Tag Archives: Frustrated

The Good Samaritan

207 – Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-42

There was a man who was an expert of the law of Moses. He asked Jesus, “How can a person earn the right to go to heaven?”

Jesus said, “Tell me what is written in the law.”

He said, “Love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind; and love your neighbor as yourself.”

“Ah,” said Jesus. “Go and do that, and you’ll live.”

The man realized how impossible that was. “Uh, well, exactly who is my neighbor?”

Jesus said…

“A man was traveling down the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Robbers grabbed him and beat him until he was almost dead. They then took his money and clothes, and left him on the side of the road.

“The man desperately needed help, and soon a priest came along. He saw the man, but moved to the other side of the road and hurried on his way. After that, a Levite passed by, but he also avoided the situation and ignored the man.

“A third man traveled down the road, but unfortunately he was a Samaritan, a group of people hated by the Jews. Still, he had pity on the Jewish man. He stopped and treated his wounds. He placed him on his donkey and took him to an inn. There he made him comfortable and treated his wounds again.

“The next day, the Samaritan gave the innkeeper money and told him to take care of the wounded man. He said, ‘If it costs more, I’ll pay you when I come back.’

“So,” said Jesus, “three people saw the man lying on the side of the road. Which one was a neighbor to him?”

The answer was simple, “The one who showed mercy.”

“Yes,” said Jesus, “go and follow his example.”

After this, Jesus went to a village. He had friends that lived there, and they invited him and his disciples into their home for a meal.

While they were talking, one of the sisters named Mary sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to everything he said. Martha, her sister, was busy preparing the meal for their guest. In her frustration, she went to Jesus. “Lord, have you noticed that my sister has left all the work for me to do? Please, tell her to come help me.”

The Lord said, “Oh Martha, Martha. You have too many worries. You have forgotten there is only one thing that is absolutely necessary. Mary has chosen that one thing, and it won’t be taken away from her.”

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Ezra

173 – Ezra

Ezra 7:1 – 10:44

Ezra was an expert in the laws of God. Therefore, it was decided he should go to the new Temple in Jerusalem and teach the people.

The king of Persia gave him letters authorizing him and his helpers to go to Jerusalem. The king sent along a large amount of gold and silver.

Ezra was also authorized to appoint judges who knew the laws of God. He was told the kingdom of Persia would punish anyone who disobeyed those laws.

Men volunteered to go with Ezra and move their families to Judah. They suddenly realized there were no Levites in the group. So Ezra sent out a plea, and several Levites volunteered to go.

Everyone knew going from Persia to Jerusalem was a dangerous trip. They had families, their possessions, and a large amount of gold and silver. Yet they didn’t have soldiers to protect them. Ezra didn’t ask the king for armed guards because he had said, “God is our protector. His strong hand is upon people who serve him.”

So the group prayed and fasted, asking God for his protection. They set out on their journey, and God protected them as they traveled. No one tried to ambush them along the way. They arrived safely in Jerusalem, and took all the gold and silver to the Temple.

Several leaders went to Ezra as he made preparations for his instructions about the laws of God. They said, “Many of our people have not separated themselves from the non-Jews that live in the area. They have married their women, and these wives have brought their pagan ways with them.

Ezra was shocked when he heard this. He ripped his clothes and went to the Temple and fell on his knees and spread out his hands to the Lord. He prayed “Oh God. We’re doing it again—just like our forefathers. You sent them into captivity because they took foreign wives and started worshiping idols.

“Now you’ve given us a brief moment, allowing us to come back here. And what did we do? We married foreign wives. Oh, God we’re not worthy of your blessing. You have the right to totally destroy this small group of people who live here.”

Ezra continued to cry, and pray, and confess sin. As he did, people came and sat and prayed with him. More and more came until there was a large crowd gathered around. They all cried and confessed their sins.

Finally the people said, “We know we’ve done wrong, but there’s still hope. We’ll make a promise before God. We’ll send away our foreign wives and their children. But you must help us if we’re to do this properly. Get up! Take action! Show us what to do and we’ll do it.”

So Ezra agreed to oversee this and make sure it was done properly. All the people sent their foreign wives away and turned from idols. They then totally committed themselves to the Lord.

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Leaving Laban

25 – Leaving Laban

Genesis 31:4–55

Jacob wanted to have a private conversation with his two wives, so they met out in the field. He said to them, “I worked hard for your father, even though he changed our deal ten times. The Lord protected me, and every time Laban changed our agreement, God changed how the lambs were born. Now your father is angry with me. So the Angel of God has told me to return to the land of my fathers.” 
Both women agreed with him. They said, “Do what God has told you to do. Our father sold us to you and then spent the money. You haven’t gotten anything from him that doesn’t already belong to us and our children.”  

So without telling Laban, Jacob took all that he had, and started driving his herds toward Canaan. Before they left, Rachel stole her father’s family idol. 

Three days later, Laban heard that Jacob had left. He immediately took a group of men and chased after Jacob. It took seven days to catch up with him. The night before, God appeared to Laban and said, “Watch out! Don’t do anything to Jacob, good or bad.” 

The next day, Laban met Jacob and said, “Why did you do this to me? You left like a thief in the night, and took my daughters and grandchildren like they were prisoners. If you had told me, I would’ve put on a grand party and sent you off with a air.” 

“Now you’ve disgraced me, and if I wanted to, I could destroy you right here. But last night, the God of your fathers told me not to do anything to you. 

“I suppose I can understand your being homesick and wanting to go home. But why did you steal my family idol?” 

Jacob said, “I didn’t steal your idol. Look for yourself. Go ahead. Search our tents. If you find it, I’ll kill the person who took it.” He didn’t know that Rachel had taken it. 

Laban searched the tents belonging to Jacob, Leah, and the two maidservants. He then went into Rachel’s tent. She was sitting on her camel seat, where she had put the idol. She said, “Father, please forgive me for not standing. I am having my monthly period.” Laban looked throughout her tent and didn’t find his idol. 

At this point, Jacob became angry. He said, “You’ve chased me here like I was a criminal. You’ve searched everything I have. Have you found anything that belongs to you? Bring it out and put it in front of your men. 

“No, you haven’t found anything! I worked for you for twenty years. I endured the extreme heat in the day, and the frost at night. I worked without much sleep, so you could prosper. I endured these hardships, and you still mistreated me through it all. 

“Then you made me bear all the loss for anything that went wrong. I had to pay you if someone stole a sheep. If an animal killed a lamb, suddenly it was my lamb.” 

“You changed our agreement ten times. I would be standing here penniless if God hadn’t made things right. Now he’s protecting me from you.” 

Laban said, “Everything you have belongs to me. Those are my daughters! Those are my grandsons! Those are my flocks! But what can I do now? Let’s make a firm agreement that can’t be changed. Everyone here will be a witness to it.” 

So all the men took stones and piled them in a mound. Jacob and Laban agreed that neither man would ever go to the other side of the mound. Laban said, “These rocks are an agreement between us. You’re not to mistreat my daughters and take any other wives.” 

Jacob then made a sacrifice to God and afterwards everyone sat down to a meal. The next morning, Laban kissed his daughters and grandchildren, and blessed them. He then returned to his home.

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Lepers, Judge, & Pride

206 – Lepers, Judge, and Pride

Luke 17:11-19 18:1-14

As Jesus was traveling to Jerusalem, he went through a certain village. Ten men with leprosy walked toward him. They were required to maintain a space between themselves and other people. So they yelled to him from a distance. “Master, have mercy on us.”

Jesus turned to them and yelled back. “Go show yourselves to the priest.”

They looked at one another and decided to do as he said. Along the way, they suddenly realized they were all healed. 

One of the ten men was from Samaria. He immediately turned around and ran back to Jesus. He shouted praises to God as he went. He fell down in front of the Lord and thanked him.

Jesus looked around and said, “Weren’t all ten of you healed? Where are the other nine? You’re from Samaria, yet you’re the only one to come back and thank God.”

Then Jesus helped the man get up. “Go, your faith has healed you.”

Later, Jesus was teaching the crowd about the importance of never getting discouraged when they pray. He said, “There was a judge who didn’t fear God, and was totally unconcerned about people.

“In his town, there was a widow who kept going to him saying, ‘I want the court to give me justice against the man who wronged me.’ At first the judge refused to help her. Finally he said, ‘I don’t care what happens to this woman, but I’m going to help her anyway because I’m tired of her bothering me.’ ”

The Lord said, “You should go to God with that same determination. But you have an advantage over that widow. Her judge didn’t care for her, but you have the heavenly Father who loves you and wants to help you.”

Jesus told another story to a crowd when he noticed that some thought they were better than others. He said, “Two men went to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, who was honored by everyone. The other was a tax collector, who everyone hated, thinking he was a traitor to the nation.

“The Pharisee stood in a prominent spot and prayed. ‘God, I’m glad I’m not like other people— like those who are greedy or dishonest—or like those who are unfaithful to their wives. I’m especially glad I’m not like that wretched tax collector over there. Lord, as you know, I fast twice a week and give you a tenth of everything I earn.’

“The tax collector stood off to the side, away from everyone. He didn’t even look up, but kept hitting his chest in shame. He said, ‘God, I know I’m a sinner. Please have pity on me.’

Jesus said, “Both men went home, but only one was justified before God. It was the tax collector, not the Pharisee. God will exalt those who humble themselves, but he will humble those who exalt themselves.”

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Feeding 4,000

200 – Feeding 4,000

Matthew 15:29-16:16 Mark 8:1-21 8:27-30

Jesus left the region of Tyre and Sidon and went to the Gentile side of the Sea of Galilee. As he taught the people, a great crowd brought those with various physical problems. They brought the lame, the blind, the crippled, and those with many diseases. Jesus healed them all, and the crowd was amazed.

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I’m concerned for the crowd. They’ve been with us for three days, and their food has run out. I don’t want to send them away without feeding them because they’ll collapse with hunger as they go.” 

The disciples said, “Lord, we don’t have enough food to feed this large crowd.”

“How much do you have?”

“We have seven loaves of bread and a few small fish.”

“Tell the crowd to sit down.”

He took the bread and fish and blessed it. He then broke it into pieces and gave it to his disciples. They turned and gave it to the crowd. 4,000 people were there. Everyone ate until they were full. The disciples then collected the leftovers and found they had seven baskets full.

Afterwards, they sent the crowd home. Jesus and his disciples got in the boat and went to the Jewish side of the lake.

The Jewish leaders were there, and started arguing with him. They wanted him to give them signs from heaven. He refused and got back into the boat.

As they were going back to the Gentile side of the lake, the disciples realized they forgot to bring enough food for the trip. They only had one small loaf of bread.

Jesus said to them, “Watch out for the yeast of the religious leaders.” The disciples assumed he was scolding them for forgetting the bread.

He said, “Your faith is still so small! Why would you think I’m concerned about the bread situation? You were there. You saw how 5,000 people were fed with just five loaves of bread and two fish. How many baskets did we collect afterwards?”

“Twelve.”

You saw how 4,000 people were fed with just seven loaves of bread and a few small fish. How many baskets did we collect afterwards?”

“Seven.”

“So listen carefully and understand what I’m saying. Watch out for the yeast of religious leaders.” Finally the men understood what he was talking about.

Once they got to the other side, Jesus took them to Caesarea Philippi. There, he asked them, “Who do people say I am?”

“Some say you’re John the Baptist. Others say you’re Elijah or Jeremiah.”

“Who do you say I am?”

Peter said, “You’re the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus said, “Peter, you’re blessed! You didn’t learn this from human sources, but the Father has revealed it to you.”

He then told all of his disciples “For now, don’t tell anyone I am the Messiah.”

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Pool of Bethesda

196 – Pool of Bethesda

John 5:1-47

There was a pool in Jerusalem called Bethesda. It was near the Sheep Gate. Local people believed that occasionally an angel would stir the waters of the pool. They felt a sick person would be healed if he or she were the first to get into the water after it was stirred. Therefore, a large group stayed near the pool, waiting for the angel.

Jesus went to that pool when he was in Jerusalem for a Jewish festival. He saw a man who had been sick for 38 years. The Lord said, “Do you want to be healed?”

The man said, “Yes, but when I see the stirring of the waters, someone always gets into the pool before me.”

Jesus said, “Stand up! Pick up your bedroll and walk.” Immediately the man was healed and got up. Jesus slipped away into the crowd as the man was picking up his bedroll.

Some of the Jewish leaders saw the man carrying his bedroll. They said, “How dare you! This is the Sabbath. It’s not legal to carry bedrolls on the Sabbath.”

The man said, “But… but… a man healed me and then told me to pick up my bedroll and go home.”

“Who told you to do this work on a Sabbath?”

“I don’t know. He healed me and then disappeared into the crowd.”

Later, Jesus saw this man in the Temple. The Lord said, “You’ve been healed, but you must stop sinning. If you don’t, something worse will happen to you.” The man then knew who had healed him. So he rushed to the Jewish leaders and told them that it was Jesus.

Hearing this made them more determined to end the influence Jesus had with the people. They felt his actions on the Sabbath were totally unacceptable.

Jesus said to them, “My Father works on the Sabbath, so I will too.”

Hearing this, the leaders started talking about killing him. They said, “He breaks the rules about the Sabbath. Now he calls God his father. He thinks he’s equal with God!

Jesus said, “The Son only does what the Father tells him to do. The Father loves the Son, and gives him power so he can give life to anyone he wants. The Father has made the Son the judge of people. If you don’t honor the Son, you’re not honoring the Father who sent him.

“I’ll give eternal life to those who hear me and believe on Him who sent me. Those who believe will not be judged, but have passed from death into life.

“How do you know if I’m telling you the truth? I’ve told you but that’s not good enough because I’m talking about myself. You heard John the Baptist talk about me, but you didn’t believe him. The Father spoke about me, but you closed your ears to him. My miracles show that I’m telling the truth, but you don’t accept them as proof.

“You study the Scriptures constantly. They talk about me, but you turn your eyes away from those Scriptures. The truth is, you’re just not willing to come to me and have life.”

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Twelve Years Old

180 – Twelve Years Old

Luke 2:40-52

When Jesus was twelve years old, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. When it was time to return home, Jesus stayed behind at the temple, without his parents knowing. They traveled a whole day, thinking he was among the crowd.. 

That evening they realized he was missing. They went back to Jerusalem and searched for him for three days. Finally they found him in the court of the temple, sitting among the teachers. He was listening to them and asking questions.

Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his ability to answer questions.

His mother ran up and said, “Son, how could you do this to us? We’ve been searching for you.”

He said, “Surely you knew I’d be here in my Father’s house—doing his business.” They didn’t understand what he was talking about.

Jesus went back to Nazareth, and lived in submission to his parents. He grew, and matured, and was respected by all that knew him. God’s blessing was on his life.

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Esther Saves Her People

176 – Esther Saves Her People

Esther 5:9 – 10:3

Continued from the previous story

The king and Haman attended Queen Esther’s banquet. Afterwards the king said, “Now tell me your request so I can give it to you.”

“Oh king, if it’s true you want to grant my request, please bring Haman and come to another banquet tomorrow. I’ll tell you my request at that time.” 

Haman was proud as he left the court that day. He had been invited to the queen’s banquet two days in a row! Suddenly his joy turned to anger as he noticed Mordecai once again not bowing before him. He was with friends that evening and told them how this Jew had ruined his joy.

They said, “Build a 75-foot gallows. Go to the king early in the morning and ask him to order Mordecai’s death. Hang him on the gallows right away so you can enjoy the queen’s banquet.” Haman sent for a servant and ordered the gallows to be built.

The king couldn’t sleep that night. So he had someone come to his bedroom and read official records. The servant read how Mordecai had saved the king’s life by revealing a plot to kill him. The king said, “How was this man rewarded?”

The servant looked back at the records, then said, “He wasn’t, my king.”

“Nothing was done to reward this man?! Go into the court and see if anyone is there.”

The servant found Haman waiting to see the king. The king said, “Bring him in.” Before Haman could talk, the king said, “What should I do for a man I want to honor in a special way?”

Haman immediately thought of himself. He said, “Oh, my king. You should honor this man by putting your royal robe and crown on him. Place him on your horse and have your most noble official lead him through the streets yelling, ‘This is what the king does for a man he wants to honor!’”

The king was pleased. “Excellent. Go and find Mordecai and do everything you’ve said. Be careful not to leave anything out.”

Haman stood there in shock, but he had to fulfill everything he had suggested to the king. He put the royal robe and crown on Mordecai, placed him on the royal horse, and led him through the city yelling, “This is what the king does for a man he wants to honor.”

When it was all over, Haman went home in humiliation, but his summons to the queen’s banquet was waiting for him. So he had to rush to get there.

After they had eaten, the king asked Esther, “Tell me what you want so I can give it to you.”

“Oh king, if it pleases you to grant my request, spare my life and the lives of my people. A man has plotted to have my entire race destroyed.”

The king was shocked, “Who is this man and where is he?”

Esther pointed at Haman. “Our enemy is this wicked man.”

Haman was terrified. He couldn’t even speak. The king looked at him and became angry. He got up and walked into the garden so he could think.

Haman ran over and fell down next to Esther to beg for his life. The king walked back into the room and saw Haman lying next to the queen. He said, “Are you going to rape the queen with me standing right here?”

As soon as he said this, servants rushed over and put a hood over Haman’s head. One of them turned to the king. “Haman has built a gallows to hang the man who saved your life.”

This angered the king even more. He pointed to Haman, “Hang him on it!”

Haman was immediately taken out and hanged on the gallows he had built. After this, the king replaced him with Mordecai.

So the Jewish people were saved from the disaster Haman had planned for them, and Mordecai became the highest-ranking official in the government.

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Den of Lions

171 – Den of Lions

Daniel 6:1-28

When Darius became king, he appointed an official over each of his 120 provinces. He then selected three administrators to supervise the 120 officials.

Daniel was one of the three administrators, and he was the most capable. The king was about to give him authority over the entire kingdom.

The officials and the other two administrators didn’t want this to happen. They decided to make Daniel look bad to the king. They searched for a flaw in his life or some kind of corruption in what he did for the government. They couldn’t find anything. Finally they said, “There’s only one way we can do this. We must find something in the laws of his God.” 

Finally they found it, so they created a plan. They went to the king and said, “Oh King Darius, live forever. The officials and administrators have agreed on a way we can honor you. With your permission, we want everyone to worship you for 30 days. We’ll craft a law that says no one can worship any other god during that time. We want you to sign it as a law of the Medes and Persians that can’t be changed. If anyone disobeys this law, they’ll be thrown into a den of lions.” Darius was pleased with this honor, so he signed the law.

Daniel heard about this after it was done. Still he followed his normal routine of worship. Three times a day, he went into his house and opened the upper windows that faced Jerusalem. There, he knelt down and prayed, giving thanks to God. It was exactly what the men knew he would do.

They went to the king and said, “Is it true that you signed a law that said for 30 days no one may worship any other god besides you? And didn’t it say that anyone who violated this would be thrown into a den of lions?”

He said, “Of course. I made it a law of the Medes and Persians, which can’t be changed.” “Oh king, we’re sad to tell you that Daniel, Jewish exile, is breaking that law. He bows down and worships his God three times a day.”

Darius was shocked! He knew he had to find a way to rescue Daniel. He worked on it all day. Finally the men came and said, “You know that the law of the Medes and Persians can’t be changed.”

So the king gave the order to go get Daniel. The king talked to him just before he was thrown into the den. “Oh, may the God you serve rescue you from these lions.”

Daniel was lowered into the den, and then a stone was placed over the opening. The king put his seal on it so that no one could interfere with this judgment. He went back to his palace and cancelled the evening entertainment. He refused to eat, and he couldn’t sleep all night.

When it was finally morning, he rushed back to the den of lions. Once the stone was removed, he yelled, “Oh Daniel, servant of the living God. Was your God able to rescue you from the lions?”

Daniel yelled back, “My king, God sent his angel, who shut the mouths of these lions. I haven’t been hurt in any way. God knows I’m innocent. Your Majesty, I haven’t wronged you in any way.”

The king gave the order to have Daniel pulled out of the den. Darius then told the guards. “Go get those men who plotted against Daniel. Get their wives and children. Throw them all into the den of lions.”

All the men and their families were brought and pushed down into the den of lions. The lions were waiting at the bottom and tore them apart before they reached the floor.

King Darius sent a decree throughout his kingdom. It said, “Everyone is to be afraid of Daniel’s God because he’s the living God. His kingdom will last forever. He’s able to rescue those who serve him.”

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Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream

167 – Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream

Daniel 2:1-49

Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that troubled him. He called his counselors and told them they were to interpret his dream. They said, “Tell us the dream and we’ll tell you what it means.”

The king said, “Listen carefully to what I’m about to say. You’re to tell me my dream as well as its interpretation. If you can do this, I’ll give you great rewards and honor you before everyone. But if you can’t do this, you’ll die a slow death, and all of your property will be destroyed. Now, tell me my dream!” 

His counselors were shocked. They asked a second time, “Please, tell us your dream and we’ll give you the meaning.”

Nebuchadnezzar grew impatient. “You’re stalling for time. You heard what I said. If I tell you my dream, you’ll simply make up something just to humor me. The only way I’ll know your interpretation is correct, is if you can tell me the dream.

At this point, the counselors begged him. “No king has ever asked their counselors to do this. Only the gods know what people dream when they’re asleep.”

Nebuchadnezzar became angry. He made a declaration that all the counselors were to be killed. So the guards started gathering them up. Daniel heard of this and immediately sent a message to the king, “Give me some time and I’ll tell you your dream, as well as the interpretation.”

God showed Daniel the king’s dream and gave him the interpretation. Then Daniel went to meet with the king. Nebuchadnezzar looked at him and said, “Is it true you can tell me my dream and its interpretation?”

Daniel was careful with his answer. “No man is able to do what you’re asking, but there’s a God in heaven who has shown me what you dreamed when you were asleep.

“He gave you a vision of what’s going to happen in the future of the world. You saw a massive statue in your dream. It had a head of gold. Its arms and chest were silver, and its belly and hips were bronze. It had legs of iron, and its feet were a mixture of iron and clay. Suddenly a stone was cut out of a mountain, but you couldn’t see the hands that did it. This stone hit the feet and the entire statue was destroyed.

“The pieces crashed to the ground and the wind blew it away as if it had no weight at all. As you watched, the stone got larger until it filled the entire earth.

“That was your dream. Now here is the interpretation. God has made you the head of gold. After you, will arise another kingdom that’s not as good as yours.

“Then a third kingdom of bronze will rule the world. The fourth kingdom will be as strong as iron and will crush everything in its way. This kingdom will divide into two parts like the legs of the statue. The last kingdom will also be divided into two feet with ten toes. It’ll have the strength of iron, but be as brittle as common clay.

“The stone carved out of the mountain is God’s kingdom, which will be formed without human hands. God will destroy all the kingdoms of this world, but His kingdom will never end.

“Oh king, God has shown you the future with a dream, and it’ll happen just as the dream has said.”

Nebuchadnezzar fell down with his face to the ground. He said, “Your God, he is God! He’s the Lord!” Nebuchadnezzar then made Daniel a great ruler in his kingdom.

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