Day 38 – Journey to the Cross – Pastor Kevin Lautar
Hello First Family,
Today’s Code word is Relationships.
Relationships are a gift from God. Our friends add value and joy to our lives each and every day. A popular adage about true friends are that they know everything about you and like you anyways! In the context of these relationships we learn – how to love, find true joy, push for peace, practice patience, exhibit kindness, generate goodness, grow in gentleness, walk in faithfulness and strive for self-control.
We become more like Christ as we spend time, energy and effort practicing His teachings in the context of our relationships. Jesus had a great group of close friends that were His disciples. Eleven of them were loyal, faithful and true. One was not. Judas ended up betraying Jesus. Many scholars think that Judas was trying to manipulate Jesus into becoming the political Messiah that he had always dreamed about. But, Jesus was not that kind of Messiah. When Judas came into the Garden with the angry mob and the chief priests, Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you have come for.” Jesus was betrayed by His friends and persecuted by His enemies. He paid such a heavy price to save us from our sins. Our focus verse is John 15:15, “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.”
Today, as you think about your relationships, Thank God for those friends and family that challenge you to be closer to God. Then, thank the Lord that you have a Friend, Jesus, who always “sticks closer than a brother.” See ya tomorrow on our Journey to the Cross.
Pastor Kevin
