Latest / A Chapter a Day Bible Reading / January 14 - Luke 13

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January 14 - Luke 13 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello friends, it's Sean here and it is Wednesday.
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  It's the 14th of January, it's International Kite Day.
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  I wonder if you've got a kite at home.
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  Not many kites around. I used to have kites when I was
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  a boy. I used to have these cool stunt
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  kites with two strings that you can make them kind of change
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  direction and dance in the sky. Here's something fascinating.
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  Did you know the kites? They've been around for over
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  2000 years. And the legend is that a Chinese
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  farmer back in the day kept on having his hat blowing off his
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  head in the wind. So he tied a piece of string to
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  it and then when it blew away, he hung onto the end of the
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  string. And thus the first kite was
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  born. I'm not sure about the veracity
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  of that legend, but much more recently 200 BCA Chinese general
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  used a kite strategically as he was assaulting a city to see
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  exactly how far away his soldiers would need to tunnel in
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  order to gain access to the city by how much string he had let
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  out on the kite. There you go, war strategy,
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  beautiful colours, Kites have got it all in their history.
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  Maybe if you don't have a kite, you could watch Mary Poppins the
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  Let's Go fly a Kite scene. Ah, there's some goodness for
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  your day. But kites aside, let us dive
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  into our reading. This is a shorter chapter.
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  Gee, Luke is a writer, isn't he? Once he gets going, these
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  chapters go for a while. Today is a much shorter chapter
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  as we continue to hear these words of Jesus about healing on
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  a day when nobody wants Jesus to heal, about mustard seeds and
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  yeast. Ah, all these good parables.
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  You and I know that it's so good to hear Jesus words afresh
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  today. So, Holy Spirit, may these words
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  land on us and arrest us so that we can see your truth laid bare
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  before us. All right, friends, let us read
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  together Luke chapter 13. About this time, Jesus was
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  informed that Pilate had murdered some people from
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  Galilee as they were offering sacrifices at the Temple.
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  Do you think those Galileans were worse sinners than all the
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  other people from Galilee? Jesus asked.
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  Is that why they suffered? Not at all.
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  And you will perish too, unless you repent of your sins and turn
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  to God. And what about the 18 people who
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  died when the tower in Siloam fell on them?
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  Were they the worst sinners in Jerusalem?
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  No, and I tell you again that unless you repent, you will
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  perish too. Then Jesus told this story.
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  A man planted A fig tree in his garden and came again and again
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  to see if there was any fruit on it.
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  But he was always disappointed. Finally, he said to his
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  gardener, I've waited three years and there hasn't been a
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  single fig. Cut it down.
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  It's just taking up space in the garden.
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  The gardener answered, Sir, give it one more chance.
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  Leave it another year and I'll give it special attention and
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  plenty of fertiliser. If we get figs next year, fine.
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  If not, then you can cut it down.
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  One Sabbath day, as Jesus was teaching in the synagogue, he
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  saw a woman who had been crippled by an evil spirit.
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  She had been bent double for 18 years and was unable to stand up
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  straight. When Jesus saw her, he called
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  her over and said, Dear woman, you are healed of your sickness.
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  Then he touched her and instantly she could stand
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  straight. How she praised God.
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  But the leader in charge of the synagogue was indignant that
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  Jesus had healed her on the Sabbath day.
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  There are 6 days of the week for working, He said to the crowd.
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  Come on those days to be healed, not on the Sabbath.
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  But the Lord replied, You hypocrites, each of you works on
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  the Sabbath day. Don't you untie your ox or your
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  donkey from its stall on the Sabbath and lead it out for
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  water? This dear woman, a daughter of
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  Abraham, has been held in bondage by Satan for 18 years.
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  Isn't it right that she be released even on the Sabbath?
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  This shamed his enemies, but all the people rejoiced at the
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  wonderful things he did. Then Jesus said, what is the
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  Kingdom of God like? How can I illustrate it?
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  It is like a tiny mustard seed that a man planted in a garden.
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  It grows and becomes a tree, and the birds make nests in its
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  branches. He also asked, what else is the
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  Kingdom of God like? It is like the yeast a woman
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  used in making bread. Even though she put only a
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  little yeast in three measures of flour, it permeated every
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  part of the dough. Jesus went through the towns and
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  villages, teaching as he went, always pressing on toward
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  Jerusalem. Someone asked him, Lord, will
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  only a few be saved? He replied, Work hard to enter
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  the narrow door of God's Kingdom, for many will try to
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  enter, but will fail. When the master of the house has
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  locked the door, it will be too late.
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  He will stand outside, knocking and pleading.
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  Lord, open the door for us, But he will reply, I don't know you
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  or where you come from. Then you will say, But we ate
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  and drank with you, and you taught us in our streets.
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  And he will reply, I tell you, I don't know you or where you come
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  from. Get away from me.
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  All you who do evil, there will be weeping and gnashing of
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  teeth, for you will see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the
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  prophets in the Kingdom of God, but you will be thrown out.
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  And people will come from all over the world, from east and
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  West, North and South, to take their places in the Kingdom of
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  God. And note this, some who seem
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  least important now will be the greatest then, and some who are
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  the greatest now will be least important then.
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  At that time some Pharisees said to him, Get away from here if
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  you want to live. Herod Antipas wants to kill you,
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  Jesus replied. Go tell that fox that I will
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  keep on casting out demons and healing people today and
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  tomorrow and the third day I will accomplish my purpose.
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  Yes, today, tomorrow, and the next day.
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  I must proceed on my way. For it wouldn't do for a prophet
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  of God to be killed except in Jerusalem.
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  Oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and
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  stones God's messengers. How often I have wanted to
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  gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks
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  beneath her wings. But you wouldn't let me.
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  And now look, your house is abandoned, and you will never
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  see me again until you say blessings on the one who comes
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  in the name of the Lord. Now, Jesus, we are just amazed
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  at the generosity that you show us as you share these
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  challenging teachings about giving up ourselves and working
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  hard to make it through the narrow door and how many people
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  will fail in the next moment. You speak from your heart about
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  just wanting to gather up your people under your wings.
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  And all the while you say these things as you walk inextricably
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  closer to Jerusalem, to the place where you will ultimately
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  give up everything to make a way for us to be saved, even though
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  we struggle to live lives that honour you entirely.
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  So, Lord, we just thank you for your generosity and we thank you
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  for your love, and we thank you for all you have done for us,
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  even though we don't deserve it, but we just rest under your
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  wings of protection and provision and love and kindness.
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  Thank you Jesus, for making a way for us.
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  We are so grateful. We pray all of this in your
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  generous and saving name. Amen.