Does the Bible tell us the goal of generosity to the poor? It does. In 2 Corinthians 8, Paul taught something that is not mentioned enough. One of the subplots of Paul’s missionary journeys is that he was asking the churches across the Roman Empire to give money to help the mother church in Jerusalem. Continue reading “Why and How to be more Generous – John 11:46-12:11, Part 5”
Monthly Archives: May 2023
What Jesus meant when he said, “You will always have the poor among you” – John 11:46-12:11, Part 4
What does extravagant generosity to Jesus look like in our day? In John 12:1-11, Mary dumped $70K worth of perfume on Jesus’ feet. While Jesus doesn’t expect us to do precisely what Mary did, he does expect us to be extravagantly generous. Why doesn’t he expect us to do what Mary did? Mary lived, forContinue reading “What Jesus meant when he said, “You will always have the poor among you” – John 11:46-12:11, Part 4″
Why we set up four essential oil diffusers in our worship service – John 11:46-12:11, Part 3
What will Jesus say when Mary love bombs by dumping $70K of perfume on his feet, and his disciple Judas Iscariot is angry, saying that perfume could have been sold to help the poor? Will Jesus agree with Mary or Judas? Here’s how Jesus responds to Judas in John 12, verses 7-8, “’Leave her alone,’Continue reading “Why we set up four essential oil diffusers in our worship service – John 11:46-12:11, Part 3”
The time someone wasted $70K on Jesus? – John 11:46-12:11, Part 2
This week we’re studying John 11:46-12:11, but our focus in on chapter 12, verses 1-11. In the previous post, we studied John 11:46-12:2, which sets up the story. After hiding from the watchful eye of the Jewish leaders, Jesus travels to the town of Bethany, just two miles outside the city of Jerusalem. In BethanyContinue reading “The time someone wasted $70K on Jesus? – John 11:46-12:11, Part 2”
Jesus’ bold move when he has a target on his back – John 11:46-12:11, Part 1
Our study of the Gospel of John, is now back on track. We studied John 11:1-45 Easter week, starting here, in which we learned the story of Jesus miraculously raising his friend Lazarus from the dead. In verse 45, we read that as a result of the miracle, many people put their faith in Jesus. Continue reading “Jesus’ bold move when he has a target on his back – John 11:46-12:11, Part 1”
Would Jesus agree with a love bomb? – John 11:46-12:11, Preview
Have you heard of a “love bomb”? I just learned the term this past week while watching the most recent episode (4/26/23) of the Apple+ show Ted Lasso. In this episode one character expresses their love for another character by giving them extravagant gifts. That’s a love bomb. One gift is a signed first editionContinue reading “Would Jesus agree with a love bomb? – John 11:46-12:11, Preview”
Engaging Scripture 