When day came, Jesus left and went to a secluded place; and the crowds were searching for Him, and came to Him and tried to keep Him from going away from them. Luke 4:32
INTRO: First, we’ll take an ariel view and point out a few things
A parallel is developed between the first two scenes (vv. 31-37)
– Luke uses three words that describe the response of people to Jesus to link these scenes read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you
Hear then the parable of the sower. . .
And the one on whom the seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. Matthew 13:18-23
I am not a good listener. I know that to be true, but I do not know why. When I try to listen, my attention is drawn to the wrong message or is distracted by other sounds. When listening for God, I frequently hear nothing. When Jesus explained why he taught in parables, it was for people like myself (v. 13). How fortunate it is for me that he explained the parable of the seed and the soils. read more…
Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. Matthew 5:17
INTRO: This morning’s gospel reading was Matthew 5:13-20
It is a small patch of a much larger quilt, The Sermon On the Mount
– and for whatever we might say about it, the sermon is not a lovely philosophy of life or a useful outline for human behavior and interactions
– in fact, some of it is rather harsh (for example, if we fail to be the “salt” Jesus says we are to be, we are “no longer good for anything”) read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you
Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
You will keep on hearing, but will not understand;
You will keep on seeing, but will not perceive.
Matthew 13:1-2
Jesus used a quotation from the prophet Isaiah to answer a question raised by the disciples, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” Since the people who came to hear Jesus teach were exactly like those that Isaiah described, he accommodated his message to their ability (or inability) to see, hear, and comprehend. The Lord interpreted his audience through the lens of scripture. read more…
The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,
And the recovery of sight to the blind,
To set free those who are oppressed
To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord. Luke 4:18-19 (read verses 14-30)
INTRO: In this passage Jesus’ ministry is summarized from the outset
Luke is tracking Jesus’ steps
– he’s been baptized, completed his ordeal, and now he’s back in town
– but he’s returned different – “in power”
Almost immediately he becomes a public figure (v. 14) read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you
That day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea. And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach. Matthew 13:1-2
Where could Jesus potentially go and what could he be doing at this stage of his ministry? He could be strategizing with disciples, hosting conferences for Pharisees, recruiting zealots, counseling married couples, designing programs, building a campus, fundraising for an institution, or any number of projects to promote himself and his ministry.
Jesus was “sitting by the sea.” A wonderful place to rest, pray, meditate, and contemplate the glory of God. People read more…
First Light
Some mornings, I get so enthused over what emerges from my meditation in scripture
that I feel a need to share it with someone else. I really should know better, because
what looks terribly interesting to me in the predawn stillness may appear silly or
uninteresting to others in the glaring light of day. Regardless, I am naive enough
to think you will find something worthwhile in this morning’s contemplation.
When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, saying, “These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day. Matthew 20:9-12 (If you are not familiar with this passage or the story of the wealthy young landowner, you will want to read Matthew 19-20 to get the context of this parable.)
The physics of the kingdom of heaven: A person can be brought into a workplace on the lowest rung, work the least amount of time, do the least work, suffer the least, and receive the same award (wages earned) as those who were first and had worked long and grueling hours (thereby relativizing the status of “first place”). Strange physics, that one percent of the labor on a project can produce the same benefits to the laborer as twenty, fifty and one hundred percent of the labor did for the others (Mt. 20:1-9). read more…
“Christ In the Wilderness”
Ivan Kramskoy
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Holy Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry. Luke 4:1-2
[Yes, we re returning to the temptation story again this week. There are a couple more points that I wanted to draw out before moving on.]
INTRO: These first two verses set the stage for the episode that follows
The camera zooms in on Jesus first – his name appears as the story begins
– he is a long way from home, from family, and from the old neighborhood
He is being guided through a transition
– he’s not in charge of this moment in his life, but he’s ready
– he braves the desert alone, subjecting himself to two opposing forces read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you
“For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother.”
Matthew 12:50
What do you suppose the disciples of Jesus were doing at the moment he stretched his hand toward them and said, “Behold My mother and My brothers!”? They were probably doing what we are doing right now; that is, trying to get to know him, to learn from him, and to figure out what God wanted from them. They certainly were not trying to look religious or act pious. Nor were they busy doing “ministry”–at least not at that moment. read more…
Daily Meditations From the Scriptures