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Prepare Your Heart

To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.

Read God’s Word

Judges 19-20
Luke 14:1-24

A Verse for Today

Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.

Luke 14:14 (CSB): “And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

Reflecting on God’s Word

In Luke 14:12-14, Jesus looked at the guy who had invited Him to his house for dinner. Jesus encouraged him not merely to invite people who could (and would) repay his kind gesture. Instead, He should invite people to experience his delicious food and warm hospitality who could not repay it.

If Jesus’ comments stopped there, we would feel that this was completely unjust. Why would we continue to bless people who will not or cannot repay the favor?

The answer is found at the end of His comments on this subject. Repayment would occur. But it would happen upon our arrival in Heaven.

Luke 14:14 (CSB): “And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

This isn’t the only time we read that we will need to wait for Heaven to get what is ours to claim. Listen to these next verses that talk about how to treat our desire for justice. Observe how, once again, we are to wait on God to give us what is right to claim.

Romans 12:19-21 (CSB): “Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for God’s wrath, because it is written, ‘Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay,’ says the Lord. But ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. For in so doing you will be heaping fiery coals on his head.’ Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.'”

Did you get that? We are told that we should (and can!) treat our enemies with kindness even though we crave justice because God will administer justice one day.

These two passages give us a very, very important principle. Here it is:

We can be satisfied when we are not repaid, and treat our enemies with kindness even though justice has not been done, when we turn things over to the Lord. He will make things right one day. Being fully convinced of this can enable us to behave in a Christ-honoring manner when we ordinarly might get upset.

Are you trusting the Lord, or do you get upset when you aren’t repaid or you don’t get justice? When others treat us badly, it gives us an opportunity to trust in the Lord’s oversight and justice. Let’s leave things to Him. Since we are convinced that He will take care of things in His own way and time, we should treat others kindly, especially those who cannot return the favor or who do not deserve it.

Spend Time in Prayer

  • Ask God to help you rest in Him and wait until Heaven for Him to make things right.
  • Ask the Lord for the ability to forgive anyone and any offense that you have been holding onto.

Going Deeper

If you want to dig a little deeper into Christian hospitality, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:

“What are some Bible verses about hospitality?”

Sharing

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Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com)