Luke 19

Jesus was walking through Jericho and saw a man named Zacchaeus perched in a sycamore tree. Zacchaeus climbed the tree because he wanted to see Jesus, yet he was too short to see over the crowd. Jesus decided to go to Zacchaeus’ home for a visit.

Zacchaeus was a tax collector, which meant he was not a very popular guy. Tax collectors had a bad reputation, they were often accused of stealing and lying. The best modern profession to compare them to would be a lawyer. Not to say that lawyers are sinners, but for some reason they have a reputation for being dishonest.

Zacchaeus though, is one of my favorite characters in the Bible. Upon meeting Jesus he said, “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.” (Verse 8)

Zacchaeus gets it! When Jesus entered his life, his life changed.

So often in life we offend others and offer a simple, “I’m sorry.” We ask forgiveness, but that’s as far as we are willing to take it. On a rare occasion, we will buy our wife flowers.

Zacchaeus isn’t just going to say he is sorry, he is going to pay back anyone he cheated. And not just pay them back, he is going to pay them back four times the amount! Those people who he defrauded are lucky! It takes a long time for your money to quadruple in the stock market!

I have a friend who has a policy we should all adopt. If he offends someone, he buys them lunch. He has been doing it for over fifty years. Over the years, I’m sure that has been a lot of lunches, but his friends know how much they mean to him. He is not only willing to admit he is wrong, he actually does something to make up for it!

Have you lost friends over disagreements?

Was it worth it?

Is there more you can do to seek forgiveness?

Luke 18

Jesus told his disciples, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; they will flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.” (Verses 31 - 33)

Imagine hearing this as a disciple, it was devastating news. Maybe, if I were one of Jesus’ disciples, I’d say something like, “Let’s not go to Jerusalem then, I hear Jericho is nice this time of year.” But that’s not how the disciples responded. Actually, they didn’t respond at all.

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

They didn’t understand? The meaning was hidden from them? What does that mean?

This wasn’t a parable or a story. Jesus was very straight forward. I don’t understand how it was hidden from them, who hid it from them? Jesus, the Son of God, was telling them this information; he wanted them to know! Clearly, God would not be hiding it from them if Jesus was telling them.

Maybe they were hiding the truth from themselves. Maybe they were only hearing what they wanted to hear.

It is human nature to want to believe something is true, even if it’s not. We often ignore the truth so that we can continue to live in our fantasy world.

This is true in many ways.

When I was in college, I had a girlfriend that was dating someone else at the same time. I saw the signs that this might be happening, but chose to ignore them because I thought I was happy. Looking back, I can’t believe I was such a fool!

Scientific evidence has convinced me that it would be better for the world if we all used less oil to power our lives. I feel like I should be driving a vehicle that gets very good gas mileage, but I love my pick-up truck. Maybe one day, we will all look and think we were fools.

I’m sure the disciples felt like fools on Good Friday. Jesus told them it was going to happen, and it did. 

We may all be fools, but Jesus died because we make bad decisions. That is the truth.

Luke 17

Jesus said, “If the same person sins against you seven times a day, and turns back to you seven times and says, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive.” (Verse 4)

This verse kind of bothers me. I think it can be used as an excuse to keep for repeated bad behavior.

It is natural that we will sin against other human beings. It’s just part of being broken people in a broken world. It makes sense then that the ones we sin against most often will be the ones that are closest to us, such as our family. It’s not that we intentionally try and hurt the ones we love, but we spend the vast majority of our time with them.

One of the marks of a healthy relationship is the ability to see when you hurt each other, to seek forgiveness, and to give forgiveness. And then learn from your mistakes so that they don’t happen again.

Unfortunately, many relationships are unhealthy. They often include one person repeatedly sinning against the other. Abuse is real and takes many forms: verbal, sexual, and physical. All of them are damaging and sinful.

If you are in an abusive relationship, don’t read this verse and think you need to stay. Jesus is not giving permission to be abusive.

If you are abusing someone else, stop right now! Beg their forgiveness, promise to never do it again and get help.

If you are being abused, get away from the abuser. Get as far away as you can. I know sometimes it is easier said than done, but you were not created to live in fear and pain.

Jesus does want us to forgive each other. That doesn’t mean we have to forget what happened and it doesn’t mean we need to be friends with each other.

Forgiveness is a process. It will not happen overnight.

And the process can start with 500 miles between you and the abuser.    

Luke 16

Jesus said, “You cannot serve both God and money.” (Verse 13)

I think this is a hard verse for us to read. Or maybe, it should be a harder verse for us to read than it is.

As a capitalist society, money is the motivation for much of what we do. I am not saying this is evil, I’m just saying it is true. Do you check the stock market once a week? Every day? Have you taken a job just because it paid you well? Have you chosen a profession because it pays better than something you might have enjoyed more?

The reality is, we need money to live. And the more money we have, the more comfortable life can be. At least that’s what we have been told our whole lives.

I don’t think it’s a sin to have a job that pays well nor do I think it’s a sin to have nice things. But I do think it is difficult to resist the temptation of serving money.

I watched this happen to one of my friends. He got a little money, he wanted a little more, and then he wanted a lot more. It didn’t take long before he started to plot and plan ways to get more money. Eventually money was the last thing he thought of when he went to bed and the first thing he thought of when he woke up. He got what he wanted, but ruined his marriage.

I have another friend who loves his job. He is very good at it and has climbed the corporate ladder to a point where money isn’t a concern. The crazy thing is, I think he would do the same job for half the money. He loves his job and he loves his wife; he doesn’t love or serve money. Instead, his money serves him; he gives it away to charities and family members. He uses his money to make a difference.

I don’t think Jesus has a problem with us having money. As long as it serves us, and we serve him.         

Luke 15

Luke 15 is known for the Parable of the Prodigal Son. This is one of the most famous parables in the Bible.

It is the parable of two sons and their father. The youngest son asks his father to give him his inheritance early. The father does, and his son moves to a foreign land. While there, he blows all his inheritance and when a famine comes, he has nothing to eat. He decides to go home and beg his father for a job on his land.

When his father sees him coming, he runs to meet him and throws a huge party to celebrate his son’s return.

I have heard this parable referenced when someone is trying to explain God’s love and forgiveness, because we have all been the younger son.

But I don’t think that is what the parable is about.

The chapter starts with some Pharisees complaining that Jesus spends time with sinners. So Jesus tells this story loud enough for the Pharisees can hear. The ending of the story is the important part.

The older brother is angered upon hearing that his younger brother has returned. He can’t believe that his father threw his ungrateful brother a party and refuses to go.  

The Pharisees could not believe that Jesus was hanging out with sinners. They could not believe that God would care about sinners. They thought they knew who God loved and who God despised.

Have you ever been invited to a party, and upon hearing someone was invited, decided not to go? Is there anyone that would make you stay home?

We have all thought that there are people on this earth who God can’t love, right? Bin Laden and Hitler are the first names that come to my mind.  

When God throws a party, He alone decides who gets invited. When we get there, I’m sure we will be surprised by who is there with us, maybe even angered.

We have all been the younger brother.

And we have all been the older brother.

Luke 14

Jesus tells the parable of a man who invites many people to come to a banquet. Many who are invited reply with an excuse for why they were unable to come:

"The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ (Verses 18-20)

I don't think it is a stretch to say that the man throwing the banquet is God and we are all invited. This tells us a lot about who God is and the gift of free-will that we have been given.

First of all, banquets are fun, there is good food, music and usually dancing. So God likes to have fun with the people that He loves! All that He asks from us, is to show up, He has the rest covered.

Second, God does not force any one to come to the banquet, but He invites everyone. It's up to you whether or not you are at the banquet. Through Jesus, God has provided the invitation and the directions.

Finally, the gift of free-will means that we have the power to say "no"... We have the freedom to give our best excuse for why we don't want to be there. I love the excuses that these guys in the text had, they were too busy with work and family.

Does that mean that work and family will keep us out of heaven? No, this isn't about heaven. It's about living the good life right now, right here, by being in relationship God. The banquet is here, it's all around us!

Let the good times roll! 

Luke 13

Jesus said "unless you repent, you too will all perish." (Verse 3) He went on to say the same thing in verse 5.

I am a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which is a mainline denomination. Lutherans follow the liturgical year and seasons; right now we are in Lent. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and continues 40 days until Easter Sunday. It is a time of the year when many people give something up as an act of repentance.

For instance, members of my church have given up soda, alcohol and sweets. The hope is that when they crave any of these things, they will remember their sin and be thankful for the grace that they have been given by God.

I have been thinking about repentance a lot lately. I've come to the conclusion that true repentance is a great way to grow in faith. (By true repentance I mean giving up something out of love for God and not the desire to lose 5 pounds.) The deeper we understand our sinful selves and how unworthy we are of God's love, the more we can see how far God has gone to save us.

If I'm being honest with myself, I realize that I'm not that good of a person. My hearts desires are not the same as God's. If I had my way, I would spend most days golfing and sitting on the beach. I get too caught up in things that don't really matter, like professional sports, cars and my motorcycle. And, like everyone else, I want to do what I want to do.

I wasn't put on this earth to satisfy my own longings and desires, I was put here to do God's will. Somedays I'm pretty good at it, and other days I fail miserably. Which is why I need to know that God's love is strong enough to forgive me at my worst.

Repentance will help me be my best, so I need to stop thinking it and actually do it.

Luke 12

Jesus said "Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three." (Verses 51-52)

This is a surprising verse. I think we have all heard Jesus referred to as the Prince of Peace, it's one of his nicknames. We send Christmas cards that say "Peace on Earth" because we think that is what Jesus came for. So then where does this verse come from? Why would Jesus say this?

I do believe that peace is Jesus' hope for humanity. But getting to that point is not going to be easy.

Jesus did not come to tell people what they wanted to hear. He didn't look them in the eye and say "God thinks that your sins are really cool, keep up the good work!" He actually did the opposite, he told people what they didn't want to hear.

He told a rich young guy to sell all his possessions and give the money to the poor.

He chastised a man because he wanted to bury his dead father.

He called the religious leaders "unmarked graves."

Jesus didn't sugar coat what he was trying to say. Some people were offended by him, while others understood that being a disciple meant leaving behind their selfish desires. Jesus must have been a polarizing figure. Imagine owning a small fishing company and having both of your sons drop their nets and quit with no notice to follow a wandering preacher. You'd probably be pretty upset and your family might get into a little bit of an argument.

Maybe we have made Jesus out to be too nice. Most non-Christians I talk to respect Jesus for the man that he was and the things that he said. But Jesus didn't come to make friends, he came to make disciples; he didn't come to be liked, he came to challenge the status-quo... And he was pretty good at it.

If he said what everyone wanted to hear, then he never would have been crucified.

Luke 11

Jesus said “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find.” (Verse 11)

When I read this verse I immediately thought of playing hide and go-seek when I was a kid. We’ve all played this game right? Everyone would go hide while someone closed their eyes and counted to fifty. Once they reached fifty, they would start looking for everyone else.

I always preferred to be the one hiding. It was fun to find the best hiding spot and watch people walk right by without seeing you.

But no matter how good my hiding spot was, I always wanted to be found eventually. It's no fun to be alone for too long, plus I always wanted someone to appreciate my creativity.

Jesus promises us, if we look for him, we will find him.

Jesus wants to be found.

Ready or not, now is a good time to start looking for him.  

Luke 10

In Luke 10 Jesus told the parable of the Lousy Priest, otherwise known as the parable of the Good Samaritan.

There was a man that was beaten and robbed while traveling on a road. He was lying half dead in the road when a priest saw him. Instead of stopping to help the man, the priest chose to walk around him. Then came a member of the Levite tribe, which is the Hebrew tribe that God set aside for religious work, Moses was a Levite. This Levite, like the priest, chose to walk around the man lying in the street. No one stopped to help the man except a Samaritan.

The Israelites looked down on the Samaritans, claiming their religion wasn't good enough.

The priest walked around the man in the road. The Levite walked around the man in the road. But the Samaritan, with his inferior religion, stopped to care for this man in his time of need.

It has been two months since a murderer walked into an elementary school in Connecticut and killed innocent children and adults. It has been two months of grief and pain for a community that is hoping to wake from this nightmare. It has been two months that this community has been lying in the road.

What have we done as a church? What have we done as a nation?

As a church we have argued over the involvement of Lutheran pastors in inter-faith worship services. We have pointed fingers at each other and said, "I'm glad I'm not one of them!" (This actually happened on my Facebook page!)

As a nation we have argued about our rights to own guns. We have talked about the Second Ammendment and what it really means. Did the founders of our nation believe that American citizens have the right to own a semi-automatic assault rifle with a 30-round magazine? I don't know the right answer, but I don't think that now is the best time for the conversation. 

As this community looks for support we are talking about who should be allowed to pray and when.

As this community looks for healing we are talking about who should be allowed to own a gun and how many bullets it can hold.

As this community looks for love we are talking right around them.

Lord, help me to be less like the priest and more like the Samaritan.

Luke 9

Jesus said "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me." (Verse 23)

I would imagine that a few of Jesus' followers went home after this statement.

Jesus calls us to deny ourselves daily, he actually calls us to pick up our cross, which means to die to ourselves, and then follow him. I don't know about you, but I can only deny myself to a point and I can only follow Jesus to a point. Sometimes I need to take care of myself. There are things that I want to buy or do, so I buy them or do them. I'm not saying that buying a new pair of shoes or going on vacation is a bad thing, but they are motivated by my desires, not God's. (Although God did send Jonah on a cruise, but I don't think a whale's stomach makes for a very relaxing experience.)

This is the great paradox of a Chrsitian, we want to live the life we have, and we want live the life that Jesus has to offer. We want both!

We want our toys and we want God's grace.

We want to be popular and we want God's forgiveness.

We want to be wealthy and we want God' mercy.

We want to hate our enemies and we want God to love us.

We don't want to die and we want to go to heaven.

I'm sure Jesus wanted things too. I'm sure Jesus would have loved to trade his old sandals for a new pair of Nike's and I'm sure Jesus wanted to keep living. Our Lord never calls us to do something that He isn't willing to do first.

Jesus calls us to pick up our cross and follow him, because he picked up his cross first.

On the days when our wants and needs are stronger than our desire to follow him, we too can pick up his cross and know that we are loved.

Luke 8

Jesus was sleeping in a boat with his disciples when a storm came. The boat was taking on water and the disciples thought they were going to die, so they shouted at Jesus, "Master, Master, we are perishing!" (Verse 24)

I imagine the disciples were doing everything they could to get water back out of the boat. They probably were filling up buckets and dumping them overboard... and they needed Jesus to help. They needed Jesus to grab a bucket and help keep the boat from sinking.

There are moments in life that we just need to survive. Moments when the water is coming over the top, when relationships are strained or when there is too much month at the end of the money and we just need to find a way to get to the shore. So we beg Jesus to help us... Help us get to next Friday or help us get through this argument... Help us survive.

Jesus didn't pick up a bucket, he told the wind to stop blowing, and it did.

I wonder if we are so focused on our boats that we've lost sight of God's ability to calm the storm.

God doesn't just want your marriage to survive, God wants it to thrive. If that's not the case, what changes need to be made? Do you need to meet with someone to help?

God doesn't want you to live paycheck to paycheck, God wants you to be at peace financially. Are you willing to admit you need help?

Calming a storm is hard work, but God can do it... if you're willing to get in the boat with Him.