SEPTEMBER 30, 2014
A
Fresh Start
Read: Luke
5:17-26
Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.
—Luke 5:31
In many countries,
health laws prohibit reselling or reusing old mattresses. Only landfills will
take them. Tim Keenan tackled the problem and today his business employs a
dozen people to extract the individual components of metal, fabric, and foam in
old mattresses for recycling. But that’s only part of the story. Journalist
Bill Vogrin wrote, “Of all the items Keenan recycles . . . it’s the people that
may be his biggest success” (The Gazette, Colorado Springs). Keenan hires men
from halfway houses and homeless shelters, giving them a job and a second
chance. He says, “We take guys nobody else wants.”
Luke 5:17-26 tells how
Jesus healed the body and the soul of a paralyzed man. Following that
miraculous event, Levi answered Jesus’ call to follow Him and then invited his
fellow tax collectors and friends to a banquet in honor of the Lord (vv.27-29).
When some people accused Jesus of associating with undesirables (v.30), He
reminded them that healthy people don’t need a doctor—adding, “I have not come
to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance” (v.32).
To everyone who feels
like a “throwaway” headed for the landfill of life, Jesus opens His arms of
love and offers a fresh beginning. That’s why He came!
The power of God can
turn a heart
From evil and the
power of sin;
The love of God can
change a life
And make it new and
cleansed within. —Fasick
Salvation
is receiving a new life.
Insight
The religious leaders
accused Jesus of blasphemy for claiming divine attributes for Himself (Luke
5:21). Blasphemy is showing contempt or a lack of reverence for God or
something sacred (v.20). A violation of the third commandment, it was
punishable by death (Lev. 24:15-16).
Source:
Our Daily Bread 2012
