Today’s scripture: Luke 13:22-30 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (David Zier)
When I was a kid, I remember putting my head through the posts, or balusters, in a stair rail, and then not being able to pull it out. For a few minutes I was in a panic and did not know how I would get free without someone taking the rail apart. I may have been a kid, but my seemingly large head would not come back out of that rail! (Eventually, I would gain my freedom with some very careful maneuvering.)
As I read the sequence of stories in Luke 13, beginning with the story of Jesus healing the woman in the synagogue on the Sabbath and the religious leader being “indignant” toward Jesus, then proceeding to where Jesus says that the first shall be last and the last first, I thought of Philippians 2:7 —
[Jesus] emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form,…
When I have heard people talk about today’s passage, the term “evildoers” seems to carry the discussion, plus the fact that very few will make it through the narrow door. What does it truly mean to fit through the narrow door or that the last will be first? Philippians 2:7 provides a clue for me. If we are to follow Jesus, and since Jesus humbled himself and became a servant, that is like stripping away ego, pride, self-grandeur, self-righteousness, etc. The synagogue leader certainly failed to do this.
Even if we invite Jesus in to share with us, to eat with us, how have we humbled ourselves to become that servant-like person Jesus showed us? The door is narrow. Will my head get stuck as I try to pass through?
Thought for the Day: Will I fit through the narrow door?
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.