CHAPTER 16

It was December and it was the time to celebrate Hannukah—the Festival of Lights in Jerusalem. When Jesus and his disciples entered the town of Bethany on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives, a woman named Martha extended hospitality to Jesus and opened her home to him. Martha had a sister named Mary, and a brother named Lazarus.

When they were in the house, Mary sat at the Lord’s feet listening to his teaching, but Martha was distracted by all the preparations of hospitality that had to be done. So Martha asked Jesus, “Lord, Mary has left me to serve all alone; don’t you care? Tell her to help me!” Jesus said to her, “Martha, Martha, why are you so anxious and worried about so many things? For there is only one thing that is truly important, and Mary has chosen what is truly good.”

At that time a crowd of people had gathered and were trampling one another, and suddenly someone jumped out from the crowd and said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus said to him, “Who appointed me to be a judge between you two brothers? Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed, for true life does not consist of the abundance of one’s possessions.”

Then Jesus told the people the story of a rich man’s greed. He said, “The land of a rich man produced an abundant harvest. So he thought to himself, ‘What should I do? I have no more space to store all my crops.’ Then he said to himself, ‘I know what I will do. I will tear down my small barns and build big ones, and then I can store all my extra crops. And I’ll say to myself: ‘I now have an abundant amount of food stored up for many years, so I will take life easy. I will eat, drink and be happy.’ But God said to the man, ‘You rich fool! For this very night your life will be taken from you. Then who will get all the food that you have stored up for yourself?’ This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves on earth, but is not rich toward God.”

Turning to his disciples, Jesus told them a story about faithfulness. “Be dressed ready to serve and make sure you keep your lamps burning, like servants waiting for their master to return home from a wedding banquet, so that when he knocks on the door you will immediately open it for him. Blessed are those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or early in the morning.”

Then Jesus said, “You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at a time when you do not expect him.”

Then some people were frantic and rushed to tell Jesus about the Galilean Jews whose blood Pontius Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus said to them, “Do you think these Galileans were worse sinners than the other Galileans because they suffered in this way? No, they were not! I tell you the truth: Unless you repent and turn to God, you too will perish.'‘

Then Jesus said, “What about those 18 people who died when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? No! I tell you the truth: Unless you repent and turn to God, you too will perish.”

One day Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on the Sabbath day, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a demon for 18 years. She was bent over and could not stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he called her to the front of the synagogue and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your deformity.” Then Jesus put his hands on her, and immediately she stood up straight and praised God. The synagogue leader was furious with Jesus because he healed someone on the Sabbath. He told the people, “Come to be healed on the six days we can work, but do not come to be healed on the Sabbath.”

Then Jesus said to the synagogue leader, “You are a religious hypocrite! Don’t you on the Sabbath untie your ox or donkey from the feeding trough and lead it out to drink water; then shouldn’t this woman, a daughter of Abraham, who Satan has kept crippled for 18 years, be set free on the Sabbath?”

When Jesus said these things, all his religious opponents were ashamed, but the people were full of joy because of all the wonderful things he was doing.

Then Jesus walked in Solomon’s Colonnade along the eastern side of the temple complex, and the Jews were frustrated with Jesus and said to him, “How long will you keep us wondering? If you are the Messiah, tell us in plain language.”

Jesus said to them, “I have already told you, but you refuse to believe. The miracles that I do in my Father’s name tell you who I am, but you don’t believe because you are not my sheep. I know my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice and follow me. And I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; because no one has the power to seize them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all things; no one has the power to seize my sheep out of my Father’s grasp. The Father and I are one!”

Because Jesus said that he was one with the Father, his Jewish opponents were furious and picked up rocks to throw at him. But Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works of power from the Father. For which one of these good works do you want to stone me to death?” The Jews said, “We do not want to stone you because you do good works, but because you blaspheme—you are a mere man, but claim to be God.” Jesus to them, “Why do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said to you, ‘I am the Son of God’? For the Father is in me, and I am in the Father.”

Once again, the religious leaders tried to arrest Jesus, but he escaped.