Luke 17-18

“Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, ‘The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed ... because the kingdom of God is in your midst.’” (Luke 17:20). While the Pharisees congratulated themselves on their public morality and assumed they would be rewarded, Jesus insisted that the struggle between God’s kingdom and the world’s kingdom ran through every human heart. Only those who humbled themselves like children (18:17) would be accepted by the Father.

“Lord, I want to see” (18:41). Our greatest struggle is against the blindness and pride of our own hearts. Jesus calls us to lay everything down to follow him (18:29).