their weaknesses.  And He was withdrawing into the wilderness and praying.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Jesus commands the man not to speak about what happened.  Instead, the man is to go to the temple and have the priest declare that the man is healed.  The man is to bring what Moses assigned in the law: a sacrifice.  Jesus is interested in the testimony of the man.  Jesus wants the Father to get the glory.

What is Jesus’ example here?  How can we see this story in the light of humbleness before the Father?  How can you imitate this example?

Second Thought:

News spread.  Of course it does.  Human beings like to talk.  We like to gossip.  We like to have that juicy bit of news because then all the ears of the people around us are fixed onto us.  We like to be the center of attention.  But look at the impact that this has on Christ.  As the news about Him spreads, it only serves to drive Him out into the wilderness areas.  Our human need to talk and gossip often makes it harder for God to accomplish His will.

What are your favorite things to talk about?  When do you talk about things you shouldn’t?  When do your words ever hinder the work of God?

Third Thought:

I often feel badly for God.  I know that He is God and He is certainly big enough to handle humanity.  But many days I really feel sad for God.  God sent His Son to us to teach us and to model the godly life and ultimately to die for our sake.  But how does the genuine populace interact with the very Son of God?  We get an impression from the Gospel accounts that they mob Him.  They come around Jesus because He can fix what’s wrong with them.  They gathered around Jesus because their perspective is so short-sighted.  They want healed now.  I am reminded of the Babylonian exile of the Hebrew people.  They would be redeemed, but they had a lifetime of suffering to endure before they would know peace.  I am reminded of the Apostle Paul as he begged to have the thorn in his side removed.  God answered that His grace is sufficient.  In other words, the thorn was an opportunity to realize how much we need God and how great life will be like in the eternal age.  It is so easy for us to lose sight of the future and think only about now.  We want healed now.  We want to be successful now.  We want to be popular now.  We want to be in the presence of fame now.  But our focus should be on the eternal.  We should flock to the feet of Christ.  But we should flock because our eyes are on the eternal rather than our eyes being on what He can do for us now.

Do you ever want God to be a God of the now?  Why is it difficult to live a life where we are focused on the eternal?  Why is it important to live a life focused on the eternal?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:17-20

Luke 5:12-13

Luke 5:12-13

And it became in that place, in one of the cities, behold: a man full of leprosy.  And after seeing Jesus, after falling upon his face, he begged of Him while saying, “Lord, if you should desire it, you are powerful enough to heal me.”  And after stretching out the hand, He touched him while saying, “I desire it.  Be cleansed.”  And immediately the leprosy went out from him.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

The leper is a man in need.  He sees Jesus and immediately falls on his face.  He begs.  He shows complete and utter humility.  He has no issue being humble before the Lord.  Isn’t it interesting that the place where we find consistently find humbleness before the Lord is in our weakness?  When life is going well for us, we are not always humble.  In fact, we might even seldom be humble when life is going well.  It is a true test of character to be humble when we are strong.  But in our weakness, it is easy to be humble.  It is also easier to believe in the power of the Lord when we are in a position of weakness as well.

When are you the most humble?  When are you the least humble?

Second Thought:

Jesus does desire to heal the man.  This is ultimately a claim of power in addition to being a claim of compassion.  Certainly it is compassion because He is healing the man.  But it is a claim of power because Jesus is dealing with leprosy.  Leprosy was contagious.  People feared leprosy.  If Jesus would come in contact with leprosy, the people around Him might wonder about His cleanliness.  But Jesus quite frankly doesn’t care.  He has power over the leprosy.  The leprosy cannot touch Him; He affects the leprosy.

What power does Jesus have in your life?  When have you felt His power in your life?

Third Thought:

Jesus’ power is immediate.  He commands and the disease listens.  In an encounter with God, we are made different.  Yes, God can make us different over time.  But we are made different immediately.  Think of it in terms of throwing a ball.  The first time a child catches a ball, he is different.  He’s done something completely new and is a different person.  But that doesn’t make him a great ball player.  The child needs to practice and develop greater skill.  This is the same way with God.  God comes to us and changes us.  He makes us new.  But we still need to work and practice this newness in order to develop skill at being the person that He remakes us to be.

How has God made you different?  How are you developing?  Do you genuinely believe that God can make an immediate difference in your life?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:14-16

Luke 5:7-11

Luke 5:7-11

And they motioned to their partners in the other boat who came to take hold with them.  And they came and filled both boats so that they were being plunged into the deep.  But after Simon Peter saw, he fell down to worship at the knees of Jesus while saying, “Go away from me, Lord, because I am a sinful man.”  For he and all the ones with him were having amazement at the great catch of fish that they were taking together.  And in the same way were even James and John the sons of Zebedee; they were the partners of Simon.  And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not fear. From now on you are catching people.”  And after bringing their boats upon the land, after letting go of everything, they followed Him.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

The catch is awesome. Remember, Peter had just been out fishing and got nothing.  The only reason that this is happening at all is because Peter is willing to trust.  Jesus delivers on his promise.  A few things happen because of the display of the power of God.  First, notice that it doesn’t just affect Peter.  God’s bounty in the life of one person often spills into the life of another.  Peter gets the blessing, but so do James and John.  Second, notice that suddenly Peter doesn’t seem to care about the fish anymore.  When God’s power comes upon us, God gets the praise and glory.  Peter turns to worship Jesus when God’s power is put on display.

Have you ever been blessed because God blessed someone around you?  Has God ever used you to bless people around you?  How good are you at remembering God in those moments?

Second Thought:

Jesus’ words to Peter are classic.  “From now on, you are catching people.”  In fact, if we look at Greek word order, this is what we hear: “From now on, people you are catching.”  Do you hear the Yoda-speak?  Jesus take the object of the participle and throws it before the verb.  Jesus’ emphasis is that Peter will be dealing with people, not fish.  Jesus is going to change Peter’s focus.  Peter’s focus will be about changing the lives of the people around him.  However, Jesus uses a word with which Peter would be familiar: catching.  Jesus may be changing Peter’s focus, but He isn’t changing tactics.  Peter will still go through the world, casting nets (his words), and seeing what gets caught.  Peter never knew what the catch would be when he cast his fishing nets.  He simply had to go through the process and see what happened.  The same is true for Peter now, too.  He won’t know the effect of his discipleship until he goes through the motions and sees what God puts in his path.

How does God use your current skills in proclaiming His grace to the world?  How does God change your focus onto the people around you as you grow closer to Him?

Third Thought:

I think Luke 5:11 is one of my favorite expressions of discipleship.  The disciples bring their boats to land.  They need to get back to normal.  But they aren’t getting back to normal to get on with their life.  They are returning to normal so that they can leave it behind.  They bring the boats back to land and walk away.  The leave everything.  They follow Jesus.  Hidden in this description is the fact that they go from being masters of their own time to be a disciple under Jesus.  They are absolutely giving up freedom.  They are choosing to do so.  That’s why this verse is so powerful.  Dietrich Bonhoeffer talks about the cost of discipleship.  This passage is a great case study in discipleship.  The cost of discipleship is giving up our control and freedom and submitting to Christ in our submission to the Father.

What symbolic boats in your life do you need to leave in order to submit to God?  What cost are you willing to pay?  What cost are you hesitant to pay?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:12-13

Luke 5:1-6

Luke 5:1-6

And it became, as the crowd pressed into Him even to hear the word of God, He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret.  And He saw two boats placed beside the lake.  But the fishermen who came out from them were washing the nets.  And after getting into one of the boats, the one which was of Simon, He asked him to go away from the land a little way.  And after sitting down He was teaching the crowd out of the boat.  And as He finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Return to the deep water and let down your nets in order to get a catch.”  And answering, Simon said, “Master, after laboring through the whole night we received nothing.  But at your word I will let down the nets.”  And after doing this they enclosed a great multitude of fish in the net.  And the nets were breaking under them.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Jesus sees in opportunity.  The crowd has gathered around Him.  They are pressing in close.  Yesterday we saw Jesus’ need for some alone time.  Suddenly Jesus spies a couple of boats and opportunity strikes.  He enlists the captain of the boat to give Him a hand.  Jesus gets an opportunity to escape the immediate pressure of the crowd while still allowing teaching to happen.  Jesus removes Himself from the mob mentality of trying to get the closest to Him and allows some space for the higher thing – teaching about God’s Word – to happen.  I love that Jesus sees opportunity in the boats.

Do you see opportunity in the things around you?  How can you use the things around you to create opportunity to proclaim God’s message?

Second Thought:

The opportunity that Jesus seizes is more than just opportunity with the crowd.  The fisherman that Jesus enlists in Simon, who we know as Peter.  In the boats, Jesus sees a means to make a connection with a human being.  Through these boats, Jesus sees an opportunity to create relationship with a man who has it in him to follow Jesus incredibly closely.  In the boats, Jesus sees opportunity for discipleship.

Do you see opportunity for discipleship around you?  Where can you speak truth?  Who is willing to listen to that truth?

Third Thought:

Jesus also sees opportunity to display the kingdom of God in these boats.  Peter is obedient.  He was cleaning his nets after a long night of fruitless fishing.  But Peter obeys Jesus and takes Him out into the water.  Peter, a skilled fisherman, willingly takes the advice of a carpenter about how to fish and is obedient to that advice.  Because of His obedience, Jesus sees an opportunity to show Peter the abundance of the kingdom of God.  Jesus causes Peter to experience a tremendous catch of fish.  Peter has an opportunity to see first-hand that when we are obedient to God, God provides.

When has God provided in your life when you needed it?  What does God use in your life to bring you an opportunity to see the abundance of God and His kingdom?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:7-11

Luke 4:42-44

Luke 4:42-44

And after day became, while going out, He journeyed into a wilderness place.  And the crowds were searching for Him.  And they came to Him and they were hindering Him to keep Him from journeying away from them.  But He said to them that, “It is necessary for me to also proclaim the kingdom of God to the other cities, because upon this I was being sent.  And He was continuing to preach into the synagogues of Judea.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Jesus goes out into the wilderness.  We know of several times when Jesus does this.  Jesus typically does this to escape the crowd so that He can commune with the Father.  I’ve thought much about this lately.  When Jesus wants to be close to God, He finds a quiet place to be by Himself.  When Jesus wants to be close to God, He often finds His way away from humanity.

What can we learn from Jesus’ example here?  Do you think that modern people are good at imitating this behavior?  What is a hindrance to our imitation?

Second Thought:

In this passage we have a really neat snapshot of humanity.  I have both good and bad things to say about human beings.  First, the good.  Human beings are willing to follow things that they value even into foreign or harsh conditions.  Jesus goes into the wilderness; people follow.  They are willing to go into deserted and potentially hostile places just to be in the presence of Christ.  However, here we also see the dark side of humanity.  We want to cling to safety, security, and comfortability.  We want to hang around Jesus and sit at His feet when we should be taking what He gives to us and going forth into the world!  I am reminded of Peter’s desire to build dwelling places – and Jesus’ rebuke – at the time of the transfiguration to make the moment last as long as possible. What is worse, Luke is very clear that the people here were hindering Jesus’ ministry because they wanted to hold onto Him!  There is a time and a place for sitting at the feet of the master and abiding in His presence.  There is also a time and a place for letting go of Jesus and going where He tells us to go.  I am also reminded of Jesus’ rebuke of Mary after the resurrection.  “Do not hold onto me.”  Jesus had plans for Mary.  Jesus had plans for these people in this story.  He has plans for us.  Hold on when it is appropriate.  Pursue Him when the time is right.  But obediently go out into the world when He beckons, too.

Are you good at pursuing Jesus?  Are you also good at clinging to Him longer than you should?  Why do you think people desire to cling to the presence of God?

Third Thought:

Jesus pushes away from the comfort.  Jesus walks away from the adoring audience that wants to be with Him.  Why does He do this?  His is being sent.  He is being obedient to God.  He could easily have become the personal priest for all of these people.  He could have easily become the esteemed worker of miracles by these adoring people.  But instead He moves on out of obedience.  People need to hear about God.

Do you ever desire to be adored?  Do you ever desire to be famous?  How can that pull us away from obedience to God if we are not careful?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:1-6

Luke 4:38-41

Luke 4:38-41

And after standing up, he went out of the synagogue and into the house of Simon.  And the mother-in-law of Simon was besieged by a great fever and they asked Him regarding her.  And after standing above her, He abjured the fever and it left her.  And immediately after standing up she served them.  And while the sun set, all who were having ones weakened by disease were leading them to Him.  And the one who laid hands upon every one of them was restoring them to health.  And even demons came out from many while also saying, “You are the Son of God!”  And while rebuking them he was not permitting them to speak because they had known Him to be the Christ.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

 There is a connection between the story of Peter’s mother-in-law and the multitude.  In both cases, the people around Jesus had to bring them to Jesus’ attention.  Of course, Jesus is the Son of God.  It’s not like He didn’t know what was going on.  But I believe that there is a teaching here.  While God can do anything, He doesn’t do everything.  While God knows everything, He doesn’t forcibly control everything.  Sometimes god lets us come to Him and ask for His hand to be at work.  Sometimes God steps back and lets us have free will.  Sometimes God steps back and gives us an opportunity to intervene – or even better, to ask Him to intervene.

Do you think it is necessary to ask God to do something?  Do you think that God appreciates being asked and invited to work?

Second Thought:

Notice that Jesus commands the fever in Peter’s mother-in-law.  In fact, we get the feeling like Jesus treats the fever like the demons he encounters with the crowd.  Jesus truly has dominion over the whole world.  He can command disease.  He can command fever.  He can command demons.  He can command water to part.  He can command the wind the cease.  He can command trees to wither.  His power is incredible.  What is perhaps even more amazing is the restraint that Jesus shows as He commands.  While Jesus commands all of these things I list above – and even more – Jesus doesn’t often command human beings.  We have free will.  Jesus respects our free will.  While His authority is universal, His restraint is even greater.

Do you think that Jesus has the power to command all things?  Why doesn’t Jesus command human beings like He commands the elements of the world?  What does it say about Jesus’ authority that He doesn’t command us?

Third Thought:

Peter’s mother-in-law serves Jesus and those who brought His attention to them.  This is the proper response to God.  God breaks into our life and imparts His grace and mercy.  We should desire to serve Him.  We should desire to serve Him from the moment of our healing onward.

Do you desire to serve God?  How has Jesus put His display of power in your life?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 4:42-44

Luke 4:33-37

Luke 4:33-37

And in the synagogue a man was there while having a spirit of an unclean demon and he cried out with a great voice.  What is it to us and to you, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did you come to destroy us?  I have known who you are: The Holy One of God!”  And Jesus charged him sharply while saying, “Shut up and come out from him!”  And after throwing him down, the demon came out from him in the middle of them without hurting him in any way.  And astonishment became upon all and they were talking with one another while saying, “What are these words that in authority and power He charges the unclean spirits and they come out?”  And a report regarding Him was going out into all the neighboring places.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

This is a really neat passage.  First of all, it deals with demonic possession.  No matter how reformed we are, human beings are fascinated by the supernatural.  Even today in our modern age people are fascinated by spirits, possessions, mediums being able to reach out and talk to the dead, hauntings, and things like this.  We are fascinated by what we cannot understand or explain.  The people who see Jesus in this passage are no different.  They see Jesus able to exert control and influence into the supernatural and they are astounded.

Are you fascinated by the supernatural?  How does our fascination with the supernatural actually help to draw us with God?  Why are we easily amazed and astounded with supernatural events and discussions?

Second Thought:

Notice the actions of the demon.  The man cries out in a great voice.  He is focused on disrupting the normal routine of worshipping God in the synagogue on the Sabbath.  Furthermore, the man identifies Jesus as the Messiah.  This would inherently alter Jesus’ ability to teach and influence the crowd as He would desire.  Demonic influences are influences of disruption.  They create discord.  They alter events so that what should happen – what is desirable to have happen – becomes far more difficult.  Demonic influences are about disruption, especially with respect to disrupting our relationship with the Father.

Why would a demon desire to be about disruption?  Why can it be helpful to remember that demonic influences almost always have an element of disruption about them?  Think about other stories of demonic possession found in the Bible.  Where can you see elements of disruption about them?

Third Thought:

Jesus does exert control.  Jesus does display that He has mastery over them.  But what I really love in this passage is the first thing that Jesus says.  “Shut up!”  Most translations say, “Silence!”  They are just being nice.  Literally, this verb here means to close something and it is especially used when trying to get someone to close their mouth to stop talking.  Quite literally, this verb means “Shut up.”  The first thing that Jesus needs to happen is to get the demon to be silent.  In the silence, order can be restored.  In the silence, Jesus can do damage control.  In the silence, truth can be both proclaimed and heard clearly.  In the silence, God’s will can happen.  In the silence, a man can be restored back to being in control of His full faculties.

Do you believe that Jesus has power even over other supernatural powers?  Why is this an important thing to understand?  Have you ever seen this be true in your life?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 4:38-41

Luke 4:31-32

Luke 4:31-32

And He went down into Capernaum, a city of Galilee.  And He was teaching them on the Sabbath.  And they were being struck by His teaching, because His words were in authority.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Jesus goes to Galilee.  Galilee was a place that didn’t have the best of reputations.  Galilee was a working town filled with laborers and common people.  It was not a fancy place that held nobles or religious elite.  When Jesus goes to Galilee, He is making a statement.  Jesus came to live and dwell with all people regardless of their status.

What does this say about God’s desire to be in relationship with all people?  Do you think that there are people who feel as though they are not good enough for God?  What can this passage say to them?

Second Thought:

This passage is such a great passage to put in juxtaposition of the prior passage.  In the last passage we got to see a long passage of people who is unable to recognize Jesus because of their prior conceptions of the Messiah.  In this passage we see a group of people who listen with open ears and are amazed.  The difference isn’t Jesus.  Jesus taught both groups on the Sabbath.  Jesus gave the same opportunity to both sets of people.  The difference is that the people in Capernaum were willing to be amazed.

Are you willing to be amazed by God?  Are you living a life with open ears?

Third Thought:

The verb that Luke uses to describe the people’s reaction to Jesus’ teaching is a neat word.  It literally means to be struck.  It is the word that you would use to describe the situation when a person would slap another person or hit them with a fist.  Of course, we know that Jesus isn’t literally hitting them.  But Jesus is striking them with a new teaching.  They are being shaken out of what they had been taught before.  Yet they are still receptive.  Even though the teaching is new and bold and even jarring, they are willing.  This says a great amount about the people of Galilee.

How do you respond to new and different teaching?  Can people successfully challenge you?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 4:33-37

Luke 4:23-30

Luke 4:23-30

And He said to them, “No doubt you all will quote for me this proverb: Physician, heal yourself.  While hearing how much happened in Capernaum, do it also here in your native country.  But I speak to you all of truth: there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the heavens were being shut for three years and six months – as a great famine became upon all the land.  And Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon.  And there were many lepers in Israel upon Elisha the prophet, and none of the were being made clean except Na’aman the Syrian.  And all in the synagogues were being filled with passionate anger while hearing these things.  And after standing up, they cast him out of the city and led Him to the brow of the mountain upon which the city had been built in order to cast him down.  But while he passed through the middle of them He journey on.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Jesus quotes a very famous saying: “Physician heal yourself.”  What Jesus means when He says this to the people in Nazareth is that he understands that they think He is just as sick with sin as the rest of the world.  In other words, because they saw Him grow up they can’t get past His humanity.  They can’t see Him as the Messiah because they knew Him as a human.  This is one the core issues in our human struggle with God.  We have to see Jesus as being perfect.  We have to see Jesus as being fully God.  We have to accept that He was God made man.  If Jesus were only a man, then His sacrifice for us would mean nothing because He would need redemption just as much as the rest of us.  The only way Jesus’s sacrifice makes a difference to us is if He truly was fully God.  Then, He would not need to be healed because His nature would be perfect.  The people at Nazareth cannot accept this fact and it results in their rejection of Him.

Can you accept that Jesus is God?  Can you accept that Jesus is perfect?

Second Thought:

Once Jesus recognizes that the people in Nazareth cannot see the hand of God at work because of their focus on the world around them, He pushes the issue.  Jesus reminds the people that in the time of Elijah there were many widows in need.  But God didn’t send Elijah to any of them.  God sent Elijah to a Gentile woman.  Furthermore, in the time of Elisha there were many lepers who needed to heal.  But God chose to heal a Gentile.  What is Jesus’ point in all of this?  Jesus is saying that one’s lineage is not as important as one’s relationship with God.  One’s lineage does not replace our need to look for where God is at work in the world.  Our human understanding cannot replace God’s truth.  If the people around Jesus were not willing to look past their own understand to accept God’s work, then Jesus would not demonstrate God’s power in their midst.  Jesus would go to those who were willing.

Are you willing to let go of your human understanding and open yourself up to God?  When do you struggle with being open to what God is doing and instead rely upon your own understanding?

Third Thought:

I’ve always loved the end of this story.  The people think that they have Jesus figured out.  The stand up, march Him out of town, and intend to kill Him.  But Jesus just walks through them.  Literally, that is what the Greek means.  Jesus literally passes through the middle of them.  They cannot harm the Son of God if the Son of God does not allow it.  What I truly love about this ending, though, is that they get exactly that for which they ask.  They want Jesus to demonstrate His power.  They get a huge demonstration.  A mob wants to kill Jesus, and all He has to do is walk away from them.  Even in this, they miss the point.  They think they’ve won because they’ve dealt with Jesus.  In reality, they’ve only proven how blind they actually are.

When have you tried to do something your own way and missed what God was trying to teach you?  How do you recover from those moments?  Have you ever witnessed other people seeking to exert their own will and end up missing what God is doing in their midst?  How do these situations affect you?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 4:31-32

Luke 4:20-22

Luke 4:20-22

And after rolling up the book and after giving it to the owner, He sat down.  And the eyes of all were fixed upon Him.  And He began to speak to them that “Today this scripture has itself been fulfilled in your ear.”  And all were witnessing Him and they were amazed upon the teaching of grace that went out of His mouth and they were saying, “Is this not the son of Joseph?”

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

And the eyes were all upon Him.  They knew about Jesus.  They had heard the stories.  People were talking about Him.  He had an incredible baptism.  Everywhere He had gone so far he taught about God with authority.  They were expecting Him to teach here, too.  They wanted to see what Jesus would do in their midst, just like everyone else who heard Him teach.

Have you ever anticipated God’s action?  Have you ever been in a position of hearing what God has done in the lives of others and waited to see what God would do in your life, too?

Second Thought:

I love Jesus’ message in this passage.  Today the scripture was fulfilled – even as you listened!  God doesn’t even have to do anything to fulfill scripture.  All Jesus has to do is open His mouth and read scripture and He fulfills the promise of a Messiah to come.  Yes, Jesus will do some amazing things.  But even His words are amazing.

When has God amazed you in what He has done?  When has God amazed you with His message?  When in your life have God’s very words fulfilled His promise to you?

Third Thought:

The people of Nazareth had a large obstacle in their life with which the rest of the world didn’t have to deal.  They saw Jesus grow up.  They knew Him as a boy.  They had a preconceived nothing of Jesus.  Even though Jesus taught some amazing things, they struggled to balance what they were now experiencing with what they knew in the past.  It is always difficult to overcome prior conceptions.

When have you ever struggled to see God at work because of your prior ideas?  How do you fight your own preconceived ideas when trying to draw near to God?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 4:23-30

Luke 4:16-19

Luke 4:16-19

And He came into Nazareth, where He was having been brought up, and He went into the synagogue in the day of the Sabbath according to His custom.  And He stood up to be recognized.  And the book of the prophet Isaiah was being given to Him.  And after unrolling the book He found the place where it was having been said, “A spirit of the Lord is upon me, for the reason of anointing me to bring good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim release to captives and recovery of sight to the blind and to send forth the ones who have been broken in a release from bondage and to proclaim a fixed period of acceptance of the Lord.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Jesus’ custom was to go to the synagogue on the Sabbath.  He went to the synagogue to teach.  He went to the synagogue to read and expound on the Word of God.  Jesus was rooted in God’s Word and obedience.  He was also a model of this life.  He modelled godly living for the people around Him to see.

Why is it important to see Jesus modeling godly living?  Why is it important to see that even the Son of God was involved in the study of God’s Word as well as the teaching of it?

Second Thought:

The Spirit of the Lord is given to Jesus.  But what is the purpose?  The first purpose of the Spirit is to anoint Jesus.  The Greek word for anointed one is Christ.  The Hebrew word for anointed one is Messiah.  In other words, the Spirit of the Lord is upon Him to demonstrate that Jesus is God’s Messiah.  He is the promised one.  He is the one to come.  He is the one to restore our relationship with the Father.

Is Jesus your Messiah?  How do you think the people recognized that Jesus had the Spirit?

Third Thought:

The second reason for the Spirit coming upon Jesus is to proclaim to the poor.  Who are the poor?  The poor are those unable to save themselves.  The poor are those who cannot save themselves.  The poor are the ones who are held in bondage to their sinful nature.  The poor are the ones who cannot see God without help.  We are the poor.  Humanity is the poor.  All of us are fallen, broken, and unable to save ourselves.  The Spirit of the Lord came to Jesus so that we might know relationship with the Father.

Do you think of yourself as poor?  Is this an insult to you?  What does it mean to you that Jesus was anointed by the Holy Spirit for your sake?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 4:20-22