April 10, 2019
Luke 18:31-34 The Message (MSG)
Today is the thirty-first day of our 40-Day Lenten Series, “Praying for a Kingdom Heart.” Lent should be a time of prayerful reflection, repentance, and restoration as we draw closer to the heart of God. We must want to be taken deeper into God’s thoughts in order to better understand his heart and plan for us. Understanding God’s ways can sometimes be a challenge; our minds are not conditioned to think the way our Heavenly Father thinks. God’s Word is given to challenge and guide our thinking, so we can gain a bigger picture of our God. “What is impossible with people is possible with God” (Luke 18:27). This is a Truth we must never forget. The disciples were always struggling to understand the literal words of Messiah. He had to speak to them again and again and again. Christ was trying to reveal to them something prophetic and spiritual and they were stuck trying to process information in their souls—minds, wills, emotions. Sometimes Christ had to take them away from the crowds; take them aside for the purpose of bringing clarity. Even then, the disciples did not always get the message until it manifest later in the natural realm. I am so grateful Father God is patient with his children; with me! Learning the ways of faith in God is hard work that requires our devotion to understand and apply Truth. The Good News is God never gives up on getting Truth to us. Are you sometimes tempted to give up the quest for more of God, because you feel uncertain in your thinking when reading the Word?
In our passage today, Jesus is trying to tell the disciples about his upcoming death. They could not grasp how what Jesus was saying to them could be even possible. Just like the disciples, we need the work of the Spirit to help us understand the depths of God’s love and the work of Truth in our lives. We will never allow ourselves to be taken to the deep places, until we are willing to trust the Lord with our whole lives. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take” (Prov 3:5-6). Keep reading the Word of God and ask the Spirit to impart Truth to your heart. God wants to get it to you.
During Lent, we will be using the acronym P.R.A.Y. as we pray for a Kingdom Heart. P=praise, R=repent, A=ask, and Y=yield. May God bless you as you spend time in God’s Word and in prayer today.
Luke 18:31-34
31-34 Then Jesus took the Twelve off to the side and said, “Listen carefully. We’re on our way up to Jerusalem. Everything written in the Prophets about the Son of Man will take place. He will be handed over to the Romans, jeered at, made sport of, and spit on. Then, after giving him the third degree, they will kill him. In three days he will rise, alive.” But they didn’t get it, could make neither heads nor tails of what he was talking about.
Prayer: Lord, I praise you for your patience with me; for being faithful to stay with me until I learn what I need to learn. Your Word is Spirit and Life and I repent for the times I have forgotten to pray for wisdom before reading. I ask for you to help me discern your Word at an ever-deepening level, so I can share more about your heart with others. I will yield to the work of the Spirit to make Truth known. In Jesus’ name. Amen.