Public Reading: Luke 8:19-39

The Story

•    Jesus’ family

o    Brothers and sisters came to find him

*    The scriptures suggest that these are Mary and Joseph’s kids (Jesus’ half-siblings)
*    The concept that they were Jesus’ cousins or just Joseph’s kids from a prior marriage came about in the 200 AD when folks where inventing things about Jesus

o    Emphasis on ‘doing’ rather than simply ‘believing’

“My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.”-Jesus, Lk 8:21

•    Storm at sea

o    Skipping this passage until next week when we are at Pinehurst

•    Demon possessed man

o    Jesus cross over into Gentile country

*    This kind of goes against the story that Jesus didn’t care about the Gentiles

•    Especially since he healed the Roman army officer’s servant earlier

*    Yes, the Scriptures do way that Jesus came first to the Jewish people – but this doesn’t mean that he hated or forgot about the Gentiles (praise the Lord!!)

Continue reading Afraid of Jesus →

For those who teach, you will undoubtedly known that there are some days when it seems that your teaching is…well…off. Its not that the teaching was necessary ‘bad’ or that the material was hard… it is just that something was…off… I can’t explain it as it is more arbitrary than defined…

Either way, it is enough to say that I have felt off on my teaching the last few weeks with things not really flowing as normal. Yet something (again, nothing ‘defined’ per-say…just felt) changed over the weekend hanging out with the youth. God just opened my heart and allowed words to spill out in a way that felt right. Yeah…it was good. 😀

The Passage

Public Reading: Luke 8:1-18

Audio recording can be found on the PRV website.

•    Traveling band

o    The 12
o    Some women

*    Very strange as women were not typically mentioned
*    Nor allowed to travel with men, especially men who were not their relatives
*    These ladies also provided the funds for Jesus and the 12 to travel and share the Kingdom message

o    Jesus message reached all levels of society

•    The Parable
Continue reading The Sower and the Soils →

Public Reading: Luke 7:1-17

(An audio file of the sermon can be found here)

The Story:

•    Jesus just finished the “Sermon on the Plain” and went into Capernaum
•    At this point we see two short stories that most of time are separated

o    The Healing of the Centurion’s Servant
o    The Raising of the Widows Dead Son

•    However, I believe these two stories are connected with each other and with the Jesus’ teachings on the plain.
•    St. Luke often told things in pairs (male and female)

o    Birth Narrative

*    The angel’s visit to Zechariah, John the Baptist’s father
*    The angel’s visit to Mary, mother of Jesus

o    Purification at the Temple

*    The prophetic word of Simon at the temple when Jesus was a baby
*    The prophetic word of Anna at the temple when Jesus was a baby

o    Healing

*    The Healing of the Centurion’s Servant
*    The Raising of the Widows Dead Son

o    Parables

*    Man who lost a sheep
*    Women who lost a coin

•     This is in mind, let us look at the similarities of these two stories

Two Stories; One Message

Continue reading God Has Visited His People… →

Public Reading: Luke 6:1-11

(Audio file of this sermon can be found on the PRV website)

Background

•    This is a strange passage, at least to me, as it doesn’t make sense why the Pharisees were upset at Jesus for eating a little grain or for healing a guy’s hand…
•    Some understanding Jewish background helps shed some light on the passage

The Sabbath

•    The Sabbath first appears in the Bible in Exodus 16:23 when God tells the Israelites to gather enough Manna for two days as the next day was going to be a “Sabbath rest”

o    Strange concept for slaves used to working seven days a week
o    Some of them went out looking for it, but there was no Manna….
o    God told them to rest

•    Then in Exodus 20 we find the Sabbath rest as part of the Ten Commandments

8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

•    Why was this important?

o    Because it was a sign between God and the Israelites (Exodus 31:12-17)

12 Then the LORD said to Moses, 13 “Say to the Israelites, ‘You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the LORD, who makes you holy.

14 “‘Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Anyone who desecrates it is to be put to death; those who do any work on that day must be cut off from their people. 15 For six days work is to be done, but the seventh day is a day of sabbath rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day is to be put to death. 16 The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. 17 It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed. ’”

*    The Israelites were to trust God that he would take care of them
Work

Continue reading “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” →

Public Reading: Luke 5:27-39

Same story, different author: Mt 9:9-17, Mk 2:14-22

The Story:

•    Jesus was walking around when he passed a tax-collector sitting at a tax-office

o    Tax-offices were usually placed at city gates, under bridges, etc
o    People would pay their taxes and receive a receipt

•    Called Levi to follow him

o    Levi has traditionally been connected to Matthew due to Matthew 9:9-7
o    Levi does not show up in the list of 12 Apostles while Matthew does

•    Levi threw a party and invited all his friends as well as Jesus
•    The Pharisees and legal experts (maybe the same one’s from the house with the hole in it? Lk 5:17-26 )

o    Questioned Jesus on why he ate and drank with the wrong people?

For the Sick not the Healthy

•    Jesus responds to their questions with one of the most important sayings of the entire Bible

“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” –Luke 5:31-32

o    This goes against all common wisdom!!
o    The Messiah was supposed to come for the righteous as they had been towing the rope of the Law and keeping the Faith alive
o    Yet Jesus said that he didn’t come from them, but for the sick that are in need of a doctor.

•    Doing What Jesus Did

o    If this was Jesus goal, then it needs to be our!

•    We exist as a church not for Bible studies, Sunday morning services, signs or wonders

Continue reading I Came for the Sick… →

Public Reading: Luke 5:1-11

The Story:

•    Jesus’ background

o    Healed Simon Peter’s mother-in-law
o    Left to preach the Kingdom of God in other towns

•    Came back through the area

o    The people wanted to hear him teach
o    Borrows Simon’s boat as voices carry over water

•    Fishing Trip

o    Simon had fished all night with no luck; Remember that Simon is a  professional fisherman.
o    Agrees to do so as he trusts Jesus, who is a traveling teacher/carpenter
o    Remember that he saw Jesus heal his mother-in-law so there was some trust build up

*  St. John tells us that Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was a follower of John the Baptist who heard John call Jesus the “Lamb of God” (John 1);
*  Andrew then went and found Peter and brought him back to follow Jesus
*  This is most likely how Jesus meets Simon in the first place.
*  It may also explain why Jesus went to Capernaum (where Simon lived) after being kicked out of Nazareth (Lk 4)

o    Huge catch of fish

•    Jesus calls Simon to follow

o    Also calls John and James

Disciples:

•    1st Century Jewish education

o    Bet Safar –ages 5 to 10 – taught by the local Rabbi – memorized the Torah
o    Bet Talmud – ages 10 to 14 – memorized Psalms, prophets, etc – taught how to ask and answer questions
o    Bet Midrash – at age 14 the best of the boys would try to find a Rabbi to take them in

Continue reading Wearing The Dust… →

Public Reading: Luke 4:16-30

Message

•    Jesus returns home from being baptized and spending 40 days in the desert fasting and prayer.

o    Goes to ‘church’ as normal
o    Stands up and reads a passage out of Isaiah 61

•     Isaiah 61

o    It is a messianic passage written by Isaiah pointing towards the day when the rule of God would break into this evil world and destroy sin and death
o    Jesus says that it was fulfilled through him.
o    It becomes Jesus’ “vision statement” for the rest of his ministry
o    It should be ours…

•    “God’s Community Center” => on the forefront of what God is doing worldwide

o    It is a pioneering ministry.
o    Free food, free clothes, free prayer, and free hugs
o    A center that can be used to teach people how to break the cycle of poverty and spiritual bondage as well as a place to belong

•    Anger at giving mercy to the wrong people

o    Nazareth => settlers town of conservative Jewish people

*    Jesus grew up in Nazareth and would have known the folks and the mindset

o     Left out portions of Isaiah 61

*    Jesus only read the first few lines
*    Left out

•    Vengeance of God upon the Gentiles
•    Israel will be called oaks of the Lord
•    Ruins rebuilt to former glory
•    Gentiles will work their fields and take care of their animals
•    All of Israel  will be priests => no work, just study and worship God
•    Gentiles wealth will belong to the Israel
•    Israel will have a double portion and glory instead of shame

*    The people of Nazareth were astonished at this!

Continue reading Giving Mercy To The Wrong Folks →