A Father Who Defends Me
by Fr. David M. Knight
February 28, 2024
Wednesday (Week II of Lent)
Lectionary No. 232
Jeremiah 18:18-2; Psalm 31; Matthew 20:17-28
"Lord, listen to what my adversaries say." Jeremiah 18:19
As children, we ran to our fathers when anyone attacked us, physically or verbally. They couldn’t always stop people from talking bad about us, but they gave us confidence in ourselves, taught us how to deal with it.
Our Father in heaven does that for us still. He did it for Jesus.
Jesus applied to himself what he said to his disciples about the request they made: “This is not mine to give. It is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” When his people were rejecting him, refusing him the title of Messiah, Jesus went to the Father, but accepting ahead of time that whatever the Father wanted was all that mattered. That gave Jesus confidence and strength.
“Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name” (John 12:27).
Psalm 31 teaches us to go to the Father with confidence: “You will free me from the snare they set for me, for you are my refuge…You are my God. In your hands is my destiny.”
Jesus’s Father is our Father. He does for us what he did for Jesus. We rely on him for all glory, power, and for life itself (John 8:54; 10:18).
ACTION: Whenever you are upset, go to the Father
PRAYER: "Father, help me."
Reflections brought to you by the Immersed in Christ Ministry
