Devotional Guide, Today’s Reading – Friday, July 30, 2021

Theme: THE CHILDREN OF THE KINGDOM

Text: “And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” – Luke 19:9, 10.

Comment:  This statement was made by Christ when he visited Zaccheus, who was a tax-collector for the Romans. On discerning his heart condition, Christ told him to make haste and come down from the sycamore tree which he had climbed because of his small stature, saying he would be his guest that day. But the people murmured, questioning why Christ should invite himself to the house of a man, who in their estimation, was a sinner.  We should not judge spiritual matters by human standards.  (See 2 Corinthians 10:12; Romans 8:9) Jesus Christ then  made the declaration as in the text for today. He came to call sinners to repentance. – Matthew 9:12, 13.

It could be seen that the rich could also humble themselves to serve God in sincerity and in truth. Zaccheus, despite his status as a rich man,  demonstrated willingness to live the life of sacrifice and self-denial required of Christians. His conversion was attested to by his readiness to give away half of his goods to the poor so as to be rich in Christ and to return anything he obtained through false accusation.  Once one accepts that he is a sinner and is willing to change, the door of salvation would be opened to him. The challenge is to keep the faith until the end by the grace of God. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” – 2 Corinthians 5:17.