THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 8 “To you, O people, I call out; I raise my voice to all mankind.” (Proverbs 8:4) Wisdom is accessible and available to all people. It is written into the very fabric of nature… God built it that way. If we take time to reflect on things, wisdom will reveal itself. But…
Cling to what is good!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 7 “Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.” (Proverbs 7:3) This passage is a warning about the seductive power of temptation. Although the temptation here is sexual, any form of temptation fits in. What is your weakness, what is the ‘bait’ that Satan uses in my…
The silence of the bystander
“Let us remember: What hurts the victim most is not the cruelty of the oppressor but the silence of the bystander… Let us not forget, after all, there is always a moment when a moral choice is made….” (Elie Wiesel, survivor of Auschwitz, author, and Nobel peace laureate)
Jesus’s missionary family!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 3:31-35 “Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:35) Jesus loves all people, but he loves in a special way those who obey God’s will. But who actually does this… we all fail to fulfill God’s will for our lives. But Jesus is announcing good news, that…
Open or closed to the Spirit?
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 3:20-30 “He is out of His mind!”… “He is controlled by Beelzebub!” (Mark 3:21-22) Jesus is warning those who reject what the Spirit is saying through Him. Their critical, closed-minded response to Jesus is closing them to God’s Spirit. What they see as crazy and wrong, what they reject as demonic… is…
Jesus picks me too!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 3:13-19 “Jesus called to him those He wanted.” (Mark 3:13) Do you remember picking teams as a kid? I never got to be the one picking, and was usually one of the last picked. As captain, Jesus makes some odd picks, at least from a human viewpoint. Peter the big mouth, James…
When the church needs to be silenced!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 3:7-12 “But he gave them strict orders not to tell others about him.” (Mark 3:12) Jesus silences the impure spirits, even though what they say is true. He knows that they are not good press, that they cause more harm than good. They want to whip up the crowds into rebellious frenzy,…
Saved to do good!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 3:1-6 “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil….” (Mark 3:4) Do any of God’s laws prohibit doing good for others? Goodness is God’s original plan, the ‘very good’ of creation restored. (Genesis 1:31) Jesus saves us SO THAT we can live good lives again; with Him, like…
An insight into… me!?
A master we can love!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Psalm 123 “As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master…” (Psalm 123:2) In one sense, we are like slaves to God… and yet not. Slaves to humans are usually treated with contempt. But in this psalm, God is not the one who abuses humans. Humans, not God, are the…