Faith and Grace The story of the Canaanite woman in the Gospel of Matthew is not a favorite of many because in it, Jesus makes an unmistakable reference to the Canaanite woman as a dog. Some commentaries soften it by saying that Jesus was just teasing her, or perhaps Jesus did not use the term “dog” but another term for “cute puppy”, because cute puppies beg so persistently from their masters. However, in Jesus’ time, the terms “dog” and “swine”…
Faith and Doubt In the midst of a strong wind while they were in a boat tossed about by the waves, the disciples were terrified when they saw someone walking on the sea; thinking that it was a ghost, they cried out in fear. Therefore, Jesus called out at once: “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” Having heard the voice of Jesus, Peter called to Jesus, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you…
Transfiguration of the Heart The Transfiguration of the Lord is one of the significant events which happened to Jesus on earth. Other examples are His Birth, His Baptism, His Passion and Death, His Resurrection and Ascension. What is the significance of the Transfiguration? A bright cloud cast over Jesus and the three apostles, which indicated the presence of the LORD as it did in the Book of Exodus: A cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the…
Faith and Doubt Scripture Passage (Matthew 14:22-33) Then He [Jesus] made the disciples get into the boat and precede him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. After doing so, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When it was evening he was there alone. Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it. During the fourth watch of the night, he came…
Three Parables In the Parable of the Treasure (cf. Matthew 13:44), a person finds a treasure buried in a field and joyfully sells everything he has in order to buy the field. Similarly, in the Parable of the Pearl (cf. Matthew 13:45-46), a merchant searches and finds a pearl of great value, and he sells everything he has in order to buy it. In both parables, a person finds something so valuable that they give up everything they have in…
The Wheat and the Weeds The Parable of the Weeds (Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43) can be seen as a metaphor on spiritual warfare that goes on in the world. The field represents the world, the man who sows the good seed represents the Son of Man and the enemy who sows the weed represents the devil. The good seed represents the children of the kingdom, while the weeds represent the children of the evil one. As the wheat grew, the weeds…
James the Greater & James the Less Six of the twelve Apostles have similar names: Simon, whom Jesus later named Peter, and Simon the zealot; Judas the son of James (Luke 6:16), who was also called Thaddeus (Matthew 10:3), and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus; James the son of Zebedee (aka James the Greater) and James the son of Alphaeus (aka James the Less). Among these six Apostles, people have the most difficulty telling apart the two James. Who was…
Fertile Soil In the Gospels, the Parable of the Sower is one of two parables which Jesus explained to His disciples (cf. Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23; Mark 4:1-9, 14-20 and Luke 8:4-8, 11-15). The other is the Parable of the Weeds (cf. Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43). With regards to the Parable of the Sower, one commentary explains that in Jesus’ time, people often sowed the seed first and then plowed the fields. As a result of this planting method, much of…
The Wheat and the Weeds Scripture Passage (Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43) He (Jesus) proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off. When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good…
Attention parents and youth! We will hold a Youth Retreat on November 4 from 10:00am to 2:00pm in our church. Participant ages are middle school and high school. A certified youth minister will be leading the retreat. We will also have a fun event offsite after the retreat. Please register with Ms. Long Che.