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Devotional

God’s People, part 195: Salome

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Read Mark 14:1-12

ALSO IN SCRIPTURE
“The LORD is slow to anger and filled with unfailing love, forgiving every kind of sin and rebellion. But he does not excuse the guilty. He lays the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations.”  (Numbers 14:18, NLT)

When we think of God’s people, we tend to think one of two things. We might think of the Israelites who were God’s “chosen people”, or we might think of specific characters in the Bible. Either way, we tend to idealize the people we are thinking about. For instance, we may think that God’s people are super faithful, holy, perform miracles and live wholly devout and righteous lives. Unfortunately, this idealism enables us to distance ourselves from being God’s people, because we feel that we fall short of those ideals. As such, I have decided to write a devotion series on specific characters in the Bible in order to show you how much these Biblical people are truly like us, and how much we are truly called to be God’s people.

Salome_Baptist-HeadPart 195: Salome. In the Old Testament, there was a passage that I could never fully understand. In Exodus 20:5, in reference to idols God states, “You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me.”  (Exodus 20:5, NLT)

What does God mean when he says, “I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me”? That makes God sound like a harsh and cruel God. It seems to counter the “Jesus Loves Me” personality of God that I was taught in Sunday School and in church growing up. How can the unconditionally loving, all-good, God do that to people? I mean, I can understand why one would suffer consequences for THEIR sins, but why their children or their children’s children? That hardly seems fair.

These questions are valid questions; however, people such as Salome provide cases of what God means in Exodus 20:5. Salome was the daughter of Herodias and Herod II, and she was the step-daughter of her uncle Herod Antipas. As was covered in the last devotion, Herodias divorced Herod II and married his brother Antipas.

The last couple of devotions also highlighted the corruption, power-grabbing, greedy and murderous family that Herod the Great raised up. No one or thing was sacred or safe within it. This was the environment that Herod II, Antipas, and Herodias grew up in and, sadly, this is also the environment that Salome grew up in. As such, Herod the Great’s children followed suit with him and their children did the same as well.

Again, Herodias was power-hungry and divorced her first husband to marry his more powerful younger half-brother, Antipas. Likewise, her daughter Salome was also power-hungry and wanted to eliminate any threat to the legitimacy of her mother’s marriage to Antipas. Though they were rulers over God’s people, the Herodians lacked humility and did not place God above themselves.

Sure, Herodias knew it was against God’s law willy-nilly divorce Herod II to marry his half-brother, but she did it anyway. Sure, Herod Antipas knew it was wrong too. What’s more, he knew that God would not approve lusting after his step-daughter, but he did that anyway. Salome knew that seducing her step-father was not in line with God’s will for her, but she did it anyway. Certainly she knew that murdering one of God’s prophets was not something God willed, but she demanded that Antipas murder John the Baptist.

The challenge here is to NOT view the Herodians as being different than us. They are no different. They were human beings who had dreams, hopes, ambitions, lusts, envy, and longed for control. So are we. We may not find ourselves on the same scale, but we struggle with those things too. All human beings do.

The challenge for us is to not be like Herod, Antipas, Herodias or Salome and to overlook God’s will for our life so that we can have what WE want; rather, we should be challenged to heed God’s will for us, as outlined in Scripture, and purge ourselves of the things that take us away from God. In other words, let’s humble ourselves and purge deceit, corruption, evil desires, jealousy, contempt for God’s way, lust, ambition, and the need for control from our lives. By God’s grace, through the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, this can and will be done if you so choose.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” — Viktor E. Frankl

PRAYER
Lord, guide me through the space between stimulus and response and lead me to respond to you instead of my desires. Help me to ONLY desire you and your will for me. Amen.

Devotional

God’s People, part 194: Herodias

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Read Mark 6:14-29

ALSO IN SCRIPTURE
“Do not have sexual relations with your brother’s wife, for this would violate your brother.”  (Leviticus 18:16, NLT)

When we think of God’s people, we tend to think one of two things. We might think of the Israelites who were God’s “chosen people”, or we might think of specific characters in the Bible. Either way, we tend to idealize the people we are thinking about. For instance, we may think that God’s people are super faithful, holy, perform miracles and live wholly devout and righteous lives. Unfortunately, this idealism enables us to distance ourselves from being God’s people, because we feel that we fall short of those ideals. As such, I have decided to write a devotion series on specific characters in the Bible in order to show you how much these Biblical people are truly like us, and how much we are truly called to be God’s people.

1024px-Herodias_with_the_Head_of_St._John_the_Baptist_-_Paul_Delaroche_-_Wallraf-Richartz_Museum_-_Cologne_-_Germany_2017Part 194: Herodias. Herodias was a princess. She was the daughter of King Herod’s son, Aristobulus IV who was the heir of King Herod’s kingdom. In fact, Aristobulus IV grew up in Rome and was educated in the household of Caesar Augustus. When he became an adult and returned to Jerusalem with his brother Alexander, the crowds greeted them exuberantly.

Unfortunately for them, their older half-brother, Antipater II, was jealous of them and started informing the king of rumors that the two brothers were plotting against him. After failed attempts of reconciliation with his sons, Aristobulus IV and Alexander, he had them strangled on charges of treason and promoted Antipater II as his co-regent and heir.

Still, Aristobulus’ daughter, Herodias, found favor in her grandfather’s eyes. Herodias was a princess; however, she was no Disney princess. She grew up in a home that only knew conflict. She grew up in a home where no one could trust anyone else. She grew up in a divisive, politically charged home where everyone was vying for control and power.

Following the deaths of her father and her Uncle Alexander, she was engaged and married to her half-uncle Herod II; however, this was opposed by Antipater II. As such, in order to maintain peace, Herod demoted Herod II to second in line. Herod II was eventually dropped out of King Herod’s will altogether because his mother never attempted to stop a plot to poison the king, even though she knew the plot was in action. Fun family, right? This would make for a great reality television show or daytime soap opera.

Herod II and Herodias’ marriage produced a child, named Salome. With that said, the marriage seemed to have produced little more than that. For some reason or another, Herodias eventually divorced Herod II and married his brother, Herod Antipas. One could imagine that Herod II was a dead end with no upward mobility in sight; whereas, Antipas was ruling as the tetrarch of Galilee and Perea. Given the power-grabbing nature of the Herodian family, it isn’t hard to imagine that is why Herodias divorced Herod II and married Herod Antipas. It was a political move.

Political or not, that move came with some consequences. It certainly would have rubbed devout Jewish people the wrong way. In fact, the Old Testament has some pretty sharp things to say against such marriages. In Leviticus 18:16, the law is written, “Do not have sexual relations with your brother’s wife, for this would violate your brother.” The fact that Herodias divorced her husband for no apparent reason would have been scandalous enough in the Jewish world; however, the fact that she subsequently married her ex-husband’s brother would have been seen as adultery and in complete defiance of Jewish religious and social law.

With that said, who is going to stand up to the Tetrarch and call him and his wife lecherous adulterers? John the Baptist, that’s who. And boy did he, so much so that Herodias was filled with hatred toward him. While most of the blame seems to be thrust on Herodias in the Gospel accounts, there can be little doubt that Herod Antipas was none the pleased by this prophet’s outbursts. Thus, Antipas had him arrested.

The rest is history. Antipas at some point held a party and hosted some distinguished guests. Herodias knew her husband lusted after his step-daughter, Salome, and she used that knowledge to her own advantage. She talked her daughter into dancing seductively for Antipas in front of all his guests at the party. Again, great family! When it came time for the tetrarch to fulfill his promise to her for dancing, Salome demanded exactly what her mom wanted, the head of John the Baptist on a silver platter.

Herodias is a prime example of what happens when we solely view the world as political theater. In that mindset, everyone is a pawn to be used in order to achieve particular ends. Thus, Herodias used her first husband, second husband and even her own daughter to get what she wanted. In our world today, we see more and more of this. Not just at the highest levels, but throughout all social and economic classes.

The challenge for us is to not view the world solely through our political leanings and/or stances. We should not approach our neighbors as a Republican or a Democrat. We should not label ourselves or others as “conservative” or “liberal” or “progressives”. We should view each person as children of God, beloved of God, created in God’s image. No one should be a means to an end, but the end unto themselves. This is what truly honors God, that we treat all of God’s creation with dignity and respect. Let us not fall into the trap that Herodias did, otherwise we might find ourselves perpetuating similar types of evil.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
People should never be used as a means to an end, but should be seen as the end unto themselves.

PRAYER
Lord, help me to see all people through your eyes and treat people the way I would like them to treat me. Amen.

Devotional

God’s People, part 193: Antipas

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Read Matthew 14:1-12

ALSO IN SCRIPTURE
“John also publicly criticized Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee, for marrying Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for many other wrongs he had done.”  (Luke 3:19, NLT)

When we think of God’s people, we tend to think one of two things. We might think of the Israelites who were God’s “chosen people”, or we might think of specific characters in the Bible. Either way, we tend to idealize the people we are thinking about. For instance, we may think that God’s people are super faithful, holy, perform miracles and live wholly devout and righteous lives. Unfortunately, this idealism enables us to distance ourselves from being God’s people, because we feel that we fall short of those ideals. As such, I have decided to write a devotion series on specific characters in the Bible in order to show you how much these Biblical people are truly like us, and how much we are truly called to be God’s people.

AntipasPart 192: Antipas. While we have already discussed John the Baptist in part 147, as well as his execution under the order of Herod Antipas, it is important for us to look at Herod Antipas. Who was he, aside from him being one of the sons of King Herod the Great? What made him tick? Why would he choose to execute John the Baptist and what made him arrest the Baptist to begin with?

Herod Antipas, unlike his father, was not a king despite people mistakenly referring to him that way. There can be little doubt that he aspired to become king like his father once was; however, that Roman emperor would never have entertained that. Instead of being a monarch, he was given by Rome the title of tetrarch, meaning ruler of a quarter because they had divided up Herod’s kingdom into 4 quarters and placed each of Herod’s sons as a ruler of those regions. Herod was ruler over Galilee and Perea.

The other tetrarchs were Antipas’ brothers Herod Archelaus, Philip the Tetrarch, and his sister Salome I. Eventually, Archelaus was deposed and Rome turned his provinces (which included Jerusalem) into the Roman Province of Judaea. Their father originally planned for Herod II to his successor; however, to make a long story short, following Herod’s death the Roman government did chose to divide the kingdom into a tetrarchy and did not choose Herod II. He actually became a private citizen in Rome along with his wife, who was his half-niece, Herodias.

It is here where we find out why Antipas was so opposed to the Baptist. As it turned out, Antipas ended up taking Herodias for his own wife, despite her marriage to Herod II. This, in the eyes of any devout Jew would have been considered adultery. It was immoral to take someone else’s wife as his own wife; therefore, according to the Gospel accounts, John the Baptist had been calling Antipas and Herodias our for their wickedness.

This, of course, led to John’s eventual arrest and execution. According to the Gospels, Antipas respected John and saw him as a great prophet; however, Herodias was deeply offended by John’s very public denouncement of their marriage. Let’s be honest, I am sure Antipas was none-to-pleased by it either. As such, he had John arrested and thrown into Machaerus Fortress in Perea, which is now modern day Jordan.

Eventually, at the urging of his wife and step-daughter Salome, Antipas had the Baptist executed and his head delivered to Salome on a silver platter. One can imagine the horror of that scene; however, it also goes to show the level of depravity in the Herodian family. These were a people who saw themselves as being above the law, including God’s Law, and thus they did as they pleased with little concern toward the loss of human life.

The challenge for us is to reflect on Herod Antipas and the Herodian family. How do we fit in with them. Are we like them in any way? Before you answer “no” to that question, let’s broaden the horizon a bit. Do you you see yourself as being right with God, all the while finding fault in others? Do you even consider what God thinks of how you live your life or whether or not you should behave or think the way you do? It is easy for any one of us to put ourselves above God’s Law, all the while holding the law above other’s heads. Let us be a people who seek to do what is right, who love mercy and humble ourselves before God.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
“After whose birth Herodias took upon her to confound the laws of our country, and divorced herself from her husband, while he was alive, and was married to Herod [Antipas], her husband’s brother by the father’s side.” – Flavius Jospehus in Antiquities of the Jews, Book XVIII, Chapter 1.

PRAYER
Lord, I humble myself before you. Show me the ways in which I err and help guide me back onto the straight and narrow path you’ve set before me. Amen.

Devotional

God’s People, part 192: Shaking Dust

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Read Mark 6:7-13

ALSO IN SCRIPTURE
“I tell you the truth, the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will be better off than such a town on the judgment day.”  (Matthew 10:15, NLT)

When we think of God’s people, we tend to think one of two things. We might think of the Israelites who were God’s “chosen people”, or we might think of specific characters in the Bible. Either way, we tend to idealize the people we are thinking about. For instance, we may think that God’s people are super faithful, holy, perform miracles and live wholly devout and righteous lives. Unfortunately, this idealism enables us to distance ourselves from being God’s people, because we feel that we fall short of those ideals. As such, I have decided to write a devotion series on specific characters in the Bible in order to show you how much these Biblical people are truly like us, and how much we are truly called to be God’s people.

Shaking-Dust-FeetPart 192: Shaking Dust. The pain that Jesus must have felt when he was rejected by his hometown of Nazareth, is easy enough to imagine. Think about your hometown. More than likely, you have fond memories of growing up there. I am sure you can remember the not so good things about it too; however, most of us look back to our childhood and to our hometowns with a positive nostalgia. It is the place, for better or worse, where we grew up and discovered who we are.

I would not be the person I am today if it weren’t for all of the experiences I had growing up where I did. The good, the bad and the ugly experiences all helped me to become who I’ve become. The same undoubtedly is true for Jesus of Nazareth. So, when his own hometown kicked him out of the synagogue and tried to throw him off a cliff, I can only imagine the pain and sorrow that caused.

It was following that event that Jesus sends his twelve disciples, who in this moment become apostles (meaning “sent”), to go town to town preaching the good news, healing the sick and casting out demons. This was a big undertaking for them. All of the teachings of Christ, all of the things he taught them and they hopefully had learned, were going to be put to the test.

As he was preparing them for their mission, Jesus instructed them to go into towns and rely on the hospitality of a single household in each town. If the place household accepted them and listened to the Gospel message, then they were to bless that house and the people in it; however, if the household rejected them or their message, they were to “shake the dust off their feet” and leave. Jesus then stated that doing such was, “ to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate” (Mark 6:11, NLT).

What’s more, Jesus didn’t just say that for the households either. He was also referring to the towns. In Luke 10:14, he put it this way, “If any household or town refuses to welcome you or listen to your message, shake its dust from your feet as you leave.” He then added in verse 15, “I tell you the truth, the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will be better off than such a town on the judgment day.”

Ouch. Why did Jesus compare Sodom and Gomorrah to those towns? Because the predominant sin of Sodom and Gomorrah was their lack of hospitality. They refused to listen to the message of the angels God sent, thus refusing to listen to God, and they wanted to rape Lot’s angelic guests rather than treat them with dignity, respect and hospitality.

Just as Jesus did with his own hometown of Nazareth, he was telling his disciples to shake the dust off their feet and to move on from places that reject them. It wasn’t worth arguing or trying to prove one’s point, or lingering around in hopes that they would change. Rather, shake the dust off and move on to those who are receptive and hospitable.

This instruction from Christ should challenge us in two ways. First, we should unashamedly be witnessing our faith in Jesus Christ to others. We should be sharing the Gospel message and we should not worry about being rejected. If that happens, let it be. Move on from those people and focus on the ones who hear the Gospel with eager ears and open hearts. Shaking the dust off our feet should not be done judgmentally, for who know what seed might grow at some point; however, time is short and the message is urgent. Let God deal with the people who will not hear it.

Second, we should be challenged to be a hospitable people. We should never live our lives in a way that reflect Sodom and Gomorrah. Remember, those cities were not destroyed because of homosexuality (as it is often misconstrued); rather, those cities were destroyed because they were so corrupted by evil that they could care less treating strangers/foreigners with respect, dignity and hospitality. They saw people as objects to use for their own pleasure and satisfaction.

Let us not be such a people. Let us instead be a people who are sent into the world representing Christ’s love and hospitality. Let us be a people who love others, who share the Gospel, and who show radical hospitality to all, even those who are rejecting us.

In fact, that is exactly the effect of shaking dust off of our feet in those situations where we are being rejected. In that moment, we are simply showing hospitality and acknowledging that the people rejecting us don’t want us there. Thus, we remove ourselves and go to a place where people have open ears and open hearts. Begin to model this in your life and embody the radical hospitality of our Lord and Savior.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
Radical hospitality does not discriminate. It knows no sexual identity, gender, race, ethnicity, ability, or any other label used to divide us. It is one and the same to all.

PRAYER
Lord, transform me into a radically hospitable person by your sanctifying grace. Amen.

Devotional

God’s People, part 191: Hometown

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Read Mark 6:1-5

ALSO IN SCRIPTURE
“When they heard this, the people in the synagogue were furious. Jumping up, they mobbed him and forced him to the edge of the hill on which the town was built. They intended to push him over the cliff…” (Luke 4:28-29, NLT).

When we think of God’s people, we tend to think one of two things. We might think of the Israelites who were God’s “chosen people”, or we might think of specific characters in the Bible. Either way, we tend to idealize the people we are thinking about. For instance, we may think that God’s people are super faithful, holy, perform miracles and live wholly devout and righteous lives. Unfortunately, this idealism enables us to distance ourselves from being God’s people, because we feel that we fall short of those ideals. As such, I have decided to write a devotion series on specific characters in the Bible in order to show you how much these Biblical people are truly like us, and how much we are truly called to be God’s people.

Hometown_StorefrontPart 191: Hometown. There is something special about the town in which one grows up in. For me, I grew up in a fairly small town in Sussex County in the northwestern part of New Jersey. During the time I was in seventh and eight grade, my hometown had population of around 4,977. The town is geographically small, being nearly 4.6 square miles.

It was a sidewalk community meaning that one could walk from place to place on sidewalks and as I kid I used to walk from place to place with my friends. We’d hang out at the park, walk to the library, or go bowling at the Bowling Alley. Sometimes, we’d pop into the diner when it was still opened and have coffee and a bite to eat.

There is something special about one’s hometown and the nostalgic memories that surface when one reminisces about times gone by and all the experiences one had. Certainly, for those who didn’t move on a constant basis, people’s lives are rooted in the places they grew up. The good, the bad and the ugly. It is also true that those who moved around a lot as a child can feel like they don’t really have any roots. Hence the Alice Merton song Roots, in which she sings: “I build a home and wait for someone to tear it down. Then pack it up in boxes, head for the next town running. ‘Cause I’ve got memories and travel like gypsies in the night. I’ve got no roots but my home was never on the ground…”

I am sure that Jesus was very much rooted in his hometown of Nazareth. It is there that he grew up. It is there that he played, that learned his faith from his mother. It is there that he came of age and became a member of the local synagogue. It is there that he learned the carpentry trade and it is there that he experienced his call to become an itinerant rabbi.

Yet, there is a more dark and pernicious side to one’s hometown too. There is a side that is more hidden in the proverbial dark basement that doesn’t come out until the moment one begins to question the order of things. Jesus found this out in his hometown. Hometowns love their own, so long as they stay exactly in the place they’ve always been.

Had Jesus remained the carpenter from Nazareth, no one would have had qualms with him. But the Jesus that returned to Nazareth following his baptism and temptation in the desert was not the same Jesus that had left Nazareth seeking the will of God. The Jesus who returned was not the carpenter, but the Son of God focused to draw people unto himself so that they might be saved.

This Jesus healed. This Jesus taught. This Jesus drew a crowd and, in front of that crowd, called the religious, community and political establishment, as well as individuals, to account for their waywardness. This Jesus claimed that He was the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy on the coming Day of the Lord, and this Jesus was claiming to be THE MESSIAH, the promised one who would deliver Israel!

The Nazarenes could not accept that precisely because they thought they knew Jesus. He was the carpenter’s son, the son of Mary, the brother of James, Joseph, Simon, Judas, and his unnamed sisters. How could Jesus be the Messiah? How could he dare to come into the synagogue and preach us. Who died and gave him that authority?

It’s easy for us to point a finger at Nazareth and question them on their disbelief, but are we any better? How many of us think we KNOW Jesus? Yet, do we really KNOW Jesus? Would he walk into our homes and churches and feel at HOME? Or would he find us to be an unwelcoming place? Would we change our hearts at his guidance and direction? Or would we kick him out of our sanctuary and try to throw him over a cliff?

The challenge for us is to NOT be that kind of a hometown; however, in order to avoid that we need to expose the underbelly of our homes and places of worship. We need to stop seeing ourselves as sinless and in no need for improvement. We need to stop labeling little Joey and little Betty as being x, y, and z; rather we need to accept people for who they are in the moment, not who we think they are based off of who they once were.

Finally, we need to challenge ourselves to be open to critique and we need to be self-aware enough to admit when we’ve been called out for being in error. Yes, we need to be discerning and not all critique is true or honest; however, we need to at least hear the critique in a balanced and reflective way before we could ever be able to discern if it is from God or not. Be open to the correction of the spirit and be an exception to the rule that a prophet is not welcome in his/her hometown.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
Be careful that you are not the one rejecting Jesus because He doesn’t meet up to your qualifications; rather, we need to open ourselves to Christ so that, by grace, we may be conformed to his expectations.

PRAYER
Lord, mold me and shape me into the disciple you’re calling me to be. Amen.

Devotional

God’s People, part 190: Jairus

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Read Mark 5:21-24, 35-43

ALSO IN SCRIPTURE
“And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. Your suffering is over.”  (Mark 5:34, NLT)

When we think of God’s people, we tend to think one of two things. We might think of the Israelites who were God’s “chosen people”, or we might think of specific characters in the Bible. Either way, we tend to idealize the people we are thinking about. For instance, we may think that God’s people are super faithful, holy, perform miracles and live wholly devout and righteous lives. Unfortunately, this idealism enables us to distance ourselves from being God’s people, because we feel that we fall short of those ideals. As such, I have decided to write a devotion series on specific characters in the Bible in order to show you how much these Biblical people are truly like us, and how much we are truly called to be God’s people.

jairusPart 190: Jairus. In the last part of this devotion series, we met a little girl how had died and Jesus resurrected her back to life. In that devotion, the focus was mostly on the crowd of people, the family, friends and neighbors of Jairus, the little girl’s father. If you recall, the crowd did not believe Jesus when he said the girl was not dead, but was merely sleeping. They laughed and scoffed at him. Yet, when Jesus uttered the words, “Talitha Koum”,  the little girl “woke up” from her “slumber” and the unbelieving crowds were AMAZED. I would imagine they were probably terrified as they saw the dead girl alive and well.

While the miracle, and the crowd’s reaction to Jesus before and after it, is an important account for obvious reasons, it is also important that we do not overlook Jairus. In the Scripture, Jairus was described as “the leader of local synagogue” (Mark 5:22, NLT), which means that he was one the religious leader in his community. This is important to note because, up to this point, Jesus’ has not had many positive interactions with the religious leaders.

Yet, this Jairus was not only positively interacting with Jesus, he was seeking him out for help. His little girl, his precious daughter, was on her deathbed and Jairus was at wits end. It’s a parent’s worst nightmare. He was desperate and, in those desperate circumstances, pride falls by the wayside. “If this Jesus is who he says he is, if he can do what he says he can do, I had better do what I can to make contact with him and get him to visit my litte girl!”

Jairus’ little girl was, in fact, twelve years old; however, to a parent, one’s child is always their little boy or girl! It is significant to note that when Jairus’ daughter was born, that was the same year that the woman Jesus had healed, just hours earlier, started bleeding. She had been bleeding for twelve long years, which means that she started bleeding the same year that Jairus’ daughter was born. He also distinctly referred to this woman as “daughter”, even as he was on his way to heal Jairus’ daughter.

Anyway, Jairus would have been well-known as a religious leader in Capernaum, but that didn’t stop him from seeking Jesus out. In any other circumstance, Jairus may have found himself offended by Jesus. In any other situation, Jairus might have been oppositional toward Jesus; however, this man was desperate to save the life of his daughter and came to Jesus for help. Even when everyone else scoffed at Jesus when he said the girl was sleeping, Jairus believed. He had to! His daughter’s life was at stake.

Of course, Jairus’ faith led to his daughter’s resurrection. We know that because we have the benefit hindsight. We know the end of that story; however, we ought to be challenged by it. Do we trust Jesus enough to seek him out for healing in our lives? Do we trust Jesus, even when all seems terribly lost and hopeless? Do we trust Jesus when healing seemingly does not occur, or even when it most definitely does not occur?

That is the kind of faith that Jairus’ displayed and that is the kind of faith we are being called to have! Trust in Jesus and, when all else fails, trust in Jesus. Jesus is where our trust begins, and Jesus is where our trust must rest! Have faith and believe in the one who gave everything up for you!

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
“Life is full of happiness and tears; be strong and have faith.” – Kareena Kapoor Khan

PRAYER
Lord, you are the author of all Creation. In you I have faith and place my trust. Amen.