Jesus the Botanist: Musings About the Biblical Heart

(Deepak Reju)

I’m not a botanist. I can barely tell the difference between most trees. I am generally ignorant about the intricacies of gardening. But did you know that Jesus occasionally talked about trees? That’s right—He was a botanist of sorts. Recall His words from Luke 6:

No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks (Luke 6:43-45).

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"Stop Doing" List for Jesus?

What if the Religious Leaders had made a “Stop Doing” List for Jesus (Perry Noble) "Here are five things they MAY have asked Him to stop doing… “Dear Jesus, we need you to stop doing the following things…
#1 – You are really going to need to STOP healing on the Sabbath. You see, we’ve worked really hard creating a religious system that works for us…and even though people ARE being healed (we cannot deny that) we just do not approve of the day you are doing it. Sure, it’s miraculous…but the only miracles we are going to give approval of are the ones that take place in our system. And please understand…not adhering to our request in this matter could prove to be detrimental to your ministry. (Matthew 12:1-14)..."



 

Did Jesus Ever Get a Stomach Virus (Russell Moore)
Last week a friend called my office to leave a question she wanted some help thinking through. Could Jesus have gotten a stomach virus? Or the flu? Or a head cold? This question was rooted in something a little deeper. Since sickness is part of the curse of the Fall, would Jesus’ sinless nature have exempted him from viruses and bugs and fevers?....

Is Jesus an Egomaniac? (John Piper) "Erik Reece is writer-in-residence at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, teaching environmental journalism, writing, and literature. He published a book last April entitled, An American Gospel: On Family, History, and the Kingdom of God. On May 13, 2009, he did an interview on National Public Radio with Terry Gross on the program Fresh Air about his book."

Who is Jesus

Who is Jesus...to you?

This question may not stir up all kinds of excitement in your life, but your answer to it is of supreme importance.  What you and I believe about Jesus Christ is essential not only for securing our eternal future, but also for understanding and enjoying our life right now.  I ran across an excellent reminder of this in a piece that I shared in the kick-off of our new series of study in I John.  It was written by Pastor Kevin DeYoung and it challenges our American distortions of Jesus.  2000 years later, we still struggle to maintain a purity in our belief about Christ and to keep Him at the center of our belief and focus.  Kevin's analysis is spot on and challenges us all to think through how we may have allowed the culture around us to negatively influence our view of Christ which is at best slanderous and at worst, heresy.

Enjoy Kevin's piece as you seek to keep Christ rightly represented in your thinking and centered in your heart!

Jeff

Who is Jesus?

The greatness of God is most clearly displayed in his Son. And the glory of the gospel is only made evident in his Son. That’s why Jesus’ question to his disciples is so important: “Who do you say that I am?”

The question is doubly crucial in our day because not every Jesus is the real Jesus. Almost no one is as popular in this country as Jesus. Hardly anyone would dare to say a bad word about him. Just look at what a super-fly friendly dude he is over there. But how many people know the real Jesus?