Day 75

Memorize: Seventy preach and report
Luke 10

Key Verses: 2, 11, 15, 20, 22, 29, 40

Jesus tells us to pray for workers and then tells us to go. I think that is because we don’t have to have an advanced theological degree to serve. I serve by setting up chairs and talking to the kids as they arrive. I hold a plate for a mom as she walks through the potluck line with her small children. I give an unused appliance to a woman to help her start a business. We are all called to serve. These 70+ people are given some very practical instructions about their task. These instructions are not universal. They applied to this specific place, time and mission.

As they go, the listener’s reaction to the messengers is their reaction to Christ. These same people return rejoicing. They saw God do great things through their hands. But Jesus returns their focus from the demons fleeing to eternity. Knowing Jesus gives us entry to knowing the Father. We can’t skip Jesus. We can’t reject His role in our salvation. Without Jesus, it is impossible to have a relationship with God.

There are always going to be people who make up excuses for not obeying Jesus. The Parable of the Good Samaritan places what is needed into clear contrast with disobedience. We can say we are a Christian, but it must change the way we behave. We need more than mental assent to the Truth; we must obey it. There has to be follow through. To be a good husband requires more than just saying “I love you.” Ask any wife! Those words have to be turned into action or they are empty, worthless words. Just saying we are a Jesus-follower means nothing unless we are actually following Jesus.

Mary spent time with Jesus while her sister Martha was busy with preparations, preparations which distracted her from time with Jesus. Do you ever get distracted from the important and get sidetracked by the urgent but unimportant? That seems to be the theme of many people’s lives. The urgent but unimportant seems to take over, and as a result nothing important gets done. Focus on the important and everything else will fall into place.