Throughout the Gospel we see Jesus responding the to grumbling of religious people, and the expectations that he shatters. While it is all too easy for us to read even these sorts of texts self-righteously, there is a reality that they stand as a confrontation to each of us – to our wrong-headed expectations of how God ought to work. Ultimately, we will see in this parable that each one of us has been given a sacred trust to steward. And we will answer to our Master in the end for how we have invested His abundant generosity.

Throughout the Gospel we see Jesus responding the to grumbling of religious people, and the expectations that he shatters. While it is all too easy for us to read even these sorts of texts self-righteously, there is a reality that they stand as a confrontation to each of us – to our wrong-headed expectations of how God ought to work. Ultimately, we will see in this parable that each one of us has been given a sacred trust to steward. And we will answer to our Master in the end for how we have invested His abundant generosity.

Zacchaeus was a wee little man (and a wee little man was he…). His encounter with Jesus is a funny story that cuts to the heart of Jesus’ identity and mission. It also shows us how we can respond to Jesus, and reveals some of the obstacles that get in our way.

Zacchaeus was a wee little man (and a wee little man was he…). His encounter with Jesus is a funny story that cuts to the heart of Jesus’ identity and mission. It also shows us how we can respond to Jesus, and reveals some of the obstacles that get in our way.

This text begins with Jesus making a call to his disciples to see the path laid out in front of them. He called them to see and understand the mission he had come to accomplish. Yet, the disciples were blind. In a beautiful and stunning turn in the story, it is a blind man who really sees Jesus for who He is. We explored spiritual blindness and sight and saw that Jesus is the One who can make those who were once blind see.

This text begins with Jesus making a call to his disciples to see the path laid out in front of them. He called them to see and understand the mission he had come to accomplish. Yet, the disciples were blind. In a beautiful and stunning turn in the story, it is a blind man who really sees Jesus for who He is. We explored spiritual blindness and sight and saw that Jesus is the One who can make those who were once blind see.

This is the story of Jesus’ interaction with a rich young ruler. Money is a recurrent theme throughout Luke’s Gospel. In this text we see the difficult call of Jesus on His followers’ lives. We also see that wealth makes following Jesus more difficult, contrary to our hardwired perspective on God’s blessings. It’s a challenging text on considering what real stewardship looks like.

This is the story of Jesus’ interaction with a rich young ruler. Money is a recurrent theme throughout Luke’s Gospel. In this text we see the difficult call of Jesus on His followers’ lives. We also see that wealth makes following Jesus more difficult, contrary to our hardwired perspective on God’s blessings. It’s a challenging text on considering what real stewardship looks like.

We had the chance to hear from Pastor Shaun Cross. Pastor Shaun is working to plant Union Church in NE DC, and is part of the Acts 29 Network. Pastor Bill had the privilege to serve on his assessment team as he came into the Network.

We had the chance to hear from Pastor Shaun Cross. Pastor Shaun is working to plant Union Church in NE DC, and is part of the Acts 29 Network. Pastor Bill had the privilege to serve on his assessment team as he came into the Network.