Author: Bill Hall

Luke 5:3 “Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat.”

   Simon and his companions had toiled through a long, uneventful, night. They surely were not looking forward to spending a few more hours out on the water. But, regardless of what their thoughts about this request were at the time, their obedience would not go unrewarded.

Heavenly Father, sometimes we call it blind faith, but trusting You is the wisest choice we can ever make. Obedience is just another form of worship. We can show You that You are worth everything to us by our devotion to You. Thank you Lord for being so good! You are holy, holy, holy! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 5:2 “and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets.”

   Jesus immediately knew what was happening here. These fishermen had toiled through the night and now were working to call it a day, though day was just beginning. Their nets needed washing, and mending. This cleaned out any debris they might have caught inadvertently in their failed attempts to catch fish. So, they were very mindful of their failure at the current moment.

Heavenly Father, thank You for understanding us so well! You know all there is to know about us. And, You come into our lives and intersect with our deepest needs. You don’t simply save our souls and walk off, You care about our every action and help us to live the abundant life. We must never forget that all the love we have for our own children cannot compare to the love You have for each of us. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 5:1 “So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret,”

   In what better place would you expect to find a discourse from God? The scene is set beautifully, matched only by the gracious words of the Lord Jesus. The Lord generally chose these natural scenes for His ministry.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the beauty we find in Christ! He is altogether wonderful to us. We will spend our lives seeking to understand better how You have saved us. Your glory fills this earth as Your gospel reaches to the furthest points. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 4:44 “And He was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee.”

   Galilee was the starting point for Christ. It served as His headquarters throughout His ministry. This was also in line with prophecy.

Heavenly Father, we are so thankful for Your leading. You know exactly where we need to be. You know what is best for our lives and You can show us the path for our feet. Lead us to honor You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen

Luke 4:43 “but He said to them, “I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent.”

   Jesus had a prophetic mandate that He followed throughout His ministry. However, this was not out of accordance with His will ultimately. He was submitted to the Father. But, in His past as God the Son, He had through the Holy Spirit told the prophets what to write concerning Him.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the preaching of Christ. You have filled Your world with truth by the word of Your witnesses. We lift Your Name high and are awed by Your mighty wisdom and gracious love. We will never cease to honor You all of our days. Your plan gives us hope as our future is bright. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 4:42 “Now when it was day, He departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowd sought Him and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from leaving them;”

   It is truly wonderful that we need not suffer the departure of Christ. Those who belong to Him have constant fellowship with Him. Though He is physically now in heaven, He works here on earth just as surely as then. If only more people would have the attitude we see here, wanting to retain Christ, rather than turning Him away!

Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your provision for our salvation. Jesus is a constant comfort to us by Your Holy Spirit. We will be forever grateful for His Presence in our lives! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 4:41 “And demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, “You are the Christ, the Son of God!” And He, rebuking them, did not allow them to speak, for they knew that He was the Christ.”

   Another reason for Jesus keeping the demons quiet is related to something He did throughout His ministry. Many times He told His disciples, and others, not to tell anyone who He was. Why? There are several reasons. For one, Jesus had a very specific task He was working towards, His cross-work. Timing was important, so He tailored the news about Him so as to get events to line up per His plan. Also, Jesus was leaving the task of preaching His Messianic, Divine identity to the early church. Another reason was that Jesus sought genuine faith from people, not just a belief fueled by miracles and the words of demons. And, finally, Jesus wanted people to hear His teaching. The Jews were looking for a way out from Roman rule, and they hoped the Messiah would rescue them by force. Those who were close to Christ learned that world conquest was not His plan at the moment.

Heavenly Father, simple faith is what You desire, and we believe, trusting You for everything. All I can do or think is already known to You, dear Father. You know our lives in every respect. May we live to live for You! Give us today what You would have for us. We love You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 4:40 “When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them.”

   Jesus healed every single one that came to Him. He turned nobody away. But, there were those whop did not come to Him. This is also true for salvation from sin. Jesus will turn nobody away, but many will not come to Him.

Heavenly Father, thank You for not picking over us. You don’t leave some of us out as less deserving. You won’t discriminate, except on the basis of failure to respond. Thank You for accepting all who come to You in faith. You have confounded the great of this world, and have accepted the lowly. We praise You, Almighty God! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 4:39 “So He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. And immediately she arose and served them.”

   It is very likely that in Simon’s house, everyone slept on the floor. In many places in the world today this is still the custom. So, Jesus coming to ‘stand over’ her was not strange as it meant simply that He walked up to her bedside.
   The word rebuke is interesting as well. It is as if Jesus spoke to the fever, telling it to leave. If Jesus can speak to the winds and the waves, surely fevers are no different!

Heavenly Father, can we ever understand You? And yet we will spend our entire lives trying. You are the focus of our deepest studies, and the subject of our greatest desires. All that we have and are begins and ends with You. We will praise You, for You have done all things well. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 4:38 “Now He arose from the synagogue and entered Simon’s house. But Simon’s wife’s mother was sick with a high fever, and they made request of Him concerning her.”

   We see again Luke’s attention to detail as he documents the high fever here. Though it is not possible to be sure, this could have been the beginning of a serious illness. It seems that Jesus stayed at Simon’s house on occasion, and was familiar with he family. Thus it was only natural for Him to be asked to heal her.

Heavenly Father, thank You for caring for our deepest needs. You don’t just provide physical healing, but also You can give us emotional healing. You are good to us, and we want so much to please You. We praise You and lift Your Name on high! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.