Luke 10:1-24
10: After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. 2 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3 Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. 4 Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. 5 Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ 6 And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. 7 And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. 8 Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. 9 Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ 12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.
13 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14 But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades.
16 “The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 18 And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. 20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
21 In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 22 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
23 Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! 24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”
Reflection
Those who depend on their own wisdom and understanding (Luke 10:21) cannot discover the realities of God’s kingdom and Christ’s salvation (vv. 1–20). If that were the case, then people could take credit for “finding” the truth, which would give them a reason to boast in their own accomplishment. Therefore, God has hidden himself from those who would take pride in finding him (v. 21). Jesus says that knowing him does not ultimately depend on man’s careful examination, but on God’s gracious revelation (vv. 21–22). God has reserved for himself the right to reveal himself to us, and therefore he is the only one who deserves the praise for our inclusion in his kingdom. In the words of James and Peter, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6; 1 Pet. 5:5).
Philippians 3:1-11
3: Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you.
2 Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. 3 For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— 4 though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. 7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
Reflection
In these verses Paul demolishes any dependence on human ability for righteousness (faithfulness to God’s standards). The “dogs” who “mutilate the flesh” (Phil. 3:2) are people who taught that circumcision was necessary for salvation. Paul lists the reasons that he himself might put confidence in his human achievements (vv. 4–6) only to claim that these trophies are nothing but rubbish (vv. 7–8a) in comparison with the righteousness that comes from God by faith (vv. 8b–9). Rather than taking pride in his own accomplishments, Paul says he “gains” Christ by losing these things (v. 8). His salvation and ours come not from our accomplishments but from depending on nothing but the Savior, in whom we receive God’s gift of righteousness (v. 9).
Paul not only wants God’s gift of righteousness, but he wants to know Jesus himself. He wants to know Christ and the power of his resurrection, sharing in his suffering (v. 10) and death so that he might arrive at the resurrection (v. 11). Paul is not saying that he wants to suffer in order to “earn” resurrection life. Rather, he wants a deep personal relationship with Jesus and knows that suffering and even death allow him to experience the life-giving power that brought Jesus up from the grave.
Let us say with Paul that we consider the achievements of our lives to be “rubbish” compared to the accomplishments and value of our Savior. In Christ, we can not only say such things but also discover that the great wonders of the resurrection are ours as we participate in the sufferings of Christ.
Psalm 42:1-6
42: As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? 3 My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all the day long, “Where is your God?” 4 These things I remember, as I pour out my soul: how I would go with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of God with glad shouts and songs of praise, a multitude keeping festival.
5 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation 6 and my God.My soul is cast down within me; therefore I remember you from the land of Jordan and of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
There is nothing on earth that compares to the satisfaction of truly knowing Christ. Even suffering is an opportunity to grow close to him in profound new ways. Pray that your trials would not be wasted, but instead that God would use them to bring you into closer relationship with him.