Luke 19:47-48 And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him, 48 but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words. English Standard Version (ESV)
Oftentimes when I'm reading through a passage in the Bible I'll come across a word or a phrase that I've read many times before that now catches my attention. I don't know if it is particular circumstances or perhaps the Spirit doing a work, but it will cause me to stop and think about it. Such was the case today when a I read in verse 48 (above) "all the people were hanging on his words".
Can you think of a time when you were "hanging" on someones words? We may feel that way when we are listening to a good story waiting for the outcome to be told. You can picture a child listening to a story for the first time as I've seen with my grandchildren. But more than that I can relate to times when you have a meeting with a doctor and you are waiting for a diagnosis, a prognosis, hoping for good news, focusing on what the doctor has to say and following through on his recommended course of action, whether it be medication or perhaps surgery.
The setting here in Luke 19 shows the chief priests, scribes and lay leaders hearing Jesus' words and cringing, trying to find a way to bring him down or actually do away with him, something eventually accomplished by hanging him, having him nailed to a cross. For those who truly heard what he had to say it was quite different. He offered healing, hope, forgiveness, all things that the leaders failed to deliver.
It is still the same today. Many are trying to minimize Jesus', trying to squash the gospel and it's message of hope, healing and forgiveness. Others, the true followers, still hang on His Word. May we "hang on His words as we read and study the Bible and listen to those who preach the gospel of healing, hope and forgiveness in our churches.
Luke 19:45-48
The Message (MSG)
The Message (MSG)
45-46 Going into the Temple he began to throw out everyone who had set up shop, selling everything and anything. He said, "It's written in Scripture,
My house is a house of prayer;
You have turned it into a religious bazaar."
You have turned it into a religious bazaar."
From then on he taught each day in the Temple. The high priests, religion scholars, and the leaders of the people were trying their best to find a way to get rid of him. But with the people hanging on every word he spoke, they couldn't come up with anything.
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