Throughout His ministry – now going on three years – Jesus has battled the expectation that He will be a political Messiah, one who fulfills all the prophecies of a triumphant ruler who will lead Israel over its enemies. The expectation stems from a misunderstanding of Old Testament prophecies about His second coming. His followers […]
Jesus and His followers come to Jericho, the last major stop before Jerusalem. The group traveling with Jesus likely grows as other pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem for Passover join them. Since Jesus knows the disciples think He’s going to declare Himself or usher in the Kingdom once they reach Jerusalem (19:11), He warns […]
In the first 30 verses of Luke 18, Jesus discusses how believers should respond to His words about the end times and impending judgment from Chapter 17. The Son of Man will come back to judge the world and call His children to glory, so His people should live accordingly. We cannot live like those […]
The wonderful thing about the book of Psalms is that it meets us where we live. It tells about good times and mountaintop experiences, but it also speaks to trials and disappointments, times that don’t make sense, times where God seems silent or absent. In a word, the Psalms talk about life – real life […]
ThemesGod’s sovereignty in all things.God works through ordinary people living ordinary lives. IntroductionJosephus says that Ruth takes place right after the death of Samson.Judges covers 1373 – 1043 BC. Ruth likely toward the end of this time as there are only three generations from Ruth to David. Chapter 11Bethlehem to Moab = 50 milesSee Deut […]
Chapter 17 is made up of several sections and it’s not entirely clear how or if the sections go together. They are separate vignettes and it’s also not clear if they occur chronologically or if Luke groups them for another purpose. If we were to assign an overall title to the chapter, it would be […]
This is the second of two lessons on Chapter 16. The message of the chapter, told in two parables and a showdown with the Pharisees, is that the disciple of Christ must use the temporary resources of this sinful world to affect eternity. The believer is a steward of what he has and knows the […]
The message of Chapter 16, told in two parables and a showdown with the Pharisees, is that the disciple of Christ must use the temporary resources of this sinful world to affect eternity. The believer is a steward of what he has and knows the rewards of this life are finite, thus it makes no […]
Chapter 15 illustrates the two sides of Jesus’ ministry. On the one side are the sinners and tax collectors – the deplorables of society – who are attracted by Jesus’ compassion and teaching of forgiveness. On the other are the religious leaders – the elite of society – who are threatened by Jesus and horrified […]
Jesus’ approach to ministry is unconventional to say the least. In this passage He notices the huge crowds that follow Him and decides to winnow their numbers by giving them a sobering picture of discipleship. His sales pitch to them is, “Follow Me and your life will be really hard.” It’s not exactly a hard […]
The first 24 verses of this chapter all revolve around a meal. There are four vignettes in this passage, but all take place during a dinner at the house of a prominent Pharisee. Jesus uses the setting to point to a truth that’s repeated throughout Luke and all the gospels: self-righteousness and its associated spiritual […]
Life and belief are urgent. That’s the quick message of this passage. For the second time in this chapter (see also 13:1-9), Jesus stresses that the time for belief is right now. Other questions about salvation and who will be saved and how many and where they’re from or whether certain people will get in […]
Jesus engages in another Sabbath Showdown and uses it both to illustrate the dangers of hypocrisy and to make a statement about why He came to earth. Ultimately, the healing of the woman with the demonic disease, while glorious and loving, is about more than her and more than the Jewish religious leaders. It’s about […]
The teaching on judgment that ended Chapter 12 leads to a discussion as to why tragedies occur and if God uses them to punish the unrighteous. Jesus explains to His listeners that bad things don’t only happen to deserving people but they are a reminder that life is unpredictable, and judgment is certain. The lesson […]
Jesus finishes His comments in this section of Luke with a proclamation that His coming has ramifications for all people. His appearance and redeeming work are not benign. He brings salvation but salvation only exists where there’s judgment. And since that’s the case, Jesus’ appearance and sacrifice mean people must choose and those choices decide […]
Throughout this address that started in verse 1 of Chapter 12, Jesus has focused on the next life as much as this one. He warned about hypocrisy in verses 1-5, making His listeners aware that all things will someday become known. He said that anyone who confesses Him before men will be confessed in front […]
We worry about, long for, and admire the wrong things. That’s essentially the message from Jesus in this passage. What we think are important, what we think would make life much better, what take up so much of our time and energy, what fill our thoughts and cause anxiety are things that God tells us […]
There is no reason to be a hypocrite. That’s the overarching message of the first twelve verses of Luke 12. Hypocrites are hypocrites because they care about themselves and the opinions of others more than they care about God, His love, or His judgment. And while there are dire ramifications to this kind of duplicity […]
This is the second awkward meal involving Jesus and a Pharisee that Luke records. Before (7:36-50), the meal was dinner. In this text, it’s lunch. Regardless of the time of day, it’s pretty much a given that planning a get-together around food for Jesus and a Pharisee is not going to end well. In both […]
American presidential elections are amazing, aren’t they? They truly are unique in the world. No other country on earth has election seasons that last as long, consume as much money, or dominate as much media as ours do. Our campaigns last the better part of a year and seem to go on forever. They divide […]
A merciful and miraculous act by Jesus causes the Jewish religious leaders to show the worst side of their unbelief. What should be a cause for celebration instead triggers blasphemy and arrogant demands. How Jesus answers these sinful reactions teaches us much about the evil of the human heart, the dangers of self-righteousness, the choice […]
Luke does not record the Sermon on the Mount in its entirety as Matthew does. He spreads the teaching throughout the book and highlights different teaching at different points. In this passage, he records what Jesus says about prayer as found in Matthew 6, but takes a slightly different approach and adds to it a […]
In this text, Jesus answers a question with what most would agree is His most famous parable. The parable of the Good Samaritan is very familiar to any believer and recognized even by those who know next to nothing about the Bible (or who may not even realize it’s from the Bible). The term “Good […]
In a replay of what He did with the twelve (Lk 9:1-6), Jesus sends out a large group of disciples to proclaim the kingdom of God. He sends them to prepare the way for Him as He travels to Jerusalem. In so doing, He teaches us that there is urgency in proclaiming the good news; […]
Jonah’s initial conversation with God after He relented concerning the judgment of Nineveh is over. God asked him if it was good that he was so angry over God’s mercy and Jonah did not reply. He decides to leave the city and wait to see what happens. Some think that verses 5-11 describe a flashback […]
Nineveh repented and God relented. Jonah’s mission was an amazing success – far beyond what a neutral observer could ever expect. He seemingly learned his lesson, preached in obedience to God, received an amazing response, and saved thousands of lives from judgment. It is now time for everyone to go home happily ever after. Or […]
The author sets up Chapter 3 to roughly parallel Chapter 1 (to a lesser extent the same is true of Chapters 2 and 4): God calls Jonah 1:1-2 3:1 God calls JonahJonah responds to the call 1:3 3:3 Jonah responds to the callJonah travels to the ship 1:3 3:3 Jonah travels to NinevehJonah warns of […]
1:17Jonah has been thrown overboard and is presumed dead. The storm is gone and the sailors are worshiping Yahweh on the ship. God’s plan for Jonah, however, is not over. We do not know for how long Jonah sinks into the sea before the fish swallows him. In his prayer he will make it plain […]
Introduction and BackgroundThe Book of Jonah is the fifth of the Minor Prophets (The Book of the Twelve). It is unique among the “Latter Prophets” in being almost completely narrative. Jonah, the son of Amittai, from Gath Hepher in Galilee (cf. II Kings 14:25, Joshua 19:13), prophesied during or shortly before the reign of Jeroboam […]
The Magnificat – so named because it’s the first word in the Latin translation of this passage – is a psalm. It’s a poem spoken by a teenager rejoicing over her condition. Her condition is – needless to say – unique in all of history. She’s pregnant. She’s a virgin. And the baby she carries […]
Jesus does not leave us guessing as to what it takes to be His disciple. He has already said a disciple must deny himself and take up his cross daily, and that a disciple has no claim on his own life (9:23-26). In this text He goes further and explains that a disciple can’t seek […]
One of the wonderful things about the Bible is how it presents its heroes. We don’t just read about the triumphs of Abraham, Moses, and David, and they aren’t presented as supernatural saints that never make a mistake. We see their faults and sins too. It’s why the Bible is ultimately a book about the […]
To understand The Transfiguration, it’s important to understand its context. Jesus ended His discussion of the cost of discipleship by telling His followers that He will someday come in glory (vs 26). He then – surprisingly – said that there were some listening to Him who would witness this glory before they died (vs 27). […]
Go for the gusto…Be all you can be…You deserve more…Because you’re worth it… Taste the rainbow…Have it your way…You rule!…Deny yourself and take up your cross. One of those slogans doesn’t seem to fit, does it? That last one kind of ruins the vibe of the preceding seven. It communicates quite a different message than […]
God is all powerful. God is all knowing. God is merciful. Because of His power, God can act in ways that supersede the natural order of His creation. Because of His knowledge, He knows exactly what His people need and when they need it. And because of His mercy, He lovingly ministers to His children […]
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.” ~ Isaiah 55:8-9 “God works in mysterious ways” is a very old saying that is very […]
Sin is the outworking of evil. It is the overriding characteristic of the current world. It negatively affects everyone and everything. Nothing in this world is what it would be if sin didn’t exist. It is the biggest problem man faces because it undergirds every problem man faces. And, most importantly, it separates man from […]
There is much to learn about weathering the storms of life from the story of Jesus calming the storm on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus shows the disciples that there is nothing outside of His authority and there is never a reason to lose faith when He’s nearby. In the same way, He shows us […]
Jesus continues to preach the kingdom of God, and in so doing uses a parable to explain how the kingdom spreads in the hearts of those who hear its message and accept it, but also how it’s rejected by those who hear its message but are too enamored with the world to believe it. The […]
Ever been in an awkward social situation? Ever felt unwelcome at a gathering? Ever eaten a meal at someone’s house only to have an immoral woman walk in and start washing your feet with her tears and anointing them with perfume? No? That’s what happens to Jesus in this story. He eats with a Pharisee, […]
We learn several things from this strange story in Luke 7. We learn that even God-ordained, miraculously-born heralds of the Messiah can doubt in the midst of trial. We learn that God can use the confusion of notable prophets to instruct and reassure His people. We learn that the greatness of John the Baptist doesn’t […]
Two amazing miracles. Two demonstrations of Jesus’ sovereignty over creation. Two signs of His divinity. Two victories in His continuing war against a fallen world. Two demonstrations of compassion and one amazing example of faith. Luke begins this chapter with two scenes from Jesus’ life that show we serve an omnipotent and merciful Redeemer who […]
Jesus concludes His sermon with a final application comparing those who look saved with those who truly are. He’s just explained that there are false believers who bear bad fruit and true believers who bear good fruit. And He told us that words will expose the hearts of those who profess the truth versus those […]
It’s time to learn about trees and the fruit they produce. Jesus takes what He just said about judgment and hypocrisy and uses it to launch into a lesson about how to identify good trees (true believers) and bad trees (false believers). In both cases, they’re identified by the fruit they produce. Bad trees produce […]
After telling His followers to love their enemies – a revolutionary concept that turns every natural human impulse on its head – Jesus doesn’t let up. He now explores mercy and all its ramifications. Just as the citizen of the kingdom of God must treat his enemies as God does, so he must have the […]
My mom died last week and we celebrated her life today. Below is a tribute I delivered at the funeral in her honor: When we met with the funeral home to start planning today, the representative we met with asked each of us in the family to tell her something about mom. We all kind […]
Here’s my thesis: Christmas lists take the magic and fun and surprise out of Christmas and reduce it to a transactional holiday morning. Once lists enter the equation, Christmas effectively becomes a baby shower or wedding reception with lights. There are times and places for pre-determined buying decisions, but Christmas isn’t one of them. A […]
Love your enemies. It’s a simple sentence, isn’t it? It’s an imperative made up of three words, none of which is hard to understand. It’s short, it’s easily definable, it’s easy to read and speak. There’s absolutely nothing about it that’s complicated at all. It even kind of rolls off the tongue. What we realize […]
Starting in verse 20 and lasting through the end of the chapter is what some call the Sermon on the Plain. Likely the same sermon as the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7, it is Jesus’ manifesto explaining how a citizen of the kingdom of God is to live. In a word, the godly […]
Jesus chooses twelve men from among His disciples to be apostles. The men He chooses are in some cases expected and in others surprising. The varying personalities, lifestyles, and professions show God’s sovereignty and mercy and act as a preview of a kingdom where there will be neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male […]
