Word of Life
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- Joined
- Jun 26, 2006
- Messages
- 558
Moving Beyond the Barter
Heartlight - Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Then Jesus said to the Pharisee that had invited him, "When you give a lunch or a dinner, don't invite only your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. At another time they will pay you back by inviting you to eat with them. Instead, when you give a feast, invite the poor people, the crippled, and the blind. Then you will have great blessings, because these people cannot pay you back. They have nothing. But God will reward you at the time when good people rise from death."
-- Luke 14:12-14 (ERV)
KEY THOUGHT:
So much of life is tied up in bartering -- I'll do this for you and you'll do this for me. In friendship, the expectation is not explicit. However, the relationship is built upon doing things with and for each other. This is not particularly bad. However, Jesus wants us to follow him into a more redemptive purpose in our relationships. He challenges us to also bless, benefit, and befriend those who cannot repay us for our interest, concern, and kindness. This leaves the rewards of our actions to be the intrinsic blessing of helping someone else and to be a deep trust that it matters to our God -- and God promises to remember!
TODAY'S PRAYER:
Father, open my eyes to the opportunities you provide me to bless
others in Jesus' name. Forgive me when I invest all my time, effort,
and interest only in those whom I already know. Use me to bless those
from whom I can expect nothing. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Heartlight - Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Then Jesus said to the Pharisee that had invited him, "When you give a lunch or a dinner, don't invite only your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. At another time they will pay you back by inviting you to eat with them. Instead, when you give a feast, invite the poor people, the crippled, and the blind. Then you will have great blessings, because these people cannot pay you back. They have nothing. But God will reward you at the time when good people rise from death."
-- Luke 14:12-14 (ERV)
KEY THOUGHT:
So much of life is tied up in bartering -- I'll do this for you and you'll do this for me. In friendship, the expectation is not explicit. However, the relationship is built upon doing things with and for each other. This is not particularly bad. However, Jesus wants us to follow him into a more redemptive purpose in our relationships. He challenges us to also bless, benefit, and befriend those who cannot repay us for our interest, concern, and kindness. This leaves the rewards of our actions to be the intrinsic blessing of helping someone else and to be a deep trust that it matters to our God -- and God promises to remember!
TODAY'S PRAYER:
Father, open my eyes to the opportunities you provide me to bless
others in Jesus' name. Forgive me when I invest all my time, effort,
and interest only in those whom I already know. Use me to bless those
from whom I can expect nothing. In Jesus' name. Amen.
