Luke 22:66-23:25 – Jesus before Pilate and Herod “Playing God” Jesus’ trial begins at day break because his accusers wanted to at least have the pretense of legality about what they were doing. With this in mind, they waited until the sun was breaking through to put Jesus...
The Hinge
posted by Paul
Luke 22:63-65 – The Guards Mock Jesus “The Hinge” Jesus is treated very badly by the Temple guards. These temple guards would have been Jewish. They are involved in other parts of the gospel story and unlike roman guards they were very familiar with Jewish law, scriptures and...
Which Silhouette?
posted by Paul
Luke 22:54-62 – Peter Denies Jesus “Which Silhouette?” Jesus is arrested and Peter follows. To gain a deeper insight into a spiritual lesson from Peter’s following of Jesus, check out my blog for John 18. Today, however, I want to point out a very simple question. As Peter nervously...
Ear Today, Gone Tomo...
posted by Paul
Luke 22:47-53 – Jesus Arrested “Ear today, gone tomorrow?” Ok, sorry for the cheesy title but honestly, it’s a serious question. Jesus is in the garden and a crowd, well more like a lynch mob, comes to arrest Him. They come at night because they knew that the people would defend Jesus...
Keep Calm and Carry ...
posted by Paul
Luke 22:39-46 – Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives “Keep Calm and Carry On?” This passage contains perhaps the most astounding verse in the Bible, at least in my opinion. As we have already seen, Jesus’ last days were spent speaking in the Temple during the daytime and then going up...
Who To Vote For!
posted by Paul
Luke 22:7-38 – The Last Supper “Who to vote for!” So last night it seemed pretty clear that Mitt Romney would get the Republican nomination to run for President. It’s going to be an Obama vs Romney option. American politics is very different from British politics [even the colors are...
Who Can You Never Le...
posted by Paul
Luke 22:1-7 – Judas agrees to betrays Jesus “Who can you never lead?” There is someone you can never lead. Whether they are your son or daughter, spouse, subordinate or student. Our failure to lead has a little something to do with their attitude but a great deal to do with what’s in...
The Best Form of Def...
posted by Paul
Luke 21:5-37 – Signs of the End of the Age “The Best form of Defense” Jesus toward the end of His life spent His days teaching in the temple and the evenings camped outside the city on the Mount of Olives. One day, His disciples remark about the beauty of the Temple. Until very...
Upside Down Value Sy...
posted by Paul
Luke 21:1-4 – The Widow’s Offering “Upside Down Value System” In contrast to a warning about teachers of the law who rip off widows, Jesus now points a widow out as a true giver to God. The widow gave the cheapest coins ‘lepta’ or ‘lepton’ singular. These coins were old as they...
Say little do much
posted by Paul
Luke 20:41-47 – Whose Son is the Christ? “Say little do much” After a quick question to get people thinking about the identity of the Messiah, Jesus focus’ once again on our behavior. We are not to be like the Teachers of the Law of His day. They were into doing things for praise but...
Travel Agent or Tour Guide?
posted by Paul
Luke 20:27-39 – The Resurrection and Marriage “Travel Agent or Tour Guide?” Again Jesus is asked a sh’eilah, a question about religious law. Just as we saw yesterday, He is given yet another trick question set to trap Him. The passage today however teaches us something different about how to answer questions. First of all, a little context. The Jewish law required that the brother of a man who died without children should marry his widow so that she could have a child and continue the family line. This law is called yibbum. If the brother refused there was a humiliating service called chalitzah whereby the widow is released and he...
Whose asking the Que...
posted by Paul
Luke 20:20-26 – Paying Taxes to Ceasar “Whose Asking the Question?” Jesus is asked a sh’eilah, a question about religious law. In doing so, His accusers were in effect acknowledging Him as someone who had authority to give answers. It seems to me they had given up proving that He had...