An unexpected ending to a dinner party

When Jesus accepted the dinner invitation to Simon the Pharisee's house, I wonder if he had any idea how the evening would pan out? I am sure that Simon definitely didn't imagine how the meal would end up.

If you would like to read the full story, then please follow in Luke 6:36-50. In summary, a sinful woman interrupts the dinner to weep over Jesus and to anoint his feet with expensive perfume. In modern times, this incident would have caused such a stir that people would have posted videos of her actions all over the internet. Simon is stunned, but Jesus sees into the broken heart of the woman and forgives her sins. 

When Matthew Henry reflected on this passage he wrote - "None can truly perceive how precious Christ is, and the glory of the gospel, except the broken-hearted." 

He implies that when are hearts are broken and stepped upon, the compassion of Jesus is precious beyond measure. He is all we need. 

Living in Grace

D3LM3

What does it mean to be 'poor in spirit?'

The person who is poor in spirit is someone who realises the poverty of their worship and that they can't carry on in their own strength. To be poor in spirit is to be humble, without being beaten down, but to acknowledge your limited resources and your need of God.

As Matthew Henry once remarked: "To be poor in spirit does not mean one who is weak in spirit, but one who, looks to God alone to preserve him in the midst of his afflictions. He does not live out of his own resources, nor is he relying on his own achievements - his trust is in God." 

“How blessed are the poor in spirit! for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs." - Complete Jewish Bible

Many religious people in Jesus' day had become proud of their spiritual pedigree and accomplishments. In other words, they had become full of themselves. And the obvious result of this attitude, is that then we have no room for God. If I am 'full' of myself, there is little space for God to dwell.

"Pride makes us artificial and humility makes us real." - Thomas Merton

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Who is watching who?

"On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the sabbath, they were watching him closely." - Luke 14:1

The great irony of Jesus sharing a meal with the Pharisee was that although he was being watched very carefully, Jesus was equally observant about their behaviour. This is why he asked them a very challenging question concerning the man who had dropsy (v.2-3). Matthew Henry comments on this verse by arguing:

"Even in the common actions of life, Christ marks what we do, not only in our religious assemblies, but at our tables." 

This challenges us to include Christ in all aspects of our lives and not just at the 'religious' moments in our communities. We may be able to fool some people during our religious moments, but we can't fool God when we live the rest of the week. 

"The one you are looking for is the one who is looking." - St. Francis of Assisi 

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Kept in the dark

 

If you could know everything about the future, would you be 'FREE' to live your best life or would you be more anxious? There are times when I wish I knew everything that was going to be waiting for me around each future corner, but then again, perhaps it would make me more afraid. 

Anyway, we are never going to know everything ahead of time and perhaps that is the best for all of us as we head into the New Year. This allows us to place our TRUST firmly into the hands of Christ.

“God has wisely kept us in the dark concerning future events and reserved for himself the knowledge of them, that he may train us up in a dependence upon himself and a continued readiness for every event.” - Matthew Henry

Isaiah 9:1 - [ Hope in the Messiah ] Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory.

Reflection: Being 'kept in the dark' about the future teaches us to place our entire TRUST in Jesus Christ. 

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Why are troubles sent my way?

Why do troubles come our way?

If we could answer this question you would all be a multi-millionaires. There is no easy answer to this dilemma, but what we do know is that ALL people encounter trouble. Rich, poor, black, white, male, female, young and old - every person encounters trouble at some point. For me, the question is how we respond to these troubles - that is the harder part to fathom.

Matthew Henry has a lovely take on this and he writes:

"Troubles are sent to teach us to pray; and are continued, to teach us to continue in prayer. Though God accepts the prayer of faith, yet he does not always give what is asked for: as he sometimes grants in wrath, so he sometimes denies in love." 

What do you make of those words? 

I have found great encouragement from the last words of his quote - "sometimes God denies things in LOVE." 

Just because God says NO to something does not make God nasty and mean. 

Living in Grace

D3LM3