July 14

Luke 7 – This is about a centurion who had control over 100 Roman soldiers.  He had ultimate power; even to execute on a whim. And as any one knows, when your helper is down/ill/gone things get complicated and laborious and very inefficient very quickly.  This centurion presently has such a problem and somehow he knows Who to call upon.  This is testament to how the news of Jesus is spreading and that hunting him down is NOT a waste of time; never is it a fruitless pursuit to seek out Jesus.  His respect for Jesus is revealed in how he requests that Jesus simply ‘say the word’. The man knows about authority for certain. Jesus’ exclamation is noteworthy.  He is saying, “hey family (of Jews in the Jewish nation)! The outsiders that you despise have me pegged. They know what I am about. Pay attention. They’re catching this faster than many of you are.” And this healing takes us straight into Jesus’ performing a resurrection. This woman is of Nain is at her end. Her husband is gone. Her only son is now gone. The funeral is complete despair that sweeps the town, drawing a huge crowd.  Jesus stops the procession, brings him back from the dead. Note the wording – that Jesus gave him back to his mother.  Death took him –> Jesus gave him back. The news of this spread like feathers in a hurricane.  Jesus’ resurrections, of which three are recorded, truly sent undeniable shockwaves through the countryside.

The incident wherein John the Baptist is confirming that Jesus is HIM and here and the Savior is a scenario that had to happen.  Jesus proceeds to prove His Messianic power through healing and it suffices for John’s followers.  He then exhorts the crowd of which many of whom had sought out John the Baptist.  Some skeptics who had been tracking John duplicitously were simply jealous of the tremendous crowds that were listening to him in Jordan/Jericho area v.s. being in Temple in Jerusalem.  And now some those same skeptics were following Jesus around – but not wholeheartedly. And Jesus gives them ‘the business’ .

Then one of the Pharisees invited Jesus for dinner and a sinful woman came to be with Jesus.  She was penitent and broken and could not do enough to show her devotion to the Son of God. And just so everyone knows, this was not Mary Magdalene, nor Mary from Bethany (Lazarus’ sister), nor was it the woman who anointed Jesus’ feet right before the crucifixion; in John 12.  Jesus is so completely tender with her and receptive as he was with those who made mistakes.  He uses the moment to teach about forgiveness, gratitude, and Jesus’ personal power to forgive.  What an amazing conclusion to this meal and to this day.

8 – the women listed here who assisted in the ministry is helpful insight into Jesus’ day to day.  Even prominent women knew to get involved. Can anyone think of anything better to do than to be about the business of assisting in the work of Jesus!?  Just one assessment I wish to make as we closed the reading today – BE good soil. This is more than a story about a parable of a sower.  When Jesus invests in you and plants His seed in you, make it grown, pay attention, be fruitful, multiply it, tend to it, and watch God simply invest/plant more in you.  God is looking for faithful people to use to make the matters of the Kingdom grow and grow.  Don’t be thorny, careless, paper-thin and worthless.  Make good of what God has given.  Again, be good soil.