RajahJun

John the gospel writer wrote an account of Jesus healing a man paralyzed for thirty-eight years (John 5: 1-15). The miracle happened when Jesus visited Jerusalem for a Jewish feast. In Jerusalem, Jesus dropped by the Sheep Gate, a pool called Bethesda. The Jews, of that period, believed that the pool had healing powers every time an angel passed over the waters. There were so many disabled (blind, lame, paralyzed) people lying around the pool watching for that movement on the water. I could just imagine all the disabled scrambling to jump in the pool when the water stirs. One of the disabled was a invalid who had been in that condition for thirty-eight years. Jesus saw that man lying there and went over to him and learned of his long-term condition. Jesus then asked him, "Do you want to get well?" The invalid didn't knew who Jesus was. He probably hadn't heard that Jesus was a healer. Instead of saying yes to Jesus, the invalid replied, "Sir, I have no one to hel

The Jewish chief priest Caiaphas and his cohorts orchestrated the events leading to Jesus' crucifixion. They enlisted Judas, one of the disciples, to help arrest Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. When Jesus was arrested, they presented and tried him before the council of religious elders. Caiaphas presided over the trial to convince the council members to legitimize the killing of Jesus. Apparently, Caiaphas successfully persuaded them and almost everyone agreed except for a lone dissenter.  To complete the plan to murder Jesus, Caiaphas convinced Herod to support his plan. They brought the matter to Pilate. Upon their instigation, Pilate had Jesus flogged and crucified just to appease those who wanted him dead, though Jesus was innocent. The Roman crucifixion applied to persons who were guilty of serious crimes like murder and rebellion. It was a capital punishment reserved for lowlife and people of low stature. It carried a stigma and nobody wanted to be identified with those crucif

The Sea of Galilee or Lake of Gennesaret is nestled among the hills in the northern Israel. It is nearly 700 feet below sea level. It measures 21 kilometers north-south. In some places of the lake it goes down to only 43 meters deep. It is relatively small and shallow. The sea's geography subjects the lake to sudden and even violent storms. That happens when cool air from the mountains on the eastside blows downward towards the lake and pushes the warm air covering the lake upwards. The sudden change can produce surprisingly furious storms in a short time. Also, because the lake is small and shallow the confluence of cold and warm air produces strong waves. In Capernaum, a fishing village by the Sea of Galilee, Jesus healed many people like the centurion's servant and Peter's mother-in-law. In the evening, he healed many sick people and exorcised people possessed with demons. When a large crowd was gathering, he ordered the disciples to cross the other side of the lake. Whe

Jesus Christ spent a lot of time in his ministry around the Sea of Galilee. In Luke's gospel, it is also known as Lake Gennesaret. Modern day Israelis now call it Kinneret. The lake measures just more than 21 kilometers north-south, and it is only 43 meters deep.  In the Bible, 18 of the 33 recorded miracles of Jesus were most likely done in areas surrounding the Sea of Galilee. Jesus moved around the surrounding area quite a lot. According to Matthew 4:23: Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.  It was the same lake that Jesus Christ met and asked his first disciples to join him. They were fishermen on a boat casting a net into the lake (Matthew 4: 18-21). For practical reason, Jesus needed a boat to go around the area easily. I presumed that one of the reasons Jesus invited Peter and his brother Andrew, James and his brother John to be his disciples was because t

Photo by  David Hablützel  from  Pexels Eddie, the rat, noticed lately that humans stay in their houses everyday. He went home to his lair to report that to his wife.  Upon reaching his lair, his wife Minnie was cooking lunch while he entered the kitchen.  "Hey you're home early? You look pensive. Is something bothering you?" Minnie asked. "Oh no it's nothing. It's just that I noticed lately that humans don't leave their houses at all. It's weird. They normally leave their houses in the morning and come back at night. Now, they're always inside their houses except for one who goes out weekly to buy groceries." Eddie said. "Is that right? You know I heard from our neighbors that there's a human pandemic raging right now. They overheard it from the human radio that a virus is causing widespread sickness. It's making a lot of humans sick and a lot of them are dying," Minnie paused and added, "Could that be the reason?"