THE STORY OF JESUS: Deuteronomy 1-3 “Look at the land with your own eyes, since you are not going to cross this Jordan.” (3:27) Though Moses has been a part of their story, he will not enter this next chapter. He gets to see it, but he does not get to experience it. To some extent,…
Author: Norm
Grace from beginning to end!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Matthew 19:1-9 “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning.” (Matthew 19:8) The Pharisees were students of the book (John 5:39-40). They knew exactly what Moses said, but they did not know the heart of God. Jesus explains that what Moses…
Walking the bridge of forgiveness
THE STORY OF JESUS: Matthew 18:28-35 “Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?” (Matthew 18:33) Jesus reminds us of the connection between forgiving, and being forgiven (Matthew 6:12). We are on the bridge of forgiveness with God. If we hack it down to keep others from crossing, we go down…
Keep counting, His mercy never ends!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Matthew 18:21-27 “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” (Matthew 18:22) Whether 70×7, or 77 times, its a whole lot of times. In other words, stop counting, just forgive! Jesus is not suggesting a mathematical formula for how long to show mercy. He is magnifying Peter’s attempt at being extra-gracious… ‘you’ve…
The power of WE!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Matthew 18:15-20 “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” (Matthew 18:20) Here Jesus explains how disciples ought to unite together against division. Make every attempt to restore broken relations, involve the church if needed. As God’s children, we together share the authority over creation (Genesis 1:26-28). Together…
Open your heart and let Him in!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Psalm 24 “Lift up your heads, you gates, that the King of glory may come in.” (Psalm 24:7) When God is at the center of our life, all of life and creation fit together wonderfully. Our problem, then, is that we have evicted God from our lives, and we are now homeless. God…
My refuge!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Numbers 33-36 “They will be places of refuge from the avenger…” (Numbers 35:12) The cities of refuge were where the accused could seek protection and mercy. Justice was the law of the land, and blood vengeance was permissible. But within that death-cursed context, God provides places of mercy, of hope. Much of Moses’…
Grace and truth through Jesus!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Numbers 30-32 “Save for yourselves every girl who has never slept with a man.” (Numbers 31:18) There are parts of the bible that make me cringe. Like how the father/husband can nullify the woman’s vows. Or how the soldiers could keep young virgins for plunder. “This is the word of the Lord?” and…
Joining Jesus at Starbucks!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Matthew 18:11-14 “Will he not leave the ninety-nine to look for the one that wandered off?” (18:12) I recently renewed my commitment to serve Jesus with my life. This means that His purpose becomes mine, and where He sends me, I go. The Lord does not usually spell out specifically where and…
God hates abuse of any kind!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Matthew 18:1-9 “If anyone causes one of these little ones — those who believe in me — to stumble…” (Matthew 18:6) I recently watched a YouTube channel that exposed adults luring young teens for sex. It was disturbing to watch, and also to see their shame when caught. There was no mercy, the…