Luke 21:3-4

March 9, 2026 by Leave a Comment

“And he said, ‘Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.’” (Luke 21:3-4)

In these verses, Jesus focuses on the heart when he says, the “poor widow has put in more than all of them.” Clearly, an accountant would take exception to Jesus’ claim, unless he allowed Jesus to mean what he meant.

Jesus qualified his comparison by evaluating her heart as demonstrated by her level of personal sacrifice. Presumably, the rich put significantly more money into the offering than she did. Yet Jesus said, “They all contributed out of their abundance.” Now, I don’t think this was necessarily a blanket criticism of the wealthy. Rather, I think Jesus was elevating the widow’s sacrifice to the level of appreciation it deserved…in Jesus’ paradigm.

In Jesus’ evaluation of our actions, He considers the heart more than we might. In fact, we are unable to accurately measure the hearts of others. But in this story, Jesus gives some guidance on how to measure a person’s heart. Sacrifice. What is the personal cost (or risk) in our effort for the Lord? As for the widow, “she, out of her poverty, put in all she had to live on.”

Father, please help me to have a greater heart of sacrifice for your causes. Help me to risk more for your name’s sake. Please grow my faith in you and help me to have a decreasing faith in the things of this world. Amen.

Filed Under: devotional thoughts, Faith, good enough, humility, Jesus Said, John, Life in Christ, New Testament

Luke 7:4-7, 9

February 23, 2026 by Leave a Comment

Luke 7:4-7, 9

“And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, ‘He is worthy to have you do this for him, for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.’ And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, ‘Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. Therefore, I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed.’ (4-7)

When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, ‘I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.’”(9‬)

This story illustrates the difference between faith and works. Let’s build it out. The characters in this story are 1) the Roman centurion and his servant, 2) the Jewish elders, and 3) Jesus.

The first thing that should leap off the page for us is the oddity of the partnership between the elders of the Jews and the Roman centurion. Typically, the conquered have a strained relationship with their conqueror. But, the oddness of this relationship is elevated because of the religious distinctions between Romans and Jews. Yet both considerations are apparently overlooked by the elders of the Jews, who deemed him worthy because “he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.” The elders deemed him worthy of Jesus’ attention because he did something significant for them. In other words, he earned it.

Contrast that with the centurion’s thoughts. “I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.”

The elders and the centurion saw the need in the same way. Their starting point was the same. Their path to the request was different. The elders said he deserved Jesus’ help. The centurion said he was not worthy to be in Jesus’ presence. He also added that he knew Jesus could heal his servant from afar. While it may not be obvious at the first reading, Jesus viewed these additional words as a demonstration of the centurion’s faith. So much so that Jesus said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”

Luke concludes his telling of this story with these words: “And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well” (7‬:‭10‬). Matthew provides a more detailed conclusion, emphasizing the centurion’s faith: “And to the centurion Jesus said, ‘Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment” (Matthew‬ ‭8‬:‭13‬).

In summary, we see two approaches to Jesus: 1) works-based, and 2) faith-based. Note that it was the latter that caused Jesus to marvel and remark that he had not seen such faith in all of Israel (Luke 7:9 and Matthew 8:10).

I think we, too, can cause Jesus to marvel when we stop looking at our perceived accomplishments, and focus on him. What can I offer Jesus but a broken and contrite heart full of faith?

Father, help me have a genuine, humble faith similar to the centurion’s. Amen.

Filed Under: devotional thoughts, Faith, Gospels, humility, Luke

Habakkuk 3:17-18

January 31, 2026 by Leave a Comment

“Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation” (Habakkuk 3:17-18).

This guy believed bigly in God. Even when everything was failing around him, he trusted God. This reminds me of Paul and Silas singing praise about midnight in the Philippian jail (Acts 16).

I wish I could say that I would praise the Lord if I were unjustly imprisoned or the whole world collapsed around me. I want to do that, but I don’t think I am there yet.

Father, help me to have the spirit of Habakkuk and Paul and Silas. Help me to look into the face of hardship and praise you. Amen.

Filed Under: Faith, Habakkuk, Old Testament

Habakkuk 1:5-6

January 29, 2026 by Leave a Comment

“Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told. For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not their own” (Habakkuk 1:5-6).

These verses demonstrate God’s sovereignty as He says He is raising the Chaldeans (Babylonians). Daniel 2:21 says that “he removes kings and sets up kings.” In this case, He was raising the Babylonians, who would conquer the Assyrians.

The Lord is raising them up because they “march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not their own.” And, this is what the Lord will use them to do in Judah.

The statement that most sticks out to me is “For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.” This really provides a distinction between God and man. I suspect He doesn’t tell us more about what is going on in the world because we can not understand or believe what He is doing. I also suspect that we would begin to evaluate the rightness or wrongness of what He is doing based on our criteria, rather than His.

Even in this example of the Chaldeans, some would argue that it is immoral for God to raise a cruel army that takes things that are not their own.

Father, please help me trust in the goodness of your actions, especially when I don’t understand them. Amen.

Filed Under: devotional thoughts, Faith, Habakkuk, humility, Old Testament

Daniel 6:3, 5

December 12, 2025 by Leave a Comment

“Then this Daniel became distinguished above all the other high officials and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom.“ (Daniel 6:3)

Then these men said, “We shall not find any ground for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God.” (Daniel 6:5‬)

These verses do two things. First, they tell us of Daniel’s character. Remember, he had been exiled from Jerusalem in a way that none of us would want for ourselves. Yet, he didn’t walk away from his faith. He believed strongly and remained faithful. He was so faithful that the only accusation others could make against him was that he was faithful to his God. 

Second, these verses set the stage for the well-known story of Daniel in the lion’s den. 

In short, others seemed to be jealous of Daniel, so they set a trap. They tricked the king into signing a decree that no one could worship anyone or anything except the king for 30 days. Of course, Daniel could not follow such a law and was found guilty. He was sentenced to a night in the lion’s den. 

We all know the next portion of the story: the angel closed the mouths of the lions, and Daniel survived the night. 

The king, realizing he had been snookered, sentenced those who had tricked him to the lion’s den. Those men AND their families were cast into the lion’s den and were immediately crushed by the lions. 

I think the king unwittingly fulfilled God’s law: “then you shall do to him as he had meant to do to his brother. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.” (Deuteronomy‬ ‭19‬:‭19‬)

Perhaps the most important verse in the chapter is the king’s declaration regarding Yahweh: “I make a decree, that in all my royal dominion people are to tremble and fear before the God of Daniel, for he is the living God, enduring forever; his kingdom shall never be destroyed, and his dominion shall be to the end.” (6‬:‭26‬)

Father, help my heart to be so faithful to you that others not only see you, but want to know you. Amen. 

Filed Under: Daniel, Deuteronomy, devotional thoughts, Faith, Old Testament
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