This week we discuss another parable unique to Luke’s Gospel. On the surface of things, it looks like a story about prayer, but as Luke tells us, it’s really about whether we place our trust in God or in ourselves. We also discuss the themes raised by the Reformers: justification by faith versus the attempt at self-validation through works, pride versus humility, and contempt for others versus our equality before God. Finally, we discuss the challenge of calling people to put their trust in God in a world that is all about self-validation through any and all other sources.

This week we our Gospel lesson comes from section of Luke’s “Journey to Jerusalem” narrative that is moving more quickly toward its conclusion. As we see the Samaritan as the one who is saved by his faith, we are reminded that it is the “outsiders” who respond in faith while the Jewish religious leaders, and even the disciples, do not. We also talk about how the Reformers approached this passage, which more often than not is a study in approaches to avoid! Finally, we discuss the implications of the idea that it’s the least likely people who in Luke’s Gospel serve as the exemplars of what it means to have faith and to respond faithfully to Jesus.

This week we our Gospel lesson comes from section of Luke’s “Journey to Jerusalem” narrative that is moving more quickly toward its conclusion. As we see the Samaritan as the one who is saved by his faith, we are reminded that it is the “outsiders” who respond in faith while the Jewish religious leaders, and even the disciples, do not. We also talk about how the Reformers approached this passage, which more often than not is a study in approaches to avoid! Finally, we discuss the implications of the idea that it’s the least likely people who in Luke’s Gospel serve as the exemplars of what it means to have faith and to respond faithfully to Jesus.

This week we talk about the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, which is not a story about the afterlife, but rather a dramatic illustration of the theme of the “Great Reversal” that is so prominent in Luke’s Gospel. Jesus uses this story to provide a theological basis for his willingness to cross boundaries of “clean” and “unclean” with the mercy of God’s kingdom. We look at some interesting historical background, especially surrounding the wars of religion in France. Finally, we discuss ways to help people see past the wording of this parable to what Jesus was addressing.

This week we talk about the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, which is not a story about the afterlife, but rather a dramatic illustration of the theme of the “Great Reversal” that is so prominent in Luke’s Gospel. Jesus uses this story to provide a theological basis for his willingness to cross boundaries of “clean” and “unclean” with the mercy of God’s kingdom. We look at some interesting historical background, especially surrounding the wars of religion in France. Finally, we discuss ways to help people see past the wording of this parable to what Jesus was addressing.

This week we are discussing one of Jesus’ most difficult parables. There are several questions that we take a look at, and as a result, we conclude that Jesus uses this parable with an ironical twist: he does not “commend” the “shrewdness” of the manager, but rather uses him as an example of what disciples are not to do. We discuss the Reformers’ approach to this difficult passage, and observe how even Calvin had some trouble with it.

This week we were prevented from recording due to illness, so we are reposting our episode on the Prodigal Son from March 27, 2022. Although it focuses on the Parable of the Prodigal Son, we also deal with the parables of the Sheep and the Coin. Hopefully we’ll be back on track next week!

This week we discuss one of the most difficult of all Jesus’ sayings, not just about the cost of discipleship but the consequence of not being willing to align one’s life with the kingdom of God, but continuing to find one’s identity in other ways. We discuss the response of the Reformers to various attempts to read this passage too literally, and their insistence that we must follow Christ in this world and not by leaving it. Finally we talk about the challenge this passage poses to biblical interpretation and to our lives today.

This week we talk about another episode where Jesus not only heals on the sabbath, but also instructs the Jewish religious leaders about the principles of the kingdom of God in which the first are last and how that relates to their social and religious norms. We discuss how the Reformers’ efforts at effecting change contributed to the beginnings of modernity, especially with the rise of cities. Finally, we discuss the practical implications of trying to put into practice the open-handed generosity of God’s kingdom.

This week we discuss an episode where Jesus carries out his ministry of “release” by healing a woman who was bound and not able to stand up straight, thus redefining “sabbath” observance from one of restrictions to one of engaging in the work of the kingdom of God. In our discussion of the Reformation, we found that the Roman Catholic Church took this passage as a prooftext for “exorcism.” We also look at varying definitions of keeping the sabbath in the Reformed tradition. Finally, we discuss how to approach “sabbath” today.