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Parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector   Luke 18:9-14 『 And he spoke this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tites of all that I possess. And the public, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house his justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be based; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. 』 This word is a metaphor for one ’ s own righteousness. Comparing the Pharisees and tax collectors, the tax collectors did nothing for justification. Only, the publican, standi...

Calms the wind   Mark 4:39-40  『 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? 』 On the surface, Jesus Christ was the Creator in the kingdom of God, but on earth he would be thought of as the Son of God, endowed with God's power and controlling nature. But we must think of the spiritual meaning in this passage. 『 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. 』 The reason the waves beat happens is because of the wind. Wind means the Holy Spirit. Waves arose because of the wind. So a big wave hit the ship. In the boat were Jesus and his disciples. A ship is an ark. The ark symbolizes Christ. The disciples are on a boat. The sea represents the law. The saying,  “ A great wave arose in the sea ”  means that the work of the Holy Spirit takes place within the law, an...

Parable of ten pounds   Luke 19:11-27 『 And as they heard these things, he added and sparked a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear. He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come. But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us. And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. And he said to him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, thou hast authority over ten cities. And the second came, sayi...

Fig tree   Mark 11:12-14 『 And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry: And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if happily he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet. And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eateth the fruit of thee hereafter for ever. And his disciples heard it. 』 The fig tree is a symbol of Israel. Sometimes it represents glory, and sometimes it represents curse or judgment. If Israel obeyed God, it was expressed as a fig tree of blessing, and if Israel disobeyed God and served idols, it was expressed as a fig tree of judgment. When referring to rest and glory, in 1 Kings 4:25, “ And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan even to Beersheba, all the days of Solomon. ” It means being under the fig tree. is an expression meaning to find rest. When referring to judgment, Psalm 105:33 says, “ He...

You can only remarry if you have Moses' divorce certificate.   In Mark 10:1-5, “ And he arose from thence, and came into the coasts of Judaea by the farther side of Jordan: and the people resort unto him again; and, as he was wont, he taught them again. And the Pharisees came to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? tempting him. And he answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you? And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorce, and to put her away. And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. 』 The Bible says that Moses gave permission to write a certificate of divorce to every hard-hearted person who wanted to divorce. Basically, all humans are spiritually adulterous and hard-hearted. Chapter 10 verses 11-12 『 And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her. And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be marri...

Martha and Mary   Luke 10:38-42 『 Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word. But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and she came to him, and she said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from 』 Jesus had previously raised Lazarus from the dead. Going back to the situation at that time, in a poor neighborhood called 『 Bethany 』 , a man named 『 Lazarus 』 , the older brother of Martha and Mary, died. At that time, Martha, Lazarus' sister, came to Jesus. Jesus was delayed by other matters and arrived late at Bemartha's house. He ...

Five loaves and two fish   Mark 6:41-44 『 And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided him among them all. And they did all eat, and were filled. And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes. And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men. 』 Jesus heals a demon-possessed man, raises the dead daughter of Jairus, the leader of the synagogue, frees a woman who had suffered from an issue of hemorrhage for twelve years, calms the wind, and heals people with withered hands, paralytics, and lepers. Many people came to see Jesus. So Jesus continued teaching the people without even having time to eat, and it was evening. When the disciples came to Jesus and asked if they should give them something to eat as the day was getting late, Jesus said,  “ You give them something to eat. ”  Howeve...