Luke 8:22-39

Luke 8:22-39 (New International Version)

Jesus Calms the Storm

 ²²One day Jesus said to his disciples, "Let‘s go over to the other side of the lake." So they got into a boat and set out. ²³As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. ²⁴The disciples went and woke him, saying, "Master, Master, we‘re going to drown!"
   He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. ²⁵"Where is your faith?" he asked his disciples.
      In fear and amazement they asked one another, "Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him."

The Healing of a Demon-possessed Man

 ²⁶They sailed to the region of the Gerasenes, which is across the lake from Galilee. ²⁷When Jesus stepped ashore, he was met by a demon-possessed man from the town. For a long time this man had not worn clothes or lived in a house, but had lived in the tombs.²⁸When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell at his feet, shouting at the top of his voice, "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don‘t torture me!" ²⁹For Jesus had commanded the evil spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had seized him, and though he was chained hand and foot and kept under guard, he had broken his chains and had been driven by the demon into solitary places. ³⁰Jesus asked him, "What is your name?"
   "Legion," he replied, because many demons had gone into him. ³¹And they begged him repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss.
 ³²A large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside. The demons begged Jesus to let them go into them, and he gave them permission. ³³When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.
 ³⁴When those tending the pigs saw what had happened, they ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, ³⁵and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. ³⁶Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-possessed man had been cured. ³⁷Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them, because they were overcome with fear. So he got into the boat and left.
 ³⁸The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, ³⁹"Return home and tell how much God has done for you." So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.

Devotional

If you‘ve ever seen the movie Braveheart you may remember William Wallaces inspiring speech. They‘re about to face the English army and the odds are stacked against them and in that moment he shouts the iconic phrase, "They can take our land, but they‘ll never take our freedom!" I remember watching that movie and I can recall the feeling of inspiration that welled up inside of me.

That is what Jesus is saying to his disciples as they panic because of the winds and the waves. He looks at them and says, "Hey you need to have more faith".

William Wallace inspired his men by getting on a horse and taking the lead. Jesus wanted his disciples to see that if he was sleeping, everything would be ok. That‘s why we need to keep our focus on Christ. Because the wind and the waves are going to come, but with our eyes on him, we can know that we will make it through.

Prayer

God, help me to keep my focus on you even when life throws all it can at me. Let me keep you at the center. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Luke 8:1-21

Luke 8:1-21 (New Living Translation)

Women Who Followed Jesus

 1 Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, 2 along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; 3 Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod‘s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples.

Parable of the Farmer Scattering Seed

 4 One day Jesus told a story in the form of a parable to a large crowd that had gathered from many towns to hear him: 5 "A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it. 6 Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants. 8 Still other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted!" When he had said this, he called out, "Anyo ne with ears to hear should listen and understand."

 9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He replied, "You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of God. But I use parables to teach the others so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled:

   ‘When they look, they won‘t really see.
      When they hear, they won‘t understand.’

 11 "This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is God‘s word. 12 The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved. 13 The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don‘t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation. 14 The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity. 15 And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God‘s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.

Parable of the Lamp

 16 "No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house. 17 For all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all.

 18 "So pay attention to how you hear. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But for those who are not listening, even what they think they understand will be taken away from them."

The True Family of Jesus

 19 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they couldn‘t get to him because of the crowd. 20 Someone told Jesus, "Your mother and your brothers are outside, and they want to see you."

 21 Jesus replied, "My mother and my brothers are all those who hear God‘s word and obey it."

Devotion

The parable of the farmer scattering seed is such a powerful parable.  In this parable the farmer represents god and the seed represents Gods word or the way. Picture the different soils that the farmer scattered his seed; the foot path, the rocky soil, the thorny soil, and the fertile soil.  We are all in different stages in our faith and if each of us are honest we have all been these different soils.  I remember back in college I had a friend that was a devote Christian madly in love with Jesus and  was always trying to get me to go to church or read the bible with her.  We had many discussionbut at that point in my life I was that hard soil that the seed could not penetrate and gods word just could not set its roots.  Another time in my life I was invited to church, attended several times and then drifted away because my root could not be planted in the rocky terrain.  I have also been smothered by the thorns of life with human desires such as wanting more personal items, having more power , and wanting more social recognition for wha t I do or have done.  I think if we look deep into our lives we have all been at different stages  with different growth from Gods seed but we should all strive to be the fertile soil to accept Gods word and blossom into fruit that would be worthy to be called one of Gods children.

Prayer

Lord thank you for scattering your seed of love throughout, help me to be the fertile soil so that I can grow in faith so that I may spread some seeds of love to others that they might feel your great power and love . In his name we pray amen

Luke 7:1-17

Luke 7:1-17 (The Message)

A Place of Holy Mystery

1-5When he finished speaking to the people, he entered Capernaum. A Roman captain there had a servant who was on his deathbed. He prized him highly and didn‘t want to lose him. When he heard Jesus was back, he sent leaders from the Jewish community asking him to come and heal his servant. They came to Jesus and urged him to do it, saying, "He deserves this. He loves our people. He even built our meeting place."

6-8Jesus went with them. When he was still quite far from the house, the captain sent friends to tell him, "Master, you don‘t have to go to all this trouble. I‘m not that good a person, you know. I‘d be embarrassed for you to come to my house, even embarrassed to come to you in person. Just give the order and my servant will get well. I‘m a man under orders; I also give orders. I tell one soldier, ‘Go,’ and he goes; another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it."

9-10Taken aback, Jesus addressed the accompanying crowd: "I‘ve yet to come across this kind of simple trust anywhere in Israel, the very people who are supposed to know about God and how he works." When the messengers got back home, they found the servant up and well.

11-15Not long after that, Jesus went to the village Nain. His disciples were with him, along with quite a large crowd. As they approached the village gate, they met a funeral procession—a woman‘s only son was being carried out for burial. And the mother was a widow. When Jesus saw her, his heart broke. He said to her, "Don‘t cry." Then he went over and touched the coffin. The pallbearers stopped. He said, "Young man, I tell you: Get up." The dead son sat up and began talking. Jesus presented him to his mother.

16-17They all realized they were in a place of holy mystery, that God was at work among them. They were quietly worshipful—and then noisily grateful, calling out among themselves, "God is back, looking to the needs of his people!" The news of Jesus spread all through the country.

Devotion

In this passage, Jesus continues to perform miracles. He heals two different people. The first a slave of a powerful Roman captain who himself appeals to Christ to heal him. The other person that Jesus heals is the only son of a heart broken widow.

We can take a lesson from those involved in the miracles described in the text. In the first, the captain humbles himself before Jesus and states that he is not a good person and is not worthy of Jesus. Despite all of this, Jesus heals the captain‘s slave. He also states how strong the captain‘s faith is. Even when we don‘t feel that we deserve Christ‘s love or are unworthy of Him, he is there for us and desires to bless us.

The second miracle involves a mother who has lost her only son. Christ and his disciples come upon the funeral procession for the son. Being touched by her grief, Jesus heals her son. Because of his love for the woman, Jesus heals her son without her even having to ask. Much like this woman, Jesus is watching out for us, cares for us, and continually looks for ways in which to bless and touch us.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we thank you for your unconditional love for us. Please help us to continue to grow in our relationship with you. Amen.

Luke 6:37-49

Luke 6:37-49 (New Living Translation)

Do Not Judge Others

³⁷ "Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven. ³⁸ Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back."

³⁹ Then Jesus gave the following illustration: "Can one blind person lead another? Won‘t they both fall into a ditch? ⁴⁰ Students are not greater than their teacher. But the student who is fully trained will become like the teacher.

⁴¹ "And why worry about a speck in your friend‘s eye when you have a log in your own? ⁴² How can you think of saying, ‘Friend, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can‘t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend‘s eye.

The Tree and Its Fruit

⁴³ "A good tree can‘t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can‘t produce good fruit. ⁴⁴ A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thornbushes, and grapes are not picked from bramble bushes. ⁴⁵ A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.

Building on a Solid Foundation

⁴⁶ "So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don‘t do what I say? ⁴⁷ I will show you what it‘s like when someone comes to me, listens to my teaching, and then follows it. ⁴⁸ It is like a person building a house who digs deep and lays the foundation on solid rock. When the floodwaters rise and break against that house, it stands firm because it is well built. ⁴⁹ But anyone who hears and doesn‘t obey is like a person who builds a house without a foundation. When the floods sweep down against that house, it will collapse into a heap of ruins."

Devotion (Mikey Skoglund)

Wow, what great advice from a guy who knows His stuff! You know I often think about how a lot of people don‘t like religion because its just following a big list of do‘s and don‘ts. Well, I‘d say by looking at this passage, those people would be right, that it seems like Christ came to give us a bunch of ‘thou shalts’ and ‘thou shalt nots’. But its not at all just a list of rules we‘re given to follow just to appease a mean God that‘s like our old high school principal. This is real, meaningful and helpful stuff for your life. And where in this passage does it say "Do not have fun, or do not enjoy your life"? Sure, that can be implied with any list of "don‘t do this", but actually, its quite the opposite in this passage. This passage gives us things to work on in our own hearts so that we can enjoy life, give abundantly, and receive blessings from God. And I mean really, who in their right frame of mind wouldn‘t want blessings from God? I‘m not talking about a brand new car falling from the sky (though I guess that could happen too), but I mean things that are actually lasting. I mean look at this one, if you forgive others, you will be forgiven. Wow. Now that is quite the gift. Or do not judge others, and you won‘t be judged. Or give and you will receive…the amount you give will determine the amount you get back. Its all right there. And one of my favorite parts of this passage is Jesus explaining to the people what its like when someone actually follows His teachings. "Like a person building a house who digs deep and lays the foundation on solid rock." Now I don‘t build houses, but I do know that having a solid foundation to your house is essential in holding it up. So that‘s how I want to set up my life, building a solid foundation by following the teachings and advice that Jesus gives.

Prayer

Lord, please help me to be a better follower of Your word and Your son Jesus. Help me to listen to His teachings and follow them and build my life on a solid foundation that will not fall apart in ruins. Thank You God for this life that You‘ve given me and give me the strength to follow You each and every day. Amen.

Luke 6:17-36

Luke 6:17-36 (New International Version)

Blessings and Woes

¹⁷He went down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coast of Tyre and Sidon, ¹⁸who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by evil^[a]spirits were cured, ¹⁹and the people all tried to touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all.

²⁰Looking at his disciples, he said:
"Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
²¹Blessed are you who hunger now,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
²²Blessed are you when men hate you,
when they exclude you and insult you
and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.

²³"Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated the prophets.
²⁴"But woe to you who are rich,
for you have already received your comfort.
²⁵Woe to you who are well fed now,
for you will go hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will mourn and weep.
²⁶Woe to you when all men speak well of you,
for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets.

Love for Enemies

²⁷"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. ²⁹If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. ³⁰Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. ³¹Do to others as you would have them do to you.

³²"If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ love those who love them. ³³And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ do that. ³⁴And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ lend to ‘sinners,’ expecting to be repaid in full. ³⁵But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. ³⁶Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

DEVOTIONAL

I find it interesting that the people Jesus describes as blessed in this passage hardly seem so by today‘s standards. I mean, I rarely look at someone who is poor, hungry, weeping, or hated as someone who is blessed. Typically in today‘s world when someone has been given much we consider him or her blessed. And perhaps they are, but we see in this passage that being blessed involves more than our possessions. You see the word blessed describes more than just happiness, it means favored and approved by God. By God‘s standards, when we are blessed we experience hope and joy despite what our outward circumstances may appear to be. This is the kind of person I want to be. I want to see God‘s favor on my life regardless of what it may appear I do or don‘t have to the world.

PRAYER

Father, thank you for all of the blessings you give me. Help me to see that those blessings extend beyond my material possessions or this physical world. Help me to have joy and hope in all things, knowing that you love me and have a plan for my life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.