Empty Hands
Mick Murphy - 8/16/2026
In this message from Luke 18, "Empty Hands," Mick Murphy walks through the persistent widow, the Pharisee and the tax collector, and Jesus welcoming the children to show that no one enters God's kingdom on the strength of their own righteousness. We come to the good judge with nothing to offer but our sin, and he fills empty hands with mercy through faith in Christ. Part of Grace Church's ongoing series through the Gospel of Luke.
Weekly Reflection
“All you can do is bring God empty hands so that he can fill them up.”
Most of us are quietly building a case for ourselves, at work, in our marriages, with our kids, hoping we look like enough. But the parable in Luke 18 puts a morally upright man and a man who has nothing to offer side by side, and only one of them walks away justified. The tension is real: we know we're supposed to trust God's grace, and yet we keep reaching for our own resume to hand him instead. Empty hands feel like weakness, but Jesus says they're the only way in.
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This Week’s Challenge:
Pause and ask: what am I still holding onto to prove myself to God? Name one thing you'll do this week to put it down and come to him with empty hands instead.
Scripture:
Luke 18:1–17