The Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries of Saint Louis, Missouri, United States "Crying Out" by Rev. Wayne Palmer for Wednesday, March 2, 2016

The Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries of Saint Louis, Missouri, United States "Crying Out" by Rev. Wayne Palmer for Wednesday, March 2, 2016

And He (Jesus) withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me. Nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done" (Luke 22:41-42).
Read Luke 22:41 He went about a stone’s throw away from them, kneeled down and prayed, 42 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, let not my will but yours be done.”.
Jesus doesn't go far from His disciples, about as far as one can throw a stone. Matthew and Mark tell us He brings along three disciples: Peter, James, and John. After strongly encouraging them to keep watch with Him and pray, He withdraws a few paces. This is a burden they cannot share. He has to face it alone with His Father, but still it comforts Him to know they are listening and praying for Him.
Jews normally stood in prayer, but Jesus kneels down, showing tremendous humility, coupled with the weight of the grief bearing down on Him. Immediately, He cries out in pain and distress. Surely, His three closest disciples hear and join in fervent prayer. He pleads with His Father to remove the cup-the physical suffering, the abuse, the pain-but more than anything, the prospect of coming under the wrath of God for the sins of the world. Yet He immediately surrenders His will to His Father, "Nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done."
He isn't afraid of death-but dreads the thought of being cut off, forsaken by His Father, and suffering the terrible wrath of God. Yet He casts aside His own desire, His own will, and in genuine love for His Father, accepts God's perfect plan as His own.
In our hours of greatest need our prayers often focus on ourselves-but notice how Jesus focuses instead on His Father and what He wants. Again, Jesus casts His own needs and interests aside, embracing His Father's will-and our desperate need.
THE PRAYER: Lord Jesus, in awe and holy fear we listen as You lay Your heart bare before Your Father. Teach us so to pray. Amen.
Through the Bible in a Year
Today Read:
Leviticus 14:1 Adonai said to Moshe, 2 “This is to be the law concerning the person afflicted with tzara‘at on the day of his purification. He is to be brought to the cohen, 3 and the cohen is to go outside the camp and examine him there. If he sees that the tzara‘at sores have been healed in the afflicted person, 4 then the cohen will order that two living clean birds be taken for the one to be purified, along with cedar-wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop leaves. 5 The cohen is to order one of the birds slaughtered in a clay pot over running water. 6 As for the live bird, he is to take it with the cedar-wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop and dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird slaughtered over running water, 7 and sprinkle the person to be purified from the tzara‘at seven times. Next he is to set the live bird free in an open field. 8 He who is to be purified must wash his clothes, shave off all his hair and bathe himself in water. Then he will be clean; and after that, he may enter the camp; but he must live outside his tent for seven days. 9 On the seventh day he is to shave all the hair off his head, also his beard and eyebrows — he must shave off all his hair; and he is to wash his clothes and bathe his body in water; and he will be clean.

10 “On the eighth day he is to take two male lambs without defect, one female lamb in its first year without defect and six-and-a-half quarts of fine flour for a grain offering, mixed with olive oil, and two-thirds of a pint of olive oil. 11 The cohen purifying him is to place the person being purified with these items before Adonai at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 12 The cohen is to take one of the male lambs and offer it as a guilt offering with the two-thirds-pint of olive oil, then wave them as a wave offering before Adonai. (LY: ii) 13 He is to slaughter the male lamb at the place in the sanctuary for slaughtering sin offerings and burnt offerings, because the guilt offering belongs to the cohen, just like the sin offering; it is especially holy. 14 The cohen is to take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the tip of the right ear of the person being purified, on the thumb of his right hand and on the big toe of his right foot. 15 Next, the cohen is to take some of the two-thirds-pint of olive oil and pour it into the palm of his own left hand, 16 dip his right finger in the oil that is in his left hand and sprinkle from the oil with his finger seven times before Adonai. 17 Then the cohen is to put some of the remaining oil in his hand on the tip of the right ear of the person being purified, on the thumb of his right hand, on the big toe of his right foot and on the blood of the guilt offering. 18 Finally, the cohen is to put the rest of the oil in his hand on the head of the person being purified; and the cohen will make atonement for him before Adonai. 19 The cohen is to offer the sin offering and make atonement for the person being purified because of his uncleanness; afterwards, he is to slaughter the burnt offering. 20 The cohen is to offer the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar; thus the cohen will make atonement for him; and he will be clean.

(RY: v, LY: iii) 21 “If he is poor, so that he can’t afford to do otherwise, he is to take one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved, to make atonement for him; two quarts of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; two-thirds of a pint of olive oil; 22 and two doves or two young pigeons, such as he can afford, the one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. 23 On the eighth day, he will bring them to the cohen for his purification, to the entrance of the tent of meeting before Adonai. 24 The cohen is to take the lamb of the guilt offering and the two-thirds of a pint of olive oil and wave them as a wave offering before Adonai. 25 He is to slaughter the lamb of the guilt offering; and the cohen is to take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the tip of the right ear of the person being purified, on the thumb of his right hand and on the big toe of his right foot. 26 The cohen is to take some of the olive oil and pour it into the palm of his own left hand, 27 and sprinkle with his right hand some of the oil that is in his left hand seven times before Adonai. 28 The cohen is to put some of the oil in his hand on the tip of the right ear of the person being purified, on the thumb of his right hand, on the big toe of his right foot — in the same place as the blood of the guilt offering. 29 Finally, the cohen is to put the rest of the oil in his hand on the head of the person being purified, to make atonement for him before Adonai. 30 He is to offer one of the doves or young pigeons, such as the person can afford, 31 whatever his means suffice for — the one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering — with the grain offering; thus the cohen will make atonement before Adonai for the person being purified. 32 Such is the law for the person who has tzara‘at sores if he cannot afford the usual elements used for his purification.”

(RY: vi, LY: iv) 33 Adonai said to Moshe and Aharon, 34 “When you have entered the land of Kena‘an which I am giving you as a possession, and I put an infection of tzara‘at in a house in the land that you possess, 35 then the owner of the house is to come and tell the cohen, ‘It seems to me that there may be an infection in the house.’ 36 The cohen is to order the house emptied before he goes in to inspect the infection, so that everything in the house won’t be made unclean; afterwards, the cohen is to enter and inspect the house. 37 He will examine the infection; and if he sees that the infection is in the walls of the house, with greenish or reddish depressions that seem to go in deeper than the surface of the wall, 38 he is to go out of the house to its door and seal up the house for seven days. 39 The cohen will come again on the seventh day and examine the house; if he sees that the infection has spread over its walls, 40 he is to order them to remove the infected stones and throw them into some unclean place outside the city. 41 Next, he is to have the inside of the house thoroughly scraped, and the scraped-off plaster is to be discarded outside the city in an unclean place. 42 Finally, other stones must be set in the place of the first stones and other plaster used to replaster the house. 43 If the infection returns and breaks out in the house after the stones have been removed and the house scraped and plastered; 44 then the cohen is to enter and examine it. If he sees that the infection has spread in the house, it is a contagious tzara‘at in the house; it is unclean. 45 He must break down the house and take its stones, timber and plaster out of the city to an unclean place. 46 Moreover, whoever enters the house at any time while it is sealed up will be unclean until evening. 47 Whoever lies down or eats in the house must wash his clothes. 48 If the cohen enters, examines and sees that the infection has not spread in the house since it was plastered; then he is to declare the house clean; because the infection is cured.

49 “To purify the house, he is to take two birds, cedar-wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop leaves. 50 He is to slaughter one of the birds in a clay pot over running water. 51 He is to take the cedar-wood, the hyssop, the scarlet yarn and the live bird and dip them in the blood of the slaughtered bird and in the running water, and sprinkle the house seven times. 52 He will purify the house with the blood of the bird, the running water, the live bird, the cedar-wood, the hyssop and the scarlet yarn. 53 But he is to set the live bird free outside the city in an open field; thus will he make atonement for the house; and it will be clean.

(LY: v) 54 “Such is the law for all kinds of tzara‘at sores, for a crusted area, 55 for tzara‘at in a garment, for a house, 56 for a swelling, for a scab and for a bright spot, 57 to determine when it is clean and when it is unclean. This is the law concerning tzara‘at.”

Mark 8:1 It was during that time that another large crowd gathered, and they had nothing to eat. Yeshua called his talmidim to him and said to them, 2 “I feel sorry for these people, because they have been with me three days, and now they have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them off to their homes hungry, they will collapse on the way; some of them have come a long distance.” 4 His talmidim said to him, “How can anyone find enough bread to satisfy these people in a remote place like this?” 5 “How many loaves do you have?” he asked them. They answered, “Seven.” 6 He then told the crowd to sit down on the ground, took the seven loaves, made a b’rakhah, broke the loaves and gave them to his talmidim to serve to the people. 7 They also had a few fish; making a b’rakhah over them he also ordered these to be served. 8 The people ate their fill; and the talmidim took up the leftover pieces, seven large basketsful. 9 About four thousand were there. 10 After sending them away, Yeshua got into the boat with his talmidim and went off to the district of Dalmanuta.

11 The P’rushim came and began arguing with him; they wanted him to give them a sign from Heaven, because they were out to trap him. 12 With a sigh that came straight from his heart, he said, “Why does this generation want a sign? Yes! I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation!” 13 With that, he left them, got into the boat again and went off to the other side of the lake.

14 Now the talmidim had forgotten to bring bread and had with them in the boat only one loaf. 15 So when Yeshua said to them, “Watch out! Guard yourselves from the hametz of the P’rushim and the hametz of Herod,” 16 they thought he had said it because they had no bread. 17 But, aware of this, he said, “Why are you talking with each other about having no bread? Don’t you see or understand yet? Have your hearts been made like stone? 18 You have eyes — don’t you see? You have ears — don’t you hear? And don’t you remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?” “Twelve,” they answered him. 20 “And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?” “Seven,” they answered. 21 He said to them, “And you still don’t understand?”

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