Archive for month: October, 2020

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Luke 16:1-14. Let’s go!

Luke 16:1-8 (NIV) 
1  Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 
2  So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’ 
3  “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg– 
4  I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’ 
5  “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 
6  “‘Eight hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied. “The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.’ …..

On verses 1-8:  Is Jesus telling this story to encourage us to lie and be dishonest? Not at all. Rather Jesus is highlighting the importance of being shrewd – that is, street smart, wise, strategic, and proactive – when dealing with problems. Often times I find that the reason why an individual, a team, a ministry or an organization is not as effective as they could be is not for a lack of heart, but a lack of wisdom, a lack of what Jesus calls “shrewdness”.

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Luke 15:25-32.  Let’s go!

Luke 15:25-32 (NIV) 
25  “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 
26  So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 
27  ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 
28  “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 
29  But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 
30  But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ 
31  “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 
32  But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.'”

On verses 25-32:  What an awesome time we had at Thrive yesterday looking at this passage together. If you missed the message yesterday, I hope you’ll catch it on our THRIVE Podcast, Facebook or Youtube channel. 

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Luke 15:11-24.  It is the first part to one of the most famous stories ever told.

Luke 15:11-24 (NIV) 
11  Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 
12  The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. 
13  “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 
14  After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 
15  So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 
16  He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. 
17  “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! ….

On verses 11-24:  This parable is one of the greatest, most powerful pictures of God’s amazing, unconditional love for us.  It is such a well known story that people sometimes assume they already know everything there is to learn concerning it.  At a THRIVE service today I’ll be sharing some lessons I’ve been learning from this passage that I hope will give you a fresh revelation of God’s love for you.   Hope to see you there!

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Luke 15:1-10.  Let’s go!

Luke 15:1-2 (NIV) 
1  Now the tax collectors and “sinners” were all gathering around to hear him. 
2  But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

On verses 1-2:  Jesus’ biggest critics, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, taught that to be truly holy and pleasing to God, you must separate yourself from people who were known to be habitual sinners.  That is why the Pharisees and teachers of the law found it puzzling, disgusting and also a basis for accusing Jesus when they saw that Jesus was hanging out with the very people that the Pharisees and teachers of the law shunned.    Knowing what the Pharisees and teachers of the law were thinking, Jesus will tell, in the verses that follow, some of his most famous parables to show why He the Son of God welcomes sinners and eats with them. 

Luke 15:3-4 (NIV) 
3  Then Jesus told them this parable: 
4  “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?