Seven Mile Road

As Jesus continues moving towards Jerusalem and questions increase concerning when the Kingdom of God will appear, Jesus tells a parable about servants being faithful to their task (or not!) when their master is away. As the master returns, we see that faithfulness matters and that a servant’s action reveals the heart.

As Zacchaeus, a rich tax collector, looks for Jesus, he finds that Jesus is the one looking for him. Even more, Jesus finds Zacchaeus, who is immediately transformed. As others grumble that Jesus would associate with someone like Zacchaeus, Jesus reveals his primary mission: to seek and save the lost.

We can’t seem to see it. Our own sinful faults in our life, don’t show up for us -except occasionally in the periphery. Jesus performs his last miracle healing in Luke. With this he brings into focus our initial blindness to sin. This also is the model for dealing with our on-going sinfulness while on the path of growing in holiness & humility.Text: Luke 18:35-43

Suffering. Mocked. Whipped. Murdered. Raised Up.

This is the sequence of experiences that Jesus tells his 12 disciples is coming for him in Jerusalem.

They do not understand what he is saying. They will not understand until he goes through suffering and death and is resurrected. Then, the resurrected Son of Man by the Spirit makes them understand his Gospel.

We also need the Spirit of God to open our eyes in faith to see the cross, death, and resurrection of Jesus as our glory and not shame, our victory not defeat, our hope not vanity and meaninglessness.

Those who follow Jesus willingly choose to align with him and his kingdom, even if the result is being shamed by friends, mocked by co-workers, or rejected by family.

Luke 18:18-30

How many of us are ready to do the impossible? The answer is “none,” because that is what it means for something to be impossible. That's bad news if what we really need most is that which is impossible for us to get. Well what about God? Now we are getting somewhere. What is impossible for us to do, all that which is most important, is possible for God. He does the impossible all the time, and that is our hope. In Luke 18 we encounter two contrasting responses to Christ's command to "follow me," a seemingly impossible command, but one that garners eternal life. We see that what man cannot do, namely inherit eternal life, God can do, and He has done that on our behalf by sending Jesus Christ. 

Luke 18.9-17
As we return to our series in the gospel of Luke, we will hear Jesus’ story about the prayers of two men, one very religious and one very guilty. As they pray, their hearts and sources of hope for acceptance by God become clear, and God’s glorious love for people, especially when they haven’t earned it, is even more evident.

Jesus was born, but he wasn’t born where you’d think a prince would be. It was the opposite: he was born where animals live and then placed in a feeding trough. Though shocking, this was also perfect and fitting. The King is actually here … He’s here for us.

Having been fooled by the wise men after they found baby Jesus, an angry King Herod seeks to find Jesus for himself. Herod, however, is looking to kill Jesus … not worship him. Born a child but yet a king, Jesus is humble in appearance and seemingly at risk. As we read, we’ll see that God is fulfilling his promises even in the earliest days of Jesus’ life and that he (and his kingdom) prove to be unstoppable.