Matthew 25; (spring AD 30, Tuesday of Passion Week) When Jesus spoke of the need to “keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour” (v.13, ref also 24:44 etc.) it’s not because we need to be in a certain posture. There is no obligation to be in the middle of some … More Day 110: Two kinds of person
Matthew 24 (spring AD 30, Tuesday of Passion Week) This passage contains one of the most hotly disputed passages in the Bible: “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel…then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains…Let no one in … More Day 109: No, you really don’t know when Jesus is coming again
Mark 12:28-44 (spring AD 30, Tuesday of Passion Week) After a day of amateurish attempts by the religious leaders at making Jesus look bad, this was the last concerted attempt that we see in the gospel record. Not so much – this time – by trying to get him to say something treasonous against the … More Day 108: Patting the Creator on the head
Mark 11:27-33 & 12:13-27 (spring AD 30, Tuesday of Passion Week) The religious leaders were determined to make Jesus look stupid, like an enemy of the people, like an enemy of the Romans, or preferably all of the above. On this occasion Jesus seems to have been dealing with people from Jerusalem who knew of … More Day 107: Bad faith questioning
Mark 11:27-12:12 (spring AD 30, Tuesday of Passion Week) The Parable of the Tenants wasn’t just “against” the religious leaders (v.12), it lobbed grenades into some of their most cherished shibboleths: They believed that only false prophets had been hurt Jesus said that the religious leaders had, over the years, sponsored the persecution, injuring and … More Day 106: The religious leaders from hell
Mark 11:19-26 (spring AD 30, Tuesday of Passion Week) One principle of understanding what the Bible says is that where possible we should look for the plain reading of the text as the most likely way to understand it. Another principle is that the Bible never contradicts itself; God is the author, and the Bible … More Day 105: Prayer: the sky’s not the limit
John 12:20-50 (spring AD 30, Monday of Passion Week) This is what Jesus said in today’s reading, four days before being crucified: “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour?’ No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” (v.27-28). … More Day 104: Jesus was troubled
Matthew 21:10-19 (spring AD 30, Monday of Passion Week) Compare these two verses: “When King Herod heard [about ‘the king of the Jews’ having just been born] he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him” (Matthew 2:3, emphasis mine) “When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, ‘Who is this?’” (v.10). A … More Day 103: Jesus disturbs people
Luke 19:28-44 (spring AD 30: Palm Sunday) In the ancient world, when the leader or a city or a nation had won a notable battle, they held have a triumphal parade. The victorious leader would be out in front in a chariot pulled by a team of horses, and behind him would be his army, … More Day 102: Jesus cried over spilt milk
John 11:55-12:11 (spring AD 30, the week before Passion Week) So far we have spent a week’s worth of devotionals covering Jesus’ first couple of years, skipped most of his next 28 years, and then gone through three years of his ministry in 80 days. Starting tomorrow, over the following 36 devotionals we will think … More Day 101: Allowing sinful nature to take its course
Paul T Reynolds 