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Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/15) John 9:1-12

Jul15

Read and believe in Jesus

“Is not this the man who used to sit and beg?” John 9:8

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – The religious leaders accused Jesus of “having a demon,” or worse (to them) of being “a Samaritan” after Jesus revealed His view of them – their father was the devil, a murderer and a liar. This was not a name-calling contest; Jesus was explaining why they would not (could not) see Him for who He was, sent from God, their Messiah, and that He was bringing truth to them. After their bragging that they had the great patriarch, Abraham, as their “father,” Jesus shocked and horrified them by saying that “Before Abraham WAS … I AM.” Not only was He claiming His eternality, but also stating that He was God. They tried to kill Jesus then and there, but because “His hour had not come,” and His death was NOT to come by stoning, He slipped right out of their presence, unseen.

(NOTE: I’m trying a larger font. My glaucoma eyes struggle to see the small fonts. Comment if you don’t (or do) like it.)

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Part One (of three): Jesus heals the Man Born Blind

John 9:1-5

Not long after the events in chapter 8, we find Jesus and the disciples returning to the Temple area, where, on most days, the poor, crippled, and congenitally sick lay, hoping for alms from the people who entered to worship God.

Jesus “saw” a blind man there, “who had been blind from birth.” How was it possible to know that just by looking at a person? Were the eye sockets “empty?” Were the lids so shriveled as to show there had been no use for a long, long time? Jesus would know everything, of course, but it seemed the disciples saw it too.

“Rabbi,’ they asked Jesus, “who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

Now I’ve always wondered how a baby in the womb could sin to a degree that he would be born blind. Yes, there is the truth that from conception we ALL have the sin-nature passed down to us from Adam. But then, why are we not ALL born blind? The parents are a different thing. There are some diseases brought on by sin (such as syphilis) that can affect an unborn infant’s eyes. Also, the Jews had in their tradition other sins of parents that could bring injury to their unborn children.

But Jesus said neither was the case with this man sitting at the gate of the temple, begging for alms. It was “that the works of God might be displayed in him.”

Does that mean we sometimes suffer so that God will be glorified? Yes. Think of the book and story of Job. Think of the life of Joseph, Jacob’s favorite son. Think of Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” (2 Corinthians 12:7-10).

Jesus told His disciples that the time was short. (He would be crucified in less than 6 months.) He had to work “the works of His Father” while it was still day. “As long as I am in the world, I am the Light of the world.” And then Jesus proceeded to bring light and vision to the never-seeing blind man.

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John 9:6-7

Jesus used some of His own saliva mixed with the clay on the ground to make a bit of damp mud. Then, having alerted him (we assume), He pressed this mud on the eyelids of the man “born blind.” “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam,” Jesus instructed.

(This pool was where just days before a ceremonial jug of water had been drawn and carried up to the Temple, with the people remembering and praising God for supplying water for them in the wilderness. That same time when Jesus had cried out, “If any man thirst, let him come to ME.”)

The pool is about 1/3-1/2 miles down the “Pilgrim’s Way” and would have taken him (with help) about 20 minutes to reach.

Whether the man had help finding the pool or not, he obeyed Jesus’ command. And when he’d finished washing the mud from his eyelids, he could see (for the first time ever). What must that have been like? Beautiful? Scary? Amazing? Did he praise God?

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John 9:8-12

It seems he might have wanted to thank Jesus, for he made his way back up to the temple mount. Many people saw and heard him on the way.

“Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” they wondered.

“It IS he!” said some.

Others said, “No, but it is LIKE him.”

“I AM the man!” the ex-blind man said.

“Then how were your eyes opened?” they asked.

He explained, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me to go to the pool of Siloam and wash. So I did, and I received my sight.”

“Where is He (Jesus)?” they demanded.

“I don’t know,” he said.

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Part Two, next time.

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/13) John 8:31-47

Jul13

Read and believe in Jesus

“If you abide in My WORD, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the TRUTH, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – At the end of the Festival of Tabernacles, at the lighting of the lamps, Jesus cried out, “I AM the light of the world. Whoever follows me shall not walk in darkness but have the Light of Life.” Since this Festival “remembered” the time God led and cared for Israel in the wilderness, this statement of Jesus would instantly remind the celebrants in Jerusalem of God (represented by the pillar of fire at night and the cloud by day), leading them so they did NOT walk in darkness. Of course, the Jewish authorities complained that it was a lie, for Jesus was testifying about Himself. Jesus told them TWO testified to this fact, Himself and His Father in heaven. The closing verse of this section stated that MANY believed in Him.

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John 8:31-33.

Now Jesus addresses the ones who had believed in Him. What was next, after belief? It’s the same today.

“…Abide in My word…” Stay (continually live) in God’s Word, the Bible – read, study, meditate on, memorize, preach it to yourself, and trust in it.

“…and you will KNOW the truth.” If you do the above, Jesus promises you will know the truth. You will not be tempted to believe the lie of the devil.

You will KNOW you are a sinner and cannot save yourself. You will KNOW that God is holy, holy, holy, and can not allow sin in His presence. But you will also KNOW that God loved you so much that He provided a way for you to be saved from your sin, a way for you to live forever in His presence. He sent His own priceless, sinless Son (in the flesh) to die in your place (to take the punishment for your sin on Himself, and DIE for it.) You will also KNOW that if you trust in what God did for you, He will now see you as righteous (clothed in the righteousness of Christ) and acceptable in “the Beloved (Son).”

…And the truth will set you FREE.   Free from what?  Free from the POWER OF SIN.  Before Christ, we were “dead” in our trespasses and SIN, unable to save ourselves in any way. We all followed the prince of the power of the air,  carrying out the evil deeds of our flesh, by nature children of wrath! We were SLAVES to this, powerless to escape!

But the TRUTH of the Gospel is that “God being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, EVEN when we were dead in our trespasses …. made us alive together with Christ! (By grace you have been saved, and THAT not of yourself, it is the GIFT of God [that He gave, that by believing we might have eternal life.[ ) – This truth, when we combine it with God-given faith, sets us free from enclavement to Satan and our own sinful flesh. (Ephesians 2)

(WHAT GLORIOUS GOOD NEWS!)

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John 8:34-35

And the Jews all rejoiced in it. NOT!!

“We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it,” they asked Jesus, “that You say, ‘You will become free?'”

“Everyone who commits sin is a SLAVE to sin. If the Son (Me) sets you free (from sin), you will be FREE INDEED.” “And yes, I know you are offspring of Abraham, yet…. you seek to kill me because My WORD finds no place in you.”

Because they have so hardened their hearts, the truth of Jesus’ words of grace and salvation and freedom from sin … find no sticking place in them. They are cold and hardened, and His love and offer of freedom bounce right off their hearts.

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John 8:38-47.

Jesus boldly tells them that THEY have and obey a different “father” than He does.

“Abraham is our father,” they claim.

“If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works that Abraham did.” (which was believing God, having faith in God’s words.) “No, you are doing the works your father did (the devil).”

Incensed, they answered back, “WE were not born of sexual immorality. (Speaking of Jesus’ mother, Mary, being pregnant with Him before she was married.)

‘WE have ONE Father – even God,” they boastfully shout.

Um, no. (And Jesus gives a clear description of our arch-enemy, and these opposing leaders’ father.)

“If God were your father, you would love Me, for I came from God. I came of my own accord, but He sent me.

“YOU are of your father, the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a MURDERER from the beginning and has nothing to do with the TRUTH, because there is NO TRUTH in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a LIAR, and the Father of LIES.

“Whoever is of GOD hears the WORDS of God. The reason why you do NOT hear them is that you are NOT OF GOD.” (Plain and simple.)

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The Jews will do some blaspheming in the next reading, and then Jesus will speak a powerful “I AM” revelation of truth. We already know they will be incensed and moved to murder by “their father,” a murderer from the beginning.

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/10) John 8:21-30

Jul10

Read and believe in Jesus

“I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as My Father taught Me.” John 8:28

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus continued teaching in the temple area as the week-long Festival of Tabernacles went on. But He was interrupted when some religious leaders brought a woman caught in adultery (as a test) and pushed her in front of Jesus. They asked if He thought they should do what the Law said and stone her. Jesus did not answer their multiple-choice test, but instead put it back on THEM. The one without sin should begin the stoning. None of them were sinless, so they snuck away without a comment. Jesus then judged the woman and found her a sinner. But He had come to SAVE sinners. He set her free with the admonishment to “sin no more.” —- Then at the evening lamp-lighting ceremony, Jesus declared loudly that HE was the light of the world and whoever would follow after Him would not walk in darkness but have life.”

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John 8:20.

The “hour” or “time” that Jesus often spoke about is the reason He came down from Heaven as a perfect Man. His death and resurrection are the means of salvation for sinful mankind that He and the Father planned before the beginning of time. A sinless man standing in the place of sinful humanity, then being sacrificed in their stead – well, it was the ONLY way to redeem sinful man and make them fit to live for eternity with the absolutely holy God. Jesus knew the plan, and ever since His ministry began when he was baptized by John, His mind was fixed on that “hour” of extreme suffering and forsakenness on behalf of those in His creation who believed.

All Jesus did was with that “Hour” in mind – that it was coming at an exact point in time that the prophet Daniel had foretold. He did nothing to delay its arrival, and He also did nothing to cause his death to come too soon. There was an appointed time, and Jesus would be there.

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John 8:21-25

Jesus now speaks about that hour of His death, resurrection, and ascension (all as one event), but in veiled terms. Those whose hearts were opened would receive it. But everyone else would be confused, disbelieving, and hostile.

So, Jesus said to them, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin. WHERE I am going, you cannot come.”

The hostile Jews were affronted by Jesus’ vagueness. “Will He kill Himself, since He says, ‘Where I am going you cannot come?'” They probably looked at one another as if this was a big joke, perhaps even elbowed their fellows. “HEY, if He kills Himself, we won’t have to! Haha.”

Jesus brought them back to seriousness. “YOU are from below; I am from above. YOU are of this world; I am not of this world.”

Yes, they knew exactly what Jesus was talking about, but they WOULD NOT believe Him.

“And you WILL die in your sins unless you believe that I AM.” Unless they believed He was one with the God of the Old Testament, there was no hope for them.

“WHO ARE YOU?” they asked.

“Just what I’ve been telling you from the beginning.” (In other words, haven’t you been listening?)

These religious leaders, priests, and teachers of the Law were completely missing the “One” about whom the Scriptures had pointed for thousands of years. And they didn’t understand He was talking about the LORD God, His Father, the Creator of Heaven and Earth who had sent Him here with a work of salvation/redemption to finish.

“I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught Me. He who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.”

“WHEN you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He.”

As Jesus was saying these things, MANY BELIEVED IN HIM.

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/8) John 7:45-52

Jul8

Read and believe in Jesus

“No one ever spoke like this Man.” John 7:46.

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus uses the tradition of drawing and blessing the water as an opportunity to draw the people towards Him and eternal life. Jesus calls out for the spiritually “thirsty” to come to Him (much like He said to the Samaritan woman in chapter 4) and to spiritually “drink” rivers of “living water” in their souls, quenching their spiritual longings. Many called Him the Prophet or the Christ after this. Others reminded them that the Messiah came from Bethlehem, not Galilee. As with today, there are mixed understandings about Jesus.

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John 7:32 with 45-52.

Before Jesus’s invitation to come to Him at the water ceremony, while Jesus was still teaching in the temple courtyard, the Sadducees and Pharisees had sent officers (the temple guards) to arrest Him. (vs 32). However, after the appeal to thirsty people to come to Him for refreshment, the guards couldn’t act. Some obviously were moved by Jesus’ words. Perhaps a few even felt drawn to his simple, sincere appeal.

Back at temple headquarters, they reported, “No one ever spoke like this man.”

The religious leaders were furious. “Have any of (us) the authorities or Pharisees believed in Him!!?? This crowd – that does not know the law (like we do) – is accursed!”

That’s when Nicodemus (a Pharisee himself), who had gone to Jesus at night, way back at the beginning of Jesus’s ministry (John 3), said, “Does our law judge a man without first giving Him a hearing and learning what He does?”

This was perhaps the beginning of Nicodemus’s turning to Jesus. HE had given Jesus “a hearing” and “had learned” a bit about what He did. He didn’t fully understand the “new birth” by the Spirit that Jesus spoke of, but it had struck a chord in his soul. Later this man would turn completely – if silently – to the Lord, and help Joseph bury Jesus’ body after the crucifixion.

But now, his fellows in the Sanhedrin riled on him, insinuating that he was unlearned, even stupid, like the Galileans. “Are YOU from Galilee too? Search and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”

Ah, the ignorance of the ultra-learned.

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(LORD, keep me from pride and pre-judgment.)

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/6) John 7:14-24

Jul6

Read and believe in Jesus

“The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of Him who sent Him is true, and in Him there is no falsehood.” John &:18

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus’ unbelieving brothers tried to convince Jesus to go to the big Festival of Tabernacles in Jerusalem and “show off” his miracles. “Show yourself to the world!” they urged Him. But Jesus, knowing that the perfect timing of God for when He should “show Himself” in Jerusalem had not yet come, declined His brothers’ suggestions. They went to the Festival, leaving Jesus in Galilee. Later, Jesus attended, but in private.

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John 7:14-18.

About the middle of the 7-day Festival, Jesus went to Jerusalem and to the Temple (His Father’s house), and began teaching. He sat down on one of the “porches” in the court area, and taught the Scriptures to those who gathered around. “The Jews marveled, saying, ‘How is it that this man has learning, when He has never studied?'”

(This was not a new phenomenon for Jesus. Even as a boy of twelve, Jesus made an impression. “(His parents) found Him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers.” See Luke 2:46-47.)

This time, Jesus answers them about where His “authority” comes from. “My teaching is not mine, but His who sent me. If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority.”

Yes, Jesus again tells them He was sent by God and has God’s authority. He reminds them that His teaching always brings GLORY to God, and not Himself. If that is THEIR desire too, they will recognize truly who Jesus is.

(This is a good question for teachers today too. Whose glory are we seeking, our own, or God’s?)

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John 7:19-24.

Jesus then asks the crowd (and specifically the Jewish leaders) a question. “Why do you seek to kill me?”

(Jesus is obviously referring to the miracle He did that first caused the authorities to persecute Him – the healing of the man at the pool of Bethesda – because He did that on the Sabbath. See John 5:16-18)

“You have a demon!” answered the crowd. “Who is seeking to kill you?” (This is so hypocritical. The crowds knew very well that the Jews were seeking to kill Jesus. That’s why they were “hush-hush” about asking where He was earlier in the Festival (7:13).

Jesus then reminds them about the Law of Circumcision – where a baby boy must be circumcised on his eighth day of life – EVEN IF it falls on a Sabbath. “If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses*** may not be broken, are you angry with Me because on the Sabbath I made a man’s whole body well?“

Jesus, who knew – yes, INSPIRED the Law of Moses – told them, “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”

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*** What is really interesting is that Circumcision originated with Abraham, way before God gave Moses the Law at Sinai. Circumcision even pre-dates the Sabbath law – and certainly came before all the little minor “explanations” of the Sabbath Law that the rabbis invented to “protect” it.

The overall picture here is that these people, even and especially the “Teachers of the Law” who should know better, didn’t REALLY know what they were talking about. (They were probably jealous that Jesus could do these miracles to cure people and garner their awe, and THEYcouldn’t.)

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (6/12) John 1:19-34

Jun12

(Note: I had to change the “John” icon due to copyright issues. This is my own pic.)

Read and believe in Jesus

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29

REVIEW – John’s magnificent introduction to his gospel showed Jesus as Creator, Eternal God, Light and Life, Son of God, the WORD who became flesh and blood, Israel’s Messiah, and the One who brings grace and truth. He would be rejected by many, but received by some, who would become the children of God. John mentions John the Baptist, a fiery yet humble man who came as a witness to Jesus and who prepared the way for Him. And that’s where the story begins today.

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Isaiah 40:3-5 — “A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.’”

This is the call that John the Baptist heard from the Scriptures he studied.

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John 1:19-28.

John had been doing what God called him to do, up and down the Jordan Valley. The way he was “preparing a way” for the Lord was by turning the people’s hearts away from themselves and their sin and toward God. He would preach and then baptize those who repented. He painted a picture of the One who was coming after him as eternal, holy, worthy of worship. He did this so the Messiah would be revealed to the people.

John was causing a lot of fuss, and the religious leaders in Jerusalem heard about him. They sent priests and Levites to find out who he was. (Remember, John was in the priestly line; his father, Zechariah, was a priest, and his mother, Elizabeth, was also a “daughter of Aaron.”)

The priests asked him, “Who are you?“

John confessed plainly, “I am not the Christ.”

They asked further, “What then? Are you Elijah?” (Referencing Malachi 3:1 and 45-6, which tells of a future herald.)

John answered, “I am not.“

Priests: “Are you the Prophet?” (Referencing Deuteronomy 18:15-18, where God told Moses about the Messiah.)

John: “No.”

Priests: “Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

John quotes Isaiah. “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

The Priests, quoting the Pharisees, “Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”

John: “I baptize with water, but among you stands One you do not know, even He who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”

That must have given the priests enough fodder, for they departed, leaving John to his baptizing.

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John 1:29-34.

The very next day, while John was again preaching and baptizing, he saw Jesus walking toward him. He knew who the man Jesus was – for they were cousins – but he did not KNOW Jesus was the Messiah, the One whom he was “preparing the people” for. So God gave John a sign, and then he KNEW.

“BEHOLD, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”

The Jews were familiar with lambs being used for sacrifice. There was the Passover Lamb that called to remembrance their deliverance from the death angel and escape from Egypt. A lamb was offered in the daily sacrifices for Israel. The Jews understood how their sins were laid upon an animal’s head before it died, and so their sin was atoned for.

Here was the One who would atone for the sins of the world … if, in fact, they “received Him, and believed on His name.” John 1:11.

Then John told how he saw the Holy Spirit descend from heaven like a dove and remain on Him. (It was when he baptized Jesus.) It was the sign from God, and he knew that “THIS IS THE SON OF GOD.“

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (6/11) John 1:1-18

Jun11

Read and believe in Jesus

“And the WORD became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – We’ve read the gospels of Mark and Luke, both of which draw on eyewitness accounts. John (and next, Matthew) were actual disciples of Jesus. Daily they were with Him for most of three years. Matthew was probably written first. John, written last, was written many years later, when the “beloved disciple” was an old man.

John doesn’t write his account in specific chronological order. Instead, he gives seven signs (miracles) that prove Jesus was the Messiah and Savior. He also uses seven “! AM” statements that identify Jesus as God. He had a purpose for writing his book that you will find at the end of his Gospel: “that YOU may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing, you might have life in His name.” John 20:31.

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John 1:1-5

“In the beginning was the WORD, and the WORD was with God, and the WORD WAS God.

“He was in the beginning with God. ALL things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made.”

According to Greek philosophy, the “Lagos” (or WORD) is the “initiator” of all that exists. THIS is Jesus. John uses this word not only to reach Jews, but also Greeks with the Gospel.

“In Him was LIFE, and the life was the LIGHT of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

LIFE and LIGHT are spiritual and eternal qualities shared in the Godhead, and also in those who respond to the gospel message about Jesus.

LIGHT refers to Biblical truth, as well as to holiness and purity, while darkness points to Satan, rebellion, and death. Darkness will never conquer the LIGHT of Christ, just as a single candle can overcome a room filled with darkness, but not vice versa. (PRAISE GOD!)

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John 1:6-8.

John mentions John the Baptist, a man sent by God as a “witness” to tell about the light of Jesus, so all might believe in Him. John wasn’t the light, but he came to point to the light. And indeed he did, to all who came to him to be baptized … and even to King Herod who had him beheaded for it.

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John 1:9-13.

Jesus, the true light, came into the world (the world that He created), and they (for the most part) DID NOT KNOW HIM.

He came to His own people, the Jews, who since Abraham had been expecting their Messiah, and they (for the most part) DID NOT RECEIVE HIM.

BUT …. to all WHO DID RECEIVE HIM, who did believe in His name, He gave the right to become children of God. Spiritual children of God, not of flesh and blood or the will of man … but by THE WILL OF GOD.

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John 1:14-18

Here, John the disciple can’t help but testify on his own behalf.

“The WORD became flesh and dwelt among us, AND WE HAVE SEEN HIS GLORY, GLORY AS THE ONLY SON OF THE FATHER, FULL OF GRACE AND TRUTH!”

In John’s first letter, verse 1, you see that amazement again.

“That which was from the beginning, WHICH WE HAVE HEARD, WHICH WE HAVE SEEN WITH OUR EYES, WHICH WE LOOKED UPON AND HAVE TOUCHED WITH OUR HANDS…. the life was made manifest, and WE HAVE SEEN IT…”

(This is the one who is writing this Gospel we are about to read. A man who knew Jesus, who walked with Him, hugged, linked arms with. The Word of Life, John knew personally. And he’s going to tell us about Him.)

Then John the disciple tells the testimony of John the Baptist.

“John bore witness about him and cried out, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because He WAS before me.”

And John’s final words of introduction before going into more of what John the Baptist said and did:

“And from His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, the only God, who is at the Father’s side, HE has made Him known.”

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Yes, this is a tough section of John’s Gospel. Jesus is presented not as a babe in a manger or even a man being baptized, but as the Eternal God, author of life and all that exists. Let’s try to keep this image of Him in our minds as we read.

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (6/10) Luke 24:36-52

Jun10

A five-day-per-week study

June 10 – Luke 24:36-52

Read and Believe in Jesus

“It is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all nations beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.” Luke 24:46b-48

The Gospel according to Luke.

REVIEW – Jesus, in His “resurrected body disguise,” joined two disciples as they walked to Emmaus from Jerusalem after Passover week. They were astounded that this man didn’t know all the amazing things that had happened there, and told Him. Jesus then explained how all those things fulfilled the prophesies about the Messiah in the Scriptures. The two were amazed and said that “their hearts burned.” Jesus accepted their invitation to stay at their home, and when He took the bread, broke it, and gave it to them …. they suddenly recognized him as their Master. At that moment Jesus disappeared. The two rushed back to Jerusalem to tell the apostles.

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Luke 24:36-43.

Meanwhile, back in Jerusalem, the apostles and disciples were hearing and rejoicing at Simon Peter’s account of seeing Jesus himself. The two from Emmaus arrived and told their story. And there was great rejoicing.

As they were talking, encouraging each other, Jesus suddenly appeared among them. “Peace to you,” He immediately said, for they were frightened, thinking He was a ghost!

“Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see, for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”

(We may laugh at them, but seriously! How would YOU feel if Jesus in resurrected flesh was suddenly behind you while you read this on your phone or tablet? You would be wide-eyed. You would gasp. Your heart might start pounding. I know that’s how “I” would feel.)

Jesus then held out His nail-printed hands and showed his scarred feet. Surely they could see the healed wounds the crown of thorns made on his forehead. Yes, it was Jesus! Yes, He had risen as He said! But oh, how absolutely amazing and astounding it was to actually SEE Him. They looked and touched, wide-eyed and trembling. They saw Jesus but still “disbelieved for joy.”

(You know how that is. Sometimes something is SO amazing, we might say, “Wow! Unbelievable! I can’t believe I saw that!” That’s the attitude they had.)

Smiling at their amazement and joy, Jesus sought further proof to show them, and asked for some food. Surely ghosts don’t EAT! They gave Jesus a piece of boiled fish, and He ate it. Oh, how they watched wide-eyed as He bit, chewed, and swallowed.

(I can even see Him open His mouth and stick out His tongue to show that the fish had actually been swallowed!! Ha-ha)

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Luke 24:44-49.

Then, as He had done with the two on the road to Emmaus, Jesus told them that “Everything written about Me in 1) the Law of Moses, 2) the Prophets, and 3) the Psalms (the whole Old Testament) must be fulfilled.” Then Jesus did a wonderful thing. He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. Often, when He had taught the crowds, He told His disciples that they wouldn’t understand it all “then,” but they would later. NOW was that time.

(Can you imagine how it would be to totally understand and “see” Jesus throughout the Bible? We study and learn some, but to have instant understanding! Wow. Of course, these men (and women) would need that knowledge, as well as the Holy Spirit in them, to begin preaching the Gospel to all the world.)

Then Jesus states clearly the Gospel that is to be preached to all nations. “That Christ (Messiah) should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name.” This message would first be preached in Jerusalem and then spread to the whole world.

Jesus also promised that He would “clothe them with the power” they would need for the task. The Holy Spirit of God would soon come upon them. They were to wait in the city until this happened. (40 days later, on Pentecost)

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Luke 24:50-53,

Their clear task before them; the promise of power soon to be fulfilled; it was time for Jesus to return to Glory, to the Father, to the place of honor from which he had come 33 earth-years earlier. From there, He would send the Holy Spirit. And there He would intercede for them when the Tempter tried to prevail. And from there He would welcome them home when they were martyred for His name’s sake.

Jesus led them out as far as Bethany on the easter slope of the Mount of Olives. He lifted up His hands in a final blessing on them. And as He did, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven.”

Like we would, they continued to stare in amazement into heaven at the last tiny spot they had seen Jesus. Then they worshiped Him (in praise and prayer). They returned to the Holy City with great joy, and were in the temple continually blessing God.

Hallelujah!!

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Luke omits some incidents and words that the other Gospels include after the Resurrection and goes straight to the glorious point of Jesus’ ascension.

As we study John next, we will see Jesus in those precious moments with Mary Magdalene in the garden, with “doubting” Thomas, who then proclaimed Him as “My Lord and my God”, with 500 disciples at one time in Galilee, and with the disciples beside the Sea, when Peter humbly said three times that he DOES love Jesus.

Matthew ends with the Great Commission and Jesus’ promise, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (5/22) Luke 21:1-19.

May22

A 5-day per week study.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“…you will be brought before kings and governors for My name’s sake. This will be your opportunity to bear witness.”  Luke 21:12b-13

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The Gospel according to Luke 

Review – While Jesus taught at the Temple, the Sadducees, Pharisees, and others tried to trick Him with their questions. But His answers stumped them, and when He asked THEM a question, they silently went away,

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Vss. 21:1-4.

At the end of chapter 20, Jesus warned the people to beware of the ways of the scribes (Pharisees), because, among other ridiculous things, they “..devour widows’ houses..” This was a practice in which pious religious leaders would visit newly widowed and vulnerable women and persuade them to give all their inherited possessions to the “religious community.” It would be a “donation to God,” and “what their husbands would have wanted.” This usually left the new widows bankrupt, and the temple coffers bulging. Jesus hated the practice of “devouring widows’ houses.”

Now, it seems that when Jesus lifted His eyes, there, in front of them, was just such a desperately poor widow. (Righteous anger for her must have burned in Him for what those scribes had done. But for the woman, herself, noting but love and tenderness and admiration.

As this widow dropped two tiny copper coins into the temple offering box (ALL that she had, says Mark 12:42), Jesus commended her. “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them (the rich). For they all contributed out of their ABUNDANCE, but she out of her POVERTY, put in all she had to live on.”

(This makes me feel convicted. When I drop 10% or even 20% into the offering box, I often feel so “righteous.” But I would be giving out of “my abundance.” LORD, help me to be generous (even till it hurts) with all You’ve given me!”)

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Vss. 21:5-6.

While Jesus continued to sit in the temple courtyard, watching the people with His disciples, He heard a comment about how beautiful the temple was and how it was adorned with noble stones and decorations (donations from the wealthy). And although this temple was not as grand as Solomon’s, Herod had done a pretty amazing job at renovating the old one. It was almost gaudy-beautiful.

Still, Jesus knew its future was less than 40 years….

“As for these things that you see, the days will come when there will not be left here one stone upon another that will ot be thrown down.”

Shocking words. It would be like someone saying this about the U.S. Capitol Building or the White House. Unimaginable. Still, the God of the universe knew everything from eternity past to eternity future, and Jesus spoke the truth.

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Vss. 21:7-19.

Horrified, the disciples and people around Jesus wanted to know WHEN this would happen and WHAT the warning signs of imminent destruction would be.

Jesus listed a few “signs of the times,” mingling the horrors of 40 A.D. and Titus’ destruction of Jerusalem, with the signs of the Great Tribulation, still future to us.

  1. Many would come, claiming to be the Messiah.
  2. They would hear of wars and tumults.
  3. Nations fighting nations would be common.
  4. Earthquakes would be everywhere.
  5. Famines and plagues (viruses) would come.
  6. Terrible signs in the sky would appear.
  7. Severe persecution would come.
  8. Family betrayals unto death would be common.
  9. Martyrdom.

Then Jesus says some amazing words that speak to a believer’s ETERNAL SECURITY even in the face of martyrdom.

“But not a hair of your head will PERISH. By your endurance, you will GAIN your lives.

John 10:28-29 makes this even clearer. “I (Jesus) give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”

True believers are double-protected, in the hands of Christ underneath, and the hands of God Almighty above. Completely covered and protected FOR ETERNITY, though we may suffer loss and death in the horrific times to come (as many Jews did in 40 A.D.).

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(I use the 2010 MacArthur Study Bible, English Standard Version, for my studies.)

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (5/4) Luke 15:1-10

May4

A 5-day per week study.

May 4 – Reading Luke 15:1-10

Read and believe in Jesus.

“…there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”  Luke 15:10

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The Gospel according to Luke 

Review – Jesus & the parable of the Master filling his banquet with the unloved and Gentiles instead of those who were FIRST invited but made excuses not to come. Jesus then explains the COST of discipleship. And uses the example of true salt vs. undesirable salt, noting that the latter is contaminated with minerals.

Jesus & the parable of the Master filling up his banquet with the unloved and Gentiles instead of those who were FIRST invited but made excuses. He then tells the COST of discipleship. And uses the example of true salt, and that found contaminated with minerals.

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Vss.

15:1-3.

Here, we see Jesus with two groups of people: tax collectors and sinners, and Pharisees and scribes. Polar opposites. One group is considered the lowest of sinners; the other group, the uber righteous.

The Pharisees grumbled that Jesus was receiving and eating with sinners. (Ahem, may we remind them of Jesus recently eating at a Pharisee’s house with all his “upper crust” friends?)

So… Jesus tells them a pair of parables.

(Although one parable features a lowly shepherd and the other a woman, both teach the value or cost of something lost. This would perhaps appeal to the wealth-conscious Pharisees.)

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Vss. 15:4-7

A shepherd had 100 sheep. One, perhaps an ornery lamb, ran off and got separated from the flock. Maybe it wasn’t even the first time this little guy had done this.

Jesus asked the Jewish leaders what they would do: forget about the one and care for the 99, or leave the 99 and go after the little lost one.

Would not a good shepherd (picturing the God of Israel) search high and low for the lost one?  And when he finds it, would he not tenderly carry it back to the flock?  And wouldn’t he then gather friends and have them rejoice with him for the ONE LOST LAMB that was found?

(Jesus viewed the tax collectors and sinners as the little lost lamb. Each one was worth a search-and-rescue. Hadn’t He already done so with Matthew/Levi?)

“I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over the sinner who repents than over ninety-nine ‘righteous’ persons who think they need no repentance.”

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Vss. 15:8-10.

In the second parable, a woman had ten silver coins, perhaps her dowry. (Sometimes these coins were worn in a band across the forehead.) While working around the house, one of these coins became detached and was lost.

Oh, no! This was HER money; her safety in case something happened to her husband.  Oh, where was it??

Jesus looks at the Pharisees, who were perhaps calculating the value of the silver coin, and suggested, “Does she not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it?

Nods all around.

And wouldn’t you, Pharisees, like the woman, call together your friends and neighbors to “Rejoice with her, for she had found the coin that was lost?”

Perhaps more nods.

Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

(One sinner who acknowledges his sin and turns to God is welcomed back with rejoicing, over these self-righteous, hard-hearted ones who thought they needed no forgiveness.)

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(Tomorrow is the last in this trio of “lost things” parables that Jesus tells. It will really hit home with those religious leaders!  Tomorrow, there will be no nods of agreement, only outrage.)