Luke // Pastor Gene Pensiero

Jesus raises the dead son of a widowed woman at Nain. Luke 7:11-17 Gene Pensiero Jr. Find audio, video, and text of this whole series in the Old Testament book of Psalms at https://calvaryhanford.com/psalmsundays

Some of us are in our dream job. You might go as far as saying you hate your job. You might have upward mobility. Perhaps you are stuck – can’t start over. The possibilities are many. Anna didn’t choose the course of her life, but no matter the twists and turns, she walked her course […]

Simeon awoke every morning with the imminent hope he would see the Messiah. Does that sound like anyone you know? (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

Mary visits her cousin, Elizabeth, and shares the wonderful news of her pregnancy in a song called the Magnificat. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

Jesus suddenly popped-in while the disciples were gathered together. A week later He would appear like this again, suddenly through closed doors, and present Himself to these same men along with Thomas, who initially doubted that the Lord was alive. The emotional effect of these appearances is captured in a strangely beautiful phrase in verse […]

Lovers sometimes take walks. They don’t do it to get somewhere. They do it to be with someone. The progress that they make is not measured in distance, but in devotion. They spend time getting to know one another, deepening in their love. Often they arrive at the same geographical location from which they started […]

It should have been standing-room only outside of the tomb. Jesus told His followers more than once that He would be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. The place to be was outside of that tomb, waiting for the Lord to appear. Instead, some disciples […]

Seven-hundred years before Jesus died as a criminal but was buried in a rich man’s tomb, the prophet Isaiah let us know that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit had preplanned the events of that day. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

Taking-up and bearing the Cross were vivid images in the first century. The Romans executed by crucifixion. Often a condemned person could be seen taking-up their cross and bearing it to the place of crucifixion. When Jesus used this imagery, His listeners and followers understood that the way they lived was to be noticeably different […]

There are Jews and Romans in our verses; but they are not the main character. They are the background. Your eyes should be fixed upon Jesus. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

The Christian life is sometimes compared to a walk with Jesus; sometimes to a long-distance race. It’s not going too far to compare it to a climb to the summit of a mountain. In any case, you don’t want to fall behind and lose sight of Jesus and become lost in some wilderness of sin. […]

When you become a Christian, you find yourself in a fight. We commonly refer to it as spiritual warfare. We have spiritual enemies who employ sinister techniques to defeat us. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

If you are a Christian, there are many temptations in the world. Some are in Sin Cities; but some are right here in your own city. Some are in your home, office, or school. It would be nice if they were clearly marked with signs that said, Now Entering Temptation – so you could recognize […]

In our normal, everyday way of thinking and relating to one another, it only seems obvious that the person seated is greater than the person serving. But Jesus went on to point out, yet I am among you as the One who serves. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

Leonardo da Vinci’s painting, The Last Supper, is for many Christians the clearest image they have of Jesus Christ’s last meal with his disciples. Though it is considered great art, da Vinci’s painting is bad history. All the details in da Vinci’s painting are inaccurate. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

Jesus didn’t tell us to make predictions. He told us what was definitely going to happen in the future so that we might know how we should live in the present. Our study of prophecy ought to have a profound practical effect on our daily living. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

The Jews were quite proud of the first century Temple in Jerusalem. It was a beautiful and magnificent structure. Herod had given it an extreme makeover. Jesus took a look at it and told them it was about to be destroyed – stone-by-stone. It started an incredible conversation about the future. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

Jesus warned His first disciples, beware of the scribes… who devour widow’s houses. Jesus’ words would have seemed radical to those listening. The scribes were considered pillars of the community. The Lord was exposing them as parasites. They were like termites devouring the house of a poor widow. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

To support their lifestyles of the rich and famous, the Sadducees only accepted the first five books of the Old Testament, claiming that nowhere in those books was there any talk of life after death. This life was all that they were living for. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

It’s not always easy to know where your loyalty to God draws a line you cannot cross. To help you in those times of deciding whether to obey the government or not, Jesus provided this principle: Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s. (Pastor Gene […]

Of all the possible environments God could have created, He chose a garden. He didn’t choose a temple, for example, with rites and rituals. He chose a garden; and not just any garden. A perfect garden, that watered itself, where nothing ever died, where there were no weeds or pests or parasites. He didn’t want […]

The Court of the Gentiles was, in fact, a den of thieves. It was as if a defenseless sheep had walked into a den of wolves, to be destroyed and devoured. Instead of praying for God’s people, they were preying on them. God hates that kind of preying! (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

We call it Palm Sunday and describe it as The Triumphal Entry. It’s the Sunday Jesus entered Jerusalem to the shouts of Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! It might be more accurate to call it Donkey Sunday, and describe it as The Tearful Entry. (Pastor Gene Pensiero)

Is God a giver or a taker? I’ll give you a clue. This is what Job said about God: Job 1:21 …“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” It sounds as though God […]

I can’t help but think of Zacchaeus as being treed! Even though he climbed the sycamore tree voluntarily, by the end of the story you get the idea that Jesus was hunting for him, hounding after him. After all, Jesus said of the episode, the Son of Man has come to seek and to save […]