The Luke Project
Who is Jesus and Why Should I Care? This is a question that stayed with me for way too many years. I grew up in a house divided. My Dad was an atheist, and my mom was a Christian. She would take my brother and I to Sunday School and church while we pleaded to stay home with Dad. I was bullied very heavily in elementary and middle school during the week, and then on the weekends, had to go to church, where those same bullies were, along with others. They acted so nice when they were with their families and in Sunday School; however, it was during the breaks between Sunday School and church, and at school that they showed a different side. We were taught that Jesus loved us; however, I did not feel love. I felt not good enough, shame, and judged. I felt like Jesus was someone who looked down on me from up above and was judging my every move so that he could throw me below into the pit of fire when he found out who I really was. I was shy, sad, and full of fear and anger. I felt misunderstood by others, but could not find the voice to speak up and let anyone in.
Beatitudes – The Tree and Its Fruit
6: 43-45 “A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thorbushes, and grapes are not picked from bramble bushes. A good person produces good things from the treasury...
Beatitudes – Do Not Judge Others
6: 37-42 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged.” “Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you.” “Forgive others, and you will be forgiven.” When I first read these, I felt justified in my inner thoughts. Throughout my life, I have felt...
Beatitudes – Love Your Enemies
6: 27 - 36 This next section was one of the hardest things for me to read and understand at a heart level! I had gathered inside all the wrongs I felt others had done to me over the years, which led to an incredible amount of pain and anger that had nowhere to go. ...
Beatitudes – The Danger of Pride
6: 24-26 “What sorrow awaits you who are rich, for you have your only happiness now.” “What sorrow awaits you who are fat and prosperous now, for a time of awful hunger awaits you.” “What sorrow awaits you who laugh now, for your laughing will turn to mourning and...
The Beatitudes
6: 20-23 Jesus turned to his disciples and said, “God blesses you who are poor, for the kingdom of God is yours.” “God blesses you who are hungry now, for you will be satisfied.” “God blesses you who weep now, for in due time you will laugh.” “What blessings await...
Jesus Chooses the Twelve Apostles
6: 12-19 A few days afterwards, Jesus went up on a mountain to pray. He prayed to God all night. At daybreak, he called together all his disciples and chose twelve of them to be apostles. The disciples were individuals who...
Jesus Shows the True Meaning of the Sabbath
6: 1 - 11 As Jesus was walking through some grainfields one Sabbath day, his disciples broke off some of the heads of grain, rubbed off the husks with their hands and ate the grain. The Pharisees saw this and asked him, “Why are you breaking the law by harvesting...
Fasting and Embracing Change
5: 33-39 Someone asked Jesus, “John the Baptist’s disciples fast and pray regularly, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees. Why are your disciples always eating and drinking?” The Pharisees compared the behavior’s of Jesus’s disciples to that of their own...
Jesus Calls Levi (Matthew)
5: 27-32 As Jesus was leaving town, he saw Levi, a tax collector, sitting at his booth. He told Levi, “Follow me and be my disciple.” He got up, left everything and followed him. Levi demonstrated the commitment of a true disciple – leaving everything and having...