Therefore…. (devo reflection)

Matthew 23:33 “You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?

*Therefore* is an adverb, meaning (according to the dictionary): for that reason; consequently. I find that adverb, that transitional expression at the beginning of verse 34, extraordinary in light of verse 33.

Matthew 23:34 Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.

Jesus knows that there is no other way for this “brood of vipers” to “escape being condemned to hell.” For that reason, *therefore*, He sends “prophets and sages and teachers” even though He knows how they will be received. This is His tremendous love for His creation in action, His justice coupled with His mercy.

Matthew 23:37 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.

Lord, I am fully deserving of Your judgment and not at all deserving of Your mercy, but Your fierce love for me, for all of Your creation, prompts You to be merciful. Thank You. Help me to be merciful and compassionate to others, even when I don’t feel like it and they don’t deserve it. Help me to be more like You. Amen.

Matthew 23:38-39 Look, your house is left to you desolate. For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

Have a blessed day.

The desire for recognition…. (devo reflection)

Matthew 23:2-3 “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice.

We are a very showy society. Appearance is important. But the Pharisees have forgotten that appearances aren’t everything. Jesus holds them up here as an example of what not to do. They do things to be seen and recognized by others, not to draw closer to God.

Matthew 23:4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.

My heart understands their desire for recognition. It probably started innocently enough: “I’m working so hard. Is anybody paying attention? Does anyone appreciate what I’m doing?” My heart and mind often clamor for that kind of recognition, but the Pharisees show that that is a very slippery slope.

Matthew 23:5-7 They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they…love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.

Lord, You call us to be humble servants. You call us to work for You and not for human praise. But my pride wants recognition, Lord, and it’s pulling me away from You and towards the desire for earthly recognition and reward. That way lies misery, Lord. Help me to surrender my pride and to choose You. Always. Amen.

Matthew 23:11-12 The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

Have a blessed day.

Preconceived notions…. (devo reflection)

Matthew 22:41-42a While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”….

Jesus turns the tables and asks questions of the Pharisees in today’s scripture. He asks a pretty simple question, yet He’s trying to show them that their thinking is too limited. They *think* they know who the Messiah is and how He will act. Man, those preconceived notions will get you every time.

Matthew 22:42b-43 …“The son of David,” they replied. He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’?…

Again, as I sit in judgment of the Pharisees, the thought hits that I am just as guilty of consigning Jesus to a smaller role than the one He intends to fulfill in my life. And just like the Pharisees, my error is based in my preconceived notions of what I deem to be the right path or solution, how *I* think Jesus *should* act. Jesus, Help me.

Matthew 22:45  If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?”

Lord, Forgive me when I limit Your power to work in my life because of my preconceived notions of how You should work. Help me to put aside those notions so that You can work freely in my life and through my life. Draw me closer. Amen.

Matthew 22:46 No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Have a blessed day.

A beautiful example…. (devo reflection)

Matthew 21:23 Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”

Commentary says of Jesus in this section that he does not engage in their argument. Something about the word engage really captures me here. As a society, we are all about engaging in the argument these days. A quick look on any social media platform will show copious examples. And the heart of each is about pride. “I’m right. You’re wrong. Let me destroy you publicly.”

Matthew 21:24-25a Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin?”

Jesus knows He is right. He avoids the Pharisees’ trap, and He leaves them with their dignity. Commentary says, “…He does not clamor for the pride of winning a debate.” Pride. There it is popping up its ugly head. Again.

Matthew 21:25b-26 They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ But if we say, ‘Of human origin’—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet.”

Lord, Thank You for reminding me to keep my pride in check. Thank You for providing me with a beautiful example of how to glorify You without engaging my prideful nature. Help me to lay my pride at Your feet and to glorify You in all things. Amen.

Matthew 21:27 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.” Then he said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

Have a blessed day.

I don’t understand, Lord. But I trust You with my life…. (devo reflection)

Mark 11:20-21 In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!”

Today’s scripture is hard for me because I truly don’t understand. Jesus curses a fig tree for not bearing fruit—even though it wasn’t fig season. Why? Then He says that if we believe hard enough, if we pray without any doubt, we can have whatever we pray for. What?!?

Mark 11:22 “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered.

I’m pretty sure we all have things we’ve prayed fervently for that did not come to pass. I can’t believe in a God who sees fervent prayer, yet says, “Nope. She quit praying 5 minutes too soon. No granted prayer for her.” So what’s going on here?

Mark 11:23 “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them.

Lord, You tell me to seek first Your kingdom and Your righteousness, and all these things will be given to me (Matt 6:33). Jesus teaches me by example to say, “not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42). You assure me that Your thoughts are not like my thoughts and Your ways are far beyond anything I could imagine (Isaiah 55:8). I don’t understand, Lord. But I trust You with my life. “Not my will, but yours be done.” Always. Amen.

Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Have a blessed day.

Drawing near…. (devo reflection)

Matthew 21:12 Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves.

I have read these verses for years and never thought too much about them. Of course Jesus is angry. They turned a house of worship into a place of commerce. But commentary posits that Jesus gets so angry in this passage because the tables, benches, and merchandise mean less space for the people to draw near to Him.

Matthew 21:13 “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’”

What makes Jesus angry enough to turn over tables? Protecting our ability to draw near to Him. Once He clears the space, the blind and lame come to Him and are healed.

Matthew 21:14 The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them.

Lord, Thank You for protecting my ability to draw near to You. Help me never forget that You make sure there is room for me, but it is up to me to draw near and be healed. Amen.

Matthew 21:15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.

Have a blessed day.

Jesus wants to make us whole…. (devo reflection)

Psalm 10:1 Why, O LORD, do You stand far off? Why do You hide in times of trouble?

One of the pearls from today’s reading is this: “Jesus wants to make us whole.” The only way to do that is for us to fully surrender to Him, fully dying to ourselves and our need to be in control and to understand. Enns described the process of surrendering control as a process of dying to self, and that dying to self is crucial if we want to live Galatians 2:20, “…yet not I, but Christ….”

Matthew 27:46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

Jesus lived on earth, fully human and fully divine. He, the human side, had to come to the end of Himself, trust God, and surrender, literally giving up control of the situation, trusting God’s plan, His wisdom. Jesus gave us a model of the process, and showed that while it is difficult and painful to let go of control, of our vision of what life should be, that when we trust God on that soul-deep level, He will make us whole and wholly His.

Matthew 27:50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

Lord, The need to be in control feels hardwired into me. Help me to let go of control, to die to self, so that I can be complete in You. I know You have a plan for me. I know Your plans are far beyond anything I can imagine for myself. Help me to die to self so I can live fully in You. Amen.

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Have a blessed day.

The necessity of loving…. (devo reflection)

Matthew 5:22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.

Today’s chapter talks about loving others how and where they are. The Bible talks about loving our enemies, but, honestly, sometimes loving those closest to us, loving them how and where they are, is absolutely harder and requires much more humility.

Matthew 5:23-24 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.

Loving those close to us how and where they are (and how and where *we* are) requires letting go of the way things *should* be in our minds and just loving instead. It means putting aside hopes, dreams, and judgments, and loving warts and all. That often takes a hefty dose of humility—to love when you are hurt, angry, frustrated, humiliated—to cling to what you know to be true—this person is a deeply loved child of God, even in the face of this thing I’m struggling with that they have done or not done.

Matthew 5:43-45 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven….

Lord, Thank You for reminding me of the necessity of loving the people in my life how and where they are. Help me to put my pride aside and to love like You love, deeply and fiercely, no matter what. Amen.

Matthew 5:46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?

Have a blessed day.

God is calling me to seek Him always…. (devo reflection)

Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

Yesterday, when I finished reading Revelation 22, I completed my first entire read-through of the Bible. I read roughly one chapter per day, and it took me three years, three months, and nine days to complete. Each day I read a chapter, I read commentary, I sat with the material, I asked God for guidance.

Deuteronomy 4:29 But from there you will seek the Lord your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.

I realized during this time that God is calling me to seek Him always. I am not a Bible expert now, but I am definitely stronger in my faith. I don’t have answers to life’s difficult questions, but I absolutely have a stronger biblical base to pull support and encouragement for myself and others.

Matthew 7:7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.

Lord, As I ponder next steps after reading the Bible through, I absolutely know that I will continue to seek You. Thank You for the myriad ways You continue to show up in my life. Thank You for the reminder that it’s the seeking—seeking You—that is important. Your face, Lord, do I seek. Amen.

Psalm 27:8 You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”

Have a blessed day.

A servant’s heart…. (devo reflection)

John 20:13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.”

Verse 14 tells us that Mary is standing in the presence of the Lord, “but she did not realize that it was Jesus.” And in Matthew 25:40, Jesus says that any time we do something for “one of the least of these my brothers and sisters,” we do it for Christ, implying that we, just like Mary, are often in Christ’s presence and often just as unaware.

John 20:14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

So what does that mean for the way I live my life? How can I be mindful of Christ in other people so that I can be His hands and feet on earth? How can I adopt a servant’s heart and attitude as I prepare for this new school year?

John 20:15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief. I still have a proud, stubborn streak; help me to humble myself before You. Help me to see and acknowledge Your presence in all whom I encounter. Help me to have a servant’s heart. Amen.

John 20:16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).

Have a blessed day.