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.

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

Scripture

Jesus replied, ”Your mistake is that you don’t know the scriptures, and you don’t know the power of God.”

Observation

The Pharisees and Herodians decide to trap Jesus. After buttering him up with flattery, they ask Him, is it right to pay taxes to Caesar? Jesus replies by telling them to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to give God what belongs to God.

Later on the same day, the Sadducees decide to test Jesus also. The Sadducees do not believe in the resurrection of the dead. Their question concerns the law that says a wife whose husband dies should be cared for by his brothers. So, in the resurrection that they do not believe in, they ask, ”Whose wife will she be?”

Jesus’ response is quite blunt. These men neither know the Scriptures nor the God they claim to serve. The resurrection life is very different to this life, and so there is no marriage in heaven. Everything is at a whole different level of existence.

Application

There are many christians, including leaders, who know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God.

Some people, for example, see the church as a meeting place for good people. They have been saved by Jesus, and now live such holy lives that sinners are not welcome in their midst.

Some denominations teach that there is no place for spiritual gifts today. The completion of the New Testament rendered the power of the Holy Spirit outdated and irrelevant. These people deny the poser of god, but they also are ignorant of the Scriptures which do not teach anywhere that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is a transient thing.

We must approach God and other people with humility. I do not have all the answers, and I do not lead a perfect life.

We should see the church not s a meeting place for righteous people, but rather as a collection of sinners redeemed by grace and always open to more redeemed sinners.

Prayer

Father, please set me free from all pride and arrogance. Help me to understand you more and to rejoice in your power to change lives. Amen.