Luke 18
March Memory Verse: "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost." Luke 19:10 NIV
Read: Luke 18
AW Tozer had a famous quote…
WHAT COMES TO OUR MINDS WHEN WE THINK ABOUT GOD IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING ABOUT US.
This has not changed today. Our understanding of who God is affects how we RELATE to Him, how we RESPOND to Him, and how we RECEIVE Him. Today, in Luke 18, we see this lived out. We see what a PROPER VIEW of God produces in our lives.
A proper view of God produces…
1) PERSISTENT PRAYER (v.1-8)
Jesus tells the story of the persistent widow and how the king gave in because of her persistence. Then, Jesus says, “And will not God…” Often we are not persistent in prayer because (1) we don’t believe God hears us (2) we don’t believe He cares. This is not true! If we saw what happened when we prayed we would not cease to pray persistently.
2) HUMILITY (v.9-14)
When we see God for who He is we cannot help but see us for who we are. And compared to God we are nothing. We are sinful. He is Holy. This produces HUMILITY and WORSHIP in our lives that brings glory to Him just like it did in the life of this tax collector.
3) CHILDLIKE DEPENDENCY (v.15-17)
Just like a child who runs to the arms of their father in good times, bad times, happy times, sad times, painful times, etc. So will we run into the arms of God when we have a proper view of God as our Perfect Father.
4) SURRENDER (v. 18-20)
When we see God for who He is, things in our lives change. We lay things down. We surrender sin and idols. We let Him be the boss. We let Him call the shots. This was not the case for the rich young ruler… it is because He did not have a good view of who he was talking to… God Himself.
5) FAITH (v.35-43)
We see this shown in the story of the blind beggar. In verse 42 Jesus looks at him and says to him, “Your faith has made you well.” Because he had a high view of Jesus, he went to Him in FAITH when he was in NEED. This motivated Jesus to heal him.
If you had to summarize your view of God in 3 words, what would they be? How does this affect how you live your life for God?
By: Nick Parsons
Read: Luke 18
AW Tozer had a famous quote…
WHAT COMES TO OUR MINDS WHEN WE THINK ABOUT GOD IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING ABOUT US.
This has not changed today. Our understanding of who God is affects how we RELATE to Him, how we RESPOND to Him, and how we RECEIVE Him. Today, in Luke 18, we see this lived out. We see what a PROPER VIEW of God produces in our lives.
A proper view of God produces…
1) PERSISTENT PRAYER (v.1-8)
Jesus tells the story of the persistent widow and how the king gave in because of her persistence. Then, Jesus says, “And will not God…” Often we are not persistent in prayer because (1) we don’t believe God hears us (2) we don’t believe He cares. This is not true! If we saw what happened when we prayed we would not cease to pray persistently.
2) HUMILITY (v.9-14)
When we see God for who He is we cannot help but see us for who we are. And compared to God we are nothing. We are sinful. He is Holy. This produces HUMILITY and WORSHIP in our lives that brings glory to Him just like it did in the life of this tax collector.
3) CHILDLIKE DEPENDENCY (v.15-17)
Just like a child who runs to the arms of their father in good times, bad times, happy times, sad times, painful times, etc. So will we run into the arms of God when we have a proper view of God as our Perfect Father.
4) SURRENDER (v. 18-20)
When we see God for who He is, things in our lives change. We lay things down. We surrender sin and idols. We let Him be the boss. We let Him call the shots. This was not the case for the rich young ruler… it is because He did not have a good view of who he was talking to… God Himself.
5) FAITH (v.35-43)
We see this shown in the story of the blind beggar. In verse 42 Jesus looks at him and says to him, “Your faith has made you well.” Because he had a high view of Jesus, he went to Him in FAITH when he was in NEED. This motivated Jesus to heal him.
If you had to summarize your view of God in 3 words, what would they be? How does this affect how you live your life for God?
By: Nick Parsons
20 Comments
Sovereign, Loving King - He knows everything about me, and chooses to love me despite the flaws and failures. Knowing God in this way makes me feel like the blind beggar, who knew he had nothing to bring to the table, but knew he needed mercy!
Yes! Love it!
Just becomes justifier!
Because "here comes the boom" is one word too many...
Thanks for sharing!
Holy, Sovereign, Loving
The holiness of God should lead me to pursue personal holiness and to bring the correct fear and trembling when approaching and serving Him. It also reminds me that not one ounce of imperfection can ever go forth from Him.
The sovereignty of God gives me comfort and peace knowing that He is in control of everything. Even when great calamity and evil happens and the world around me is shaking, I know He is enthroned far above it all and using every event at all times to bring glory to Himself.
The love of God ties everything about life with Him together. It is what makes holiness bearable. It is what make sovereignty sweet. I know that the eternal love between Son and Father by the Spirit is what drove Creation. As the Father has loved the Son, both the Father and Son show this unfathomable love to us. This love feels every craving of belonging, loneliness, and every broken representation of love I've faced in my life. It is the tender love of God that reminds me to run back each time that I sin and mess up. It's this love that drives discipline in a way that doesn't feel laborious. It's this love that makes me hyperaware of how little I often love others well.
Love it! Proud of you!
BIG, LOVING, PATIENT
Big: Creator / sustainer of all; powerful
Loving: A Father who wants the best for His children
Patient: not easily/quickly angered
Very cool!
Holy - Initiator - Restorer
God's Holiness show me His character and what my sin does to Him
God initiated a rescue through Jesus - God initiated by drawing me to Himself - God initiates the relationship we share.
God restores my heart - my life - my joy.
Yes!
Holy, loving King.
And imagine! I get to be his daughter!
Yes! Thanks for the comment.
Holy, Righteous, Forgiving
Today's scripture was convicting for me. Am I persistent in praying for the right things? Revival, Salvations, Spiritual Growth in myself and the Church, etc. Far too often I voice concern over the cultural decline I see in our country but do I persistently pray for revival? Today's take away = Talk & complain less, persistently pray more!
Great Mike!
Only 3 words? Wow, that one is difficult. However, I would say that God is faithful, he is holy, and he is sovereign.
Faithful - so many times in my life, I have seen the faithfulness of God. He has proven his faithfulness to me even when I don't feel deserving. He has provided for me in ways that only he can. He is always there in the good times and bad, even though I may seek him more in the bad times than the good. He remains faithful as he promised he would.
Holy - God is above all, he created all, he holds all things together. He is perfect, not capable of any wrong. He is outside the constraints of time. He existed before time. If that isn't the definition of Holy, or set apart, I don't know what is.
Sovereign - God knows all things, and has a reason for all things. I can point to times in my life where I didn't understand what God was doing, but I can now look back and see that God was in control the whole time. I doubted him, but he knew what I needed, and he had a reason for it all. Even in the midst of all of the evil in the world, God is in control and is working it all out for his good. God's timing is better than ours. Isaiah 55:8-9 talk about Gods ways being higher than ours, and we need to put our trust in that, knowing that he sees all and knows all and has a plan for it all.
Yes, only three ;) thanks Scottie!
All-Loving, All-Knowing, All-Powerful
Thanks Naomi!
Holy, Faithful, Sustainer
Yes Reva! Covid grew us in those last two!