Friday, March 5
Read Luke 11
Think About It:
- Luke 11:2-4 is commonly called the Lord’s Prayer, a model prayer for us as believers. This prayer puts God’s interest first; it is His name, His kingdom, and His will that are of primary importance. Our needs are addressed secondarily: give us our daily bread, forgive our sins as we forgive (our responsibility), don’t lead us into temptation, deliver us from the evil one.” Too often we view prayer as a way to get what we want from God. But it is really a method to get God’s will accomplished in us and all around us. Do you have your priorities in order when you pray? Or do you pray from a spirit of pride, assuming that you know better than God what needs to be done in you, for you, in and for others, and in the world?
- In verses 37-41, Jesus rebukes the Pharisees for their concern for only external matters. When Jesus accepted the invitation to dinner with the Pharisee, He did not follow the extremely technical and rigid requirements of ceremonial washing practiced by many pious Jews. Jesus was not unhygienic when He had not first washed before dinner. A really strict Jew would do this not only before the meal, but also between each course through the meal. The rabbis were deadly serious about this, saying that bread eaten with unwashed hands was no better than excrement. If these religious leaders were as concerned about cleansing their hearts as they were about their hands, they would be more Godly men. We often want to look to a ceremony or a ritual to cleanse us instead of the sacrificial work of God on our behalf. What are some rituals that are important to perform in order to look like a Christian?
- In verse 46 Jesus answered the lawyer by saying, “Woe to you also, lawyers! For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.” Because of the way that they interpreted the law, these experts in the Mosaic law laid heavy burdens on people – yet with elaborate evasions and loopholes. For example, they taught that on the Sabbath, a man could not carry something in his right hand or in his left hand, across his chest or on his shoulder. But you could carry something with the back of your hand, with your foot, with your elbow, or in your ear, your hair, or in the hem of your shirt, or in your shoe or sandal. It is possible to wrongly use the Scriptures as a tool of control and oppression, all while evading one’s true responsibility before God. We must be careful to honor the Word of God more highly than the rules of men.
Family Time:
- Read and memorize the Lord’s Prayer. Read it in different translations. What is each part saying? Is there anything special about the order?
- Finish this truth that Jesus said: “Blessed are those who ________ the _________ of _______ and ______ it!”
- How can you be sure you are full of God’s light and not the darkness of the world?
- What were the two things that the Pharisee’s ‘passed by’ that caused Jesus to say, “Woe to you”? How does this relate to Micah 6:8?
