It was an amazing moment when Jesus was meeting with His disciples, and He questioned them, “Who do you say I am?” Peter impulsively gave the right answer: “You’re the Christ.” Jesus celebrated the response and praised Peter for his unnatural insight. But while Peter understood that Jesus was the Christ, he failed to understand what that actually ... [Continue Reading]
Loopholes with God (Matthew 15; Mark 7)
As little children we learn to manipulate. One of the amusing examples that I’ve seen is when my niece or nephew asks my brother for something and doesn’t get the desired result, he or she then goes to their mom to see if the outcome might be more in their favor. I’m not sure anyone taught them how to be manipulative, but as fallen human beings, these things ... [Continue Reading]
When the Going Gets Tough (John 6)
Jesus said a lot of challenging things. I’ve commented on this before, but I’ll bring it up again: nobody wants to crucify Mr. Rogers. There’s a point where we have to realize that Jesus wasn’t just a nice man who did nice things. He said hard stuff, and people who were to be His followers weren’t signing up for the easy route. True, Jesus said ... [Continue Reading]
Walking on Water (Matthew 14; Mark 6; Luke 9:1-17)
One night as the disciples were traveling on water, they saw what appeared to be a ghost in the distance. In reality it was Jesus walking across the water. Peter, being the one who constantly leapt before he looked, asked Jesus if he could walk on water too. Can you imagine making such a request? But Peter did, and Jesus invited him out. ... [Continue Reading]
The Divisiveness of Faith (Matthew 9-10)
How did Jesus know that faith would be such a divisive thing? Matthew records that Jesus warned His followers that persecution was a guarantee for those who chose to follow Him. But how did He know? Shouldn’t faith be something that brings peace? And yet we can look at the world’s history and see wars fought over faith, political campaigns ... [Continue Reading]
Jesus and Storms (Matthew 8:14-34; Mark 4-5)
Sometimes I don’t give the Disciples enough credit. I mean, they were able to spend time with Jesus on a regular basis, and they saw the many miracles He performed. And yet there was still a naivety about whom He truly was and what He came to do. If I was in their shoes, I’m not sure how I might have perceived Jesus. One thing is for sure, ... [Continue Reading]
A Hidden Treasure? (Matthew 13; Luke 8)
Jesus told a story of a man who found a treasure hidden in a field. He realized the great value of what he had found, so he quickly gathered as much money as he could by selling his possessions, and he bought the land where the treasure was hidden. And then Jesus said that the Kingdom of God is similar to this. In other words, the Kingdom of God is of ... [Continue Reading]
The Overflow of the Heart (Matthew 12:22-50; Luke 11)
We're pretty good at censoring our words (although even that is a practice that's somewhat waning in our culture), but every once in a while a person slips. Out comes this expletive or nasty thought that surprises everyone around us, including ourselves. Where did it come from? Jesus told people that, from the overflow of the heart, the mouth ... [Continue Reading]
Rest… Finally! (Matthew 11)
I'll never forget a backpacking trip I took with my brother last year. We were hiking the Foothills Trail, and it was nothing short of exhausting. On Day 2 we hiked close to 15 miles, and we were both struggling to make it to the camp site. When we finally arrived, we collapsed on the ground and laid there for about 30 minutes. I think ... [Continue Reading]
Guilt by Association (Matthew 8:1-13; Luke 7)
One thing I really appreciate about Jesus is that he was never concerned about being guilty by association. If anyone could be accused of having an interesting set of relationships and people whom he hung around, it would be Jesus. There were tax collectors, sinners, prostitutes. His associations ran the gamut, but he never worried about how he would ... [Continue Reading]
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