Luke 20:9-19- Parable of the Wicked Tenants

Parable of the Wicked Tenants

When Jesus tells a parable it is for the purpose of teaching some kind of lesson. With the Pharisees there seems to be lessons aimed specifically at them that in regular language they would ignore.

In the Parable of the Wicked Tenants (Luke 20:9-19), Jesus compares God to a man who planted a vineyard. The vineyard was leased while the vineyard owner went to another country for while. The vineyard owner sent servants to get some fruit. He sent three different servants and each was beaten or wounded and sent away empty handed. This was the way to explain how God has sent prophets to deliver a message that not only was rejected, but the messengers Jeremiah, John the Baptist, as well as others were stoned, harmed or killed (Got Questions- Parable of the Tenants). 

Finally, the vineyard owner (God) sends His son (Jesus), who the tenants saw as a threat. They though of the son was being sent then the owner must be dead and the son, if killed, would no longer be heir to the vineyard and the tenants could keep the vineyard.

The tenants in the parable are to be the religious leaders and various people who rejected every messenger of God. Jesus references Psalm 118:22 when he said, "The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone" when he closes out the teaching of the parable. Jesus is the cornerstone of our faith. Without Jesus's life, miracles, death and resurrection, and his fulfilling of the prophecies, following Christ would be flawed.

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Luke 19:8- Jesus and Zacchaeus

Jesus and Zacchaeus

Zacchaeus may not be a name that you have heard of before. He isn't Moses, Abraham or John the Baptist, but we can definitely learn from him in verses 1-10. 

Zacchaeus was the chief tax collector and was rich. In verse 3 it states, "And he was seeking to see who Jesus was." That statement alone shows how Zacchaeus' desire was to seek Jesus. Seeking takes effort on your own. In verse 4 he ran up in a tree so he could see Jesus since Zacchaeus was too short to see him as he passed. That verse also shows Zacchaeus'desire to seek and then to go above and beyond to ensure that he could see Jesus.

Jesus saw Zacchaeus in the tree and said that he must stay at Zacchaeus' home. Jesus saw Zacchaeus' effort and knew who Zacchaeus was. He was humbled by this and seeing how Jesus accepted him he said "Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold."

He could have just accepted Jesus and not wanted to repay for the wrongs he had done as tax collectors were known to cheat people. Zacchaeus turned his life around and did not hang on to the selfishness that separated him from Jesus. We can do the same. We can be freed from who we were and seek Jesus and receive his salvation.

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Luke 9:9- From Disbelief to Research

Herod's Disbelief

Remember Herod from Matthew 2 when Jesus was born? He was in power when Jesus was born. He was the one that sought to kill Jesus after he was born but was tricked by the wise men who originally had been instructed to bring baby Jesus to Herod. His son, Herod the tetrarch (the Herod from this chapter) is the one that had John the Baptist beheaded (click here for more details).

John the Baptist was someone who foretold of the coming of Jesus in Luke 3. Herod the tetrarch had heard about all of the healing and miracles Jesus was doing and was perplexed (puzzled). Rumors were going around that a dead prophet (Elijah or John the baptist) had risen from the dead and was the one really doing the miracles through Jesus. Even though Herod the tetrarch was puzzled, in Luke 9:9 is says "And he sought to see him." 

You know what you don't see much is the disbelief in Jesus that leads to an individual doing their own research. Herod the tetracrh went to go see for himself. I see alot of disblief in Christ today that leads to belief in emotion and feelings. People feel it must not be true (Jesus's miracles and life and resurrection) and then they believe it. They do not try to find out how something done is so amazing that it must not be true.

My point is that if you do not believe, do your own research. There are plenty of resources out there online that give you the information you need in order to understand the existence of Christ. Many say Christians have blind faith because you cannot prove this (the ark of the covenant or that Noah's ark) so things must not be true. People provide no evidence to counter, just an emotion.

We have to be careful not to let our emotions dictate what we do and do not do. Reactions from our feeling such as anger and lust can lead to sinful ways that draw us further from God. No matter what you feel, seek. Seek Jesus. Seek God's will. Seek the evidence. Go and see for yourself. Jesus wasn't made up.

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Luke 3:3- Baptism of Repentance

Baptism of Repentance 

John the Baptist is a very important man in the New Testament when we look at the life of Christ. John's role was of preparing people for the arrival of Jesus. Jesus was already born, but the arrival in terms of who Jesus really was and how his birth and life fulfilled prophecies.

John's message in this chapter was to spread the word about a baptism of repentance. This thinking was intended for people to see past just feeling bad for their sins. There is nothing wrong with feeling bad for your sins, but what are you going to do about it?

I look at many sins as the physical embodiment of a way of thinking. For instance, gluttony (over eating) would be a sin as we who commit this sin have not treated our bodies as God would want us to. There are numerous health problems that come from overeating including bad backs, high blood pressure and heart attacks. So, if it is a sin to be a glutton (making food more important than God) then that sin is based on an idea that you already have. The idea could be something as simple as "when I am happy I eat what I want. And when I am sad I will eat what I want." There is no concern for "What does God think about this?" 

Repentance is an action word used in this context to help us change our mind about sin. We all sin and we all fall short of the glory if God, but if we don't change the way we think about our sins, how will we actually stop it? I have enlisted in a few accountability partners for the issues that keep coming up, including my food/caloric intake. Overall, God still loves and I do not lose my salvation, but I do seek to honor God with body and my mind has to be in agreement.

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Luke 1- God's Promises

God's Promises

I have seen in my own life how God's promises do hold true. I was reflecting yesterday on how one thing that seems horrible at one point can be an absolute blessing years letter in retrospect.

In treading through Luke 1, I kept seeing something pop up. It was God's word holding firm and being true. God said something and it became true. In verse 13 an angel of the Lord came to Zechariah (father to be of John the Baptist) and told him his prayers had been answered and he and his wife, Elizabeth, would bear a son. Zechariah did not believe the angel (Gabriel) and for that was made mute (verses 18-20) until the birth of John.

Gabriel is the same angel that also told Mary (mother of Jesus) that she would give birth to a son even though she was a virgin. In verses 26-33, so much information is given about Jesus from not only his name but to how he will live.

In verses 62-64, as John was born, many were saying that he should be named after his father Zechariah, but he wrote on a tablet that "His name is John" which released his inability to speak. That is exactly what Gabriel said before that the inability to speak would last until John was born due to Zechariah's unbelief.

The thing I love about this chapter is that even when things seem impossible, Luke 1:37 reminds us of the truth that "nothing is impossible with God." Whether you are an old woman or an unmarried virgin, God can and will use you, if you let Him. Being out of God's will (as you may have read yesterday) is never helpful in your walk with Christ.

Another note, that really solidifies all that is embedded in why we follow Christ was that his birth fulfills prophecies that were stated and documented years and years before his birth. I read from Dave Guzik on Studylight.org who explains that when Gabriel spoke from God's presence about words being fulfilled in their time (section 4 subsection 2 c), he was referring to Jesus's birth and the surround prophecies that prove that Jesus is the messiah and not just a good teacher. Know that!

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Matthew 14: compassion, disbelief & faith

Matthew 14:14 "When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, & he had compassion on them & healed the sick." commentary-  Have you ever just wanted to  get away for a vacation or the death of a friend or loved one (verses 1-13)? No matter what we are going through there are still things we can say or do that honor God & keep us humble in serving others. Jesus went to get away but still saw a need people had & met their need. He had compassion & didn't make himself the focus. (compassion)

Matthew 14:16 " But Jesus said, “'They need not go away; you give them something to eat.'” commentary- The disciples did not believe that all the people who wanted something to eat could be fed with what food was available. With Christ, it was possible. We don't go to Christ enough when things seem bleak. We complain and get scared and don't ask God for help. But when we utilize God's power then how can His will not be done? (disbelief)

Matthew 14:31 "Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, 'O you of little faith, why did you doubt?'" commentary- Jesus called Peter out to walk on the water with him. Jesus wants us to do something amazing and unbelievable in the sight of man. Peter apprehensively walked out on the water and sank. Jesus saved him. When we take our eyes off of Christ and focus on our worries and apprehensions, we cannot do it the right way. We will "fall." Jesus calls Peter out saying he had little faith. This is not the same as the faith of a mustard seed which is small, but is also full of growth. Peter lacked faith and what little faith he had was overcome by his apprehension. When we fall is when we tend to look back up at Jesus instead having kept our eyes on him in the first place. (faith)

What is going on in your life right now where you can bestow some compassion on someone amidst your busy schedule?

Where in your life do you see that you lack faith? You think God isn't with you and you can't see His hand, but He is sticking it out to show you the way and that you are to have faith in Him.