Category: Bible Studies

Jesus wants us to inquire, to question, to search. This only the first half of the parable. Read on…

Luke 19:11-13
The Parable of the Ten Minas
11 While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. 12 He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. 13 So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas.[a] ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’

Many of you know this parable, or teaching directly from Jesus Christ. If so, choose one word or phrase and meditate on it. Mine would be “Until I come back.” If you have never read the parable before but know Jesus personally, chances are you could finish this parable. Or at least know that He will return. This is the Holy Spirit talking to you.

He sparks inquiry. The Holy Spirit wants you to search. The question should come to like, “What would Jesus do?” Also, “What did Jesus do?” Read it.

Now let’s make this relevant to your situation right now. Say you attend a church that you attend because your parents attended, or because that’s all you know. The Holy Spirit will talk to you if you ask. If you inquire.  If you search. The foundation is your relationship with the Holy Spirit, a vital part of the triune God.

Amen!
DK

I am at Mission Hospital, recovering from appendicitis surgery. I didn’t even know. It didn’t hurt that bad. It was pqinful, but I went work the last two days with it. I will be in here a couple of days because of the complications and leakage inside my body. He cleaned it up though.

Thank you for your prayers…

Here is last night’s post. I was on me da so I forgot to press publish…

You won’t find a whole lot of rich men climbing trees…this man did. It was Jesus!

Luke 19:1-10
Zacchaeus the Tax Collector

19 Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. 3 He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.

5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.

7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.”

8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”

9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

He came to seek and save the lost. He loves us so much. He came for us. He came looking, and when He found us, He laid his life down for us. For you and I, He forgave us of our sins through death and resurrection. Hallelujah!

Thank you Jesus!
Amen
DK

Ask and receive.  It’s that simple…

Luke 18:35-43
35 As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”

38 He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

39 Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

40 Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?”

“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.

42 Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” 43 Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.

If you ask for something from God, He will hear you. You have a wonderful chance at getting it also, be it His will. Thank may take a few tries. It may take a few days, but if it is God’s will, then so be it. Prepare to receive.

This verse is beautiful. It seems that the Apostles always show us what we as humans might do. So any times we ignore and insult the needy. I say we, because intentional or not, I am sure I have before. Whether in my head or by words. We rebuke daily.

The blind man was healed just by the Word of God through Jesus.  Beautifully done by our Lord  and creator.

Lord Jesus, thank you. Thank you for the blessings of today.  Please prepare our hearts for the blessings that you promise that we are to receive.  We love you.

Amen.
DK

He knew what was to happen. It is heartbreaking…and life saving.

Luke 18:31-34
31 Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. 32 He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; 33 they will flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.”

34 The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.

I have heard the saying, ” Ignorance is bliss.” I disagree. Ignorance is the absence of information, not the presence of bliss. Bliss is happiness, which comes from God. Amen.

The Apostles didn’t understand. They are such beautiful friends. They want to see only the good. Yet Jesus is telling them what will happen, and they miss it. They are unaware, uniformed, ignorant. As we all are. As we all are human.

I have said, “What a great day to be Gentile!” How awesome is God to forgive us through Jesus. Amen.

Lord, thank you a thousand times. Thank you for your life, death, and resurrection. It is beautiful and perfect. Help us to love each other daily. More and more. Thank you for your gift of salvation and redemption. You are so awesome.

Amen.
DK

This is a passage that requires much thought, meditation, and prayer. I love Jesus!

Luke 18:27-30
26 Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”

27 Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”

28 Peter said to him, “We have left all we had to follow you!”

29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God 30 will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come eternal life.”

There is a song I listen to and now play on the guitar and sing. It’s called The Well by Casting Crowns. I encourage you to give it a listen.

How beautiful and difficult that is to do. To leave what you love for the Glory of God. It is a passage that requires allot of meditation. Lots of prayer. Much obedience.

As my heart goes out to their families, the recent killings of the American journalists by ISIS in such a horrible manner has done something amazing. It has sparked thousands of Muslims to convert to Christianity and be saved. This is truly leaving it all behind.

We learned in this chapter, that whether or not the person being utilized is Christian or not, God’s will be done. Justice will be found. What the devil attempted to destroy with, God will use for good. Will. Always. If the opportunity to give your life so that thousands would be saved, would you do it?

I love you all. Continue reading. Jesus Saves!

Amen.
DK

This Parable always make me think twice about buying a lottery ticket. I am blessed now…

Luke 18:18-25
18 A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

19 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’[a]”

21 “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.

22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

23 When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. 24 Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

A camel, through the eye of a needle. Possible, but truly difficult. And there is a good chance that the camel would not survive. Anyway, you get the idea.

We are to see that all we possess on this Earth is loss. It is impeding. It hold us back. It prevents us, in many cases, of furthering our relationship with the Holy Spirit. It’s no wonder there are so many miracles that occur daily in third world countries. Their distractions are fewer.

The other day my wife and I discussed how we with the world would return to no more cell phones. What a wonderful time that was. You could actually get away for a while. Our money is a distraction. Jesus says give it away and follow Him. Faith my friends. He will call you. Be ready to listen.

I love you.
Amen.
DK

Let us not forget, that whether or not there are thousands of unaccompanied minors coming to the US for help, there thousands unaccompanied minors already here…

Luke 18:15-17
15 People were also bringing babies to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 17 Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”

Jesus came to clarify the law. This is a beautiful example of a Him clarifying the fact that to come to the Father as a child is the greatest gift. With innocence in your heart, and love on your mind. This is what Jesus is telling us we must do.

There is a key word in this passage that is often overlooked. Receive. We must receive as children receive. Ask as children ask. As we do, the Holy Spirit will begin to strengthen you. This will create the relationship that is so vital an beautiful. It is so beautiful that it seeps out of every pour and you become a walking witness for Jesus. Without even saying a word. Just like a beautiful child.

Lord God, we come to you tonight to praise you. You are Holy and worthy of all praise. Lord, we thank you for all the many blessings we have received, are currently receiving, and those blessings that we will receive tomorrow. God, we also come to ask you for particular and specific prayers. Please hear us oh Lord. We cry out to you now. We love yoi. We thank you. We praise you. In the name of Jesus Christ.

Amen.

This is awesome…

Luke 18:9-14
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’

14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Faith looks different in all of us. The way that faith manifests itself can be in such different ways, that we may fail to notice it. Or, we may even dismiss it as strange, or not strong enough.

We must have learned by now, you would think, to not judge others. To stare at someone and say that their faith is inferior to yousrs, is ridiculous. That’s not our job.

Do not attempt to let all know what you do. Just do, and just love. It’s that easy. And that hard.

Amen.
DK

The idea of a man not fearing God, but still doing the right thing for selfish reasons was this week’s recurring theme, believe it or not. As God’s children, justice will find a way…

The Parable of the Persistent Widow
Luke 18:1-8
1 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”

6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Whether a man fears God or not, His will be done. Always. And it’s perfect. There was a person I knew some years ago who said that they don’t believe in God. My response was immediate, and I said, “Well, whether you believe in Him or not, He believes in you.” The person looked puzzled.

All good things come from God. With that in mind, as a believer, always trust that justice will find you through faith. It is not our job to worry. Leave that to the lost. We are found. We can see. As we press into God with strong faith and love, we see that He always loves us. Always. Even in the darkest of times, His rod and His staff comfort us. All of the days of our lives.

Now go and help someone who is lost become found, and help those that are blind to see. Just love them.

Amen.
DK

We will be going about our daily lives when He returns. What will you be doing? Just asking…

Luke 17:26-37
26 “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all.

28 “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. 29 But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.

30 “It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day no one who is on the housetop, with possessions inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. 32 Remember Lot’s wife! 33 Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it. 34 I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35 Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.” [36] [e]

37 “Where, Lord?” they asked.

He replied, “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.”

We will be taken. Jesus will return and take His people. He will take all who believe in Him.

On this day, there will surely be gnashing of teeth and screams unlike those that have ever been heard before. The sorrow will be thick and suffocating for those that choose not to believe.

The beauty though, oh the beauty. It will surpass any explanation. The beauty will be inexplicable and jaw-dropping. I look forward to that day. I hope that I am one the many of God’s lights that helps to bring more souls to God.

In today’s world it is very obvious that there are choices to be made. From the TV you watch, to the music you listen to, there are choices to be made. The devil is a well versed and experienced tempter. You must continue to develop your discernment skills through the power of the Holy Spirit.

I pray that for us tonight. That the Lord would continue to strengthen our wisdom to help people, the discernment skill to be able to hear what is being said and who is saying it, and the ability to act when the Holy Spirit asks.

Thank you Jesus. We live you.

Amen.
DK