Today’s Reading:
Read Matthew 8:5-13; 11:1-15; Luke 7
Let’s play a guessing game. Can you guess what I’m describing?
It’s a fruit. It’s red. It grows on a tree and has a stem and a core. Sometimes people put caramel on it. People also use it to make pies. And sometimes it can be red or yellow. (Did you guess an apple?)
You were able to identify the apple with the descriptions you were given because you are familiar with apples, and you recognized the words used to describe it. In today’s reading, we begin to see that the people were recognizing Jesus as the Messiah who was powerful and had authority to save them.
A centurion or a Roman official came to Jesus and asked him to heal his servant. He recognized that Jesus was powerful enough to just say the words to heal the servant and that Jesus did not have to actually go to where the servant was. The centurion recognized Jesus’ authority.
John the Baptist recognized what Jesus was doing and sent messengers to confirm that Jesus was the Messiah. Jesus confirmed who He was by also pointing out who John the Baptist was and reminding the people that Isaiah had prophesied that someone would come as a messenger before Jesus’ arrival and that someone was John the Baptist.
The woman who washed Jesus’ feet with the oil also recognized who Jesus was and how important He was. Jesus recognized her faith and said, “Your faith has saved you.” (Luke 7:50)
Application/Prayer:
When other people look at you, can they see that there is something different about you? Do they recognize that you are a Christ follower? Can they see Jesus in you? Ask God to help you live in a way that shows other people Jesus every day
Using the daily reading prompts from George H. Guthrie’s Read the Bible for Life, here’s how to use this devotional:
- Bring your Bible! Your kids need to see that everything you are reading to them or learning about comes from an actual Bible!
- Each day starts with a reading prompt. Read the selection as a family. If your kids are readers, encourage them to read along with you.
- After you’ve read the passage, read the short devotional thought that goes along with each passage.
- Prayer and application are important any time we read God’s word! After each devotional, there is a challenge to help apply what your family has read that day.
- There is a reading for six days of the week. The last reading of the week is a Gospel Conversation Prompt to help you connect the reading from the week with God’s plan for salvation.
Other Resources:
October memory verse coloring sheet
October Fill-in the blank activity