Daily Reading and Meditation

 Saturday (March 25):  Reaction to Jesus’ words

Scripture:  John 7:40-53 (alternate reading: Luke 1:26-38)

40 When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This is

really the prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Christ.” But

some said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee? 42 Has not the

scripture said that the Christ is descended from David, and comes

from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” 43 So there was a

division among the people over him. 44 Some of them wanted to

arrest him, but no one laid hands on him. 45 The officers then

went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them,

“Why did you not bring him?” 46 The officers answered, “No man

ever spoke like this man!” 47 The Pharisees answered them, “Are

you led astray, you also? 48 Have any of the authorities or of the

Pharisees believed in him? 49 But this crowd, who do not know the

law, are accursed.” 50 Nicodemus, who had gone to him before, and

who was one of them, said to them, 51 “Does our law judge a man

without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?” 52

They replied, “Are you from Galilee too? Search and you will see

that no prophet is to rise from Galilee.” 53 They went each to his

own house.

Second Reading:  Jeremiah 11:18-20

The LORD made it known to me and I knew;

then you showed me their evil deeds. 19 But I was like a gentle

lamb led to the slaughter. I did not know it was against me they

devised schemes, saying, “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit,

let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name be

remembered no more.” 20 But, O LORD of

hosts, who judges righteously, who tries the heart and the mind,

let me see your vengeance upon them, for to you have I committed

my cause.

Meditation: When resistance and opposition to God’s word

rears its head how do you respond? With fear and doubt? Or with

faith and courage? The prophet Jeremiah was opposed by his own

people because the words he spoke in God’s name did not sit right

with them. They plotted to silence him and to “cut him off from

the land of the living” (Jeremiah 11:19). Jeremiah responded

with meekness and prophetic insight “like a gentle lamb led to the

slaughter” (Jeremiah 11:18).

Are you willing to take a stand for the Lord Jesus?
No one can be indifferent for long when confronted with Jesus and

his claim to be the Messiah and Savior of the world. Jesus’

message and the miraculous signs he performed caused division for

many in Israel. Some believed he was a prophet, some the Messiah,

and some believed he was neither. The reaction of the armed

officers was bewildered amazement. They went to arrest him and

returned empty-handed because they never heard anyone speak as he

did. The reaction of the chief priests and Pharisees was contempt.

The reaction of Nicodemus was timid. His heart told him to defend

Jesus, but his head told him not to take the risk.

Who is Jesus for you? And are you ready to give him your full

allegiance? There will often come a time when we have to take a

stand for the Lord Jesus and for the truth of the Gospel – the

good news of God’s kingdom and the free gift of salvation which

Jesus came to bring us. To stand for Jesus and his kingdom may

provoke mockery and opposition. It may even entail suffering and

hardship – such as the loss of job, reputation, or life.The Lord

Jesus richly rewards those who suffer for his name’s sake.

Costly grace versus cheap grace
There are fundamentally only two choices that determine the course

of our lives and the final destiny that awaits us: the choice to

live for God’s kingdom of peace, joy, and righteousness or the

pursuit of the world’s kingdom which stands in opposition to God’s

authority and commandments. We can choose to obey God’s word and

believe in his promise of blessing or we can choose to follow the

voice of those who promise success and happiness apart from God’s

truth and laws. The costly grace and freedom – which the Lord

Jesus offers to those who embrace the cross for his sake – leads

to joy and blessing in this life as well as the promise of eternal

happiness with God. Cheap grace – which tries to bypass the cross

for the sake of being my own master and the ruler of my own

destiny – leads to emptiness and endless futility. Who do you

choose to be the master and ruler of your life and destiny?

“Lord Jesus, your Gospel brings joy and freedom. May I be loyal

to you always, even though it produce a cross on earth, that I may

share in your crown of victory for all eternity”

Psalm 7:1-2, 8b-11

1 O Lord my God, in you I take refuge; save me from all my

pursuers, and deliver me,
2 lest like a lion they rend me, dragging me away, with none to

rescue.
8b judge me, O LORD, according to my

righteousness and according to the integrity that is in me.
9 O let the evil of the wicked come to an end, but establish the

righteous, you who try the minds and hearts, righteous God.
10 My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart.
11 God is a righteous judge, and a God who has indignation every

day.

Daily Quote from the early church fathers: Not be walking but by loving,

by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

“We approach God not by walking but by loving. The purer our love

for him toward whom we are striving, the more present to us will

he be. To him, therefore, who is everywhere present and everywhere

whole, we must proceed not by our feet but by our moral virtues –

judged not by the object of our knowledge but by the object of our

love.” (excerpt from Letter 155,13)

Scripture quotations from Common Bible: Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1973, and Ignatius Edition of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 2006, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.  Citation references for quotes from the writings of the early church fathers can be found here.

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