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Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/19) Mark 12:35-43

Feb19

A 5-day per week study.

February 19– Reading Mark 12:35-43.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand…”  Mark 12:36a

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The Gospel according to Mark 12:35-43

After butting heads with the three major religious sects in Jerusalem, then speaking with one sincere scribe who was “near to the Kingdom,” Jesus continued teaching in the Temple area.  He was the true Shepherd of Israel, the one who loved the “flock” and would soon “lay down His life for them.”  Those rulers of Israel, “false shepherds” who had no thought or care for the “sheep,” had to be exposed for the hypocrites they were.

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Vss. 35-37 with (Matthew 22:41-42).

The religious leaders had tested Jesus with their questions. Now, it was His turn to give them a “test question.”

“What do you think about the Christ (Messiah)?  Whose son is He?” He asked.

“The son of David,” they answered.

Now the people recognized this as the title for the Messiah.  And that’s how their leaders referred to him.  But by calling the Messiah “the son of David,” these pious rulers meant he would be a mere man.  Yes, the descendant of the great King David, but man … not God.

Jesus referred to the Scriptures that they claimed to know so well and revere so highly with His question. (Psalm 110:1)

“How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him LORD, saying, ‘The LORD said to my Lord, ‘Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet?’  If then David calls him LORD, how is He his son?”

The ‘great throng’ who witnessed this showdown between Jesus and the Pharisees (scribes) were glad to hear Jesus.  The Jewish leaders, however, were totally miffed and “from that day on, no one dared to ask Him any more questions.”

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Vss. 38-40.

Jesus, turning to the crowd, then issued a warning. “BEWARE of the scribes (and Pharisees)…”

Why?

  • “They like to walk around in long robes…
  • They like greetings in the marketplaces…
  • (They like to) have the best seats in the synagogues…
  • And the places of honor at feasts.”

Jesus was exposing them as hypocrites, seeking the favor and praise of man rather than God.

  • They “devour widows’ houses…
  • And “for show” pray long prayers.”

NOTE: Scribes often served as ‘estate planners‘ for new widows, and would give these grieving women the chance to “serve God” by supporting the Temple work (or the scribe’s own work) with their deceased husband’s money.   In doing this, these wily religious leaders would be “robbing the widows.”

NOTE: And, we know about their “long, showy prayers” from Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. (Luke 18:9-14)

—- Pharisee: “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.  I fast twice a week, and I give tithes of all that I get.

—- Tax Collection: “God, be merciful to me a sinner.”

—- Jesus taught (Matthew 5:20), “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

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Vss. 41-44.

And then, Jesus sat opposite the treasury in the Temple area and watched people put in their offerings.

NOTE: These “offering boxes” were 13 trumpet-shaped receptacles on the walls of the court of women, where offerings and donations to the temple were dropped in.

As Jesus watched, a very poor widow  (who had perhaps been cheated out of her husband’s legacy by those conniving scribes) came to give her offering. She quietly dropped in two small copper coins, which equaled one penny.  (These copper coins were the smallest denomination of Roman coins, equal to 1/64th of a day’s wages.)   And Jesus commended her.

WHY, we ask.  What could so little do to support the Temple?

It wasn’t the Temple that Jesus was concerned with.  He was looking at the HEARTS of the offering givers. Many wealthy people dropped in large amounts, making sure everyone saw them do it.  But even those “princely sums” didn’t hurt their wealth. (They made sure of that.)

The poor widow quietly dropped in those two coins so no one could see. But Jesus saw them, and more importantly, saw her heart.  She had given EVERYTHING SHE HAD.  Now this poor woman would have nothing to live on.  What love compared to what hypocrisy! And she is honored even today for her sacrifice by being in the gospel story.

(In my heart, I believe God saw her faith and honored it, and then supplied her needs in perhaps amazing ways.  But if not, she was content to give her all.)

What do “my” offerings reveal about my heart?

 

 

 

 

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/16) Mark 12:1-12

Feb16

A 5-day per week study.

February 16– Reading Mark 12:1-12.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and leased it to tenents and went away.”  Mark12:1b

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The Gospel according to Mark 12:1-12.

Jesus had ridden into Jerusalem on a donkey to the wild acclaim of the people.  Their King had come!  He was going to end Roman rule and free Israel.  But, early the next morning, Jesus had instead ended the Sadducee-approved buying, selling, and money-changing in the Temple area.

The next day, these men had accosted Him, demanding to know on whose authority He had done such a thing.  When they refused to answer His question about John the Baptist, Jesus refused to answer their question.  Again, their fear of the adoring crowds kept them from arresting Jesus.

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Vss.1-5.

It is still the same day, a few minutes later, and Jesus spoke TO THEM in a parable.

(Remember, earlier, Jesus had told His disciples that He taught in parables because of the hardness of the people’s hearts. They would not receive truth, so He veiled it in stories.)  He did that here, looking directly at the chief priests, scribes, and elders as He spoke.  They KNEW this parable was directed to them, and they fumed.

The Parable of the Tenants would have instantly reminded these teachers of Israel of Isaiah 5:1-7.  Please DO read this now!)  

They understood that the vineyard represented Israel, and the tenants were a picture of THEM.

Jesus’ parable told of evil, greedy tenants who wanted ALL the harvest for themselves, not just the 10% they earned.  So, as each of the slaves that the landowner sent to collect his portion of the profit arrived, they beat him up or killed him.  MANY of them.

This, of course, represented the many prophets God had sent to Israel and its leaders to correct their evil ways, and to “collect” the love, obedience, and worship He so rightly deserved.  The religious leaders had ignored the prophets and many times killed them. (Read Matthew 23:34-36)

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Vss. 6-9.

Jesus then tells them that the landowner had ONE SON (a picture of Himself) whom He finally sent to get the “harvest” He deserved.  But the wicked tenants, seeing this as their last chance, KILLED THE SON.  “Now… it’s all ours,”  the thought.  THEY THOUGHT!

This evil vividly depicts what the chief priests and elders were going to do to Jesus in just a couple of days.  HE knew it.  He’d told his disciples three times (Had they heard at all?).  And in the minds of these religious leaders, that was JUST what they wanted to do … if they could only figure out how to do it.

Then Jesus said something in the parable that I’m sure the Jewish leaders did not understand.  “The tenants would be destroyed, and the vineyard would be given to others.”

Yes, Jesus would be crucified, but He would be resurrected.  His church would begin and grow from the small band of Spirit-empowered followers with Him.  Churches would be established where believers would worship and glorify God.   AND … in a mere 40 years, Jerusalem would be destroyed, along with the Temple, the sacrifices, and all the priesthood.

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Vss. 10-12.

Jesus then quotes Psalm 119:22-23.

“The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the LORD’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes.”

Jesus connects the Son that the tenants killed to the “Stone” (Himself)  that the builders (religious leaders) rejected.  The resurrected Son would be the Cornerstone of the church, upon which the prophets and apostles would build.

The religious leaders fumed.  They seethed.  They WANTED to arrest Him, but, once again, feared the people.  So, they left Him and went away.

(But they would soon come at night, when no crowd’s adoration could protect Him.  And they would have their way with Jesus, just as the evil tenants had with the landowner’s son. )

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Just as God had planned it all from eternity past.

 

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (1/15) Mark 4:21-34

Jan15

A 5-day per week study.

January 15 – Reading Mark 4:21-34.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“With many such parables He spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it.” Mark 4:33

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The Gospel according to Mark 4:21-34.

Unlike Matthew, but SO like Mark’s style, this short passage in Chapter 4 contains all the parables of Jesus that Mark recorded.  Other than the parable of the Sower, they are all “short and sweet…and pithy.”  (Mark liked action and didn’t spend too much time on Jesus’ discourses.)

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Vss. 21-25.

NOTE: From Mark 4:10 through 4:34, Jesus is in an intimate setting, speaking only to a small group of true followers and “the Twelve.”

Remember that Jesus and the good news about Him and His kingdom are often pictured as “light” to a dark world.  Even though Jesus is speaking to these few believers, the gospel is not meant to be hidden.  Jesus asks them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed…. or put on a stand?”  The answer is to be put on a stand so it will light the house. 

(Remember the little children’s song, “This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine.”) 

Jesus was telling these men the truth (what the “Sower” parable meant), but they were not to keep it to themselves; they were to share it, eventually with the world. (See Matthew 28:19-20) 

“Pay attention to what you hear,” Jesus said. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added. For to the one who HAS, more will be given.”

These men were key to spreading the gospel throughout the then-known world.  Jesus told them to “pay attention.”  And as they learned, applied, and eventually shared the “light,” more would be given to them.  

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Vss. 26-28.

Only Mark records this Parable of the Seed Growing.  It complements the Parable of the Sower and how the seeds planted in GOOD SOIL grow.   In that good soil, the seed sprouts and grows. First, the blade appears, then the ear, and lastly the full grain in the ear. 

When the Gospel is presented, and the Word enters an open and fertile heart, it produces spiritual growth and, finally, the harvest, when God “saves” the person. 

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Vss. 30-32.

This Parable of the Mustard Seed pictures the kingdom of God. It begins as a small influence, but grows to a worldwide ministry.  

In this parable, Jesus says that “a grain of mustard seed” is the smallest of all seeds on the earth.”  (It isn’t actually the smallest seed in existence, but in comparison to all the seeds the Jews sowed, it was the smallest.)

A mustard seed “can” grow up to a major bush of fifteen feet or so, with branches capable of supporting birds’ nests.  So, Jesus is picturing a smallish sphere of salvation that could grow so large as to shelter and benefit many people. Even unbelievers are blessed by association with the gospel and the power of God in salvation. 

In both the Parable of the Lamp and this one, Jesus is encouraging his true followers that even though their influence seems very small, it will grow and reach many.  They are to be faithful to learn, grow, and apply.

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Vss 33-34.

“With many such parables…” (Mark doesn’t feel like putting them all down in writing)  “…He (Jesus) spoke the word to them, as much as they were able to bear.”   And while He explained everything to His close disciples, to the crowds (Mark says), Jesus “did not speak to them without a parable.”

Only if His hearers were interested and asked Jesus to teach them further, would He respond.  Sadly, most of the crowds came to Jesus for what they could get – healing, release from demons, a spectacle to watch, a riddle to ponder, and later, “free bread and fish.”

 

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (1/14) Mark 4:1-20

Jan14

A 5-day per week study.

January 14 – Reading Mark 4:1-20.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables…”  Mark 4:10-11

 

The Gospel according to Mark 4:1-20.

Vss.1-2

Up to this point, the crowds around Jesus have been coming for healing.  And Jesus healed them of every kind of disease, and cast out many kinds of unclean spirits. They have crowded and crushed around Him, and in His compassion, He met all their physical needs.

Now, when the great crowd came, Jesus began TO TEACH them. He got into that boat a little way out in the water and sat down. The people settled along the beach and up on the rising land. Eventually, they quieted, and Jesus began to teach them (many things) in parables, or object lessons.

Object lessons make some things clear to the listeners, but perplex others who have no interest. This was Jesus’ plan.

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Vss. 3-9

Jesus tells the very familiar parable of the Sower. This would have been a common sight in Galilee: farmers with a sack slung over a shoulder, sowing grain in wide, sweeping motions.  The people settled back to listen.

But it seems the lesson to be learned was about the soil, the makeup of the earth where the seeds landed.

The parable portrayed Jesus as the sower, sowing the “good news” of the Kingdom of God. His listeners were the different kinds of soils.

  1. Some seeds fell along the hard-packed pathway, where hundreds of feet wore a shortcut through the field. The seeds simply sat there until the birds noticed the treat and came to eat them.
  2. Some seeds fell on rocky ground – possibly the edges of the field where the plow had overturned the soil and left it in hard clumps.  The seeds sprouted and sprang up.  But they couldn’t send their roots deep into the soil where moisture was, and so soon shriveled in the hot sun.
  3. Some seeds fell where weeds and thorns grew, perhaps on the corners of the fields where the plow did not reach.  They sprouted and grew, but so did the stronger, established, and much more aggressive weeds. Eventually, the weeds overpowered the seedlings, drawing all the moisture and light. The weak plants yielded no grain.

The people listening had seen these scenarios many times in the countryside.  Perhaps some even nodded in appreciation at Jesus’s agricultural knowledge. They were ready for the final kind of soil.

     4.  Other seeds fell on good soil. These grew up and yielded 30x, 60x, and even 100x the amount of seed sown.  (All of these yields were HUGE amounts. Grain in that area usually produced only 8x or 10x.

Then Jesus says to his huge audience, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

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(Maybe some responded in their hearts, “I have ears, I heard Him well enough, what’s the big deal?  How come He didn’t do any miracles?)

(And maybe others left quietly, thinking about Jesus’s words, grasping a bit of their meaning, and decided to return and hear more.)

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Vss 10-12.

Later, when Jesus was alone with them (perhaps even that evening), the twelve asked the meaning of the parables.  Jesus gave them what seems like a very chilling answer.

“To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, so that (and here He paraphrases Isaiah 6:9-10), ‘they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven.'”

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The “mystery” of the parables is revealed to those who believe in Jesus, who may have heard John the Baptist point to Him and proclaim Him as the Lamb of God, or simply recognized His miracles as proof of His Messiahship. In all cases, it was the work of the Holy Spirit that caused saving faith.  (This is why blasphemy of Him is so deadly.)

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Vss. 13-20.

Then Jesus explained the parable of the “sower” to the disciples.  

  1. Seeds sown on the path are like people who hear the word, but immediately Satan comes and takes it away.
  2. Seeds sown on rocky ground are the ones who hear the Word, it sounds “good,” and they receive it with joy. They endure for a while, but since their belief lacks substance, when persecution or tribulation comes, they immediately fall away.
  3. Seeds sown among the weeds are those who HEAR the word, but the cares of the world, or the deceitfulness of riches, or the desires for other things, choke the Word (become more important), and it proves unfruitful. 
  4. Seeds that are sown on good soil are the ones who HEAR the Word, AND ACCEPT it, and BEAR FRUIT, thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and a hundredfold.

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Jesus will teach in many more parables, and sometimes He will have to explain some to His disciples. But the people who came only for healing or to see the miracles Jesus did went away without understanding.

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“Lord, open my eyes and ears to Your truths!”

 

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 312

Nov8

A NEW MONTH!

Day 312 – Reading – Matthew 25

Read and believe in Jesus!

Matthew 25.

Jesus continues His warnings about the end times, this time using parables and illustrations.

The Parable of the Ten Virgins warns about being prepared. Ten young women, bridesmaids, waited at the Bride’s house for the Bridegroom to come, so they could form a procession to the festivities.  These gals waited a long time, all of them napping as it got later and later.  Their oil lamps burned lower and lower. 

Finally, the joyful call that the Bridegroom was coming!  Quickly, they trimmed the wicks of their lamps, and five of them refilled them with oil.  But the other five could not.

They thought they had an adequate supply in their lamps.  They did not bring extra oil.  They did not plan on waiting a long time or persevering through the long night.  When they asked to borrow some from the others, they were denied. Perseverance and faithfulness (the oil) are a personal thing: each must have their own supply in their heart.

“Watch therefore,” Jesus said, “for you know neither the day nor the hour (of the Lord’s coming).”

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The Parable of the Talents is a similar story about wasting opportunities or being faithful in the Lord’s work until He returns.  A businessman was going on a journey and called His three top servants together to assign work while he was gone. 

To his best worker, he gave a very sizable amount of money to be responsible for – FIVE talents of silver. (One silver talent was equivalent to 20 years’ wages for a common laborer).  To the man’s next best servant, the man gave the responsibility of TWO talents of silver. And to the third man, he gave the oversight of ONE silver talent.  Then the businessman went away, confident his men would do well by him.

The best worker traded on the stock market and doubled his master’s money.

The second-best worker did the same, doubling the two talents he had.

But the third man, fearful of any risk, hid the silver talent safely in a vault in the ground.  He was sure not to lose any of it that way.

When the businessman finally returned, he called all three to account.  He was very pleased with the first two servants’ wisdom and the increase in his money. He praised them and rewarded them handsomely.

But he was very disappointed and angry at the third man.  If indeed the servant knew he was a “hard man” who gathered where he did not sow, should he not have AT LEAST put the talent in the bank where it would have earned interest?  The servant was wicked and slothful, and he was kicked out into outer darkness, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

The wait for the Lord’s second coming may seem long (2,000 years?).  But Jesus’ true followers must be faithful, prepared, and working for the Kingdom, as God has enabled them..

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The illustration of Judgment Day tells us about those who obey or disobey His Commands to love one another (even our enemies). This love reflects God’s great, undeserved love for us and the root of His salvation, planned from before the world began.

At the end, on judgment day, the King will divide the people of all the nations into “the sheep” and “the goats.”  Sheep on the right (the side of blessing) and goats on the left (the side of judgment).  He will bless the sheep and give them the Kingdom that the Father had prepared for them.

Why are we rewarded? they ask.  The King answered, “For when I was hungry, you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me. I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.”

“When did we do all this?” the sheep asked.

“When you did it to one of the least of these my brothers… you did it to me.”

THEN…

The King turned to the “goats” on His left and said, “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels!”

‘Na-a-a-a, why?” they asked, and were told that when confronted with the hungry and thirsty, strangers, naked ones, the sick and imprisoned … they – from their hard, selfish hearts – did not assist, supply, or help at all.  And because they did not do kindness to these, they had not done it for the King. 

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Again, the Lord is interested in our hearts. Do we look for His coming with longing, serving Him no matter how long it takes?  Do we shun laziness, and honor Him always with what little or abundance that we have?  And are we forsaking self desires and from out hearts serving others with love and kindness?

He knows.

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 308

Nov4

A NEW MONTH!

Day 308 – Reading – Matthew 22 and Mark 12

Read and believe in Jesus!

Matthew 22 and Mark 12.

These two chapters have similar accounts of Jesus, so we’ll take them together. The events take place in Jerusalem (sometimes in the Temple) after Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, and before Passover Thursday.

Both of these chapters begin with parables (The Wedding Feast and The Tenants).  Both speak of people who were asked by someone to DO something. (attend the wedding and take care of the property).  Both decided NOT to comply, so a second group of people was then considered. (common people from the byways and a new set of tenants).   

The Jewish religious leaders knew that both of these parables were directed at THEM, and resented Jesus even more.  Jesus was saying that the very people who knew “the law and prophets” thoroughly did not see their Messiah when he came, but the common people did, and accepted Him. So THEY were chosen to enter the Kingdom.

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Now we’re going to see several different Jewish Religious groups coming to test Jesus. 

The Pharisees and Herodians.  (This was a weird combo. An uber-pious Jewish religious group and a secular political group with leanings toward Rome.)

First, the “butter up.” “Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God.”

Then the test question. “Tell us what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them or should we not?”

(Heh, heh, heh.  They thought they had Him between “a rock and a hard place:” his Jewish heritage and the Roman rule they lived under.  WHICH would he say?)

Jesus asked for a coin commonly used at that time (think of a Quarter in the United States).   “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” 

They admitted, “Caesar’s.”

“So, then give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”  When they heard Jesus give this answer, they marveled and went away.

(Score one for Jesus.)

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Next, The Sadducees came to Jesus with a test question. (Now the Sadducees did not believe in the bodily resurrection. That was why they were “sad, you see.” Haha.)

First, understand the law (Deuteronomy 25:5-10) that gave a provision to ensure family ties were kept intact and that widows were cared for. It stated that if a woman became a widow without children (who cared for widows then), her dead husband’s brother should marry her and raise a child to carry on the deceased’s name and property rights in the Land, and to care for the widow.  It was a kindness.

And so, the Sadducees came with this facetious question.  If a woman’s husband died without giving her a child, and each of his seven brothers also tried but died without giving her a child … and then the woman died.  In the “resurrection,” WHOSE WIFE WOULD SHE BE?

Ha, ha, ha.  They thought they had Jesus trapped now. 

But Jesus landed on their one mistake. Although Jewish scholars, they obviously did not understand the Word.  “You are wrong because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God.”  Then Jesus went on to tell them that in Heaven, there would not be marriage.  That was a provision on earth to procreate.  And as far as people living on after death, Jesus asked them to consider the scripture where God said, “I Am” the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” He is not God of the DEAD but of the LIVING.    

The crowd heard this and were astonished at His teaching.

(Score 2 for Jesus)

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When one of the Pharisees heard how Jesus had silenced their rivals, the Sadducees, they gathered together and appointed one as their spokesperson.

The Pharisee: “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the Law?

Jesus: “‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’  And the second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’  On these two commandments depend all the Law and Prophets.”

The Pharisee:  “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that He is one, and there is no other besides Him. And to love Him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

Jesus:  “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”

And after that, no one dared to ask Him any more questions.

(Score 3 for Jesus)

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Jesus then ASKED THEM a question. “What do you think about ‘the Christ’?  Whose son is he?

Pharisees:  “He is the son of David.”

Jesus: “How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls Him Lord, saying, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet?’  If then David calls Him Lord, how is He his son?”  (Psalm 110:1)

And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask a question.

(Score 4 for Jesus)

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Mark adds this vignette. 

Jesus and his disciples were sitting in the Temple court opposite the Treasury, watching people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums.  And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make one penny.

Jesus: “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box.”   And to the disciples’ questioning looks, He added, “They all contributed out of their abundance, but she, out of her poverty, has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

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“Beware of the scribes/Pharisees, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces and have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, who devour widows’ homes and for a pretense make long prayers.  THEY will receive the greater condemnation”

 

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Days 306 & 307

Nov3

A NEW MONTH!

SUNDAY and MONDAY studies are posted together on Mondays

Day 306 – Reading – Luke 19

Day 307 – Reading – Mark 11 and John 12

Read and believe in Jesus!

SUNDAY – Day 306 – Luke 19.

Today’s chapter in Luke will revisit some of the events from yesterday’s reading in Matthew.  We will go back to Jericho and meet another Tax Collector named Zacchaeus.  He was a chief tax collector, and as such, he was very wealthy and very disliked. Not only did he collect taxes, but he also oversaw others and probably got a “cut” of their money. 

But Zacchaeus was different from that rich young ruler in the previous chapter.  We will see that his money meant little to him, and he was very eager to see Jesus. 

He was a “wee little man,” or so the children’s song goes, and he could not see Him over the heads of the crowd that followed Jesus as he walked through the city.  Quickly, the enterprising tax collector climbed up in a nearby sycamore tree and spotted Jesus.  Jesus saw him in the tree, knew the thoughts and intents of his heart, and stopped.  

“Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.”

As he scrambled down from the tree, did Zacchaeus wonder how Jesus knew his name? The crowd parted, and the short tax collector pushed through, joyfully leading the way to his house. 

Of course, the crowd grumbled when they saw Jesus go into “that sinner” Zacchaeus’ house.

Before Zacchaeus even called for lunch, he confessed to Jesus, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything (of course, he had!), I will restore it fourfold.”

How different from that rich young ruler, who went away from Jesus sorrowfully, because he didn’t want to give away even a penny. Zacchaeus offered much more.  The law required only 20% restitution (not half), and replacement of twice the value, not four times.  His heart was truly repentant. 

“Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham.  For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

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Then Jesus told a parable, perhaps even as they all reclined around Zacchaeus’ meal.  It was to remind His followers that Jesus was NOT (right then) going to establish His Kingdom on earth. (He had to suffer and die first, but they seemed deaf to that message.)  So … Perhaps a parable would get them thinking.

He told a story about a nobleman who planned to claim his kingdom and then return.   While he was gone, his servants were to conduct business and make a profit for him. He gave them each 10 minas to work with. He went, received his kingdom, and returned home.  He asked each of his servants what they had gained for him.

One made a tenfold profit. “Good job. You shall have authority over ten cities in my kingdom.”

One made a fivefold profit. “Good job as well. You will be over five cities.”

One made zero profit. He said, “I put the ten mina in my handkerchief, for I was afraid of you. Here is your minas.”  “You wicked servant. Why did you not put my money in the bank so I might have at least collected the interest? Take that mina from him and give it to the one who earned a 10X profit.”

Perhaps the disciples scratched their heads at this, but probably Zacchaeus understood well about profit and loss and nodded his head in understanding.

 But did they all understand that He, the nobleman in the parable, was going away to claim his Kingdom, not seizing it in Jerusalem?

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Then, as we read yesterday, Jesus proceeded to Bethphage, where the disciples procured a donkey-colt for him to ride on. And as he rode down toward the gate of Jerusalem, the crowd began waving palm branches and strewing them and their cloaks on the ground for Jesus to ride over. 

“Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” they shouted.

Some Pharisees were in the crowd and shouted at Jesus. “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”

“I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out,” He answered.

Then at one point, Jesus wept over the Holy City, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes.” And He predicted the time when Jerusalem would fall with not one stone left on another … because they didn’t recognize the “day of their visitation.”  (His time with them.)

Inside the city, the chief priests and scribe sought to destroy Him, but they did not find anything they could do … because all the people were hanging on  His Words.

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MONDAY – Day 307 – Mark 11.

Mark repeats the account of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem and the brief time in the Temple court.

He tells of Jesus cleansing the temple from those who sold and bought there.  He overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.  He ferociously quoted the passage in Isaiah about them making his Father’s house into a den of robbers, when it was supposed to be a place of prayer. 

Jesus left the city and spent the night in Bethany.  The next day, Mark also tells of Jesus cursing the barren fig tree because it had no fruit, perhaps indicating how, when He came to “His own,” He found Israel barren of “good” fruit, and not looking for their Messiah.

Inside, the Jewish leaders again challenge Jesus’ authority to do the things He did (cleansing the temple, etc.).  Of course, Jesus met their challenge with one of His own and they left.

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John 12.

John’s account backs up a little too, to the night they spent in Bethany before getting the donkey & colt at Bethphage the next day. 

It was at the home of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, Jesus’s beloved home, about 2 miles from Jerusalem. They gave a dinner from Him, Martha served, and Lazarus reclined at the table near Jesus.  Mary, whose heart was wound up in her Lord, came with an expensive jar of ointment and anointed Jesus’s feet, wiping them with her hair.  The whole house was filled with the amazing aroma of the perfume.

“WHY was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?”  

Judas Iscariot just could not keep it in.  He saw Mary’s act of extreme love and worship as a big waste.  (Of course, he was the treasurer of the group and kept the money bag, pilfering some from time to time for himself.  If that 300 denarii had been in his pouch, he could have stolen quite a bit.)

“Leave her alone,” Jesus said. “She has kept it for the day of my burial.  YOU always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.”

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When the large crowd discovered that Jesus was staying there, they crowded around to see Lazarus, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.  So the chief priests and scribes made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, because the miracle turned many Jews to believe in Jesus.

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Jesus then rode into Jerusalem the next day to the praises and blessings from the crowd. “Hosannah…the King of Israel,”  The Pharisees grumbled to each other, “You see that we are gaining nothing.  Look!  The world has gone after Him.”

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“The hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified,” Jesus says. “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

At one point, Jesus stops and prays to His father in growing anguish. “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say?  Father, save me from this hour:  but, for this purpose, I have come to this hour. Father… glorify Your name.”

A voice thundered from Heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again!”

“This voice has come for your sake, not mine,” Jesus told the people. “Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” (He said this, indicating how he would die.)

But the people responded that they read in the Law that the Messiah would live forever.  What was this about Him dying? Who is this Son of Man, anyway?

‘Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. While you have the Light, believe in the light.”   “Whoever believes in me believes in Him who sent me.   I have come into the world as Light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness,” said Jesus, the Holy One of God, among many other things. 

Many of the authorities believed in Him, but for fear of the Pharisees, they did not confess it.  They loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.

 

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 305

Nov1

A NEW MONTH!

Day 305 – Reading – Matthew 20 – 21

Read and believe in Jesus!

Matthew 20.

The Parable of the Vineyard. (Read verses 1-16. What do you think is Jesus’ message?)

At sun-up (6:00 a.m.), a vineyard owner went to the marketplace to hire day workers. (You’ve all see them: men waiting abound Home Depot or other places for day work.)  The owner picked some and took them to his vineyard. On the way, they settled on the usual day’s pay for a day’s work – a denarius.   

The owner saw that he would need more laborers. Perhaps the heat was damaging the grapes, or a storm threatened.  At 9:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., 3:00 p.m., and 5:00 p.m. he went back and hired more men. Each of these later hires agreed on “what was fair” as pay.

At 6:00 p.m. (12 hours after the first hire), the owner told the foreman to pay the men and send them home. All had done a great job.  Oh, and he was to begin with the last hired, and go on until the first hired with his “paychecks”. (coins) 

The foreman did just that.  As the earliest hires who had worked a full 12 hours watched the others being paid the same wage they had agreed on, the thought “Wow, WE must be getting much more, having been here ALL DAY.  But when the foreman came to them, he doled out a denarius to each.  These workers looked at the coin in their hand and were disappointed, even a bit outraged. THEY had worked for 12 hours, the last men had worked only ONE!  It wasn’t fair!

Was it?

The owner of the vineyard came to see the problem and asked them, “Friends, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius?  Take your pay and go. I choose to give these last workers as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me?  Do you begrudge my generosity?”  

Jesus added to the listeners of this parable to help their understanding, “So the last will be first, and the first last.”

OH PLEASE! Let us not begrudge the Lord’s generosity!  For this is a picture-story of all those who are saved by faith in the work of Jesus on the cross.  Some are saved early and work their entire lives for God, perhaps even giving their lives as martyrs.  Then some believe and are saved late in their lives, such as an old gentleman, or and elderly house cleaner.  Or … the thief on the cross.  They have no, or very little time to work in some ministry.  The thief, had only time to BELIEVE.  But still, we all can be confident that a beautiful, forever “Eternal Life” is waiting for us when they die.  Praise God! Thank You for Your so great salvation!

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Matthew 21.

The time of Jesus “hour” that he predicted three times to His disciples … is beginning.  Having set His face like a flint to do as His Father asks, Jesus now approaches Jerusalem. They stop in Bethphage.  Jesus is not tired, but He knows there is scripture to be fulfilled. (Zechariah 9:9) He sends two of His disciples into town to get a donkey for Him to ride on. (Matthew tells us that the donkey had a foal, which had never be ridden.)  

“But what if…” they questioned Jesus.

“If anyone asks, say, ‘The Lord has need of it.”

They get the animals and throw their cloaks on the back of the colt, and Jesus sat on it.  (Now…in normal life, that unbroke colt would have shied away from the flapping cloaks, and surely bucked at the weight of a human on its back.  But this Man, was his Creator. He instantly obeyed.)

As Jesus began riding down the Mount of Olives toward the City gate, the crowd “saw” what was happening.  They began to throw their cloaks and cut palm branches on the road before Jesus.  Excitement grew, and they began shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosannah in the highest!” (Psalm 118:25)

As Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up.  “Who is this?” some cried.  “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee!”

(If you want to see how all this (and Jesus’ death) fulfills Daniel’s “weeks” prophecy, read Daniel 9:24-26.)

(At some point, Jesus dismounts the colt and either a disciple, or the owner who followed along, takes the two animals away.) 

Jesus enters the Temple area and sees again the “marketplace atmosphere” of buying and selling sacrificial animals, and changing money.  Jesus is furious for His Father’s sake.  He drives them all out, quoting Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11.  “My house shall be called a house of prayer, but YOU make it a den of robbers!”

Cleansed, the temple court now becomes a place of healing for all who come to Him. 

BUT, when the chief priests and scribes SAW the wonderful things that He did, and the children calling “Hosanna to the Son of David!” THEY WERE INDIGNANT.

Leaders: “Do you hear what they are saying!!??”

Jesus: “Yes. Have you never read, ‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise?”  (Psalm 8;2)

Then Jesus left the Holy City and went to Bethany and lodged there. (Perhaps with Martha, Mary, and Lazarus.)

The next day, four incidents happen that all point to the failure of Israel and her leaders to obey and please the LORD God.

  • 1.)  The fig tree.  On the way back to the city the next day, Jesus sees a fig tree and reaches for some fruit.  However, the tree is void of all fruit.  Jesus curses it and immediately it withers and dies.  (Remember, that the fig tree often represents Israel. This picture shows Jesus disgust at Israel’s leaders, and is predicting the eventual destruction of the city and their pious rule.
  • 2.) The challenge of authority. Inside the temple court, these leaders come to Jesus demanding WHO gave Him authority to do these things (ride into Jerusalem as Israel’s king and cleansing away the “robbers” in the temple. Jesus asks them a question they fear to answer – from where did John get his authority to baptize” – so Jesus tells them HE won’t answer THEIR question. As Israel’s spiritual leaders, they should be praising God, not questioning the holy One He has sent.
  • 3.) The Parable of the Two Sons represent the leaders themselves, who pompously say they are sent by God, but who do not obey His law, and in fact. corrupt it for the people.  The father asked son #1 to go work in the vineyard.  The son said he didn’t want to go, but later went out to work.  Son #2 said he would go work in the vineyard as his father said, but later did not go out.
  • Jesus said the tax collectors and prostitutes were sinners, but finally obeyed God.  Whereas the religious leaders were represented by the second son who said the kept the entire law, and yet inside they were corrupt and obeyed none of it.
  • 4.) The Parable of the Tenants.  In this parable, the Vineyard owner was God, and the evil tenants were the currant religious leaders.  When God looked for the fruit of righteous in His vineyard, they murdered all God’s servants sent to get it (the prophets) and even HIS SON (Jesus) out of greed.  Jesus told them that the Vineyard owner – God – will come with justice and kill all of them, and give the “vineyard” to others.
  • Jesus was direct with them. “The kingdom of God will be taken away from you and give to a people producing its fruits.”

Of course the chief priests and Pharisees KNEW Jesus was speaking about them.  Right then, they feared to arrest him because of the crowds who held Jesus to be a prophet. But just wait, they thought. 

Just you wait.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 303

Oct30

Day 303 – Reading – Luke 18

Read and believe in Jesus!

Luke 18.

In each of Jesus’ parables and teachings, notice WHO He is talking to. 

The Parable of the Persistent Widow is directed to His disciples (going back to 9:22 to verify).  It’s about prayer, persistence in prayer, and faith.

Jesus tells a story about a certain “unrighteous” judge who did not fear God or respect man.  He sounds very self-centered and arrogant.  Each day, this judge heard a request/complaint from a widow about some injustice. He refused to act, probably telling himself there was no benefit to him in doing so.

But she continued to come, day after day after day. He grew tired of seeing her face, of hearing her voice, of her taking up his time.  So finally, to stop her from coming to him, he gave her the justice she requested.  “Finally!” he thought, “I’ll get some peace and quiet!”

After the conclusion, Jesus asked His disciples a question.  “Will not God give justice to His elect who cry to Him day and night?  Will He delay long over them?  I tell you, He will give justice to them speedily.  But… when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?”   This suggests that there will be FEW “elect” who have genuine faith in the end times. (such as in the days of Noah). 

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The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector was directed to “those who trusted in themselves that they were righteous.”  You can guess Jesus is talking to and about the Pharisees.

Two men went into the temple to pray: a Pharisee and a Tax collector. 

Here’s how the Pharisee prayed. Standing apart from the others, he said,

“God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like… this tax collector.  “I” fast twice a week. “I” give tithes of ALL that I get.”

Here’s how the Tax Collector prayed. Standing far off, his eyes cast to the ground, and beating his chest in sorrow, he said,

“God, be merciful to me a sinner!”

Looking at those “who trusted in themselves for righteousness,” Jesus said, “I tell you, this (second) man went back to his house justified, rather than the other.”  Can you imagine the objections in the group of listeners?  No way!  That’s impossible!  You’re crazy!  And Jesus reminds them, “Everyone who exalts HIMSELF will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

There is no one truly righteous in themselves. (Psalm 14:1-3) Everyone has sinned. The only hope of justification comes from God to the repentant.

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This conversation was directed to those around Jesus (bystanders and disciples) as well as directly to a “rich, young ruler” who asked a question – hoping perhaps to outdo the “stuck-up” Pharisees. “Good Teacher, what must “I” do to inherit eternal life?  This man wasn’t a pious teacher of the law, and he certainly wasn’t a hated tax collector. He was just a regular guy (who just happened to have everything – wealth, youth, and power).

Jesus: “Why do you call me good? No one is good by God alone?”  “Was this guy acknowledging Jesus as God? Or was he saying he recognized Jesus as “good” because he, himself, was also “good.”  If so, he was about to be corrected.

Jesus:  “You know the commandments: do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not bear false witness, and honor your father and mother.” Notice that Jesus only quoted those commandments that related man to man.

Ruler: “All these have I kept from my youth.”

Jesus: “One thing you lack. Sell all you have and distribute the money to the poor, and you will have ‘treasure’ in heaven. Then, come, follow Me.”

Hearing this, the rich, young ruler became very sad, for he was “extremely rich.”  Slowly, he walked away.

Jesus then turned and said to those around Him: “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 

His listeners: “Then who CAN be saved?”

Jesus: “What is impossible with men is possible with God.”

Peter: “See, WE have left our homes and followed you.

Jesus: “There is no one who has left house or wife or brothers, or parents, or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come … eternal life.”

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And lastly, Jesus directly tells His TWELVE special disciples (for the third time) what the future holds for Him.

“See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.  He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. He will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. After flogging Him, they will kill Him. Then ON THE THIRD DAY, He will rise.”

But they understood NONE of these things.  It was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what He said.

(Were their minds and hopes too wrapped up in the “glory” of the Kingdom to come?  Did they still imagine Jesus as King and them as His “right-hand men ruling beside Him?”)  

 

(Lord, help me to listen and really hear the things You tell us in Your Word. Please give me wisdom and understanding, a soft heart, and a willing spirit.)

 

 

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 301

Oct28

Day 301 – Reading – Luke 16 – 17

Read and believe in Jesus!

Luke 16.

Jesus teaches TWO more in parables, which seem to be about wealth and what one does with it, leading off from the Prodigal Son who wasted half a fortune.

Do the religious leaders who stalk Jesus understand?

Do the crowds hear what He is saying and apply it?

Are the disciples confused?

The first parable seems to be taught to the disciples. 

  • The Dishonest Manager. (Actually, all the characters in this parable are dishonest and corrupt.)  A wealthy man (Rich) had a manager (Manny) who oversaw everything in his master’s estate, including buying, selling, distributing, and collecting debts in his master’s name.   (Think of the righteous Joseph in Potiphar’s house.) Rich had nothing to worry about as long as Manny was on the job. He went out golfing almost every day.
  • But, unknown to Rich, Manny was wasting his wealth by pilfering, embezzling, or just not paying attention. The news reached Rich, and he brought charges against Manny.  He told his worker he had to “turn in the books.”  He was fired.
  • “What shall I do?” Manny asked himself. “I can’t do physical labor” (too fat, with soft hands and flabby muscles), “and I’m ashamed to beg.” (a big shudder)   “I know!” he said at last. “When I’m kicked out here, I’ll find a place among my ex-master’s debtors.”
  • Manny went around with the books and marked their debts as partly paid. No longer did they owe 200 Denarii, but 150, or even 100.  The greedy debtors (Dexter, Daniel, and Debby) gleefully signed the books. “Sure… We’ve got a spare room.  Any time,” they offered. Now both parties were guilty of fraud.
  • Of course, Rick discovered this when he went to collect what was owed. All the bills were signed and stamped, so he could do nothing.  And being a deceptive man himself, Rich recognized and applauded Manny’s shrewdness. (Hear that slow clap?)

Jesus turned to his disciples, who all had puzzled expressions.  “The sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light.”

What did THAT mean?

“I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings,”  Jesus continued.

Huh?

Believers are to use their Master’s “money” to gain friends for eternity, by investing in the Gospel that brings sinners to salvation. When believers arrive in Heaven, those sinners will be there to welcome them.

And then, Jesus’ well know declaration: “No servant can serve two masters. He will hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other.  YOU CANNOT SERVE GOD AND MONEY.”

The Pharisees ridiculed Jesus, of course, because they were lovers of money.

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The second parable is also about wealth, but how it will fail you in a crucial time.

  • The Rich Man and Lazarus. This parable contrasts two very different men. 
  • One is a rich man (Richie), clothed in purple and fine linen. The other, Lazarus (not Martha’s brother), lay at his gate in rags, covered with sores, which dogs came and licked.
  • Richie ate sumptuously every day. Lazarus desired only to be fed the crumbs that fell from Richie’s table.
  • Eventually, the poor man died. He was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. Eventually, Richie died and was buried. He found himself in Hades, being in torment. 
  • Dimly, Richie could see far off Lazarus with Abraham.
  • “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.”
  •          (Whoa!  Richie still wants to order Lazarus around like a slave!)
  • “Sorry, Charlie (or Richie).  Remember that you, in your lifetime, received GOOD things, and Lazarus in like banner BAD things. But now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish,” stated Abraham.”
  • “And besides all this,” Abe continued, “between us and you, a great chasm has been fixed. Neither we, nor you, can pass from here to there.”
  • Richie wailed. “Then I beg you, Father Abraham, to send him to my father’s house – for I have five brothers – so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment!”
  • (Again with the ordering Lazarus to serve!!)
  • Abraham:  “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear THEM.”
  • Richie: “No, Father Abraham, but if someone goes to them FROM THE DEAD, they will repent.”
  • Abraham: “If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced … if Someone should rise from the dead…..”

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Luke 17.

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”

Jesus: “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you would say to the mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.”

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Still traveling with his face set for Jerusalem, Jesus entered a village and met TEN LEPERS there.  They stood at a distance (as they should) and cried, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”

When Jesus saw them, he said, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.”  (This is what one who is cleansed from leprosy would do to prove his cleansing.)

As they went, they were cleansed.   One of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back praising God with a loud voice; and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving Him thanks. (He was a Samaritan.)

Jesus: “Were not ten lepers cleansed?  Where are the nine?  Was no one found to return and give thanks to God except this foreigner?  Then looking at him, Jesus said, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”

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Some Pharisees asked Jesus when the kingdom of God would come.  Jesus answered, “Behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.”

Then to His disciples he said, “As the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in His day.  But FIRST, He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.”

“Just like it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage until the day when Noah entered the ark.  And then the flood came and destroyed them all.”

“Likewise, just like it was in the days of Lot.  They were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. Then, when Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all.   

“So it will be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.”

Whoa!