SPCK - N T Wright
Luke for Everyone - The Beatitudes
Luke for Everyone - The Beatitudes
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Beatitudes Luke 6.12-26 Let us imagine that you are a schoolteacher. One day, you go out into the school playground, where there are dozens of children kicking footballs around. You go over to where they are, and call for them to gather round. Then you begin, slowly but surel…
Luke for Everyone - Teachings on the Sabbath
Luke for Everyone - Teachings on the Sabbath
by SPCK - N T Wright
Teachings on the Sabbath Luke 6.1-11 A relative of mine likes to tell of an occasion when he flew, with some business friends, to Ireland to watch a rugby match. When they got off the plane, there were no customs officers waiting to receive them. So two or three of them went into…
Luke for Everyone - Questions about Table-Company and Fasting
Luke for Everyone - Questions about Table-Company and Fasting
by SPCK - N T Wright
Questions about Table-Company and Fasting Luke 5.27-39 Technology advances so fast that most of us can’t keep up. If you buy a computer today, by tomorrow it will be getting out of date. Within a year or two you won’t be able to get spare parts for it. Teams of engineers are work…
Luke for Everyone - The Healing of the Paralytic Lowered Through the Roof
Luke for Everyone - The Healing of the Paralytic Lowered Through the Roof
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Healing of the Paralytic Lowered Through the Roof Luke 5.17-26 The day I am writing this, protesters are gathering in trucks and vans, getting ready to drive slowly down the long main road to the capital. Their aim is to cause as much disruption as possible to normal traffic,…
Luke for Everyone - The Healing of the Leper
Luke for Everyone - The Healing of the Leper
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Healing of the Leper Luke 5.12-16 Imagine a man in prison for serious fraud. When he has served his sentence, and re-emerged into the community, what will happen if he goes to his old employer and asks for his job back? What will happen, indeed, if he goes to any employer and…
Luke for Everyone - The Miraculous Catch of Fish
Luke for Everyone - The Miraculous Catch of Fish
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Miraculous Catch of Fish Luke 5.1-11 ‘When Christ calls a person,’ declared Dietrich Bonhoeffer, ‘he tells them to come and die.’ Bonhoeffer, of course, did exactly that, hanged by the Nazis for resistance to Hitler. But when Simon Peter first met Jesus, he didn’t realize thi…
Luke for Everyone - Jesus' Authoritative Healings
Luke for Everyone - Jesus' Authoritative Healings
by SPCK - N T Wright
Jesus’ Authoritative Healings Luke 4.31-44 Last time I went to Capernaum you could hardly move because of the people. There were coaches full of pilgrims coming and going, parties of tourists with guides talking in several different languages, people taking photographs, people tr…
Luke for Everyone - Opposition to Jesus in Nazareth
Luke for Everyone - Opposition to Jesus in Nazareth
by SPCK - N T Wright
Opposition to Jesus in Nazareth Luke 4.14-30 The commentators were ecstatic after the game. ‘He played like a man inspired,’ they said. What images does that conjure up for you? A sports star, perhaps, running rings round the opposition and scoring a brilliant goal. Or, from a di…
Luke for Everyone - Temptation in the Wilderness
Luke for Everyone - Temptation in the Wilderness
by SPCK - N T Wright
Temptation in the Wilderness Luke 4.1-13 Jesus was not Superman. Many today, including some devout Christians, see him as a kind of Christian version of the movie character, able to do whatever he wanted, to ‘zap’ reality into any shape he liked. In the movies, Superman looks lik…
Luke for Everyone - Jesus' Baptism and Genealogy
Luke for Everyone - Jesus' Baptism and Genealogy
by SPCK - N T Wright
Jesus’ Baptism and Genealogy Luke 3.21-38 When I visited New Zealand some years ago, I was taught how to greet an audience in the traditional Maori fashion. I much enjoyed and appreciated the welcome I was given by this ancient people, many of whom are now devout Christians, and …
Luke for Everyone - John the Baptist Confronts the Crowds
Luke for Everyone - John the Baptist Confronts the Crowds
by SPCK - N T Wright
John the Baptist Confronts the Crowds Luke 3.10-20 A cartoon shows a sceptic shouting up to the heavens, ‘God! If you’re up there, tell us what we should do!’ Back comes a voice: ‘Feed the hungry, house the homeless, establish justice.’ The sceptic looks alarmed. ‘Just testing,’ …
Luke for Everyone - The Preaching of John the Baptist
Luke for Everyone - The Preaching of John the Baptist
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Preaching of John the Baptist Luke 3.1-9 Imagine massive floods sweeping through the countryside. Ancient cities suddenly find themselves under several feet of water. People aren’t expecting it, and now can’t quite believe it’s happening. If the authorities have enough warnin…
Luke for Everyone - The Boy Jesus
Luke for Everyone - The Boy Jesus
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Boy Jesus Luke 2.41-52 When I was a child, I walked a mile to the bus stop every morning, by myself or with my sister. At the other end of the trip, I walked by myself to school. In the evening, I came back the same way. I never felt unsafe, even in the dark winter days. Now,…
Luke for Everyone - Simeon and Anna
Luke for Everyone - Simeon and Anna
by SPCK - N T Wright
Simeon and Anna Luke 2.21-40 I watched as the craftsman went about his task. He carefully set the lead into the window to be the framework for the beautiful glass he had been staining. Now came the moment: where before was a plain window, now there was a riot of colour and shape,…
Luke for Everyone - The Birth of Jesus
Luke for Everyone - The Birth of Jesus
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Birth of Jesus Luke 2.1-20 If you try to point out something to a dog, the dog will often look at your finger instead of at the object you’re trying to point to. This is frustrating, but it illustrates a natural mistake we all make from time to time. It’s the mistake many peo…
Luke for Everyone - Zechariah's Song of Praise
Luke for Everyone - Zechariah's Song of Praise
by SPCK - N T Wright
Zechariah’s Song of Praise Luke 1.57-80 Many people today can’t imagine what life would be like without a television. We are so used to it telling us what to think about all the time that, without it, some people become quite worried, lost in a world of their own unfamiliar thoug…
Luke for Everyone - The Magnificat: Mary's Song of Praise
Luke for Everyone - The Magnificat: Mary's Song of Praise
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Magnificat: Mary’s Song of Praise Luke 1.39-56 What would make you celebrate wildly, without inhibition? Perhaps it would be the news that someone close to you who’d been very sick was getting better and would soon be home. Perhaps it would be the news that your country had e…
Luke for Everyone - The Annunciation of the Birth of Jesus