The Way to Follow Jesus According to the Gospel of LukeSample

Day 13 - Luke 15 & 16

Repentance and Rejoicing

Jesus continues to be confronted by the Pharisees and religious leaders and uses parables to correct them while teaching his disciples the truth.

The parable of the lost sheep teaches how far God will go to find the one who is lost. And what great joy in heaven awaits the one who repents and returns to God. Or in the same way, when a lost coin is carefully searched for and found, (like a lost soul) how there is great joy in the presence of God’s angels.

The story of the prodigal son shows how God’s love is unconditional for the repentant sinner. It is the opposite of conditional love that requires religious good works and self-righteousness … a belief that is still held on to today. In other words, if you’ve sinned, you need to work hard to regain God’s favor. But that is false!

The story of the shrewd manager shows how worldly wealth should be used for eternal good and not self-indulgence. This can still be a big challenge in today’s world for the well-to-do. Truthfully, in most of the western culture, we are comparatively well-to-do.

The story of Lazarus and the rich man, teaches the reality of heaven and hell and how God's justice will prevail.

In all of these, Jesus turns the common, cultural, rational beliefs upside down and shows how the kingdom of God functions the opposite of what we know and want.

How willing are you to believe and act on kingdom principles?