Daily Bible Reading (Click play for dramatic audio or click here to for text version)

Devotional Guide (Click play to start audio narration)

Unlike some religious people, Jesus did not isolate Himself from those who needed his help. Jesus touched people that other religious leaders of His day would not even associate with. In fact,

He said “The healthy don’t need a doctor, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous, but those that are missing the target (sinners) to come and change their mind (repentance).”

Jesus does not fit into our religious stereotypes. He constantly did things that religious people were uncomfortable with. He challenged hypocrisy and confronted pride and arrogance. In the book of Luke, which we will explore soon, we see a woman come to Jesus while He is eating at a religious leader’s house.

“One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to dine with him, and He went into the Pharisee's house and reclined at table. And behold, a woman of the town who was an especially wicked sinner, when she learned that He was reclining at table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment (perfume). And standing behind Him at His feet weeping, she began to wet His feet with [her] tears; and she wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed His feet [affectionately] and anointed them with the ointment (perfume). Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw it, he said to himself, If this Man were a prophet, He would surely know who and what sort of woman this is who is touching Him--for she is a notorious sinner (a social outcast, devoted to sin). And Jesus, replying, said to him, Simon, I have something to say to you. And he answered, Teacher, say it. A certain lender of money [at interest] had two debtors: one owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they had no means of paying, he freely forgave them both. Now which of them will love him more? Simon answered, The one, I take it, for whom he forgave and cancelled more. And Jesus said to him, You have decided correctly. Then turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, Do you see this woman? When I came into your house, you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave Me no kiss, but she from the moment I came in has not ceased [intermittently] to kiss My feet tenderly and caressingly. You did not anoint My head with [cheap, ordinary] oil, but she has anointed My feet with [costly, rare] perfume. Therefore I tell you, her sins, many [as they are], are forgiven her--because she has loved much. But he who is forgiven little loves little. And He said to her, Your sins are forgiven! Then those who were at table with Him began to say among themselves, Who is this Who even forgives sins? But Jesus said to the woman, Your faith has saved you; go (enter) into peace [in freedom from all the distresses that are experienced as the result of sin].

(Luke 7:36-50 AMPC)

he hypocrites, as Jesus called them, had missed the whole point of the good news that Jesus came to proclaim. They were a part of the religious history of the Hebrew people that went all the way back to Abraham, thousands of years before Jesus arrived. The people of Israel missed the very one God promised to send them. They did not understand the beauty of the story that was unfolding before their eyes. Most people today don’t understand this story either which why I am writing this book to help explain this in simple terms. The goal is to help the modern (or post-modern) day reader, understand this amazing story and to clear up many common misconceptions related to it.

This story will continue to surprise you, even if you already know of it. It is shocking and uncommon by every measure. It won’t fit into any box you have for it. It is certainly not written for just religious people. It was often the religious people of Jesus’ day that missed the whole point of His coming. Jesus was at odds with the religious leaders much more than the sinners those religious people looked down on. You see God likes to surprise and unfold mysteries to those that are curious. Jesus said that God often “hides himself from the people who think they are wise and know it all,” but chooses instead to “reveal Himself to little children.” God can help you understand why you exist and give you meaning and purpose in a way that is unlike any human being or organization. Does God use human beings and organizations? Absolutely, Jesus Himself attended the Jewish Synagogue’s but He never embraced all of their perspective and did not see those that did not as outsiders.

This journey is meant to be a relational experience where you not only learn information about the scriptures and about God but that you participate in a process. The scripture teaches that God made an important and intimate promise to Israel. This promise applies equally to us today because of Jesus. God said “You will call to Me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all of your heart. I will be found by you says the Lord.” Making this journey a spiritual experience is up to you. Only you can seek after God. This book and the videos embedded within can attempt to guide you in that journey but they cannot take the place of a proper attitude of heart needed to encounter Him personally. The Christian scriptures teach that “God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.” It says “draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” You have to open your heart and mind to that possibility. The stories that follow will show many examples of how others have done this. Drawing near to God does not make us perfect, the way we might think it does. However, it does enable our perspectives to change and this leads to a gradual transformation of our thinking that permeates into our behavior. This process happens over time. God knows how to meet you right where you are at. Why do we exist? That is a pretty important question. Let’s explore this age old question by watching a video called “The Image of God.”