Pray For Them
Something that we all have in common is access to the Father through prayer. There is no specific way to pray, but in Luke 11:2-4 Jesus teaches the disciples how to pray efficiently. In His prayer he began by praising God, and then made his request. Be sure that our prayers aren't full of requests, but are a mixture of thanking God for all he has done and asking him for the things you need. Verses 2-13 in Luke 11 focus on three aspects of prayer: (1) It's content, (2) our persistence, and (3) God's faithfulness. Sometimes we treat prayer as a time to just ask God for things, and we miss out on a chance to actually be in conversation with God. Let your prayers be a way to communicate with God on a deeper level, be intentional in your time of prayer. (Luke 11:9-10) In the end of this prayer (Luke 11:4) forgiveness is the main focus. In order to fully understand what it means to be forgiven we must also forgive those who have wronged us. It can be hard to let go of what people have done to us, but when you refuse to forgive you are only holding on to the pain that person caused. Pray and ask God to give you a heart to forgive and love those who have wronged you. (Colossians 3:13)
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The Pharisees still had it out for Jesus, this time they accused Jesus of being empowered by satan. Jesus used their accusations against them basically saying if he were empowered by the devil, why would the devil drive out his own demons? At this point, the Pharisees were saying any and everything to disown Jesus. Even after all the healing, and miracles that Jesus performed they still didn't believe. There was so much evidence, but why didn't they grasp the fact that Jesus was the Messiah? There will be people around you that will see how God has moved in your life, but still have their own doubts about actually following Jesus. All we can do is pray that someday they will see who Jesus really is.
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Jesus began to warn the people of unbelief and criticizes the religious leaders for their wicked ways. (Luke 11:39-41) They were so focused on looking the part that they ignored the inner work of their hearts. We must be careful not to fall into the hands of society and make everything about appearances. The real work starts within, and your outer life will naturally reflect.
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It's also important that we are careful what we take in from our religious leaders. Make sure the leaders you follower are who they say they are. The Pharisees were adding to God's law, and tainting how others viewed Jesus. But they would be held accountable for the wrong they did, and so will we. Jesus is returning one day, and we must be ready to stand before the Father.
What sin in your life is keeping you from God?