'Jesus' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them?” vs. 7 Luke 18:6-8 When Luke wrote these words of Jesus, he understood many disciples were having a tough time remaining faithful. In some places they were being persecuted (and sometimes being put to death), by agents of the Empire, and they were naturally looking for help from God. The parable Jesus told implied that if…
Daily Devotions
Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart.” vs. 1 Luke 18:1-5 When things aren’t going our way, we will regularly turn to prayer to get our lives straightened out. In those moments we are looking for almost any source of relief, and there is always the hope that God can make things right. But then when the problem doesn’t go away and in fact the situation worsens, it’s easy to…
Daily Devotions
For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires…” vs. 3 2 Timothy 4:1-5 Early Christian leaders were aware of how fickle their congregations could be. Charismatic preachers traveled from city to city with messages that were confusing and misleading. Often their teaching undermined the centrality of Christ and provided alternate perspectives on the way of salvation. Only by focusing…
Daily Devotions
Then the man said, ‘You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.’” vs. 28 Genesis 32:26-31 The wrestling match by the ford of the Jabbok was a turning point in the life of Jacob. He had reached maturity, and his Gen-X days were over. He had his wives and his children. His beloved Rachel was pregnant with Benjamin. There would be no more sons or daughters. He…
Daily Devotions
Then he said to him, ‘Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.’” vs. 19 Luke 17:15-19 Sometimes the details in the gospel’s healing stories are important. In this instance we note that Jesus never touched the lepers. Nor does he offer any prayer for their healing. He simply told them to go and show themselves to the priests which was the standard prescription in the book of Leviticus for dealing with any kind of…
Daily Devotions
As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!’” vss. 12-13 Luke 17:11-14 There were several skin diseases endemic to the Holy Land, and those who suffered from them were known by the generic term “lepers.” It was believed that these diseases were spread by contact, and so anyone with a rash of any kind was considered contagious and subject to quarantine. Lepers evidently traveled in groups…
Daily Devotions
So, you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, ‘We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!’” vs. 10 Luke 17:6-10 In this little parable Jesus says that the role of the slave is to do the master’s bidding without expecting praise or thanks. Presumably the disciples would have agreed. That’s how slavery works. But it must have been a jolt then when Jesus goes on to describe…
Daily Devotions
And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’” vs. 6 Luke 15:3-10 Because the parable of the lost sheep is so familiar we sometimes don’t even question the lunacy of the shepherd. Even in those pastoral times it’s doubtful that any shepherd would leave ninety-nine sheep in the wilderness and then go searching for one who had gone missing. It doesn’t…
Daily Devotions
Now all the tax-collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.” vss. 1-2 Luke 15:1-2 The message that Jesus was proclaiming was of particular interest to the broken and the hurting, and when he came to the villages, those folks came out in large numbers to listen to him. He told them stories of a loving and merciful God and…
Daily Devotions
Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence or stand in the place of the great; for it is better to be told, ‘Come up here’, than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.” Proverbs 25:6-7 Proverbs 25:6-7 The book of Proverbs was one of the three books of Hebrew scripture that have been classified as Wisdom Literature. Its content varies but generally it includes a variety of pithy sayings and observations gleaned from various sources…
Daily Devotions
When he said this, all his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing.” vs. 17 Luke 13:15-17 Jesus hadn’t minced words when he corrected the leader of the synagogue and his cronies. He called them hypocrites, and the people responded with rejoicing. Not only were they happy to see the bent woman straightened; but they were also likely thrilled to see the religious leaders put in their…
Daily Devotions
Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight.” vss. 10-11 Luke 13:10-14 When Jesus saw the bent woman in the synagogue crowd as he was teaching on the sabbath, he couldn’t contain himself. Even though he knew there was a law against healing on the sabbath, he…