Am I more disposed to repent or to excuse myself?
Does my definition of repentance match God’s?
Which (if any) sin am I still trying to hide from God?
What do I know about hiding in God?
Must I have a bridle or can God guide me with His eye?
That mercy compassing me about — do others get some from me?
What’s my song today? Read it all
This expression clicked for me: “in the highest.”
Such a familiar ring… Could it be…? I looked it up. Sure enough!
There were multiple multitudes on two vastly different occasions which exuberantly shouted their acclaim for the long-awaited King:
Here, listen to the first group:
“And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:13,14).
Angels and humans proclaiming Jesus — for some reasonRead it all
I’ve got to hand it to Jesus — He just didn’t come across as “seeker friendly” all the time. The event recorded in this passage could be among the exhibits portraying that truth. So I remind myself of this tidbit in Mark’s record: “Then Jesus beholding him loved him” (Mark 10:21).
That aside, I hadn’t remembered that Jesus “tossed in” an item not in the Ten Commandments: “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” And He “tacked it on” after citing only five items from the Ten Commandments.
Well, after noticing that, I took another look at those five, wanting to see what Jesus omitted. He left off the “Top Three” (which are most directly God-ward!), the fourth one (about remembering the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy), and the last one (about covetousness).
I don’t want to make any big deal of this silence or omission, but I’m particularly fascinated by Jesus’ not raising the first three with this man wanting to receive eternal life. One easy conclusion from this is that this fellow didn’t need to be told something he already knew and lived as best he could.
Thing is, he also claimed to live according to all the other commandments Jesus cited. And Jesus didn’t challenge him about the claim!
And yet, the young man wasn’t persuaded Read it all
The evil servant (aka, Servant A) found himself condemned and judged by his own words:
Tough guy. Right after he hadn’t been so tough.
He asked for patience, for time to pay all. He received mercy as well as forgiveness of all. But I don’t recall thinking about this in verse 32 til this morning: He had actually desired to be forgiven all that debt. Thus, his master responded to more than just his words; he responded to the unspoken desire of his heart. I need much sharper sensitivity and discernment in my relationships with those who wrong me!
The “magical” words that worked for Servant A did not work on Servant A. When he uttered them to his master, his master forgave him. Alas, when his fellow servant uttered them to him, he refused to forgive his fellow servant.
Forgiveness in human relationships is both seed and fruit in my relationship with God. Here’s what I mean that shows the imperative of forgiveness:
What a beautiful, heart-stirring telling of a great faith that moved…a Phoenician woman! My heart sings at the woman’s faith and tenacity. She didn’t turn away from Jesus’ “insensitive, rude, racist rejections” — nope, none of that quitting stuff for her. She had true, deep faith that moves God! And the “few little crumbs” she got sufficed to drive away a demon! I believe that mother “glorified the God of Israel” every bit as much as the Israelites did.
This Canaanite mother believed in Jesus’ power. She also trusted His heart.
Suppose Jesus gave me only the scattered crumbs left over from someone else’s meal. Would that unmerited generosity be sufficient to my need?
Do I have faith that moves…me? Read it all