Jesus taught the disciples that things were bound to happen to make people sin, but it is worse for a person who makes sin happen. When your brother sins say something and if he repents forgive him. Forgive him each time he sins and asks your forgiveness. The apostles asked Jesus to make their faith greater. Jesus told them that if they had faith the size of a mustard seed they could tell a tree to uproot and plant itself in the sea and it would. Jesus told them that servants don't deserve thanks for doing their duty, so when people thanked them they were to say they were ordinary servants doing their duty. On his way to Jerusalem, Jesus was met by 10 men suffering a terrible skin disease. They shouted from a distance for Jesus to have pity on them. Jesus told them to have their priests examine them, and on the way they became clean. One of them, a Samaritan, saw that he had been made clean and came back to Jesus, threw himself to the ground and thanked him. Jesus asked why only one of the 10 healed men came back to say thank you. Pharisees asked Jesus when the Kingdom of God would come. He told them it isn't a place, rather, it is within you. (Imagine everyone living so that the Spirit can produce love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self-control (Gal5:22-23) inside them and what kind of world that would be...heaven on earth!) When the Son of Man comes, everyone will be about their business and it will happen.
Jesus taught the 12 a parable to teach the people that they should pray and never be discouraged. There was a judge who didn't care about anybody. An old woman kept coming to him and complaining. At first he ignored her, but she kept coming back, so he helped her to quiet her. In the same way we are to pray often. (Maybe God doesn't mind being bugged by us?) Then Jesus told them the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. The Pharisee prayed, thanking God because he was not a sinner and the tax collector just asked God for mercy because he was a sinner. Jesus told them that the tax collector was right with God. Humility works. The 12 were discouraging people from bringing their little ones to Jesus, but He told them to let them come, and to receive the Kingdom of God like a child. A rich man wanted to know how to enter the Kingdom of God and Jesus told him it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God. (This needle is a small, narrow opening in the wall of a city so a person could get inside the city when the gate was closed. There was no way for a large camel to get through this opening.) People asked how anyone could get in? Jesus told them, "What is impossible for man is possible for God." (ch18:27) Jesus told them again about His death and resurrection, but they didn't understand it. Near Jericho, Jesus healed a blind man who kept calling out to Him. When the man could see, he followed Jesus, praising God, then everyone else praised God too.
In Jericho, Jesus passed a man in a tree who was the chief tax collector, and told him He was going to stay with him. The man's name was Zacchaeus and he told Jesus he had given away half of everything he owned and given it to the poor, and if he cheated anyone, he would pay them back by 4 times the amount. Jesus told him that salvation had come to his house that day. Then Jesus told the parable of the gold coins which is very similar to the parable of the talents. In this version, the master gave the servants instructions about using the money to earn more in his absence. So, those who have will be given more and those who don't have a clue will have theirs taken away.
Tomorrow read Luke 19:28-21:9
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