Jesus gets to the heart of the matter with the statement, “You can't serve two masters. You'll either end up hating one and loving the other, or you'll be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

The Parable of the Lost Son Luke 15:11-32 Jesus welcomed everyone, from the most righteous to those considered by some to be unclean. He...

The Parable of the Rich Fool Luke 12: 13-21 Now Jesus was speaking to His disciples while a crowd listened in, eager to hear what their...

The Good Samaritan Luke 10:25-37 When Jesus Christ walked through the streets of Jerusalem, His presence commanded immediate attention....

The Parable of the Talents Matthew 25:14-30 Jesus tells us another parable about a wealthy man about to leave on a long trip abroad....

The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins Matthew 25:1-13 ​Jesus told another parable about ten virgins with torches, or lamps, who...

Some invitations are sent but thrown away. Others were invited, but they were not worthy of selection. Check your mailbox. Did you get yours?

God’s Word is sweet and full of life. The harvest is plentiful, but good help is hard to find. Vinedressers are responsible for preserving the sweetest fruits of God’s love for His children. He has no use for wicked farmers who produce only “sour grapes.”

Jesus liked to use landowners in His parables. In those days, it would be easy for the listeners to see the similarities between this world and the kingdom of heaven. It seems that a landowner needed a lot of workers to bring in his grape harvest.

Then, Jesus tells a story to illustrate how things work in God's kingdom. Imagine a king who's settling accounts with his servants. One guy gets brought before the king owing a massive debt – we're talking millions in today's money! This guy's totally broke, so the king orders him and his whole family to be sold off. Not that selling them would cover the debt, but it was more about making a point and preventing the debt from getting worse. The servant throws himself at the ki

Here was Jesus, suggesting that the kingdom of heaven, the church taking root on earth, would be like this massive batch of dough, thoroughly infused with elements contrary to its pure intention. He wasn't painting a picture of instant perfection, but rather one of pervasive influence, both good and, disturbingly, impure. It was His way of teaching, direct and often challenging. He was focused on His Father's mission.

He told them of a farmer who went out to his fields, sowing only the finest, purest wheat seed. But under the cover of darkness, an enemy crept in and scattered a different kind of seed among the wheat—a poisonous weed, a tare, that looked almost identical to the young wheat stalks. Its wicked work done, the enemy vanished into the night.

However, weeds naturally stifle and suffocate anything nearby, and that's precisely what they did: they strangled the life out of the plants!