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Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 5:22-24     22 Jesus knew what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you question this in your hearts? 23 Is it easier to say ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up and walk’? 24 So I will prove to you that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!”     Jesus had forgiven the sins of a paralyzed man. The Pharisees and teachers of religi

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 5:33     33 One day some people said to Jesus, “John the Baptist’s disciples fast and pray regularly, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees. Why are your disciples always eating and drinking?”     The watching world has questions about what believers do. Here the Pharisees ask why John the Baptist’s disciples fast and pray but Jesus’ disciples do not. Jesus’ disciples were eating and drinking as usual. The Pharisees thought everyone should be followi

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 6:3-5     3 Jesus replied, “Haven’t you read in the Scriptures what David did when he and his companions were hungry? 4 He went into the house of God and broke the law by eating the sacred loaves of bread that only the priests can eat. He also gave some to his companions.” 5 And Jesus added, “The Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath.”     The Pharisees claimed the disciples of Jesus were harvesting on the Sabbath as they rubbed the grain in their

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 6:17-19     17 When they came down from the mountain, the disciples stood with Jesus on a large, level area, surrounded by many of his followers and by the crowds. There were people from all over Judea and from Jerusalem and from as far north as the seacoasts of Tyre and Sidon. 18 They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those troubled by evil spirits were healed. 19 Everyone tried to touch him, because healing power went out

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 6:29-31     29 “If someone slaps you on one cheek, offer the other cheek also. If someone demands your coat, offer your shirt also. 30 Give to anyone who asks; and when things are taken away from you, don’t try to get them back. 31 Do to others as you would like them to do to you.”     The disciples of Jesus were instructed by Him to do things that only those with divine love could do. The unbeliever could never do what Jesus suggested. Those who are

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 6:39-40     39 Then Jesus gave the following illustration: “Can one blind person lead another? Won’t they both fall into a ditch? 40 Students are not greater than their teacher. But the student who is fully trained will become like the teacher.”     Jesus reminded His disciples that a blind person cannot be a leader of others. One must be able to see where he is going. Jesus also let His disciples know that when they became fully trained they would be

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 7:1-2     1 When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people, he returned to Capernaum. 2 At that time the highly valued slave of a Roman officer was sick and near death.     Jesus’ hometown had rejected Him while Capernaum had welcomed Him. Here He learned that a “highly valued slave” of a Gentile Roman officer was near death. Jesus and His apostles were taking the Messiah’s message to the Jewish people first. The Gentile officer needed help beca

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 7:13-15     13 When the Lord saw her, his heart overflowed with compassion. “Don’t cry!” he said. 14 Then he walked over to the coffin and touched it, and the bearers stopped. “Young man,” he said, “I tell you, get up.” 15 Then the dead boy sat up and began to talk! And Jesus gave him back to his mother.     This passage reveals the heart of Jesus is touched with compassion when He sees others suffering. As the coffin was carried along He walked over

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 7:28-30     28 “I tell you, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John. Yet even the least person in the Kingdom of God is greater than he is!” 29 When they heard this, all the people—even the tax collectors—agreed that God’s way was right, for they had been baptized by John. 30 But the Pharisees and experts in religious law rejected God’s plan for them, for they had refused John’s baptism.     John the Baptist had a privileged position as

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 2:1-2     1 At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2 (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.)     This passage reveals how the sovereign God used even unbelievers to accomplish His will. It tells of the world power at that time. The emperor wanted the then-known world to be taxed to raise money for what he desired to do, likely for his armies. This is t

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 2:36-37     36 Anna, a prophet, was also there in the Temple. She was the daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher, and she was very old. Her husband died when they had been married only seven years. 37 Then she lived as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the Temple but stayed there day and night, worshiping God with fasting and prayer.     Some say the 10 northern tribes were never heard from after they were taken into captivity. Ann

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 3:2-3     2 Annas and Caiaphas were the high priests. At this time a message from God came to John son of Zechariah, who was living in the wilderness. 3 Then John went from place to place on both sides of the Jordan River, preaching that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven.     Annas and Caiaphas will appear again in the gospel story. The “John” referred to is not the apostle John, but

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 3:24-26     24 Heli was the son of Matthat. Matthat was the son of Levi. Levi was the son of Melki. Melki was the son of Jannai. Jannai was the son of Joseph. 25 Joseph was the son of Mattathias. Mattathias was the son of Amos. Amos was the son of Nahum. Nahum was the son of Esli. Esli was the son of Naggai. 26 Naggai was the son of Maath. Maath was the son of Mattathias. Mattathias was the son of Semein. Semein was the son of Josech. Josech was the s

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 7:41-43     41 Then Jesus told him this story: “A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other. 42 But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?” 43 Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt.” “That’s right,” Jesus said.     The Pharisee thought Jesus did not know who the immoral woman was

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 8:1-3     1 Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, 2 along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; 3 Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing from their own resources

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 8:16-17     16 “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house. 17 For all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all.”     Jesus had ended His previous parable about the one who is productive in bearing spiritual fruit. Then He gave the example of

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 8:26-27     26 So they arrived in the region of the Gerasenes, across the lake from Galilee. 27 As Jesus was climbing out of the boat, a man who was possessed by demons came out to meet him. For a long time he had been homeless and naked, living in the tombs outside the town.     Notice that this man who met Jesus was possessed of more than one demon. Imagine how frightened the townspeople were of him. It was bad enough that he was homeless and naked,

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 8:36-37     36 Then those who had seen what happened told the others how the demon-possessed man had been healed. 37 And all the people in the region of the Gerasenes begged Jesus to go away and leave them alone, for a great wave of fear swept over them. So Jesus returned to the boat and left, crossing back to the other side of the lake.     The crowd saw what had happened with all the pigs drowning. They also realized the demon-possessed man had been

Day 1 RECEIVE Luke 8:47-48 47 When the woman realized that she could not stay hidden, she began to tremble and fell to her knees in front of him. The whole crowd heard her explain why she had touched him and that she had been immediately healed. 48 “Daughter,” he said to her, “your faith has made you well. Go in peace.” Jesus felt healing power leave Him when someone touched Him. When Jesus asked who touched Him the woman realized she could not remain hidden any longer. She “

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 9:4-6     4 “Wherever you go, stay in the same house until you leave town. 5 And if a town refuses to welcome you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate.” 6 So they began their circuit of the villages, preaching the Good News and healing the sick.     The apostles Jesus sent out were not to move around in a town. Apparently they were not to be looking for better places to stay. If a town

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 9:18-20     18 One day Jesus left the crowds to pray alone. Only his disciples were with him, and he asked them, “Who do people say I am?” 19 “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say you are one of the other ancient prophets risen from the dead.” 20 Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?”   Peter replied, “You are the Messiah sent from God!”     Notice how Jesus moved from a general question to a specifi

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 9:30-31     30 Suddenly, two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared and began talking with Jesus. 31 They were glorious to see. And they were speaking about his exodus from this world, which was about to be fulfilled in Jerusalem.     As Jesus was on the Mount of Transfiguration with Peter, James and John, suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared and talked with Jesus. Luke writes, “They were glorious to see.” These Old Testament prophets spoke about the time when

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 9:43b-45     43b While everyone was marveling at everything he was doing, Jesus said to his disciples, 44 “Listen to me and remember what I say. The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of his enemies.” 45 But they didn’t know what he meant. Its significance was hidden from them, so they couldn’t understand it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.     Jesus wanted His disciples to listen and remember what He was about to say. He agai

Day 1  RECEIVE   Luke 9:57-58     57 As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.”     It is relatively easy for people to say they will follow Jesus. He wanted them to know, however, that it would not be an easy life. Jesus wanted it known that following Him could mean giving up the comforts of life. The B