God is the God of not only a second chance but yet another chance, as the Old Testament characters King David and Jonah would affirm. As the prophet Micah says, ‘Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance?’ (Mic 7:18). Stephen Judd et al
Scripture
“The greatest among you must be a servant. But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Observation
The Pharisees and teachers of the law of Moses are the interpreters of the law so the crowds should listen to what they say. They should not be imitated, though,as they are hypocrites and do not follow their own teaching.
These people put religious burdens on people. They show off their virtues in the way they dress, and they claim the places of honour at banquets .
We are not to bestow high titles such as Rabbi, Teacher, or Father, on one another. We are all equally deserving of honour in God’s Kingdom.
The greatest among us must be a servant to others. Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, while those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Application
In contrast to the religious leaders of Jesus’ day, we are meant to be humble in all things. We shouldn’t seek titles and ministries. These will find us.
The path to promotion is through humility and service. This is true of the church, but it is also true of the world. The popular political leaders are those who serve the people rather than themselves. We feel instinctively that these people understand us better and are therefore more qualified to lead us.
In the church, it is the pastors who are prepared to do manual tasks who our loved by their people. Those who think themselves too good to sweep the floor will be of no use to the church.
When people promote themselves and their gifts ahead of everybody else, we are wise to ignore them. Such people can be arrogant or insecure. The way to promotion for both types of people is to serve first, and then allow their gift to flourish in the context of serving the community.
If you are feeling overlooked in the church, you should seek to serve in whatever way you can. God sees you. God has placed you where you are.Take the nature of a servant and let God raise you up in His way .
Prayer
Please help me Father to always be humble and to trust in your love for me. Amen.
Christian organisations need to be countercultural and distinctive in the ways they manage the mistakes and failings of their staff and teams. Stephen Judd et al
A pleasant ride along the Kaputar Road this morning. I stopped at the Morris’ place to have a quick breather before coming home. #cycling #Narrabri #Biketooter
Organisations, Christian or not, should encourage staff members to own up to mistakes and failures without fear of punishment, and that’s because – apart from being biblical – it is the smart operational thing to do. All of us learn more from our mistakes and failures than our successes. Or at least we should. Stephen Judd et al
There is nothing quite like a field of canola in flower. This is a few km along the Bingara Road #cycling #Narrabri #Biketooter
Coaching someone once, twice or three times takes time, thought, care and attention. Showing staff members the exit is quicker and easier, but it is not what Jesus would do. Stephen Judd et al
Scripture
Jesus replied,“You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: Love your neighbour as yourself.”
Observation
The Pharisees come to question Jesus some more. An expert in the law asks Jesus what is the most important commandment? Jesus tells him we must love the Lord with all of our heart, mind, and soul. The second commandment is to love our neighbour as ourselves. The whole law rests on these two commandments.
Then Jesus asks for the Pharisees: if the messiah is the Son of David then why does David call him “my Lord”?
No one could answer Jesus’ questions so they knew they could not test him with their own questions.
Application
Love is at the heart of the gospel. God loved us and so this calls forth a response of love for Him.
The word love is agape which means unconditional and selfless love. God loves us because He is love, and He cannot help but love. He loves us because He places an infinite value on us.
For this reason, we must love our neighbours as we love ourselves. God places an infinite value on other people, so I must recognise that and love them as God loves them. This applies to those who are born again as well as to those who are not.
This is an impossible commandment to fulfil in our own ability. We need God’s love, God’s Holy Spirit, dwelling in us in order to love God and our neighbours.
So we pursue God because He loves us. He enables us to love Him freely, and the overflow of this love is expressed in love to others.
Prayer
Lord, thank you for your love for me. Help me to love you and to know you, and may that love multiply as it flows out to the to the people in my street, at work, or at school. Amen
We must expect that compassion will come at a cost: financial cost, as well as organisational or personal sacrifice. If we are cost-counters, we may struggle to show compassion and grace. But our challenge is to not count the cost – because followers of Jesus don’t. God honours compassionate grace. Stephen Judd et al
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