Heart of Membership:
The Heart of Jesus
Jesus is not interested in merely external change. He wants all of us, and that begins in our hearts. Daily Prayer: Jesus, make your heart my heart.
Monday, September 1
Read Matthew 4:12-25, Matthew 5:1-16. Notice the first things Jesus says. Repent… Follow… Why is repentance and discipleship so important? Can you be a Christian without them? What is different about someone who is repentant and following Jesus? What is the path of blessing?
Tuesday, September 2
Read Luke 19:1-10 & John 3:1-21. Why has Jesus come? Who has he come for? How are we like Zacchaeus and Nicodemus? If Jesus’ heart is for the lost, what should be on our heart? Is that just an emotion?
Wednesday, September 3
Read Mark 12:28-34 & John 15:1-17. Love is the heartbeat of following Jesus. What is love? How is God’s love different than the way we use “love” in our culture? What is the influence of cultural “love” in the church? How has God loved us? How do we love one another in the same way?
Thursday, September 4
Read Matthew 13. Jesus’ heart is for the Kingdom of God to be established. What do we learn about the Kingdom from these parables? What do we learn about ourselves in the Kingdom? What makes it so valuable? How valuable is the Kingdom to you?
Friday, September 5
Read Matthew 16:13-28. We get a good look at Jesus’ heart for his future church. What should be on our heart about: binding and loosing sin, setting our minds on the things of God, taking up our cross and denying self? What happens in a church where that is a shared heart?
Saturday, September 6
Read John 19–John 20. Read this today and pray. The heart of Jesus was most on display when he took our sin and died to save us. Pray that the same compassion Jesus had for us may be your compassion for others.
Bethel Lutheran Church, St. Paul, MN – bethelstpaul.com