ESOCS Devotional 27 July 2024 – God’s Word As Superior to the Prophets
MEMORY VERSE: “And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is least among you all, the same shall be great.” Luke 9:48 KJV
TEXT: LUKE 9:46-56
Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest. 47 And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, 48 and said to them, “Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me. For he who is least among you all will be great.”
49 Now John answered and said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us.”
50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side.”
51 Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, 52 and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him. 53 But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. 54 And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, [c]just as Elijah did?”
55 But He turned and rebuked them, and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. 56 For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.” And they went to another village.
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The question the disciples were arguing about is not who is the greatest, but who will be the greatest. They were looking at the idea of greatness the way the world looks at it. They were seeking greatness of rank and dignity, of importance and status. This is not the pursuit of excellence, as a disciple or as a minister of Christ. Unfortunately, some Christians, today, are caught up in the pursuit of status, the acclaim of others, always with the idea of comparison with others — greater than, better than, more recognized than, better known than. Fortunately, this sort of pride isn’t very subtle, and can be easily recognized, especially by others. They wanted to be seen as great in the eyes of others. This was all about the motives of the heart and it became an opportunity for Jesus to teach them about God’s heart and it was an opportunity to bring them into the maturity of faith.
The child is the illustration of a truth that Jesus only hints at here – that in His Kingdom, humility and servanthood are signs of greatness. Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, taking a place lower than a servant (John 13:1-17). Jesus is equal with the Father so far as divinity is concerned; but He humbled Himself to become man, and then again, to die on a shameful Cross for our sins (Philippians 2:5-11). Jesus was saying; in my Kingdom, humility is honored, rather than self-aggrandizing pride.
Dealing with pride on the heart level means examining our motives for what we do. Why do I serve Christ? Is it out of love and gratitude to Him, or is it to be recognized by others? What happens if I don’t receive the recognition that I think I deserve? Do I get hurt feelings and quit? Do I grow jealous of those who seem to be in the limelight? Or, do I truly rejoice with the success of other servants of the Lord because the name of the Lord is being glorified?
Then Jesus sent messengers ahead of Him to a village in Samaria to get a place for them to stay but they wouldn’t take them in because they were Jews, heading towards Jerusalem. It was an insult to Jesus and His disciples, really a slap in the face. So, what do you do when you get a “slap in the face?” James and John knew what to do! “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”
Jesus responded, You’ve got it wrong again! I didn’t come to earth to call down lightning and thunder on people. That’s not what our ministry is about. We didn’t come to destroy people, but to SAVE people: “For God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” (John 3:17) He came to save people, not to destroy them.
- Are you blind to your pride? How can you spot it and learn true humility?
- Thank you, Oh God, for being patient with us, still working in us, and still “coaching us up” as your misguided disciples!
Further Reading: Deuteronomy 15:1-11; Ezekiel 44:4-8; Acts 11:19-end
ESOCS Devotional 28 July 2024
