Daily Inspirations

  Good Morning. Congratulations – it’s a boy! Like any good Jewish family they go to circumcise John on the eighth day. That is when they officially name a boy. The family wanted to name him Zack Junior, but Elizabeth said no way – his name is John. Like any good interfering family they didn’t want to pay any attention to the mama - they asked the daddy what he wanted to call him. He wrote (remember he could not talk) “his name is John.“ All of a sudden he could talk and made up for nine months of being quiet. He was filled with the Spirit and prophesied. Remember I told you that when people were filled with the Holy Spirit that usually they spoke afterwards. His words are known as the Benedictus or Blessed be. He tells what God is going to do through Jesus and John. It says that John lived in the desert until the day of his public appearance to Israel. John’s parents were old when he was born; so we don’t know how old he was when he started living in the desert. It...

  Good morning. And what was Mary’s response to the angel – behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word. It is sad that we do not always respond that way. Too many times it’s “well if it doesn’t cause me too much trouble“. Mary quickly went to see Elizabeth. As soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s voice, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. This is most likely the fulfillment of the angel’s words that John the Baptist would be filled with the Holy Spirit while still in his mother’s womb. Then Elizabeth says “blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord. Most of, if not all of the times that someone was filled with the Holy Spirit, they began to speak afterwards, whether it was in English or in tongue...

  Good morning. When John the Baptist’s father came out of the temple, he could not speak. He finished his term of service and went home. His wife became pregnant, but did not tell anyone. In the sixth month of her pregnancy, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to Nazareth to talk to Mary. She was engaged to Joseph, a descendent of David. The angel tells her that she has found favor with God. He tells her that she will bear son and name Him Jesus. He will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. Mary wanted to know “how can this be, since I am a virgin?“ The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy child shall be called the Son of God. That would make anyone wonder if that were true. The angel gives her a sign: your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age, and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. That ...

  Good morning. Back to the angel talking to John the Baptist’s father: he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God. It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. John’s father said, “how will I know this for certain? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.“ The angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and bring you this good news. And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their prop...

  Good morning we are now ready to start Luke. Luke also has some passages that are almost identical to Matthew and Mark. He says that many had compiled accounts of the things that had happened, and that they had been handed down to them by those from the beginning who were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. Luke investigated everything carefully and wrote them down. Since Luke was a physician, he was ideal for the task. There was a priest named Zacharias with a wife named Elizabeth from the daughters of Aaron. Since he was a priest, he too was a direct descendent of Aaron. That meant that both of John the Baptist’s parents were direct descendants of Aaron the original high priest. That meant that if John the Baptist had followed in his father‘s footsteps, he would’ve also been a priest and possibly one of the chief priests (Who were the ones who condemned Jesus to death. He may even have saved Jesus from crucifixion, which is not what God wanted.) Elizabeth ...

  Good morning. Now we have Mark’s version of the great commission: go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned. There is a denomination that says that this indicates that you if you have not been water baptized, you are condemned. That would of course eliminate deathbed confessions. Then the part of Mark’s version of the great commission that some denominations don’t accept for today’s believers. These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover. Even in our church you don’t hear this version of the great commission preached. I’m not sure why not. There are those groups who have misinterpreted it – that’s why you have snake handl...

  Good morning. Now it is evening. And because it is the preparation day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph goes to Pilate and asks for the body of Jesus. Mark says that Joseph was also a member of the council. Pilate is surprised that Jesus is already dead. After finding out that it is true, he grants the body to Joseph. Joseph bought a linen cloth, took the body down from the cross, wrapped Him in the linen cloth and laid Him in a tomb. This linen cloth is what Is supposedly the shroud of Turin. When my friend and I went to Europe, part of our trip was to try to see the shroud of Turin. It had been on display for the public to see, but we were too late. It was kept in a silver box elevated high in the Cathedral. We did get to see a replica which was very impressive. It looked like the photographs that you see. The different gospels have different versions of what follows. When the Sabbath was over, the women bought spices to anoint His body. The stone h...

  Good morning. Just like in Matthew, Jesus then leaves the temple and the disciples are very complementary about all the wonderful stones that make up the buildings of the temple. According to Josephus, they were white, some of them were 37 feet long, 12 feet high and 18 feet wide. Jesus tells them there will come a time when there will not be one stone left upon another. The disciples want to know when, and Jesus goes through the same things He did in Matthew. Mark uses a little different wording for the following: in those days, after the tribulation, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And then He will send forth the angels, and will gather together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest end of the earth to the farthest end of heaven. Matthew mentio...

  Good morning. People like to have a formula to guarantee that their prayers will be answered. And so they think that Mark chapter 11 verses 23 and 24 are the formula they need. But there is an addendum to that. Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions. Remember: what good is it if you gain the whole world and lose your soul? What if all of your prayers were answered, but you were empty inside because you did not forgive others? Not all manuscripts have the next verse: but if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your transgressions. Skipping some more: Jesus was in the treasury of the temple watching how the people were putting money into the treasury, and many rich people were putting in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a cent. This poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the tr...

  Good morning. Skipping a lot: this is the scene in Jericho. In Matthew it has two blind men; in Mark it has one - blind Bartimaeus. Again, I believe that this happened because Jesus waited two days before going to Lazarus. The next thing is Palm Sunday. Mark says that Jesus went into the temple and after looking around left for Bethany (where Mary and Martha lived), instead of casting out the sellers. The next morning is the story about the fig tree. Mark includes more details than Matthew. He goes back to the temple and casts out those selling. The next morning the fig tree is withered. Have faith in God. Whoever says to this mountain, be taken up and cast into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him. Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you. This is the old, “You receive because you believe versus you believe because y...

Good morning. We are skipping some of the things that were also in Matthew. The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil; and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows – how, he himself does not know. The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head. But when the crop permits, he immediately puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come. Skipping a lot: after the feeding of the 5000 when the disciples were in the boat and Jesus was walking upon the water, Mark does not mention about Peter walking upon the water. The Pharisees noticed that some of His disciples were eating bread with impure hands, that is, unwashed. (He’s not talking about washing your hands with soap and water like we do. It was a ceremonial dipping into water.) The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thus observing the traditions of the elders. There were other traditions su...

  Good morning. Mark starts out almost right away with John being taken into custody. Other Gospels tell of things happening before that. Then Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of God. The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel. As we have said before about other things – it was the right time for this to happen. Jesus sees Peter and his brother fishing, and tells them to follow Him, and He will make them become fishers of men. He then sees James and John. He goes into a synagogue, and begins to teach. People were amazed because He was teaching as one having authority, and not as the scribes. The scribes were only giving their opinions or the opinions of people before them. Jesus was giving them the truth about the word of God. There was a man in the synagogue with an unclean spirit, and the spirit cried out “what business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are - the Holy ...

  Good morning. We are now looking at the Gospel of Mark. Mark starts out with: the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He quotes the passage that says that God will send His messenger to prepare His way. John the Baptist was in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As you know, John wore the latest fashion – camel’s hair 🐪 with a leather belt. He was also a member of the weight loss program that ate Locusts and wild honey 🍯 . He knew from the beginning that he was not the number one guy. After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie His sandals. I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. Then Jesus came and was baptized by John. When He came up out of the water, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit like a dove descended upon Jesus. Then a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well pleased.” So her...

  Good morning. While the women were on their way to the disciples, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that happened. They gave the soldiers a lot of money and told them to say that Jesus’ disciples came by night and stole Him away while they were asleep. They promised to keep the soldiers out of trouble. But the 11 disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. Matthew is the only gospel that does not have the disciples and Jesus in the upper room (Though Mark does have it, it is just a one line statement. It is in the part that is under dispute - that looks like it was added later.). If the apostle Matthew actually wrote this gospel completely by himself, I don't see how he could have left out the upper room. This plus the fact that the gospel of Matthew called the Last Supper the Passover makes me suspicious that someone else actually wrote it. I don't see how someone who was physically present could've...

  Good morning. Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, the two Marys came to look at the grave. The different Gospels give different accounts of who was there. A severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it. The guards were afraid of him, and became like dead men. He said to the women, “do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going before you into Galilee. There you will see Him.” Mark also has the angel telling the women that Jesus was going before the disciples into Galilee. In fact there are several places where Matthew and Mark are almost Word for Word. The women run to tell the disciples about this. Jesus meets them and tells them to ta...

  Good morning. Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, “ truly this was the Son of God!” Roman soldiers were from different countries, many having various gods; so this was not necessarily a profession of faith. He could have been simply saying that with all of the signs going on that this certainly was the son of a god. There were many women there looking on from a distance. When it was evening, Joseph of Arimathea, who had become a disciple of Jesus went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. He put it in his own new tomb hewn out in the rock and rolled a large stone against the entrance. The two Marys were sitting opposite the grave. Now on the next day, which is the one after the preparation: generally this meant preparation for the Sabbath (Saturday). In other words, it was the day before the Sabbath (Saturday). So Matthew was saying the day a...

  Good morning. From about noon until 3 PM it became dark. There is no explanation of how it happened. Recently when they had the eclipse, it became dark for only a few minutes. Then Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” This of course is what was said in Psalm 22, which referred to the Christ. Some people thought He was calling for Elijah to help Him. Someone got a sponge and filled it with sour wine, and gave Him a drink. I always thought that it was wine that had been sitting around for a long time and had gone sour. I read though that it was cheap wine that was given to the soldiers – that is why it was sour. Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. The veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth shook; and the rocks were split, and the tombs were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the ...

  Good morning. The soldiers took Jesus and put the crown of thorns on His head. They mocked Him, and then took Him out to be crucified. They found Simon to bear His cross. They gave Him wine to drink mingled with gall; after tasting it, He was unwilling to drink. This was like a sedative so He would not feel as much pain; but He would have none of that. When they had crucified Him, they divided up His clothes among themselves, casting lots. When we think of Jesus being crucified, we think of the entire long process – not just the nailing Him to the cross, and raising it into the air. They put up a sign – this is Jesus the king of the Jews. In another gospel, it has the religious leaders telling the governor that he should change it to Jesus said He was the king of the Jews. Two robbers were crucified with Him. The people standing by watching mocked Him, “ if You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” “He is the king of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we s...

  Good morning. When Judas saw that Jesus had been condemned, he felt remorse and returned the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders. What was Judas expecting/hoping for when he betrayed Jesus; wasn't it this? “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They answered, “what is that to us? See to that yourself!” He threw the pieces of silver into the sanctuary and went away and hanged himself. The chief priests did not know what to do with the money. It was not lawful to put it into the treasury since it was the price of blood. They bought the potter’s field as a burial place for strangers. Now we go to Jesus being questioned by Pilate. “Are You the King of the Jews?” Of course that was a ridiculous concept. Standing before him was someone who was obviously a commoner. Possibly he said it with a touch of sarcasm. Jesus, “It is as You say.” Of course there was no crime in thinking that – it might mean that you are insane, but not a criminal. The chief priests and elder...

  Good morning. While Jesus was being grilled, Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. A servant girl came up to him and said, “you too were with Jesus the Galilean.” He denied it – “I do not know what you're talking about.” Later a second one said to those that were there, “this man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” He denied it with an oath. Later a bystander said, “surely you too are one of them (don't call me Shirley); for the way you talk gives you away.” Was this because of Peter’s southern drawl 😊 like everyone thinks; or was it because he did not use foul language like everyone else - He began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” Immediately a cock crowed. Peter remembered what Jesus had said and went out and wept bitterly. Thankfully we have not been in a situation where we had to make a decision like that, though it is quite possible we will be in the future. Now it is morning, and all the chief priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus ...

  Good morning. While Jesus was being grilled, Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. A servant girl came up to him and said, “you too were with Jesus the Galilean.” He denied it – “I do not know what you're talking about.” Later a second one said to those that were there, “this man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” He denied it with an oath. Later a bystander said, “surely you too are one of them (don't call me Shirley); for the way you talk gives you away.” Was this because of Peter’s southern drawl 😊 like everyone thinks; or was it because he did not use foul language like everyone else - He began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” Immediately a cock crowed. Peter remembered what Jesus had said and went out and wept bitterly. Thankfully we have not been in a situation where we had to make a decision like that, though it is quite possible we will be in the future. Now it is morning, and all the chief priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus ...

  Good morning. They take Jesus to Caiaphas, the high priest. Peter follows Him at a distance. He goes into the courtyard of the high priest and sits down. The chief priest and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, in order that they might put Him to death. There was no agreement among the witnesses until two of them said that Jesus said He was able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days. They needed the agreement of two or three witnesses in order to convict Jesus. On its own that statement would be ridiculous today. Today He would more likely be thrown into the loony bin instead of being killed. No sane person would think that he could destroy the temple, much less rebuild it in only three days. The high priest tried to get Jesus to answer the charges against Him. He wanted Jesus to say something he could use against Him. Finally the high priest said “I adjure You by the living God that You tell us whether You are the Christ,...

  Good morning. Back to the garden: He found them sleeping. So, you could not keep watch with Me for one hour? They did not realize what was about to happen. He had told them, but it still had not sunk in. If it had, perhaps their adrenaline would have kicked in, and they would still be awake. Keep watching and praying, that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. He did the same thing a second and a third time. Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. The one who betrays Me is at hand! Judas came with a great multitude from the chief priests and elders. He had given them a sign – the one I kiss is He. Judas again calls Him rabbi – not Lord. Friend, do what you have come for. They lay hands on Jesus. One of them (Peter) draws a sword and cuts off the ear of the slave of the high priest. We've seen so many movies about the days of King Arthur, tha...

  Good morning. Jesus said “you will all fall away because of Me this night, for it is written, ‘I will strike down the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered.’ But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee (we will come back to this statement at the end of Matthew)." Peter of course says he will not fall away no matter what everybody else does. Truly I say to you that this very night, before a cock crows (One gospel says twice), you shall deny Me three times. Peter gets really upset. Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You. People put Peter down for saying that, but all the disciples said the same thing too. They however did not publicly deny Him three times. Then they went to the garden of Gethsemane. He takes Peter, James, and John with Him to a separate place in the garden. My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me. He goes a little bit farther “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pa...

  Good morning. Now on the first day of unleavened bread, the disciples came to Jesus and wanted to know where He wanted them to prepare to eat the Passover. They were to go to a certain man and to tell him that the teacher said the time is at hand; He was to eat the Passover at his house. They prepared the Passover. I personally do not believe that it was the Passover. There are many reasons why I believe that, but it would take too long to go into. I will point out some of them when we get to John. If it were the Passover, then Jesus, our Passover lamb, was sacrificed 24 hours after the other Passover lambs. While they were eating, Jesus said to them, “truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me.” The disciples’ feelings were hurt. “ surely not I, Lord?” (don't call me Shirley 😇 ) The one who dipped his hand with Me in the bowl, is the one who will betray Me. The Son of Man is to go, just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It w...

  Good morning. Now when Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper (in John it says that Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus), a woman came to Him with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume, and she poured it upon His head as He reclined at the table. The disciples were upset and said that it was a waste. It could've been sold for a high price, and the money given to the poor. In another place it says that Judas was upset because he had the money box and used to steal from it. Why are you upset? She did a good deed for Me. You have the poor with you always, but you don't always have Me. When she poured this perfume upon My body, she did it to prepare Me for burial. Wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what she did shall be spoken of in memory of her. I may have mentioned this before. Think about it – she just poured very expensive perfume all over His head. They did not have showers, and probably did not take a full bath w...

  Good morning. But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right come, you are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. He then lists some things they did for Him. When did we do those things for you? To the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me. Then He says to those on His left, you did not help Me when I needed it. When did we not help You? To the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me. And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. Of course we can't do anything to actually help Jesus, but we can do things to help our ...

  Good morning. So Jesus just got through telling about the Son of Man coming when they were not expecting Him to come. Then – after what He just said the last time – the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to 10 virgins, who took their lamps, and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five foolish – no oil; five wise – brought oil with them. Because the bridegroom delayed, they went to sleep and their lamps went out. Remember that we are supposed to be alert. The bridegroom comes and the foolish want the wise to give them some of their oil. The wise said that then there won't be enough for us either – go buy some. While they are gone, the groom comes, shuts the door, and won't let them in. He says that he does not know them. Be on the alert then, for you do not know the hour nor the day. Jesus then tells the parable of the talents. There is a variety among the gospels as to how many talents each one has. The first two double their money. The third one hid the money. The master is a...

  Good morning. For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. They were carrying on like usual until the day Noah enter the ark. That's because they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away. Can you blame them? There had never been anything like that before. If they saw the ark, I'm sure they made fun of Noah. I don't know how far away the nearest water was. Even if it were close by and they had built boats before, the boats would not have been anywhere nearly as big as the ark was. So shall the coming of the Son of Man be. Why wouldn't it be the same? It is absurd to think anything like what is described about the tribulation will happen. Why should they change their way of living? Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. For the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will. Of course there have been various groups that believed they knew which day Jesus was returning. Je...

  Good morning. Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. First of all, the word “not” in Greek is a double negative. In English, that would mean that it would be a positive statement. In Greek that means that for certain it will not happen. There have been various attempts to explain what it means by “this generation will not pass away until all these things take place”. That's because the generation alive when Jesus said it did pass away before all of those things happened, and we had a double negative that guaranteed they would not pass away. So some have said that the word generation refers to the Jewish people. The Greek verb used for the statement “take place" normally refers to the simple past tense. I read that it can mean inception; that is, begin to happen. They are the same Greek words that the angel used to tell Zachariah that he would not speak until all these things happened concerning his son John the Baptist that ...

  Good morning. Back to Matthew 24. Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not get its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Notice that it says after, not before the tribulation. Of course it wasn't really stars that were falling from heaven. And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. The people of the ancient world conceived of the expanded sky as an arch or vault, the outmost edge of which touched the extreme limits of the earth. Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender, and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near....