Luke 11:53-54 and 12:1-3 Watch What You Say
Format for Your Devotions
Instructions: Do not read my example devotion until you have completed your own devotional time in the scriptures. Reading my thoughts first may limit your own understanding. Let the Holy Spirit speak to you alone before looking to see what anyone else has to say, whether it is me, a Bible commentary, or a friend. Let God speak to you before you let another person speak to you. I have provided a format, but modify it to fit your needs. For example, I usually combine my application and prayer together talking to God about the application to my own life. You can go through this devotion process mentally, speaking out loud, or in writing as you wish. Don’t worry if you are not following this process exactly. Sometimes, I add extra information and sometimes I emphasize one part more than others. However, you should always think about what you learn about God from this passage.
Step 1: Pray–Ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance first of all and that God may reveal the lessons that He wants you to have that day. Request that God protect you from Satan’s distractions (and the devil will try to distract you whether it is pinching the baby or putting you to sleep). Ask to see God more clearly as you read and think about the passage.
Step 2: Read the passage–Read to get an overview of the information first. Then start looking at specific parts after the first reading. You may read a larger or smaller section than I have here because you do not have to follow my organization at all.
Step 3: Understand the passage–You can summarize, ask and answer your own questions about the passage, visualize the story, analyze the characters, and relate this passage to other scriptures and personal experiences.
Step 4: What does this reveal about God?–What do you learn about the Father, Son, and/or Holy Spirit from this passage?
Step 5: Apply this to your own life.
Step 6: Prayer
My Example Devotion: September 8, 2018 Luke 11:53-54 and 12:1-3
Note: In the devotion examples, I leave my questions and thought processes in the text because I am trying to demonstrate that a devotional time is a dialogue with God about what you are reading from His word. As such, any questions or ideas that you have should be explored by talking it out with God. These example devotions are not my attempts to teach you what the meaning of a particular scripture is. They are an attempt to teach you the process of devotions, which is a combination of prayer and Bible study where you explore ideas with God as you read His word.
As he went away from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to press him hard and to provoke him to speak about many things, lying in wait for him, to catch him in something he might say. In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.
(Understanding the Text) The chapter divide between these verses takes away from the meaning. They should be together. The Pharisees and scribes were laying verbal traps continuously for Jesus. He had to watch every word that He said. I think He always watched every word He said, so for Him it was not a handicap, but here He warns His disciples about the Pharisees. He was warning them to watch what they said in private, as well as in public. The disciples already knew to watch what they said in public, but this presented a new problem that might arise in Jesus’ disciples. They might become hypocrites putting on a public face of religiosity while in private letting down their hair so to speak and saying things that were not of God. Jesus was telling them not to allow the pressures that they were under from the Pharisees and the huge crowds to transform them from the sincere followers of God He was training into something close to the Pharisees.
(Revelation of God) Hypocrisy was part of the Pharisaical way of life, but Jesus also calls it a leaven that spreads to others creating more hypocrites. From what I have read, the original Pharisees were sincere in their belief and life, but these were fourth-, fifth-, and even sixth-generation Pharisees. They no longer had a real experiential knowledge of beliefs. Everything was theoretical, and God was distant and needed appeasing. Without realizing it, they had incorporated some of the very Hellenized ideas that they thought they were fighting. My guess is that they had focused so much on the enemy instead of God that they had become more like their enemy than their God that they claimed to serve. In the process, they became hypocrites claiming to follow the true God while believing Him to be more like the Greek concept than who He really is. Thus, they did not see into the heart of the Law and the Prophets, only the outward forms. They served in the way they saw and taught others to do the same.
(Application) Jesus was warning His disciples that there was a danger of them becoming hypocrites because of the pressures of the crowds and of their enemies, the Pharisees. My application to myself is that we must not focus on the enemy who attacks or who we are fighting. If we do that, we become the same. Instead, we must focus on Jesus who loves us and is our example. Then, we will become like the God we serve. No matter what hypocrisy and false worship and judgmental attitudes and wrong ideas that someone else puts forth, I must not let my focus deviate from Jesus. I must not get irritated at others’ wrongheadedness to the point where I focus on them. Instead, I must deal with it and let it go maintaining my focus on Jesus and His great love for us.
After I said this, I went to church and was tempted in an aspect of it that I had not thought of. My feelings were hurt because an obvious need was neglected. I think I was also experiencing leftover culture shock stress from an experience I had had the week before. I also had the beginnings of allergies coming on, but most of all I think I was under attack from an outside force since the hurt feelings and thoughts I was experiencing came out of nowhere, were suddenly overwhelming, were not my normal way of thinking, and the tears just wouldn’t stop even after the hurt feelings did. Anyway, to some extent I did try to follow my application here, but not enough. I want to change my application somewhat: My application to myself is that I must not focus on the friend who does not seem to care or who seems to be betraying my trust. If I do that, I become an agent of Satan causing hurt and discord in return. Instead, I must focus on Jesus who loves me and is my example. Then, I will become like the God I serve. No matter what hypocrisy and false worship and judgmental attitudes and wrong ideas or hurtful actions or perceived slights that someone else puts forth, I must not let my focus deviate from Jesus. I must not get irritated or hurt at others’ wrongheadedness to the point where I focus on them. Instead, I must deal with it by letting it go and maintaining my focus on Jesus and His great love for both of us.
(Prayer) Don’t let me get distracted or overwhelmed by others. Instead, draw my attention back to You and Your love for me and Your faithfulness. Don’t let me hurt others with my own worries and pain. Instead, let me point them away from myself to You.