- And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” Luke 19:39 – The very people that should have been leading the crowd in worship of Jesus were the ones telling Jesus to shut down the praises the crowds were giving Him. Meaning for us today that there will be people in our Christian community that will not only be missing their purpose but maybe doing very destructive, very opposite things than their purpose. Does that give us an excuse though to do the opposite of our purpose? No, in fact it should push us to fulfill our purpose all the more. Make sure that you are continuing to love God and love the people around you, even when those around you may not be. Never drop your purpose because someone else has. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 624
- And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:8-10 – Salvation had come to the house of Zacchaeus. This meant that salvation had come to the house of a rich man. Looking back at the chapter we read yesterday we see Jesus speak about how difficult it would be for a rich man to enter into His kingdom. That it would be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. What we see though in chapter 19 is a rich man entering into His kingdom. Difficult, but not impossible, especially when God is in the mix. Yes it took a massive sacrifice and a massive life change for Zacchaeus, but he saw Jesus as worth the sacrifice and change and as a result received the blessing of salvation. Let’s not find ourselves in the position of the Pharisees labeling someone “unable” to step into the salvation of Jesus because of their life choices. Their current story may be full of sin and full of rejection of God, but with God all things are possible. Instead of placing them in the box of hopeless-to-share-the-Gospel-with, see the truth that even the hardest of hearts God can change. Even if the chance is wee-little (get it…Zacchaeus…), God can change their heart into a passionate follower of Him. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2336
Daily DEVO 