• New Testament Reading: Matthew 6:19-24
• Old Testament Passage: Ecclesiastes 2:1-11
• Points to Ponder

“Where is Your Treasure?”

Reading through and reflecting on the first three gospel accounts, did you
notice how many times Jesus talked and taught about money, worldly wealth and personal
possessions? If you didn’t, you weren’t reading very carefully. He has more to say on this subject
than any other person whose teachings are recorded in the scriptures. It is a subject that is so vital
to our day-to-day spirituality and even our spiritual survival. One cannot faithfully follow Jesus and
not have a spiritual perspective on these issues, because as Jesus so clearly taught, “For where your
treasure is, there your heart will be also.” But what is a spiritual perspective on worldly wealth?
How can we know where our treasure really is? What can we do when we see ourselves being
concerned with storing up treasures on earth, instead of in heaven? Read More...

• New Testament Readings: Matthew 28:16-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:45-49
• Old Testament Passage: Deuteronomy 32:44-47
• Points to Ponder

“You Are My Witnesses”

We do not worship a dead martyr. We serve a living Savior! He has left his disciples with some final
commands and promises. Before moving on to the gospel of John, I would encourage you to review
Jesus “great commission” as it appears in each of the three synoptic gospels. If the final words of a
prophet of God were to be taken seriously and applied, how much more the final words of God’s
Son? If every word of Jesus recorded for us in the gospels is precious, how much more so his final
words spoken just before that glorious ascension? Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 24:1-53
• Old Testament Passage: Genesis 3:15; Deuteronomy 18:15
• Points to Ponder

“Joy and Amazement”

Luke 24 records some of the events that took place on the single most incredible day in all of the
history of mankind! And that is no exaggeration. In fact, it is impossible to describe adequately the
unique and powerful significance of these events. If they really did occur, and Jesus was indeed
raised from the grave on that Sunday morning, then there is a God, Jesus is his Son and the Bible is
his word. If not, then the New Testament is the greatest hoax every perpetrated in history. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 23:26-56
• Old Testament Passage: Psalm 23:4
• Points to Ponder

“Seeing What Had Happened”

All three of the synoptic gospels record the centurion’s reaction to Jesus’ death. Compare Matthew
27:54, Mark 15:38-39 and Luke 23:47. What did he see? It wasn’t the curtain of the temple being torn
in two. That happened in Jerusalem and he wouldn’t have know about that yet. Matthew says he
“saw the earthquake and all that happened...” Mark says he “heard his cry and saw how he died...”
Luke just says “seeing what had happened...” What must it have been like to be there? Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 22:47-23:25
• Old Testament Passage: Numbers 13:26-33
• Points to Ponder

“Are You Then the Son of God?”

This is the real issue for all who reject Jesus - they reject his deity. A man, a teacher, even a prophet,
most people can accept, but not the Son of God. A man, even a very good and influential man, can
be appreciated but ignored without implications. What reasons do people give for not believing that
Jesus is who he claimed to be? Honestly, the reasons given today by the so-called learned,
intellectual and even religious, are as nonsensical as the reasons the chief priests and teachers of the
law gave to Pilate. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 22:1-46
• Old Testament Passage: Psalm 14:2; 53:2; 82:5
• Points to Ponder

“He Found Them Asleep”

From our very informed perspective it seems that the disciples of Jesus were
asleep during the entire evening, not just on the Mount of Olives. Why
wouldn’t they know that the betrayer was Judas? Why, after all Jesus’ teaching
on servanthood, would they have another dispute about which one of them
was considered to be the greatest? And how, with Jesus in such obvious anguish, could they literally
fall asleep instead of pray with Jesus? Yes, they were exhausted, but why couldn’t they grasp what
was a stake? Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 21:5-38
• Old Testament Passage: Jeremiah 52
• Points to Ponder:

“When Will These Things Happen?”

This is now the third time we’ve come across a significantly long and detailed passage where Jesus
predicts the destruction of Jerusalem. No, this is not about the second coming of Christ and the
end of the world. Obviously to the gospel writers (and the Holy Spirit) this was a part of Jesus’
teaching that was extremely important both for those seeking God and those faithfully following
Jesus. While we might see it’s importance to Jewish Christians or to all Christians of the mid to late
first century, what possible relevance does it have for you and I? Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 20:20-21:4
• Old Testament Passages: Jeremiah 23:16-22
• Points to Ponder

“Beware”

Is it hard for you to imagine the duplicity and depravity of the religious leaders of Jesus day? It is for
me. Not that I have never been self-righteous, deceitful, hypocritical, selfishly ambitious or seeking
the praise of men. But it amazes me that nothing Jesus did or said - not his compassion, patience,
honesty, courage, wisdom or truth - could touch and turn their hard hearts. Today, we underestimate
the power and the danger of false religion -- whether it is false in motivation, doctrine and/or
practice. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 19:28-20:19
• Old Testament Passage: Ezekiel 2:4-11
• Points to Ponder

“If You Had Only Known”

Jesus wept over the fate the people of Jerusalem would soon face. They would be surrounded by
their enemies (the Romans in A.D. 70) who would lay siege to the city and then destroy it
completely, killing its inhabitants. The reason for such a fate? Jesus said, “You did not recognize the
time of God’s coming to you.” They weren’t ignorant because they weren’t told, but because they
wouldn’t look, listen and believe. Again, he forewarns of their ruin when in the parable of the
tenants he says of the owner, “He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to another.” Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 19:1-27
• Old Testament Passage: Proverbs 19:17; 22:9; 31:20
• Points to Ponder

“Salvation Has Come to this House”

The story of Zacchaeus is one of the better known from Jesus’ ministry. People seem to be able to
identify with this short man who had to climb a tree to see Jesus and then received the unexpected
surprise of a personal visit from Jesus. As the saying goes, “Everyone loves the underdog.” But don’t
feel sorry for Zacchaeus because he was short; he was both a hated and feared man in Jericho
because he was the chief tax collector. He worked for the enemy (the Romans) and made his wealth
by cheating his fellow Jews out of their hard earned assests. He was no doubt a shrewd, con man, a
cheat and a liar. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 18:1-43
• Old Testament Passage: Hosea 1:2-3
• Points to Ponder

“Will He Find Faith on the Earth?”

I’m really not as interested in the general and impersonal answer to that question as I am interested
in the specific and personal answer. When Jesus’ comes will he find faith in my life? What if Jesus
came today? How can I know whether or not I have faith in my life? James would later write, “Show
me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do...faith without deeds is
useless” (James 2:18-20). A faith that is alive is a faith that acts. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 17:1-37
• Old Testament Passage: Psalm 52:10-12
• Points to Ponder

“Increase Our Faith”

When I rea!y read the words of Jesus in order to hear what he is saying to me, I am always
challenged. Oh, I may be comforted, encouraged, built up, instructed, edified as well, but I am
always called higher. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 16:1-31
• Old Testament Passage: Ecclesiastes 2:10-11
• Points to Ponder

“Highly Valued Among Men = Detestable to God”

This may be one of the most significant statements in New Testament!.
What is highly valued in our society today? I think that’s pretty easy to
answer; just look at the media and it’s obvious. The more penetrating and
difficult question is this: What do I truly value? Is what is most important to
me, that which is most important among men or that which is most important to God? Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 15:1-32
• Old Testament Passage: Proverbs 11:30
• Points to Ponder:

“So They Began to Celebrate”

Ask my wife and she’ll tell you -- I get so frustrated when I can’t find what I’m looking for. I think
I’m mad at myself for the time I’m now wasting because I didn’t have the discipline to put
something back where it belongs. But how quickly my frustration (and perhaps anxiety) dissipates
when I find what was lost. How important the lost article was determines how the great the
celebration is upon its discovery! Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 14:1-35
• Old Testament Passages: Genesis 6:11-22
• Points to Ponder

“Come, For Everything is Now Ready”

Being called to follow Jesus is like being invited to a wedding feast or a great banquet. God has done
all the work and paid the entire cost to make this celebration a reality. He’s been planning it since
before the beginning of time and he’s worked out all the details through the entire history of
mankind. Everything is now ready. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 13:1-35
• Old Testament Passage: Genesis 6:5-8
• Points to Ponder

“Are Only a Few People Going to be Saved?”

When it comes to the message of Jesus, this is for most the hardest pill to swallow -- only a few will
be saved. No doubt, someone asked Jesus this question because that’s what they were understanding
him to be teaching. And his response confirms that they were correct. Narrow, judgmental,
exclusive, self-righteous; these are some of the words those who reject Jesus use to describe this
teaching. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 12:35-59
• Old Testament Passage: Genesis 39:2, 20-21
• Points to Ponder

“Everyone Who Has Been Given Much”

Worry about our lives in this world, causes us to focus on our lives in this world to the exclusion of
God and his will. We must be watchful, aware that Jesus is coming back again, so that we will not be
caught unprepared, not doing the master’s will. Through Jesus and the Holy Spirit, God has given us
so much! We are so incredibly blessed. We know God and his will for our lives. We have been given
much by God and we need to be busy doing much for God in this life. Since we have been given
much, much will be demanded and since we have been entrusted with much, much more will be
asked. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 12:1-34
• Old Testament Passage: Psalm 50:7-12
• Points to Ponder

“Where Your Treasure Is”

I can’t listen to the news these days without, at the very least, struggling with anxiety. The price of
oil, gas shortages, interest rates, the TSX or Down Jones averages, property crime, the real estate
boom, record high foreclosures, pine beetles, NAFTA. And if that isn’t enough, there’s climate
change, global warming, terrorism, the U.S. presidential elections, cancer, heart disease, the rise of
obesity, and -- shall I go on; I’m getting anxious just writing this. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 11:14-54
• Old Testament Passage: Nehemiah 4:10-12
• Points to Ponder

“He Who Is Not With Me”

Many in the crowd, and certainly the Pharisees and teachers of the law, were not with Jesus. Indeed,
by their accusations and demands for a sign, they were actually being used by Satan to scatter. For
their comments probably created some doubt and even animosity in the hearts of some in the
crowd, resulting in decisions to not believe in Jesus. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 10:25-11:13
• Old Testament Passage: Deuteronomy 10:12-11:1
• Points to Ponder

“What Must I Do To Inherit Eternal Life?”

The expert in the law knew the right answer. Jesus said, “You have answered
correctly. Do this and you will live.” There is no more important question
than this. All other questions pale in significance compared to this. We, too,
know the answer. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 9:46-10:24
• Old Testament Passage: Haggai 1:2--6
• Points to Ponder:

“Follow Me”

Jesus is the one who says what it takes and what it means to follow him. We have no say in the
conditions or expectations of discipleship -- the only say we have is whether or not we will follow
him on his terms. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 9:1-45
• Old Testament Passages: Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
• Points to Ponder

“Listen to Him”

Being a Christian is uncomplicated, but it’s not easy. Being a Christian is active and ongoing, not
one time and passive. It’s not just about what we say, but it is also about what we do because of what
we say. A Christian is someone who says, “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.” And because he says
that, a Christian is someone who denies himself, takes up his cross daily and follows Jesus. He is
someone who loses his life in this world in order to save it. A Christian is someone who is not
ashamed of Jesus and his words. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 8:1-56
• Old Testament Passage: Nehemiah 4:10-15
• Points to Ponder

“Don’t Be Afraid; Just Believe”

Where there is no faith, there is great fear but where there is great faith there is no fear. Faith is not
only believing certain things to be true, but it is also trusting the implications of those truths. If we
believe that God lives and rules and loves us more than we can truly comprehend and if we believe
that Jesus died and was raised to life so that we can be saved, then why do we become so fearful
when the storms of life bear down on us?

We wring our hands and we pace and we cry out because we believe that God is unaware,
uninvolved, and either unable or unwilling to help. “These things must be happening because God is
sleeping on the back of the boat and we’ve got to wake him up.” When we don’t trust that God, who
sent his Son to die for our sins, really cares about what is happening in our lives, we are often
overcome with fear.

Most of us probably believe that we cannot control our fear. Jesus thinks differently and he
challenges us with these words, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” Faith and fear are mutually exclusive -
they cannot exist at the same time in the same person. At least 24 times in the Bible either God,
Jesus or one of his prophets commands his people, “Don’t be afraid.” We need to see fear for what it
is -- faithlessness -- and then we need to decide to believe.

• Questions to Consider: Right now, what is the fear factor in your life? Of what are you afraid
and why? What truths and/or promises of God do you need to focus on and trust so that you
can obey Jesus’ command, “Don’t be afraid; just believe”?

• New Testament Reading: Luke 7:1-50
• Old Testament Passage: Habakkuk 2:4
• Points to Ponder

“Your Faith Has Saved You”

Faith is not a static, once for all decision, nor is faith an “either you’ve got or you don’t” absolute in a
person’s life. It is possible to have faith that is seen by God as “great” or “little” or just “faith”. John
had faith, but then he had doubts. Just as a person can decide to believe, he can also decide to not
believe or to no longer believe. Faith needs proof and God is not unaware or unwilling to provide us
with evidence that can bring us to faith or build our faith. But when we have faith, even a little, and
we hear the words of God, we will acknowledge that God’s way is right. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 6:1-49
• Old Testament Passage: Isaiah 65:13-14
• Points to Ponder

“The Sermon on a Level Place”

This isn’t Luke’s account of the Sermon on the Mount, because it’s not the same scenario. Jesus
came down from a mountainside after choosing his apostles to a level place where a large number of
his disciple and a great number of others from many regions gathered. When he saw them he began
to teach his disciples. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 5:1-38
• Old Testament Passage: Isaiah 6:5-7
• Points to Ponder

“The Sick Need a Doctor”

According to the scriptures we’re all sinful men and women. There is no one righteous, not even
one! Every one of us is sick with sin -- a far greater problem with far greater implications than
having leprosy or paralysis. What we all need is the forgiveness of our sins. We may feel that Jesus
should go away from us because of our sin, but that’s the very reason he came -- to heal us of our
spiritual malady. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 4:1-44
• Old Testament Passage: Jeremiah 20:7-9
• Points to Ponder

“Isn’t This Joseph’s Son?”

Jesus was tempted in every way just as we are and yet was without sin, the
Hebrew writer wrote (Hebrews 4:15). Here he is confronted directly by the
devil himself and yet he is able to resist temptation. What was Jesus’
response to each temptation? As the psalmist said, “I have hidden your
word in my heart so that I might not sin against you.” Have you memorized anything from God’s
word lately? Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 3:1-37
• Old Testament Passage: Ezekiel 18:25-32
• Points to Ponder:

“Produce Fruit in Keeping with Repentance”

Repentance is not just a word. Repentance is always proven by deeds (Acts 26:20). Deeds or action
is the fruit of repentance. Repentance needs to be very specific as when the crowd who heard John
asked him, “What should we then do?”, and he gave each group specific instructions. Read More...

• New Testament Reading: Luke 2:1-52
• Old Testament Passages: Isaiah 49:1-7
• Points to Ponder

“And Jesus Grew”

This chapter contains what is perhaps the best known passage in the Bible and is often referred to as
the “Christmas Story”. Even as an atheist, I was so familiar with Luke 2:8-14 that I could quote it. I
was out with my friends, Christmas caroling, drinking from my wine skin and reciting the King
James Version to the amazement of all who knew me. I’d never read the Bible, though. I had learned
this passage from Linus and could probably quote most of the script of “A Charlie Brown Christmas”
by heart! While somewhat extreme in my love affair with everything Charlie Brown, I was not much
different than most when it came to Jesus and Christmas. That was the only time of year I thought
about Jesus and then very superficially and when the holiday was over I always left him as a baby in a
manger. Read More...