John Chapter 14 - Nathanael

John 14:12-13 - Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.  And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.   

This is always a striking promise and statement!  It is tied to two basic promises of Jesus 1) whatever we ask in Jesus' name, he will do  2) He is sending the Holy Spirit to be with us forever - that same power that enabled the miracles that he did on earth.

Both of these promises require a reliance on Jesus and not on ourselves.  They call us to fully trust and give our selves to Jesus' care.  Jesus calls us to pray in his name, not with a mere ending of "in Jesus name" but with a deep understanding of Jesus' desire and will.  That is where the Holy Spirit leads us - to the will of Jesus.

Lord Jesus, I want to follow you with all of my heart!  Holy Spirit remind me and lead me into all that Jesus said and did.  I want and choose to obey and follow.  Help me to be able to do so!

John 14:5-16 - "If you love me, keep my commands.  And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—  

This command to keep Jesus' commands is both simple and impossible!  By ourselves, there is no way that we can keep Jesus' commands.  Jesus calls us to Love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves.  Our hearts are so divided and struggling internally that this is impossible without God's grace and mercy and impossible without his Holy Spirit in us changing, leading and empowering us to do what is right.

Lord Jesus, unite my heart to trust you fully and to obey!  I love you and I thank you for loving me, even though I am still a sinner!  Thank you for your mercy!

John 14:21 - Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them."

Jesus, I thank you that you show your love to me and have shown yourself to me!  I do not deserve your love, but I thank you for your goodness!

John 13 - Hanjun

Verse 14 stands out to me, "Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another". Also verse 34, "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." 

I think washing one another's feet would indicate our humble and serving hearts toward the people in our life, and we can do this because of God's love for us. This reminds me of the movie, "War Room", in which the husband washed his wife's feet to show his thanksgiving to God and his wife. Without God's love for us, it is hard to produce these loving behaviors. 

John Chapter 12 - Nathanael

John 12:6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

This statement above is referring to Judas Iscariot who would later betray Jesus.  It is interesting to me to see how Jesus dealt with Judas throughout his ministry.  He may have known from the beginning that Judas would betray him, but still that was a part of God's plan. It would be interesting to know if/when he knew that he was stealing and if the other disciples knew about it (possibly not until later). 

God could certainly have done his work without Judas, but I think that God wanted to show us some things:

1) How forgiving and full of mercy that he is (I certainly am glad for this!)

2) The future church (body of Christ) won't be full of perfect people and some will in fact betray the leaders and the body

3) Even in these cases, mercy triumphs over judgement

In this situation, we do see Jesus correcting Judas (so it is not like Jesus left things unchecked). Obviously Judas eventually sealed his own fate and took his life into his hands, but Jesus was merciful!

Thank you Jesus for your mercy and your love!

John Chapter 10- Wun-gwi

³⁴ Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your Law, 'I have said you are "gods"'^[d]? ³⁵ If he called them 'gods,' to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be set aside— ³⁶ what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, 'I am God's Son'?

Jesus clearly and logically explained how Jesus can be God using Bible that Pharisees are using.

However, the Jewish opponent believed only they understand due to spiritual blindness.

³⁷ Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. ³⁸ But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father."

Jesus set apart himself from Father God and asked Pharisees to believe the works of Father God even though they don't believe Jesus.

Jesus thought if people believe the Father God they will understand the relationship between Jesus and Father God.

However, the Jewish opponent didn't believe the works of Father, which means they disobeyed God.

That unfaith to God makes spiritual blindness to understand!

I want to put my true faith on him and he will give full understanding on my Life, Bible, Eternal life.

John Chapter 9 - Nathanael

John 9:6‭-‬7 - After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. "Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam" (this word means "Sent"). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.
(NIV)

I think that it is interesting how Jesus does different things when healing different people.  Clearly he could have just spoken to this man and he would have been healed, he could have touched him, touched his eyes, but in this case he puts mud on his eyes.

Jesus is very intentional in what he does, so this action must have either been for the man or for those watching. Let's consider each.

Relating to those initially watching, in the narrative we mainly see the disciples who asked Jesus about why this man was blind (did he sin or did his parents sin).  Jesus then clarifies to them that his blindness was not caused by either: "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him" (verse 3).  This is quite an interesting insight, but it seems that it would still be as meaningful to the disciples if he had simply touched the man to heal him.

One group of people who later "watched" was the Pharisees.  He certainly did heal people intentionally on the Sabbath to incite a confrontation with the Pharisees about the Sabbath and their hypocrisy on the matter (Mark 3:1-6).  In this situation Jesus wasn't there when the discussion with the Pharisees happened so while this could be a reason, it is probably not the main reason.

Now looking at the man himself, we could ask why Jesus would have him wash mud from his eyes to be healed.  First, I would observe that this man didn't come to Jesus asking to be healed, so he wouldn't likely have faith that Jesus could heal him.  Secondly, by doing this, he is requiring the man to take some action and respond in faith/obedience to Jesus.  For instance, the man could have responded in several other ways - 1) become upset that he now had mud in his eyes 2) been like Namaan (2 Kings 5) and not wanted to go to Siloam but simply wash elsewhere that is closer, cleaner etc.  Thirdly, since the man was blind, he couldn't have seen or know what Jesus was doing as clearly.  This mud on his eyes was a very tactile, specific, memorable and directly tied to the healing so the man would know for sure that Jesus healed him and could plainly tell others about it.

So it seems to me that he put mud in his eyes for the sake of the man himself.  God seems to do such healing miracles to 1) point to himself as God 2) when there is a need 3) often in response to an expression of faith in God.  The mud in the eyes made points 1 and 3 be clarified and solidified.

Thank you Jesus for your love that you display in miracles!  I pray that you would reach out your hand and confirm your word through signs and wonders worked through us, your servants, as we speak about you and give you the glory and honor that is due you!

John Chapter 9-Wun-gwi

This is the good example to see how spiritual blindness works.

The Pharisees don't understand how the Born Blind healed.

Because they already decided not to accept Jesus as Jesus was not fit in to their own frame of understanding from Moses.

That can be called "spiritual blindness"

I sometimes have doubt when I tried to match Bible to own understanding on this world, spirits, science, etc.

But I also know Bible is 100% compatible to science/ nature as God created everything in the world.

I pray I can have the true spiritual eyes to clearly see and ears to hear the voice of Jesus Christ my Lord!

John Chapter 8 - Nathanael

I find it so very interesting to read John and hear so much of the voice of Jesus!  The other gospels tell much of what he did but in the gospel of John we hear so much of what he said!

Here in this chapter we see how masterful Jesus was in speaking.  He started by speaking in parables and then became more and more clear, like pulling back veils so that you could hear plainly what he was seeing.  Here are four verses that step through the chapter and you can see this progression:

John 8:12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."   

- Starts very much as a parable - only people who were interested would stick around and find out what it means since the meaning is mostly hidden.

John 8:26 "I have much to say in judgment of you. But he who sent me is trustworthy, and what I have heard from him I tell the world."   

- Moving more to clear speaking but still not saying directly who "he who sent me" is.

John 8:42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me.   

- Now he clearly says that God sent him, so we understand more of who he is

John 8:58 "Very truly I tell you," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!"

- Then he says not only who sent him but who he is - "I am".  This is God's personal name that he gave to Moses.  The people clearly understood him and that is why they picked up stones to stone him.

I thank you Lord Jesus for your words that bring life!  Please open my eyes to see and my ears to hear!  Help me to seek you and find your words, find life and find you!

John Chapter 7 - Nathanael

John 7:7 - The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that its works are evil.

It is interesting that Jesus, for the most part, isn't telling people that their deeds are evil except for the religious persons, and of course they are the ones who are trying to kill him.  He is calling people to repentance, like John did (Mark 1:5), but often is focused on those who recognize that they are sick and need a doctor (Mark 2:17), in other words, those who already know that their deeds are evil and have a desire to repent and turn to God for forgiveness.

Thank you Lord Jesus for your mercy on me and for your forgiveness!

John Chapter 6 - Nathanael

John 6:26-27 Jesus answered, "Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval."

While it is true that Jesus can do miracles and he takes care of our needs such as providing food as above, our ultimate goal should be knowing Jesus in a deep and intimate way.  Our heart should be focused on the provider and not the provision! Eternal life is really living in relationship with Jesus and it begins now!

Jesus then says that the work that we should do is to "believe in the one" God has sent (verse 29).  This believing isn't just a mental ascent, like "I believe that gravity is real." It is closer to and includes the meaning in our word "trust" or "entrust", like "I am entrusting my life and future into Jesus' hands."  That is why Paul says in Romans 10:9 that we believe in our heart (as opposed to our mind).

Jesus, I thank you that you promise to take care of my food, clothing and shelter when I seek first your kingdom, but help me to maintain my focus and my goal on you, my provider, and not the provision.  I thank you for your love and faithfulness and I entrust my life, my hopes, my dreams, my future and all of myself to you!  

John Chapter 5- Wun-gwi

Jesus said clearly about himself.

He is the son of God and same to God and has the authority from God for healing/ working.

Jesus testifies about himself using other sources like scripture, John

However, not every people can understand and accept Jesus even though they diligently study scriptures.

The reason why people can accept is because they don't have the love of God in their hearts in John 5:42

I know I often doubt Jesus/ God with my own understanding and by devil's deceiving.

With love of God, I want and pray to overcome this doubting and be in peace.

John Chapter 4- Wun-gwi

³ So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee.

⁵⁴ This was the second sign Jesus performed after coming from Judea to Galilee.

During the time of travelling from Judea to Galilee, Jesus did lots of great things like teaching/ healing.

I believe again God has great plans, sometimes we don't understand however God has plan ahead for the best for us.

¹³ Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, ¹⁴ but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

I sometimes struggles between my bible reading and research because the research I am doing now seems more urgent.

However, I'd like to remind that knowing God is more important and will give "a spring of water welling up to eternal life" and hope for my life. 

John 4 - Randy T

Verse 37-38: "Thus the saying ' One sows and another reaps' is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work,and you have reaped the benefits of their labor."

What happened to "you reap what you sow"- not True! (at least not always)

We have been trained to expect results immediately. We also have been taught "you reap what you sow" or the saying "you make your own luck" but here, we see this is not necessarily the case, at least in the work of Christianity.  in fact, you may never reap what you sow, but others will.

There is a powerful, but not attractive lesson here- sometimes, we have to simply work and trust that somewhere down the line, someone will do the reaping. Its not always for us to enjoy the fruit of our labors-but it is appropriate for us to labor in faith. This drives even more importance on us (1) understanding the value of the work we are doing, although the result may not be visible or even realized in our lifetime, and (2) to develop a joy in the work itself.  

John Chapter 3 - Nathanael

John 3:8 - The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."

I've known about this analogy of the wind in relationship to the Holy Spirit.  What caught my attention is that Jesus was saying that this is how everyone born of the Spirit should be as well.  This makes me think of two areas 1) when we are born of the Spirit we should behave like the Spirit, having the same characteristics and effects and 2) because of the Spirit in us, we should be having a noticeable effect on things around us.

I certainly want to be led more by the Holy Spirit and have his effect on people and situations around me be more noticeable and impactful!  Holy Spirit, work in me and lead me!

John 3:19  - This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.

This verse always stands out as a basic reason why many do not follow Jesus - they do not want their evil deeds exposed (love darkness, hiddenness) and they don't want to change.

John 3:36 - Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on them.

The last part of this verse really stood out to me - "God's wrath remains on them."  At the end of the day, all us start out with God's wrath on us because of our sin.  That is a scary and sobering thought! It is only by the mercy of God through the work of Jesus that we can be forgiven and have God's wrath removed.  God is a god of wrath, but he has been working overtime to try to remove us from that wrath!  His wrath is demanded by justice against evil. 

Praise be to God for his indescribable gift of forgiveness!

John Chapater 3 - Wun-gwi

21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

I think this can be the indication to see whether I am in the truth or doing evil.

If I like light and enjoy my deeds to be seen plainly, I am with God.

Sometimes, I feel that I like light and sometimes not. I want to use this indication of hating light to identify my condition and to see which one is working in me, the spirit or devil.

John Chapter 2 - Nathanael

John 2:23-24 - Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name. 24 But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people.

Jesus was not looking for fame or people to praise him.  He did amazing miracles to demonstrate that the kingdom of God had arrived and that he was God, but when people got excited about the miracles, he would often leave and go to be by himself and pray.  Here John says he would not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people.

For most people, this would be a very heady experience.  Having people follow you and say great things about you would make you feel proud and like you are a great person and would want them to continue to say great things about you.  People normally run after such fame and want more recognition from people.  But Jesus knew that people are fickle - here today and gone tomorrow.  He knew that some of these same people would call for him to be crucified.

He was humble and focused on his task.

Lord Jesus, please keep my focus on you and not on what others say or think about me.  You are my God, my Father and my all in all.  Help me to only seek you and seek to expand your kingdom and your glory!

John Chapter 1 - Nathanael

Verse 12 - Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God

This is an amazing statement and promise!  We who were far away from God and sinful can now come close to him, and even more, become his children!

All we need to do is receive Jesus and believe in his name!  At that point we have the right, the privilege to become children of God!

That right means that no-one or nothing can take it away from us!

Thank you Jesus for your amazing gift! I receive you and all that you are and all that you did!  You are the one and only God who came to purchase back my life from death and the penalty of sin!  You are my only hope and you are my God!  I believe and put my trust in you completely and in you alone!  Thank you for your love and thank you Father God for making me your child! 

On to the Book of John

For those following along in the Bible Reading group, let's move on together to the Gospel of John.

Luke Chapter 24 - Nathanael

Verse 45 - Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is amazing and the most important event in history.  God had been preparing for Jesus crucifixion and resurrection since even before the time that Adam and Eve sinned - since the foundation of the earth.  In the Old Testament, God was preparing a picture of that event, why it had to happen and how, but it wasn't clearly understood.  In this verse Jesus opened the minds of the disciples so that they could see and understand from the Scriptures the why and how that God had been speaking about for thousands of years.

I know that our own fears, doubts, weaknesses and spiritual blindness can keep us from seeing what God is speaking to us through his word, and I know that Satan is actively trying to blind us.  What I've seen in people's lives is that Jesus can "turn on the lightbulb" and open people's minds to understand.  I know that I want to see more and have more of God's wisdom and understanding.

So Lord Jesus, please open my mind to understand all that you are speaking to me as I read the Scriptures!  Thank you for your word and for your love!

Luke Chapter 23 - Hanjun

In verse 8, Herod wanted to see Jesus, not because Herod believed in Jesus but just wanted to see Jesus perform miracles. I understand now that it is not because we first see miracles, then we repent and believe in God; but because we first repent and believe in God, then we see miracles.

In verse 34, Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Jesus gave me a great example about forgiving others who sin against us.

In verse 46, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." Jesus also gave me a great example about submitting myself to God.

Luke Chapter 22 - Hanjun

In verses 39-46, Jesus and his disciples went out to the Mount of Olives, and Jesus prayed there. He said twice to the disciples, "Pray that you will not fall into temptation." The disciples were exhausted from sorrow and sleepy. If Peter prayed earnestly as Jesus did, he probably would not disown Jesus three times.

In verse 32, Jesus said, "But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers." I am thinking if Jesus didn't pray for Simon Peter, Peter might not be able to turn back. God Lord Jesus, I need your help to remind me to pray always, be watchful, and not fall into temptation.

 

Luke 22 - Nathanael

Luke 22:46  “Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”

In this context, Jesus is in the garden of Gethsemane, praying and crying out to God because he knows that his crucifixion and separation from God is eminent and the disciples are sleeping and not praying.  Jesus knew about the impending crisis and had a high sense of urgency and passion, but the disciples weren't as aware of the upcoming problems and risks so they fell asleep.  He had told them when they first got there, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” But they fell asleep anyhow and certainly Peter later fell into temptation.

How not to fall into temptation
What catches my attention here is that Jesus is giving a recipe for not falling into temptation: prayer. On the one hand, this seems like a trite or trivial answer, but actually it is quite powerful.  In my own life and as a pastor counseling others, the best thing to do when faced with temptation is to "Get up and pray"!

Whether struggling with an addictive sin such as pornography, or an internal consuming one such as jealousy or comparison, there is a war that is being fought - a spiritual, internal battle.  Temptation comes on strong and if we do not react properly, we will be swept away and defeated.

Get Up
So the first part is to Get up!  If you are laying down or sitting, then stand up.  You cannot fight a battle laying down.  If you are in a physical place where temptation is stronger, then get out of there! Flee from the temptation (1 Corinthians 6:18, 1 Timothy 6:11, 2 Timothy 2:22).

Pray
The second part is to pray.  Now there are different ways to pray and different intensities and volumes.  When you look at how Jesus was praying in this situation, he cried out and prayed earnestly to the point that his sweat like drops of blood!  Generally speaking, the more aware we are of the seriousness of the consequences of giving into temptation, the more urgent and intense our prayers will be.  One way to think about this is, "How would you cry out for help if you fell overboard from a moving boat in the middle of the ocean?"  The cry would probably be loud and as intense as we could be because we know that we would die if not rescued.  If we recognize that sin separates us from God and destroys our lives and the lives of others, then we should have a high level of urgency and intensity.

Lord Jesus, please deliver me/us from temptation and from evil!  Open our eyes to see the battle around us and the seriousness of falling into temptation!  Help us to get up and pray!

Luke Chapter 21 - Randy T

Verses 3-4: Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus.

It is amazing, in a  bad way, how this could happen. If Satan can enter "one of the Twelve" who literally lived in the presence of Jesus, then how susceptible are any of us?  I think one of the greatest risks we run is our thinking that we are  good enough and beyond the grasp of evil. Well, if Satan can reach one who was so close and spent so much time with Jesus, then I think none of us can assume we are off-limits.  In fact, I would say the closer we are to Jesus, then the more attractive and tempting a target we are to evil- maybe this explains why some who confess to be close to God, sometime fall so publicly (I'm thinking of TV evangelists examples). On one had we would like to think we are one of those "targets" due to our proximity to God, on the other hand we don't want to be exposed to this type of danger.  

Luke Chapter 21 - Nathanael

Verse 24- Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

From 70 AD until 1948 AD (1878 years), the city of Jerusalem was not an Israeli city.  Since 1948 there have certainly been Jews in Jerusalem, but the question remains about how "trampling" is defined.  Certainly there are still Gentiles in Jerusalem.  On the other hand, since it is now an Israeli city again, and certainly many other signs of the end time are around us, it does seem that these end times are near.

What strikes me, not just about the end times coming, but also the end of the "times of the Gentiles" may be coming to an end.  To me that sounds like a time of far fewer Gentiles coming to faith in Christ Jesus.  That increases for me the sense of urgency to think that possibly soon far fewer Gentiles will have the opportunity for forgiveness, adoption as God's children and eternal life.  The end seems to be drawing near so we don't know how long we will have to tell others of the great news about Jesus.  

Lord Jesus, please send out workers into the harvest!  Please send me!  Please increase our sense of urgency!  Please give us your love and your perspective to see the many needs around us!

Luke Chapter 21-Wun-gwi

¹⁶ You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. ¹⁷ Everyone will hate you because of me. ¹⁸ But not a hair of your head will perish. ¹⁹ Stand firm, and you will win life.

³³ Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

The above are the verses stood out to me,

I can get the true hope only from God's words, Jesus Christ, not even my family.

Not a hair of my head will perish and I will win life if I am with Jesus because his words will never pass away.

I am starting with confidence, hope and comforts this morning with God's words.

Amen.

Luke 20 - Le Jiang

Luke 20:18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.

According to this verse, there are only two options for everyone:
1. fall on Jesus and be broken to pieces;
2. Jesus falls on him and be crushed.

At first thought, there is not much difference between the results of these two options, being broken to pieces and being crushed. But it is not true. Being crushed means complete destruction because Jesus falls on the ones who do not repent in great wrath (Revelation). Being broken to pieces may also be painful and seems hopeless during the process. However, it is heading to victory that Jesus has fought for us. During this process, we need to surrender ourselves to our head Jesus Christ so that He can work in us. We are broken to pieces but we are not broken. We are being transformed. We are being disciplined as children of God.

Luke Chapter 20 - Nathanael

It is quite interesting and exciting to see how Jesus handles opposition.  At some points he is quiet and doesn't answer, at others he gives an incredibly wise response that silences his enemies.

What stands out to me here is the interaction Jesus has with the Pharisees when they ask him with what authority he does what he is doing (verse 2).  Often when challenged in such a way, I feel that I need to give a defense.  But Jesus, guided by the Spirit, knows how to respond and, as he sometimes does, responds to the question with a question.  

Jesus asked about John's baptism, asking if it was from heaven or earthly origin.  He brings clarity to their original question about authority by asking about John's authority being from either heaven or earth - God or man.  He also knows that if he tells the truth and says "from heaven" or "from God the Father" that they wouldn't listen to him or believe it.  He was put into a no-win situation.  But he turned the tables and trapped them because of their fear of the people.

Though I might feel that I need to defend myself at times, Jesus knew that some questions are not real questions and aren't looking or listening for a real answer.

Jesus, help me to listen to your Spirit and speak your words!

Luke Chapter 20_Wun-gwi

Jesus answered all the tricky questions aroused from Pharisees.

I could see the different frames of thinking/ watching this world between people and Jesus.

The question "Paying taxes to Caesar" and "The resurrection and Marriage" seems interesting/ tricky with the perspective as humans.

However, it is more clear as God's perspective.

I am feeling I don't understand and sometimes get doubts when I try to understand the bible with my our own eyes.

I want to get the eyes, ear, heart to see/listen the Lord Jesus Christ.

Luke Chapter 19 - Hanjun

When I read the story about Zacchaeus the chief tax collector, I was wondering and judging why Zacchaeus only gave half of his possessions to the poor (not all of his possessions), and Jesus said he got salvation. In Luke 18, however, Jesus asked the rich young man to sell everything he had and gave to the poor to inherit eternal life. 

Now I know that Zacchaeus got salvation is because he has faith in Jesus. Getting salvation is not about how many possessions we should give, but salvation is free gift from God, and it depends on whether we believe and trust in the Lord Jesus and want to have relationship with him. Of course, when we have relationship with God, God will lead us on how to use our possessions in a wise way.  

Luke Chapter 18 - Hanjun

The parable of the persistent widow tells me that if the widow gave up coming to the judge to ask for justice, she probably would not get justice. Similarly, if we gave up praying to God for what we need, God would not answer our requests. 

The parable of the Pharisee and tax collector tells me that fasting twice a week and giving offerings are good behaviors, but more importantly, God wants to see our hearts and attitude.

I also like Jesus’ words in verse 17, "Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” No matter how old I am or how much knowledge or experience I have, I am like a little child in God's view. 

Luke 19 - Nathanael

I found it interesting that in the previous chapter Jesus spoke about it being impossible for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven except that all things are possible with God.  And here at the start of the chapter we have the very wealthy tax collector, Zacchaeus, receive salvation.   He was not only rich but also likely had cheated and stolen money from people in his role as a tax collector.  God's spirit worked in his heart and he pledged to give away half of his riches and pay back four times anything he stole.  Money was no longer his god!

Jesus sought him out from the crowd, the Holy Spirit changed his heart and Jesus forgave his sins and saved him.  It is interesting how Jesus describes it.  He says, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham."  He says "salvation has come", showing that Zacchaeus didn't do anything that saved him, but that literally salvation came in the person of Jesus to his house, and figuratively the saving work of Jesus via a transformed life and heart came as well!

God is good!  Though others scoffed and thought it not right for Jesus to enter the house of a sinner, Jesus made clear that this is why he came - to seek and save the lost!  Thank you Jesus for saving a sinner like me!

Luke 18 - Nathanael

This chapter begins and ends with a call to persistent prayer.

In the first parable Jesus says that God will bring justice for those who cry out to him day and night (Verse 7) but then says "However, when the Son of Man comes will he find faith on the earth" (verse 8).

The problem is persistence over time.  I know that I can pray fervently at times and for a time.  But as time wears on, my fervency grows less.  When there are prayers that take a long time to get answered I/we get discouraged and give up.  That is where faith comes in.  It is easy to be excited and believe for a short while and then receive an answer.  But it is hard when we wait for a long time - such as waiting for Jesus' return.  That is why Jesus asks if he will find faith on the earth when he returns.

Some helpful things here are to remember and recite what God has already done, be around others who remind and tell of what God is doing and keep our eyes on God and not on the waiting.  Still the journey can be hard, so we pray for God's help!

Jesus, please increase my faith to endure over time.  Give me the faith of Abraham and others who endured even when things looked hopeless!  I thank you for your love and faithfulness!

At the end of this section there is an account of a blind man who hears Jesus is coming.  He cries out for help but others try to silence him - probably because his shouting/crying out is not "respectable".  But this man doesn't care about what others say.  He knows that he has a need and he cries out all the more to the one who can help him!

This is the other factor that can hinder our persistent perseverance in prayer - opposition.  That opposition can be, as in this case, people actually telling you to stop.  Or it can be a more internal fear - afraid of what others think about us - so that we don't cry out in prayer.  But we, like this man, need to increase our fervency to overcome the opposition - cry out even harder!

Jesus, please give me the courage to cry out and seek you even when fear or others tell me to stop.  You are my only hope and the only real help!  Stir up my heart to be on fire for you and to seek you with all of my heart!

Luke Chapter 17- Wun-gwi

From V20, Jesus talking about the time of the Kingdom of God.

What will be happening, what it looks like.... such as Noah's ark and the days of Lot.

Like Lot's wife, whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.

With this attitude, I think I don't be captured too much by my worldly life.

Luke Chapter 14 - Wun-gwi

From the parable of Great Banquet:

I experience that if I have more focused on many things in my life (Job, Money, Reputation, etc), I put the God's value away from me and not interested in God, Bible...

I pray I can do many good thing in my life under Jesus Christ.

26 If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple.

--> Denying myself and asking God first.

Luke Chapter 14 - Hanjun

Verses 25-35 talk about the cost of being a disciple. I think there is no cost for our sins to be forgiven by God through Jesus' blood and resurrection, but it takes cost to follow Jesus after our salvation and grow in him, including time, money, and accepting opposing words or behaviors from the people around us and even our own life. But it is the biggest blessing to be Jesus' disciple, walking with God, experiencing his love and peace, and having eternal life and hope in our daily life. 

Luke 14 - Randy T

Verses 13-14: "But when you give a banquet. invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will  be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

This is something I struggle with.  In our culture, (I'm sure the same was true 2000 years ago) we want to keep people in "their proper place". We love the homeless, as long as they are contained to the homeless shelter.  Sometimes we feel really righteous and even work at the homeless shelter on Thanksgiving,.  But how may of us would invite the homeless to our banquet, to our Thanksgiving meal in our own home? 

I know I will cross to the other side of the street to avoid the "outcasts and undesirables" of our society.

We want to be kind, generous, and charitable- but only in an isolated, sterile, detached way. We don't want to "know" these people, we just want to be able to say we helped them.

Isn't it sad, I doubt many, if any, of these folks have ever felt welcomed in or to a church.

This is a tough topic, we can be of little value to people, if we don't "jump in" and take the time to know them.

I can relate to this issue on a personal level, when my oldest son was 15 years old, he had some real behavioral issues,  He had been kicked out of a couple of schools, I remember talking with a minister at a church based school. The minister was apologetic, but his point was clear, the reason "good" people sent their kids to that Christian school, was to keep their children away from children like mine.  I made some wise crack about WWJD, he just sighed and said he understood. Don't get me wrong, I completely understood his point, and I didn't disagree- but I did ask (and still do) where is the church for the people who don't fit our filter.

There are a lot of hurting people in this world, not all are homeless, poor, in prisons, etc.  many are sitting right beside us at work, church, school, etc.  But they know if they were to make their needs known, that they would only be ostracized, often by the church.

This subject weighs heavily on my heart, as it should.

Luke Chapter 11 - Hanjun

Verse 42 warns me, "Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the later without leaving the former undone." As a Christian, giving the tithe or offerings to God is practical trust in God. But this is not enough, God wants us to have justice and love him and love the people around us.  

Luke 12 - Nathanael

What I hear God speaking to me in this chapter is the call to a single-hearted/single-minded devotion to Jesus.

In Verse 1 Jesus says "Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy."

His wants us both to be aware of dangerous activity of hypocrisy which will work through and effect our entire being like yeast. He wants us not to put on a false face for some people but have another reality underneath.  In our actions we need to determine what is right in God's eyes and behave that way in every situation.  Certainly this takes God's work in our lives to change us, but we need to be watchful about putting on a mask.  In my experience, hypocrisy tends to effect followers of Jesus most around other Christians.  We want to look "right" and "respectable" - much like the Pharisees did.  What we really need to be is authentic - be the way that we are - not putting on a mask.  We need to own up to our sinfulness and not pretend that we have everything together, because we don't.  In doing this we will not only be more humble (which God desires) but we will be able to receive God's help.   As Jesus points out later in this chapter, we should not be fearing the people around us, but God (verse 4-5 - “I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.).  Our priorities and focus get wrong (we worry about what people think more than God, and instead of pleasing God we try to please people) and this produces hypocrisy.  Then this act becomes a habit that works through our lives and then we begin to believe the lie that we put up to others - that we are righteous and "good" people (the yeast works through our lives).  It then deludes us so that we aren't crying out to God to help us and change us.

Lord Jesus, keep my focus on you and my goal to please you and not others.  Let me live my life with a single mind and a single heart, not part trying to please people and another part trying to please you, but with all of my heart seeking you and you alone!

Verse 31 (But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.) brings me back to that need to focus my life solely on Jesus and his kingdom.  If I do that, then God will take care of the other needs in my life.

Father, I thank you that you love me and you have called me to follow you with a whole heart!  I need your help to accomplish this, but I choose to put you first and seek your first above my own plans, my work, money, what people think about me and even above my family.  I thank you that you do provide for us and that you have shown yourself to be completely trustworthy.  You are GOOD and I love you!