June 9 - Among the Robbers

Read: Luke 10:25-37

Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" (Luke 10:36 ESV)</blockquote

Have you ever had something terrible happen to you, while the very people who should and could have helped you just looked the other way? If so, then you have something in common with the man from Jesus' story about the Good Samaritan.

A priest passed by. A Levite passed by. Both of whom were under moral, religious, and cultural obligation to help the victim. So why didn't they?

Remembering that this story is a parable you have to look at the context Jesus tells it in. What was going on in that time? Well, both the priests and the Levites had condoned rampant corruption within the established religious system. People were making a lot of money off of religion. It was robbery.

Jesus' parable was a challenge to those listening to rise above the corruption. He was calling them to help their neighbors and friends, to not live selfishly, and to love God and others. He was showing them it was possible to live above instead of among the robbers.

March 25 - The Good Portion?

Read: Luke 10:38-42

And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. (Luke 10:39 ESV)

Martha welcomed Jesus into her home and began to serve his needs and offer hospitality. Her sister Mary was captivated by Jesus and sat at his feet listening to his teaching. Martha didn't like it at all. In her opinion Mary had left her to do all the work. Jesus' gentle rebuke of Martha's complaining speaks volumes. Martha was blessed by her service to The Lord, but Mary was more blessed by sitting at his feet to enjoy his presence.

This brief story sheds light on a big question among some Christians today. What is more important: serving Jesus through your actions, or serving him through abiding in his presence? The answers are as varied as the lives of those who ask the question.

Truthfully, there isn't a blanket answer that fits the life of every believer and every scenario. The story of Mary and Martha shows us that in this specific example Jesus was very pleased with Mary's decision to simply enjoy his presence. However, it is also clear that at other points Scripture is very clear about the need for us to actually doing something.

The big idea found here I believe is that we cannot assume that the way we connect to Jesus or serve him is how everyone else must do it. Let me be clear, I believe everyone must connect to Jesus. He is after all the "way, the truth, and the life". But let us not assume that the good portion is the same for everyone. Where Jesus calls one to instruction and abiding, he may call someone else to action and serving.

March 24 - Who Is My Neighbor?

Read: Luke 10: 29-37

But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" (Luke 10:29 ESV)

As Jesus conversed with the lawyer the inquisitive fellow sought to refine his opinion. Jesus had just offered him gentle correction and the laywer was interested in justifying his position. The issue in question was the notion of loving people, or as Jesus had just told everyone loving your neighbor as yourself.

As thinkers are often prone to do the unnamed questioner got hung up on one word. "Who is my neighbor?" He asked. Jesus response came in the form of the parable of the Good Samaritan.

Jesus told the story in language and terms the common people listening would have well understood. He painted an accurate picture of the times as he explained the way the religious leadership abandoned the felt needs of the ransacked traveller. I imagine that the listeners found the story either scandalously truthful and full of conviction, or mocking and hardened their hearts.

Jesus answer to the question of neighborhood was perfect. A neighbor is not just someone who lives nearby as we are sometimes inclined to believe. A neighbor is anyone. Someone in proximity to us. Someone in need. Someone society has rejected.

Jesus' definition of neighbor is challenging. It calls us to abandon our small-minded love to embrace and pursue a bigger kind of love that ministers to anyone and everyone in need. His words show us that we do not have the right to minister only to those we find acceptable or similar. Loving our neighbor as ourself is so much bigger than we so often want to realize.

March 23 - How Do You Read It?

Read: Luke 10:25-28 He said to him, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" (Luke 10:26 ESV)

A lawyer stood up to put Jesus to the test. This was a guy who's sole job was to know the Law of Moses inside and out. He was out to find a loophole or other kind of weakness in Jesus's theology by asking him how to attain eternal life. Jesus' response was great, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?"

Jesus was about to share a big truth with the lawyer, but first he wanted to hear the self-appointed inquisitor's own worldview. Jesus wanted to give the guy a chance to lay out his own presuppositions. I can almost hear Jesus' sarcasm as he looked at the man and basically said, "You're the expert. Why don't you tell me?"

A big question we all face in our Spiritual growth is How do we read it? Because we should all be reading the Bible. We should want to spend time in His book in some form. But how are we doing that? Do we only read it when we have a point to prove? Do we only go looking for scripture that will back up our particular line of reasoning? Or, do we do the healthy thing, the right thing, do we read the Holy Scriptures and allow them to change our thoughts and habits? How we read it matters. How do you read it?

March 22 - Eyes That See

Read: Luke 10:21-24

Then turning to the disciples he said privately, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see!" (Luke 10:23 ESV)

I am a really fortunate guy. Unlike many people in my life I have never had to worry about wearing any kind of corrective lenses. I have perfect natural vision. The rarity of this does not escape me. I am really really grateful for it.

Spiritual awareness is another kind of sight. Jesus often spoke very candidly in terms of seeing and hearing truth. Those who perceived and accepted his truth he proclaimed as blessed. Those who did not were not only already cursed because of the hardness of their hearts, but he warned that they would eventually face the eternal consequences of their curse in Hell.

I have known many people who were blind to truth. Some of them were unbelievers who eventually came to faith in Christ by repenting and believing in him. I have also known many who professed to be followers of Jesus, but were in actuality blind to the truth of what he cares most about. They did not follow him through repentance or believing.

My wife and I make it a regular practice in our marriage to openly discuss the things we believe. My constant prayer is that this prayerful openness would always help us to keep our eyes open to the truths that Jesus leads us to. That we would continually look only to him. And that by putting our focus where it belongs we might resist the distractions around us that would blind us.

March 21 - The Bigger Deal

Read: Luke 10:17-20

Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven. (Luke 10:20 ESV)

They returned triumphant. They felt victorious. Inspite of some of the rejection and hard heartedness of men, the disciples had done a great work. People had been healed, demons had been cast out, and the gospel message had went forth in preparation for Jesus.

I imagine that this group, mostly comprised of men marginalized by the religious establishment, felt pretty good about themselves. Jesus' words to them don't ring out as a form of correction but as cuationary concern. Of course he wanted them to heal and cast out demons. He was the one that empowered them to do it. The real matter to be rejoiced over was salvation.

In ministry it is really easy to get caught up in the wins. When things are going extremely well you start to ride a wave of success that feels awesome. Knowing God has empowered you to succeed and seeing it happen creates an opportunity to led pride sneak in. Whether you're in vocational ministry or not it is easy to let this kind of thing happen during successful seasons of life.

We must celebrate success, often. We must share stories of life change and the miraculous as they happen. But let us never forget that for each one of us the biggest cause for rejoicing in our life is the salvation of our souls.

March 20 - Reject

Read: Luke 10:13-16

"The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me." (Luke 10:16 ESV)

Sharing the truth about Jesus is guaranteed to set you up for opposition. There will be people who do not like what you have to say. There will be those who disdain how you say it. There will be many who simply reject the notion that God holds them accountable for their actions. Acceptance and rejection are staples of Christianity.

Even in your own journey through faith you must ultimately decide on the ideas which you will accept or reject. Theological questions, life issues, and other things to be wrestled with internally have to pass through the filters in your mind until they are received or they are rejected. Jesus himself must never be rejected. He tears through all internal filters and ideas. He is the main idea.

As the seventy-two sent ones travelled the countryside sharing the message of Jesus they faced rejection. There was a crooked religious heirarchy that shunned them. There was an occupying pagan force that ridiculed them. There were their own countrymen that misunderstood them.

Jesus prepared them for that eventuality. He told them that people would reject them. His point was not that they were rejecting the disciples so much as the fact that they were rejecting God himself. To reject those sent by Jesus is to reject Jesus, and to reject God. The wonderfully encouraging idea in this is that it also means that by accepting those sent by Jesus, you are accepting God.

March 19 - Regular People

Luke 10:1-12

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. (Luke 10:1 ESV)

Jesus selected seventy-two people from among those following him. Wait, what? What about those twelve apostle guys? Well, yeah. He had those guys too. There was probably some overlap. But Jesus took thirty-six pairs of followers and commissioned them to go ahead of him. They went into the towns and villages and healed the sick, cast out demons, and preached the powerful approach of the Kingdom of Heaven. In other words, they did what Jesus did.

It's a really cool and powerful example to me. Jesus picked regular people. Not the religious types he frequently had conflict with. He then sent them into the places that he himself was planning to go and had them begin to do the very thing he was planning to do when he eventually got there. That's pretty incredible.

Jesus picks regular people. He uses regular folks. It's easy in America to point to super mega sized churches and their leaders as the modern rockstars of the faith. No doubt about it, many of them are doing astounding things in their communities. But I love the idea that Jesus held a massive schoolyard pick one day and chose seventy-two regular dudes to go do what he was about to do.

That all has a pretty clear implication to me about what we should be up to. We should be going to places and taking about Jesus. We should share his message, his love, and his power in those places. We should pray for the sick. We should believe Jesus to make the difference. We should preach the Kingdom of Heaven. We should believe Jesus to invite them to be a part.