Love Him or Hate Him

Ch. 14-19
As the past chapters, and probably the next too, these chapters were characterized by their stories. Every chapter was about Jesus going somewhere and then going somewhere else, always healing people and telling stories to them in the way. There were many parabolas to teach people about their exact situation in other words. Sadly, even though I understood most of the stories, I didn't really understand their points or their meanings. Or if I did, I didn't agree with them. Anyways, they were fun to read, and I am not complaining too much about them. The rest of the chapters I will analyze by quotes.

The first one I want to talk about is one that I found very true, and I liked very much. "But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind:And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just (Luke 14:14)." I think it is true, but also very difficult to achieve, because most people, even if they don't realize it, do things to get things back from other people, as soon as possible. Knowing that doing something for people who can't pay you back will compensate itself indirectly when you get to God. That is very important to understand.

There are, like I said in my previous post, some parts I completely disagreed on. Sometimes I can't believe how Jesus can be so blunt, to say it that way. For example, he ones said, "If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple (Luke 14:26)." How can Jesus say that? Why doesn't he accept that they love both him and their families?

Another part was in chapter 17 when Jesus made the comparison of a servant with his followers. He asked them if they asked the servant to sit with them after he had worked the field, and said he didn't think so; one told them to serve him and to eat later. He then asked if they thanked the servants, and said he didn't think so. At that moment I thought he was going to say that it was good to be nice to the people who serve you, but what he said instead was that they should expect him to act like that with them, and say that they were "unprofitable servants," and had "done that which was [their] duty to do (Luke 17:10)." I find that extremely unfair and arrogant.

Also, I found more examples of stories like the one of Mary and her sister from the last post that are unjust and not understandable for me. This time, it was a story about a father and his two sons. One followed by him his whole life and served him, and his father treated him like a servant. The other instead, took all the money and used it for personal purposes. The day that son came back, his father made a really big party with everything included. The good son didn't understand why, and I don't either.

Anyways, there had to be some part I agreed with. There was this quote I really liked, and I think that if everyone followed it the world would be a better place: "And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him. (Luke 17:4)"

By now, it is the third time we hear Jesus predict he will die, "And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. (Luke 18:33)" Still, I keep waiting and waiting for it to happen and it never does. I don't know when it will be, or even how he knows, but it sounds like a pretty harsh death. I can't wait to see how the different versions of his death compare.

I also mentioned before that I thought the priests and Jesus didn't get along very well, but I never thought it would get to this: "But the chief priests and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy him. (Luke 19:47)" They want to kill him! I don't know if it is true or not, but a small voice in my head tells me that the priests are the ones who will be responsible for Jesus' death.

See you later!