One Year Bible - January 15

Scriptures to read:
Luke 12:32-59; Genesis 22; Psalm 15
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Today my wife is scheduled to be induced into labor for our first child, and as I’m considering what life is going to be like as a father, I can’t help but think about what I was like as a kid.  I was the youngest of five - two half siblings, a foster sister and a full brother - and with that amount of chaos in the house my Dad didn’t have enough time to explain his reasonings for everything.  
   Like any young kid, my favorite question to ask my Dad was, “Why?”  “Why do I have to wash the dishes?” “Why can’t I do my homework after dinner?” “Why, why, why, why?” And sometimes the answer was just “Because I told you to!” And, boy, did I hate it when that’s what he said!
   In today’s parable from Luke 12, Jesus shares a story about a master who goes away on a trip and leaves a manager in charge of his servants, his house, and his possessions.  But the master doesn’t tell the manager exactly when he would be coming back.  
   Jesus then describes how the master would respond to the managers upon his return.  He says for the manager who is still working and serving well upon his return, the master himself will in turn reward the faithful manager.  But, for the manager who has stopped waiting for the master to return and has instead gotten drunk on his master’s wine and has beaten the servants, the master will in turn punish the irresponsible manager.  
   Then in our Genesis passage Abraham was asked by God to do the unthinkable – to offer his only son as a burnt offering.  And Abraham obeys!!  
   How crazy is that!!  Abraham trusted God so much that he didn’t ask why, or refuse to follow through on what God had asked him to do.  And just like the good manager who serves and does as his master had asked up until the moment of his return, Abraham goes all the way – climbs the mountain, ties up the kid, stacks the wood, sharpens the knife, and raises his arm – right up to the moment when God intervenes with a new sacrifice and tells him how proud of him he is.  
   Join me today in a closing word of prayer.

Memory Verse: For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. - Luke 12:34

Prayer: Heavenly Father give us the to courage to trust that what you have told us to do in Your Word and through your Holy Spirit is good.  Help us to trust not in our own reasoning but in your integrity, faithfulness, and love for us.  Amen.