Author: Jim Cantelon

December 5, 2019

Jesus Ancestors (1:1-17) – Part 1 Nobody enjoys reading genealogies. That is, unless you’re a genealogist! The Bible has several, and most of us when confronted by one tend to roll our eyes and press the delete button. It seems irrelevant. But in Jesus’ day, genealogies were taken with great seriousness. A genealogy was see as a “pedigree”. It proved “purity” of lineage. Jesus’ culture, of course, was Jewish and no one could call himself/herself a “Jew” if there was any foreign blood in their veins. The “Chosen People”...

November 30, 2019

I was studying a Greek textbook recently in researching Luke’s second volume, the book of Acts. I came across something I’d written in the margin of one of the pages- “Too much certainty can be a bad thing. There must be an element of mystery, a touch of the unknown, in all truth”. I was thinking at the time of several people I have interacted with in my 50 years in the ministry. People who “know everything for sure”, and have the accompanying spiritual arrogance to prove it. Little wonder they are quickly dismissed by pure-hearted seekers after God. Anyone with basic bible knowledge remembers...

November 18, 2019

Blaise Pascal’s “Pensees” is a proven classic. Even though he died at an early age his wisdom far exceeded his years. In the introduction to his “Thoughts” he wrote,”Before we examine the evidence of the truth of Christianity, I need to point out an inconsistency of those who are careless about the truth. Yet it is vital to them, for it intimately affects their lives. Of all their miscalculations, this is what most blatantly shows up their blind folly. It is this: This present life is momentary, but the state of death is eternal. How terribly important it is, then, to live in the light of the...

Read Matthew 8

Key Verse: Matthew 8:34 “And when they saw Him, they begged Him to depart from their region.” The driving out of the demons from the two demon possessed men in the region of the Gadarenes has always received a lot of comment, because it’s so spectacular. You know the story well. Jesus casts the demons into a local herd of pigs who then rush down into the Sea of Galilee and drown. But there are two things which stand out in this account. First, the response of the demoniacs was, “What do you want with us, Son of God?” You wouldn’t expect Jewish people to be...

Read Matthew 6

Key Verse: Matthew 6:9 “This is how you should pray…” Jesus teaches us how to pray and I’ve often noted how simple this prayer is and how complex most of our praying seems to be in comparison. Like the pagan, Jesus says, we sometimes think we’ll be heard for our much speaking, for our babbling, for our repetitions. They use many words, as He says in verse 7; not so with Jesus. He wants us to be short with our words and direct. So He gives a prayer lesson. Just a few observations: First of all, the focus is our Father in heaven, which is the way it must always be...

November 4, 2019

I’m an inveterate reader. Always have been. My mom taught me phonics when I was four years old so I was already reading “Dick and Jane” before grade one. I can’t get enough of good books. Usually I read four or five books at a time. Keeps my mind in gear. One of those is a re-read: “The Mind on Fire”, an anthology of the writings of the profound French writer Blaise Pascal. In the introduction, Os Guinness writes, “ Health has replaced both heaven and ethics. Athleticism is the new form of asceticism. Positive thinking is prized above reflection and meditation. Human experience with...