Nasty Sea Storms and Ships

By Mary Vee
Matthew 8

From Matthew's Journal 

On the Sea of Galilee where Peter, Andrew, and others fished.
Photo by Mary Vee

My name is Matthew, I am a follower of Jesus. I have recorded some of what I witnessed in this post. 

I and other of Jesus's disciples are on board a boat sailing across the Sea of Galilee. Jesus is also on board. To our left and right, there are other boats sailing with us.

Because of the mountains around this sea, storms can rise quickly and with no notice. When they do, the cool waters fuel the winds, causing the storm to build and rifling tall waves that threaten to overtake the boat. 

Birds circle with the winds, screeching as they fly away from the storm.

The sky darkens. A furious squall appears.

Waves break over the boat, soaking our clothes and chilling us to the bone. 

Water pools inside the boat, rising quickly, threatening to sink the ship. We are absolutely terrified.

Jesus has fallen asleep on a cushion in the stern, (the back of the boat). 

I run to him and shake his shoulder until he wakes. When his eyes open I say, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" He has to have known the trouble we are in.

Jesus sits up then stands. He looks out at the wind and says "Quiet!" He looks at the waves and says, "Be still!"

Just like that--the wind dies down as if it had never been stirred.

It took a few minutes for my heart and breath to settle down.

Jesus turns to us and says, "Why are you so afraid?"

It was a fair question. We should have been afraid, not with Him on board, but we are.

He says, "Don't you have any faith?"

We look at each other. Ashamed. Puzzled. Mystified. Who is this man? Even the wind and the waves obey him. 




If you have questions, please feel free to leave them in the comment section.


Next time I will write about amazing miracles performed by Jesus.

 Come back to read the next story.

*********************************************************************************************

sources: 
*A Harmony of the Gospels for Historical Study, An Analytical Synopsis of the Four Gospels by William Arnold Stevens and Ernest DeWitt Burton, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York 1932
*New International Version, New King James Version. 
*My Bible College training.
*My notes and walk through classes I've taught in Children's church. Answers to student questions, etc.
*Pastoral sermons on this time
*Matthew Henry Commentary
*F. LaGard Smith Commentary
*My notes from my trip to Israel.
*Photos from my trip to Israel.

The Ones Who Were Left Behind

By Mary Vee
Matthew 8

From Matthew's Journal 

On the Sea of Galilee where Peter, Andrew, and others fished.
Photo by Mary Vee

My name is Matthew, I am a follower of Jesus. I have recorded some of what I witnessed in this post. 

Jesus finished explaining the lesson in the last parable to us as the crowds noticed Him and moved our way. They seemed interested in listening to more, but Jesus had other tasks that needed to be done at the time.

We boarded a boat set to cross the Sea of Galilee. 

A teacher of the law approached the boat and said to Jesus, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go."

Jesus answered him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." 

It seemed to me that Jesus wanted to help this man understand that following Him would not include a rich lifestyle. There wouldn't be fancy houses or any other lavish perks. Those of us who had been following Jesus saw this to be true.

Jesus turned to another man approaching the boat and said, "Follow me."

The man said, "Lord, I will, but first let me go and bury my father." He wasn't saying that his father had died and needed burial right then. He meant that he wanted to wait until his father grew old and died. That could take several years.

Jesus answered the man, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God."

Another man approached the boat and said, "I will follow you, Lord, but first let me go back and say good-bye to my family."

Jesus answered, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.

By the time evening came, Jesus said, "Let's go across the sea." 

And so the boat set sail, leaving those who did not choose to follow Jesus behind with the crowd.




If you have questions, please feel free to leave them in the comment section.


Next time I will write about amazing miracles performed by Jesus.

 Come back to read the next story.

*********************************************************************************************

sources: 
*A Harmony of the Gospels for Historical Study, An Analytical Synopsis of the Four Gospels by William Arnold Stevens and Ernest DeWitt Burton, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York 1932
*New International Version, New King James Version. 
*My Bible College training.
*My notes and walk through classes I've taught in Children's church. Answers to student questions, etc.
*Pastoral sermons on this time
*Matthew Henry Commentary
*F. LaGard Smith Commentary
*My notes from my trip to Israel.
*Photos from my trip to Israel.

The Great Sorting At the End of Time

By Mary Vee
Matthew 13

From Matthew's Journal 

On the Sea of Galilee where Peter, Andrew, and others fished.
Photo by Mary Vee

My name is Matthew, I am a follower of Jesus. I have recorded some of what I witnessed in this post. 

The other disciples and I have listened to Jesus teach. He uses short stories called parables to communicate His lesson.  

In each parable, Jesus talked about people like us, living in places like we do, working as we do and such a situation that taught the lesson. 

Other parables have been written In previous posts and sent to you from Mark and Luke. You can scroll down and read them. 

These were the last three parables Jesus shared on this day:

Jesus said, "The kingdom of heaven is like a large commercial fishing net that is let down into the lake and catches all kinds of fish. When it is full, the fishermen pull it up on the shore. With the fish spread across the ground, the fishermen sit down and separate the good fish, placing them in baskets. The bad fish that remain are thrown away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw the evil ones into the fiery furnace, where there will be terrible weeping and gnashing of teeth.

"Have you understood all these things I have taught you?"

The other disciples and I looked at each other and nodded. "Yes. We have."

Jesus said, "All right then. Every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom the new and the old treasure to examine. He then decides which is good and keeps those items and which truly did not have value and should be thrown away."

There are many similar parables that Jesus shared with us. He did this to help us understand His teachings. In the days he spent with the crowds, He did not say anything without using a parable.

But when Jesus was alone with us, the chosen twelve, he explained everything so clearly we could not possibly misunderstand. Because He did this, Jesus fulfilled prophecies spoken by the prophets who said:

I will open my mouth in parables. I will say things hidden since the creation of the world. 



If you have questions, please feel free to leave them in the comment section.


Next time I will write about amazing miracles performed by Jesus.

 Come back to read the next story.

*********************************************************************************************

sources: 
*A Harmony of the Gospels for Historical Study, An Analytical Synopsis of the Four Gospels by William Arnold Stevens and Ernest DeWitt Burton, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York 1932
*New International Version, New King James Version. 
*My Bible College training.
*My notes and walk through classes I've taught in Children's church. Answers to student questions, etc.
*Pastoral sermons on this time
*Matthew Henry Commentary
*F. LaGard Smith Commentary
*My notes from my trip to Israel.
*Photos from my trip to Israel.

Jesus Tells A Story

By Mary Vee
Matthew 13

From Matthew's Journal 

Photo by Mary Vee.

My name is Matthew, I am a follower of Jesus. I have recorded in this post some of what I witnessed. 

Jesus gathered the twelve chosen disciples and others who followed him. He chose to teach us using short stories that are call parables to communicate the lesson.  

In each parable, Jesus talked about people like us, living in places like we do, working as we do and in a situation that taught the lesson. 

Other parables have been written In previous posts and sent to you from Mark and Luke. You can scroll down and read them. 

Here are three new short parables Jesus shared with us on this day:

Jesus said to us, "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that is added to flour and water. The cook works the yeast through the dough, kneading, pressing, and pounding the ingredients in a bowl. The dough is left alone to rest. While it rests the yeast works, multiplying and growing. The dough rises above the top of the bowl. At this time, the cook repeats the process, needing, pressing, and pounding then allows the dough to rest, again, for three times. At the end of the time, the dough is of a good quality, ready to be baked."

Jesus told another parable, "The kingdom of heaven is like a great treasure hidden in an abandoned field. When a man happened into the field and discovered it, he immediately rejoiced! He hid it in the same place then went home, and sold everything he had. He took all the money and bought the field.

Jesus then told another parable describing the kingdom of heaven. "The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant who traveled far and wide searching for fine pearls. He found many small ones. But one day he found one of great value. He went home, sold everything he owned then took the money back to the owner and bought the pearl.  

There are more parables that Jesus shared, which will be told to you in the next posts. But for now, think about these three stories. The yeast. The man who found a treasure and sold all he had to purchase the field. And the merchant who searched for a pearl of great value. 

What do you think the meaning of these parables are?

If you have questions, please feel free to leave them in the comment section.


I will share more of what Jesus taught next time.

 Come back to read the next story.

*********************************************************************************************

sources: 
*A Harmony of the Gospels for Historical Study, An Analytical Synopsis of the Four Gospels by William Arnold Stevens and Ernest DeWitt Burton, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York 1932
*New International Version, New King James Version. 
*My Bible College training.
*My notes and walk through classes I've taught in Children's church. Answers to student questions, etc.
*Pastoral sermons on this time
*Matthew Henry Commentary
*F. LaGard Smith Commentary
*My notes from my trip to Israel.
*Photos from my trip to Israel.

Jesus Tells Three Parables

By Mary Vee
Mark 4

From Mark's Journal 

Photo by Mary Vee.

My name is Mark, I am a follower of Jesus. I have recorded in this post some of what I witnessed. 

Jesus gathered the twelve chosen disciples and others who followed him for a time to hear short stories that are call parables. He used these parables to teach truths. 

In each parable, Jesus talked about people like us, living in places like we do, working as we do and in a situation that teaches the lesson. 

Other parables have been sent In previous posts sent to you by Matthew and Luke. You can scroll down and read them. 

Here are three short parables Jesus shared with us on this day:

Jesus said to us, "Do you bring in a lamp and set it under a bowl or a bed where no one can see the light?"

He paused and let us respond. Obviously we said no.

Jesus said, "Of course not. You put it on the stand and let the light shine in the whole room. There will come a day when the truth behind these parables will shine brightly. 

I, Mark, am going to interrupt here, because Jesus is about to say something that needs to be thought about carefully. Ready?

"Put into practice what you area able to understand from these parables. The more you do this, the more you will understand what I tell you. To him who has understood and practiced the teachings, more will be given. To him who does not practice, the understanding will be taken away."

Jesus said, "Here is another parable, This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man went out to his field one day and scattered his seed on the ground. During the next nights and days, whether the man slept or rose from his bed, the seed sprouted and grew even though he didn't understand how this happened. 

"All by itself the soil produces grain: first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, the man takes his sickle and reaps the wheat, because the harvest has come."

Jesus gave us a few moments to think about these words.

Jesus then told us another parable. He said, "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though this seed is the smallest of all your seeds it grows to be the largest of the garden plants, turning into a tree and a place where birds of the air can perch in its branches."

There are more parables that Jesus shared, which will be told to you in the next posts. But for now, think about these three stories. The lamp. The seed that grows into a plant when the farmer is away. The tiny mustard seed that grows into a large plant. What do you think the meaning of these parables are?

If you have questions, please feel free to leave them in the comment section.


I will share more of what Jesus taught next time.

 Come back to read the next story.

*********************************************************************************************

sources: 
*A Harmony of the Gospels for Historical Study, An Analytical Synopsis of the Four Gospels by William Arnold Stevens and Ernest DeWitt Burton, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York 1932
*New International Version, New King James Version. 
*My Bible College training.
*My notes and walk through classes I've taught in Children's church. Answers to student questions, etc.
*Pastoral sermons on this time
*Matthew Henry Commentary
*F. LaGard Smith Commentary
*My notes from my trip to Israel.
*Photos from my trip to Israel.