Have you ever had an experience that could be described as a “spiritual high”? Perhaps it was one summer after church camp (or every summer after church camp). Perhaps it was after a conference or during an especially uplifting Bible study. Or, perhaps it was a seemingly inexplicable time of spiritual growth. Whatever the case, you remember it, and then it went away, as if descending from mountain high to valley low.
Category Archives: Luke
The Glory of God’s Son
After Jesus’ disciples confessed his true identity as “the Christ of God” (Luke 9:20), he confronted their confession with the cost, saying, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (9:23). What he described is essentially what citizenship in his kingdom looks like here and now, but it was a stark contrast from what his disciples had envisioned (How can a kingdom be built through a cross?).
The Incalculable Value of Following Christ
And if you are looking for a guaranteed return on the investment on your life in Christ, here it is: The Lord Jesus Christ will return in his glory and the glory of God the Father who sent him, with his holy angels, to gather all who belong to him.
Who Is Jesus?
In Luke’s Gospel, at every paramount point of Jesus’ life prayer shows up. For example, there was prayer at Jesus’ baptism, prayer at his selection of the twelve apostles, prayer at his transfiguration, and of course he taught his disciples how to pray, and we find it here, among other places: “he was praying alone” (Luke 9:18).
The Lord Will Provide
Jesus’ twelve apostles had just returned from their first mission, where they proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and healed the spiritually and physically sick. As they were sent out by and with the power and authority of Christ, their mission was effective. Even Rome’s regional ruler, Herod the Tetrarch, took notice. But it was a short-term mission, and they soon returned to Jesus, eager to tell him all that they had done.
The Message and Its Miracles
This is the first record we have of the apostles ministering as Jesus did, which tells us less about the apostles and more about the bestowing of Jesus’s power and authority, which is all the more intriguing considering one of the twelve was Judas Iscariot. But called, commissioned, and sent they were, for the purpose of carrying a message, the good news of the kingdom of God. And while the substance of their message and its miracles were specific to their context, we (though not apostles) may glean from God’s work in and through them, starting first with the message they carried.
When God Seems Late
There are times when God seems late, when his timing does not align with our timing, and this can breed frustration even doubt. But think about this with me: If “by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible,” and if “all things were created through him and for him,” and if “in him all things hold together” (Col. 1:16-17), and if “he upholds the universe by the word of his power” (Heb. 1:3), is he really ever late?
Delivered from the Domain of Darkness
The allure of sin is that it will fulfill the desire of our flesh. When it strikes and we submit, we do not think about its impact upon our hearts, habits, or hurt to our neighbor but the fulfillment of our desire. This is especially the case with habitual sin, sin which we commit so consistently that we give little regard to its offense and dismiss its insidious residence. But what if we could see what sin does to us, from the inside out. What would we look like? Would we recognize ourselves?
Peace! Be Still!
While Jesus had been ministering throughout Judea, he decided to take a trip to the land of the Gerasenes by direct route, across the Lake of Gennesaret, also known as the Sea of Galilee. Traveling with a select group of disciples by boat, Jesus boarded and went to bed. Perhaps telling of his fatigue, Jesus slept through what likely began with the serene sway of a rocking boat into a stormy squall, as the cooler air from the surrounding mountains collided with the warmer air of the sea. So fierce was the storm’s surge that the boat began to fill with water. If there were a time for panic, this was it—even for a crew of salty fishermen. Meanwhile, Jesus slept soundly in the stern.
The Family of Faith
When Jesus returned to his hometown of Nazareth, from preaching throughout Judea, he didn’t receive what we would call a “warm welcome.” Rather than celebrating his ministry, the people wondered, “Where did this man get this wisdom, and these mighty works?” (Matt. 13:54). To them, he was just the carpenter’s son, the son of Mary, the brother of James, Joseph, Simon, Judas, and his sisters.[2]
Planter, Pastor, Preacher 