Luke 7:4-15  Luke shares the parable of the sower ... that Jesus spoke to the multitudes that began to follow Him from city to city.  Can you picture Jesus and His disciples walking through the dirt roads.. passing many fields of grain.. perhaps stopping to watch as a farmer is sowing his seeds.. 

Some seeds fell on the hard path where they were walking.  The crowd walked right over those seeds, pressing them into the dirt that has been hardened by the many feet and the hot sun.. It was unplowed.. no shovel or rake.. no tiller has touched this ground.  The seed that landed there had no chance of growing.. only the birds would benefit from these seeds.   Jesus tells His disciples that this is like the Word of God that is spoken but ignored completely.  It is trampled by careless and uncaring feet. Those who happened to hear it would not believe it.. could not even receive it in their hardened hearts. 

As Jesus watched the seeds being thrown by the farmer, He saw some seeds landing in the rocky soil at the edge of the path. Some of these seeds would reach the soil between the rocks and grow up a little.. But there would not be enough good soil to sustain it. It would quickly wither in the hot sun.  Jesus says that these seeds are like those who hear the word and think that it is wonderful. It makes them happy for a while.. but then they move on to the next good thing and forget all about what they had heard. 

Likewise, some seeds fell on the thorny ground, more ground that had not been prepared to receive the seeds properly. It might grow some but then the thorns.. those sharp, thick, nasty thorns that rip through the skin and grab onto your clothes.. they choke out whatever good that was growing.  Jesus compares this to those who receive the good news, but all the worries of life take over.  They worry about their money, their entertainment.. their houses, jobs, families... whatever seems more important than God's word... and they just give up. 

But.. the farmer has a purpose in sowing his seed.. as God has a purpose for sending His Word.. for some falls on good soil... prepared, tilled, fertile soil.. ready to receive the seed and grow the crop that the farmer desires.  Jesus says that the Word of God that is heard by an "honest and good heart".. a heart that will "Hold it fast".. will "bear fruit with perseverance." 

Jesus called out, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear." 

Father, we want to hear Your Voice, to receive the Word and live according to it. We believe that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.. Jesus Christ the living Word, the final Word as Hebrews 1 tells us.. and we receive Him in our hearts which You prepared to hold Him fast and to persevere.. so that we can bear fruit as we abide in Him.  To God be the glory!  We pray for those who have heard but have allowed rocks and thorns to choke out the Word. Father, open their ears so that they can truly hear, and believe.  We ask this in Jesus' name.. Amen. 

 Luke 8:1-3  There were  "..some women who had been healed of evil spirits and sicknesses; Mary.. Joanna.. and Susanna and many others who were contributing to their support out of their private means"  These women followed Jesus "going from one city and village to another". 

We know a little bit about these women.  We know that Mary of Magdalene had been possessed by demons and that Jesus had delivered her.  We know that she followed Him to the very end and beyond.  Luke tells us that Joanna was the wife of Chuza, who was a steward in Herod's house.  We don't know much about Susanna. 

Matthew tells about the women too.  In Matthew 27:55-56 he writes that  "many women.. who had followed Jesus from Galilee"  had ministered to Jesus along the way and were there at the cross. Again Mary Magdalene is mentioned first.  Another Mary is identified as "the mother of James and Joseph".  This James is also called the "less" or the younger James.. The mother of the "sons of Zebedee" James and John, also followed Jesus.  The two Mary's are the ones that went to the grave that first Resurrection Sunday.. the first to witness the stone rolled away. (28:1)  

Mark also comments on the women who followed Jesus. Mark 15:40 "And there were also some women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the Less and Joses, and Salome."  Verse 41 tells us "there were many other women who had come up with Him to Jerusalem. "  

Luke will tell later that these women "were standing at a distance, seeing these things".. seeing the crucifixion.. hearing His last words.. watching the final breath escape His lungs. Luke tells us how they followed the procession to the tomb and saw the stone rolled into place..and then their return on the first day of the week to find the stone rolled away!

It is John who tells us Mary, the mother of Jesus was there also at the foot of the cross, along with her sister.. also called Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.  John also tells about Mary Magdalene going to the tomb "early".. finding the stone rolled away , running to tell Peter and himself  and shortly later speaking to Jesus in the garden. 

These women were important to Jesus and to His ministry.  I wonder about them... how did they leave their homes, their husbands, their children and follow Jesus around the country?  The mother of James the less seems to have brought Joses and Salome with her to follow along with this James.  Also the mother of James and John, the sons of Zebedee  went.. apparently leaving her husband back in Galilee managing his fishing boat. It wouldn't have been easy to leave their homes and care for this band of disciples.. but they did it for the love of the Savior. 

Women still leave behind families to follow Jesus.. serving Him without hesitation.  My own sister lived in Africa for many, many years.. following the call of Jesus to serve Him far away from the rest of us.  It was a sacrifice on both sides of the ocean, but the Lord blessed us all to see the fruit of changed lives as Christ was made known to people who would not have heard the good news of Jesus Christ when they did. 

Father in heaven, I want to be a woman serves You, who follows Your plan and not my own.  You determine our steps, Lord and we thank You for being so faithful in leading us into Your great and wonderful will.  May we be like these faithful women, who quietly served You in the background, but who honored You in every act of love.. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 

 Luke 7:36-50  "Now one of the Pharisees was requesting Him to dine with him."   Jesus accepted this invitation. We learn that this Pharisee's name was Simon.  His motive for inviting Jesus to dinner seems to be a bit of a mixture.. perhaps curiosity.. or trickery.. or maybe a genuine desire to get to know Him. 

Simon acknowledged  that Jesus was a teacher. But, he drew his own conclusion that Jesus could not be a prophet because He allowed the "sinner" to touch Him.  It may have been Simon who wanted to test Jesus.. but it ended up being Jesus who tested Simon.  We do not find out whether or not Simon learned anything from this lesson. 

As soon as Jesus entered Simon's house there should have been someone to wash His feet.  He should have been greeted with a kiss... we have seen how that traditional greeting is given in Middle Eastern countries. He should have been anointed with oil.  But, none of that was offered.  Jesus was not honored as a guest should have been.  But, the unnamed woman came with an "alabaster vial of perfume."  She washed His feet with her tears and her hair. She kissed His feet and anointed them with her expensive perfume. She not only honored Jesus with her sacrifice and adoration, but she worshipped Him with all her heart.   

But.. Simon judged  her and Jesus in  one thought. 

Jesus didn't have to hear Simon's thoughts.. the look on his face was probably enough.. "Simon, I have something to say to you." Jesus said.  What a gentle approach.. no condemnation.. no anger.. no forceful response.. but a simple story.  "A certain moneylender had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii and the other fifty." Neither could  repay their loans and both were forgiven..." graciously".  "Which of them therefore will love him more?"  Simon knew the answer, but seems reluctant to say it.. "I suppose the one whom he forgave more."  Jesus agreed with Simon that this was truth. 

Then He compared Simon's actions.. failing the basic traditions of hospitality.. to the actions of the sinful woman... who poured out her tears and her perfume on Jesus' feet.  Which of these reveals love?  "For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little. "  Jesus forgives the woman for any and all of her sin.  He does not offer forgiveness to Simon.. for Simon does not ask for it.. doesn't believe he needs it.. and has no faith that Jesus had the authority to give it.  The woman's faith brought her salvation and peace.  I wonder whatever happened to Simon?

Father in heaven,  You are our Gracious God who has forgiven our every sin, our every debt, our every transgression.. cleansing us fully by the shed blood of Jesus Christ. We pour out our tears, our lives, our worship to You.. for we love You.  We desire to love You even more.. to not be blind like Simon was to the greatness of our debt that You have graciously forgiven. Thank You Jesus for Your forgiveness.. for this great salvation..  for Your love.. and for the peace that You have given to us. Lead us, Spirit of God, in the way we should go and guide us with Your eye. Fill us with the love of God and the steadfastness of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen 

 Luke 7:18- 35  John the Baptist seems to have had a moment of doubt.  He had known since before his birth the power of the Holy Spirit in his life. He had witnessed the Holy Spirit coming like a dove and filling Jesus at His baptism.  He was a chosen prophet of God.. but in a time of persecution and imprisonment.. his faith faltered just a bit.  So, he sent two of his disciples to go to Jesus and ask Him if He was the Expected One... 

Sometimes we feel strong in our faith and stand firm in the Truth... but sometimes we are tempted to question what we have known, heard, and seen.  Jesus did not condemn John's questioning.. He simply answered the question with proof.. "He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He granted sight to many who were blind."  Everything that Jesus did was fulfilling the prophecy for the Messiah. (Isaiah 35:5 and 61:1ff)  The messengers took this back to John.  What a blessing that must have been to them as well as to John in those final days. 

Jesus spoke well of John saying that he was more than just a prophet, but the one who had been sent to prepare His way. He deserved to be honored for he completed the work that the Father had created him to do... "yet... " Jesus continued, "he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.. "  The people who heard this believed that this was a "just" statement.  They had believed John's message and they were coming to believe in Jesus. 

The Pharisees and lawyers were a different story.. they "rejected God's purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John."  Jesus called them a generation who acted like children.. condemning John for his ministry.. and condemning Jesus for His. They ignored the Word of God, they did not hear the Truth being spoken for they had hardened their hearts. 

Father in heaven,  help us in our moments of doubt and fear, to turn our eyes back to Jesus.. to see, to hear, and to know Him by His Word and by His Works.  Help us, Father, to grow in faith and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. May we exalt Your Holy Name and live according to Your Word and Your Spirit as we walk in difficult times.. and in peaceful times too.  Lord, You know us completely and You alone can bring us to the fulness of Christ in whom we abide.  Let Your will be done we pray, Amen. 

 Luke 7:11-17   "And  it came about soon afterwards that He went to a city called Nain..."  We know that Jesus did and said only what the Father led Him to do or say.  This trip to Nain was no coincidence.. it was not by accident that Jesus entered the city just when they were carrying out this dead man... "the only son of his mother .. a widow." 

Jesus "approached".. Jesus "felt compassion for her".. Jesus said words of comfort "Do no weep."  She had no idea what Jesus was going to do.. we don't even know if she knew who He was.  But, when He stopped the procession, when He touched the bier.. when He spoke to her dead son.. and when this beloved son sat up and spoke.. she knew! "And Jesus gave him back to his mother." 

Imagine this! Oh the sorrow... to lose a child.. to feel the loss of the only one left. And Oh the joy!  This son restored to life right before your eyes.  "And fear gripped them all, and they began glorifying God!"  

Eyes were opened that day.. not just the eyes of a dead son and his grieving mother.. but all those who followed Jesus to Nain and all those coming out of the city.. "a sizeable crowd" that accompanied her.  "And the report concerning Him went out all over Judea, and in all the surrounding district." 

There was much talk about Lazarus being raised from the dead.... but this first display of the power of Jesus to raise the dead seems to be less well known.  He raised the daughter of Jairus, He raised this young man, and He raised Lazarus.  How many more did He raise that we do not have a record of?  How many did He touch before they died that would not have made it without His intervention.   Jesus has not changed and His authority over life and death has not changed either.  His compassion is so great and His power is without end. We can trust Him to complete the Father's plan for each of us. The older I get the more I realize that only He has control of my life and my death.. and my eternal home-going. I know I can trust Him with my own life and with that of my family.  Hallelujah!  What a Savior!

Father, we rest in You.. in Your precious promises.. that You will never leave us or forsake us. You have written down the days of our lives since before we even came from our mothers' wombs.  We are on the road, on the way to our eternal home with Jesus holding us close the whole way.  Thank You Father for such a great Savior. Thank You that He lives in us who believe.. and we live in Him forever.  Jesus, the Vine and we the branches.. abiding together as we keep our eyes on eternity with You .. Praise God the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen

 Luke 7:1-10  Luke tells his readers about Jesus returning to Capernaum.  A centurion, whose  slave was on his deathbed, sent "some Jewish elders" to Jesus to ask Him to " come and save the life of his slave." 

The Jewish elders "earnestly entreated Him.. "  They spoke of the worth of the centurion.. "He is worthy for You to grant this to him.. " they pleaded.  He was a good man,  he loved Israel, he built the synagogue. Jesus listened to this plea and started toward the home of this man. 

 But, before He got there the centurion sent some "friends".. who had a different message for Jesus. "Lord, do not trouble Yourself further , for I am not worthy for You to come under my roof; for this reason I did not even consider myself worthy to come to You, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed." 

Two evaluations.. one declaring that this man was worthy... his own personal declaration of  unworthiness.  Jesus heard both of these and "marveled" more at the man's humble evaluation of himself than all the praises of the elders. The centurion understood the authority of Jesus and he put his faith in Him.. not in his own worth or power.  "and when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health." 

The truth is.. we are all unworthy.. no matter how many "good" things we do, that is not what matters to Jesus.. for He sees our hearts.. Yes, He taught us to see what kind of fruit our lives are producing.. but He also taught that the "mouth speaks from that which fills [the] heart."  The centurion spoke of his unworthiness.. and of the authority of Jesus.  This lesson is for all of us.  

Lord God, our heavenly Father, we are not worthy of this great grace that You have lavished on us.. that while we were sinners, Christ Jesus died for us.  You have loved us. You have drawn us to Yourself by Your own choice. You have delivered us from darkness. You have given us a place in Your family.  You are good to us.  We are so thankful. Our hope is in Jesus, our faith is in Him alone for life.. for healing.. for eternity.  All praise to God our Father and to Jesus Christ the Beloved Son, and to the Holy Spirit who lives in us. Amen. 

 Luke 6:39-49  Luke includes a series of parables that Jesus taught to His disciples and others who gathered to listen.  Each quote is presented to teach an important truth.. and then we are reminded again in verse 47 that we need to hear and "act upon" them... laying a firm foundation for our lives. 

Verses 39-40 teach about leading and following.  "A blind man cannot guide a blind man.. "  That is a very observable truth.  Matthew 15:14 tells us that Jesus was speaking about the Pharisees "they are blind guides of the blind". They put their traditions before the Word of the God.  Their teachings were not founded on the truth but on their own interpretations.  Jesus said, "A pupil is not above his teacher..."  but.. the purpose of the teacher is to "fully train" his students so that they will "be like" their teacher.  In John 13:16  Jesus said this again using the word "slave" instead of pupil... "Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master; neither is the one who is sent greater than the one who sent him."  Jesus had just washed the disciples feet.. "For I gave you an example that you should do as I did to you."  The contrast is significant.  The Pharisees didn't follow the Truth and could not teach effectively what they did not live out. They were "blind" and those who followed their examples would also be blind.  But.. Jesus taught the Truth and lived according to it.. desiring to "fully train" His disciples to be just like Him. 

Verses 41-42 teach about judging others but not looking first at your own soul. "And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?"  This is a very dramatic illustration.  We easily picture a speck and a log.. and we recognize the pain and discomfort of anything in our eyes!  What we miss is the blindness that occurs when we focus on the failures of others rather than our own.  Jesus isn't telling us to not care about our brother or sister.. but that we must first and always come to Him to restore our own sight.. to see as He does.

Verses 43-45 This lesson helps us to examine our sight and that of others.. to open our blind eyes.. "For there is no good tree which produces bad fruit; nor on the other hand, a bad tree which produces good fruit."  Jesus tells us that He is talking about our hearts... "The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good."  As a good tree produces "good fruit" -a good heart produces "good". The evidence is the "fruit".. "for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart."   Each tree, He says, "is known by its own fruit".  If there is good in our hearts, then we will speak what is good and true and right. But, if there is evil in our hearts, what comes out of our mouths will testify clearly that we are indeed a "bad tree".. an  "evil man".

Father in heaven, we pray as the psalmist did.. "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way." (Psalm 139:23-24)   My heart is Yours.. my eyes are Yours, fill me, Spirit of truth, and lead me according to the Words of Christ that I might act upon them.. building a firm foundation on the Solid Rock.  I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.