Reading the Gospel

The healing of the paralytic lowered through the roof is a miracle performed by Jesus as a sign or proof of His divinity. Sometimes, Jesus addresses the root cause of the problem after the healing (go and sin no more), and other times, before the healing (your sins are forgiven). The connection between sin and sickness is central to Jesus' ministry. One more miracle is evident in this story: havin...

While touring Galilea, an "untouchable" leper implored Jesus to make him clean. Moved by pity, Jesus touched and cleansed him, commanding him to go straight to the priest - who was the public health official - and talk to no one else. The leper's failure to be silent about his healing created a false reputation for Jesus, hindering his mission. Jesus cut short His first Galilean tour, ceasing His...

Sometimes, even good things can become a hindrance to fulfilling your mission. In this story, the healing of multitudes in Capernaum became a limiting factor for Jesus' mission of preaching the gospel, for which He came out. Therefore, Jesus left Capernaum and started His first tour of Galilean villages, preaching in the synagogues and casting out demons. 

This event contrasts individual healing of a minor health condition with public healing of severe diseases and demon possessions. Each one of us is important to God. Each situation in our lives, big and small, matters to Him. However, it should be a balance between the little things we bring to God in prayer and our requests for major things in life. The healing of Peter's mother-in-law reminds us...

This is the first encounter with an evil spirit. This story brings the backdrop of the Gospel, the cosmic conflict between good and evil, to the forefront. We review different types of demon possession and levels of demonic influence in the times of Jesus and in our lives. By casting our this demon, Jesus teaches us that when we trust Him, we are stronger than the enemy. 

Some seasonal disciples, Peter, Andrew, James, and John, are called to leave everything behind and follow Jesus full-time. The sequence of events is interesting: a sermon, a miracle, and the invitation. All these after an unproductive whole night shift! What would help us to give up everything and follow Jesus?

After being rejected in Nazareth, his hometown, Jesus relocated His Galilean ministry to Capernaum. From here, He started preaching with urgency, inviting people to believe the gospel, repent, and enter the kingdom of heaven. For two thousand years, we have been praying, "Your kingdom come." Do we really mean it?

When Jesus was given the Book of Isaiah to read in the synagogue, He said that those verses describe His mission: To  proclaim good news to the poor.                                                                To proclaim liberty to the captives                                                        A nd recovering of sight to the blind.                                                      T o ...

Before closing His year-long ministry in Judea, Jesus offered five layers of evidence about His divine nature and ministry. The Bible tells us to make significant decisions based on the testimonies of two or three witnesses. Jesus provided twice as many reasons to believe, but the Jewish leaders still rejected Him. How much evidence do we need to trust Jesus?

The story of the invalid at Bethesda presents two contrasting views of God. In the popular view, as expressed by the invalid, God sends an angel to stir up the water once in a while, and only the person who gets down first into the pool is healed. In this view, only the strongest, the closest, the one with friends or money, is healed. In the other view, portrayed by Jesus, God's grace is available...

King Herod silenced the voice of John the Baptist because the king was unwilling to align his life with God's will. How do we react when someone tells us that we are out of sync with God's will? John the Baptist was called to this kind of ministry and was prepared by God since he was born. Some Christians, trying to mimic the ministry of Elijah or John the Baptist, assume responsibilities that wer...

The healing of the government official's son was a powerful lesson for the people in Capernaum and for us today. How much evidence is needed to believe ? This father believed the words of Jesus and went back home with the assurance that his son would not die. His son was healed at that very hour. God will give us enough evidence to believe and provide enough room to exercise our faith. God wants t...

Today's gospel reading is an interesting play of multiple stories, which are both interwoven and contrasting. First, it is the story of the woman vs. the story of Jesus. Then, it is the story of the disciples, still unconverted to the harvest, vs. the story of someone whose spiritual thirst was just quenched by the living water. The story of the Samaritan woman is not just a case study for the tra...

Jesus started His Judean ministry in Jerusalem by cleansing the Temple. But soon after that, Jesus and His disciples toured the countryside, preaching the gospel, baptizing, and making disciples. He had a clear evangelistic strategy, each aspect becoming more evident as His public ministry advanced. When some Jews tried to bring discord between John and Jesus, John displayed genuine humility and m...

A Jewish religious leader called Nicodemus went to talk to Jesus under cover of the night. He called cleansing the temple "these signs that you do." Jesus talked to Nicodemus more directly than He talked to those simple people He healed or cast out demons from. He was a leader and was supposed to have a higher level of understanding. However, Nicodemus did not lack understanding but needed a total...

Jesus' holy indignation for His Father's house was triggered - as in two other instances - by the religious leaders who replaced the simple way of salvation by faith with the sophistication of a man-made, works-oriented, profit-making salvation. Instead of reflecting on the meaning, people were required to focus on the object. By cleansing the temple during the most important holiday, Jesus announ...

The first miracle of Jesus Christ was turning water into wine at a wedding in Galilee. When we analyze the outcome of this event, we understand its intended purpose. "This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him." This miracle was a "sign" of Jesus' divinity for His disciples. The assurance that they follow the right teache...

Some disciples invited themselves. Others were invited by their friends or personally by Jesus. There are multiple ways to grow the kingdom of God. Jesus is the ladder from Jacob's dream, connecting heaven with humanity. He understands both worlds and can be a trusted link between our extreme needs and heaven's supreme opportunities. 

John the Baptist knew exactly who he was and was happy with that! He testified that he was not the Messiah, the Prophet, or a reincarnation of Elijah. He said he was just the "voice" in the wilderness, preparing the way for Jesus' ministry. He did not covet someone else's ministry or title. John reached the pinnacle of his mission when he publicly proclaimed, "This is the Lamb of God that takes aw...

The Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness for fasting, prayer, and meditation. In solitude, Jesus dedicated Himself to the public ministry He was about to start. Satan used this opportunity to test Jesus with very well-crafted proposals, trying to separate Him from the revealed will of the Father and make Him act on His own. Jesus overcame in the same human nature as ours and with the same tools av...

John the Baptist was quite surprised to see Jesus waiting in line to be baptized by him. "I need to be baptized by you," he said. The baptism of Jesus was a sign of approval for the ministry of John and an example for us to follow. Moreover, His baptism anticipated that He who had no sin and needed no repentance would take our sins upon Himself and die for us. 

John the Baptist was God's voice preparing the way for the ministry of Jesus Christ. He was trained in the wilderness to start a preaching ministry of not many words, but few and very direct, to call the people of Israel to practical repentance. Being filled with the Holy Spirit and living a life of simplicity, away from the sophisticated life in Jerusalem, gave power to his words. God is calling...

At the age of 12, when He visited the temple for the Passover celebration, Jesus reflected on the meaning of the sanctuary service and understood His messianic mission as the Lambo of God. Jesus learned as any human being learns, even when learning about Himself. His dialogue with His parents in the temple is full of meaning, on both sides. 

Luke the Evangelist, being a physician, focuses on the human nature of Jesus Christ, His developmental years, and His respectful relationship with his parents. The gospel says that the favor of God was upon Jesus. Was that an advantage He had that we don't have? Was it easier for Him to overcome sin and temptation?

Jesus was born outside in a manger and, very soon after that, experienced the life of a refugee. A foreign country welcomes the family and protects them from the fury of a crazy king who kills the babies of his subjects. Why did God not strike King Herod with a lightning bolt from heaven and prevent him from murdering many innocent babies?