Thursday after Misericordias Domini Sunday
Posted on April 27, 2023 by under
Scripture: St. Matthew 18:10-14 (NKJV)
18:10 “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven. 11 For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.
12 “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? 13 And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. 14 Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.”
Devotion
The Good Shepherd cares for the lost, the weak, and the tormented. There will be times when we feel like praying in the words of Psalm 22, “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” (v. 1). However, it is when we feel most abandoned that God takes special notice of us. More importantly, it is when we feel that we have abandoned Him that He is swift to remind us of His promises of reconciliation and forgiveness.
Generally speaking, children are a symbol of weakness. Children are inexperienced and vulnerable. They easily fall into sin and are easily tempted. Therefore, in this text, the Christ promises them special protection, and a special judgment on those who despise them. But it is not limited to children; the Christ is especially concerned with those trapped by sin. To these sinners He promises peace, and He will exact terrible vengeance on those who lead them astray. Today, the world is full of false “shepherds” who point sinners to their works or tell them their sin is not really sin. May God destroy them. When you sin, these words of comfort are for you: “The Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.”
Prayer: God, Who, by the humiliation of Thy Son, didst raise up the fallen world: Grant unto Thy faithful ones perpetual gladness, and those whom Thou hast delivered from the danger of everlasting death, do Thou make partakers of eternal joys; through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
