(Matthew 19:16-30) And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” 17 And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.” 18 Then he said to Him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not commit murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; 19 Honor your father and mother; and You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 20 The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?” 21 Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” 22 But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property.
23 And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” 25 When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?” 26 And looking at them Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
(Matthew 6:19-24) “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
22 “The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
(Luke 11:37-41) Now when He had spoken, a Pharisee asked Him to have lunch with him; and He went in, and reclined at the table. 38 When the Pharisee saw it, he was surprised that He had not first ceremonially washed before the meal. 39 But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the platter; but inside of you, you are full of robbery and wickedness. 40 You foolish ones, did not He who made the outside make the inside also? 41 But give that which is within as charity, and then all things are clean for you.
(Luke 14:12-14) And He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, “When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment. 13 But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Reminder: "praying effectively" involves knowing God's will. When we pray in His will (in His name), He may choose to not answer those prayers in the time period that we would like, or HOW we would like - but He will answer those prayers!
It is God's will:
- that we obey God's commandments (Mt.19:17, Mk.10:19)
- that we do not murder (Mt.19:18, Mk.10:19, Lk.18:20)
- that we do not commit adultery (Mt.19:18, Mk.10:19, Lk.18:20)
- that we do not steal (Mt.19:18, Mk.10:19, Lk.18:20)
- that we do not bear false witness (Mt.19:18, Mk.10:19, Lk.18:20)
- that we do not defraud anyone (Mk.10:19)
- that we honor our parents (Mt.19:19, Mk.10:19, Lk.18:20)
- that we love our neighbor as ourselves (Mt.19:19)
- that we give to the poor (Mt.19:21, Mk.10:21, Lk.18:22)
- that we "give" everything, give our lives to follow Jesus, which is only possible through Him (Mt.19:21, 26, Mk.10:21, 27, Lk.18:22, 27)
- that we do not store up treasures here on earth (Mt.6:19)
- that we store up treasures in heaven (Mt.6:20)
- that we serve and are dedicated to the Lord, and not wealth (Mt.6:24)
- that we give our heart and soul to the Lord, and not just focus on external deeds (Lk.11:41)
- that we do not do nice things for specific people expecting something nice in return from them (Lk.14:12)
- that we reach out to the weak and the vulnerable and not expect anything in return (Lk.14:13-14)
- that we give and do good deeds with pure motives (Lk.11:41, 14:13-14)
Today's prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, everything You ask of us would be impossible to do without You in our lives. Thank You for saving and cleansing me. Thank You for patiently changing me from the inside out.
Dear Lord Jesus, everything You ask of us would be impossible to do without You in our lives. Thank You for saving and cleansing me. Thank You for patiently changing me from the inside out.
May we put our trust in You only. May we respond to Your leading. May we do all things without expecting anything in return. May we serve You and others with Your holy love. Thank You that You will reward us for all good deeds done with pure motives when we get to heaven, but may we focus on the joy that it brings right now. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment