How did the Pharisees, who were God's champions in the days of the Maccabees, become the villains who sought the death of God's son? They were deformed by an insidious spiritual disease that is the deadliest of the seven deadly or capital sins - pride....
When his enemies quiz him about what commandment is the greatest, Jesus reveals just how radical he really is. His answer goes to the very root of every single one of the 613 commandments found in the law of the Old Testament - the distinct...
When the Pharisees and the Herodians brought up the issue of paying taxes to the Emperor, Jesus uttered the famous line "render to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's. So what does this say about the role of government in our...
Why would people decline a royal invitation to a wedding feast fit for a king? This parable of Jesus describes a situation we see around us everyday - pervasive apathy in the face of the offer of salvation and eternal life in the Kingdom of...
The parable of the vineyard and the wicked tenants or husbandmen is a warning to peoples and nations that no wall will protect a society that is abundantly blessed yet continues to bear bad fruit and sour grapes, refusing to give God his due. ...
The parable of the two Sons makes clear that saying yes to Jesus Christ is much more a matter of deeds and actions than words and promises. Talk is cheap but body language never lies....
The parable of the workers in the vineyard is a shock to our sensibilities - some laborers work longer than others but at the end of the day, all get the same pay from their generous employer. Jesus is teaching us something about justice and...
The parable of the merciless servant illustrates the meaning of "forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us," a petition included in the Lord's Prayer. Anger can be righteous, but when we let it harden into resentment it becomes...
The biblical approach to fraternal correction has nothing to do with the self-righteousness of the Pharisees. Rather, it is all about loving intervention. As Ezekiel was a watchman for the house of Israel, we are all watchmen for each other....
No sooner does Jesus praise Peter's confession at Caesarea Philippi and dub him "the Rock" than he rebukes him as the devil or Satan. Peter had confessed Jesus to be the Messiah. But his idea of what it meant to be the Christ...