End Times In Matthew’s gospel, Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Christ (16:16), the long awaited Jewish Messiah, occurs just before what we call the Transfiguration (17:1-8). When Jesus was transfigured before Peter, James and John, His whole being shone with a brilliance that meant no one could continue looking at Him. We would think
Our Daddy God Going a little further, he fell to the ground and prayed that if it was possible the hour might pass from him. “Abba, Father” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” Mark 14:35,36 Some years back I was
Matthew the Tax Collector Matthew was a tax collector. This may have been a hated occupation but it was also very exacting. It made Matthew a very precise man. So where he placed different stories in his gospel is worth noting. Remember that the gospel writers followed the writing tradition of their day of grouping
Simeon’s Faith Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. Moved by the Spirit, he went
Those Who Serve Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest Luke 22:24 In the very verse before this the disciples are questioning among themselves which one of them would betray Jesus. They are coming to the end of the upper room Passover meal with Him and
The Truth of the Resurrection I know the resurrection is a fact, and Watergate proved it to me. How? Because 12 men testified they had seen Jesus raised from the dead; then they proclaimed that truth for 40 years, never once denying it. Every one was beaten, tortured, stoned and put in prison. They would
A Story of Healing Mark 2 opens with the well known story of the paralytic man being let down through the roof – a crowded house, a crowded street, people digging through brushwood and lowering their friend on a stretcher. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven’
Relying Entirely on God Calling the twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil spirits. These were his instructions: “Take nothing for the journey except a staff – no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. Wear sandals but not an extra tunic… Mark 6:7-.9 The
Talking About Sin Each of the gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, have placed stories and dialogue together because they touched on similar themes. That was a common way of writing in the first century. Today we assume that what we’re reading follows chronologically (the order it actually happened). It follows then that we
The Resurrected Body And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins 1 Corinthians 15:17 It’s strange to think how many people deny and dismiss any thought of Jesus’ resurrection because “that would make Christianity different from all the other faiths.” That’s just the point. Christianity is
