Devotional thoughts for Friday

Friday 10. October 2014

Trinity 16

Jesus said to the crowds: "But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children seated in the marketplaces and calling to their playmates: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.'" (Matthew 11,16-17) 

People are fickle, and the crowds that followed Jesus were no different. John the Baptizer fasted, and they accused him of be demon-possessed. Jesus feasted,  and they accused Him of being a glutton, a drunkard and a friend of sinners. There was no pleasing the crowd, then and now. 

Jesus rarely pleases public perception. The Gospels say over and over that He is the Son of God, but many refuse to believe this and only acknowledge Him as a mere man. The apostles preached the gospel of Christ crucified, but many want a different Jesus. They want a moralizing Jesus, a life coach Jesus, a best buddy Jesus. They balk at a suffering, dying and crucified Jesus. Such a Jesus does not fit the image they have crafted from their own desires and imaginations. 

The crowds, however, got one thing right about Jesus: He is the friend of tax collectors and sinners. Thank God that He is! Jesus befriends sinners, comforts them, forgives them and eases their guilty consciences. This is a gospel Jesus, and the gospel is what we dearly need to hear regularly in our lives. Jesus gives us what we need. He gives us Himself, the very gospel made flesh, and saves us from our sin, from our tribulations and even from our very selves. Jesus is the friend of sinners, and He is your friend. Now and always. 

Prayer: O Gracious God, our Heavenly Father, Your mercy attends us all our days. Be our strength and support amid the wearisome changes of this world, and at life's end grant us Your promised rest and the full joys of Your salvation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and forever.  Amen. (A67, Treasury of Daily Prayer)