“When Jesus heard that, He said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: “I desire mercy and not sacrifice.” For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.’” Matthew 9:12-13
The Pharisees (a legalistic sect that believed one could be righteous in God’s eyes by strictly observing the law) were critical of Jesus for eating with tax collectors and sinners, but Jesus pointed out that He came to save sinners by calling on them to repent and look to Him in faith for God’s pardon and forgiveness. God desires mercy rather than a legalistic fulfillment of the law regarding sacrifices (cf. Hosea 6:6). He desires true repentance and faith rather than an outward performance of religious rites and rituals.
O gracious and merciful God, grant that I show mercy toward others and forgive them as You have forgiven me for the sake of Christ Jesus and His cross. Amen.
“There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. But they had no child because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.” Luke 1:5-7
Zacharias and Elizabeth, both descended from Aaron and of the tribe of Levi, were childless — something counted as a curse and judgment of God in those days. But the barrenness of Elizabeth was not a judgment because of sin in their lives, for they were both counted righteous in God’s eyes through faith in the promise of God to send one who would “redeem Israel from all his iniquities” (Psalm 130:8), and they faithfully lived in accord with the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. Instead, God planned to use them to fulfill His promise to send a prophet who would prepare the way of the Lord (cf. Mal. 4:5-6).
Grant me faith, O God, to accept Your plan for my life not as a curse but as a blessing and a part of Your eternal purpose to save lost souls. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
“Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed.” Luke 1:1-4
Why did Luke write to Theophilus? To give him an orderly account regarding the life and work of Jesus Christ from His birth to His death, resurrection, and ascension — an account based on the eye-witness testimony of those who were there and could attest to the facts related to Jesus and His fulfillment of what the Scriptures had foretold. Luke wrote so that Theophilus could know, with certainty, the truthfulness of what he had been taught. Luke’s Gospel and all of the Scriptures give us the certainty of the truthfulness of what we have been taught regarding our Lord Jesus Christ.
Grant that I read and study Your inspired Word, O Lord, that I may know the truth and place my faith in You and what You have accomplished for me on the cross. Amen.
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11
As God promised to salvage and rebuild the ruined lives of His people after they were carried away into captivity for their sin and rebellion against Him, so also God still salvages and rebuilds ruined lives today by calling lost and condemned sinners to faith in Jesus and His cross for pardon and forgiveness and then recreating them and giving them new hearts by the gracious working of the Holy Spirit through God’s Word.
O gracious and merciful God, I have sinned and ruined the life You gave me. Forgive my sins for Jesus’ sake and renew my heart that I may live for You. Amen.
“You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image — any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them.” Exodus 20:3-5a
One of the ways people practice idolatry is to make God in their own image and likeness. We do this when we imagine that God thinks as we do, that our thoughts and ways are God’s thoughts and ways. But God clearly says, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways” (Isa. 55:8). Rather than assuming God thinks as we do, God would have us conform our thoughts and ways to His, as revealed to us in the Scriptures, and repent of our sins and iniquities and place our faith in Christ Jesus and His cross.
Your ways and Your thoughts are true and right, O God. My thoughts and ways are not. Forgive my sins in the shed blood of Christ Jesus and cleanse my ways. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
