Category: Bible (Page 393 of 420)

If you are reading through the Bible with me this year, and following the Bible plan we’re using, today marks the end of week one. You made it!

I’m enjoying the combination of Old Testament and New Testament readings, and I’m looking forward to continuing the rhythm as I head into week two.

If you have not started, but would like to join in and read the Bible cover to cover this year, it’s not too late. A little extra reading and you’ll catch up.

Remember, if you spend 30 minutes a day on social media, you can read through the Bible in a year. And I guarantee the results from your time in the Bible will far outweigh anything you find on social media. Join our tribe of Bible readers!

Week One of Reading the Bible Cover to Cover

People respond to Jesus in all sorts of ways.

A stunned and fearful group asked Jesus to leave after the dramatic healing of a demoniac. In the next city, Jairus, a synagogue ruler, begged Jesus to heal his daughter. On the way, a long-suffering woman reached out for her healing by simple touching Jesus’ clothes. Finally, upon entering the house where the little girl now lay dead, the people laughed at Jesus (Mark 5).

Fear, desperation, hope, ridicule. Jesus brought out all these feelings and emotions within a short walk. I cannot imagine laughing at Jesus, nor can I imagine asking him to leave. However, if I were there in the moment, I’d probably respond like everyone else.

One thing I know for sure, when that little girl came skipping out of her death room, laughter of derision turned to laughter of joy, and no one looked at Jesus in the same way again.

No one expected the wild man of Gerasene, a man filled with a band of demons named “Legion,” to ever return to normal. Living along among the tombs, crying with madness, a menace to himself and others, he evoked fear, not compassion (I’m reading in Mark 5 this morning).

Until Jesus walked up the hill. Until Jesus stopped for a conversation with the man’s, literally, inner demons. A few minutes and a herd of drowned pigs later, the man sat with Jesus, dressed and in his right mind.

Who do you know that’s seems so far from redemption that you cannot imagine them sitting at the feet of Jesus? In my experience, these folks are often closer to faith then we think, ready to let Jesus drive out their demons.

Of course, there are those who just want Jesus to go away. But others know themselves, their issues, their struggle with sin, and wait for their pivotal meeting with Jesus.

Week One of Reading the Bible Cover to Cover