For a full description of the (Y3) reading plan, see the “About” page.
- What attributes of God’s character does this passage reveal?
- How does the passage point to Jesus?
- How should the truth of this passage change me?
- How do the events of today’s reading help you better understand the grand narrative of Scripture?
Matt. 22
I was pondering the other day on the concept of the resurrection, not so much as a time or event, but as the person of Jesus Christ. Thus, I was thinking about Jesus’ answer to the Sadducees in this context. The first thing He said was, “You are mistaken, because you don’t know the Scriptures or the power of God.” (Matt. 22:29). Wow – what He really told them was that they didn’t know Him. They didn’t understand that the resurrection isn’t about another life after this one. The resurrection IS life. And that life is in Jesus.
Mark 12
One of the things that grieves me most in people is to see those who hide behind a good cause for personal gain. They simultaneously take advantage of people’s struggles and their compassion, all while exalting their own supposed benevolence. We see this behavior in everything from politics to non-profits and even on a smaller scale in the everyday things of life. The behavior is nothing new, however. It is part of the natural human condition. And I see Jesus calling it out in this chapter in His warning about the scribes. They honored themselves at the expense of those they should have been helping, all in the name of ‘serving God’. But take heart – Jesus said of them, “These will receive harsher judgment.” (Mk. 12:40b).
Luke 21:1-4
We read the other day how Jesus said that it was difficult for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. This short story about the poor widow’s offering gives me a little insight as to why. I somehow think it would be much easier to give all I had to live on if what I had to live on was woefully inadequate for me in the first place. Let’s face it, her two tiny coins weren’t going to buy her much of a living. The wealthy, on the other hand, were able to give quite a lot without impacting their comfortable way of living in the least. In a sense, they were able to have their cake and eat it, too.
And that’s where the problem lies. The poor widow knew that she couldn’t trust her two coins for much of anything. So letting go of what she had to place her trust and hope in God’s merciful provision wasn’t a stretch. However, throwing your excess in the box, while not a bad thing, requires no trust in God. In having their cake and eating it too, the wealthy continued to place their trust in their wealth and their comfortable lifestyle. Thus, they weren’t really letting go of anything. It isn’t about giving away all you have. It’s about the ability to place your wholehearted trust in God when you have something else you think you can lean on.