NOW He's gone too far!

 

Jesus's ministry demonstrated radical rule-breaking, specifically to help those abused by the systems and rulers of the day. When Jesus actually broke death, by raising a young girl and his own friend, Lazarus, Jesus had good too far. The religious leaders could not explain the miracles, but decided that Jesus must not be allowed to continue to bring this kind of healing (John 11). What kinds of healing do you oppose?

Jesus is Coming! What Does that mean to you?

 

Jesus's triumphant entry into Jerusalem was met with great joy and with great fear. The religious leaders of the day understood that Jesus was dangerous to their power structures and might bring unwanted attention from the Roman government (John 12:12-16). How do you comfort others, when your great joy and triumph comes at their expense? 

BigGuy gets 'snaked'

Numbers 21 relates the story of God's people being plagued with a snake infestation that resulted in many sicknesses and deaths. The remedy was to simply look at a replica of the problem, a snake. Looking at the bronze image brought immediate relief and healing. Maybe the Church needs to look at Jesus and what He taught so that healing can come. How can you look to Jesus for the love that you need to give today?

The Magic Formula

 

Like the religious leaders of Jesus' time, we might scour the Bible in search of performative actions that will please God and convince Him to give our prayers special consideration (Matt 6). Do you search for special passages that you can use to manipulate God, or do you let the Bible lead you to a greater understanding of the person and work of our great God and savior, Jesus Christ?

Big Umbrella

 Often Christians seek to limit access to Christ by rejecting others. Paul seemed to do just the opposite, in1 Co 9:16-23 Paul declares that he is 'all things to all people'. Paul's willingness to open the door of the church to all who would come caused discomfort and clashes between devout followers of both the Hebrew God and the pagan deities. Who would you exclude in order to be more comfortable?

Fishers of Men

 Jesus promises to make His disciples 'Fishers of Men (Mark 1).'  We might be tempted to use this phrase as an excuse to treat our relationships as a sport or as a means to an end. Christ's relationships encourage a change of perspective. Asking Christ to save us should change our orientation from selfishness to honest concern and care for others. How have you changed your perspective to others.

Using Paul to clobber others

 Christians are infamous for using Paul's writings to condemn any behavior that they feel is not acceptable. One example is 1 Corinthians 6:12-20. Some translations chose words that specifically condemn the LGTBQ community, instead of accepting that anyone who refuses to give up power and pleasure taken by force should repent. Have you ever reinterpreted the Bible for your own purposes? 

The message given to Jesus for you

 God audibly spoke to those who witnessed the baptism of Jesus (Mark 1:11). The voice clearly stated that Jesus had a family relationship with the very creator of all existence. The good news of the gospel is that we get to join that family and share the in love God has for His children. How do you experience and share your family relationship with The God?

How do you make room?

The famous story of how Christ was born in a manager (Luke 2) is often used to illustrate how we don't make room for God and His word in our lives. But, we might also be reminded of the Old Testament stories of hospitality. If the family knew that Mary was about to give birth to the King of Kings, it seems they would have provided better accommodations. How do you accommodate others in order to make room for Jesus? 

 

This changes everything

 The birth of John the Baptist heralded the coming of the King of Kings, Jesus Christ (Luke 1). Like every child, John's presence on the earth changed everything for those around him. His father regained a lost voice, his mother gained the status of having a child, and the world gained a prophet who would prepare the way for our coming Lord. Can you imagine what we gain when we embrace the unique gift of other people?

God makes the religious leader voiceless

After 400 years of silence, Israel was promised a prophet of God would be coming through the priest Zacharias. When Zacharias asked for a sign that this would happen, he became silent until the naming of his son, the prophet, John (Luke 1). God made the religious/social leaders voiceless and promised to hear those who had been voiceless. Who do you think our current religious and social leaders make voiceless?

Personal Echo Chamber

Breaking with old testament law and the religious norms of the day, gentiles with no ties to Jewish tradition were invited into the most holy spaces of worship that the Church could provide (Eph 2:14). Both Jewish and non-Jewish were given authority and a voice in the way churches operated. What can we learn from the early Church's radical acceptance and willingness to engage with those around them?

A Place in the Church

The apostle Paul urged the early church to receive both Jewish and non-Jewish believers (Rom 15:7), excluding neither group. Today the Church seems to exclude others based on cultural norms and political ideology. Who do you find yourself excluding from the life of the church?

Pastor Awesome almost loves children

On one occasion, the disciples attempted to stop people from bringing children to Jesus so that He could bless them. Jesus famously denounced those who stood in the way and declared that being like children was the way to enter the Kingdom of God (Mark 10). Our Lord Jesus was known for associating with those who were culturally and politically powerless, including children. Who do you associate with?

The way through sorrow

In John 16 Jesus warns His disciples that He will leave them and they will feel the sorrow of his absence. The sorrow is not minimized or explained away. Jesus presents the hard truth that they will feel sad, and mourn their loss. Knowing that sorrow is universal, Jesus offered His disciples hope by letting them know that He will return to them. How have you seen the power hope get you through your trials?

Big Guy did it

 Our need to explain why bad things happen, can lead us to place blame on others. David felt the pain of being the 'scapegoat' when his army's city was destroyed and the people taken hostage (1 Sam 30). Who do you blame when you experience 'bad' things? Do you blame those closest to you, or maybe someone who looks different from you? What would it be like if we accepted that we don't have the answers?

How did THAT come out of my mouth?

 Jesus famously exposed the hypocrisy of dietary restrictions placed by those who took little thought to how their words undermined the love of God and hurt the hearers (Matt 15:11). When considering how our words show a lack of love for God and neighbor, we might wonder how we even came to have such thoughts. Which of your thoughts fail to show love? Where did those thoughts come from?

Jesus knows Zacchaeus

 

When reading the story of Zacchaeus, we can't help but notice his obvious fruits of repentance (Luke 19), but we might also wonder why Jesus would bother to stop and spend time with Zacchaeus in the first place. Are we Christians so busy fighting culture wars that we fail to see people as those God loves and cares for? Who are not willing to commune with, who would you withhold God's love from?

Take my daughter. Please!

 

One way King Saul demonstrated his shortcomings was by trying to use his daughter to 'snare' his political and military rival, David (1 Sam 18). Sadly, we might see ourselves in Saul's willingness to use people, even his own children, to advance his personal power and agenda. Can you think of ways you might be using others, instead of loving them?

Jesus and way the world works

Jesus often taught ideas that are contrary to our typical way of doing business. One example might be found in  Matthew 5:33-37, where Jesus undermined His community's method of doing business by pointing out the fallacy and illogical nature of their oaths. Jesus knew that promises are empty if the soul is untrustworthy. What business practices do you think Jesus would stand against today?