sovereignty of God

GOD SEES AND SOLVES REAL PROBLEMS WE DIDN’T EVEN THINK WE HAD

November 14, 2024 by Eddie Leave a Comment

On two separate occasions, Jesus is asked about the coming of the Kingdom of God, and in both cases, Jesus gives an answer that surprises the people who want to know. You can find this story in Luke 17:20-25.

First. In vv 20-21, it is the Pharisees who ask Jesus when the kingdom of God would come. Jesus gives them an answer they didn’t expect, saying “the Kingdom of God is in your midst.” Basically, Jesus is saying, “Surprise!! you’re looking at him.” Of course, the Pharisees don’t react to that, because of their narrow-minded bias for an answer to what they think is the problem that the Messiah will solve. They think that the problem is the Romans; and all they want is for the Romans to be driven out, and Israel returned to the Jews.

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IF YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND WHAT’S GOING ON — Trust that God Knows

September 27, 2024 by Eddie Leave a Comment

There’s a familiar Q&A exchange between Jesus and His disciples in Luke 9:18-22. Jesus asks them, “Who do the crowds say I am?” And then after they answer, He redirects the question to them and asks them “But what about you? Who do you say I am?” And then Peter declares that Jesus is the Messiah.

Most commentaries will focus either on this declaration of Peter about the identity of Jesus as the Messiah, or on our response to the question “Who do you say I am?” In fact, I myself have spoken about this question in a previous episode of Pathways of Hope, using the version found in Matthew 16.

For today, I want to focus on something else. Today’s gospel ends with a twist. First it starts with the good news about Jesus confirming that He is the Messiah. But in v21 it says: “Jesus strictly warned them not to tell this to anyone.“

What’s going on here?

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NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE WITH GOD

December 24, 2023 by Eddie Leave a Comment

Tomorrow we celebrate Christmas, and in anticipation of that joyful day, we are reminded in today’s gospel from the first chapter of Luke’s gospel, about the time when the Angel Gabriel first appeared to Mary and announced to her that she would conceive and give birth to Jesus.

We’re all familiar with that narrative, right? It begins with the Angel surprising Mary with the greeting, “Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.” Then the angel calms her down and proclaims God’s plan, about her giving birth to God’s Son, and then assures her that even though she’s a virgin, the Holy Spirit will come upon her and make the impossible virgin birth happen. Finally, the story concludes with Mary accepting and saying, “I am the servant of the Lord; be it done to me according to your word.”

While we get ourselves ready to commemorate the birth of Jesus tomorrow, let me share with you THE verse in this passage that has brought hope to me personally in my ministry, in my role as a father, in my work, and in even in my prayers for others people’s well-being. And I pray that this verse today brings hope to all of us throughout the year, and not just on Christmas day.

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