Today’s Scripture: Luke 6:45, ESV- “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”
Life is unsettling. Sometimes it is hard to get our hearts and our heads in alignment. When our minds or hearts are racing, we must pause and look to Jesus. What does that even mean? What does looking to Jesus even look like? Whether Jesus was challenged by the devil in the wilderness or by the Pharisees during His ministry, He would refer to scripture. The words in the bible are very settling.
In Luke 6:3, when Jesus responded to the Pharisees who were challenging Him and His disciples for picking grain on the sabbath, Jesus asked them “Haven’t you read in the Scriptures what David did when he and his companions were hungry?” (NLT). Do you remember what David did? I did not, so I found the story in 1 Samuel 21. Reading further I was reminded of the evil of David’s time.
Each generation thinks the evil in their time is worse than ever. Throughout history evil has been present. The importance of reading the history of the bible over and over is so we can store God’s reminders to us. When life is spinning out of control that is not the time to take our hands off or the wheel to read the instruction manual. We need to constantly be in God’s instruction manual so when the challenges come, we have points of reference to get us back on the straight and narrow. We must store up as much good as we can. God is the true good. Jesus came in the flesh to teach us good.
On our own we are evil. As I read Jesus’ words in Luke 6:35 to “love my enemies” and to be “kind to the ungrateful and evil” I must confess to God that I cannot do this without Him. I think our enemies are evil. However, our enemies think we are evil. We must continually go to God for good. Out of God’s love and Spirit, we find goodness, kindness, and strength.
Luke 6:41 asks us why we point out the speck in other’s eyes while ignoring the plank in our own eyes. LORD, I confess I am a sinner, and I am grateful for Your forgiveness and grace. I am filled with gratefulness that God forgives my wretchedness, I should be more patient and less judgmental of others and pray they find our God.
As 1 John 4:19 states, we can love because God first loved us. In 1 John 4:16, ESV- “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” With God stored up inside of us we can love from His love.
Through continual prayer and scripture reading we are storing up goodness as God intends. As we internalize God’s Word, what we say comes from Him. When we put the words of Jesus into practice we find as Jesus promised in Luke 6:48 that we will be building our lives on a solid foundation of the rock of Jesus. No longer unsettled.
Are you feeling unsettled today? Stop your mind and turn it to inquire of God and read the words of Jesus. It is here in this place we are solid.
Today’s Prayer: Almighty God of Heaven and earth. Thank You for the treasures of Your Word. Thank You for reminding us of Your words so we can put them into action. You are the only true good. Help us to store up Your goodness and words in our hearts, minds, and souls. Grant us Your strength, LORD, to put into practice everything Jesus taught us so we too may teach those who are lost. Amen.
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