Hello.
Welcome to my Bible readings.
In this sleep series,
I will be looking at the gospel according to Luke.
In much of the classic literature I read,
There are references to the Bible and religious teachings.
If we wish to educate ourselves fully in a literary capacity,
It makes sense that we should dive into this for reference.
And so here we are.
It is time for sleep.
Close your eyes and take a deep breath in through your nose.
That's it.
Then let it out on a long sigh.
This is your time and your space.
A time where you can relax,
Safe in the knowledge there is nothing to do and nowhere to go.
Happy listening.
Chapter 13.
Jesus' love for Jerusalem.
At that same time,
Some Pharisees came to Jesus and said,
You must get out of here and go somewhere else because Herod wants to kill you.
Jesus answered,
Go and tell that fox,
I am driving out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow,
And on the third day I shall finish my work.
Yet we must be on our way today,
Tomorrow,
And the next day.
It's not right for a prophet to be killed anywhere except in Jerusalem.
Jerusalem,
Jerusalem,
You kill the prophets,
You stone the messengers.
God has sent you.
How many times have I wanted to put my arms round your people just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings.
But you would not let me.
And so your temple will be abandoned.
I assure you,
You will not see me until the time comes when you say,
God bless him who comes in the name of the Lord.
Jesus heals a sick man.
Once Sabbath,
Jesus went to eat a meal at the home of one of the leading Pharisees,
And people were watching him closely.
A man whose legs and arms were swollen came to him,
And Jesus asked the teachers of the law,
Does our law allow healing on the Sabbath or not?
They would not say anything.
So Jesus took the man and healed him and sent him away.
If any one of you had a son or an ox that happened to fall in a well on a Sabbath,
Would you not pull them out at once?
They were not able to answer this.
Humility and Hospitality Jesus noticed how some of the guests were choosing the best places,
So he told this parable to all of them.
When someone invites you to a wedding feast,
Do not sit down in the best place.
It could happen that someone more important than you has been invited,
And your host who has invited both of you would have to come and say,
Let him have this place.
Then you would be embarrassed and have to sit in the lowest place.
Instead,
When you are invited,
Go and sit in the lowest place so that your host will come to you and say,
Come on up,
My friend.
This will bring you honour in the presence of all the other guests.
For all those who make themselves great will be humbled,
And for all those who humble themselves will be made great.
Then Jesus said to his host,
When you give a lunch or a dinner,
Do not invite your friends or your brothers,
Your relatives or your rich neighbours,
For they will invite you back,
And in this way you will be paid for what you did.
When you give a feast,
Invite the poor,
The crippled and the lame,
And you will be blessed because they are not able to pay you back.
When one of the men sitting at a table heard this,
He said,
How happy are those who will sit down at the feast in the kingdom of God!
And Jesus replied,
There was once a man who was giving a great feast to which he invited many people.
When it was time for the feast,
He sent his servant to tell the guests,
Come,
Everything is ready.
But they began one after the other to make excuses.
The first one said,
I bought a field and I must go and look at it.
Please accept my apologies.
Another one said,
I bought five pairs of oxen and I'm on my way to try them out.
Please accept my apologies.
Another one said,
I've just got married.
For that reason,
I can't come.
The servant went back and told this to the master,
And the master was furious.
Hurry out to the streets and alleys of the town,
He said,
And bring back the poor,
The crippled and the blind.
Soon the servant said,
Your order has been carried out,
Sir,
But there is room for more.
Then go to the country roads,
Said the master,
And go to the lanes and make sure people come in.
Then my house will be full.
None of those who were invited will taste my dinner.
The Cost of Being a Disciple Once when large crowds of people were going along with Jesus,
He turned around and said,
Those who come to me cannot be my disciples,
Unless they love me more than they love father and mother,
Wife and children,
Brothers and sisters,
And themselves.
Those who do not carry their own cross and come after me cannot be my disciples.
If one of you is planning to build a tower,
Sit down first and work out what it will cost to see if you have enough.
If you don't,
You will not be able to finish the tower after laying the foundation,
And all who see what happened will laugh.
This man began to build but can't finish the job,
They will say.
If a king goes out with 10,
000 men to fight another king,
Who comes against him with 20,
000,
He will sit down first and decide if he is strong enough to face the other king.
If he isn't,
He will send messages and ask for terms of peace when he is still a long way off.
In the same way,
Concluded Jesus,
None of you can be my disciple,
Unless you give up everything you have.
Salt is good,
But if it loses its saltiness,
There's no way to make it salty again.
It is no good for the soil or for the manure heap,
And it is thrown away.
The Lost Sheep One day when many tax collectors and other outcasts came to listen to Jesus,
The Pharisees and the teachers of the law started grumbling.
This man welcomes outcasts and even eats with them,
They said.
So Jesus told them this parable.
Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them.
What do you do?
You leave the other 99 sheep in the pasture and go looking for the one that got lost until you find it.
When you find it,
You're so happy,
You put it on your shoulders and carry it back.
Then you call your friends and neighbours together and say,
I'm so happy I found my lost sheep.
In the same way,
I tell you,
There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 who do not need to.
The Lost Coin Suppose a woman who has ten silver coins loses one of them.
What does she do?
She lights a lamp,
Sweeps her house and looks carefully everywhere until she finds it.
When she finds it,
She calls her friends and neighbours together and says,
I'm so happy I found the coin I lost.
Let us celebrate.
In the same way,
I tell you,
The angels of God rejoice over one sinner who repents.
The Lost Son Jesus went on to say,
There was once a man who had two sons.
The younger one said,
Father,
Give me my share of the property now.
So the man divided his property between his two sons.
After a few days,
The younger one sold his part of the property and left home with the money.
He went to a country far away where he wasted it in reckless living.
He spent everything he had.
Then a severe famine spread over that country and he was left without a thing.
So he went to work for one of the citizens of the country who sent him out to farm to take care of the pigs.
He wished he could fill himself with the bean pods the pigs ate,
But no one gave him anything to eat.
At last he came to his senses and said,
All my father's hired workers have more than they can eat and here I am about to starve.
I'll get up and go to my father and say,
Father,
I've sinned against God and against you.
I'm no longer fit to be called your son.
Treat me as one of your workers.
So he got up and started back.
He was still a long way from home when his father saw him.
His heart was filled with pity and he ran through his arms around his son and kissed him.
Father,
The son said,
I've sinned against God and against you.
I'm no longer fit to be called your son.
But the father called the servants,
Hurry,
He said,
Bring the best robe and put it on him.
Put a ring on his finger and shoes on his feet and go and get the prize calf and kill it.
Let us celebrate with a feast.
For this son of mine was dead,
But now he is alive.
He was lost,
But now he's been found.
And so the feasting began.
In the meantime,
The elder son was out in the field.
On his way back,
When he came close to the house,
He heard the music and dancing.
What's going on?
He called to one of the servants.
Your brother's come back,
He said.
Your father's killed the prize calf because he's got him back safe and sound.
The elder brother was so angry he would not go into the house.
So his father came out and begged him to come in.
Look,
All these years,
He said,
I've worked for you like a slave and I've never disobeyed you.
What have you given me?
Not even a goat to have a feast with my friends.
But this son of yours wasted all your property on prostitutes.
And when he comes back home,
You kill the prize calf.
My son,
The father answered,
You are always here with me and everything I have is yours.
But we had to celebrate and be happy because your brother was dead,
But now he is alive.
He was lost,
But now he has been found.
