The people watched in amazement as Jesus created a whip from cords and removed their commercial ventures. He drove them out with their sheep and oxen, and He overturned the tables of the moneychangers. And the people said, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” What? Maybe they heard about the sign … Continue reading Christ our Temple
Jesus and his mother went to a wedding in Cana, and the disciples came as well. We can assume that the couple getting married were friends or relatives of Jesus and His family. A Jewish wedding and celebration could last up to seven days, so there was a constant need for food and drink to … Continue reading Water into Wine
John the Baptist testified one day that Jesus was the Lamb of God, “who takes away the sins of the world.” Then he said something curious: “I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” Certainly, John knew his cousin! He had … Continue reading How to Know that You Know
When John the Baptist started drawing huge crowds in the wilderness, the Pharisees got nervous. Who does this guy think he is? They sent priests and Levites to find out. They first asked John if he was the Christ. No. How about Elijah? Nope. The Prophet? Not him either! The interrogators, frustrated no doubt with … Continue reading We Know Our Why
I love the Gospel of John. I love all four gospels, but John is my favorite. It is not a synopsis of the life of Jesus, as Matthew, Mark, and Luke are. It is structured around Jesus’ encounters with different people, like Nicodemus, the woman at the well, the man born blind, and many more. … Continue reading Do You Believe?
When Paul asked Philemon to forgive and be reconciled to his runaway slave, Onesimus, he made that appeal on the basis of how Christ forgives and receives us when we have been running from Him. “Receive him as you would receive me,” Paul writes. How could Philemon do that? How could he fully forgive Onesimus’s … Continue reading Reconciliation Costs Us Something
