“Jesus wept.” John 11:35 (NIV) Grief and faith are not enemies. We have been taught, quietly and without anyone meaning harm, that strong believers do not fall apart. That tears are a sign of wavering. That the right response to…
“Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.” John 11:5–6 (NIV) Love and delay do not cancel each other out. That is the…
“‘I am the man,’ he said.” John 9:9 (NIV) Three words. The whole chapter in miniature. When the neighbors and bystanders could not agree on whether this was even the same person they had always known, the man born blind…
“Then they hurled insults at him and said, ‘You are this fellow’s disciple! We are disciples of Moses!’” John 9:28 (NIV) He stood alone in a room full of experts. The man born blind had no religious training, no legal…
“‘Go,’ he told him, ‘wash in the Pool of Siloam’ (this word means ‘Sent’).” John 9:7 (NIV) God hides theology in geography. Jesus did not send the blind man to just any pool of water. He sent him to Siloam,…
“He spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes.” John 9:6 (NIV) Nobody asks for the process that changes them. The man in John 9 did not request mud on his…
“As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth.” John 9:1 (NIV) Some burdens began before you did. The man in John 9 did not lose his sight in an accident. He was not careless with something he…
“After the people saw the sign Jesus performed, they began to say, ‘Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.’” John 6:14 (NIV) The crowd saw the miracle and still missed the point. They watched Jesus…
“‘Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.’ So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.” John 6:12-13 (NIV) Jesus fed thousands…
“Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.” John 6:11 (NIV) Jesus gave thanks before anyone had eaten a single bite. The…