The Bible in Time...

Dear Friends, Grace and peace from our loving God. Let us pray … O God, the giver to us of all things, I thank you today for home, family, air, health, less pain, reasonable weather,  the love between people, and siblings bound together by your love. Be with those today who have lost a loved one or business colleague through suicide. Be in their presence as they weep and mourn. May they find comfort in you and move to joy in living … For all these things and the things you know we need, we thank you, Eternal Giver of Life. Amen dwe Today’s Parable - The Two Debtors / Luke 7:41-43 [See Snodgrass, pp. 77 - 92 and Kendall, pp. 113- 121.] Thoughts - As one who is blessed to carry too much debt,  these parables on debtors strike home for me. The context of Luke 7 where Jesus shares the story teaching is - Jesus ran into a Roman military officer who’s faith stuns Jesus  Jesus raises a son from the dead John sends two of his disciples to ask Jesus if he is the One? Jesus point...

Dear Friends, Grace and peace from our loving God. Let us pray … Kindle in our hearts, O God, the flame of love that never ceases, that it may burn in us, giving light to others. May we shine forever in your temple, raging set on fire with your eternal light, even your Son Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer. Amen A Celtic Liturgy - Morning Prayer, p. 21;  Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2008, ed. Today’s Parable - Wineskins / Luke 5:37 Jesus in this scene is having a party with known sinners after the conversion of a tax collector. Some religious people are critical of this action. They point to the disciples of John the Baptist and whose piety is fasting and prayer and why is Jesus not doing it their way. Kendall points to this parable of Jesus as a calling of established and mature religious people to create themselves as new wineskins for new wine. (If you put new wine in old wineskins, it will explode because of fermentation.) The Holy Spirit constantly inspires...

Parables - Jesus as Storyteller 1st Edition - The Parable of the Sower Dear Siblings in God, Grace and peace from our loving God. I would ask you to read the Sower parable from Matthew 13:1 - 9 and Jesus’ explanation from Matthew 13:18 - 23. Jesus teaches us the acceptance of the Word of God by a variety of people.  Seeds on Path - bird eat them up - hears the Word but does not understand. Seeds on Rocky Ground - grew quickly but no roots and died - when persecution comes they fall away. Seeds on Thorns - grew and were choked - hears the Word but cares of the world and lure of wealth chokes the word and the person. Seeds on Good Soil - grew and created much yield beyond imagination - the Word produces great fruit. In this parable, we are fortunate that Jesus takes the time to explain it to the disciples. The disciples are special to receive the teaching for there are many who don’t understand and ultimately have no faith.  The journey of the mature Christian will face ...

The Swine Driven into the Sea , by James Tissot (1836-1902) [public domain /  Wikimedia Commons ] My Mini-Bible Study for 2019 | Read the Bible in a Year Come join us at any time!  Let the words of our mouths, and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable to you, O God, our strength and our salvation. Amen Today’s Reading 9/17/2019     Day 260 Mark 4:1 – 5:43 Reflection | Today - Jesus, in these chapters, is teaching through parables - Short stories with a point-, traveling, teaching disciples| privately, healing - casting out demons, a woman with chronic bleeding, and raising the dead.  Parables on the Kingdom of God- Sowers and soils - which one are you? Lamp - cast your light to others and light up the world Seed - takes root and grows and is abundant. Mustard seed - Grow in faith and let people live. The demons clearly identify Jesus, the crowd sees a healer, the disciples are wondering what is going on? and defying of every...

http://theorthodoxchurch.info/blog/news/entry-of-our-lord-into-jerusalem-palm-sunday/ google search My Mini-Bible Study for 2019 | Read the Bible in a Year Come join us at any time!  Let the words of our mouths, and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable to you, O God, our strength and our salvation. Amen Today’s Reading 9/11/2019     Day 254 Matthew 21: 1 – 46 Reflection | Today - Chapter 21 - Jesus has a triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Jesus then cleans the Temple of commerce to remake it a house of prayer. Leaders - What Authority? Jesus - What authority did John the Baptist have? Leaders - We don’t know. Jesus- then you don’t know. I will not answer. Sinners will be saved. Story of the vineyard and the owner and evil tenants.  Leaders get mad but feared the crowd. Background |  Background by Center of Biblical Studies.   More Background by Mark Powell. Matthew +++ The Next Days of Readings | 9/1...