In or out?
by Jim Strelan
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Indeed, there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last (Luke 13:30).
Read Luke 13:22–30
Have you followed Jesus all your life, been born into a Christian family, always attended church and regularly read your devotions, or have you only recently begun following him?
Have you noticed – if you are in the former category – that those who have only come to faith recently seem to have greater enthusiasm and passion for the gospel than you do? If you’ve always been a Christian, it’s easy to fall into patterns. Patterns aren’t necessarily bad, but they can become routine, something you take for granted.
In this passage, Jesus alludes to things without spelling them out clearly. He speaks of a narrow door and a locked door that, despite much knocking, is unopened. And then there’s the strange statement about the first being last and the last first. Compared to a wide door, the narrow one is harder to get through. Getting through it is almost unexpected; it can’t be taken for granted. And the locked door, with some inside and some outside, reminds us of the parable of the bridesmaids from a couple of days ago. Some weren’t ready, and the door to the wedding feast was closed.
In Jesus’ time, some were born into the faith, grew up in the faith and observed all its rituals and expectations. Others were outside that faith (Gentiles) and had only just begun to follow Jesus. And those with a long tradition of faith had their noses put out of joint by these ‘johnny-come-latelys’.
To those of the old Abrahamic faith, Jesus’ message is: You think you can just waltz in through the wide door? Just claim your label as the people of God? There will be many from the east and the west and the north and the south, many not of your tradition, who will come in, while many who presumed they had a right to get in will be excluded.
Jesus doesn’t tell us the exact criteria for entry or denial. But we can say that it begins with acknowledging Jesus as the one sent by God and recognising that our inclusion is an act of grace, not a right.
Long-time or recent Christian, Jesus calls you, claims you, invites you. Live in gratitude and trust in his goodness.
Lord Jesus, this is a hard thing to grasp. Will the door be opened or closed to me? I trust that you are gracious and that to exclude is not your first priority. By your Spirit, I ask you to help me live with continual gratitude, grasping the privilege you offer rather than claiming any right. Amen.
Jim is a retired pastor living with his wife Ruth in Deception Bay, Queensland. He spends his retirement making space to add more Lions’ premiership posters to the six (3+3) he already has on his garage wall.
Unfailing love
by Jim Strelan
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
My unfailing love for you will not be shaken (Isaiah 54:10b).
Read Isaiah 54:10–17
How much can you love someone? We sometimes hear parents say to their children, ‘I love you to the moon and back.’ I’ve always thought that an astronaut who has travelled to the moon could say that to their child with more meaning than anyone else. In other words, ‘The love I have for you is immeasurable.’
When God says he loves his people, it is irrefutable. It is not dependent on anything. We know the history of the people of Israel in biblical times: turning away, coming back, turning away, coming back. But God loves with an unfailing love.
Earlier, in Isaiah 49, we have these words: ‘Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?’ Hard as it is to imagine, that is possible. Children have been abandoned by their mothers. But God says, ‘Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands’ (Isaiah 49:15,16). Etched in. Irremovable. Permanent. Unfailing.
Not only does God promise to love his people unfailingly, but he also shows this by showering his people with gifts, signs of his love. A rebuilt city with stones of turquoise, foundations with sapphires, battlements of rubies and gates of sparkling jewels (verses 11 and 12).
This almost reminds me of the Prodigal Son story in Luke 15, where the returning son, who comes back with his tail between his legs, ashamed of how completely he had rejected all his father had to offer, is received by that father with the best robe and a ring on his finger and shoes on his feet. That’s the way God loves.
Sometimes events in your life might leave you feeling as though the mountains have shaken and the hills have subsided. Sometimes you might feel alone, and the weight of what burdens you is yours alone to carry. Sometimes you might feel that you give and give and get very little back. Hear God’s promise to his people – that same God makes that promise to you. His love for you is unfailing. Whatever has happened, whatever your situation. Always. You can count on it.
What can I say, my God, when I contemplate your kind of loving? Nothing but thank you. I am overwhelmed and forever grateful. Thank you. Amen.
Jim is a retired pastor living with his wife Ruth in Deception Bay, Queensland. He spends his retirement making space to add more Lions’ premiership posters to the six (3+3) he already has on his garage wall.
Live ready
by Jim Strelan
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
The virgins who were ready went in with him … (Matthew 25:10b).
Read Matthew 25:1–13
Over the years, someone or another has proclaimed certainty about the day Christ will return. And faithful followers have sold their possessions (no need for them) and gathered on a hilltop, singing hymns and praying as they waited. They wanted to be ready.
Is that what being ready means? The bridesmaids in this parable wanted to be ready, and some prepared themselves, while others didn’t. They knew the bridegroom was coming, but they didn’t know exactly when. When he did come – at a most unexpected time, midnight – they were surprised. Some had their lamps lit and brought extra oil. Some didn’t. Some ready, some not.
In the following verses of Matthew 25, we first have the parable of the man who entrusts his property to his servants. When he returns, he wants to know what they did with what they were given. And then we have the account of the final judgement when some are directed to the right and some to the left. And the criteria? How did you respond to the one in need: the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the one short of clothes, the sick, the prisoner? Those who responded with love and care weren’t aware that, by doing so, they were serving Jesus. They just did it. It was their lifestyle and pattern of behaving.
A line attributed to Martin Luther (although the attribution is unproven) goes something like this: ‘Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.’ In other words, he would go about his day-to-day activities because he knew that he and the world were in God’s hands.
So maybe being ready means ‘living ready’. Not like those gathered on the hilltop with particular actions on a particular day, but living ready, trusting in God’s ongoing goodness. Wisely using the gifts given to us. Meeting the needs of those around us as best we can because that’s just what God’s people do. Living ready.
Lord, help me live each day so that, no matter when you return, I am ready, trusting in your goodness, aware of your presence, focused outward rather than inward. And so, I pray with great calmness: come, Lord Jesus. Amen.
Jim is a retired pastor living with his wife Ruth in Deception Bay, Queensland. He spends his retirement making space to add more Lions’ premiership posters to the six (3+3) he already has on his garage wall.
God’s timely aid
by Faye Schmidt
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
But as for me, I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer; Lord, do not delay (Psalm 70:5).
Read Psalm 70
Psalm 70 is one of those psalms that express longing for God to act. It’s an urgent prayer for help. It expresses a feeling of being short on time and long on need. In a few short words, it describes a plethora of feelings.
There are many moments in every Christian’s life when this psalm sums up our deepest need. We want God to act, and we want it now! Yet we are asked to wait. We feel the need to be vindicated. We want those who have hurt us to be exposed and justice done. In those moments, Psalm 70 provides a scriptural basis for lament, airing our grievances, asking for help and acknowledging that life isn’t always warm and fuzzy.
However, there are moments when our days are easy. We may hear Psalm 70 but not really feel connected to it in our daily routine. We may be more interested in ‘What’s for lunch?’ or the news of the day. Our days may simply not have room for lament.
Yet it is perhaps on those days we might benefit most from hearing Psalm 70. After all, the psalmist’s urgent cry (‘O Lord, make haste to help me!’) is someone’s cry, if not our own. The psalm can serve as a powerful reminder that even when our lives are rolling along as usual, that is not necessarily the case for everyone. Others might be hurting, calling out for help or awaiting deliverance. Others might be crying out but hearing no response.
This psalm calls us to stop and listen. Who around us is living in this psalm’s reality? Who is desperate for help but waiting for God to intervene? Who might be crying, even though there are no visible tears? Who needs our love and reassurance while they wait upon the Lord?
Dear God, our creator and sustainer, help us to turn away from our self-reliance and instead rely on you for everything we need each day. Remind us especially of our need for your forgiveness and grace, and help us to be thankful that you offer this freely in the death and resurrection of your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Faye Schmidt continues her diaconal calling through governance, having served on the Vic–Tas District Church Board, the General Church Board and currently as chair of the Standing Committee on Constitutions and her congregation, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Adelaide. Having lived and worked in many locations in Australia and overseas, Faye has a heart for the stranger and the newcomer and for being open to new ideas, learning from others and responding to needs.
To God be the glory!
by Faye Schmidt
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
… so that all the Gentiles might come to the obedience that comes from faith – to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen (Romans 16:26b,27).
Read Romans 16:17–27
Paul thought highly of the church in Rome. He states, ‘Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I am full of joy over you’ (verse 19). However, no matter how good a church is, it should never become complacent. In this closing passage, Paul delivers a strong warning about the possibility of false teachers deceiving and damaging the church (verses 17,18). This could happen in any church. It can happen to us. We are not immune. Paul’s advice is clear. He tells the church to ‘watch out for them; avoid them’. He says, ‘I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil’ (verse 19b).
Paul assures us there is an answer to the one who is the author of discord, division and deceit. We are not to be victims of defeat or despair. We are to confidently affirm God’s victory over Satan. Satan has already been decisively defeated at the cross, but he has not yet conceded his defeat. We need to proclaim Christ’s victory over Satan. We need to take the battle up to Satan by believing in God’s word, trusting in God and resisting Satan. Such victories would be impossible, however, apart from grace.
God never meant us to fight the fight of faith alone. We are to assist each other. His will for us is that we should be in a community of faith. Paul was no lone ranger. He always seemed to gather – or seek out – those who could sharpen and help him. In this final greeting, Paul acknowledges some of those who partnered with him in his ministry. He practised what he preached.
We must never forget that in our baptism, God adopts us as his children through Jesus. He abides in us. He sends his Holy Spirit to strengthen us in our faith and to remind us that he will never leave us nor forsake us. To God be the glory!
O God, who has been the refuge of many generations, be my refuge today in every time and circumstance of need. Be my guide through all that is dark and doubtful. Be my guard against all that threatens my spirit’s welfare. Be my strength in time of testing. Gladden my heart with your peace; through Jesus Christ, my Lord. Amen.
Faye Schmidt continues her diaconal calling through governance, having served on the Vic–Tas District Church Board, the General Church Board and currently as chair of the Standing Committee on Constitutions and her congregation, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Adelaide. Having lived and worked in many locations in Australia and overseas, Faye has a heart for the stranger and the newcomer and for being open to new ideas, learning from others and responding to needs.
What a difference!
by Faye Schmidt
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner’ (Luke 18:13b).
Read Luke 18:9–14
Jesus told this parable to help the disciples better understand how to approach God, reaffirm that the Lord sees all and knows our spiritual state, illustrate righteous behaviour and show whom God justifies.
Jesus surprised his listeners by presenting the Pharisee as a self-righteous hypocrite and the typically despised tax collector as a good person who returned home justified.
This parable was shared to show that pleasing God, finding God and being in right standing with God is not about outward or overt piety, but about worshipping God in truth and love, believing in his promises and obeying God’s law as best as possible.
Redemption for transgressing the law is possible. Jesus says that those ‘even like this tax collector’ can leave and return home justified, not by their own goodness or their own righteousness, but by God’s mercy and the sacrificial work of Jesus Christ. Hebrews reminds us: ‘Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need’ (Hebrews 4:16).
Scripture states that God ‘despises the proud’ but ‘lifts the humble’. Self-righteous people may know how to pray eloquently and appear righteous, but God knows our motives and the condition of our hearts. When we live and approach God in humility, we recognise that Jesus is our only hope for salvation.
The divide between a holy God and a sinful humanity is too great for any human to bridge. Therefore, God sent Jesus to be a ‘light’ that leads to heaven and to our right standing before God.
Jesus lived a sinless life and became the final and perfect sacrifice on Calvary. Because Jesus shed his blood on Calvary and rose again on the third day, we, like the unlikely tax collector, can find justification and redemption.
Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your Son, Jesus Christ, to be the sacrifice for my sin. Help me always to know that my salvation is through your grace, not my doing. Amen.
Faye Schmidt continues her diaconal calling through governance, having served on the Vic–Tas District Church Board, the General Church Board and currently as chair of the Standing Committee on Constitutions and her congregation, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Adelaide. Having lived and worked in many locations in Australia and overseas, Faye has a heart for the stranger and the newcomer and for being open to new ideas, learning from others and responding to needs.
Humility or humiliation?
by Faye Schmidt
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted (Luke 14:11).
Read Luke 14:7–11
In our text, Jesus mentions a man who was invited to a wedding and sat in ‘a place of honour’ (verse 8). He was not told to sit there, but simply assumed that was where he belonged. By doing so, he conveyed to everyone at the wedding that he was one of the most important people there.
However, having exalted himself, he was humiliated when the host came and said, ‘Give this person your seat’ (verse 9), because another guest was considered more deserving of that place. The proud man was humiliated as he moved to a lower seat. Consider Proverbs 11:2: ‘When pride comes, then comes disgrace.’
What does Jesus require of us? He says, ‘When you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, Friend, move up to a better place.’
When the person sits in the lowest place, he shows everyone that he does not consider himself any better than anyone else. In this parable, the host comes and moves him to a higher seat and honours him before others. It is the host who determines honour.
How do we practise humility? A saying often attributed to CS Lewis is, ‘True humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.’ One way to foster humility in your life is to stop thinking of yourself so much. Sadly, so much in our society today emphasises the individual, their wants and desires, and the importance of self.
God does not call us into his kingdom to set us up as kings and queens but servants. The amazing thing is that once you stop thinking of yourself all the time, your mind will begin to think more about others. It is the humble person who does not focus on what they do not have, but considers what others lack. Pride says, ‘I want!’ and humility says, ‘You need!’ True humility thinks about others more often than about oneself.
Jesus is our example: ‘And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross!’ (Philippians 2:8).
Send your Holy Spirit, Lord, that I may consider others more and be more selfless so that I may serve you as I serve my neighbour. Amen.
Faye Schmidt continues her diaconal calling through governance, having served on the Vic–Tas District Church Board, the General Church Board and currently as chair of the Standing Committee on Constitutions and her congregation, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Adelaide. Having lived and worked in many locations in Australia and overseas, Faye has a heart for the stranger and the newcomer and for being open to new ideas, learning from others and responding to needs.
How great is God
by Faye Schmidt
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, ‘Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all’ (Mark 9:35).
ReadMark 9:33–37
There are many in our society who have authority within the context of their role, and they exercise this authority when seated: the king from his throne, the judge from their chair, the Speaker in Parliament from the Speaker’s chair.
Wae know that Jesus has been given all authority on earth and in heaven by his Father, and he is seated at the right hand of God.
Therefore, when we read that Jesus ‘sits down’ to speak to the 12 disciples – that is, to people in the church – we recognise that he speaks from a position of authority. What he says bears all the strength of that authority, and we should take heed.
The contrast between the disciples’ question and Jesus’ response could not be starker. The disciples had not yet grasped the nature of Jesus’ kingdom about which he spoke. They were still thinking of an earthly kingdom and, therefore, looking for where they fit in and who would take over when Jesus died – and Jesus had spoken of his death.
The disciples were measuring themselves against each other – greatness was relative to one another. Their greatness was a product of themselves.
But Jesus embraces a child, holds that child close, and demonstrates that the prime relationship is with him. For this child has nothing to offer in a contest for greatness. Jesus reminds us that we are all created in God’s image. In seeing the child through Jesus’ eyes, we see the Creator of all.
Each of us is great in Jesus’ eyes, as we are part of God’s creation. We, therefore, should welcome each other as equals under God and co-heirs of his kingdom through his grace.
Heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit to help me to see you in others and serve you as I serve them with love, dignity and grace. Amen.
Faye Schmidt continues her diaconal calling through governance, having served on the Vic–Tas District Church Board, the General Church Board and currently as chair of the Standing Committee on Constitutions and her congregation, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Adelaide. Having lived and worked in many locations in Australia and overseas, Faye has a heart for the stranger and the newcomer and for being open to new ideas, learning from others and responding to needs.
The tree of life
by Faye Schmidt
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will take a shoot from the very top of a cedar and plant it (Ezekiel 17:22a).
Read Ezekiel 17:22–24
Ezekiel 17 was written in beautiful poetry, as a message for a people who have had their lives upended and homes destroyed, a people who have been taken into captivity in Babylon. A people who have seen their young, 18-year-old king – Jehoiachin – taken as a prisoner of war to a foreign city. A people who have had their God-given place of worship, sacrifice and renewal of God’s promises and covenant, torn down and left in ruins.
In Scripture, various images are applied to God to help us understand who God is and his nature – shepherd, landowner, father (prodigal son), vine, etc. Here Ezekiel uses the imagery of a tree. The tree is fundamental to life. It provides shelter, safety, promise of fulfilment and fruit. This is our God.
The text also tells of God’s promises to the people of Israel – and to us. That the ways of the world are not God’s ways. That though we may be oppressed and feel small, he will make us tall. If we are weak, he will give us strength. And if we are weary and worn down, he will give us life.
The message is also one of inclusion. Birds of every kind and every tree in the forest are included in God’s promise. This promise is fulfilled in Jesus Christ, through whom we receive the gift of eternal life in the sanctuary of the Tree.
Heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit to be my guide so that I may be a fruitful branch of your tree and serve you and my neighbour to your glory. Amen.
Faye Schmidt continues her diaconal calling through governance, having served on the Vic–Tas District Church Board, the General Church Board and currently as chair of the Standing Committee on Constitutions and her congregation, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Adelaide. Having lived and worked in many locations in Australia and overseas, Faye has a heart for the stranger and the newcomer and for being open to new ideas, learning from others and responding to needs.