In Touch Devotional 5th March 2024 Message by Dr. Charles Stanley
Read In Touch Devotional 5th March 2024 – Tuesday Daily Devotional Message Written by Dr. Charles Stanley
TOPIC: Jesus Is Hospitable
SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: Luke 19:1-10
1 Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. 3 He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.
5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.
7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.”
8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
MESSAGE: Even though Jesus had no home to call His own, the Gospel accounts reveal His ability to make others feel at home in His presence. Wherever the Lord went, He intentionally welcomed those with open hearts and “ears to hear”—including sinners and tax collectors—into the household and family of God.
Although Zacchaeus was a tax collector well known for extortion, Jesus countered his sin with generosity. In this way, the Lord showed that true hospitality doesn’t come from material resources, but from a heart that sees and serves others with God’s love. “Hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house,” Jesus declared as He looked up at the tree where the man had climbed for a better view (Luke 19:5). Imagine Zacchaeus’ surprise to find that Jesus sought him out, even though he was in an unlikely place. This is true for us, too; no matter how small or unnoticed we may feel, God sees us and loves us.
Jesus’ hospitality prompted Zacchaeus’ own display of generous hospitality. When we show others that we see them and God sees them too, hearts and lives are transformed. Understanding and embracing God’s hospitality toward us—no matter how great our sin—enables us to extend that same hospitality to others as we invite them to join us at Jesus’ table.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Joshua 1-3
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: Ask the Lord to help you see those who need your welcome today.
Dr. Charles Stanley was the founder of In Touch Ministries and a New York Times best-selling author. Throughout his ministry, he demonstrated a keen awareness of people’s needs and provided Christ-centered biblically based principles for everyday life.