Sin, Faith and Duty

 Prayer Practice

Breath Prayer – Take 2-3 minutes today to pray a simple breath prayer. Get somewhere quiet and relaxing. Breathe in deeply, and then breathe out fully. As you breathe in, ask God to fill you with His presence, grace, love, peace, etc. Consider using the list of spiritual fruit in Galatians 5:22-23. As you breathe out, offer to God the things you need Him to take from you – sin, doubt, shame, anxiety, fear, etc. Pray this way for just a few minutes, trusting God to work, and then begin reading today’s Scripture.

DAILY READING

Luke 17:1-19

REFLECTION

Serving Humbly

 by Kelsey Bacon

There is a lot we could unpack in this passage where Jesus teaches us about sin, faith, and duty, but my heart is drawn particularly to verses 7-10. Recently, when talking to my middle school students, I have been using the same example of my own sin over and over, and it relates deeply to this passage. Maybe God keeps bringing it up for a reason, and what better place to examine it than here? As Ephesians 5:13 says, "everything exposed by the light becomes visible--and everything that is illuminated becomes a light." Maybe as I expose my own sin to the light, God can shine a light on you as well.

I struggle a lot with the concept of duty for duty's sake. Luke 17 asks, why should you be praised for doing what you are supposed to do? Verse 10 says, "So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, "We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty." This pains me to hear, because I want the thanks. I want the praise, I want the pat on the back, I want the gifts and the affection and the attention. I want to be appreciated by everyone for everything that I do, even the things that are just normal, everyday tasks that I am supposed to do (especially those tasks, some days). I want praise for unloading the dishwasher. I want glory for cleaning the bathtub. I want my co-workers to know all the work I'm doing so that they can be impressed with me.

And so Jesus presents me with this text, and I am forced to face my own pride. My own selfishness. It's my own desire, in a way, to be God. What Jesus is telling us in this passage is that he is God and we are not. When we live into the callings that he has given us, we are following him, doing our duty as disciples. And who deserves the praise and glory for that? It's certainly not us, sinful people that we are. It's certainly not me, who falls short of the title "disciple" daily. But God's grace picks me up. God's forgiveness frees me from my sins of pride and selfishness. God reminds me that he is God and I am not, and that the glory of living into the callings he's placed on my shoulders--wife, friend, servant of the Church--goes to him, because the only reason I have any success in those callings is because of him. 

Today I ask God for a humble heart, one that serves those around me out of love and willing sacrifice, an outpouring of God's own love and willing sacrifice.

Reflect further: Where in your life do you seek glory in the duties God has given you? Where do you see pride or selfishness in your life? Or maybe there's a situation where you feel it's unfair that you don't get praise and glory. Pray and ask God to humble you, and to help you serve humbly in whatever duty he has place upon your shoulders.