The Daily Guide-The Daily Devotional grow. pray. study. The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection of Leawood, Kansas, United States for Sunday, 6 March 2016 – "Prayer Tip: An Example, a Command and a Promise"
Daily Scripture: John 13:3 Yeshua was aware that the Father had put everything in his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God. 4 So he rose from the table, removed his outer garments and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 Then he poured some water into a basin and began to wash the feet of the talmidim and wipe them off with the towel wrapped around him.
34 “I am giving you a new command: that you keep on loving each other. In the same way that I have loved you, you are also to keep on loving each other. 35 Everyone will know that you are my talmidim by the fact that you have love for each other.”
14:1 “Don’t let yourselves be disturbed. Trust in God and trust in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many places to live. If there weren’t, I would have told you; because I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 Since I am going and preparing a place for you, I will return to take you with me; so that where I am, you may be also.
Prayer TipThough we sometimes forget, we Christians all know that we are to be representatives of Christ. As his followers, we are called to live our lives in such a way that we glorify him. It’s easy for me to remember to do things to represent Christ well – to help others, to give money or supplies, etc – but I don’t always remember that the attitude with which I do them is at least as important as what I do. Throughout Scripture, we read about loving others and doing things with joy. Love is not just a feeling, but an action and – I would suggest – an attitude, an attitude of joy.
Many songs have impacted me and my faith walk, but the one that probably most inspires me to live and love well is “They’ll Know We Are Christians.” This song is based on John 13:35, in which Jesus says, “This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, when you love one another.” This song is a reminder that how we live our lives impacts those around us and is a challenge to exemplify Christ.
There are many different versions of this song available by many different artists. If you are unfamiliar with this song,click here to hear one of my favorites.
Whether you sing the words, say them out loud, or think them in your head, let the chorus be your prayer this week: “And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love. Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.” Lord, let everyone who comes in contact with me find your love through me.[Angela LaVallie, Resurrection Prayer Ministry]
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"We are one in the Spirit" by Peter Scholtes
They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love Lyrics
1. We are one in the Spirit
We are one in the Lord
We are one in the Spirit
We are one in the Lord
And we pray that all unity
May one day be restored
Chorus:
And they'll know we are Christians
By our love, By our love
Yes, they'll know we are Christians
By our love
2. We will walk with each other
We will walk hand in hand
We will walk with each other
We will walk hand in hand
And together we'll spread the news
That God is in our land
Chorus:
And they'll know we are Christians
By our love, By our love
Yes, they'll know we are Christians
By our love
3. We will work with each other
We will work side by side
We will work with each other
We will work side by side
And we'll guard each man's dignity
And save each man's pride
Chorus:
And they'll know we are Christians
By our love, By our love
Yes, they'll know we are Christians
By our love
4. All praise to the Father
From whom all things come
And all praise to Christ Jesus His only son
And all praise to the Spirit
Who makes us one
Chorus:
And they'll know we are Christians
By our love, By our love
Yes, they'll know we are Christians
By our love
Make us one, Lord!
Make us one, Lord!
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March 6, 2016 John – The Gospel of Light and Life
“An Example, a Command and a Promise”
Scripture:
During supper Jesus… got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. John 13:3-5
I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. John 13:34-35
Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also.” John 14:1-3
“In preparation for my burial”—“Hosanna!”
Monday, 7 March 2016 John 11:54-12:19
John devoted a third or more of his story to the crucifixion week. He said Mary, Lazarus’ sister, anointed Jesus with very expensive perfume. Some criticized her extravagant act of gratitude.
Jesus, knowing the cross waited at the end of the week, said Mary had anointed him in advance of his burial. Jesus rode into Jerusalem, praised by a crowd (including some who saw him raise Lazarus). His ride used symbols from Israel’s royal history (cf. 1 Kings 1:38-40, Psalm 118:19-29) and from a Hebrew prophet (see Zechariah 9:9-17).
• Imagine the profound inner love and gratitude that led Mary to give Jesus this extravagant gift. What does Jesus’ response tell you about how much her fervent love meant to him as he faced death? How can you show your love for Jesus with Mary’s beautiful spontaneity
and urgency, both in your inner “sacred space” and outwardly?
• Jesus’ entry as a king coming in peace brought the religious leaders no joy, only despair and frustration. Their vision was limited to human credentials and contacts. Before too glibly condemning them, ask yourself: if Jesus came today, from a small town, with no formal degree or denominational credentials, would you be open to listen to his message?
We know that the Holy Spirit often works through other believers. But what does it take to let the Spirit be the final authority and guide for your heart?
Prayer: O Lord, grow in me a heart like Mary’s, pouring out devotion and gratitude to you. Replace any critical, selfish corners in my spirit. I thank you for the gift of new life in you. Amen.
“When I am lifted up from the earth”
Tuesday, 8 March 2016 John 12:20-36
Some Greeks asked to see Jesus. In response, Jesus began to describe how he was about to be “glorified.” But note: Jesus used the word “glorify” about crucifixion, which the Romans considered the most humiliating type of death they could invent! As scholar William Barclay put it, “Jesus says: ‘The hour has come when the Son of Man must be glorified’…. Jesus did not mean by glorified what they understood. They meant that the subjected kingdoms of the earth
would grovel before the conqueror’s feet; by glorified he meant crucified.”1
• Moses asked, “Please show me your glorious presence” (Exodus 33:18), and God “passed in front of him and proclaimed: ‘The Lord! The Lord! A God who is compassionate and merciful, very patient, full of great loyalty and faithfulness’” (Exodus 34:6). In our world, “glory” generally means power or wealth. In what ways do you see God’s mercy, love, patience and loyalty as a greater kind of “glory”?
• The apostle Paul said Christ’s followers “even take pride in our problems” (Romans 5:3). Does your view of “glory” for your own life lie mainly in strength and accomplishments that others admire? What has to happen inwardly for you to let God’s power transform your
struggles or pain into “glory”? How can you learn, at times of struggle, to say like Jesus in John 12:28, “Father, glorify your name!”?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, you said that when you were lifted up (on the cross), you would draw all people to you. Implant in me your heavenly definition of “glory,” and use me to shine YOUR
glory to all in my world. Amen.
1 William Barclay, Daily Study Bible Series: The Gospel of John—Volume 2. (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, revised edition 1976, p. 123.)
“I have come as a light into the world”
Wednesday, 9 March 2016 John 12:37-50
John returned to the sad question of why many did not accept Jesus (cf. John 1:10-11). He echoed Isaiah 6:10, a verse that meant, not that God kept people from faith, but that the way they chose to respond to God’s light in Jesus hardened rather than softened their hearts. Then he said Jesus summarized his ministry and his message by saying, “I have come as a light into the world so that everyone who believes in me won’t live in darkness” (verse 46).
• In John 8:12, Jesus had already said, “I am the light of the world.” Pastor Hamilton wrote, “Darkness represents spiritual blindness, lost-ness, and also evil. In John, when we believe
in Jesus our eyes are opened, and suddenly we see ourselves and the world in his light.”1 Today’s news reports and political arguments mostly make our world seem very, very dark indeed. In what ways do you see the world differently because you see it in Christ’s light?
• The Message caught the meaning of John’s Isaiah 6:10 quotation well: “First they wouldn’t believe, then they couldn’t.” Those who refused to believe in Jesus saw the same signs as those who believed, but responded differently. Some compare it to the way one type of clay softens in the sunlight, while another kind of clay bakes into bricks. What helps you to keep your heart open and pliable to the signs of love and grace God sends your way?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, keep my heart, my spirit, open and pliable to the sunlight of your love, grace and goodness. Keep “this little light of mine” shining to brighten the darkness. Amen.
1 Adam Hamilton, John: The Gospel of Light and Life. (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015, p. 70.)
“I have given you an example”
Thursday, 10 March 2016 John 13:1-20
Typically a slave had the job of washing tired, dirty feet that had walked on dusty or muddy roads all day, clad only in sandals. That’s why the disciples, acutely conscious of their relative rank in the group, all shied away from washing the feet of the others. But Jesus unblushingly did the slave’s work. Then he pointedly told his status-conscious disciples, “I have given you an example: Just as I have done, you also must do.”
• Living and travel conditions today are vastly differently today. Much of the time today (though not always!) washing someone else’s feet is mainly symbolic, and does little to actually make that person’s life better and more pleasant. Given that, what are some reallife ways you can meaningfully “wash the feet” of family members, neighbors, co-workers or other church members?
• Pastor Hamilton honed in on the underlying spiritual question this story asks each of us: “Jesus wanted to make sure his disciples got it. The story in John 13 encourages us to ask this question: Are you—am I—worried about who appears to be the greatest, or are we
focused on humbly serving others?”1 What’s your answer? How has it changed over time?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, this is a hard prayer to pray. But I mean it: teach me how to find my greatest glory in serving you and others in the ways you have equipped me to serve. Amen.
1 Adam Hamilton, John: The Gospel of Light and Life. (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015, p. 96.)
“This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples”
Friday, 11 March 2016 John 13:21-38
John wanted his readers to know that Jesus didn’t accidentally stumble into his saving death, but chose that course (cf. John 10:17-18). So here he made a point of showing that Jesus knew who would betray him. His spiritual symbolism was clear: when Judas left to betray Jesus, “it was night” (verse 30). But instead of bemoaning the darkness all around him, Jesus gave his followers a new commandment that radiated heaven’s light: “As I have loved you, so
you must love each other. This is how everyone will know you are my disciples.”
• The command to love one another was not new. However, saying “as I have loved you” took love to a whole new level. In what ways did Jesus’ model of love expand love’s reach, and deepen its intensity? After Jesus taught, but before John wrote his gospel, the apostle
Paul identified love as the first and greatest fruit of the Spirit (cf. Galatians 5:22). Ask the Spirit to guide you in shaping your view of yourself in the light of Jesus’ love, so that you in
turn can love the people in your life well.
• Right after Judas left on his dark errand, Jesus returned to the idea of “glory.” He said that now he had been glorified, and God had been glorified in him. From a human standpoint, there was no glory on that dark night. Scholar N. T. Wright wrote, “Swords don’t glorify the creator-God. Love does. Self-giving love, best of all.”1 When, or through whom, have you gotten at least a glimpse of the glory of being a “champion” in living out self-giving love?
Prayer: Lord God, let the light of your love increasingly shine out from me into the hurting, darkened world around me. Give me the courage to live that way even when others do not
seem to see the value of it. Amen.
1 N. T. Wright, John for Everyone, part 2. (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2004, p. 34.)
“Trust in God; trust also in me”
Saturday, 12 March 2016 John 14:1-31
Jesus’ talk of going away puzzled his disciples. But he promised that he would return, and when he did his followers could always be with him. He gave them a vivid picture of God’s house as a spacious place with plenty of room for everyone. He told them that in him, they’d seen the Father. Then, in a further glimpse into the mysteries of God, he promised not to leave them orphans, but to both send and come to them in the person of the “paraclete” (a Greek
word that meant companion, helper, advocate and comforter)—the Holy Spirit.
• Pastor Hamilton wrote, “I ask you a simple question: What do you trust in? When you strip away everything else, what is it—at the bedrock in your life—that you trust in?... Christ calls us to trust in him, to count on him.”1 How do you answer that “trust” question? At the end of this chapter, Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you. I give to you not as the world gives. Don’t be troubled or afraid” (verse 27). Have you ever found the “peace”
the world gives ultimately empty and meaningless? How can trusting in Jesus, truly counting on him, give you the greater, deeper peace Jesus promised?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, you promised, “I won’t leave you as orphans, I will come to you.” Thank you for always being my Companion and Comforter, even when my circumstances seem the hardest. Amen.
1 Adam Hamilton, John: The Gospel of Light and Life. (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015, p. 97.)
Family Activity: Knowing the Holy Spirit is one way we know God more fully. Explain to your family that the Holy Spirit is like the wind. They are both always with us, we can’t see them, but we can see and feel what they are doing. Go outside for a walk together. Talk about what sounds and movements the wind is causing. Spend some time in prayer as you experience the wind. Remind everyone that the Holy Spirit is God’s presence with us and will only move in ways that are good, helpful and beneficial. Encourage your family members to remember God the Holy Spirit whenever they feel the wind. Thank God for the Holy Spirit and for the ways it brings God’s goodness to the world.
Prayer Requests
Prayers for Peace & Comfort for:
•To Kathy Wiley and family following the death of Betty Harrell (Mother), 2/20
•To Barbara Cook and family following the death of William Simpson (Father), 2/18
•To Mary Lee Sandbach and family following the death of George (Ernie) Sandbach
(Husband), 2/17
•To friends following the death of Grady Lynn McKenzie, 2/10
•To Janet Jehle and family following the death of Elvin D. (Perk) Perkins (Father), 2/20
•To LaVon (Cindy) Johnston and family following the death of Brady Johnston (Husband), 2/19
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The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224, United States
913.897.0120
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