Saturday, April 1, 2023

In the Gospel of Luke, chapter 20, we find Jesus at the Temple in Jerusalem during the holy season of Passover. He and thousands of other Jews had come from across the land to remember and celebrate the night God told Moses to direct each Israelite household to slaughter a lamb (without blemish and without breaking its bones), prepare a meal of it, and paint its blood on their door frames as a sign to the angel of death to pass over these homes. The Isralites were protected by the blood of the lamb (Exodus 12:1-30).  

The first Passover foreshadowed how God would restore our relationship to him through his only Son. Rather than demanding punishment for our sins, like he did with the Egyptian’s firstborn sons, God supplied the perfect sacrifice.

Mere days before his crucifixion, Jesus, “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29), is teaching the ancestors of the very Israelites who were saved that first Passover night in Egypt by the blood of the lamb on their door frames. But as we read in chapter 20, not everyone recognized Jesus for who he was. Luke recorded several encounters Jesus had with various leaders who tried to discredit him with deceptions and trick questions in order to set him up for arrest and execution. 

Luke 20:1-2
¹ … the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders came up to him. ² They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right?” 

Have you ever tried to outsmart God? How’d that go for you? I imagine about as well as it did for them. Using Scripture and parables, Jesus foiled each attempt, and asked a question of his own: 

Luke 20:17
Jesus looked at them and said, “Then what does this Scripture mean? ‘The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’”

Still to this day, there are those who work hard to question the loving authority of God the Father and refuse to believe that he chose to save us with the sacrifice of the life of his only begotten Son. But Jesus warns us:

Luke 20:18
“Everyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on.”

In other words, rejecting God’s authority over your life and his gift of salvation will be the very thing that crushes you. But those who recognize Christ as their cornerstone and build their foundation on him are unshakable.

Questions:
Do you recognize Jesus for who he is—the Lamb of God, the promised Messiah? 

Do you feel like you’re getting crushed by circumstances outside of your control? Have you given God full authority over your life?

Do you have a firm foundation built on Jesus?

Next Steps:
Your earthly and eternal life depends on your answers to the questions above. If you have questions, check out the the following opportunities:

• Attend GrowthTrack.
• Join a Group or attend Celebrate Recovery.
• Read the gospels (historical accounts written by four of Jesus’ followers—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John).
• Ask for help from your campus leadership team.
• Pray for enlightenment. 

Prayer:
Thank you, Lord, I am so happy you love me so much you provided the perfect sacrifice, your perfect Son, Jesus Christ, to turn our hearts away from self-worship to worshiping and following you. Thank you for giving us the ability, through Christ, to overcome our selfish ways and, instead, turn our lives and time over to growing closer to you and showing your love to others. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.