Pastor Prince

"Don't get mad, get even!"  How many times have you heard that?  Oftentimes our anger rises when someone wrongs us, especially when it's intentional.  That anger compels us to strike back, to get even. This was on Simon Peter's mind when in Matthew 18:21ff he asked Jesus how many times he was to forgive his brother.  He thought he was doing well when he suggested seven times.  Religious teachers of the day said he was to forgive three times.  Peter doubled that and added one!  Surely that was enough! Jesus replied, "I tell you, not seven times but seventy times seven!"  His forgiveness was to be limitless! Then Jesus told a parable about the kingdom to show why.  A king settling accounts with his servants learns that one owes him a huge amount of money.  When he tells the servant he's going to sell him and his family into slavery to pay his debt, his servant pleas for time to pay him back.  In a stunning moment of grace, the king for

Most Christ followers today don't talk much about the Last Judgment.  Maybe it's because it doesn't fit our culture of relativism and individuality.  Or maybe it's because of the excesses of previous generations of church folk.  Many of them had a joyless faith in which clouds of guilt and judgment hung over them and everyone else. But Jesus spoke often about the Last Judgment.  Some of his most unforgettable parables were about it.  One of them was the parable of the net in Matthew 13:47-50.   Jesus said fishermen went and cast a large net in the sea.  When it was full of fish, they took it to the shore.  There they emptied it and separated the fish.  They took the good ones and saved them in baskets, but threw the bad ones away.   Jesus said the kingdom of God was like that.  At the end of the age, angels will separate the righteous from the wicked.  They'll take the wicked and throw them into hell, or the fiery furnace.  Jesus implied the righteo

Imagine you lived in Jesus' time, and you were able to see him and his disciples.  Imagine also you knew nothing about what would become of them.  All you know is that Jesus' father was apparently a carpenter and Jesus had no advanced religious training.  None of his disciples were impressive.  Four were fishermen.  One was a tax collector.  One was a political radical.   Though at the height of his popularity, Jesus drew thousands to hear his teaching, by the time of his crucifixion his followers were few.  Yet today, about 2 billion people spanning the world say they follow this Jesus!  No one in Jesus' time would have guessed that, except for Jesus himself! Jesus predicted it his parables of the mustard seed and yeast, recorded in Matthew 13:31-33.  He said that though the mustard seed was one of the tiniest seeds, a huge plant grows from it.  He also said that a small amount of yeast leavens a large amount of dough.   The parable of the mustard seed emp

One of the most remarkable aspect of Jesus' teaching was his use of parables.  Apparently, he used parables far more than any other teacher of his time.  A parable is an extended metaphor or simile, used to help teach a truth.  Usually, Jesus' parables taught one simple truth, though there were exceptions.  His parables had a dual function.  They revealed secret truths to his followers, but concealed them from those who sought to do him harm (see Matt. 13:10-17). Many of his parables were about the kingdom of God.  The Bible teaches that at the end of the world, God will establish his kingdom on earth.  Jesus taught that one day the kingdom would come in full power and glory, but that it was starting to enter the world through him.  It would enter the world slowly, transforming it.   Matthew 13:44-46 tells about two parables: the hidden treasure and the precious pearl.  Though they're two different parables, they reveal the same truth: entering the kingdom cost