Good Morning Friends,
Living a Christian life amid a confused world has never been easy. The hope is for us to be whole people even though the world is broken. The problem is that often the harder we try the worse it gets. The answer in scripture to this dilemma is to accept Jesus. I know, to many, this is difficult to grasp and respond to. Christians are exhorted to sit and wait, to put their minds in neutral and wait for God to do something. Christians, in their earnestness to set this teaching forth, have often given that impression, that it is simply to let go and let God do everything, and you don’t have to do anything. Of course, it is true that we must face the clear statement of Scripture that, we, in ourselves, can do nothing. We do not add to God’s working, but that does not mean that we do not have a part in it. We still need to follow. Christ’s words had a fresh attraction to the people who first heard them. These people were also attracted to the authority with which he spoke them – and this was why people followed him in such large numbers then and still today for those who listen and hear and are moved in the Spirit. You see Christ’s words have the power of salvation in them. Even so, there were those, who followed him for the sake of convenience only, without too much purity of heart, or perhaps with the desire to be a little better but not radically changed. Even today many are happy with the benefits of Christianity but forget who it is that restores this health. There are two conditions here. The first is to listen to the word of God and the second is to put it into practice. The problem is that Jesus is way too big for our small hearts. So, Are You Willing To Not Only Hear And Say But Do What Is Right?
Scripture: The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will. All deeds are right in the sight of the doer, but the Lord weighs the heart. To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. Haughty eyes and a proud heart— the lamp of the wicked—are sin. The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to want. The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death. The souls of the wicked desire evil; their neighbors find no mercy in their eyes. When a scoffer is punished, the simple become wiser; when the wise are instructed, they increase in knowledge. The Righteous One observes the house of the wicked; he casts the wicked down to ruin. If you close your ear to the cry of the poor,
you will cry out and not be heard.
Proverbs 21:1-6, 10-13 (NRSV)
Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.
Psalm 119:35 (NRSV)
Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. And he was told, ‘Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.’ But he said to them, ‘My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.
Luke 8:19-21 (NRSV)
Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life.
Mark 10:29-30 (NRSV)
Then his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside, they sent to him and called him. A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking for you.” And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
Mark 3:31-35 (NRSV)
‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.” Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?” And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” Then he will say to those at his left hand, “You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.” Then they also will answer, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?” Then he will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.’
Matthew 25:31-46 (NRSV)
Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.
Psalm 119:35 (NRSV)
Message: Today’s story from the life of Jesus Christ is from Luke’s Gospel and similar stories of a slightly harsher tone appear in Mark and Matthew. They look like proof of the alienation of Jesus from His extended family. But this is not really the message. In today’s text the family is trying to get to Jesus for some reason, and the crowd tells Him about it, and He seems to disown them. But in the original language, Jesus is rhyming the verbs hearing and doing in the text to help people understand and remember what he is saying on a deeper level about having a love that extends beyond our flesh and blood to the radical change in the coming of the Kingdom of God. Indeed, the message is that God will impart more truth to him who appropriates what he has already heard about the Kingdom. But moreover, the message is that when the Kingdom comes it will change everything. Therefor take heed not just of what you hear but how you hear so that it prompts the right action of doing. In some ways it is like a proverb to comfort the poor…to motivate someone to action for the least of these. You see, just as the proverbs in the Bible were designed for people to repeat and memorize by rote so too is this passage Jesus shares. And the words are a way of passing on from one generation to another an important message that were most economically shared verbally and put the priority on God. Here we have words that were used to pass instructions and histories from the older generation to the younger, and that was one of the big reasons why aged parents and grandparents were valued in any society, but especially Jewish society. In fact, we frequently see Jesus either quoting old proverbs or inventing new ones, as He appears to be doing that here. Jesus Himself learned instruction such as this at the feet of the local rabbi, perhaps older relatives, and certainly Joseph and Mary. The simple beauty of the Christian faith and the Gospel’s call is one that requires radical action. Jesus is preparing people for this Kingdom. The real challenge is not in understanding its potential but on acting on the hope of it.
And So, it is not just about what you hear but how you hear that makes the biggest difference.
The Christian life is all about believing and obeying God’s law of love. The passage about family in today’s Gospel reading from Luke is a great example of this for it is not a repudiation by Jesus of his kindred and even his mother. But it does bear witness to the reality that one has to be willing to listen and prod the text with questions that provoke a conviction of a required action. Here we are to see the depth, and the divine quality of the community of believers in Christ as being stronger than any earthly bond of blood. If we do not hear the scripture in this way, there are consequences of inaction. You see we learn by doing and if we do not act then we may hear lots of sermons and devotionals and understand them in our minds but never really understand them in our hearts. Friends, we are to know that the Bible was written for each of us and has in it a message we are to act upon. That the first Christians were often rejected by their own families should guide our reading of this difficult passage from Luke and its priorities. This is not about hatred but of a love that goes beyond the love of our families. We like Jesus need to be passionately committed to the cause. Friends, those who belong to the community of believers belong to Christ.
Pray we embrace the power of the fellowship of believers. Pray
we listen with our heart for the Word of God and seek its meaning for us. Pray we open our hearts to the Word. Pray we want to fully understand. Pray we ask questions that are life changing. Pray we realize that God is speaking to all of us to help us understand we are to practice what Jesus preached. Pray we listen with our ears and hear with our hearts.
Pray we discern what is right. Pray we learn with God’s guidance. Pray we act accordingly – always counting on Jesus’ help knowing of His mercy and patience. Pray the Lord plant His Word in our hearts. Pray we listen to the Spirit in God’s word and practice it with love.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 