Discipleship and Our Enemies
In Luke, Jesus gives a sermon very similar to the Sermon on the Mount that we call the Sermon on the Plain (Luke 6:17-49). One of the main points of this sermon is how we treat our enemies. We are to: 1 – Love them2 – Bless them3 – Pray for them4 – Be generous […]
Good Friday, Cross Bearing, and Following Jesus
Jesus said if we want to be his disciples we must take up our cross daily and follow him (Luke 9:23). Jesus said this while he was on his way to Jerusalem to suffer and die on a cross. Good Friday reminds us that Jesus is our leader and the leader always goes first. Hebrews […]
Discipling on the Road to Jerusalem
“Jesus set his face toward Jerusalem” – Luke 9:51 Right after Luke tells us this, Jesus called more people to follow him – while going to his death! Jesus never stopped calling and making disciples. Jesus never lost his focus. Here is what Luke tells us in 9:57-62, 57 As they were walking along the […]
Discipleship in The Beattitudes
Who should we consider to be the one blessed or favored by the Lord? The poor in spirit The mourner The meek The one who hungers and thirsts for righteousness The merciful one The one who is pure in heart The one who makes peace The one who is persecuted for being in the right […]
Jesus’ Most Important Question For You to Move Ahead With Your Life
is found in John 5. Jesus is at the pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem where he sees a man who had been an invalid 38 years. As you examine Jesus’ question to the man, I want you to replace that man with you. Picture yourself there. Picture the infirmity as whatever it is that keeps […]
Embracing the Priesthood of All Believers
If we would stop pointing this verse at others and start pointing it at ourselves we would all be living on mission. How exciting! It is about participation, not sitting and absorbing what others do.
Fasting and Discipleship
Fasting is a key part of discipleship. It is something that I haven’t practiced enough but am learning more about and also correcting some of my past misunderstandings. I thought of fasting through the lens of Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 6 but never put it together with Acts 13 and 14. In Matthew 6 Jesus […]
Video: Applying the Bible Study Method to the Parable of the Sower
I took the outline I gave in the last video and used the Parable of the Sower from Matthew 13 to show how it would work on a specific text. I have found this approach quite helpful. We need to be in the word. I often hear people talk about how they don’t have time […]
Doing Good to All
Paul wrote in Galatians 6:10, “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” In the wake of a pair of tornadoes there is a lot of good going on all around us. People are jumping in, giving of their time and […]
Why Do the New Testament Letters Not Say More About Discipling?
In the first few hundred years of the church’s existence it grew leaps and bounds. It took off like wildfire fulfilling what Jesus told his disciples in Acts 1:8, that the gospel was to go to the ends of the earth. Why do we not get more information and instruction on evangelism and discipleship in […]