Reading

Matthew 2:13-23

Devotion

Peace be with you!

Have you ever had exciting plans only to have them get cancelled? I have had plans change at the last minute, but somehow I got the feeling I was where God needed me to be. It is an odd feeling but also a feeling of being called by God.

Like most Jewish parents, Mary and Joseph probably had plans to raise Jesus around their families. They wanted to raise Jesus with the Jewish traditions. However, Joseph has another dream in which the Lord tells him to take his family to Egypt, because Herod wants to find and kill Jesus (Matthew 2:13). Joseph probably has to find a way to sell the idea to Mary; after all, most new mothers find comfort in having their own mothers close by. Joseph probably reminds Mary how many strangers came to see Jesus shortly after his birth. “There is always such a commotion around our son,” Joseph says, “How long will it take Herod to become jealous? You know Herod’s reputation, Mary.” You can probably relate to both of their anxieties: Joseph’s need to protect his family and Mary’s need to be near her family.

Nevertheless, Mary and Joseph pack up and move to Egypt, narrowly escaping Herod’s decree of death for all male babies around two years of age (Matthew 2:14, 16). Can you imagine Mary’s relief and gratitude when she heard what had happened to these children so near Jesus’ age?

Matthew’s Jewish audience would have seen the parallels between Herod and the Pharaoh from the story of Moses. Herod is afraid of the commotion surrounding baby Jesus (Matthew 2:16), and Pharaoh was scared of the growing numbers of the Israelites (Exodus 1:8). Both rulers were frightened of the loss of power. Jesus and Moses both become givers of salvation to their people. Like Moses, it can be said of Jesus, “and out of Egypt I called my son” (Hosea 11:1, NRSV). Mary is like Rachel weeping for the children not able to grow up. Their laments are a cry to the Lord to watch over the children.

When Herod is dead, Joseph has another dream in which the Lord tells him to go back to Israel, though he avoids Judea where Herod’s son still rules (Matthew 2:20, 22). This fulfills what the prophets have said about Jesus being called a Nazarene (Matthew 2:23).

The Lord has a distinguished plan for baby Jesus and guides Mary and Joseph to make sure it happens. Mary and Joseph are faithful to obey God’s instructions.

In midst of a hurting world, the Lord is with us. God does not caused evil to happen but is present with us in the midst of it, providing guidance, protection, safety, and healing in the midst of a fallen world. Sometimes it is difficult to understand why bad things happen. However, we can rest assured God hears our laments and comforts us in our time of need.

Come, O Lord, come!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for sending Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus to Egypt to escape Herod’s decree. Help us to feel your presence in this hurting world. Be our guiding voice. Protect us from our enemies. Heal us of our afflictions. Lead us to fulfill your plan. Thank you for being our light in the world. Amen.

Works Cited

Thanks to the Triune God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below.  Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.)  You can answer as many questions as you would like.

1. Where is God in the world today? How do you feel his presence?
2. Why does God allow bad things to happen?

Reading

Luke 2:1-20

Devotion

Peace be with you!

We have been waiting four weeks to welcome baby Jesus into the world. The first week of Advent Jesus told us to expect the unexpected and to be prepared by being good stewards. Jesus does not want us to be idle as we wait for his return. He wants us to be actively spreading the good news that Jesus will be returning. The second week John the Baptist warned us the Messiah is coming to judge the living and the dead by welcoming the righteous into the Kingdom of God and condemning the wicked to hell. John the Baptist’s warning was stern. The third week John the Baptist questioned if Jesus was in fact the Messiah? Jesus showed us how the Kingdom of God was and is breaking into the world, saying: “the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me” (Matthew 11:5-6 NRSV). The fourth week, with the help of an angel, Joseph discerned what to do with Mary who was pregnant before their wedding day. Joseph decided to extend forgiveness, grace, and love to Mary by taking her as his wife.

Now, we gaze into the stable and see Mary and Joseph, new parents to the tiny baby King lying in the manger. We have been waiting for this moment for weeks now. We have been waiting for God to enter the world again. Joseph and John the Baptist have been preparing for Jesus’ arrival into the world as they discern who Jesus really is. We have also been discerning who Jesus is in our lives. We have been reflecting on how we welcome Jesus into our lives.

“In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!’” (Luke 2:8-14 NRSV).

What would we do if we were among the shepherd, hearing the angels’ glad tidings? Would we be scared? Excited? Dumbfounded? What would we do if angels came and sang, “Glory to God in the highest”? Would we go and see the unexpected like the shepherds? It is hard to tell. On the one hand, we go out into the world and proclaim God’s good news daily. We tell others how Jesus through the Holy Spirit is with us in the world. On the other hand, we are terrified like the shepherds were. We are called crazy or false prophets. Proclaiming the good news that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, walks in the world with us is scary business. No amount of theological trains you for those scary moments where you have to proclaim what the world considers unlikely, unrealistic, a naïve belief. Still the wonderment of the unexpected good news that Jesus is in the world makes us want to share it with everyone we know. The wonderment keeps us worshipping the God the Father who is in the world with us through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. The wonderment keeps us proclaiming the unexpected good news. The wonderment of a virgin giving birth to a baby boy who will one day die for our sins makes us want to share the good news. The wonderment keeps us engaged with two thousand year old story.

“When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’ So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them” (Luke 2:15-20 NRSV).

How do we announce Jesus’ arrival into the world today? The unexpected good news seems impossible. How can we expect anyone to believe us? The shepherds believed the angels, went and saw the baby, and returned to their fields praising God for what they had heard and seen. We, too, can praise God for what we see and hear through the historical witness of Scripture and through the belief in our hearts. The unexpected, seemingly impossible good news is possible through the Lord.

Go out into the world and proclaim the unexpected good news that the Messiah is born today. Shout the unexpected good news on the street corner, over your phone, through a video, or through [whatever “it” is] you do to share news. Fear not! Go out and testify just as the shepherds did so long ago.

Come, O Lord, come!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for sharing the unexpected good news of a baby boy being born to a virgin in a stable. Help us to trust the angels and lead us to the manger. Remind us of the unexpected good news of the angels. Thank you for making the unexpected and unrealistic possible. Amen.

Works Cited

Photo Credit: Heidi Malott’s “The Holy Family” 

Thanks to the Triune God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

1. What would you do if you were among the shepherd, hearing the angels’ proclaiming the birth of the Messiah?
2. How do you announce Jesus’ arrival into the world?

Reading

Isaiah 7:10-16

Matthew 1:18-25

Devotion

Peace be with you!

Today in United States, when two people get engaged it is a joyous occasion. The couple makes plans for their wedding with anticipation in their hearts. The engagement is a mutual agreement the couple makes to devote themselves to each other in marriage. If the couple decides not to get married, there is no legal action to take – the two individuals go their separate ways. In contrast, two thousand years ago betrothal was a legal agreement between the parents of the couple. It was every bit as much a promise and commitment as a wedding vow is now. The end of a betrothal was considered a divorce.

Mary and Joseph’s parents enter into a contract, promising that their children’s betrothal will result in a marriage in a year or so. If one party breaks the contract, it will mean divorce and disgrace. Mary is nervous to approach Joseph about her pregnancy because it appears she has committed adultery (grounds for Joseph to divorce her). She worries her family will be disgraced, and she will face hardships within the community. Somehow Mary finds the strength to tell Joseph about her pregnancy even though she understands he might humiliate her in public.

Anyone who has been involved in a romantic relationship that ended in betrayal can understand Mary’s fears. No one wants to tell their beloved they have broken their trust.

Although Joseph is justifiably upset about Mary being pregnant before marriage, he is a righteous man and decides to send her away quietly without making it a public issue. An angel of the Lord visits Joseph in a dream and explains, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:20c-21 NRSV). The name Jesus mean “Yahweh saves” or “salvation” in Hebrew. The angel tells Joseph his son will bring salvation from god the Father to the Jews.

Joseph listens to the angel in his dream. He takes Mary home as his wife and names their son Jesus (Matthew 1:24-25). Joseph understands the Lord’s plan is bigger than him. Even before his birth, Jesus is challenging the traditions of his day and replacing bitterness and humiliation with forgiveness, grace, and love. The angel of the Lord tells Joseph to forgive Mary by giving her grace and love. A new era is upon us where anything is possible.

This brings to fulfillment the words of the Prophet Isaiah: “‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,’ which means, ‘God is with us’” (Matthew 1:23 NRSV; Isaiah 7:14). God is coming into the world with a new creation to fulfill his promise to Isaiah. God is coming into the world to experience everyday life – to face our decisions, to feel our pain and sorrow, and to give us forgiveness, grace, and love. God is coming into the world to be with us – to hold us, to lift us up, and to lead us to the light.

Come, O Lord, come!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for coming into the world to be with us. Help us to welcome baby Jesus into the world. Remind us to extend forgiveness, grace, and love to others. Thank you for walking in the world with us. Amen.

Works Cited

Thanks to the Triune God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

1. When and how have you experienced someone extending forgiveness, grace, and love to you?
2. How have experienced God walking with you?

Reading

Matthew 11:2-11

Devotion

Peace be with you!

Friday was a good day. It was the first day I felt like myself again after battling a cold and a staph infection the past week. I got out of beed before ten and went for an energizing bike ride with a friend. I even ate my whole lunch, which amazed me because I hadn’t eaten much all week. I did some Christmas shopping and ate leftovers for dinner. It was one of those rare perfect days when peace conquers all. The last thing I expected was news of another shooting at a school. But that is what was listed first in Google News when I opened Internet Explorer. My peace was shattered as I watched high school students get patted down outside. This is not what you expect to see during Advent. The world is supposed to be at peace during the holiday season, right?

In plain view, Jesus gives the blind sight, makes the lepers clean, allows the deaf to hear, raises the dead, and gives the poor good news (Matthew 11:5). Jesus calls people to trust in the Lord with all their heart, soul, mind, and might. John the Baptist is baffled, because he is sure Jesus is the one for whom he has been waiting. However, John believes that the one he has been prophesying about is supposed to be judging everyone and telling them if they can get into the kingdom. Contrary to John’s expectations, Jesus is befriending tax collectors, eating with sinners, and healing the sick.

While in jail, John the Baptist sends his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” (Matthew 11:3 NRSV). He is confused because Jesus is nothing like what he has been expecting. John the Baptist wants to know if Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

Jesus says to John the Baptist’s disciples, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me” (Matthew 11:4b-6 NRSV).

Jesus turns to the crowd as John’s disciples leave and asks, “What did you go into the wilderness to look for? A reed shaken by the wind? What did you go out and see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. What did you go out and see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it was written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you’” (Matthew 11:7-10 NRSV).

Jesus asks us, “What do you expect? The world is still going to fight and be corrupt. People are still going to be greedy. But I am in the world with you bringing the kingdom to you.” We expect the world to be at peace during the holiday season; we don’t expect shootings in schools. We expect cookies at parties, not a casket of a child. We expect celebration throughout our communities, not pain and sorrow. We expect a lot out of the season.

Jesus points us to where his kingdom is in the world – where God enters our lives. Jesus is with our children when a shooter enters their school. Jesus holds us tight when we are hurting and feeling lost. We can expect Jesus to be with us in our darkest hour. We can expect Jesus to share a meal with us. We can expect Jesus to sit with us on the bus, plane, or train. We can expect Jesus to heal our brokenness. We can expect Jesus to walk in the shadows and bring us into the light. And when it all ends, Jesus will take us into the Kingdom of God where we will enjoy eternal life with him.

Come, O Lord, come!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for allowing us to question you. Help us to see you in the world in the midst of pain and sorrow. Guide us to see the light flickering in the darkness. Remind us you are with us in the world. Thank you for letting us lean on your Son in this time of darkness. Amen.

Works Cited

Thanks to the Triune God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below.  Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.)  You can answer as many questions as you would like.

1. What happens when Jesus comes into the world?
2. How is Jesus received in the world?

Reading

Matthew 3:1-12

Devotion

Peace be with you!

A shout in a quiet street can startle us. The shout can be a call from a dear friend or a scream for help. It can disorient us from what we were thinking or doing. It can stop us in our tracks and make us do something unexpected.

John the Baptist is shouting in the wilderness, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Matthew 3:2 NRSV). The call to repent is a radical challenge, especially for the Jewish authorities who believe their ancestry gives them free tickets into heaven. John calls the Pharisees and the Sadducees to repent of their sins and to go out into the world doing good deeds (Matthew 3:7, 10). There is no difference between Jews and Gentiles when the one who comes after John the Baptist enters the world. The Pharisees and the Sadducees can no longer hide in the temple and in their homes. They have to go out and share God’s love with others. John challenges the Pharisees and the Sadducees to let go of their superior attitudes and express their faith in the Lord through their good deeds towards others.

John challenges us to repent by turning away from our old lives of sins to a new life with Jesus Christ. Repentance causes us to turn toward the Lord and to do good works for his honor, not our own. Our old ways yield to new ways of living with Jesus Christ in our lives. It is no longer good enough to check things off a list. We have to show the Lord we want to live according to his will.

The repentance challenge forces us to exclaim how we live out our faith every day. It forces us to look for ways to express God’s love for the world by loving our neighbor. We cannot walk past the man outside Wal-Mart without giving some of our loose change so he can eat today. We cannot ignore the family in church or at our children’s school who never has clean clothes; we can help them. We can no longer walk around doing nothing. We have to do something. Once we repent our life changes because we live for God.

John the Baptist is shouting on the street corner, in the park, in the diner, or [wherever “it” is] you are right now, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Matthew 3:2 NRSV). The kingdom of heaven is near. It is coming to us soon. Are you ready? Have you repented? Are you doing God’s will? Now is the time to make changes in your life and to enjoy eternal life with God the Father. Soon someone greater than John the Baptist will enter the world, someone who will be able to look into the depths of your soul and know you (Matthew 3:12). He will judge you based on your heart and your deeds. He will cast down those who go through life without caring for others, and he will lift up those who love their neighbors. Be ready for his entrance into the world.

Come, O Lord, come!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for sending John the Baptist to call us to repent. Help us to turn away from our old ways to live according to your ways. Lead us to lift up your name through our good deeds. Thank you for bringing the kingdom near to us. Amen.

Works Cited

Thanks to the Triune God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

1. How do you repent daily?
2. How and when do you call others to repent?
3. How do you express God’s love to others?

Readings

Matthew 24:36-44

Devotion

Peace be with you!

Wait, wait! Jesus is coming back. It may be tomorrow, next year, next decade, or next millennium, but Jesus is coming back – not yet, but soon. We wait…at red lights, in checkout lines, for replies to emails, and in  restaurant booths. We do not like being stalled in place with nothing to do. We pace back and forth nervously while we wait for the next big thing. As Christians, we are waiting for Jesus to come back and take us to the Kingdom of God. However, before Jesus travelled to the cross, he warned us against being poor stewards of our time, not actively looking for him in the world. Jesus told us to be aware of his presence and to continue to do his work in the world.

In our Gospel reading, Jesus warns us against being idle while waiting for his Second Coming. Jesus tells the crowd three anecdotes to explain the importance of being alert while waiting. First, Jesus reminds us that people were too busy eating, drinking, and marrying to acknowledge what God was doing in their lives before the Flood. The people were living in a lazy state of being – not having a care in the world. God wanted the people in Noah’s time to stop and access the world around them by looking for his presence, but they did not care to acknowledge the God who created them. Therefore, without warning or explanation, God sent the great Flood to kill his creation in order to start over. The Flood was unexpected by the general public, except Noah and his family. People were going about their everyday lives when the Flood suddenly engulfed the world. No weatherman could have predicted such a devastating natural disaster. In the same way, the Son of Man’s return to the world will be sudden and not expected (Matthew 24:38-39).

Second, Jesus explains how his return will happen. People will be living their everyday lives (reading, writing, doing paperwork and homework, cooking, baking, mining, harvesting, planting, teaching, selling, shopping, or [whatever “it” is] you do on a daily basis) when one person will disappear, leaving the other person behind (Matthew 24:40-41). Jesus’ return will bring judgment into the world and will separate the believers from the nonbelievers. Jesus will separate those who share his light in the world from those lost in the darkness. Jesus will separate the ones who continually confess their faith publically from those just sitting lazily hiding in the pews. Jesus will separate the ones rich in grace and love from those drowning in resentment and bitterness. Jesus will take his disciples to heaven and will leave the rest in the world.

Third, Jesus tells us to be watchful and mindful of his Second Coming. Just like a homeowner does not know when the thief will come, we will not know the exact moment Jesus will be returning (Matthew 24:43). We need to be alert to God’s presence in the world in order to be ready for his Son’s Second Coming, a coming which will radically change our very existence.

Jesus’ return into the world will come as a sudden surprise and will separate the believers and nonbelievers.  We cannot go about our lives in a sleep-walking state of mind without noticing God’s presence in the world. We need to be alert to how God is working among us and expect the unexpected. There is no time for daydreaming or sleeping for those waiting for Jesus’ Second Coming. There is work to do: people to lead to the light, people to feed, people to provide shelter for, people to clothe, and [whatever “it” is] God calls us to do. We need to continually confess our faith to bring others into a relationship with the Triune God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We have work to do in the meantime. We need to stop being idle Christians and be pro-faith. We need to stay alert, because Jesus is coming and we need to be ready. Are you ready?

Come, O Lord, come!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for promising Jesus’ return. Help us to be mindful of your presence in a world where darkness threatens to overwhelm us. Remind us to be alert and to be ready for radical change in our existence. Thank you for the hope in your promise. Amen.

Works Cited

Thanks to the Triune God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below.  Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.)  You can answer as many questions as you would like.

1. How do you stay alert?
2. When and how do you keep confessing your faith?
3. What have you witnessed that was unexpected?

Readings

2 Kings 5:1-3, 7-15c

Psalm 111

1 Timothy 2:8-15

Luke 17:11-19

Devotion

Peace be with you!

What does it mean to really see someone? Not just the parts you want to see, but the parts of the another person that make you uncomfortable and downright scared. It is unnerving to get to know another person’s darkness, and it is even more unnerving to let someone else to see your darkness. Getting to know someone and letting him or her get to know you is scary business.

Jesus is travelling between Samaria and Galilee when ten lepers approach him while still keeping their distance and call out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us” (Luke 17:11-13). The ten lepers are suffering from skin sores, nerve damage, and muscle weakness that only progresses over time with no cure or real relief. The lepers are segregated from society in Biblical times because of their unpleasant, deformed appearance.

Today our lepers are the homeless, the child molesters, the drug addicts, the alcoholics, the physically disabled, the mentally challenged, or [whoever “it” is] that make you uncomfortable or scared. These are the people we label as dangerous and cast away as unproductive members of society. At some point in our lives, we probably have all been treated as lepers. Perhaps we had a different opinion than society as a whole or perhaps we suffered ostracism of a popular clique in junior high. Whatever the case, we all know what it is like to be excluded.

The ten lepers call out and plead with Jesus to heal them (Luke 17:13). They are seeking someone to really see them for who they are – who God planned them to be, not just deformed individuals who are unable to tend to their own needs. Many of the individuals who are physically disabled that I meet (and even myself) are frustrated with how society as a whole treats them – as individuals unaware of the world around them. Individuals tend to think the wheelchairs, walkers, and other adaptive devices mean the person using them needs extra care and is less intelligent. When people tell my friends how saintly they are for helping me get out of the house, my friends usually exclaim, “Erin is the one getting me out the house!”

Jesus tells the ten lepers to go and show themselves to a priest. They all go and are made clean (Luke 17:14). Jesus recognizes the ten lepers as individuals in need of being made clean and healed. They are individuals who are suffering unnecessarily; they came to Jesus out of faith that he will make them whole. The ten lepers listen and put their trust in Jesus when they follow his command to go and see a priest. Today we see Jesus in others when we make pleas for healing, forgiveness, and grace. Doctors tell us to take medicine when we are sick; personal trainers push us to exercise when we want to sit down; friends and family members catch us when we fall after a mistake. Jesus uses individuals to see our darkness and to show us the light.

Out of the ten lepers, only one leper, a foreigner, comes back to see and worship Jesus (Luke 17:15-18). All ten lepers were made clean and healed, but only one realizes Jesus has made him whole. Jesus says to him, “Get up and go. Your faith has made you well.” (Luke 17:19). Jesus sees and recognizes the healed individual as the one who has leprosy; the individual who was previously a leper sees and recognizes Jesus as the Lord who has made whole. The individual who is now clean experiences a change in his life’s direction. He is no longer the unpleasant, disabled person shunned by society, but he is an active member of society. Not only that, but his own sense of worth has increased and has made him whole.

We do not need to experience a physical healing to be made whole. A battered woman who finds the courage to end an abusive relationship experiences being made whole when she reclaims her life. She stops allowing someone else to controls her every decision and movement, and she decides what she needs and wants and who she is as an individual. The power of making decisions and claiming your voice and personality gives a person a sense of worth to live in the world.

Photo Credit: Amber Sue Photography, www.ambersuephotography.com

In reality, we are all lepers with no business entering the Kingdom of God. We all have dark places and secrets that we dare not share with others, because they are outright damning. These places and secrets are things we ourselves would like to forget, and they hold us back from feeling whole and having relationships with others. Thankfully God comes into the world through Jesus Christ, dies on the cross, and conquers death in order to restore our relationship with him. We are made whole through Jesus Christ.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for seeing us as individuals able to carry out your plan despite our “leprosy.” Help us to feel whole and give us a sense of worth to be in healthy relationship with others and you. Allow us to see each one another as we really are without passing judgment. Remind us to have faith that you will care for us, despite our darkness. Thank you for making us whole through Jesus Christ. Amen.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below.  Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the comment covenant.)  You can answer as many questions as you would like.

1.How are you a leper?

2.How has your faith you whole?

Readings

Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4

Psalm 37:1-9

2 Timothy 1:1-9

Luke 17:5-10

Devotion

Photo Credit: Amber Sue Photography, www.ambersuephotography.com

Peace be with you!

A child’s faith is something special. Children do not question if the Biblical stories are true: Jesus loves me;  the Bible says tells me so. Out of curiosity they question what God looks like, how God made the world in seven days, or why God sent Jesus to die for their sins. Their imaginations fill in the blanks where we cannot find the words to explain it.

Jesus has been talking about the costs of discipleship with the crowds: make your earthly family second and God first (Luke 14:26), carry the cross (Luke 14:27), give up all of your possessions (Luke 14:33), and no going back (Luke 19:57-62). To follow Jesus, you have to forgive those who sin and seek repentance (Luke 17:3-4), even if they sin again. When you sin, someone will rebuke you; when you choose to repent, the other person is to forgive you no matter how many times you have sinned. We live in a vicious cycle: sin, be rebuked, repent, be forgiven, and repent again. To be Jesus’ disciples is to be called to make daily sacrifices. We have to make the choice daily to follow Jesus Christ because we are constantly being tempted by the Devil and we constantly have to say no to temptation. There is nothing simple or easy about being Jesus’ disciples; we constantly have to make the choice to follow.

Most days, the choice seems simple (though perhaps not easy). We make it without thinking, because we are devoted disciples who realize the consequences are only temporary and the reward is eternal life in the Kingdom of God. Children talk about what they learn in Sunday School without worrying that their belief in God might offend someone; they are overcome by the joy in knowing Jesus and feel an overwhelming need to share the good news. But as we get older, the choice to follow gets more difficult: how can I abandon my dying mom, how can I live without my cell phone, how can I share the good news with people who always reject it, how can I not worry about my mortgage payment, and [whatever “the consequence” is] that you have difficulty handling. Some days we are lost in the wilderness, overwhelmed by fears, and drowning in the darkness.

The disciples ask Jesus to increase their faith (Luke 17:5). The disciples are overwhelmed by the costs of discipleship because the costs seem unbearable. They have to put their trust in a man who claims to be the Son of God and give up everything to follow him. The task Jesus sets before them seems impossible.

Jesus is at his wit’s end with his disciples’ belief that faith can be measured. Jesus responds to the disciples, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” In the Greek, the word a‡n (an untranslatable particle “an”) indicates Jesus is criticizing the disciples for their lack of faith (Carey 2010).  All you need is a little faith, and Jesus will take care of the rest. Even when we struggle in the darkness, Jesus is shining the light for us to find our way to the Kingdom of God. Ordinary faith is sufficient to express our devotion to the Triune God; Jesus exploits our faith by calling us out of the darkness and into the light.

After Jesus heals someone, he says, “Your faith has healed you.” (Luke 3:48; 7:50; 17:19; 18:42). Faith cannot be measured. You cannot measure whether it changes how you perceive and respond to the world by transforming you into a child of God.

Jesus tells the disciples a parable. A slave serves his master by plowing the field or tending the sheep and then he comes in to make the evening meal (Luke 17:7-8). In Biblical times, slaves were devoted to their masters by doing whatever they were asked. The slaves were a part of the household and respected by their masters. However, Jesus points out how masters hardly ever ask their slaves to enjoy a meal with them or thank them for simply doing their job (Luke 17:8-9). Therefore, the disciples need to repent, because they do not do what they should do (Luke 17:10). All Jesus asks of them is to do ordinary acts of kindness to act out their faith.

As God’s children, we are his slaves. We are to devote ourselves to the Triune God and to spreading the good news throughout the world. Just as children live to obey their parents, we live to obey God’s commandments. Though children are born into sin, they have a certain innocence which allows them to live Jesus’ light in the world until someone or something takes it away. However, God the Father sends his only begotten son into the world to overcome the darkness with his light and to restore our innocence through his forgiveness – just as parents forgive their children. God is devoted to his children by sending Jesus Christ to die for our sins in order to restore our relationship with him.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for exploiting our faith to serve you, even when we feel trapped in the darkness. Guide us to Jesus’ light in the darkness in order to lead others to your kingdom. Comfort us as we struggle in the wilderness, as we look towards heaven. Remind us that ordinary faith is sufficient for us to serve you. Thank you for devoting your message to us. Amen.

Works Cited

Carey, Greg. Commentary of Luke 17:5-10. September 24, 2010. http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=680 (accessed October 4, 2013).

Triune God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below.  Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the comment covenant located here.)  You can answer as many questions as you would like. 

1. What is faith? How does it feel?

2. How has faith transformed you?