Bent Oak Church

Jesus's disciples often saw him praying, and they recognized something he possessed in prayer that they did not. Coming to Jesus, on disciple asked, "Teach us to pray." Jesus answered the man's question, but he pushed the disciple further and shifted the question from how to why. 

Many remember the familiar images of Mary and Mary, Martha busy with her work, and Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus. In this week's sermon, we take a closer look at why Luke has included this little story and how it fits into the questions Jesus was trying to answer. We discover there is more going on in this scene than most remember.

Jesus's story of the Good Samaritan is one of his most familiar teachings in the Bible. It's so familiar that it's easy to miss the true point. We take a closer look at the parable and the conversation that provoked it and discover the wisdom of Jesus's probing questions.

Jesus had been increasingly talking about suffering, but he also turned his disciples to the topic of joy. And Jesus chose to locate the source of true Joy in an unexpected place. Unlike the disciples who took join in their achievements, Jesus suggested that true joy came from the grace of having been included in his kingdom, with our names written in heaven. 

Jesus's disciples continued to struggle to understand Jesus's talk of suffering. Again, they failed to understand the way of his kingdom. They were prepared to call down fire to destroy their enemies. But Jesus turned their attention to the price they would pay to be his true disciples. The hour had come for them all to go to Jerusalem and for Jesus to face the suffering that awaited him...

We've seen Jesus's disciples struggling to understand Jesus's increasing talk of suffering and rejection. But Jesus realized there was more going on in the logic of their hearts. We take a closer look at the disciple's struggles and how the temptations they faced are ours as well. 

Having come down from the mountain of his transfiguration, Jesus was met by another crowd. This crowd was in chaos. A man came yelling, desperate to have his son delivered, and explaining the disciple's failure to help. Jesus used the moment to again speak of the suffering that awaited him and challenged the crowd for their lack of faith. We look closer at Jesus's hard words and the mome...

Jesus often withdrew to pray. And it's surprising how often his disciples fell asleep praying with him. When Peter, James, and John woke from their sleep, they discovered Jesus had changed. We take a closer at Jesus's transfiguration and the important place of prayer in the story.

Jesus waited until the crowds were at their peak to begin discussing with his disciples what awaited. The Son of Man would have to suffer, be rejected, and die. It was a message the disciples were not prepared to hear. But Jesus went further. He explained that all his disciples must learn to bear their own crosses and die daily. 

The crowds continued to grow around Jesus. And as they came, Jesus saw their need. The crowd was great and without food. Jesus, by his miraculous work, fed the crowd and continued to demonstrate his compassion for them. 

Jesus's sending out of the twelve disciples marks a transition in his ministry. Having spent most of his time in the towns of Galilee, Jesus would increasingly turn his attention to Judea and the suffering that awaited him. It would be a hard lesson for his disciples to understand. 

Chapter 8 of Luke's gospel recounts some of the most powerful miracles in Jesus' ministry. It also recounts one of the smallest. We take a closer look at the surprising compassion of Jesus and his willingness to see even those overlooked needs. 

Having calmed the storm at sea, Jesus arrived at the far side of the Sea of Galilee. He was immediately met by a man possessed by a legion of demons. But the encounter does not develop as Jesus' disciples might have expected. The encounter gives us another opportunity to see how people respond to the revelation of Jesus' true identity.

As a part of our Easter worship, we take a look at Jesus' conversation with two disciples on the road to Emmaus. We discuss the surprise of resurrection and how this truth reworks our lives and future.

As they crossed the sea of Galilee, Jesus slept. Even through the storm, he did not wake. But as the boat began to take on water, his disciples woke him in a panic. We take a look at this familiar story and what it teaches us about faith and the storms we all face in life. 

We have been looking at how various people respond to Jesus. In this week's sermon, Joshua Kansiewicz explores how Jesus uses common sayings to express spiritual truths, including Jesus' image of a light not being hidden from the world.  Jesus final advice was to be careful how we hear.

Jesus continued to gather followers as he taught throughout Galilee, but those followers would increasingly recognize the crowd's and the leaders' rejection of Jesus. Warning them not to lose hope, Jesus offered them an everyday image—a parable—about seed and soil.

Luke has been trying to show us the kind of humility required to understand Jesus. That humility often came from unexpected people. In this week's passage, we get another example of humility but also a Pharisee who, though he appears to be humble, is revealed to be proud and unable to recognize Jesus.

Somewhat unexpectedly, Luke turns our attention back to the character of John the Baptist. John would die in prison, and he seems to have been confused by the news of Jesus' ministry in Galilee. We take a closer look at our own expectations of Jesus and how we can recognize his true identity.

Having finished his sermon on the plain, Luke records another two miracles in the region of Galilee. But these miracles stand out from those so far recorded in Luke's gospel. We take a closer look at the Centurion's servant and the widow's son. 

As we finish our study of Jesus' sermon on the plain, we take a closer look at two images: the fruit tree and the house.  Jesus explained that it is the good plant that produces good fruit and that only a house that has been built upon a solid foundation can withstand the flood.

We are taking a closer look at Jesus' sermon on the plain. Jesus's warning about judgment is perhaps among his most well-known words. But do we really understand what Jesus was saying? We reexamine this section of Jesus' sermon and heed his warning to pay close attention to the log in our own eye. 

Having begun his sermon on the mount with the beatitudes, Jesus next turned his attention to the topic of love. And not just any love. Jesus commanded his followers to love their enemies. We take a closer look at how to love and Jesus' logic for the real source of loving enemies. 

Jesus went up on the mountain to pray. Coming down, he gathered his twelve disciples and, before the crowd, laid out a surprising series of blessings and warnings. Jesus spoke with remarkable clarity, neither distracted by the crowd's approval nor by the scribe's opposition. 

Controversy continued to build around Jesus. The Pharisees watched Jesus's disciples plucking grain on the Sabbath and asked why they did not keep it holy. The controversy grew worse when Jesus healed a man with a withered hand. But Jesus saw things very differently. Quoting from the scriptures, he explained that "the son of man was lord of the sabbath."