hope — The Gospels in English — His Glory In Our Story

Imagine it. The first man and woman lived in a glorious Garden. They had lives of perfect rest and happiness. They never had to worry about having enough food, about bad weather or illness or growing old. It was a world of endless bliss.

Story 5: The Day of the Lord

There are many ways that humans have viewed the world. In our deep hunger for meaning and purpose, we tend form beliefs into systems that make sense of all the different aspects of human life. Are we karmic souls, moving from life to life, that will one day enter into a cosmic pool as a drop of water joins the ocean? Are humans and animals and stars simply masses of chemicals that will decompose at death?

Story 20: The Light that Shines: Where Are You Getting Your Hope?

What do you do with your words? I've got to admit that sometimes the phrase "talk is cheap" is a good description for the things I take the trouble to say. If the Bible is right (and I believe it is) then we can know that the opposite is true of God.

Bible Learning, Biblical Narratives, Faith, Incarnation, Jesus, John the Apostle, Spiritual formation, storiesJennifer JagersonOctober 17, 2020beloved, betrayal, Bible, eternity, forgivenss, God, hope, Incarnation, Jesus, John, Light of the world, narrative, Story, transformation, Truth, Word

Story 26: The Ultimate Kill

The Spirit of the Lord had come to anoint the Son of God in a special and powerful way. After Jesus’ baptism, the Spirit led Jesus away from the Jordan and the bustle of ministry that surrounded John. Jesus was compelled to go out to the wilderness and to the silence of utter nature.

Story 28: A New Way to Party: Changing Water into Wine

The time had come for the most important work in human history to begin...the ministry of Christ. But He didn't go it alone. During His final days at John the Baptist's encampment, John continually pointed out to his own followers that Jesus was the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world. This lit a fire under some of the men and they went to Jesus, seeking Him as their rabbi.

Story 30: Delving into the Mysteries of God: Nicodemus the Brave

The world of the Jews was being shaken. In the midst of their great, national Passover celebration, the young man named Jesus was turning everything upside down.

Story 32: A Broken Woman in a Broken World and the Cleansing Streams of Living Water

As the ministry of Jesus began to grow in influence, a lot of people weren’t happy. John the Baptist’s disciples weren’t the only ones who noticed how popular Jesus was becoming. The Pharisees were taking notice of Him, too.

Story 33: The Messiah's Preaching in Galilee Begins: Will the People Hear His Call?

As the Lord travelled to Galilee to begin His ministry there, He stopped for several days in Samaria. The people there had responded to His message of freedom and transformation with great faithfulness. Then the Lord journeyed to Cana.

Story 36: Signs of the End of Suffering: The One with Healing in His Hands

In the early days of Christ’s ministry, He spent His days preaching and teaching in the northern region of the nation of Israel around the Sea of Galilee. One day while Jesus was in Capernaum, He went for a walk along the edge of the water.

Apostle Peter, Bible Learning, Bible Lesson, Biblical Narratives, Christianity, corruption, demonic, Demons, disciples, evil spirits, Faith, freedom, Galilee, healing, Holy Spirit, Israel, Jesus, Jewish History, Jews, Mary, Messiah, Metanarrative, narrative, New Testament, Old Testament, Peter, prophecy, radical, Scripture study, Spiritual formation, spirituality, truthJennifer JagersonOctober 17, 2020Anounted One, Bible, Blessed, Christ, demonic, evil spirits, faith, God, Gospels, healing, history, Holy Spirit, hope, Isaiah, Israel, Jesus, Jews, Lord, Luke, Mark, Matthew, Messiah, miracles, narrative, New Testament, Old Testament, oppression, overcoming, Peter, prophecy, radical, reformer, righteousness, Salvation, Scripture, Simon, sin, spirituality, stories, Story, theology, transformation, Word

Story 37: Leaving Everything You've Known for Everything You've Needed

How different were the people of Capernaum from those in Nazareth! They heard the words of Jesus and believed! Many were healed of their suffering. Can you imagine the excitement the people felt as they watched people being set free?

Apostle Paul, Bible Learning, Bible Lesson, Biblical Narratives, calling, Christianity, disciples, Faith, freedom, Galilee, Israel, Jesus, Jewish History, John the Apostle, Mark, Messiah, Metanarrative, New Testament, Peter, radical, Scripture study, Spiritual formation, stories, truthJennifer JagersonOctober 17, 2020Bible, calling, faith, fishermen, Galilee, God, Gospels, history, hope, Jesus, John, Lord, Luke, Mark, Matthew, Messiah, miracles, narrative, New Testament, overcoming, Peter, radical, reformer, righteousness, Salvation, Scripture, Simon, stories, Story, theology, transformation

Story 38: The Healing Power of Jesus

As Jesus and His disciples were traveling to the cities and towns around Galilee, the Lord continued to do His work of teaching and miraculous healing. Crowds came from all over to follow this wildly popular young preacher.

Story 39: Forgiveness

The times that Christ lived in were very different times from our own. There were no news cameras or newspapers. It wasn’t possible to take a picture with a cell phone and post it on the internet.

Story 40: Tell Me Who the Real Sinners Are

Jesus was out once again walking along the shore of the sea. What a beautiful view with the yellow, rolling hills that molded themselves around the blue, shimmering waters of Galilee. It was probably some time in the fall, but the nation of Israel is in a land where the weather is mild, even in the middle of winter.

Story 46: A Day in the Life: The Crowds Come

One of the ways a writer expresses what is important is by using a lot of repetition. You can tell what is important to them by the subjects that they bring up the most often and by what themes get the most volume in their writings.

Bible Learning, Bible Lesson, Biblical Narratives, Christianity, demonic, evil spirits, Faith, Galilee, Gospels, healing, Holy Spirit, Israel, Jesus, Jewish History, Jewish Law, Jews, Mark, Messiah, Metanarrative, miracle, narrative, New Testament, Old Testament, prophecy, radical, Scripture study, sin, stories, synagogueJennifer JagersonOctober 17, 2020Bible, Christ, God, Gospels, history, hope, Isaiah, Israel, Jesus, Jews, Luke, Matthew, Messiah, New Testament, Old Testament, overcoming, prophecy, radical, reformer, Scripture, stories, theology, transformation, Truth

Story 50: Rich in Blessings, Poor in Spirit

These words are like the doorway to being a disciple. In each verse, the Lord did not give a specific action, like “serving” or “sharing the Gospel.”

Story 51: On Meekness, Mercy, and the Hunger

Crowds upon crowds of people had come from all over the nation of Israel and the surrounding countries to see Jesus, the popular young preacher who performed amazing miracles and taught about God in a radical new way.

Story 53: Persecuted Ones: His Love for You is Great

As I prepare this blog, my heart trembles. I have never been called upon to truly suffer for my faith. One of the interesting things about blogging is that I can check every day to see how many people have read my posts and what countries they are from.

Story 55: Salt and Light

In the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord Jesus started by describing the qualities of those who are blessed in His Kingdom. They are very different from the things that receive respect and honor in the eyes of the world. They look like Him.

Story 58: The Intoxicating Beauty of Romantic Love and It's Dangers in a Fallen World

Jesus was teaching the Sermon on the Mount. He explained what it means to be a member of God’s Kingdom. The key is found in qualities of the heart such as purity, mercy, and meekness. These rich inner qualities will show outwardly in the way Christ’s followers respond to life.

Beatitudes, Bible Learning, Bible Lesson, Biblical Narratives, blessing, bride, calling, Christianity, corruption, disobedience, Faith, forgiveness, freedom, Galilee, Gospels, healing, humility, Israel, Jesus, Jewish History, Jewish Law, Jews, Kingdom of God, Kingdom of Heaven, Lord, marriage, Matthew, Messiah, Metanarrative, narrative, New Testament, obedience, Old Testament, purity, radical, religious leaders, Scripture study, Sermon on the Mount, Spiritual formation, spirituality, transformation, WeddingJennifer JagersonOctober 17, 2020betrayal, Bible, Blessed, Christ, corruption, faith, God, Gospels, history, hope, Israel, Jesus, marraige, Matthew, Messiah, narrative, New Testament, Old Testament, purity, radical, religious leaders, righteousness, romantic love, Salvation, theology, transformation, Truth, Word

Story 59: The Shattering Pain of Divorce: God's hope is for so much more

The next thing Jesus preached about in His Sermon on the Mount is a hard one. It is an area where the brokenness of the human race has created a painful, destructive disaster in the hearts and lives of many precious souls.