Reconciliation

Why Jesus Teaches Us To Forgive

Have you ever considered the wisdom of Jesus’ instruction to pray for those who have hurt you and continue to make life difficult for you? By this Jesus didn’t mean that we pray that God would judge them or protect us, but rather that God would bless the very individuals who have hurt us. Recently,Continue reading “Why Jesus Teaches Us To Forgive”

Jesus Available To All

At the time of Jesus’ birth, outside Bethlehem an angel announced Jesus’ birth to shepherds. The angel declared to them that their Savior, the Christ/Messiah had been born. They would have a sign of a child lying in a feeding trough, wrapped in swaddling clothes. This sign to the shepherds enabled them to find Jesus,Continue reading “Jesus Available To All”

Immediately after Jesus returned from the region of the Gerasenes, Jairus, the synagogue ruler came to Jesus for him to come and heal his daughter. On the way, a woman touched Jesus’ clothes and was healed, because she believed she would be, if she touched his clothes. Jesus felt the power leave, but did notContinue reading “Reconciliation”

Jesus’ Death

Matthew 20:28 reveals Jesus’ primary purpose for coming. He came to give his life as a ransom for many. The word “lutron” in Greek refers to the price paid to release a slave. The ransom was paid to fulfill the requirements of the Old Testament law. That means Jesus’ death was not paid to theContinue reading “Jesus’ Death”

Divine Compassion

Following Jesus is much more than external behavior. Jesus made this point in his parable of the unmerciful servant. That parable was prompted by Peter’s question regarding how many times he should forgive his brother. Peter assumed up to seven times, Jesus corrected him with the instruction to forgive seventy times seven times. Jesus thenContinue reading “Divine Compassion”

Overcoming Evil

Recently I was reminded of the age old question, if God is so loving, why doesn’t he stop evil in the world. This is both a concerning and personal question, but it also raises the problem that humanity faces. Adam, when he was confronted with his transgression of eating the fruit from the tree ofContinue reading “Overcoming Evil”

Righteous or Self-Righteous

I have learned and am learning that much of God’s truth for us is quite subtle. In Romans chapter 4, Paul makes some statements that are quite easy to gloss over, but when you ponder them, they are quite profound. In Romans 4, Paul uses the case of Abraham to argue the concept of beingContinue reading “Righteous or Self-Righteous”

True Religion

When the Pharisees pointed out the failure of Jesus’ disciples to follow the traditions of the elders, Jesus addressed their hypocrisy that had been previously addressed by Isaiah the prophet, through whom God declared that the people honor him with their lips, but their hearts are far from him. The Pharisees were those who livedContinue reading “True Religion”

How Jesus Views Us

In Mark 3, Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they could not reach him due to the crowd that was all around. Someone informed Jesus that his mother and brothers were there, expecting him to go and greet his family members, but Jesus made a surprising statement. He declared that his motherContinue reading “How Jesus Views Us”

Jesus’ Call To Us

The Jewish people of Jesus’ day had a similar view of the world to what we now call “Karma”. If you do bad things, bad things will happen to you. Recorded in Luke 13, some came to Jesus telling him that Pilate killed some Galileans and mixed their blood with sacrifices. Jesus addressed their assumptionContinue reading “Jesus’ Call To Us”