Luke 8:26-39 The demon speaking: What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? (Luke 8:28b) We often presume that Jesus has moved into Gentile territory, into the region of the Decapolis on the other side of the Sea of Galilee. Today this verse “proves” it to me, that Jesus …
Author Archives: Fred
February 26 / Matt. 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20
Matthew 8:28-34 and Mark 5:1-20 Demon possession… A scary thought!! I had one encounter with (what I thought was) demon possession. Before we were married Carol and I lived in households a few blocks from each other. Somehow a pair of alcoholics came into our lives – a young man, Bobby, 20’ish, and his female …
February 25 / Matt. 8:23-27; Mark 4:35-41; Luke 8:22-25
Matthew 8:23-27, Mark 4:35-41, and Luke 8:22-25 And they woke him and said to Him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mark 4:38b) Mark has one take on what the disciples said to Jesus. Matthew and Luke have the disciples with a very different perspective: And they went and woke Him, saying, …
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February 24 / Matt. 13:44-52; Mark 4:21-29; Luke 8:16-18
Matthew 13:44-52, Mark 4:21-29, and Luke 8:16-18 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous… (Matthew 13:49) It’s worth repeating what Debbie posted a few days ago. At the end of the age it will be the angels sorting the good …
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February 23 / Matt. 13:31-35; Mark 4:30-34; Luke 13:18-21
Matthew 13:31-35, Mark 4:30-34, and Luke 13:18-21 He did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything. (Mark 4:34) Mark adds a bit of an explanatory note in verse 34 as to Jesus’ affinity for speaking in parables. Would that we also could sit at His feet …
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February 22 / Matt. 13:24-30, 36-43
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 Seldom is Jesus so explicit in explaining something to the disciples. But in this case he detailed seven items from the parable: the sower, the field, the good seed, the weeds, the enemy, the harvest, and the reapers. Yes, there are seven elements to the parable, but I’m always fascinated when I …
February 21 / Mark 4:1-20; Luke 8:4-15
Mark 4:1-20 and Luke 8:4-15 Two more Gospel accounts of the Parable of the Sower… I was noticing today the three seed scatterings that had negative outcomes. In the first case, by the wayside, nothing happened – no comment. In the second and third cases, however, seeds sprouted but did not bear fruit. These last …
February 20 / Luke 8:1-3; Matt. 13:1-23
Luke 8:1-3 and Matthew 13:1-23 These three verses in Luke are not likewise covered in any of the other gospels. (For more info, see my first 2019 post below.) Strange that I would be reading this account and my 2019 comments when I have been reflecting on what I might say to the parish tomorrow …
February 19 / Luke 8:19-21, 11:24-36, 12:10-12
Luke 8:19-21, 11:24-36, 12:10-12 Today, Luke’s writing on a number of items that we have covered the past few days in Matthew and Mark, with a number of my 2019 comments repeated in the links below… And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about …
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February 18 / Matt. 12:31-32, 38-50; Mark 3:28-35
Matthew 12:31-32, 38-50, and Mark 3:28-35 It’s been hard to organize material when the Synoptic gospels report on the same incidents – trying to keep chapters together, but also trying to follow the same incidents in two or three gospels. In addition the readings in 2019 were much shorter, so today’s readings in Matthew and …
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