Daily Bread Pastor Mike Anderson

Luke 22 3 Then Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve disciples, 4 and he went to the leading priests and captains of the Temple guard to discuss the best way to betray Jesus to them. 5 They were delighted, and they promised to give him money. 6 So he agreed and began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus so they could arrest him when the crowds weren’t around. As Luke's gospel heads into the "passion of Christ", today we see Jesus with his disciples at the Last Supper. But before this, is the verse above where it reads, "Then Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve disciples." The first question I have when i read this is, "Was Judas possessed by a demon." What did it mean for the Satan to "enter him"? It obviously seems more than just a temptation, which comes from the outside of a person. In John's gospel he says it a little differently, "It was time for supper, and the devi...

Luke 21 21 While Jesus was in the Temple, he watched the rich people dropping their gifts in the collection box. 2 Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two small coins. 3 “I tell you the truth,” Jesus said, “this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them. 4 For they have given a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has.” There is often much misunderstanding in teaching about how and why we give in the church. On the one end of the spectrum is saying it really doesn't matter what one gives. On the other end is the Old Testament concept of tithing, which means to give st least 10%. The Israelites were to give a tenth of all of their produce, since most were farmers. But also they gave coins as is evidenced in the passage. The context of this teaching is when Jesus is in the temple teaching the people. He spent time criticizing the Pharisees and The Sadducees, the religious leaders. The problem with them was they were good a...

Luke 20 34 Jesus replied, “Marriage is for people here on earth. 35 But in the age to come, those worthy of being raised from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage. 36 And they will never die again. In this respect they will be like angels. They are children of God and children of the resurrection. In Chapter 20, we see the Pharisees trying to trap Jesus in arguments regarding the Law . Then, Jesus tells the story about a farmer who sends his servants to collect the harvest of his vineyard, and each time the wicked tenants kill the servant. This is representative of the prophets he sent to Israel. Finally, he sent his Son and they killed him too. This is an obvious reference to sending Jesus first to the Jews. The leaders are furious and try to trap Jesus again to no avail. Finally, the Sadducees question Jesus about the resurrection. Since they don't believe in the resurrection, they try to trip up Jesus on a technicality about who a widow's husband is in t...

Luke 19:5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.” 6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled. 8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!” Zaccheus was a Jewish descendant, who was employed by the Roman government to collect taxes. It also says he was "rich", which probably meant he had overcharged taxes to make a profit for himself. As such, he was hated by the Jews and explains why the Jewish people were so displeased that Jesus invited himself to his home. This parable is only told in Luke, and reaffirms Luke's desire to show how Jesus reached out to lost sinners discar...

Luke 18 16 Then Jesus called for the children and said to the disciples, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. 17 I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” In Jesus' day children were to be seen and not heard. That is why it was so counter cultural when Jesus says that the kingdom belongs to those who receive it like children. On the contrary those who don't receive it like a child, will never enter it. So what is about children that Jesus uses them as an example? Children trust in others, until they are given a reason not to. Children trust those in authority. We call this child-like faith. It is as we grow older and more calloused, that we start to distrust others in authority. And this leads to self reliance and a need to control. Unfortunately this was how the religious leaders had become. Jesus exposes their control and self rel...

Luke 17 5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” 6 He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you. After Jesus tells his disciples that they must forgive their brother or sister up to seven times if they repent, the disciples wonder how they could have that much faith. And then they ask Jesus to increase their faith. Jesus uses the opportunity to explain more about the nature of faith. He explains that with faith it is not as much about quantity but quality. He uses the analogy of the mustard seed to show the results of true faith. By using the uncommonly small mustard seed as an example, Jesus is speaking figuratively about the incalculable power of God when unleashed in the lives of those with true faith. Gotquestions.org If faith is a gift of God, then we can't earn it. God takes our faith and uses it to accomplish his purposes. We know we are acting in f...

Luke 16:10-12 10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own? One of the characteristics of Luke's gospel is his concern for the poor. Both of the parables in Chapter 16 (The Parable of the Shrewd Manager, and The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus) deal with money management. Jesus never condemns those who have a lot of money. He is more interested in what one does with their money in relationship with those around them. Jesus taught a lot about the use of money. In fact, 16 of 38 parables talk about money. In both parables he is teaching what biblical stewardship looks like. In the first parable a man's manager is wasting his money, so he has in mind to fire...

Luke 15:20-24 The Parable of the Prodigal Son" “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. 21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. In Chapter 15, Jesus moves from teaching the Pharisees about the inclusive nature of God's love, to addressing the tax collectors and sinners. These men were seen as outside the religious circles and not worthy to come into Jesus' presence. And yet, these are the very people Jesus is reaching out to in Chapter 15. He tells the ...

Luke 14 16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ 18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? In Luke 14, Jesus is having dinner at the home of a prominent Pharisee. Again he heals a man and sends him home. He reasons, "Which of you would if your son fell into a well would not pull him out?" At this, they were silent and didn't know what to say. Then, he uses a parable to show the heart of God to reach all people, not just the Jews. When a man threw a great banquet and sent out invites to many guests, they all had excuses for why they could not attend. They ranged from trying out some new oxen, checking a newly bought piece of prop...

Luke 13 14 Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue leader said to the people, “There are six days for work. So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.” 15 The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie your ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? 16 Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?” The Pharisees are a great example of leaders who claim to follow the Law, but have ended up making laws of their own for their own benefit. They are furious with Jesus for healing a woman on the Sabbath, who had suffered for 18 years. But in the meantime, they untie their own animals to take them for a drink, and similarly break the Sabbath laws. Jesus is pointing out the absurdity of how we as humans twist the law and the scriptures for own benefit. That is why the Law can never save us. T...

Luke 12 8 “I tell you, whoever publicly acknowledges me before others, the Son of Man will also acknowledge before the angels of God. 9 But whoever disowns me before others will be disowned before the angels of God. 10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. This verse presents an interpretive challenge when Jesus says, "Whoever speaks a word against me will be forgiven, but whoever blasphemes the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven." This passage also appears in a slightly different form in Mark 3 and Matthew 12, but essentially says the same thing. One might ask, "I thought Jesus forgave all of our sins on the cross, why is this one different". Or, "Why is it worse to speak a word against the Holy Spirit than Jesus? Aren't they both God?" First, we need to again go first to the context. In Matthew 12, the Pharisees were attributing the works a...

Luke 11 11 “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” In Luke 11, Jesus is teaching on prayer and he gives them a model of what to pray in the Lord's Prayer. And then he moves to the famous passage where he summarizes how we should pray, "Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you shall be find, and knock and the door shall be opened to you." His point seems to be that we should persevere in prayer. It is active more than passive. He seems to suggest that prayer could mean more than a yes or no. It could be a process of knocking on doors to see if they open. Or, seeking godly advice from other Christians to clsrify how God might be answering our prayers. Then, the text above says something very interesting...

Luke 10 Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-Two 10 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. 4 Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road. You will notice the first three verses of Luke 10 are remarkably similar to Luke 9. The only real difference is Jesus sent 72 instead of 12 disciples. And in this case, he sends them into towns and places he was about to go. It's as if he said, "Okay the 12 of you who went out the first time, take 5 more with you." And the strategy was much the same. Find a person of peace and stay with them as long as they will have you. And if you go somewhere where you are not welcomed, shake the dust off your feet as a sign tha...

12 Late in the afternoon the Twelve came to him and said, “Send the crowd away so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside and find food and lodging, because we are in a remote place here.” 13 He replied, “You give them something to eat.” You can imagine how the disciples felt. They had just finished their first day in ministry preaching the good news and healing all who came to them. When they came back to Jesus they reported to him everything they had done. They had that satisfying feeling after a productive day at work. But there was only one problem, the rumor got out and the crowds found them. They wanted more. But instead of sending them away, Jesus shared the good news about the kingdom, and healed all who came to him. The disciples realizing it as getting late and they would be hungry and need a place to stay. You can imagine them thinking, "Jesus we've had a great today but we think it is time to knock it off and take it easy. Send these people away...

Luke 8:9-10 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, “‘though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand." When Luke talks about the secrets of the "kingdom of God" today, it is in the context of the parable of the sower. Parables use earthly analogies to give a spiritual lesson. In this case Jesus used an illustration from farming to show when the Word of God is planted in the right soil it will produce an exponential yield. Jesus realizes that some people will want to find the ultimate meaning and truth from this story, and some will never dig any deeper than the surface. Though the story of the parable of the sower is true in farming, it is also true in God's kingdom. God's kingdom is where he is ruling or reigning. Jesus says the secrets to it have been given to the disciples, but others ...

Luke 7 The Faith of the Centurion 7 When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum. 2 There a centurion’s servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. 3 The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. 4 When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, “This man deserves to have you do this, 5 because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.” 6 So Jesus went with them. He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. 7 That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8 For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 9 When Jesus h...

The Twelve Apostles Luke 5:12-14 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles: Simon (whom he named Peter), his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, 15 Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot, 16 Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. It wasn't like because Jesus was the Son of God that he didn't need to pray. In fact before he does anything important, he spends large amounts of time in prayer to His Father. We see he usually goes to a quiet place away from the distractions of what was going on around him. In this case he spent the whole night praying to God. Jesus chose disciples (learners), but he also chose only 12 apostles (messengers). The apostles were his inner circle; he gave them special training and sent them out with his own authority. ...

Luke When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” 11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. In Chapter 5, we see Jesus doing many miracles and pushing against social norms. He heals a man with leprosy, a paralytic, and eats with Levi, a despised tax collector. When he finished teaching in Peter's boat, he told Peter to push the boat out a little further from the shoreline. Then hevtells them to throw out their nets for a little catch. Peter says skeptically, "Well we already got "shut out" from catching any fish, but If you say so we'll throw out the nets." Then, they witness a miracle. When they draw in the empty nets they a...

Luke 4 4 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry. 3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.” 4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.’” You would think that right after he was baptized, Jesus would begin his ministry right away. Yet, the same Spirit who descended upon Jesus like a dove, led him into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. It says that for 40 days he was tempted by the devil, and for forty days he fasted and didn't eat. Presumably Jesus was fasting as a form of spiritual preparation for the devil's assault. After forty days, the devil picks the most obvious temptation for Jesus, "to turn stones into loaves of bread". Given how hungry Jesus was, even the stones probably looked pretty good. But at t...

Luke 3:7-9 John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 9 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” Why was John the Baptist so angry at people who were coming out to be baptized by him, so that he essentially called them a "bunch of snakes". Since he refers to them as the "children of Abraham" he is speaking to the Jews. John the Baptist is reacting to a religion that had been reduced to rituals rather than faith in God. They were thinking because they were born into a Jewish family that they were saved regardless of the behavior. He is preparing them for the arrival of Jesus, who would offer salva...

Luke 2:8-12 "And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” One of the distinctives of Luke's gospel is how many details he includes regarding Jesus' birth. Luke's gospel shows Jesus reaching out to the marginalized in his world. There are many differences between Luke and Matthew's birth stories including: the genealogy of Jesus (Matthew - Joseph's family; Luke - Mary's family), Luke focuses on women (Elizabeth and Mary), and the first to visit Jesus in Luke's gospel were Jesus. (Matthew has t...

Luke 1 Introduction 1 Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. 3 With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. Today we begin the gospel of St. Luke, the evangelist. The gospel of Luke is the first of a two volume set, Luke-Acte. Luke, a physician, went on to travel with Paul. He accompanied Paul in his days of imprisonment. He was probably with him in his last days as it says in Colossians 4:14, "Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, sends his greetings." Many people think Luke was a Gentile, which makes sense since Paul's purpose was to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles. Luke's purpose is clearly laid out in t...