Author: Norm

THE STORY OF JESUS: John 6:52-59 “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them.” (John 6:56) These words of Jesus are difficult for many to swallow. According to Jewish tradition, the manna symbolized the Torah. As the people lived on manna, Jews were to live on the ‘word of God’….

THE STORY OF JESUS: John 6:41-51 “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them.” (John 6:44) God is actively seeking everyone (Acts 17:26-27). We do not find God, God finds us; we do not discover life, we receive it. Religion is our attempt to find God; Jesus is God’s finding us. Every…

THE STORY OF JESUS: Psalm 112 “Good will come to those who are generous.” (Psalm 112:5) “The longings of the wicked will come to nothing.” (Psalm 112:10) We get what we seek: pursue good, and we find it… pursue bad, and… This song celebrates those who long for goodness, for everyone. They are generous, honest, fair, compassionate, reliable….

THE STORY OF JESUS: Ezekiel 34-36 “I myself will search for my sheep and look after them.” (Ezekiel 34:11) Ever since humans ruined God’s ‘very good’ world, God has been at work. Through Abraham God set up nation as a base for restoring creation. But Abraham’s heirs did not cooperate, and they continued to sow badness. Here…

THE STORY OF JESUS: Ezekiel 31-33 “My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to hear your words. But they do not put them into practice.” (Ezekiel 33:31) Ezekiel preaches against the nations (ch.31-33), but also to his own people (ch.33). Here God warns that they love to listen, but not to…

THE STORY OF JESUS: John 6:30-40 “Whoever comes to me will never go hungry. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” (John 6:35) As a Jesus follower, is it true that I never go hungry or thirsty? By describing Himself as bread, He is speaking figuratively. So how, figuratively speaking, am I spared from hunger and…

THE STORY OF JESUS: John 6:25-29 “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” (John 6:29) Is this all the work that God requires: to just believe? Believing is more than agreeing with a series of truths. To profess our faith does not mean we have faith. To practice our faith…

THE STORY OF JESUS: John 6:16-24 “Neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they went in search of Jesus.” (John 6:24) The crowds were not searching for the disciples, but for Jesus. Jesus is the one that God sends, and that people need. The disciples were with Jesus, and they were OK. But the people wanted Jesus,…

THE STORY OF JESUS: John 6:1-15 “Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them…” (John 6:11) So many people, so many needs, so few resources. I can certainly relate to this. In ministry we are always facing too few resources and too many needs. Yet we serve the One Who has come to deal with these…