The Sword of the LORD

“And it came to pass on a certain day, as He [Jesus] was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.  And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before Him.  And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus.  And when He saw their faith, He said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee. (Luke 5:17-20).   As I read the story told in Luke 5 of the man sick with the palsy whom Jesus healed, I am intrigued, not just by the miracle itself, but by what happened before the miracle.    This man was paralyzed.  We don’t know to what extent, but we can assume that since he was...

In the 28th chapter of Genesis, we find Jacob on the run from his brother Esau, who was seriously considering killing him because of the deception that Jacob used to secure their father's blessing.   Jacob was forced to leave his home and his family to seek a wife, and a new life, in Haran, where his uncle Laban lived.     On his journey, Jacob came to a place called Luz and camped for the night.   As he slept, God gave him a dream.   In the dream he saw a ladder that was set on the earth and reached to heaven.   On the ladder were angels climbing up and down between heaven and earth.   God Himself stood at the top of the ladder and said, " I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall al...

In St. Matthew 14 we find an account of Jesus constraining His disciples to get into a ship to go to the other side of the Sea of Galilee.  They had just witnessed a notable miracle when Jesus multiplied a few fish and loaves of bread in order to feed over 5,000 people.  The disciples must have felt on top of the world after such an experience, but they soon became less confident as they found themselves in the midst of a storm out in deep water and Jesus not with them.    This has always reminded me of the highs and lows that we go through as Christians.   One moment we may be blessed and feeling strong in the Lord, and the next moment be frightened by circumstances that we don’t seem to have any control over.   The mountains and valleys of life are something that we all experience; but through them all, Christ is teaching us that He is the Master of all things.   When it began to grow late, Jesus came to them walking on the sea.   At fir...