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July 21, 2024
Guest Speaker: Deanna Margel
Devotions from the Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Service of the Word: Ninth Sunday after Pentecost
Scripture Readings:
Jer. 23:1–6 // Psalm 23 // Ephesians 2:11–22 // Mark 6:30–44
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo. Lutheran Hour Ministries
July 17, 2024
In the time of Jesus there was a wall around the temple area in Jerusalem. This wall was there for one reason: to keep out the Gentiles and anyone else who was not allowed to enter the holy places by the laws and customs of Israel. If somebody tried to break through anyway, he was subject to death.
If I had lived in those days, I would have had to stand outside. I would have hated it. To love the Lord and look toward His worship and not be allowed in—how sad and lonely that would be. It would cause a lot of bitterness and anger.
But this is not God's plan for His people. When Jesus came, He said to the Jewish people listening to Him, "I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice. So there will be one flock, one Shepherd" (John 10:16).
Jesus came to lay down His life on the cross to save all people—Jews and Gentiles alike, foreigners and native born. No one is to be left out of His kingdom. He died for us all, and He rose from the dead so that everyone who believes in Him may become children of God—no longer outsiders, but insiders, beloved forever.
We have our own exclusions today. Some people reject others based on class or race or whether someone else is an immigrant. Others do it based on wealth or education. But Jesus' blood wipes away all this. To Him, all that matters is this: "Are you a person I died for? Do you trust Me to save you? If so, you are My own." There can be no higher honor, and no greater blessing. We belong to the One who loves us forever—and we are learning to love one another.
WE PRAY: Lord, put Your love for Your people in my heart as well, regardless of who they are. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo. Lutheran Hour Ministries
July 15, 2021
I love what Jesus says after the apostles come back from their preaching journeys. "Come away by yourselves and rest a while," He says. Take some time to rest and relax. Step away from the burdens you carry. Come with Me and have some peace.
Jesus Himself needed some time to be alone. King Herod had just murdered His cousin John the Baptist. Besides the grief of losing a relative, there was the fact that John's death was a road sign pointing to Jesus' own death. "This happened to me," it said. "This is what will happen to you."
So Jesus took His disciples and crossed the lake, looking for a quiet spot to be alone. But even for Jesus it didn't work out. The crowds saw them leaving, and they chased them around the lake. When Jesus and the disciples got to their quiet place, it wasn't quiet anymore! There were oodles of people waiting for them, begging for help, needing care. I imagine there were a lot of sighs on that boat, as the disciples saw what was waiting for them.
Still, Jesus had mercy on those people, just as He did on His disciples. Why? Because His heart went out to them—they were like sheep without a shepherd. He had to juggle three sets of needs—His own, His disciples', and the crowds. Sound familiar? I bet it does. We balance needs all the time—our own, our families', our workplaces ... sometimes we get it wrong. Sometimes we get it right, but we're still overwhelmed. The needs are too great, and we are too small.
Jesus knows that. He's been through it Himself. And so He gives Himself completely for us, laying down His own life to meet our needs—first through His years of living and working and teaching and preaching and healing, and then through His greatest act of suffering, dying, and rising again. He gave Himself for us, that we might live—even when we are overburdened, overstretched, over-matched, in every way.
And now through the Holy Spirit He gives Himself to us, to become our strength and our wisdom, to become our compassion on others when we have nothing left. He lives through us—as Paul says, "We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us" (2 Corinthians 4:7). And when He comes again in glory, we will rejoice together to see all the good things He has done—His Spirit working in us.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, help me when I am not enough. You are enough for me and the people I care for. Amen.