Monthly Archives: November 2010

Wedged between two passages about riches is this bridging passage.  We frequently don’t see how whole books of the Bible are written as units.  We do not see the Bible itself as one large story of the whole of human history.  We need … Continue reading →

The parable that I read yesterday was hard to understand.  Why does Jesus praise a man who seems so crooked?  In the story a man is called before his boss for swindling and has a week or two before he … Continue reading →

The story of the prodigal son is quite famous.  However, the story is not really about the son.  The story is about the father and the older brother.  The father responds to the prodigal’s return with relief, compassion, and mercy.  … Continue reading →

God goes in search of that which is lost.  Are we willing to be his agents to seek and find those who are willing to turn back to him?  The reckless abandon of deserting 99 sheep to look for one, … Continue reading →

It’s no easy task being a Christian.  Jesus will accept no-one who puts anything before him.  To be a disciple means putting everything else in its right place, that means that it is second to Jesus.  The language here seems … Continue reading →

Some people wait to make amends with God until their death bed.  Some people believe in living it up before they adopt the dull twilight of religion.  Heaven for some is a boring eternity of harp playing on some cloud, … Continue reading →

The Jewish people thought that, as genetic descendents of Abraham they would be withing God’s Kingdom.  When someone realized that Jesus was casting doubt on Israel’s access to The Kingdom of God, they asked if most would be saved.  Jesus … Continue reading →

As a former school administrator I frequently had to deal with discipline.  There were two basic approaches advocated to do away with misbehaviour.  The most immediately popular way to deal with sin was to legislate it away, in other words … Continue reading →

Jesus was not forever meek and mild.  He was gentle to those who needed encouragement but he pulled no punches about the consequences of rejecting Him and His teaching.  He starts today’s passage by saying that he brings fire.  He … Continue reading →

” He will cut him to pieces and asign him a place with the unbelievers (v.46).”  How can someone who has been a member of Jesus’ kingdom be cut to pieces?  There are those who are in the church but … Continue reading →