by Sal Huckel
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Read Matthew 3:1–12
Today’s passage invites us to the banks of the Jordan, where John the Baptist was preparing the way for Jesus’ ministry. His humble lifestyle and calls to repentance were already bringing the people to respond to their sins and be baptised by John in the river. Not surprisingly, also came the conflict with the Pharisees and Sadducees.
John’s reprimand and call to repentance is stark. We might feel that it was well deserved. After all, we do know much about the Pharisees and the Sadducees and their apparent hypocrisy. Paul himself was a Pharisee. While the Pharisees and Sadducees had doctrinal disagreements, they were united in their efforts against Jesus. Here, John’s warning is for them all.
What can we learn here today? We can study the baptism John was bringing, how Jesus’ baptism is the one we need and the meaning it has for us now to be baptised into Jesus’ baptism. We can also ponder what it means to ‘produce fruit in keeping with repentance’. How does that look? What do we need to repent of? We sometimes hear that Jesus simplified the Ten Commandments and that we don’t need to worry about all of those anymore; we are not ‘under the law’. However, Jesus said he did not come to destroy the law or the prophets but to fulfil them (Matthew 5:17).
Unless we understand God’s law, we cannot properly repent. We may feel the law is less prescriptive and onerous ‘since Jesus’, but if we begin to unpack the Ten Commandments and look at Martin Luther’s explanations – the Small Catechism is very helpful on this – we will see that they go further than we might expect. It’s a misleading idea that ‘Jesus replaced them’. Helpfully, rather like the ways in which it is best to teach children, Luther offers positive instruction to further expand on the negatives.
Start today with commandment number one: ‘You shall have no other gods before me.’ We don’t have to look very far to see the things that compete for our attention, love and trust. How can you fear, love and trust God above all things today? To produce fruit in keeping with repentance, we need to follow through with this.
Father God, help me to more fully understand the law written in our hearts (Romans 2:15) and produce fruit in keeping with repentance. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Sal is married to Pastor Matthew Huckel, and they live in Victoria with their six children, enjoying their ministry with Moorabbin–Dandenong Lutheran Church. Their two eldest children are excited to study at undergraduate and postgraduate levels during term time in Sydney. Theology, music, philosophy, literature and history are passions the family shares and explores together. Sal loves writing, speaking and walking to the beach at every opportunity.
by Pastor Glenn Crouch
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You cannot serve both God and money (Matthew 6:24).
Read Matthew 6:19–24
We do like our ‘stuff’. I have always enjoyed collecting things – especially when I was younger. Oh, the joy of coming across that stamp I was missing from a set or that comic that had the conclusion of a story I had been waiting ages to finish. Even though my pastoral library is primarily digital these days, I still get a good feeling when I complete a commentary set – or an expensive book I’ve been after is on a good special! How about you?
In today’s passage, Jesus is not saying that all this stuff we have is bad. God created and sustains a beautiful and rich world, and there is nothing wrong with enjoying the many blessings he supplies. Rather, Jesus is warning his followers about priorities. How much weight do we place on our possessions (money, property, status)?
Treasure is something we tend to horde, lock away and keep to ourselves. We protect and fight for it. We can easily turn our stuff into idols – we can treasure it more than following Jesus. Our eyes drift away from the cross as we focus on our stuff. Our ears no longer hear the Holy Spirit as we follow where the materialism of our world leads us. We cannot be followers of Jesus and be obsessed with our possessions.
Turn back to the cross. Confess your sins. Receive the forgiveness that your Lord Jesus has earned for you. Get up and go out and follow Jesus. Hold on to Jesus, and never forget that he has an even tighter hold on you.
Creator God, thank you for the abundance you supply me with. You far exceed my needs. I need your help to keep me focused on my Lord Jesus. I want to be good at following Jesus, but I fail so often. Forgive me. Help my eyes to remain focused on him. In his name, I pray. Amen.
Glenn is the pastor of St John’s Lutheran Church in Esperance and looks after St Paul’s Lutheran Church in Kalgoorlie–Boulder, Western Australia. Glenn and Karen have been married since 1985. They have two grown sons and are enjoying regular video chats with their first grandchild.
by Pastor Glenn Crouch
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This, then, is how you should pray … (Matthew 6:9a).
Read Matthew 6:7–15
I spent many years of my adult life where the Lord’s Prayer was seen primarily as a framework for how to pray. Don’t get me wrong – it does do a wonderful job of this. But since joining the Lutheran Church 30 years ago, I have found such joy and blessing in the liturgy. I now feel that a church service where we don’t say the Lord’s Prayer together is missing something.
Yet, as many commentators have pointed out, this prayer isn’t really how Jesus prayed but how he wanted us as his followers to pray. (See John 17 for our Lord Jesus praying.) So, we must think about the words we pray in this prayer. We can’t do that justice here – instead, let’s look at one particular aspect: ‘our.’
We pray to ‘Our Father’ – we are brothers and sisters through Christ. We ask for ‘our daily bread’ – not just for my needs but also for my family’s and my neighbour’s needs. We ask for forgiveness for ‘our debts’ – not only for my sins but also for the sins of others. We ask, ‘Lead us not into temptation’ – not only for my protection but also for the protection of others.
While I definitely bring my praise and requests to my Heavenly Father, as a follower of Jesus, I must not forget those around me. As we ask for ourselves, we also ask for others. Jesus advocates for us (as does the other great advocate, the Holy Spirit), so we do need to advocate for others. We should see beyond our own needs and problems and thus see the needs and problems of those around us – and bring those to our Heavenly Father.
Our Father in heaven, thank you for this prayer that your Son gave us. I thank you that I can bring my praise and my needs before you. Help me remember that you also want me to bring praise and the needs of my neighbours before you. In Jesus’ mighty name, I pray. Amen.
Glenn is the pastor of St John’s Lutheran Church in Esperance and looks after St Paul’s Lutheran Church in Kalgoorlie–Boulder, Western Australia. Glenn and Karen have been married since 1985. They have two grown sons and are enjoying regular video chats with their first grandchild.
by Pastor Glenn Crouch
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen (Matthew 6:6a).
Read Matthew 6:1–6,16–18
We continue our week of looking at what is involved in being a follower of Jesus. Today, we look at the area of piety. This may not be a term we are comfortable with using these days, but by it, we mean our personal devotion to God.
The first thing we notice, and this may come as a surprise, is that Jesus talks about our giving to those in need. This is a part of our personal devotion to God and not something we do so that others can see how generous we are. We give to those in need because our Heavenly Father gave his only Son for us. We are to be generous with all that God has given us, and we need to be discreet about our giving.
Do you put aside time to pray? Should it be the same time each day? What about using a prayer journal? What about an app for your phone that looks after this? How does fasting fit in? All wonderful questions so please talk to your pastor or a Christian mentor about these things, as your prayer life is important. We will talk more about prayer tomorrow, but in today’s passage, Jesus tells you that when you pray and/or fast, it is something between your Heavenly Father and you. Some things are not for public consumption.
You may be surprised that Jesus didn’t include daily reading of Scripture, something many of us have as part of our devotional time. We often forget that we live in a truly blessed time when we can easily access the Scriptures in print and electronically. As followers of Jesus, we need to spend time learning more about him through our Bibles and good devotional tools. This very resource is one of those tools.
Gracious Father, help me to do better when it comes to giving to the needy, spending time with you in prayer, and reading your word. I know I need to spend more time with you – help me. Forgive me when I fail and encourage me to continue these useful habits. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Glenn is the pastor of St John’s Lutheran Church in Esperance and looks after St Paul’s Lutheran Church in Kalgoorlie–Boulder, Western Australia. Glenn and Karen have been married since 1985. They have two grown sons and are enjoying regular video chats with their first grandchild.