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; […]
In these three passages, Luke examines who gains entrance into the kingdom of God. Is it reserved for the ultra-religious, for the highly esteemed, for the rich and powerful? Or is it counterintuitively open only to those who understand they have no qualifications at all? In the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, […]
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 […]
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