Bible League: Living His Word But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.— Luke 5:15-16 ESV As understood from our verses for today, at this point in His ministry, Jesus was becoming famous. He was doing so many miraculous things that reports about Him were spreading far and wide and great crowds were beginning to come to Him. One of the miracles, a miracle of healing, involved a man with leprosy. The man came to Jesus and said, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” And Jesus said to him, “I will; be clean” (Luke 5:12-13). Immediately, the leprosy left him. Given such miracles, one can see why reports about Jesus went far and wide. While on earth, Jesus proclaimed the coming of the Kingdom of God and He revealed the life of the Kingdom. Doing miracles was an important part of this task. People need miracles of healing and miracles of deliverance from demons. Sickness, disease, and demons have no place in the Kingdom, and Jesus’ miracles clearly demonstrated that fact. He said, for example, “If it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Luke 11:20). The great needs of the people were being met because the Kingdom of God had come. Despite the great needs, Jesus would withdraw from His ministry in order to pray -- away from the crowd, to desolate places. One may wonder why He would do this. People were desperate for the miracles. They came from far and wide to receive them. Why would Jesus, in effect, ditch them in order to pray? Why remove Himself to places where the people could not find Him or reach Him? Didn’t Jesus understand the gravity of the situation? Was He more concerned about Himself than the people? Jesus knew that He needed to pray in order to do the miraculous things He was doing. Without prayer, Jesus’ ministry would not have been as effective. That was His disciples’ problem. When they tried to cast out a demon, they couldn’t do it. Why? Jesus said prayer was needed (Mark 9:29). A life of prayer is a necessity for effectiveness in ministry. Don’t neglect your prayer life. You need it in order to be an effective citizen of the Kingdom of God. Bible in a Year Old Testament Reading2 Chronicles 34, 35, 36 2 Chronicles 34 -- Josiah's Good Reign; Temple Repairs; Hilkiah recovers the Book of the Law NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB 2 Chronicles 35 -- Josiah Observes the Passover, Later Dies in Battle NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB 2 Chronicles 36 -- Jehoahaz; Jehoiakim; Jehoiachin; Zedekiah; Captivity in Babylon; Cyrus Permits Return NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading John 19:1-22 John 19 -- The Crown of Thorns; Jesus' Crucifixion and Burial NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion At that time Jesus prayed this prayer: “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike.”Insight Jesus mentioned two kinds of people in his prayer: the “wise and clever,” arrogant in their own knowledge; and the “childlike,” humbly open to receive the truth of God's Word. Challenge Are you wise in your own eyes, or do you seek the truth in childlike faith, realizing that only God holds all the answers. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Psalm 76:3 There brake he the arrows of the bow, the shield, and the sword, and the battle.Our Redeemer's glorious cry of "It is finished" was the death-knell of all the adversaries of his people, the breaking of "the arrows of the bow, the shield, and the sword, and the battle." Behold the hero of Golgotha using his cross as an anvil, and his woes as a hammer, dashing to shivers bundle after bundle of our sins, those poisoned "arrows of the bow;" trampling on every indictment, and destroying every accusation. What glorious blows the mighty Breaker gives with a hammer far more ponderous than the fabled weapon of Thor! How the diabolical darts fly to fragments, and the infernal bucklers are broken like potters' vessels! Behold, he draws from its sheath of hellish workmanship the dread sword of Satanic power! He snaps it across his knee, as a man breaks the dry wood of a fagot, and casts it into the fire. Beloved, no sin of a believer can now be an arrow mortally to wound him, no condemnation can now be a sword to kill him, for the punishment of our sin was borne by Christ, a full atonement was made for all our iniquities by our blessed Substitute and Surety. Who now accuseth? Who now condemneth? Christ hath died, yea rather, hath risen again. Jesus has emptied the quivers of hell, has quenched every fiery dart, and broken off the head of every arrow of wrath; the ground is strewn with the splinters and relics of the weapons of hell's warfare, which are only visible to us to remind us of our former danger, and of our great deliverance. Sin hath no more dominion over us. Jesus has made an end of it, and put it away forever. O thou enemy, destructions are come to a perpetual end. Talk ye of all the wondrous works of the Lord, ye who make mention of his name; keep not silence, neither by day, nor when the sun goeth to his rest. Bless the Lord, O my soul. Daily Light on the Daily Path Revelation 21:5 And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true."John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Ezekiel 36:26 "Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 1 Corinthians 5:7 Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. Ephesians 4:24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. Isaiah 62:2 The nations will see your righteousness, And all kings your glory; And you will be called by a new name Which the mouth of the LORD will designate. Isaiah 65:17 "For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former things will not be remembered or come to mind. 2 Peter 3:11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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