Category: Daily Reflections

“Come now, let us set things right, says the Lord: though your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow.” –Isaiah 1:18 The Pharisees and Sadducees had hearts for their own honor (see Mt 23:6). Before Jesus chastised them for their pride, He wept over them, lamenting that in their desire for honors, they had completely missed “the path to peace” (Lk 19:42). Moreover, their pride caused them to be badly misled and fail to understand the power of God (Mk 12:24). God’s plan is to touch the hearts of sinful men and women with self-sacrificing, humble love....

“Give, and it shall be given to you.” –Luke 6:38 When we give, we open the door to let the Lord lavish His love on us. The Lord desires to bless us “good measure pressed down, shaken together, running over” (Lk 6:38). Yet He does not force His love on us. We must open up to His love. By giving, we tell God how open we are to receiving. “For the measure you measure with will be measured back to you” (Lk 6:38). Most people think of themselves as “generous,” but this is often not completely accurate. The financial problems...

Jesus “took Peter, John and James, and went up onto a mountain to pray.” –Luke 9:28 On this Second Sunday of Lent, Jesus takes us up Transfiguration Mountain. He has much more to tell us but we cannot bear it now (Jn 16:12). We must “climb the Lord’s mountain…that He may instruct us in His ways, and we may walk in His paths” (Is 2:3). We will see Jesus glorified and hear a voice from the cloud say: “This is My Son, My Chosen One. Listen to Him” (Lk 9:35). These mountaintop revelations will keep us from despair when the...

“Oh, that I might be firm in the ways of keeping Your statutes!” –Psalm 119:5 Is your Ash Wednesday Lenten resolve still firm or are temptations wearing down your self-denial? Our weak flesh is vulnerable to the relentless pressures of temptation. We desire to do what is right, but we don’t have the power (see Rm 7:18). Our old, sinful nature rebels against our new, redeemed nature. There’s a civil war raging inside us (see Jas 4:1). What wretches we are! (Rm 7:24) “Who can free” us? (Rm 7:24) Jesus has set us free (Jn 8:36). He freed us for...

“Everyone who grows angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment.” –Matthew 5:22 Jesus has a higher standard for personal relationships than we do. No one but Christ demands such love in our relationships. Here are some of Jesus’ standards for relationships: 1) immediate removal of resentment, unforgiveness, and anger (Mt 5:25), 2) loving enemies even to laying down our lives for them (Mt 5:44; 1 Jn 3:16), 3) sharing fellowship with the poor, lame, and blind (Lk 14:13), 4) anticipating each other in showing respect (Rm 12:10), 5) building up one another instead of acting out of rivalry...