XII Chapters of Jesus’s Earthly Ministry
BETA — This is an ongoing work. Paragraphs will be added slowly; get used to different.
I. Jesus’s Birth and Childhood (The Year 0)
II. Fishing from the Desert to the Wedding to the Well (AD 30)
III. Expelled to Preach
IV. Following, Healing, and Parables
V. Power over Demons, Death, Bread, and Water
VI. Who is Jesus? He Is the Son of God!
VII. Good Mud, Good Samaritan, and Good Shepherd
VIII. Lazarus
IX. Judge and King, Friend of Children and Tax Collectors
X. Passion Week and Master-Bridegroom Parables
XI. The Crucified Christ (AD 33)
XII. The Resurrected Christ
I. Jesus’s Birth and Childhood (The Year 0)
Zechariah, Mary, Gabriel, and John’s Birth — Lk 1:1
The angel Gabriel appeared to the high priest, Zechariah, and to his sister-in-law, Mary. He said Jesus and John would be born. An angel told Joseph in a dream that everything would be okay. Joseph and Mary believed, but Zechariah doubted. So, Zechariah couldn’t talk until his wife said the baby’s name would be John.
Jesus Born — Mt 1:18, Lk 2:1
Mary was engaged to Joseph, a carpenter, and she was about to give birth to baby Jesus. But, Caesar Augustus ordered a census. So, they had to travel to Bethlehem, the city King David was from. There was no room at the Inn. So, they stayed in a stable (a small barn). That’s when Jesus was born. His crib was a manger (a feeding trough).
Shepherds & Angels — Lk 2:8
Shepherds were keeping the night watch for their sheep when suddenly they saw an Angel! He was so bright that the campfire looked dark. He said, “Don’t fear. I have great and good news for all people. Today, in David’s city, the promised savior is born, Christ the Lord. This is your sign: You will find the babe wrapped in baby clothes, lying in a manger.” Then more angels filled the sky and shouted, “Glory to God in the Highest, and on Earth, peace and goodwill toward Men!” The shepherds went and it was all true!
Simeon — Lk 2:21
Jesus was a baby when Mary and Joseph took him to the Temple for a baby dedication. On the way out, an old man, Simeon, was led by God’s Spirit to walk up to Jesus and blessed him. God had promised Simeon he would see the Lord Christ in his lifetime. “A light of revelation to the nations and the glory of Your people Israel,” he said. “Now, I can die in peace.”
Wise Men Visit Herod — Mt 2:1
Three wise men from the East had been following a strange star. It had stopped right above the house Jesus was in. As they entered Judah, they visited King Herod. “We are here to see the promised baby king of Israel,” they told him. “Tell me when you do,” Herod said. “I want to worship him too.” But, Herod wanted to kill Jesus.
Wise Men Visit Jesus, Escape from Herod — Mt 2:9
The wise men found Jesus and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Gold is for a king, frankincense is a priestly offering, and myrrh is to bury the dead. This is because Jesus is the King, the Priest, and the Sacrifice. He would give his life to save all people forever. God warned the wise men of Herod’s plan, so they left a different way they came. Joseph had a dream also and left for Egypt. When Herod found out they were gone he was furious and killed all baby boys in the land.
“My Father’s Business” — Lk 2:40
When Jesus was a young boy, Mary and Joseph visited the Temple with him. After, they left the city, but forgot to take Jesus with them. They were worried. The went back quickly, looking for Jesus. When they got to the Temple, Jesus was there. He was talking to the teachers and they were amazed at how much he understood. Mary and Joseph were angry and said, “You had us worried!” Jesus said, “Didn’t you know I would be about my father’s business?”
II. Fishing from the Desert to the Wedding to the Well (AD 30)
Jesus Baptized — Mt 3:13, Lk 3:42
John was in the desert as a praying prophet. He ate locust, wild honey, and his clothes were made from camel’s hair. He called people to be baptized. This meant they would follow his teaching. John’s teaching was, “Repent, for God’s kingdom is near!” The Pharisees weren’t fair, you see. And, the Sadduccees didn’t believe humans have a spirit, so they were very sad, you see. John rebuked them all.
Jesus came and John shouted, “Make way for the Lord!” Jesus wanted to be baptized, but John said, “I’m not worthy.” Jesus said, “I must obey also.” When John baptized his cousin Jesus, he was Heaven open, God’s Holy Spirit settled on Jesus in the form of a dove, and he heard God say, “This is My Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Jesus v the Tempter — Mt 4:1, Lk 4:1
Jesus went to the desert for 40 days. He ate no food and drank no water because he was praying to prepare for his three years of full-time, public ministry on Earth. His whole life, Jesus prayed often. During these 40 days, the Tempter came to tempt Jesus.
- First, he tempted Jesus to turn a stone into bread. Jesus answered, “It is written: Man does not live by bread alone, but by every Word that comes from the Father’s mouth.”
- Second, he showed Jesus all the nations and offered to give Jesus power over them all if Jesus would worship the Tempter. Jesus answered, “It is written: Love the Lord your God and worship Him only.”
- Last, the Tempter made Jesus think to throw himself from the top of the Temple, even referring to the Bible that God angels would not let one foot touch the ground. Jesus answered, “It is also written: Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” Then, the Tempter left.
Fishers of Men: John, Andrew, Peter, and James — Mt 4:18, Lk 5:1, Jn 1:35
One day, Jesus walked by and John said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” Two of John’s disciples followed Jesus, Andrew and another, probably the Apostle John. Jesus asked them, “What do you seek?”
They asked, “Where are you staying?”
“Come and see,” Jesus said. Andrew went to get his brother, Simon. Jesus said, “You’re Simon son of John. Now, you’ll be called Peter.” They stayed with Jesus the rest of the day.
The next day, Jesus was teaching by the Sea of Galilee where Andrew was fishing with Peter. Jesus got into their boat and put out into the water to finish teaching the people. Then, Jesus said, “Let’s go out further and get some fish.”
Peter said, “We worked all night and caught nothing. But, if you say so, we will.” They caught so many fish their nets started to break. They asked their fishing partners to bring their boat to help. Both boats were so full of fish that they both began to sink. Peter saw what was happening and said, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
Jesus said to Peter, “Do not fear. From now on, you will fish for men.”
James, the Apostle’s John’s brother, was nearby, mending their nets with their father. James and John left together and also followed Jesus.
More Disciples: Philip and Nathanael — Jn 1:43
The next day, Jesus set out for Galilee. He found Philip and said what a Jewish Rabbi says to invite someone to be his disciple, “Follow me.” Philip was from Bethsaida, the same city as Andrew and Peter. Philip went to find Nathanael and said, “We have found the one Moses and the prophets foretold, Jesus of Nazareth!”
Nathanael sarcastically said, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?”
Philip said, “Just come and see.”
Jesus saw Nathanael and said, “Look! An Israelite in whom there is no lie!”
Nathanael was shocked, “How do you know me?”
Jesus said, “Before Philip called you, you were under the fig tree; I saw you.”
Nathanael said, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God, Israel’s king!”
Jesus chuckled, “I said I saw you under a fig tree and you believe me? You will see greater things than these; you will see Heaven open and angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”
Water to Wine at Cana — Jn 2:1
On Jesus’s third day with John, James, Andrew, and Peter, now with Philip and Nathanael, they attended a wedding at Cana, not too far away. During the feast, they ran out of wine. “They’re out of wine,” Mary, Jesus’s mother, said to him.
“Why involve me, woman?” Jesus laughed. “It’s not my time yet.”
“Just do whatever he says,” she told the kitchen staff, walking away.
“Okay,” Jesus told them. They had six huge stone jars, twenty or thirty gallons each. “Put water in the jars and take some to the host.”
The host didn’t know where it came from, but it tasted great. “Normally, people serve the best wine first,” he said. “But, you saved the best for last.”
After the wedding, Jesus, his mother, and his first disciples went to Capernaum, not far away, where they stayed a few more days.
For God So Loved the World — Jn 3:1
There were two famous, good Pharisees, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea. They were interested in Jesus, but they didn’t want to create trouble by talking to him during the day. So, Nicodemus talked to Jesus one night on the roof of a house. He said to Jesus, “Rabbi, we know you are from God because no one can do such miracles unless God is with him.”
Jesus said, “Truly, no one enters the Kingdom of God without being born again.”
“Born again from your mother? That’s not possible!” Nicodemus said.
“You must be born of water as well as wind. What is born of flesh is flesh. What is born of wind is wind. The wind blows and no one knows where it came from or where it is going. So is anyone born of the wind.”
“How can that be?” Nicodemus asked. In that time, people thought wind was the same as the spirit.
“You are a teacher, yet you don’t know?” Jesus smiled with love.
“If you don’t believe things of Earth, how can you believe things of Heaven?” Jesus continued. “No one has been up to Heaven except the Son, who came down from Heaven. As Moses lifted up a serpent in the desert so shall the Son be lifted up to save everyone who believes in him. For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, so that whoever believes in him should not perish, but live eternally. For God did not send the Son to condemn the world, but to save the world through the Son. Anyone who believes the Son is saved. Anyone who does not believe is condemned already for not believing in God’s one and only Son. This is why: Mankind loved the darkness more than than the light because their deeds were evil. Anyone who does evil hates the light because it exposes his evil work. But, anyone who does good work comes into the light so everyone can see that his work is from God.”
John: He must increase and I must decrease — Jn 3:22, Mt 4:12
Jesus’s public ministry had been in the north, near the Sea of Galilee. Now, he went with his disciples far south, to the land of Judea, and they were all baptizing in Jesus’s name. John continued baptizing at the Jordan river in the north, just south of the Sea of Galilee at Aenon near Salim. Jesus and his disciples were baptizing more than John. Someone asked John about this. John replied…
“We only have what Heaven gives us. As I said, I am not the Christ. Just as the friend of the bridegroom is happy for him so am I filled with joy. Now, he must increase and I must decrease. He who comes from above and is above everything. Someone from Earth belongs to the earth and speaks earthly. The one from Heaven is above all. God sent him, he speaks God’s words, and he gives the Spirit without limit. The Father loves the Son and gave him everything. Anyone who believes the Son has eternal life; anyone who does not obey the Son will never see life, but God’s wrath will remain on him.”
Eventually, not quite yet, John would be arrested and Jesus preached John’s same message, “Repent, for God’s Kingdom is near.”
Woman at Well — Jn 4:7
Jesus found out that the Pharisees, mostly in the south in Jerusalem, found out Jesus baptized more disciples than John. So, Jesus went back north to Galilee. On the way, they stopped in the land of Samaria. Jesus sat by the well Jacob dug, over 2,000 years earlier. A Samaritan woman came to the well for water. “Give me a drink,” Jesus told her.
The woman was shocked that a Jew would talk to a Samaritan, with the bad history between their peoples. “You’re a Jew, how can you talk to me?” she asked.
Jesus said, “If you really knew who asked you for water, you would ask him and he would give you living water.”
She said, “But, you don’t have a cup to serve water. And, where is your living water? Are you greater than Jacob who dug this well?”
Jesus answered, “Anyone who drinks this water will never thirst again.”
The woman was interested, “That’s good water! Where can I get some? I don’t like coming all the way out to this well.”
“Go get your husband,” Jesus said.
“I don’t have a husband,” she said.
“I know. You’ve had five husbands, and your man now is not your husband.”
“You must be a prophet!” she said. “Tell me, we can’t go to Jerusalem to worship, but we are supposed to go there. So, where should we worship God?”
Jesus said, “Believe me woman, a time is coming when you won’t need to go anywhere to worship God. People will be able to worship Him in spirit and truth, for the Father is looking for such people.”
The woman said, “I know the Christ is coming. He will tell us such things.”
“That’s me,” Jesus said.
Just then the disciples got back with some food and were shocked that Jesus would talk to a Samaritan! No one said anything, so the woman left her jar of water to tell her friends, “This man knew everything I ever did! Can he be the Christ?” Then, many people came out of the town to see Jesus. His disciples were eating and said, “Rabbi, eat something!”
Jesus said, “I have food you don’t even know about.”
The disciples asked each other, “Who bought him food while we were gone getting food?”
Jesus said, “My food is to do the will of the One who sent me. The saying goes on a farm, ‘four months until harvest,’ and, ‘one sows, another reaps.’ Look around you, the fields are white for harvest. Others sowed, but right now, you are reaping.” And, the people from that Samaritan town kept coming out to see Jesus and many believed in him.
A Noble Believes — Jn 4:46
Jesus came back to Cana, where he had turned the water into wine. In Capernaum, a royal official’s son was sick. When he heard Jesus had come back, the official himself went to Jesus and pleaded for Jesus to go to Capernaum and heal his son. Jesus told the people nearby, “Without a sign, you won’t believe.” Then he told the official to go home and that his son was alive. The official took Jesus at his word, went home, and on the way one of his servants met him to report that his son had already been healed—at the very hour when Jesus said he would live, when the official believed Jesus.
III. Expelled to Preach
Expelled from Synagogue at Nazareth of Galilee — Lk 4:16
Jesus was at weekly synagogue when it was his turn to read the Jewish Bible. The passage that day was Isaiah 61:1. Jesus read it, then said, “Today, this prophecy is fulfilled.” He was referring to himself, that he was God’s Son, that Isaiah had prophesied about him, and that God wanted Jubilee forgiveness of all debt. The leaders told Jesus to leave and not come back and even tried to throw him off a cliff! So, Jesus left and preached everywhere else.
Sermon on the Mount — Mt 5-7
Jesus went up on a large hill to teach. We aren’t certain which hill it was, but the hill isn’t as important as what he taught. He taught virtuous ideas that seemed opposite of the culture’s virtues: People who are sad are blessed because God comforts them. Obeying cruel leaders more than they demand can give you soft power. Let your words hold their face value meaning so that you will never need to take an oath. Real prayer should be quiet and private, but prayer in public is just for show. “Eye for an eye” revenge is not really God’s justice, but if you love enemies and pray for your oppressors then you are like God, your Father in Heaven. Don’t to worry about food and shelter tomorrow, but in all things seek what God wants, then God, your Father in Heaven, will provide your needs on Earth.
Jesus Slept in the Storm, Woke to Calm It — Mt 8:24
Jesus’s disciples crossed the Sea of Galilee in a boat during a terrible storm. They were afraid they would die, but Jesus was asleep in the boat. Finally, one of them yelled, “Don’t you even care that we’re dying.” Jesus woke up and looked at the storm. “Silence!” he said. The storm went silent, and so did the disciples. “Don’t you guys believe?” Jesus said.
Demoniac Cries “Son of God” — Lk 4:33
Jesus and his disciples attended Synagogue in Capernaum. A demon possessed man at the Synagogue started shouting, “Jesus! What do you want? Did you come to destroy us? I know you’re the Holy One, the Son of God!” Jesus said, “Silence! Get out of him!” The demon left the man and he fell down. Everyone asked each other, “Even demons obey him?” Word of this spread through the greater area.
Heals Leper — Lk 5:12
Jesus traveled through another town. A man with leprosy fell down in front of Jesus and said, “Lord, if you’ll do it, you can make me clean.” Jesus said, “I’ll do it; be clean.” The man’s leprosy was gone! Jesus told him to keep quiet about it. “Go to the priest,” Jesus went on, “and make an offering like Moses instructed. That’s a sign for them.” Still, the report about Jesus spread even farther. People started flooding in for Jesus’s teaching and healing. But, Jesus went off to be alone and pray.
Through the Roof — Lk 5:17, Mk 2:1
Jesus was talking in someone’s home in a sprawl of towns. Pharisees and lawyers for God’s Law of Moses had come from all over Galilee, even as far as Jerusalem. A crowd kept growing and no one could even get close to Jesus. Suddenly a group of guys brought their paralyzed buddy, broke open the roof, and lowered him down into the house so Jesus could heal him. Jesus said, “Take heart, your sins are forgiven.” The lawyers and Pharisees were furious, “Moses’s Law says only God can forgive sin,” they thought. Jesus knew and said, “Who is this who forgives sin, hmm? But, so you may know the Son of Man has power in both heaven and earth…” Jesus looked at the paralyzed buddy and continued, “Pick up your bed and go.” And, the man picked up his bed and went home praising God. Everyone was captivated with amazement and said, “We’ve seen extraordinary things today!”
Jesus Calls Tax Collector Matthew-Levi — Mk 2:13, Mt 9:9
Levi was a Jew, but also a tax collector for the Roman government. Tax collectors forced money out of the people, many of them charged too much just to embezzle. The economy was horrible and the Jews were already poor. So, you can see how Levi was seen as a traitor to his own people. One day, Jesus walked by the local tax booth. Sitting there was Levi son of Alphias, also known as Matthew. Jesus looked at him and said, “Follow me.” Without a word, Matthew got up and went with Jesus. That night, they had dinner at Matthew’s house. His tax collector friends joined, along with some of the town riffraff. Pharisees heard about it and complained, “Jesus eats with tax collectors and riffraff!” Jesus just said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor.”
Eating Grain on the Sabbath — Mk 2:23
In the Law God gave Moses, Israel allows travelers to pick a little fruit and grain from the fields on their journey. One day, Jesus and his disciples were traveling through some fields and took some grain to eat on their way. Pharisees saw this and complained, “You’re working on the Sabbath again!” Jesus retorded, “Didn’t you read in your Bible that David ate the bread in the tabernacle—the bread reserved only for God? God made the Sabbath to help Man; He didn’t make Man to help the Sabbath.”
Heals Whithered Hand in Synagogue on Sabbath — Mk 3:1
When Jesus and disciples arrived at Synagogue, a man with a whithered hand was there. Jesus called the man to him, then said to those present, “On Sabbath, is it lawful to do good or to do harm, to save or life or to kill?” They said nothing. Then, Jesus told man, “Stretch out your hand.” The man did and it was completely healed. The Pharisees were furious because they claimed it was “illegal work” to heal someone on the Sabbath. So, they started to conspire with evil King Herod’s family to do Jesus in.
Paralytic at Pool of Bethesda on Sabbath — Jn 5:1
In Bible times, the Greeks worshiped Asklepius as the god of healing. They set up water pools called Asklepions. They believed that Asklepius or his “serpent spirits” would stir the water, then whoever jumped in the water first would be healed. Sick people sat around these pools, hoping to be healed by this Greek god. An Asklepion like this was set up in Jerusalem called the Pool of Bethesda. Part of it remains in the old ruins today.
A paralyzed man sat by the Pool of Bethesda for thirty-eight years when Jesus walked by. It was a Sabbath day. Jesus asked the man, “Do you want to be healed?” The man said, “No one can help me in the water. Someone else always gets there first.” Jesus just replied, “Get up, carry your bed, and walk.” Right away the man was healed and got up with his bed. Some Jewish leaders complained, “You can’t carry your bed on the Sabbath. That’s work!” The man said, “The man who healed me told me to.” They asked who it was, but the man didn’t know. Later, Jesus saw the man and said, “Look, you’re well. Sin no more so no more trouble comes to you.” The man told the Jewish leaders that it was Jesus who healed him. That’s when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem started their smear campaign against Jesus. But, Jesus just said, “My Father’s been working up to now, so I’m working too.”
IV. Following, Healing, and Parables
Centurion’s Faith — Lk 7:1
Funeral at Nain: Young Man Resurrected — Lk 7:11
Simon the Pharisee and Mary Magdalene of Bethany — Lk 7:36
Parable of Scattered Seed — Mt 13:1
Parable of Weeds — Mt 13:24
Parable of Mustard Seed, Buried Treasure, Pearl of Great Price, and Net — Mt 13:31-50
V. Power over Demons, Death, Bread, and Water
Demoniac & Pigs of Decapolis — Mk 5:6
“Who Touched Me?” — Mk 5:22, Lk 8:40
She’s not Dead, Just Sleepling: Feed the girl — Mk 5:35, Lk 8:49
John Beheaded — Mt 11; 14
Feeds Five Thousand — Mt 14:13, Jn 6:1
Walks on Water — Mt 14:22, Jn 6:15
Bread of Life for Gentile Dog — Mt 15:21, Jn 6:25
VI. Who is Jesus? He Is the Son of God!
Who Do You Say I AM? — Mt 16:13
Transfiguration on Mount — Mt 17:1
Man’s Demonic Son — Mt 17:14
Greatest in the Kingdom — Mt 17:24
Seventy Times Seven — Mt 18:21
Needle’s Eye — Mt 19:16
Way, Truth, and Light, Before Abraham I AM — Jn 8
VII. Good Mud, Good Samaritan, and Good Shepherd
Mud in the Eye “I Once Was Blind, Now I See” — Jn 9
The Good Shepherd — Jn 10
Sending out the Seventy — Lk 10:1
The Good Samaritan — Lk 10:24
VIII. Lazarus
Mary’s Friend Lazarus Dies — Jn 11:17
Lazarus Resurrected — Jn 11:38
Martha, Martha — Lk 10:38
Herod’s Gonna’ Kill You — Lk 13:31
Lazarus Sabbath — Jesus Heals and Tells Parables on a Sabbath with the Pharisees, soon after Bringing Lazarus back to Life
Heals Crippled Woman while Teaching on Sabbath — Lk 13:10
Heals Man with Dropsy while Eating on Sabbath — Lk 14:1
The Place of Honor — Lk 14:7
The Lost Sheep (Leaving the Ninety-Nine) — Lk 15:1
The Lost Coin — Lk 15:8
The Prodigal Son — Lk 15:11
The Shrewd Steward — Lk 16:1
Lazarus & the Rich Man — Lk 16:19
IX. Judge and King, Friend of Children and Tax Collectors
Parables of the Unjust Judge, the Pharisee & Tax Collector — Lk 18:1
Let the Little Children Come — Lk 18:15
Blind Bartimaus Follows Jesus into Passion Week — Lk 18:35
Zacheus at Jericho — Lk 19:1
X. Passion Week and Master-Bridegroom Parables
“Wasted Perfume” — Mt 26:6
Judas Conspires — Mt 26:14
The Donkey & Triumphal Entry — Mt 21:1, Lk 19:29
Cleanses Temple — Mt 21:12
Curses Fig Tree — Mt 21:8
Vineyard Master — Lk 20:9
Wedding Feast — Mt 21:1-14, Lk 20:9
Render to Caesar — Lk 20:19
Sadducees & Resurrection — Lk 20:27
Woes — Mt 23:13
Lament over Jerusalem — Mt 23:37
Olivet Discourse — Mt 24
XI. The Crucified Christ (AD 33)
The Last Supper (Washing Feet, Traitor) — Mt 26:26, Lk 22:7, Jn 13-17
Garden of Gethsemane — Mt 26:30
Jesus’s Arrest — Mt 26:47, Lk 22:47, Jn 18:1
Jesus’s Trial — Jn 18:12
Cock Crows — Lk 22:54, Jn 18:25
Pilate — Lk 23:1, Jn 18:28
Herod — Lk 23:8
Pilate Again — Lk 23:13, Jn 19:11
Simon Carries Jesus’s Cross — Lk 23:26
Crucified — Lk 23:33, Jn 19:16
Buried — Lk 23:50, Jn 19:31
XII. The Resurrected Christ
Empty Tomb — Mt 28:1, Jn 20:1
“Mary, don’t cling; I’m still here.” — Jn 20:11, 17
Road to Emmaus — Lk 24:13
Many Sightings, Word Spread — Lk 24:28, Jn 20:19, 1 Cor 15:6
Thomas’ Belief — Jn 20:26
The Last Breakfast, Fishing Again — Jn 21:1
Ascension — Mt 28:18, Mk 16:14, Lk 24:50, Acts 1:1-11