Luke 8:1-3

Luke 8:1-3Let us mark our Lord Jesus Christ's unwearied diligence in doing good. Let us mark the power of the grace of God, and the constraining influence of the love of Christ. Let us mark the peculiar privilege which our Lord grants to His faithful followers. "Let the diligence of Christ be an example to all Christians. Let us follow in His steps, however far we may come short of His perfection. Like Him, let us labor to do good in our day and generation, and to leave the world a better world than we found it.""Let the recollection of these women encourage all the daughters of Adam who read of them, to take up the cross and to follow Christ. Let no sense of weakness, or fear of falling away, keep them back from a decided profession of religion.""He is pleased to work by means. He condescends to use the agency of missionaries, and the foolishness of man's preaching, in order to spread His Gospel. And by so doing, He is continually proving the faith and zeal of the churches."Questions:1. Do we lean towards idleness or diligence in our daily lives? In what ways are we ‘redeeming the time’ in this season for the glory of God?2. Dear sisters, does the example of Mary and Joanna and others encourage you to take up the cross and follow our Lord despite opposition?3. Ryle says that “true love counts it a pleasure to give anything to the object loved.” In our efforts to redeem the time, do we do it with joy? Is our giving done with a cheerful heart or begrudgingly? Do we love giving ourselves for Christ’s sake?