Devotional Commentary

Not even a hair of your head shall be lost.

Luke 21:18

How can Jesus say this after He had just said some of His followers would be killed? The statement He is making here about a single hair matches with a comment we have recorded back in Luke 12:7, and also in Matthew 10:30. God values us so much that He numbers the hairs of our head.

This is quite a unique and powerful statement. Regardless of what may happen to any one of the Lord’s servants, He has a log of all that pertains to each of His children. Being the creator, death is no barrier for Him. His power is absolute, and He has a beautiful plan for the future of His people. In this future His children will not only be alive, but evidently even past hair will be remembered to their blessing. We lose hair, skin cells, and other things all the time, so this is a testament to the infinite knowledge of Almighty God.

Heavenly Father, thank You for being so Wonderful! You are amazing beyond all of our wildest dreams! It has always been a special blessing to me that You number our hairs. The passage today is a great encouragement. Regardless of what happens, You know Your people and You care for them. How can we ever thank You enough? I will praise You forever! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

And you shall be hated by all because of My Name.

Luke 21:17

The Name of Christ includes His complete identity. Christians are hated if they believe all that the Scriptures say about Christ. This hatred is due to the guilt and shame of sin in the lives of those doing the hating. They do not like anyone who reminds them of their error.

Heavenly Father, thank You for making the truth accessible through Your Spirit. It is a great mercy that You have given so much to us. Your gracious love and abiding peace are a constant comfort. You are magnificent in Your holiness and amazing in Your wisdom. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

You will be betrayed even by parents, relatives, friends, and brothers. And they will put some of you to death.

Luke 21:16

Friendships and familial relationships have not always prevented betrayal. Jesus knew that His followers would be considered dangerous, overzealous, or even crazy. Some of His disciples did indeed give their life for Him very soon after the gospel of His resurrection began to spread.

Heavenly Father, it is a great blessing to be able to live for You! In spite of any opposition, to know Your will and to do it is worth the test. Your love and truth spur us on no matter what. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

For I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all  the ones in opposition to you will not be able to contradict nor resist.

Luke 21:15

The significance of this seems to be that the Lord will give His people not only great wisdom to deal with adversaries, but also the correct attitude to have or approach to take when doing so. He gives an assurance that the defence offered will be coherent and will not be defeated by some logic of the other side. This is a good comfort and encouragement to those who are persecuted.

Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us wisdom! Your wisdom is such an amazing gift, and it provides us with so much comfort. Understanding Your world as it is, rather than as we imagine it, puts life in perspective for us. You are our defense, You are our high tower. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Therefore decide in your hearts not to prepare a defense.

Luke 21:14

Initially, this seems contradictory. There are many Scriptures that suggest Christians should be prepared to defend the faith. However, we must pay close attention to what is being said here. Jesus is not suggesting that we never prepare ourselves to give good answers to those who truly seek the truth, or are at least willing to listen. Instead, He is specifically saying that we should not prepare to defend our faith when persecution brings us before political officials.

In other words, we are to live expecting to have opportunities to freely share our faith, and for such opportunities we should be prepared. Conversely, we should not live in anticipation of persecution, though we suffer under no delusion that it will never come. When persecution does arise, we will be given the words to say, but we are not to prepare in anticipation of that eventuality.

This actually makes a lot of sense. The gospel message is good news and should be shared as such. We are to prepare to share good news with people who are at the least willing to listen to our message. When we share with those who have already made it abundantly clear they are set against Christ, His church, and His gospel, we are not to prepare anything additional or different to fit the occasion. As the next verse explains, the Lord will give us the words to say at that point. We are not to be sitting around dreaming up things to say in response to adversaries. Instead, our focus should be on preparing to share with those who will choose to listen.

Heavenly Father, thank You for working in and through Your people! It is such a privilege to be used by You for Your goals. In Your service we find great joy. Your wisdom is clear. You have sent out Your messengers to those who will choose to hear. Thank You for making Your truth known! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

But it will turn out to be an opportunity for you to testify.

Luke 21:13

Christians should always be looking for an opportunity to share their faith. The world is lost and without a legitimate hope, so we must share the hope within us.

What better time for a genuine testimony than when we are persecuted? A testimony at such a time will not be ineffective.

Heavenly Father, thank You for allowing us to bear the message of Your Son to this world. Oh may we do it faithfully! What a joy it is to know the good news and to be privileged to share it! I will praise You forever for Your wisdom in Your plan. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

But before all these things they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, betraying you to synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and governors on account of My Name.

Luke 21:12

This especially addresses the early persecutions of the church. But, this has been the experience of true Christianity throughout history. This persecution is specifically for preaching and teaching in the Name of Christ.

Heavenly Father, may we be always worthy of You! We can never thank You enough for allowing us to be involved in the ministry of the gospel. Thank You for helping us when we are attacked for preaching the gospel. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

There shall be large earthquakes in many places, and famines, and plagues. There shall be terrible sights and loud signs from heaven.

Luke 21:11

It is not surprising that Jesus would know so much about the future. But it is remarkable and amazing. Though He is speaking of things mentioned also in the Revelation account, He is referring to many events that have taken place at various times in history since His time here on earth.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your many blessings on us! How can we ever thank You enough? Even in loss or pain we are reminded of Your power and goodness. Thank You for the love that You have towards us! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Then He said to them, “Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.”

Luke 21:10

There has actually been quite an interesting balance of power in the history of the world. No one kingdom or people have been in control of the world in anything like a permanent way. This lack of unity under a single banner is by design and started way back with the Tower of Babel.

One day the world will unite only briefly under the antichrist. But then, after the judgment of the devil, Jesus will rule a unified world for 1000 years.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your wise superintending of all the events of this life. You are so powerful and Your plan will never be frustrated. We are so blessed to be Your servants and we rejoice in Your great love and grace! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

And whenever you hear of battles and insurrections, do not be frightened; for these things must take place first, but the end is not immediate.

Luke 21:9

Jesus is here sharing that there would be political unrest at various times and in various places. But this should not be taken to indicate the end of the world has come.

The word Jesus uses here where He says ‘do not be frightened’ is unique. It is not the standard ‘do not fear’ that we usually see. It seems He is reassuring them that although some fearful situations will occur, they need not be terrified as if these things mean the end is already here.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Bible prophecy! It gives us reassurance and help. We are blessed and it is a mercy to know what our future holds. Thank You for guiding us by Your Spirit. You are wise and loving. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray and praise You, Amen.