Day 38: Do as I Say and as I Do

…”stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” ... And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. Luke 24:49 & 52

             Have you ever heard the saying, “Do as I say, not as I do”? It points out that most people don’t live up to their ideals. It’s easier to know what’s right and tell it to others than it is to actually do the right thing so that others can learn by example.

            But Jesus is not a hypocrite. He is an example for us in both His actions and His teachings. His mission (and a mission He gave to us, too) was to do the will of God. In John 6:38, He says, “I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.” He obeys God the Father perfectly, even when it cost Him everything; many of the Gospels record that Jesus prayed that He would not need to die. Yet He willingly went to the cross anyway.

            Before His death, He gave the same mission to His followers. John 14:15 says simply: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” and later in the same chapter He reminds the disciples that His words are the same as the Father’s words. So we are to obey the Father and the Son, just like the Son obeyed the Father.

            Here in Luke, Jesus has one simple command for His followers as He goes: stay in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit comes. It might seem unimportant - the Holy Spirit can be anywhere, after all. It might not seem necessary to stay in a particular city, but the disciples went back to Jerusalem, and they did it willingly. They returned “with great joy” for many reasons - Jesus had risen, He had been glorified, He had promised to always be with them - but their obedience was one of the things they did with joy.

 

Questions for reflection and discussion

  • Are there things you know you ought to do, but aren’t doing?
  • Do you obey God with joy?

Prayer

Dear God, help us obey You in word and in deed. Thank You for giving us the example of Your Son, who did Your will perfectly. In Jesus’ name, amen.