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March 25, 2022
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Daily Scripture

Luke 11:14-36

During Lent, we are using short videos to share a daily idea (linked to the gospel of Luke) on how to grow spiritually. Watch today’s video. Click here or on the image below:

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Note: We are reading the entire gospel of Luke in the GPS. Some day’s readings are longer than usual. We hope you’ll have an extra cup of coffee, or use your lunch break, and read Luke’s entire story of Jesus.

14 Jesus was throwing out a demon that causes muteness. When the demon was gone, the man who couldn’t speak began to talk. The crowds were amazed. 15 But some of them said, “He throws out demons with the authority of Beelzebul, the ruler of demons.” 16 Others were testing him, seeking a sign from heaven.

17 Because Jesus knew what they were thinking, he said to them, “Every kingdom involved in civil war becomes a wasteland, and a house torn apart by divisions will collapse. 18 If Satan is at war with himself, how will his kingdom endure? I ask this because you say that I throw out demons by the authority of Beelzebul. 19 If I throw out demons by the authority of Beelzebul, then by whose authority do your followers throw them out? Therefore, they will be your judges. 20 But if I throw out demons by the power [or finger] of God, then God’s kingdom has already overtaken you. 21 When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his possessions are secure. 22 But as soon as a stronger one attacks and overpowers him, the stronger one takes away the armor he had trusted and divides the stolen goods.

23 “Whoever isn’t with me is against me, and whoever doesn’t gather with me, scatters. 24 When an unclean spirit leaves a person, it wanders through dry places looking for a place to rest. But it doesn’t find any. Then it says, ‘I’ll go back to the house I left.’ 25 When it arrives, it finds the house cleaned up and decorated. 26 Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself. They go in and make their home there. That person is worse off at the end than at the beginning.”

27 While Jesus was saying these things, a certain woman in the crowd spoke up: “Happy is the mother who gave birth to you and who nursed you.”

28 But he said, “Happy rather are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.”

29 When the crowds grew, Jesus said, “This generation is an evil generation. It looks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except Jonah’s sign. 30 Just as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so the Human One [or Son of Man] will be a sign to this generation. 31 The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them, because she came from a distant land to hear Solomon’s wisdom. And look, someone greater than Solomon is here. 32 The people of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they changed their hearts and lives in response to Jonah’s preaching—and one greater than Jonah is here.

33 “People don’t light a lamp and then put it in a closet or under a basket. Rather, they place the lamp on a lampstand so that those who enter the house can see the light. 34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your whole body is full of darkness. 35 Therefore, see to it that the light in you isn’t darkness. 36 If your whole body is full of light—with no part darkened—then it will be as full of light as when a lamp shines brightly on you.”

Daily Reflection & Prayer

The self-righteous religious leaders claimed Jesus freed people from the effects of evil only because he was in league with the ruler of demons! Jesus’ forceful response pointed out the illogical nature of that argument. “Attributing the Holy Spirit’s work to an impure spirit is roughly tantamount to calling God Satan.” * Equating his message with evil was like calling sunlight “darkness.”

  • Sometimes our efforts to “clean up our life” by sheer human determination and willpower don’t work, Jesus said in verses 24-26. It does little good to just to clear out the bad, with nothing in its place. What are some positive ways you have learned to allow God to fill your soul with divine purpose and love?
  • Verses 34-35 urged hearers to examine the health of our eyes (not mainly physical, but spiritual). Jesus’ enemies blinded themselves spiritually by refusing to consider any evidence that didn’t fit what they wanted to be true. In what ways has God brought new light to your mind, your ways of thinking, over the last year?

Click here to incorporate music and worship from the COR Worship Collective into your daily practice and devotion.

Prayer

Lord God, open my inner eyes. Let me soak in the light of your love and grace, so that it may beam out of me to lighten the lives of all who come in contact with me. Amen.

GPS Insights

Lauren Cook

Lauren Cook

Lauren Cook is the Entry Points Program Director at Resurrection, a self-proclaimed foodie, a bookworm, and is always planning her next trip. She has the sweetest (and sassiest) daughter, Carolina Rae, a rockstar husband, Austin, and a cutie pup named Thunder. She loves connecting with others so let her know the best place you've ever eaten, best book you've ever read, or best place you've ever been!

I’m a spring and summer girl. I thrive in the sunshine, the warmth, the light. I find myself seeking out the light whenever possible: going for walks, working on the porch, waving my arms out the window of the car, opening the windows in my office. I just want to soak it all in because it makes me feel such incredible joy.

As we entered spring this week, we had a few days of beautiful light that filled my soul with gratitude and hope. I’ve always thought that the sunlight is a picture of Jesus for us. He is the light, as said all throughout Scripture. He wants us to be full of his light, the truth of his goodness, grace, love, and mercy. He wants us to shine his light all throughout our world, he wants us to be and share the sunlight.

I’m well aware that sometimes we feel like the Kansas City weather this week—dreary, gray, down. I think a lot of us are feeling that way lately. We are over-worked in our jobs, exhausted in our responsibilities, tired of our isolation. The light feels really far away, or it feels like there isn’t room for the light in us because the darkness is overwhelming. We need spring.

Whether you feel like you’re in the dark today, or you’re feeling the light, please remember that the one true light, Jesus, is always there. There is always room for him. He didn’t create you to be put in a closet or under a basket, he didn’t create you to be in the darkness, he calls you back into the light. And he is always waiting to help you get there.

Lord God, open our eyes and our hearts. Let us soak in the light of your love and light up my soul. Allow the light to fill me and shine from me to brighten the world around me. Amen.

© 2024 Resurrection: A United Methodist Church. All Rights Reserved.
Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
References

* HarperCollins Christian Publishing. NIV, Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible, eBook: Bringing to Life the Ancient World of Scripture (Kindle Locations 226134-226135). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.