The Story of My Life as told by Jesus
Christ
(Seed Sowers Christian
Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)
Thursday, January 31, 2013 I
Continued Teaching with Many Parables: Part Two
Page
188-190 Luke 15
NOTE: Today’s reading includes
three of Jesus’ most well-known parables: a lost sheep, coin and son. Parables
often find their power in the ways we are surprised, either by the ending, or by
the focus of the story. Since these parables are so familiar, take a few extra
minutes in reading them. Then stand back and see if Jesus has any surprises
hidden in them for you. For those of you reading The Story of My Life as told by Jesus
Christ, this translation is missing an important phrase.
Compare the book to the NLT of verse 15:5: “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he
do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine
others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost
until he finds it? (Emphasis mine).
The young son’s homecoming is a
compelling vision of the Exchanged Life. The young son came to his father with
all that he had: dirt, filth, sinfulness, and brokenness. Immediately, the
father gives the young son all that he has: his love, blessing, and affirmation
of the young son’s truest identity as the beloved child of his father.
The older son’s confrontation
with his father is also a compelling vision of the Exchanged Life. The father,
when he divided his estate between his sons, has already given to the older son
all that was his. The older son is now sinning against his father by refusing
to celebrate his brother’s return, and by denying his own kinship with his
brother. Yet, the father goes out to him, and continues to affirm the older
son’s identity as his beloved child, affirming that “everything I have is yours.”
Jesus told this parable because
the Pharisees objected to Jesus keeping company with tax collectors and
sinners. When Jesus said “For this son of
mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found”, Jesus hoped
the Pharisees would recall Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones (Ezekiel
37). In that vision, Israel, which was lost, is made alive again by the power
of God. This is how Jesus saw the people who accepted his invitation to come
into the Kingdom of God. These children of God were dead, but are now alive
again. That, Jesus believes, is cause for exuberant celebration. After all, all
of heaven is rejoicing. Shouldn’t we join the party?
Sē’lah
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What word or phrase
in today’s reading attracts your attention?
Reflect on that word
or phrase.
What insights come to
you?
How does this passage
touch your life today?
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(Selah is a word that appears in the
Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my
correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about
these things.)
These meditations are written by
Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life. In addition to this BLOG they are distributed
on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service
by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.
The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.
The Story of My Life as told by Jesus
Christ
(Seed Sowers Christian
Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)
Friday, February 01, 2013 I
Continued Teaching with Many Parables: Part Three
Page 190-191 Luke 16:1-17, 19-31
