Today’s Scripture: Luke 16:19-31 (NRSV) (KJV) (The Message) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Tyler Connoley):
Sometimes I wish God would appear to me in a vision and tell me the answers to some of the Big Questions. Even more often, I wish one of the dead prophets would appear in a vision to my adversaries and tell them the answers to the Big Questions. Wouldn’t it be great if Jesus would appear in Times Square and tell us what really matters to him?
The fact is, Jesus already did just that, and his appearance is recorded in the Gospels. The prophets are also available to us any time we want to access them by reading the Bible. And God has told us everything we need to know about what matters most to God. The problem is not that we don’t have the answers, but that we don’t acknowledge them.
This is the message of this passage. Don’t expect a bolt from the blue to tell you how to live — look to what God has already told you.
Jesus said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22:38-40)
If you follow those commandments, then you will live like Lazarus, who was taken to heaven when he died. If you ignore those commandments, and treat your neighbor the way the Rich Man treated Lazarus, then you’ll be sorry when you die. It’s like Jesus was saying, “Wake up! Listen! You already know how to live, so start doing it!”
Thought for the day: Are you waiting for a vision from God? Stop waiting, and start living as God wants you to.
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the guidelines on the How to Pray page.