Today in the Word November 19-24
Today in the Word
Thursday Nov 19, 2020
My wife lost the diamond out of her 25th Anniversary ring! Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. The amazing news is that she found it the next day searching the floor of our den! Doesn’t that sound a lot like Luke 15:8?
“…suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?”
In Jesus’ day, a woman would often indicate her married status with a headdress of coins, much like modern women wear a diamond ring. Both the woman in this parable, and my wife Jana, illustrate Jesus’ point: the lost are worth hunting for. Both women searched carefully because the small object they were hunting for mattered greatly to them.
And the lost matter greatly to God. That is why Jesus spent so much time, and received so much criticism for hanging out with ‘sinners.’ The lost mattered greatly to Jesus, so he hunted—he searched for them diligently.
Would anyone be able to tell if the lost matter to us by our time spent searching for them?
And that is the Word from Deer Lodge Assembly on the corner of 5th and Montana.
Today in the Word
Friday Nov 19, 2020
You should have heard the excitement in my wife’s voice when she found the diamond that had fallen out of her 25th Anniversary ring! Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. It reminds me of Jesus’ parable in Luke 15:8-10:
“…suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully…? And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ In the same way…there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.””
Both women illustrate God’s essential character. I got almost as much joy out of hearing my wife retell the story to her daughters as I did hearing of it the first time. All of heaven gets excited about repentance. The found are truly worth celebrating.
It is a matter of value. Every person is of immeasurable worth and value to God. And when one restores their relationship to God’s family, no more important action can be taken. So, when someone of immeasurable value makes the most important decision imaginable, celebration is in order.
For God, and for us.
And that’s the Word. You can enjoy more of the Word this Sunday at 10:30 Livestreaming on Facebook at Deer Lodge Assembly.
Today in The Word
Monday Nov 22, 2020
Do we suffer from a false view of God? Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. In Jesus’ parable of the Lost Son, the little brother has spent it all, and has come to his senses and states in Luke 15:18-19:
“I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.”
And he repeats this statement to his dad in verse 21.
His view of his dad potentially mirrors our view of God. When we have messed up too badly--when we have sinned too greatly for too long when we should have known better, how does God respond? Do we think he might tolerate us as a low-class slave who can sleep in the barn? Are we just a worker for the Kingdom?
No. The Father makes the little brother a full-fledged son again. And God makes us a full-fledged child of his when we come to him in repentance. God is not stingy with his love. He is excited to have us back in the family—where we belong. Any other view of God’s grace is a false view.
And that’s The Word from Deer Lodge Assembly on the corner of 5th and Montana.
Today in The Word
Tuesday Nov 23, 2020
Do we suffer from a false view of God? Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. In Jesus’ parable of the Lost Son, the big brother is angry that there is a party in progress for his long-lost little brother. He states in Luke 15:29-30:
“…All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home you kill the fattened calf for him!””
The big brother has a false view of his dad. He thinks that his many good deeds over the years means that his dad owes him. He sees himself as a slave to the dad’s orders, and an underappreciated slave at that.
And he compares himself to his selfish, wasteful brother, and figures dad is unfair to throw a party for the bad son.
Do we get jealous when a brand-new Christian announces an amazing miracle, when we have been praying unsuccessfully for a miracle for years? Do we want to remind God how obedient we are? If so, we have the big brother’s false view. We aren’t God’s slave; we are his son. And he is never unfair. He is always gracious to his kids.
And that’s The Word from Pastor David of Deer Lodge Assembly on the corner of 5th and Montana.
Today in the Word
Wednesday Nov 24, 2020
Do we suffer from a false view of God? Welcome to The Word with Pastor David. In Jesus’ parable of the Lost Son, the little brother thinks he is only fit to be a slave of the household due to his many mistakes in the past. The big brother thinks the father has treated him like a slave when he has been so obedient for many years. They both have a false view of their father. In Luke 15:32, the father answers the big brother’s complaint:
“’But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”
We had to celebrate. The great party going on in the house was not about the little brother’s mistakes. And the party was not about how obedient and good the big brother had been. It was about reunited family. That’s it. Reunited family.
And that is how God acts toward us. He loves it when the lost are found. After all, they are worth hunting for. The found are worth celebrating. God demonstrates to us that family is always worth getting back. We had to celebrate.
And that’s The Word from Pastor David of Deer Lodge Assembly.