Daily Reflection with Aneel Aranha

As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”   Have you ever been to a meeting with leaders of a parish, or prayer group, or church committee where they talk about how they can increase their numbers? The ideas are diverse. Make the worship more lively. Get better preachers. Serve more refreshments. Arrange baby sitters for the kids. Have a fun fair.  And, of course, there is the fail safe: organize a healing retrea...

When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”   In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul speaks about nine amazing gifts that the Holy Spirit gives the believer to build up the church. These are wisdom, knowledge, discernment, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, tongues, and the interpretation of tongues. In today’s passage we find Jesus using the gift of knowledge. This is a gift by which the Holy Spirit gives a person a deeper understanding of a m...

An argument arose among them as to which one of them was the greatest. But Jesus, aware of their inner thoughts, took a little child and put it by his side, and said to them, “Whoever welcomes this child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me; for the least among all of you is the greatest.” John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him; for whoever is not against you is for you.”   A few extraordinary experiences that we might have of Christ, or even spending time with him for a prolonged period of time, is no guarantee that we will understand Jesus or the things that he says. It is also no guarantee that we will change our mindset. As an example of this, take a look at the apostles. Three of them—Peter, James and John—have just witnessed the transfiguration. All of them then witness a dramatic exorcism where a littl...

“What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ He answered, ‘I will not’; but later he changed his mind and went. The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir’; but he did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.   A little before Jesus told this parable, Matthew writes that “he was hungry. Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Annoyed, he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” And immediately the tree withered” (Matthew 21:18-20). This was just after he lost his te...

While everyone was amazed at all that he was doing, he said to his disciples, “Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands.” But they did not understand this saying; its meaning was concealed from them, so that they could not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying.   People have a habit of hearing only what they want to hear or seeing what they want to see. Have you noticed this? It is known as selective listening, or selective attention. We tune out someone’s opinions or ideas, whenever they don’t match our own. We also tune out things that might be unpleasant or disturbing. I believe that is what might have happened here with the apostles. Jesus told them he was going to be betrayed into human hands. The thought was so horrifying they blocked it out of their minds. And they didn’t dare ask any more questions because they were afraid of what else he might say to them.   When people preach the true gospel...

Once when Jesus was praying alone, with only the disciples near him, he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” They answered, “John the Baptist; but others, Elijah; and still others, that one of the ancient prophets has arisen.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered, “The Messiah of God.” He sternly ordered and commanded them not to tell anyone, saying, “The Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”   Over the past three years, we have reflected upon this passage several times. We have specifically dwelt on the question that Jesus asks: “Who do you say I am?”, because it is one of the most important questions he has asked. So let us look at something else today: his very stern directive to the apostles not to tell anyone who he was. This is not the first time he has forbidden people from revealing his identity. He has done so several times....

Now Herod the ruler heard about all that had taken place, and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead, by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the ancient prophets had arisen. Herod said, “John I beheaded; but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And he tried to see him.   One of Shakespeare’s most famous plays was Macbeth. To help him become king, his wife, Lady Macbeth, orchestrated the murder of the ruling King Duncan. On the night he is assassinated, her hands red with the king’s blood, she remarks casually, ‘A little water clears us of this deed.’ She didn’t know how wrong she was. Not too long after, she begins walking in her sleep, and washing her hands, crying, “Out, damned spot!” Oh, guilt can be such a terrible thing.   King Herod discovered the truth of this after he had John the Baptist put to death. If you recall, Herod was having an affair with his brother’s wife and John the Baptist rebuked...

Then Jesus called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. He said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money—not even an extra tunic. Whatever house you enter, stay there, and leave from there. Wherever they do not welcome you, as you are leaving that town shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” They departed and went through the villages, bringing the good news and curing diseases everywhere.   When the word “then” is used in the Bible, it usually means that whatever is currently happening is a result of something that preceded it. So, when we read that “THEN Jesus called the twelve together” we have to look at what happened just before “he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God”. And what happened was that Jesus had calmed a terrible storm that had threatened to drown them. Scripture says “they were afr...

Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” But he said to them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”   “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.” Now, right in the beginning of the Gospel of John, we find Jesus’ “favorite apostle” saying that “to all who did receive (Jesus), to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:8). As children, we expect certain things from our father, and these are always forthcoming. However, we often forget that certain things are expected of us in return, and one of these is obedience to his word.    James said, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a m...

As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. And as he sat at dinner in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were sitting with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when he heard this, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.”   Matthew was a tax collector. He was universally disliked by his fellow Jews because he collected taxes for the Romans. The Jews felt the Romans had no right to govern Israel. Consequently, they looked upon anyone who worked for them as a betrayer. Additionally, tax collectors were extortionists. They would resort to threats and trickery to collect money, which was often far more th...

  “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace; and he said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. When he went out again about noon and about three o’clock, he did the same. And about five o’clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, ‘Why are you standing here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard.’ When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.’ When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. Now when the first came, they thought t...

  When a great crowd gathered and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable: “A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.” As he said this, he called out, “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!”                                                                                 Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant. He said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that  ‘looking they may not...

Soon afterwards he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him, as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources.   If I was a betting man, I’d bet that most of you listening to me have never ever given a thought to how Jesus and his apostles paid for their ministry needs. Just like most of you have never ever given a thought to how ministries such as ours get the finances to do our work. Is this not true? Now, before I say another word let me say I am not using this as an opportunity to solicit funds. Everything we do, including the Schools of Discipleship, are provided at no cost and, as a matter of principle, we never take up collections or ask for donations.    Rather, I am using this ...

One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table. And a woman in the city, who was a sinner, having learned that he was eating in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment. She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair. Then she continued kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him—that she is a sinner.” Jesus spoke up and said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” “Teacher,” he replied, “speak.” “A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he canceled the debts for both of them. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he cancel...