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MEDITATION:

Written by John Wijngaards, a contemporary scripture scholar, author, and a laicized priest. This is an excerpt from his book “Inheriting the Master’s Cloak.”

In the face of the needy, the sufferer, the enemy, we see the face of the incarnate God. What we do to the needy, the Some time ago, when I was browsing through John’s Gospel, I came across these reassuring words of Jesus: “Whoever believes in me will do what I do – yes, he will do even greater things” [John 14:12]. That is surely an exaggeration, I thought. It cannot be true. This has to be understood as hyperbolic language. Doing greater things than Jesus has done? But when I studied the context and began to think about it, the full impact of Jesus’ statement dawned on me. Jesus meant what he said, and its message has weighty implications.  Jesus has just declared, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” He goes on to say that he is in the Father and the Father in him. Also, his teaching is not his own teaching, but the Father’s. Jesus’ activity, in other words, what he does and says, reveals the Father. Whatever Jesus does—the preaching on the kingdom, the manifestation of his power, his service to the people—is all work done by the Father. In the same way the Father will work in Jesus’ disciples. Jesus is going to heaven, but in the disciples the same work of the Father will go on. The disciples, therefore, will do what Jesus did—yes, even greater things than he did.

PRAYER:

Written by James Merritt, a contemporary pastor and author.

God, Your Son Jesus gave me the ultimate example of what it means to be a servant. Not only did He serve in practical ways, but He also served me to the point of giving His own life for my sin. Reveal to me ways in which I can serve others every day. Broaden my horizon when it comes to serving, and help me to not only look for practical ways to serve others every day, but also to grow in my service by acting as a servant in every facet of life. In Jesus’ name. Amen.