THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 11 “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life….” (Proverbs 11:30) This chapter often refers to the righteous, or the upright. This does not mean the perfectly sinless person, the full meaning of ‘righteous’. It refers to those who ‘seek good’ (v.27), who strive to do what is good and…
Weak faith is strong enough!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 5:21-34 “Daughter, your faith has healed you.” (Mark 5:34) What did Jesus mean by “your faith”? In my church experience, it meant ‘your agreement to the doctrines of the church’. If you could agree with a list of creeds and confessions, you had “faith”. But in my experience, many people with this…
Speak truth to the lies and fears!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 5:1-20 “Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.” (Mark 5:17) The dark voices in this man’s head had taken over his life. I know someone right now who is also possessed by dark voices, and he is hurting many. ‘Demons’ are messengers of darkness who attack and…
The greatest miracle of all!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 4:35-41 “‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.” (Mark 4:39) This is one of those stories that people dismiss as ancient ‘fake news’. I get it, this (and the other miracle stories) are unbelievable. How many other religions and holy books claim miracles, and are they…
God’s kingdom seed!
THE STORY OF JESUS: mark 4:30-34 “It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth.” (Mark 4:31) The message of Jesus seems weak and insignificant. Love, humility, self-sacrifice, forgiveness – can that really change the world? The dominion of darkness seems so strong, it even seems to be winning. Often many…
Living for good with confidence!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Psalm 125 “The scepter of the wicked will not remain over the land…” (Psalm 125:3) As a follower of Jesus, I believe that all creation belongs to God. God created all things and made humans responsible to rule it for God. But humans rebelled by listening to the Deceiver, and things went bad….
Love covers over all wrongs!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 10 “Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs.” (Proverbs 10:12) What strikes me about these proverbs is how basic and sensible they are. I might question some of them, but most of them make sense to me. I could have chosen to reflect on all of these proverbs, I…
Listening to Jesus’s voice!?
THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 9 “Let all who are simple come to my house!” (Proverbs 9:4,16) In this chapter both wisdom and folly are described as beckoning us. At any given moment, in all our circumstances, both are calling out to us. How aware am I of the tests and temptations I face each day. Sadly…
All by itself!?
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 4:26-29 “All by itself the soil produces grain…” (Mark 4:28) Jesus is still explaining how things work with God’s kingdom. It begins from the heart (the soil), where the seed begins to grow. When the seed (the grace of Jesus) and the soil (the heart) mix, things happen. “All by itself” points…
Flourish with grace!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 4:21-25 “Whoever has will be given more…” (Mark 4:25) In this context, Jesus is still talking about the result of God’s message in our lives. God wants to bring His goodness out into the open through us. To shine like a light in a dark world, to flourish like a bumper crop…