I’m still making my way through Luke. If you recall, two blog posts ago I invited you to join me in a challenge to learn more about the WHO and WHY of Christmas: Jesus.
As I have been reading, I’ve started a running list of things we learn about Jesus through his ministry as readers. Today, I want to highlight two things that we are told consistently about Jesus. There are many more that I jotted down, but I wanted to start with these:
- Jesus prays a lot.
So far in my reading it mentions Jesus praying in private places, all night or with others. See the verses below:
- Luke 3:21
- Luke 5:16
- Luke 6:12
- Luke 9:18
- Luke 28–29
- Luke 11:1
If we desire to be like Jesus, we can start by developing a habitual prayer life, a life that is centered on talking and connecting with the Father. Prayer is to be our main source of strength and partnership with God. If Jesus needed it and he was and is perfect, how much more do we need to pray?
- Jesus shares the power and assignment of the Kingdom with us.
In many ways we are similar to God, but we do not have his identical nature or all his attributes. A perfect example of this is Luke 9:1 and 10:19. God gave his disciples and the seventy-two the power and authority to perform the same miracles and signs he did. So a portion of the same power God has, has been granted to us as Christians to continue the work he began.
In addition to that, God is so kind enough to set us up for success. First, he teaches his followers, then grants his followers God-given rights and lastly he sends them out for the Kingdom assignment and takes the time to give specific details so there is no confusion on how they are to conduct themselves. See below Luke 10:1-12
1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. 4 Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.5 “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ 6 If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. 7 Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.
8 “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. 9 Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’ 12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.
Let’s dive deeper into these verses:
Verse 2: The commission and assignment to reach those who have not heard the good news. We still have this assignment today [Matthew 28:19-20].
Verse 3: They carried a tender message that would intersect with a hard journey of opposition, persecution and rejection, much like what we still face today.
Verse 4: No extra provisions were needed except for faith and focus. God will provide for us everything we need, when we put the kingdom business first [Luke 12:31].
Verse 5-6: Be the champion of peace. I love this because I certainly can do better at promoting peace first. Most people usually wait for someone to be kind, greet or smile at them first and then return what was given, but notice they were instructed to bless first. The even better part of this is that we lose nothing even when kindness or respect isn’t reciprocated. The verse said peace will return to you! So the next time you wonder if you should extend kindness, love or a blessing first, remember nothing will be lost if it is not accepted.
Verse 7-8: God will provide for the journey and cause people to meet your needs, be grateful for the provisions. Hard work deserves its reward.
Verse 9: Applying the God-given authority to heal and proclaim the call to faith. We get confirmation of their success in Luke 10:17, “The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!”
Verse 10-12: The journey comes with rejection because not everyone will receive the message, but they still had strict instructions to tell them anyways before departing.
These are just a couple of the study notes I’ve written while reading, but what are some new things you learned about Jesus? What patterns are you noticing? What attributes did you forget about that are now refreshed in your memory? How can you praise God all the more because of who he is? How can you practice what you have read? How has your spirit been refreshed? Take some time to reflect on these questions as you read.
Before we close today, let’s pray (starting or continuing our habitual prayer life we talked about above).
Father, first we thank you for your word. We thank you that it teaches, restores, comforts and guides our lives. When we read, open our eyes and hearts to be filled with your concepts, commands and principles. Give us the desire and courage to make small daily changes that will reflect the life of Jesus. Empty our vessels daily so that we have to rely on you and your unchanging word to fill us up again. We love you. We need you. You are our everything. Thank you for sending your Son to die for our sins in exchange for eternal life. May we always have an answer for why we have hope in this season and out. In Jesus name, Amen!
See you next week!
Things Above 
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