The Book of Luke
A 25 day devotional series for this Winter Break!
Day 19
"Repentance, the Greek word metanoia, means to change your thinking. Implied is a change of action, a change of direction. It involves forsaking sin. “When one repents of his sin, he cannot go on consciously committing it without remorse.” – Dan Hayes
Tax collectors were among the unpopular people in Israel. They were often known for cheating people out of their money in order to make themselves rich! Based on the crowd’s response to Zacchaeus, he must have been a very deceiving and manipulative tax collector. After he encountered Jesus, however, He knew his life needed to change and He was no longer ok with his sin! Once Zacchaeus had a sincere heart change, complacency over his sin was broken off that day. Zacchaeus modeled a genuine heart of repentance that displayed inward change by outward action. When he realized his sin and decided to follow Jesus, he gave his belongings to the poor and made restitution-with generous interest- to those he had ripped off and cheated. Following Jesus in your head and heart is not enough; complete and true repentance bring follow through in your actions and the fruit of your life choices.
Are you living out your repentance? Has your heart and life changed at all since you decided to follow Jesus?
Read Luke 19 and answer the questions to help you reflect on the passage.
Tax collectors were among the unpopular people in Israel. They were often known for cheating people out of their money in order to make themselves rich! Based on the crowd’s response to Zacchaeus, he must have been a very deceiving and manipulative tax collector. After he encountered Jesus, however, He knew his life needed to change and He was no longer ok with his sin! Once Zacchaeus had a sincere heart change, complacency over his sin was broken off that day. Zacchaeus modeled a genuine heart of repentance that displayed inward change by outward action. When he realized his sin and decided to follow Jesus, he gave his belongings to the poor and made restitution-with generous interest- to those he had ripped off and cheated. Following Jesus in your head and heart is not enough; complete and true repentance bring follow through in your actions and the fruit of your life choices.
Are you living out your repentance? Has your heart and life changed at all since you decided to follow Jesus?
Read Luke 19 and answer the questions to help you reflect on the passage.