Luke 12:32-40 (NRSV)
Read Luke 12:32-40 on biblegateway.com
Verse 32"Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Verse 33Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. Verse 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Verse 35"Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; Verse 36be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. Verse 37Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them. Verse 38If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves. Verse 39"But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. Verse 40You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour."
Devotion
“It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” There it is. God’s promise to Abraham to be a blessing to all people, including us. This is the assurance of God’s steadfast love and forgiveness. Jesus tells us God desires a relationship with us as his children. To accomplish this God has sent his only Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins and rise to give us new life. We are called like Abraham to believe God is our heavenly Father whose joy and delight is to forgive our doubts and fears and cover us with Christ’s righteousness and unconditional steadfast love and grace.
Though we face life in an uncertain world where evil raises its threatening power to make our life a place of fear, God promises to help us and keep us in a relationship of faith and trust. We cling to this as our hope for life’s journey as we live each day.
Prayer
Righteous Lord, walk beside us on our journey, save us from the trials of life, and protect us from evil. Give us the gift of discernment as we seek to live as you would want us to live in this uncertain world. In Christ’s holy name. Amen.