monday SEPTEMBER 2 Logos Luke 9:51–56; Change Takes Time First Steps (1 John 2:1–9) Phil. 2:12–15; 1 John 2:1–9 In every young bird’s life there comes a time when it will fly out of the nest. For days it watches its parents fly to and fro. Finally, it can no longer ignore its urge to fly. So it spreads its wings. Will it fly or fall to the ground? Some birds don’t make it, while others do. There comes a time when we all fall rather than soar. But God raises us up like a loving father who teaches His children to keep trying. The more time we spend with Him, the more we will be willing to grow and change. Then the more we will be like Him, having learned the things only He can teach. God loves us just as we are, but His love is too great to leave us the way we are. Reaching Out (Luke 9:1–6) Before going to Jerusalem, Jesus sent the twelve disciples out on their own to proclaim the kingdom of God in the villages and towns. Thus they were flying from the nest, to strengthen their wings and to grow in Christ. “This had a good effect. . . . [It] forced the disciples to rely on God’s power and not on their own provision—they carried no outward symbols of au- thority, only the inward power that Christ gave them.”1 Rejection Teaches Respect (Luke 9:51–56) After the disciples returned from their missionary trip, the time grew near for Jesus to go to Jerusalem so that He could “be taken up to heaven” (Luke 9:51, NIV). To get to Jerusalem, He would be traveling through Sa- maria. So He sent messengers ahead of Him to prepare a place for Him there in order that He could rest along the way. But no one in Samaria would welcome Him. This is because to “pass through Samaria toward Judea, as the Jews of Galilee often did, with the objective of worshiping God in Jerusalem, implied the inferiority of the Samaritan religion, and was thus taken as an insult by the Samaritans.”2 This angered James and John, so they asked Jesus if He wanted them to call down fire from heaven upon the Samaritans. Jesus, however, said No, and rebuked these two disciples. He respected the Samaritans’ right to refuse Him a place to rest. The right to choose is a gift from God that He holds in the highest regard. Jesus never forces Himself on others. Instead, He is kind and pa- tient. It is this kindness and patience that fosters reformation and growth in Christ. There is no surer proof that we are led by the wrong spirit than when we want to hurt or destroy those who oppose us, or when we insist that someone accept Jesus as her or his Savior. James and John neglected to understand that Jesus came to save all people. On the other hand, Jesus understood why the Samaritans rejected Him and had compassion for them. After Christ had returned to heaven and the stoning of Stephen had scattered the first disciples, Philip went to Samaria. There he healed the sick and cast out demons, while the citizens rejoiced. The people listened to his message and accepted it. The Harvest (Acts 8:4–8; 14–17) When Peter and John heard about this, they went to Samaria to lay their hands on the new converts. We can only imagine what went through John’s mind at that moment. The same man who once wanted to destroy a part of Samaria for not allowing Jesus to spend the night there now comes to Samaria to preach the gospel. He had heard Jesus tell the par- able of the Good Samaritan. He had seen Jesus heal a Samaritan who had leprosy. Thus they learned that the Samaritans were no different from themselves. The love the Savior showed to those who had once hated Him brought the barriers down and reconciled enemies. Growth (Phil. 2:12–16) Like a gardener who plants a small seed and tends the growth of that seed, God shapes us into beautiful Christians. Change is necessary for us to grow. If the seed doesn’t sprout, if it doesn’t grow, it will rot. God loves us just as we are, but His love is too great to leave us the way we are. There are times in life when we don’t know where to go or what to do. During such times, we need to remember how God has led us in the past, then trust Him to lead us into the future. The worst thing we can do is just sit around and wait. Often it will seem as though God has left us, but we shouldn’t despair. Caring parents know that as much as they love their children, they have to let them live their own lives. They need to grow for themselves. God will always be there for us, but He will not live our lives for us. Only true love can let go and have faith that the person you love will come back to you. REACT 1. How can you see God’s loving hand at work in your life? How has He lifted you up when you fell? 2. Picture yourself the way you were five years ago. Can you see now the path God wanted you to take? How have you grown since then?
Posted on: Mon, 02 Sep 2013 00:52:23 +0000
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