Draw near to God and He will draw near to youWith the exception of Jesus’ prediction of his death and resurrection, the structure of this chapter is built around wishes. Twice the landowner in the parable did what he wished (vv. 14-15). When the mother of James and John came with a special request, Jesus asked her what was her wish (v. 21). Jesus explained to the disciples that the person who wished to become great had to make himself a servant (v. 26), and when Jesus stopped to answer the cry of a blind beggar, the Lord asked him, “What do you wish Me to do for you?” read more…
And they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He would touch them, but when the disciples saw it, they began rebuking them. Luke 18:15 (read vv. 15-43)
INTRO: This passage is about gatekeepers, followers, and being “saved”
Verses 15-17, Children are frequently blocked at the gate
Parents were bringing their children to be touched by Jesus
– his healing ministry began with touch (Lk. 4:40; 5:13) and power was released through him by touch (8:46)
– these parents wanted a blessing for their children – in some cases, a healing
I suffered many childhood illnesses, and each time, my grandmother came to pray for me
– I can still feel the gentle pressure of her hand on my forehead
– imagine the fingertips of Jesus on your forehead, or his palm on the top of your head read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to youThe young man was asking for it! He could have taken Jesus first answer to his question and cheerfully gone his way. When he asked, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” Jesus told him to “keep the commandments” (vv. 16-17). But he was not satisfied with that answer and kept probing.
He came to Jesus wanting to know what good thing he could do to qualify for eternal life. The Lord responded with the surprising answer, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good . . .” Did he want to do good for humankind? Something that was pure good? Some ultimate good? If he wanted to see pure and ultimate good, he would have to look to God. If he wanted to enter life, he did not have to be God-like, he only had to keep the commandments.
So why did he keep pushing? Why did he feel the need to do something more worthy, noble, excellent, something beyond keeping the commandments? Perhaps in his heart he feared (or knew) that something was missing, that God was still distant and eternal life was out of reach. read more…
Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart Luke 18:1 (read vv. 1-14)
INTRO: When I was first starting out in the ministry and trying to teach others how to pray,
I would make statements, like, “Prayer does not need to be fancy,” and “You don’t have to say anything holy, just talk to God”
– that statement is deceptively simple
– how do we know if we are talking to God or to the air? or to ourselves? read more…
The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, “Look, here it is! or, “There it is!” For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst. Luke 17:20-1 (read verses 20-37)
INTRO: I have frequently been asked why I think my dad’s church grew so rapidly
Among the other lame answers I give, I explain that most of the rapid growth occurred during what was an apocalyptic era
– the revolutionary 1960’s that ended in many shattered dreams
– the youth were looking for an authority who understood the times, who seemed to have a handle on what was next
– in the late 60’s, Dad began emphasizing biblical prophecy — current events had a purpose, an apocalyptic meaning
– like others, he was inspired by Israel’s 1967 war and once again having Jerusalem under their control read more…
He said to His disciples, “It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come!” Luke 17:1 (read vv. 1-19)
INTRO: A friend of mine mentioned a book to me about jerks in the workplace
In it, the author says, “More and more evidence keeps emerging that power causes people to be more focused on their own needs, less focused on others’ needs, and to ack like ‘rules don’t apply to me’ . . . .” Experiments “also show when people get a little power, they feel less compassion when hearing others talk about painful experiences, such as the death of a friend.” (Robert Sutton)
Moving up the ladder in status, position, or income changes a person
– not in the ways we tend to assume – that is, they do not become more generous, but less read more…
There was a rich man . . .” Luke 16:1 (read entire chapter)
INTRO: Francis Schaeffer once said: “We are often told, ‘You can’t take it with you.’ But this is not true. You can take it with you–if you are a Christian.”
Of course, the truth of this statement depends on what we mean by “it”
– regarding whatever money we accumulate, we can’t take it with us
– but we can send it ahead – or something like that
That is the message in the first part of this chapter
– the second half is about regret
– what is regret? It is a feeling of disappointment or sadness over: read more…
Both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” Luke 15:2 (read entire chapter)
INTRO: We are going to enter this chapter at an unusual point
I want to begin with you . . . and your most sincere honesty
- Do you believe people accept you unconditionally as you are?
– think of the attention we give to our appearance before going out - Do you accept yourself unconditionally as you are?
– I don’t mean, that you can’t think of any more improvements to make, but your core self read more…
He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Luke 14:35 (read entire chapter)
INTRO: Have you ever returned to a place where you grew up and thought, “It’s so much smaller than I remember”?
The physical environment did not shrink – your perspective is enlarged
– what we hold to be reality internally depends on our perspective of external reality
One of the factors that shape perspective is culture
– cultures define reality
– which is why the people in different cultures attribute illnesses either to spirits or bacteria
Cultures also manufacture reality
– for example, we are convinced that we live in the real world read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to youThis story perfectly fits the context of the previous chapter and could have been included in it. But what is so sad about it coming here is that the disciples did not absorb the lessons they had just heard and, instead, acted in total contradiction to them. This is the danger of merely learning information, whether Bible verses, beliefs, or doctrines. We can do a lot of thinking about principles and propositions, yet fail to see the opportunity to act on them even when it is right in front of our eyes. read more…
Daily Meditations From the Scriptures