What Jesus Did! 'First Priority: Following Jesus' — Luke 9:59-60

Saturday, June 24, 2023

Verse of the Day: The Stream Continues

Learn more about Verse of the Day and the future of our daily ministry.

 More Info
[Jesus] said to another person, "Come, follow me."

The man agreed, but he said, "Lord, first let me return home and bury my father."

But Jesus told him, "Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God."

— Luke 9:59-60 NLT

Key Thought

Following Christ is our highest priority. Nothing should stand in our way. Does that mean abandoning our responsibility to our families? Certainly not! God makes clear that how we live in our families is crucial to our discipleship and to our leadership. However, we so often use family concerns as excuses for not following rather than reconciling family matters with Kingdom values and priorities. Jesus must come first. God and his Kingdom must be THE priority in our families. Our families must see honoring God as the primary value lived out in our own personal lives.

Today's Prayer

Give me wisdom, O God, to make you and your Kingdom THE primary value of my home. Help me demonstrate your compassion and your holy character in my interactions with my loved ones. Help me be loyal, faithful, and supportive of them so they will see those characteristics in me and know that my heart's first allegiance is to you. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Related Scripture Readings

Have thoughts on this devotional? Leave a comment

2 Related Resources by Heartlight

One Singular Purpose
Devo: A Year with Jesus
"Dear Disciple, Following Me is hard. I want your heart. I want your focus. I want your future. I want to be your consuming passion. Yes, I know..."
Seize Today
Article by Paul Faulkner
Why are you putting so much stuff off? Procrastination nearly always makes things worse, so why do we put off so much stuff; and let's stop procrastinating and seize today!

Illustration

Illustration of Luke 9:59-60 NLT — "Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God."

Other Devotionals from Heartlight for Saturday, June 24, 2023

Daily Wisdom
A daily devotional featuring wise counsel found in Scripture.
Proverbs 3:11-12
"My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a..."
Unstoppable!
A one-year devotional guide through the book of Acts.
'Humbled at Holiness' (Acts 7:30-33)
"[In his defense before the council, Stephen continued to tell the story of Moses:] "Forty years later, in the desert near Mount Sinai, an angel..."
Today's Verse
A daily devotional featuring a Bible verse, thought and prayer.
Romans 5:10
"If, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his..."
God's Holy Fire
A daily devotional about the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
'Follow the Spirit' (Ro. 8:3-4)
"The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like..."

About This Devotional

What Jesus Did! is a series of one-year devotional guides through each gospel, using one short scripture passage each day and following the Gospel in sequential order. Each devotional consists of a scripture passage and a reflection and a prayer which open up the day's scripture and show how it challenges you to live for Jesus.

What Jesus Did! is written by Phil Ware and is available in book form.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

More What Jesus Did!