Luke 21  Verses 1-4  The poor widow gave all she had into the temple treasury.  She was trusting God to provide all that she needed.  Others gave greater amounts.. but out of their surplus, not out of what they needed to live on.  Another reminder that God notices the small things... those extraordinary acts of true faith that don't seem like much to the world.. but are greatly treasured by our Lord. 

Jesus is nearing the time of the passover.. the cross.. and the resurrection.  He is preparing His disciples for this end.. to the finishing of His work which He came to accomplish.  With the end of this life in sight, Jesus teaches about the end of the age.. outlining a sequence of events that we need to pay attention to and be ready for.. 

There came a day when the beautiful temple in Jerusalem was torn down, just as Jesus said. His disciples were delivered up.. persecuted.. and killed for His name's sake. He told them not to be terrified.. not to prepare a speech to defend themselves.. but to just endure, knowing that whatever happened to them was an opportunity for them to testify of their relationship with  Him. 

Starting at verse 20 Jesus warns of the "desolation"  of Jerusalem.  Armies would surround her. There would be great "distress upon the land and wrath to this people".  Jerusalem would be trampled.. until "the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." 

Then the sun and moon and stars will attest of the coming Christ. The nations will tremble.. The oceans will roar. The "powers of the heavens will be shaken".  Then Jesus will come "in a cloud with power and great glory".  Lift up your heads and look, Jesus tells us, "because your redemption is drawing near." 

"Be on guard.. " v34

".. keep on the alert".. v36 

and keep "praying" for the strength "to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man." v36

Those listening to Jesus that day did not live to see the time of His return.. but we may. It will be terrifying, but He tells us to not be afraid.  We may want to hide away.. but He tells us to look up.  We may be tempted to look for another way.. but only Jesus is the Way.  

Father in heaven, we pray for Your Kingdom to come.. for the return of the Son.. and yet we know that many are still not ready.. for that will be a day of judgement for all who refuse to believe Him.  We pray continually for the lost to come to Jesus.. to see the glory and wisdom and grace of the salvation that He came to bring to us.  May we be faithful in all that we do.. and give all that we can.  May we be alert and on guard.. faithful in walking in truth and righteousness by the power of Your Spirit.  May we be faithful in telling others the truth about sin, judgement, and hell.. and the only way of salvation, through Jesus Christ the Lamb of God, whose blood was shed so that we might be redeemed.  Keep us walking in Your Light and Truth day by day and help us not to grow weary or afraid.  In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 

 Luke 20 Jesus continued to teach at the temple, even as the days before His crucifixion drew closer. The chief priests, scribes, the Pharisees and the Sadducees.. tried to trap Him into saying anything that would condemn Him.. they wanted nothing more than to get rid of Him before any more people turned away to follow Him... leaving them without supporters. 

They questioned His authority. But, they could not admit their true opinions about John the Baptist.. so they received no answer from Jesus. 

They questioned Him about paying taxes.. what better way to trap someone into saying something that would get the attention of the government!  But, that did not work either. 

They questioned Him about the resurrection.. and Jesus proved that their beliefs were faulty. 

Jesus  compared these religious leaders to the wicked vine-growers who tried to keep the vineyard for themselves... denying the Master and killing the Son.  They rejected "the stone" who was the "Chief cornerstone".. and would soon be scattered "like dust".  "Beware of the scribes.. "  Jesus warned His disciples.. they looked so pious and righteous on the outside, but were full of sin and iniquity inside.

What does this all say to us?  As we look at Jesus.. the babe in the manger.. the King on the cross.. we can be assured that "all authority" has been given to Him and we do not need to question that truth. We can rest in it. Trust Him completely.   We do not need to fear asking Him questions. He will answer us when we come sincerely to Him.  

We also can "render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's."  We are called to be righteous and just in all we do.. faithful citizens who do what is right.. in this world and in the next.  Again, we can trust Jesus to lead us in all truth.. for He is the way, the Truth, and the Life.  

We can rest assured that there is a resurrection ... that God is God whether we are in these bodies are not.. we are alive to Him. We can be certain that Jesus Christ will reign forever and that His enemies will be made a "footstool" for His feet. 

May we, more and more, be built up in our faith in Jesus Christ.  Paul prayed for the churches... "that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." ( Col. 2:2-3)  May this be our prayer for our church.. every day. 

"Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant to us to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus that with one accord we may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."  Romans 15:5-6

Amen. 

 Luke 19   As Jesus entered Jericho.. Zaccheus climbed the tree.  I am struck by the words that Jesus speaks to him. "Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house." (emphasis mine).  Not.. I want to stay.. not.. can I stay.. but I must stay..  Jesus only did what the Father told Him...so, we can conclude that the Father led Jesus to Zaccheus.  He knew him by name.. the chief of the tax-gatherers.. this sinner... this "son of Abraham".  This man who immediately received Jesus and repented of any fraudulent behavior... who vowed to give away half of his fortune.  This lost man was one that Jesus had come to "seek and to save".   Just like He does for each of us.. 

Jesus told another parable about money..  The story is about a nobleman who goes away to get another kingdom. He leaves ten slaves ten minas each to carry on with the business while he is away.  Some people didn't want him to be their ruler and sent a message along to him.  When he returned he called his slaves first.. so they could give account of their work:

  Some did well and gained more authority because of their good and faithful service.   

  Some failed miserably and lost the little they had. 

  Those who had grumbled against him...lost their lives.  

Three categories.. three responses.  We are all in one of those groups.. all we have comes from God.. what we do with it matters.  Either we take what He has placed in our hands and use it for His work... or we just hold on tight and don't take responsibility to serve Him with what He has placed in our hands...or we reject Him altogether and choose destruction.  

May we learn to choose life.. to choose surrender and service.. to trust that it will be worth it all on the day that He returns.

The final section of this chapter takes us to the triumphal entry.. Jesus rode into Jerusalem, the city He loved..on a donkey, fulfilling the prophecies.. the King came.. knowing He was not wanted and would be killed on a cross for the very people who would execute Him.  The first thing that Jesus does in Jerusalem is cleanse the temple.. driving out the merchants and money-changers.. declaring the true purpose of the temple of God.. "a house of prayer".  

All of this would be gone in a just a short time.. and the people would be scattered once again.  No wonder Jesus wept over this great city that would not know the peace He came to give. 

The Christmas season has come and gone. A new year lies ahead.  As we keep our eyes on Jesus, may we allow the Word to abide in us.. to transform us by renewing our minds and to lead us deeper into His love and steadfastness.  May we remember that He knows us by name and that He came to seek and save us when we were lost.  May we take responsibility to use all that He gives us for His glory and honor. May we receive Him gladly and joyfully praise Him every chance we get.

Father in heaven, You are good and ready to forgive. Thank You.  You are abundant in lovingkindness to all who call on You. Praise Your Name.  You are great and You do wonderful deeds of mercy and grace. How we love You! You have given us all that we have and all that we are is because of You.. may we never forget that.  Guide us into Your plans and purposes that You have for us today. Help us to be the good and faithful servants that we long to be!   And, Lord, if You see anyone up a tree.. will You call them down?  I know a few...  Thank You !  Amen. 

 Luke 18  The days are getting short and Jesus is headed to Jerusalem.. quite aware of what lies ahead.  He takes this time to teach His followers more about prayer.. 

Using the illustration of a judge who finally provided the justice a widow needed after she came continually before him.. Jesus teaches us that God always hears us and "will not delay long.. "  We can bring Him our needs and trust Him to hear us.  "However, when the Son of Man comes will He find faith on the earth?" Jesus asks.   Indeed... are we asking... and trusting God?  Let us have a boldness to come before Him with every need and the faith to simply trust Him. 

Jesus used another illustration to point out the need of humility in praying.  The example is of a Pharisee who only prayed by bragging about himself and his "righteousness"... and the tax-gatherer who simply and humbly begged for mercy.. confessing his sinfulness and need.  Jesus again emphasized that the humble are heard and exalted while the prideful are not.  Let us come before the throne of grace with sincere and humble hearts. 

Jesus was approached by a "rich young ruler"  who asked  how to obtain eternal life.  Jesus told him to keep the commandments.. which the man said that he did.. "from my youth".  To get to the man's heart Jesus tells him to sell all he has, give it to the poor, and follow Him.  The young man sadly turns away.. his heart exposed... his wealth was his god... he could not give it up.  "How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God.. "  Yet, it is not impossible! "The things impossible with men are possible with God."  Let us be thankful that God gives us all that we need to lay down our lives, take up our crosses, and follow Him.  Christ in us.. the hope of glory.. makes it possible to surrender all else and say with Him, "Thy will be done."  The prayer that never fails! 

The final event in this chapter is the story of the blind man outside of Jericho who cries out, " Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" (a simple and humble prayer)   He cried out even louder when others tried to stop him.. and Jesus heard and called him to come.  "What do you want Me to do for you?" Jesus asked.  That seems like an obvious answer.. but the blind man responds, " Lord, I want to regain my sight."  Jesus said that the man's faith made him well.. faith to call out.. faith to confess the title "Lord"and "the Son of David". Faith to believe and receive the healing he needed.  Faith that gave the glory to God as he followed Jesus.  Let us be like this man who did not give up.. who trusted God.. who humbly came before Jesus, confessing Him as Lord and King. 

Father in heaven, we celebrate and praise the Lord Jesus, our King, who teaches us how to pray.  Thank You for this reminder that You always hear our humble cries.. You are always ready to show us justice and mercy.  You give to us all that we need.. so that we can come before You, sincerely and humbly seeking Your will.  Make our hearts pure so that we are able to say, "Your will be done" in every circumstance.  Take my life and let it be.. wholly Yours, Lord Jesus.  Amen. 

 Luke 17  My Bible labels the  first 10 verses of this chapter... "Instructions"..  the first one being, don't be a stumbling block.. a trap, a snare, or someone causing another to fall away.  The second is to "Be on your guard"... to rebuke a brother who sins.. to forgive a brother who repents... even if it happens over and over and over again.  

The disciples ask for more faith.. a pretty good thing to ask for.. we might think.  But Jesus has instructions about that too.   Just  "faith like a mustard seed" is sufficient.  It is not about the size of our faith.. for even a small amount of faith can move trees.. and mountains.  By the illustration that Jesus uses.. it seems that what He really wanted us to know is how to be obedient. A slave does what he is told to do... plus whatever else he is responsible to do.  That is how a disciple of Jesus should live.. doing what God wills for us to do.. humbly and eagerly. 

Jesus, on His way to Jerusalem is met by 10 lepers who call out asking for mercy.  He sends them off to show themselves to the priests and as they go they are healed.  Only one turns back to praise God and give thanks.  Only to this one, a Samaritan, does Jesus say, ".. your faith has made you well." 

The Pharisees ask Jesus about the coming of His kingdom.  Jesus tells them plainly that they are not going to see the kingdom with "signs".. it will not be what they think it should be.  ".. behold the kingdom of God is in your midst", Jesus tells them.  The King stood before them and they didn't even see Him clearly. 

Jesus explains to His disciples that the kingdom is not what they are expecting either.  They would long to see Him take His earthly throne.. but He would take only a cross at this time.  But, a day will come when He will come again to establish His Kingdom and that day would involve a great judgement.  Like in the days of Noah.. only a few would be saved and the rest destroyed.. Like the day of Sodom's judgement... people will be drinking, buying, selling, planting, and building... when He comes.  Only those ready will be saved.. all others.. and all who turn back.. will be destroyed.  

Count the cost.. be ready to lose everything.. even your life for Him.. for it is only in the losing that we preserve our lives. This is the obedient service that Jesus calls us to...  

So, this Christmas season.. on the day after Christmas.. when we are ready to put things away, take down the decorations, get back to normal life.. what is it that Jesus is saying to us?  The one word that I take away from this chapter is simply, "obey".   

Father in heaven,  I am a servant of the Most High God.. Your servant.. and Your child by the grace of Jesus Christ my King.  Help me, by the power of Your Spirit who lives in me.. to walk humbly, faithfully, fruitfully, mercifully, and thankfully... in obedience to Your Word.  Empower us, Your church, the body of Christ, to be alert.. to be ready.. to be worthy slaves.  We can do nothing on our own.. but we cling to Jesus.. the True Vine, whose Life flows into us, the branches.  May good fruit abound as others see You in us.  We ask this, in faith, in the Name of Jesus our Lord. Amen. 

 Luke 16:1-18  The steward had been accused of "squandering" the master's possessions.  He had to give an accounting of all that he had been responsible for and then he would be dismissed.  He called in those who were in debt to the master and worked out a reduced payment for each one. The plan was to get some of the debt repaid and to have favor with those he helped.  This was considered "shrewd" - which is really defined as thoughtful, practical, and even intelligent.   What was the point of this parable?  Jesus used it to talk about being faithful.. especially in the area of money... 

Faithfulness.. in the little things ... counts in the Lord's eyes.  Faithfulness.. in what belongs to others is as important as faithfulness in what comes to you.  Faithfulness in serving God must override and abolish  serving money or worldly things. 

The Pharisees scoffed at what Jesus had to say.  Money meant everything to them.  It was a sign of their importance.. even of their religious status.  But, Jesus taught that true worth in God's eyes is found in the state of a man's heart and not his wallet.  Keeping the Law was required.. but it was the whole Law.. not  just what they wanted to pick and choose from. For example.. their attitude about divorce... 

Verses 19-31 Jesus continues to address the issue of wealth.. the wrong thinking that wealth = eternal bliss.  The story of the rich man and Lazarus illustrates how far off their thinking was.. The rich man lived well, "gaily living in splendor every day".  Lazarus lived in poverty and disease. He would have been happy with crumbs, but the rich man cared more about his dogs than the poor man at his gate.  But, after they both had died, the reality of what happens next should have shaken them all!  For the rich man was in Hades.. in agony.. hopeless... tormented.. with much regret and fear for his brothers left behind.  Lazarus, on the other hand, was comforted in the "bosom" of Abraham.  No longer suffering, no longer poor, no longer alone. 

So, this Christmas season.. as we keep our thoughts turned toward Jesus.. what is it that He wants us to learn from these stories?  

May we be faithful in all things.. little things and big things.. serving God shrewdly.. with thoughtfulness and intelligence.  May we examine our hearts.. discarding worldly thinking about money and assets and the things of this world.  May we live with eternity in view... caring for others more than ourselves... bringing hope and compassion to those suffering whenever we can. 

Father in heaven, I am reminded once again that You are the giver of all things.. and You intend for us to be faithful stewards. Examine our hearts and change any wrong attitudes Lord.  We surrender all to You.. for You are our Master and we Your humble servants.  May Your Name be glorified in Your servants today we pray. Amen. 

 Luke 15  The lost sheep.. the lost coin.. the lost son..  As the "tax-gatherers and sinners" flocked to Jesus to "listen".. the Pharisees and scribes came to grumble and complain.  Jesus gave them three illustrations to help them see God's heart... 

They could relate to the lost sheep. They probably had experienced that themselves or knew someone who did.  Every sheep was of great value.  A good shepherd cared for his sheep and would go and find the one that was lost. They would rejoice at finding it.  Likewise, Jesus said, "there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance." 

They might relate to the lost coin too... and the joy of finding it.  They couldn't seem to relate to the joy in heaven when a lost sinner repents.. 

The parable of the lost son should have really hit home. A son who leaves.. who squanders all he had been given.. who returns home.. broken.. and unworthy.. yet is received by his father with joy and honor and thanksgiving!  But, like the elder son.. the Pharisees resented the celebration of the lost who were now found! The tax-gatherers and the sinners had no right to be received into God's kingdom, they thought. But, they were so very wrong!  Those were and are.. the ones that Jesus came to save.  And more importantly.. they were in the same category.. lost and in need of being found. They just didn't realize it or couldn't admit it.

This Christmas season..as we focus on Jesus Christ.. the Savior who was born in Bethlehem so many years ago.. may we have eyes to see and ears to hear the message that Jesus came to proclaim... 

The Father is ready to welcome us home with joy and delight!

We are all in need of repentance.. so that we can no longer be "lost" but be found!

This message is for "all people" as the angels proclaimed to the shepherds that night: ".. behold I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." 

Good news for all the lost sons and daughters.. it is not too late for you. Come home!  Come to adore and worship the One who will welcome you home forever! 

Father, may we all draw near to Jesus.. to listen and to know the salvation that He came to purchase for us with His own life. We pray once again for the lost sons and daughters.. the lost grandchildren.. for all that are still without hope and truth in Christ Jesus. Let the Word.. the Good News.. travel across our land today.. through your servants.. through the airways.. out into the highways and hedges.. bring them in to the Kingdom, Lord God!  We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen!