God is love.  God is also king.  This means that His kingdom is one that is ruled and governed by love.  What’s more, God invites the citizens of His kingdom not only to partake of His love, but to participate in it as well.

29 Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. 30 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ 31 The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these” (Mark 12:29-31 NLT).

The citizens of God’s kingdom are people of love.  This defines how we live in and interact with the world around us.  Join us this Lent as we explore together what it means to live in the kingdom of God.

Each week we will be posting a new devotional that will help us better understand what Jesus meant when He spoke of the kingdom of God (and He spoke of the kingdom a lot).  Our hope is that we would become further captivated by Jesus’ kingdom vision and that our hearts and lives would be transformed to reflect this in everything we think, do and say. 

So as we enter this time together, this is our deepest prayer.  “Our Father in heaven, may Your name be kept holy.  May Your Kingdom come soon.  May Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:9-10).

We’re so excited that you’ve decided to join us on this six-week exploration of what it means to live in the kingdom of God.   This week’s devotional is based on Luke 10:25-37.  You’ll find the text below, followed by a few questions to help us reflect on what we’ve read.  But before we begin, let’s pray.

Father, give us eyes to see, ears to hear and hearts to understand what You would like to reveal to us through this passage.

Luke 10:25-37 (NLT)

25 One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?”

26 Jesus replied, “What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?”

27 The man answered, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

28 “Right!” Jesus told him. “Do this and you will live!”

29 The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

30 Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road.  31“By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 32 A temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side.  33 “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. 34 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. 35 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’

36 “Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked.

37 The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.”

Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”

Reflection Questions

1. In the story Jesus told, three different people saw the injured man by the side of the road but only one stopped to get close and spend time with him.  Whether or not this is a familiar story to you, when you read what happened to this man, did you stop to truly see his plight and draw close to him in his pain and suffering?  Did you allow yourself to feel compassion for him, just as the Samaritan did?  Why or why not?

2. The Samaritan’s compassion for the injured man moved him to action.  Do you think that it’s necessary for compassion to lead to an action of some sort?  In your own life, would you say that compassion inspires you to act?  Why or why not?

3. The priest, the temple assistant and the Samaritan were all going about their days as normal, when they came across the injured man.  They had plans for their days; places to go, people to see and things to do.  They all had a choice.  They could view the injured man as an unwanted interruption or inconvenience, someone to be ignored or possibly to assist, albeit grudgingly, or they could view him and his plight as an opportunity to show God’s love and help someone else experience the kingdom of God.  Jesus is inviting you to be a neighbour to others and show them mercy.  What is your response to His invitation?

Last week we looked at Jesus’s invitation to be neighbours to others by showing them compassion and mercy.  Since mercy and compassion are defining characteristics of the kingdom of God, this week we’re going to take the time to further explore these ideas by looking at a passage from Matthew 25.  You’ll find the text, as well as a few reflection questions below.  Let’s pray and get started.

Father, Your word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.  Guide us here.  Amen.

Matthew 25:31-46 (NLT)

31 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’

41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’

45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’

46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”

Reflection Questions

1. Take some time to reflect on the past week.  To whom and under what circumstances were you able to show mercy and compassion?  Conversely, to whom and under what circumstances were you not?  Considering your responses above, what factors influence whether or not you show mercy and compassion to someone else?

2. Oftentimes when we reflect on our actions, it’s the big things that stick out.  However, in this story, Jesus highlights some simple acts of love; things He deemed important.  What’s interesting is that the individuals who carried out these actions didn’t consider them to be particularly significant.  This was just how they lived – loving others (no matter who they were) as they loved themselves.   In your day to day life, would you say that loving others is just how you live?  Is this true in both the big and little things?  What would you say is needed in order for compassion to become an even more natural and regular occurrence in your life as a Jesus follower?

3. In this story, Jesus equates seeing and responding to the needs of others to seeing and helping Him.

These past few weeks we’ve seen that God’s kingdom is one filled with mercy and compassion.  At all times and in all seasons, strangers, friends and enemies are shown love here.  This is a beautiful and inspiring reality.  I have to confess though that the thought of this also leaves me feeling a bit exhausted.  It seems like we never get a break.  Do we have to be “on” all the time?  Am I missing something here?  (I’m assuming that I’m not the only one who feels this way at times)

Jesus commands us to love our neighbours as ourselves and since He commands it, it means that it is possible.  Moreover, it also means that we can love our neighbours without burning ourselves out in the process.  So what is the secret?  How do we love fully and faithfully without working ourselves to the brink of exhaustion?  These are the questions we’re going to explore today as we look at Mark 6:30-46.  Let’s pray and then we can get into the passage.

Father, Your words are faithful and true.  As we take them in, may we be transformed thereby, so that we can honour you in our thoughts, words and actions.  Amen.

Mark 6:30-46 (NLT)

30 The apostles returned to Jesus from their ministry tour and told him all they had done and taught. 31 Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat.

32 So they left by boat for a quiet place, where they could be alone. 33 But many people recognized them and saw them leaving, and people from many towns ran ahead along the shore and got there ahead of them. 34 Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.

35 Late in the afternoon his disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. 36 Send the crowds away so they can go to the nearby farms and villages and buy something to eat.”

37 But Jesus said, “You feed them.”

“With what?” they asked. “We’d have to work for months to earn enough money to buy food for all these people!”

38 “How much bread do you have?” he asked. “Go and find out.”

They came back and reported, “We have five loaves of bread and two fish.”

39 Then Jesus told the disciples to have the people sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups of fifty or a hundred.

41 Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he kept giving the bread to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people. He also divided the fish for everyone to share. 42 They all ate as much as they wanted, 43 and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftover bread and fish. 44 A total of 5,000 men and their families were fed.

45 Immediately after this, Jesus insisted that his disciples get back into the boat and head across the lake to Bethsaida, while he sent the people home. 46 After telling everyone good-bye, he went up into the hills by himself to pray.

Reflection Questions

1. This passage begins and ends with the idea of retreat; intentionally taking time away from the demands of life to be with God, resting in Him, seeking after Him, communing with Him and being refreshed by Him.  This is something Jesus did regularly and He invites His disciples to do the same.  What are your current rhythms of retreat – daily, weekly, monthly and annually?  Are they providing true rest and refreshment for your body, mind and spirit?  Are you receiving the guidance you need from God’s Spirit?  What can you do to strengthen these times?
2. Even carefully laid plans can be derailed at times.  When Jesus’ plan to get away with His disciples and rest was interrupted, His response was one of compassion.  Despite the fact that He was tired, He was able to lovingly minister to the people because He was not operating in His own physical strength but in the strength of the Spirit.  What difference does it make whether you rely on your own strength or God’s strength when caring for or serving others?  Reflecting on how and when you have shown mercy and compassion to others recently, would you say that you have been trusting the sufficiency of God’s grace, that He will provide you with the strength you need in order to do what He is asking of you?
3. When the disciples were faced with the task of feeding the crowd, Jesus had to reorient them so that they focused on what they had, instead of on what they didn’t have.  It can be said that we give out of what we have and not from what we don’t have.  Do you agree or disagree with this statement and why?  If you were to look at your present resources physically, emotionally, spiritually and relationally, what would you say you have?  What is your present capacity?  How is Jesus asking you to work with this?