Jesus is the truth – Be Still…

John 17:1-26 – What a Prayer!

What a prayer indeed! Jesus has been our Redeemer from the day of creation. Jesus, our friend and confidant, has been by our side from the very first day. That same Jesus was praying for us, not the world! Can you believe it?

We may be in the world, but Jesus called out the world and made it clear He was praying for us. Jesus himself had been tempted by the evil one controlling the world. As if the world were a lost cause, Jesus was praying for those who knew him. It’s sometimes hard and unpopular to live in the world when you think like Jesus. Continue reading “John 17:1-26 – What a Prayer!”

Mark 6:1-13 – What’s Next?

Read Mark 6:1-13

Whether you’ve lived in the same town your whole life or have moved around like a pastor’s family, the way this passage opens can strike a chord. Returning to your hometown or whatever town you currently call home can bring a sense of relief and joy, with a little hopeful expectation tossed in. I experience that each time we return to our Mexico home on the lake. When you come over the mountains and see the lakeside area spreading out below, it takes your breath away. You have your own special arrival moments, too.

But Jesus’ homecoming wasn’t all sunshine and roses, was it? We see a lot of the same negative, condescending types of behavior right there in Nazareth that we see today. Finding fault with others is a lot easier than looking at the faults within ourselves. Continue reading “Mark 6:1-13 – What’s Next?”

John 6:63 – Hard Truth

“The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life.” (John 6:63)

This verse isn’t giving us the okay to be lazy. Far from it! Jesus is really challenging us here to accept the hard truths he spoke about while he walked this earth. Jesus knew we humans would try to impress him, doing great things, thinking we could earn our way into heaven. That’s not how it works.

Context (John 6): A lot happens in Chapter 6 of John’s gospel. We find the accounts of the feeding of the 5,000, of Jesus walking on water, and of Jesus explaining he is the bread of life. This is significant because Jesus explains some really hard concepts difficult for most to accept. If he is the bread of life coming down from heaven, how can he also be from Nazareth? Jesus began to lose followers whose faith was not ready to believe all that he had to say. That’s where our verse comes in as Jesus further clarifies in verse 66 that “people can’t come to me unless the Father gives them to me.” Continue reading “John 6:63 – Hard Truth”

Ecclesiastes 6:1-9 – Enjoy Life!

Read Ecclesiastes 6:1-9

That old wind Solomon is chasing or dreaming of chasing! The last line is great! “Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don’t have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless—like chasing the wind.”

Before he gets to that realization, Solomon took a bit of a turn down a dark road in this reading. I’m sure you also noticed the enormous amount of (one hundred) children referred to in his lament. With hundreds of wives, he likely had many offspring, so 100 would not have sounded too lavish to be believable!

Ezra 6:1-12 – Stamp of Approval

Read Ezra 6:1-12

As we expected, King Darius confirmed the Israelite’s story. It took a little digging from the sounds of it, but the message was exactly as Tattenai had been told. Did you love King Darius’ response to the meddling Tattenai and his cohorts! “[S]tay away from there!” In other words, don’t mess with the Israelites.

King Darius took it a step farther as well. He decreed that Tattenai actually help the Israelites. The king’s instructions left little doubt of what should be done. I can just about feel Tattenai’s blood boiling even after all of these generations. He was probably very sorry that he had “opened that can of worms” when he first made his inquiries.