Chatty Bus
In 2019, the Oxford Bus Company launched the instantly popular “Chatty Bus,” a bus with designated people on board willing to talk with interested passengers. The route was initiated in response to government research which found that thirty percent of Britons go at least one day each week without a meaningful conversation.
Many of us have likely experienced the loneliness that comes from not having someone to talk to in a time of need. As I reflect on the value of important conversations in my life, I’m especially reminded of discussions that were full of grace. Those times brought me joy…
Pausing At The Tomb
Read: Luke 23:50-24:12
They observed the tomb and how His body was laid. (Luke 23:55)
My youngest daughter and I were walking…
The Greatest Wrong
Read: Acts 2:22-36
God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ. (Acts 2:36)
Followers of Christ see His…
Is He Listening?
Read: Matthew 26:39-42; 27:45-46
My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? (Matthew 27:46)
Sometimes it feels as if God isn’t…
Tale Of A Towel
Read: John 13:1-17
If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's…
Two Mites
Read: Mark 12:41-44
She out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood. (Mark 12:44)
Jesus sat in…
Driving Lessons
Read: Mark 12:28-34
There is no other commandment greater than these. (Mark 12:31)
One morning on my way to work, I began…
He Understands and Cares
Read: Isaiah 53:1–8
Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering. (Isaiah 53:4)
When asked if he thought that ignorance…
DAY 12 - THE RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION OF JESUS
DAY 12 - THE RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION OF JESUS
READ:
MARK 16:1-8 & MARK 16:19
Mark’s narrative of the resurrection has long puzzled many interpreters. After witnessing the most glorious and significant event in the course of human history, the women who came to anoint Jesus’ body “went out and fled from the tomb” because they were “trembling and bewildered” and they “said…
DAY 11 - THE BURIAL OF JESUS
DAY 11 - THE BURIAL OF JESUS
READ:
MARK 15:42-47
Two disciples came to claim the body of Jesus for burial (John 19:38–42). Mark mentions one of them, Joseph of Arimathea. He was a secret disciple because he feared the Jews (V. 38). This kept him from making an open stand for Jesus, at least until Jesus’ trials. He was a minority…
DAY 10 - THE CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS
DAY 10 - THE CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS
READ:
MARK 15:25-39
Crucifixion was a very barbaric form of death invented by the Romans for slaves and those who rebelled against the Roman authorities. Thousands of criminals were crucified on the cross, and this sight would have been familiar to many in the first century. When Jesus invited His disciples to take up…
DAY 9 - THE PASSION OF JESUS
DAY 9 - THE PASSION OF JESUS
READ:
MARK 15:16-24
The cross Jesus carried to Golgotha was too heavy, so Simon of Cyrene was asked to help Him (Mark 15:21). This encounter with Jesus changed his life. Simon was a Jew and a native of North Africa who probably had just arrived in Jerusalem for the Passover. He was the father of…
DAY 8 - JESUS BEFORE PILATE
DAY 8 - JESUS BEFORE PILATE
READ:
MARK 15:1-15
When the religious leaders brought Jesus to him, Pilate was not too convinced that their charges were political in nature. He suspected the matter stemmed from their envy of Jesus.
Nonetheless, Pilate allowed himself to be swayed by them. When the religious leaders tried to corner him by saying that he was no friend…
DAY 7 - PETER'S DENIAL OF JESUS
DAY 7 - PETER'S DENIAL OF JESUS
READ:
MARK 14:66-72
The story of Peter’s denial is carefully crafted in Mark’s Gospel. Jesus’ interrogation by the high priest (Mark 14:55–65) is sandwiched between the two narratives of Peter following Jesus at a distance and his denial of Jesus (vv. 53–54, 66–72). This structure contrasts Jesus’ bold response in affirming His messianic identity with…
