Weekday Word w/ Eric

Tag: god

  • Do You See This Woman?

    Scripture:“Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, ‘Do you see this woman?’” (Luke 7:44) Luke tells a dinner story where a “sinful woman” enters, weeps, anoints Jesus, and is silently condemned. The host’s judgment is not subtle: “If Jesus knew what kind of woman this is…” In Luke’s world, women carried reputations…

  • Grief Stops the Parade

    Scripture:“When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, ‘Don’t cry.’” (Luke 7:13) Luke tells the story of a widow in Nain who has lost her only son. In that society, this wasn’t just emotional devastation—it was economic and social vulnerability. A widow without a son could quickly become invisible,…

  • The Women in Jesus’ Family Tree

    Scripture:“He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.” (Luke 1:52)“Tamar… Rahab… Ruth… the wife of Uriah…” (Matthew 1:3, 5–6) Luke doesn’t give us a genealogy the way Matthew does, but Luke absolutely gives us the same theology: God lifts the lowly and works through the overlooked. Matthew makes that…

  • What Restoration Looks Like

    Scripture:“They found the man… sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind.” (Luke 8:35)“They devoted themselves… and all who believed… had all things in common.” (Acts 2:42–47) Luke doesn’t end with fireworks. He ends with a picture of wholeness: clothed, clear-minded, sitting at Jesus’ feet. That’s not merely “symptom management.” That’s…

  • An Outsider of Outsiders

    Scripture:“A man… met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs.” (Luke 8:27)“Jesus came… to seek out and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:10) Luke describes this man in layers of exclusion. He’s not just struggling—he’s socially erased. No home. No…

  • The Injury Caused By Holding On Too Tight

    Scripture (Luke):“When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy.” (Luke 18:23)“How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” (Luke 18:24) Luke brings a rich ruler into the conversation—an insider with everything going for him: moral seriousness, social standing, resources, respectability. He wants eternal life. He…

  • Mercy is Outsider Language

    Scripture:“The Pharisee… prayed… ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people…’” (Luke 18:11)“But the tax collector… said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’” (Luke 18:13) Luke contrasts two prayers—one polished, one bare. The Pharisee’s prayer sounds religious, but it’s really a speech about himself. It’s a prayer that builds a wall:…

  • The Connection Between Persistence & Justice

    Scripture: Luke 18:1-8One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. “There was a judge in a certain city,” he said, “who neither feared God nor cared about people. A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute…

  • Jesus Says, “I Want to…”

    Scripture:“A man with leprosy… begged him, ‘Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.’ Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be clean!’” (Luke 5:12–13)“And the news about him spread all the more…” (Luke 5:15) There’s a question hiding inside the leper’s request: Can I hope…

  • Ashes on the Edges

    Scripture“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” (Luke 6:20)“He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.” (Luke 1:52) Ash Wednesday is the day we tell the truth out loud: we are dust, and to dust we return. It’s not a threat—it’s a mercy.…