The Rich Man and Lazarus

(Luke 16:19-31)

There was a rich man who likes to buy expensive clothes and dress like a
king. He also eats a lot of food and buys everything that he wants. At his
gates however, there lay a sick starving beggar. His name was Lazarus.
Lazarus was very sick. His skin was full of sores. He also had bruises because
people were mean to him and they always bully him. Lazarus had no money
and he can't buy the food that he needs. He only eats the crumbs left over
by the rich man.

One morning, God decided that Lazarus does not deserve more suffering
and He took the poor beggar to heaven. Angels carried Lazarus' soul and he
met Abraham and he was comforted by God.
The rich man also got very sick because he lived an unhealthy life. His
money could not save him and eventually his soul departed from this world.
His soul was punished because he was very greedy had no love of God. He
had all the money he wants but he did not let God enter his life.

The Parable of the Gold Coins

(Matthew 25:23-30)

There was a master who was about to travel and so he entrusted his
properties to his servants. The master gave the servants gold coins
according to their own abilities. The first servant was given five gold coins,
the second received two gold coins, and the third received one gold coin.
After a long time the master returned. He asked his servants how they took
care of his property and gold coins. The first and second servants explained
that in their limited abilities, they invested the gold coins to some good
work and by doing so they have doubled the value of the masters property
entrusted to each of them. The master was very happy and he rewarded the
two servants saying,

Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over
something little, because of this I will give you much more. Come to your
master. I am glad of what you have done.
Then the third servant who was given one gold coin told the master,
Master, I know that you are a very industrious person. I know that you
worked very hard for your properties, and because of this I thought it would
be best if I bury your money to the ground to keep it safe.
The master, upon hearing this, angrily told his servant that burying the coins
to the ground was a bad idea since there is no profit in it. The master would
have been happier if the servant had invested the coins so that it could
profit rather than just bury them to the ground and waste the opportunity
to increase their value.

The Parable of the Bridesmaids

(Matthew 25:14-30)

Long ago, there was a wedding. Ten bridesmaids were tasked to wait for the
groom who was to come at night. The bridesmaids were instructed to bring
lamps. Five of the bridesmaids brought oil so that when their lamp died,
they can light them again. The other five brought only the lamps with no
reserve oil. As the evening came, while they were waiting for the groom to
come, they fell asleep as they rested a bit.
Midnight then struck and the bridesmaids were awakened. Someone was
shouting that the groom is coming already. As their lamps were dimming,
the five bridesmaids who brought oil had their lamps replenished, while
those who did not bring oil realized that their lamps would be out of light
when the groom arrives.

The five bridesmaids who did not bring oil asked the other five to give them
fuel for their lamps. However the oil they brought was only enough for the
five who brought it and so the bridesmaids who did not bring oil went out to
buy oil.
When the groom arrived, the five bridesmaids who were left welcomed him
and they all went inside the wedding to feast. The other five who bought oil
came too late and they were not able to enter the feast because the door
was already closed. These five bridesmaids did not prepare enough and so
they were not able to fulfill their duties accordingly, while those who were
wise enough to prepare feasted and celebrated with the groom.

The Parable of the Faithful Servant

(Luke 12:35-48)

There was a master who was out of town because he attended a wedding
feast. He left his servants at home so that they can welcome him and light
him on his way home when he comes back.
When the master came back, he saw that his servants are still waiting even
though it is already very late. He was very thankful of these servants that he
let them recline and rest. The master then served his faithful servants to
show his gratitude. From then on, the master gave his faithful servants
enough food each day and without delay.

There was another master who also left to attend the wedding feast. He
also left his servants at home so that they can welcome him and light him
on his way home when he comes back.
Like with the other master, some of the servants faithfully waited but there
was one who had no patience in his heart. The unfaithful servant then, the
evil that he is, started beating the other maidservants. He then got drunk
and ate the food of his master. One day, without the unfaithful servant
expecting, the master came back home. After seeing his servants
unfaithfulness and abuse, he punished him. For his transgression and evil
deeds, this master disciplined the unfaithful servant, while to the faithful
servants he rewarded them.

The Parable of the Budding Fig Tree

(Luke 21:29-33)

Jesus knew that his disciples are eager to know when the Kingdom of God
will arrive. He also knew that they are still unaware as to what is the
meaning and the mystery of this event, because of this, He told them the
story of a budding fig tree.
Being surrounded by forest, Jesus pointed at the fig trees and said,
See that fig tree, and all the trees. When they start budding you know
already that summer is near.

He continued saying,
And so, like with the budding of the fig tree, for the Kingdom of God to
arrive all must be accomplished first.
Jesus told his disciples that all things necessary must be first completed
before the Kingdom of God arrives and that Heaven and Earth will certainly
pass away, but His words will never end.

The Parable of the Great Banquet

(Matthew 22:1-14)

There was once a king who had made a feast for the wedding of his son. He
sent his servants throughout the land to invite the people whom he wants
to come to the feast. When the servants came back they told the king that
those invited did not want to come to the feast.
Although disappointed, the king again sent out his servants throughout the
land to those invited to tell them that he has already prepared the meat and
all other food for them in the feast. Yet again, those that are invited did not
come. Instead, they continued their daily lives. However, some of them took
the servants of the king, then after treating them shamefully, took their
lives.

When the King heard of what was done to his servants, he immediately
ordered his army to punish the murderers and the cities that they ruled.
Then he sent another batch of his servants and told them to go into the
intersections of highways and invite as many people as they can.
The servants came back and the wedding feast was filled with guests. The
king was so glad to see the feast filled with so many people, may they be
poor or rich, bad or good.

The Parable of the Tenants

(Luke 20:1-19)

There was a man who wanted to grow grapes, so he had planted a vineyard.
To protect his grapes, the man built a wall around the vineyard. He also built
a winepress so that he can make wine from his grapes.
One day, he was asked to go on a trip out of town. Before he left, he found
some farmers who agreed to stay at the vineyard and take care of his
grapes. A few months passed and the grapes were finally ripe and so the
man sent someone to harvest the grapes.
When the farmers saw that someone was about to collect the grapes, they
beat him up and sent him back to the owner of the vineyard empty handed.
The owner of the vineyard again sent another person to collect the grapes.

Yet again, the farmers beat him up and sent him back to the vineyard owner
empty handed. For the third time the owner sent another person to collect
the grapes. This time the farmers wounded the man sent by the owner and
sent him back again.
The owner then decided to send his own son thinking that the farmers
might recognize him and then respect him.
But the farmers were evil in their hearts and when they saw the owners son
they agreed to take his life so that the vineyard will be theirs. And so they
did.
The owner, upon knowing that his son was killed, went back to the vineyard
and took the life of the farmers. He then gave his vineyard to other people
who have shown goodness in their hearts.

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

(Luke 18:9-14)

One day in Gods Temple at Jerusalem, two men went to pray. One them
was a Pharisee. He was a self-righteous religious leader. The other one was
a tax collector.
The Pharisee prayed to God these words,
God, I thank You because I am not like other men who are extortioners,
unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
The Pharisee continued saying,
God, You know that I fast twice a week. I also give money to the temple.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the temple, the tax collector stood. The
humble that he is, he could not look up to the heavens. He beat his chest
and prayed with these words,
God, be merciful to me who is a sinner!
God then forgave the sins of the tax collector because he is righteous and
because of his humble heart and his desire for forgiveness, while the
Pharisee was boastful and proud.

The Parable of the Two Sons

(Matthew 21:28-32)

Long ago, there lived a father who had two sons. One day, the father said to
his first son,
Son, go and work in my vineyard today.
The first son answered saying, I will not. The father was disappointed. But
the son realizing what he has done regretted it and went to the vineyard to
work.
The father then came to his second son and again said,
Son, go and work in my vineyard today.

The second son answered saying, Yes father, I will go. When the father
left, the second son did not go to the vineyard. He lied to his father.
Seeing the deeds of his two sons, the father was glad that his first son was
humble and obedient. For the second however, the father was so
disappointed that he lied, and it broke his heart.

The Persistent Widow

(Luke 18:1-8)

Jesus knew that his followers lack persistence when praying to God. To help
them understand the meaning of prayer, he told them the story of a
persistent widow.
There once lived an unjust judge who was very strict. He did not fear God
and did not show mercy to the people.
One day, a widow came to his court and asked him,
Honorable judge, please grant me justice against those who are unkind to
me.

The judge did not budge and he did not listen to the widows plea. The next
day, the widow came back and again asked the judge,
Honorable judge, please grant me justice against those who are unkind to
me.
This went on until finally, the judged proclaimed,
This widow, who showed great persistence, will be served justice.
If a Judge who does not fear God and is not merciful to his people can give
the widow what she asks, how much more will our loving God give us if we
persevere? Truly God will favor our prayers if we persevere.

The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

(Matthew 20:1-16)

Long time ago, there lived a vineyard owner. His grapes were ready for
harvest but he has no workers to do it. So early in the morning, he went to
the town to hire some farmers. The owner hired people when they agreed
to be paid one penny, which is worth a days work.
At nine in the morning, while in town, the owner saw some idle workers in
the market and so he hired them. They agreed to be paid a penny each.
Again at twelve noon and at three in the afternoon he looked for more
farmers and hired them. Late in the afternoon, at about five oclock, the
owner found another group of idle farmers. He asked why they were not at
work. The farmers replied, No one has hired us sir. And so the owner
hired them and told them that they will be paid a full days work as to be
able to feed their families.

When the evening came, the owner called one of his servants and told him
to call all the farmers, beginning from the last hired, and pay them their
wages. The first group was given a penny for each farmer, and so did the
next three groups of farmers. When the first group hired was then paid,
they murmured against the owner saying,
The last group to be hired only worked for one hour while we, the first
group to be hired, worked from nine till evening. Why should they be paid
the same amount as with us?!
The owner then replied, Friends, I did nothing wrong. You all agreed to be
paid a penny each. Why did you think of me as bad when I only gave each of
you equal wages? Is it not rightful that these poor farmers also receive
wages enough to feed their families? The last group then went silent and
having realized their greed, understood the good intent of the owner for all
of them.

The Prodigal Son

(Luke 15:11-32)

There was once a man who had two sons. The younger son asked his father
some of his inheritance. The father then divided his properties and gave
part of it to his youngest son. After a few days, the younger son travelled to
a country far away. He wasted his inheritance and lived a very luxurious life.
One day, he found out that he had already spent all of his money. A severe
famine came to the country and he felt hungry. He worked for a farmer
feeding pigs in the barn so that he could earn some money for food.
Knowing that he is now living in desperation, he decided to return home to
his father.
Upon seeing his youngest son coming home, the father ran towards his son
then kissed and hugged him. The son was so ashamed but the father still

loved him very much. He told his servants to prepare a feast for his son and
to give him new clothes.
Seeing the celebration, the eldest son got angry. He did not join the feast.
Realizing this, the father talked to his eldest son. He asked him why he was
angry and he replied that he never left and rather worked in the fields but
the father never had a celebration for him. The father then explained,
Son, you know that I am always there for your younger brother. It is only
right to celebrate your brothers return for he had died and now he is alive.
He was lost and now he was found!
The eldest brother then understood the love of his father to his brother. He
then regretted his anger because he realized that he was only angry
because he was envious and that the father is only very happy because his
brother has returned.

Jesus Heals the Leper

(Mark 1:40-45)

During the time of Jesus, lepers were considered unclean by society, thus
they were avoid and neglected. Leprosy is a disease that prevents the
healing of wounds and slowly eats away the flesh. However, there was one
leper, who having heard the miracles of Jesus, jumped in front of the Lord
and said,
With your will Lord, you can make me clean.
Jesus replied saying,
Then I will it. Be clean.

And suddenly the leper was healed and all his wounds vanished. In a rush,
and after barely finishing thanking God, he shouted to everyone that he was
healed. Jesus preferred that the miracle was to be known only to the priest
in the Temple since it is what their Law required.
Because of the healed lepers announcement to the crowd, the people
thought that Jesus was some kind of a magician, which He is not. Jesus
healed the leper through the power of God. This miracle confirmed to the
people that God was indeed at work in their lives. But Jesus knew that the
people could not fully understand this, nevertheless He still healed the
people from their illnesses since they showed sincere faith in Him.

Jesus Makes a Man Walk Again

(Luke 5:18-26)

When Jesus went to Capernaum, the people eagerly went to where He

stayed. Jesus went to the house of Simon Peter. The house was filled with
many people and they even gathered around outside. Suddenly the roof of
Peters house began to move and a hole beginning to form. They then found
out that there were people on the roof who were trying to get inside the
house. They tried the roof since they were carrying a paralyzed man and
because the house was too crowded that they cannot enter through the
door.
The people in the roof then lowered the paralyzed man into the room
where Jesus was. Jesus was impressed by the faith of the people carrying
the paralyzed man that he said to the latter,

My friend, I forgive your sins.

Upon hearing this, the crowd whispered among themselves,
Who does He think He is? God is the only one who could forgive sins!
To show that He is healing through the power of God, Jesus exclaimed to
the paralyzed man,
Stand up and take your mat, then go home.
The paralyzed man immediately stood up, took his mat and thanked God for
the miracle that has happened. Everyone was so amazed and they felt one
of Gods infinite wonders.

Jesus Calms the Storm

(Matthew 8:23-27)

There was a night during one of Jesus ministry, while He and His disciples
were crossing the Sea of Tiberias, a strong wind blew and unleashed its fury.
The boat was then flooded due to the high waves caused by the wind. The
disciples panicked. Meanwhile Jesus was sleeping. The disciples then
decided to wake Him up and they told Him,
Lord, are you not worried? We are about to die!
The awoken Jesus gently spoke to the wind and the sea saying,
Be quiet!

The sea and the wind obeyed Jesus and they became calm. He then turned
to His disciples and told them,
Why were you so afraid? Did you lose your faith in me?
The disciples humbled themselves and then they murmured to themselves
these words,
Who is this man? The wind and the sea easily obeyed His command! Truly
He has power over nature and death!

Jesus Feeds the Crowd

(Matthew 14:15-21)

Once, when Jesus and His disciples decided to rest for bit they went to a
deserted place. But when they arrived to that place, a huge crowd had
already gathered and they were waiting for Jesus to share His words and
heal the sick.
Jesus decided not to send the people away. He and His disciples stayed with
the crowd the whole day until evening. As the sun went down, the disciples
realized that the people have to eat and yet they dont have food. They told
Jesus about the lack of food. But Jesus answered to them,
Give them your food.

The disciples collected the food that they brought but there were only five
loaves of bread and two fish! Jesus then asked the crowd to settle down and
sit. He then took the loaves of bread and the two fish in his hands. He then
raised them up to the sky and He prayed to God. Jesus then blessed the
bread and broke it into pieces and gave them to His disciples. The disciples
then took the bread and fish from Jesus and they distributed the food
among the crowd. The food was disseminated to everyone until everybody
was full. The disciple then collected the left overs and they filled several
baskets of food!
The crowd was amazed at the giving power God through the miracle of
Jesus.

Jesus and the Man who was Deaf and Mute

(Mark 7:31-37)

Jesus went to Decapolis from Galilee to spread the good news of Gods
Kingdom.
While in Decapolis, a group of people approached Jesus. They asked Him to
heal a man who was deaf and had trouble speaking.

Jesus then took the deaf man. He touched the deafs ears and then He also
touched his tongue. After Jesus had done these things, the deaf began to
hear and talk.
The healed deaf then thanked God and he spread the story of Jesus
miracle.

Jesus and the Man who was Blind

(Mark 8:22-26)

In the village of Bethsaida, when Jesus arrived, some people went to Him
carrying a blind man. Being compassionate, Jesus took the blind man in a
corner where no one can see His miracle.
Jesus did not want to be known only as a healer and distract the people
from His purpose. He wants to be known as a proclaimer of Gods coming
Kingdom.
In the private corner, Jesus put His hand into the blind mans eyes. He then
asked the blind saying,
Do you see anything?

The blind man replied with the words,

I see people, but my sight is not very clear. I can see them as if they are
walking trees.
Jesus then touched the mans eyes again. This time his sight became clearer
and he could now see the world. Jesus instructed the man saying,
You can go home now, but do not pass in the village.
The man went away shouting for joy for the miracle that has been done.

Jesus is Stronger than Death

(Christs Passion from the Four Gospels)

During the last days of Jesus, He was accused by Jerusalems religious

leaders of bad things since He claimed to be the Son of God. The leaders
then decided to take the life of Jesus and crucify Him.
In His last supper, Jesus blessed the bread and wine and distributed them to
his apostles. He told them that His life is to be offered for the salvation of
everyone. He also promised to be with His apostles forever. However it was
also the night that He was arrested.
Many people knew that Jesus was innocent, but the people were still
persuaded to have Him sentenced with crucifixion. He was crucified
between two thieves. While nailed to the cross, Jesus asked God to forgive
the people who made Him suffer.

After He died, Jesus was buried in a tomb by His friends. The tomb was then
sealed with a large stone door.
Two days later, Mary Magdalene together with two other women went to
visit the tomb. To their surprise the tomb was open and the large stone was
moved aside.
When the women entered the tomb, they did not found the body of Jesus.
In its place were His empty burial cloths. Also inside the tomb was an angel
of God who told them that Jesus had risen from the dead and that He will
now live forever. Upon hearing this, the women ran back to the apostles to
share the wonderful good news.
To this day we must spread the good news that Jesus has power over death
and that God has prepared for us a place in heaven.