When Jesus instructed his followers from the mountain, he instructed them on their inner life. Merely religious people tend to practice their religion before others to be admired by them for their righteousness. However, Jesus’ followers cultivate an inner righteousness by following Jesus when no is there to see them, because they understand that trueContinue reading “Our Inner Life”
Tag Archives: religion
Disappointment with God
During Jesus’ testing in the wilderness, Satan took him to the pinnacle of the temple and stated that since Jesus was the Son of God, he should throw himself down so that God would send angels to save him. Jesus saw the devil’s second temptation as testing the Lord God, which we are commanded notContinue reading “Disappointment with God”
Our Foundation of Freedom
When Jesus cried out from the cross asking why God had forsaken him, the word he used to describe what had happened has particular significance. While Jesus was forsaken on the cross, after Jesus’ resurrection Peter declared quoting David from the Psalm 16:8-11 that the Messiah would not be abandoned (forsaken) to Sheol. Here PeterContinue reading “Our Foundation of Freedom”
The Irony of Unbelief
As Jesus hung on the cross, the majority of those who saw him mocked him, but unknowingly their mocking was filled with irony. Some mocked Jesus because he had earlier claimed that if they tore down “this temple”, he would raise it back up in three days. They believed Jesus had referred to the JewishContinue reading “The Irony of Unbelief”
The Destructive Power of Fear
The account of Jesus’ trial before Pilate makes no logical sense, until you figure in the emotion that was present. Just days before, the crowd had praised Jesus as he entered into Jerusalem, declaring him to be the son of David. The religious leaders should have followed Jesus and rejoiced at his coming, because theyContinue reading “The Destructive Power of Fear”
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”
Why people may reject Jesus
Observing the reaction of the religious leaders to Jesus is instructive. Jesus did amazing things; primarily he helped people. So we must ask the question, why would the religious leaders react so negatively to him? What do we know about the religious leaders? They often did not act or speak the truth, because they fearedContinue reading “Why people may reject Jesus”
Knowing Jesus
How do we know we belong to Jesus? John, whom we also identify as “the Baptist”, was a prophet in the mold of the Old Testament. Theologians consider him to be the last of the Old Testament prophets. In his message to the people he was blunt and even harsh. To the people who cameContinue reading “Knowing Jesus”
The Irony of an Offense
It can happen that what we consider truth may actually hinder us from growth in our understanding. Jesus revealed an ironic truth to the religious leaders during his conversation with them after he healed the man by the pool on the Sabbath. They rejected Jesus for two reasons; he healed on the Sabbath and heContinue reading “The Irony of an Offense”
How to respond to blessing
In the parable of the talents, Jesus taught his disciples how to respond to blessings in our life. The first two servants responded by using their blessings (talents) for good, but the third man hid his because he was afraid of the Master. In fear, he actually accused his Master of stealing from others (seeContinue reading “How to respond to blessing”
David Freitag 