The living dead

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

THE LIVING DEAD

Matt 12:38-42

38 Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, "Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you." 39 He answered, "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here. 42 The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and now one greater than Solomon is here.

NIV

Because we believe and have the complete record of all that has happened from the creation of all that has been created to what is to come some day in the future, we understand what Jesus says here. But it would also seem Jesus spoke plainly enough in terms the Pharisees should have understood that he was talking about them being condemned. They certainly should have gotten the message they were a wicked and adulterous generation. The one part of this narrative which leads to some confusion is when Jesus compares himself to Jonah and the three days and nights. By our method of reckoning Jesus was put in the grave on Friday before sunset, which was the beginning of their Sabbath, Saturday. He was in the tomb all day Saturday, but rose early on Sunday morning. This is our Easter Sunday Celebration. That would make part of three days, but only two nights. The scholars indicate the Jews reckoned time differently than we do as a part equals a whole to them. But still we cannot grasp the three nights, yet they considered the days and nights as one so then if he was in the tomb part of a day it was also part of the night. We don’t get it, but they did. Yet because we know the scripture is true and the words of Jesus contain all truth, we have to believe the three days and three nights meant that in the way the Jews thought about days and nights. Although that could be a lesson for us, in that we should or need to see the scripture in light of the time is was recorded, our lesson is about faith. Some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law wanted to see a miraculous sign. Were they just trying to trick him? Were they possibly considering he was telling the truth about being the Son of God, that he was the awaited Messiah? Maybe they were beginning to believe he was the one greater then Jonah and Solomon. Maybe they were considering they might be the ones condemned because they were not listening to his words. But because they wanted proof, he rebuked them. He had been doing miraculous signs all along. He already had healed hundreds, perhaps thousands. He had driven out demons, if fact all this conversation is a result of his driving out the demons which made a man mute and blind. The man could now speak and see and the crowds were astonished, yet they still are asking for a sign. This is not much different than some people of this generation. Some people are looking for the supernatural. They seek the paranormal, the spooky stuff rather than the truth of God. They look for answers about life after death within the paranormal, but only find the spiritual realm of darkness. There is no doubt demons occupy the realm of the supernatural and paranormal. They present themselves in various forms to trick this generation into believing there is something, but it is not. When people find this illusion and it has nothing to do with God, it proves they do not have to believe in God to find life after death. That is why the seek it, search for it diligently. They do not want the truth, they want to find that which they can live with, while remaining their own way of living. Because the Pharisees and teachers of the law wanted a sign, they were condemned. They could not believe on faith, although they could have seen many signs. If people are looking for signs today, they too will be condemned. We do not need signs to believe, although we have received miraculous healings, and the divine hand providing in a supernatural way, outside the realm of possibility of the norm. We have witnessed miracles that defy science, physics, and chemistry. Yet Jesus tells us that we are blessed if we believe yet have not seen. Many believers may not have seen all the miraculous events we have, yet still they faith is as strong as, maybe even stronger as, ours. But the point is the Pharisees had all the opportunity to see signs, and yet they refused to believe and wanted a sign. We do not need a sign, but some people want us to show them proof of God, with a sign. They say God is dead, but in reality they are the living dead. This is what Jesus was telling the Pharisees and teachers of the law. This is what this generation is as well. The living dead. But we who believe have life and life more abundantly. We who were once dead in our sin, are now alive in Christ. How grateful we are that God intervened in our lives, and brought us out of the darkness into his wonderful light. How is it that we were saved and so many will not find the truth? Why us and not them?  It has to be because they refuse to believe, as did the Pharisees and teachers of the law, and thus are a generation that is condemned, unless they find the truth. How can they find it unless someone shows it to them? Who will he sent? Could it be us? Unless we our someone else tells them the truth, they are the living dead. 

Words

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

WORDS

Matt 12:33-37

33 "Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. 36 But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned." 

NIV

Jesus is still refuting the charge the Pharisees made that he healed the man who was mute and blind by the power of Satan. Their words are filled with hatred toward him, because their hearts are filled with hatred toward him. This is the whole of his response here. The life lesson we can arrive at here has the same truth. What matters is that which is in our hearts. Of course there are times our words may not match that which brings glory and honor to God. This is specifically true in our interaction with our immediate family members. There are times when we engage in somewhat heated conversations, or some who call it an argument. It is true that all marriages have those moments. If a couple say they have never had an argument, they are far better people then we are, and perhaps even near perfect people. It would seem near impossible for two people to live together mostly all their lives without having a passionate disagreement. But the words spoken are a reflection of what is in the heart. Does that mean that in those moments of anger, our hearts are filled with hatred? How can a heart filled with the Spirit of God also be filled with hatred? That would seem impossible. So then what is the truth of the teaching of Jesus here? Surely the Pharisees thought they were serving the living God, the God that brought them out of Egypt. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The God who created all that was created. But their hearts were filled with hatred toward Jesus. Jesus tells us that we will be known by the fruit we bear, by our words. Although it is true that we do not swear, use foul or vulgar language, we might use some words that do not bring glory and honor to Jesus. Again we must look at the fruit we bear which brings us right to the fruit of the Spirit. Do we bear love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control? It is the self-control thing which might give us the difficultly, especially when we are faced with some disagreement. Yet the whole idea of the bulk of the fruit is that is has no benefit for the tree which it bears. The idea is that the fruit benefits those who can pick it off the tree. People will experience what is in our hearts. If we are not letting the fruit of the spirit come out of our mouths, perhaps it is because it is not in our hearts. However, if we have the fruit of the Spirit stored up in our hearts that is what will come out of our mouths. We will speak words of love, joy and peace. We will speak words of kindness and goodness. We will speak words of faithfulness and patience. We will speak words that are a result of self-control. These words would certainly differ from those that are judgmental, critical and gossip, including a whole bunch of others that are not in line with the Spirit. Words are important because they reflect the heart. 

From who

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

FROM WHO

Matt 12:30-32

30 "He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. 31 And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.

NIV

This is a continuation of his rebuttal to the Pharisees regarding their charge of his doing this miracle of healing the blind and mute man by the power of Satan. We looked at the house divided concept, but now in addition he tells them if they are not with him, they are against him. The purpose of Christ, therefore our purpose being in Christ, or rather Christ being in us, is to gather the harvest of souls. Those who do not gather with Christ are therefore opposed to the gathering of souls for the kingdom of God and consequently scatter them. We could extrapolate this idea to include how we live our Christian life. That is to say do we gather souls for the kingdom of God or are we content just being a believer, going about living our own salvation, attending church on Sunday.  Do we just get together with other believers, even though we may not even talk about God, or the scriptures? That is do we only socialize with those of like minds? If that is our lifestyle, then how are we going to gather? It certainly is not about gathering other believers from one church to another. It has to be about gathering souls for the kingdom of God. If we are not gathering, according to Jesus we are scattering. That could lead us to the idea of how unbelievers perceive our lives. Some would accuse us of being hypocrites, saying one thing, but living differently. If we tell them God loves them, but we do not demonstrate the love of God toward them, then their accusations may be right. How we love them may depend somewhat on our particular personality, but the point is we show them love, compassion and mercy. These next words have caused some consternation within the body of Christ.  The idea that all our sin can be forgiven except blasphemy, or speaking against the Holy Spirit, has some believers concerned. How can we speak against the Holy Spirit? What Jesus was telling the Pharisees was exacting what they we doing. They were accusing his power from being from Satan rather than from the Spirit of God. How this translates into our lives as believers may not be exactly the same as how the Pharisees were speaking against the Spirit. How we might be guilty of this is in our denial of some miracle of God, seeing it as just a coincident, or by the hand of man. If someone gives us something, we could see it as a helping hand, or we could see it as a provision from God. If we expend our energy and resources to gain something we could see that as our making our way in life, or we could see it as a provision from God. As true as it is that God has told us to work for our sustenance, it still all comes from his hand. Although the people of Israel had to go out each morning and gather the manna, it came from God. Our jobs, our wages, are a result of the provision of God. If we do not act accordingly to that principle then perhaps we are speaking against the power of the Spirit of God. Surely we could see that those who refuse to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior have spoken against the Holy Spirit as his power is to convict people of their need to repent and accept Jesus. When a person refuses that conviction, they are in essence speaking against the Spirit and are therefore not forgiven of that sin and by so they have condemned themselves. But it is us believers who need to make sure we do not take on an attitude other than, “All we are, all we have, all we do is a result of the Spirit working in our lives”. If we see anything else than that, if we consider we are responsible in any way for who we are, what we have, and what we do, then perhaps we are denying the power of the Spirit. Did not God form us, knit us together in our mother’s womb? He designed every aspect of our being, we are just as he formed us therefor we live as a result of the power of the Spirit of God. We all have differences in our appearance and our interests. Not all of us are bent toward engineering, or the arts. Not all of us have the same abilities, but we all have the Spirit of God dwelling within us. Therefor it is by his Spirit that we live, in all we are, all we have and all we do. If everything is not from God, then who is it from? This is what Jesus told the Pharisees, they refused the power of God and therefor it must have been from Satan. Let us always be willing to admit all we are, have and do is from God. 

Divided or one

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

DIVIDED OR ONE

Matt 12:22-29

22 Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. 23 All the people were astonished and said, "Could this be the Son of David?" 24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons." 25 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. 26 If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? 27 And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 28 But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 "Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.

NIV

The fact that Jesus healed a man who was possessed by a demon or demons is just the norm as far as in the life of Jesus. It is his nature to heal those in need. However, there certainly is a two-fold reason for the healing Jesus does. Although in all reality it is only one reason. Jesus certainly has compassion on people who are in need. We know that he heals, he heals us as well. He told us that if we ask anything in his name, he will do it, of course it needs to be in accordance with the will of the Father. It is not that we can ask him to give us the winning numbers for the lottery, unless that is his will, of course. But we can be pretty certain it would not, as he has warned us to be aware of get rich quick schemes.

Prov 13:11

11 Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows.

NLT

Nevertheless, we also know it is Gods will we are healed,

Ex 15:26

26 He said, "If you listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, who heals you."

NIV

Yet Jesus heals mainly to bring glory to the Father. Here he has done just that, both giving this man relief from the demons who possessed him, giving back his earing and his speech, plus bringing glory and honor to the Father. But the Pharisees were not about to allow Jesus to heal without opposition, as he was upsetting their position of leadership of the people. So here they accuse him of driving out demons by the power of Satan. Jesus refutes this with the truth regarding a divided house cannot stand. But to really put the truth in their face, he asks them by who do their disciples drive out demons. What they are accusing of him, he says they are doing. But the point of this whole teaching is about a house divided cannot stand. This serves well to give us insight into our lives. If we live with a divided heart, a divided mind we will not be able to stand. God has given us his armor to protect both our heart and mind, to keep them from becoming divided. Yet if we do not take his armor upon us, we are subject to living with this divide within us. We know a war wages within the spirit realm over our lives. We are told we do not battle against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual realm.

Eph 6:10-13

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

NIV

If we have a divided heart and mind, if we say we love the Lord, but love this world, we are divided. This is really summed up in the idea that we cannot serve both God and money.

Luke 16:13

13 "No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." 

NIV

The money serves to include all the world has to offer as regard to material things. That is to put our trust in the material substances of this world, money, wealth for our security and future. Jesus teaches this principle over and over again. We simply cannot trust Jesus for our salvation and then trust our money, or the world for our security. We are then divided and we will not be able to stand, we will fall. We will fall prey to the schemes of the devil and lean upon the world for our material security rather than on God. We cannot live divided and be complete. Our trust in Jesus has to be all or nothing. We have to choose one or the other. It is either one hundred percent or it is but a fraction, halfhearted faith, trust and belief. Let us not allow ourselves to get divided in two, let us be completely sold out for Jesus. We will be either divided or one. 

Only Hope

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

ONLY HOPE

Matt 12:15-21

15 Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place. Many followed him, and he healed all their sick, 16 warning them not to tell who he was. 17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: 18 "Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. 19 He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. 20 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory. 21 In his name the nations will put their hope."  

NIV

We could spent a lot of time going over each of the individual statements of the Prophet. “Here is my Servant” “Whom I have chosen” “The one I love” “In whom I delight” “Spirit on him” “Proclaim justice to all the nations” “Not quarrel or cry out” “no one will hear” “A bruised reed” “A smoldering” “Leads to justice” “In his name the nations will put their hope”. This last one phrase is what all the others led up to. They all were describing who Jesus was, his character, his manner, his personality, his relationship with the Father and what the Father will do for him. But that last statement is about us. It is about all the nations. Although he came to the Jews as a Jew in the flesh, he came to the world whole, to all the nations. There is no other one we can put our hope in. If we did not have our hope in Jesus, we would be without any hope at all. We cannot put our hope in anything in this world, for we all will leave it through death. This experience of dying separates us from everything the world contains. It does not matter how much wealth or material possession we accumulate, it all gets left behind. We take nothing with us when we die. The Chinese emperoers and the Pharaohs of Egypt tried to take their wealth with them, but others have opened their tombs and taken it all back. Death has only one hope and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. Because he also died, but rose from the dead, winning victory over death, we too may do that same thing. We will die in the flesh, but our spirit will raise from the dead and we will be present with the Lord. Then one day, even our bodies will raise from the grave, a new creature, transformed, perhaps that even happens at the moment of death. Maybe we actually leave behind that which is corruptible, that which is perishable behind and we already have received a new body, one that is incorruptible and imperishable. In all reality, it is still a mystery, for no one has been able to return and tell us. Oh there are stories, even books and movies about someone who has returned, but how do we know that was from God or from the enemy giving us some illusion to deceive even the elect. That is why the word hope is used. It is our hope. It is part of the definition of faith. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, yet not seen. If those who returned actually died and went to heaven and returned to tell us what it was like, then who would need hope, for we would not need it as we have seen. Who would need faith? Yet Jesus said blessed are those who have not seen, yet believe.

John 20:29

29 Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." 

NIV

We must put our hope in Jesus. The world contains so many different types of gods, of beliefs which are not based on hope. Many do not have the assurance of salvation, they are required to work, to do deeds, and yet they still do not know their god is going to respond. We know our God, we know Jesus, and we have all the assurance we will ever need from his every word. We and others throughout the world will put our hope in Jesus, for he is the way, the truth and the light. No one, not a single person on this earth will ever see the Father except through Jesus. There is no other hope.

Eph 2:11-13

11 Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called "uncircumcised" by those who call themselves "the circumcision" (that done in the body by the hands of men)— 12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.

NIV

We have, and others throughout the nations, been brought near through the blood of Christ. We would have to include most of the letter to the Ephesians to gather the rest of the truth said in it, but the fact remains. Jesus is our only hope. 

Whose wisdom

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

WHOSE WISDOM

Matt 12:9-14

9 Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, 10 and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?" 11 He said to them, "If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? 12 How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."  13 Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. 14 But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.

NIV

Jesus had already told how the priests desecrated the temple on the Sabbath, and giving them examples of David and his companions when they ate the showbread. Now he is in a synagogue, which is not the temple, but still a place of worship and it was the Sabbath. He had already told the Pharisees the Son of man is Lord of the Sabbath. He meant himself, but it is doubtful they understood that. It is interesting that when he was in the synagogue it was the Pharisees that brought up the subject about healing on the Sabbath. What is more interesting is they knew he had the power to heal, otherwise they would not have asked him that question. It is also interesting they were aware of his character, his mercy and compassion for those in need of a healing, because by bringing his attention to this question and knowing he saw the man with a withered hand, they knew he was going to act with compassion and heal this man anyway. So they pose the question about the law. Again this demonstrates there attention to sacrifice rather than mercy. They did not care about the man with the withered hand, but only trying to trap Jesus by the law, that he as a Jew should observe. Again the wisdom of God is so far superior to the wisdom of man, if fact their wisdom is but foolishness to him. That would also speak of our wisdom as well. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our supposed wisdom we get puffed up, thinking more of ourselves then we ought to. We try to prove our supposed wisdom sighting chapter and verse as if everyone else knows what that says, but knowing they don’t. We expound on topics as if we are the renowned authority. This was the attitude of those Pharisees. But Jesus comes back with another example, this time not using men, but animals. His question reveals something about the Pharisees which we may not ever have considered before. We have always thought the Pharisees as just a bunch of puffed up, well dressed religious zealots that sat around all day and pontificated. But here Jesus using the example of if one of their sheep falls into a pit would imply they were also sheep owners, and maybe even shepherds themselves. Their title as a Pharisee was merely a way of expression their view of the scriptures, their denomination as it were. Just a thought we have never considered before. Nevertheless he puts them in their place by showing them they too would do good on the Sabbath when it came to their sheep. This man with the withered hand is going to be one of Jesus’s sheep, especially after he heals him. So he heals him. The Pharisees, although having been proven wrong in their asking the question, did not consider his answer, but were so set in their own doctrine and dogma they refused to consider the truth he gave them. They were so convinced of their own righteousness they plotted to kill him. At least they went out of the synagogue before they plotted how to kill him, it would have been even more grievous for them to do that plotting while in a place of worship. The lesson we see here is about how we too can be so set in our particular beliefs we refuse to accept a truth when we are confronted with it. It is not that we do not have a handle on much of the truth of God, but others also have been revealed truths and sometimes they are truths we have not considered and need to listen intently and consider how that impacts our life. There are truths that we have not seen yet and we need to be open to viewing them in light of the scriptures. Now it is also true others may be misguided, not understanding the truth of a particular scripture and the teaching, correcting, rebuking or training in righteousness it has for us. This is why God has given the gift of discernment, to be able to discern if anyone is speaking from human wisdom or from the wisdom given them from God. The Pharisees seem to only operate under the wisdom of man, and Jesus was in fact the wisdom of God. We too should seek the wisdom of God, rather than the wisdom of man, which would include our own. When we hear wisdom from God, whether that be through the word itself, or from an inspired speaker, we need to ponder as to how that impacts us and is there something in our thinking, our attitude and our behavior that needs adjusting. Let us not rely on any of our wisdom for it is but foolishness to God, but let us continue to seek his wisdom, as he has told us if we want his wisdom we need only ask for it.

James 1:5-8

5 If any of you lacks wisdom , he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

NIV

But again without being double-minded. In this case it would imply that we are trying to combine our wisdom with God’s wisdom. Thinking we can guide our own life with our wisdom and still be guided by his. It just doesn’t work that way. That is why the Pharisees could not grasp his wisdom. They were stuck in theirs. We cannot afford that kind of thinking. Let us always be willing to hear the wisdom from God. 

The right move

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

THE RIGHT MOVE

Matt 12:1-8

12:1 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. 2 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath." 3 He answered, "Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? 4 He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread — which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. 5 Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent? 6 I tell you that one greater than the temple is here. 7 If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent. 8 For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath." 

NIV

We could spend time exploring why it was even necessary for his disciples to pluck some of the grain in the field they were walking through, but would that give us a life lesson? Because it was on the Sabbath perhaps it would. As the narrative continues it would seem this would be unlawful to do. The Pharisees were all about the law, at least on the outside where others could see. Jesus defends the actions of his disciples with several examples the Pharisees would be more than familiar with. David, who the Jews held in high esteem, a man after God’s own heart, ate the showbread in the temple, because he was hungry. This gives us a clue to why the disciples ate the grain. It was not as an appetizer before their evening meal, but rather they may well have been short of provision due to being on the move so much following Jesus, they were hungry. Jesus also gives them information about how the priests desecrate the temple on the Sabbath. What this might refer to is that when a male child reaches eight days old and it occurs on the Sabbath, the priests do work on the Sabbath in the temple by preforming the circumcision. They are following the law, by breaking the law. They are guilty by the law, yet innocent. Then he quotes to them from the Prophet Hosea.

Hos 6:6

6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.

NIV

This is the main point, the reason Jesus went through those examples to prove this point. The Pharisees were all about the sacrifice but had not an ounce of mercy in their hearts. If they knew of the hunger of the disciples, having followed after them, knowing the lack of food, or provisions, knowing they had no time to eat, mercy would have dictated the Pharisees provide them with a meal. But instead of mercy they were all concerned about the law, about the sacrifice.  This serves us well as a life lesson. We could get just as distracted as the Pharisees by trying to be a good Christian, doing all the right moves. Attending church, even going to an adult Sunday school class. We could bring our tithe to church regularly, in either our numbered envelope or by check so we get credit both by the counters and recorded of giving, as well as by the IRS. We could be on some committee or we should say ministry, serving sacrificially, giving of our time that we might need elsewhere. We could do all sorts of things that would come under the law. We could have our list of the things we should not do, such as drinking, smoking, dancing, going to bars, roller rinks, movies, or associate with people who do. Some would even go as far to say woman should not wear slacks, or cut the hair, but must cover it. The list of various rules and regulations, the law, goes on and on depending on which denomination we fellowship with. But if we do no exhibit mercy, all that law abiding is in vain.  So what does it mean to have mercy? If we go to the Hebrew word in Hosea, which Jesus quoted from, this word means kindness especially toward God. The Greek word in the New Testament means the compassion (human or divine) especially active. Either way, it denotes a doing, it is not passive. We cannot just think about mercy, we need to demonstrate it. Do we consider the Hebrew concept which Jesus quoted, or the word Matthew wrote and was translated into Greek, then ultimately into English? This would make a huge difference. If we considered the Hebrew, our mercy would mean being kind to God. That certainly would speak to how the Pharisees acted in opposition to mercy. They were not kind to God, but to themselves. Their religion was all about them, their obedience to their own interpretation of the law. They did not actually serve the Lord, but rather the Law. Having known the Prophets they should have known Jesus was the Messiah, but instead of being kind toward him, showing him mercy, they were plotting how they might get him killed.  If we consider the Greek rendition then our mercy could be either toward God or man. The lesson for us is that in our being a Christian are we more concerned about the rules of religion then actually being kind toward God, loving him with all our heart. Are we more concerned about our lists, our rules and regulations, even our faithfulness to programs or ministries, then showing actual mercy, compassion from our heart toward people in need? This could imply material, and that seems to be the most active type, but people are in spiritual need as well. Mercy toward them could be in the form of a hug, kindness, praying, not for them, but with them, not condemning their lifestyle, but demonstrating the love of God toward them. The Pharisees did what they thought were all the right moves, but lacked any compassion for the sinner.  We certainly should not forgo the right moves, but that which is the rightest move is showing mercy toward God and this would then comply with the rest of Hosea in that by being kind to God, we acknowledge him, who he is, rather then just doing the acts of Christianity. That would be the right move. 

Rest

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

REST

Matt 11:25-30

25 At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure. 27 "All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." 

NIV

It would seem there are three distinct phrases Jesus says here. Three truths which we might be tempted to split up and delve into each separately, however it also is one complete truth. There are ideas within which we should consider, yet the whole brings us to the place we need to be. Certainly Jesus was referring to the Pharisees and scribes or teachers of the Law, who by their own standards were the wisest of men. Yet today we have such types among us. We hail those who have attained the higher degrees of education. We give them praise and honor, thinking them as men of great minds capable of deep thought. But it is this very thing which Jesus makes note of. Men seeing themselves as wise, but only in the sense of comparison to other men. The Pharisees, thinking themselves the wisest considered their own system of religious activities as their method of saving themselves. Therefore they could not see the truth of the gospel, it was hidden from them. Today it is not much different. Those who consider themselves the wisest among us look to their own methods for saving themselves, so to speak. They are the answer to the problems of the world, climate change, social injustice, racial divides, poverty, sexism as well as a host of others. Yet the true answer to all these is hidden from them because of their blindness and self-aggrandizement. It is we simple minded folks, those of us who are compared to his disciples, plain men, with no high and lifted up thought of their position in the world, who can see the truth of the gospel, because we are the ones who need the hope it brings. We recognize our lost state, unlike those who think they are the answer, the hope of the world, and we found the true hope in Jesus. The next thing which Jesus says makes it extremely clear that he is divine. He and the Father are in union. There is no closer union then being one. This is the idea Jesus is conveying here, he and the Father are one. The idea that Jesus chooses who he will reveal the Father to might be seem in light of the Calvinist thought. However, it has a more profound meaning. If we want to know the Father, we only need to know Jesus. Knowing Jesus reveals the Father to us. We can see all the character of the Father by observing the character of Jesus. The Greek word translated chooses actually is made up of two words which directly translate as whosoever. The first word is used as a pronoun, who, which, what that, and the second word is used to attach to that pronoun to denote uncertainty. Therefor it is unknown or whosoever the son reveals the Father to. This means us. Whosoever finds Jesus, whosoever seeks Jesus, looks to him for salvation will also have the Father revealed to him through Jesus. All this he says so that he can conclude with this truth. “Come to me, all”, although he continues about those who are heavy laden we should note, he did not say come to me those I choose. The words Jesus used were understood by his listeners. As in those days many men were in fact the beast of burdens. Men would carry heavy loads of produce or product of some sorts, hay, grain, or other items to get them to a place of storage or market. A man of compassion would see such a man under a heavy burden and offer to share the load. Today we have trucks and heavy equipment to carry those burdens. But the truth Jesus speaks here still bears meaning in our lives. Living within the culture we grow up in can be a burden. Making a living, trying to get by, can be a daunting task. True, it seems easier for some than others. But the fact remains life brings all sorts of burdens. Some might be of the financial nature, but others can be emotional or mental burdens, relational burdens, worry, anxiety, stress, tension just to name a few. Jesus says that when we are overwhelmed by the burdens of life, come to him, he will not only share the load, but he will give us rest. That would mean repose, to refresh. Jesus will refresh us, for he and the Father are one and he has revealed this truth to those whosoever seek him. So then we do not have to carry our burdens, we do not have to be overwhelmed by life or many of its facets. Does that mean we will never face any burdens, any adversities? Not at all, but the point is that Jesus, God, is there with us, and will sustain us, give us repose, rest, and we do not have to be overcome by those burdens. That is what our faith is all about, we look to Jesus, we trust in his everlasting arms to carry us through. Nothing in this world can harm our soul, our spirit, although the body might be harmed. It still comes down to our faith in Jesus. No matter the situations in life, in the physical, we can always find rest in our spirit, in Jesus. So we go back to the three statements which brings us to this peace. Don’t try to do it alone, by our own righteousness, trying to be a good person, having our own methods of living rightly. Understand Jesus is God and through him we see the care and compassion of God for his creation and look to him for everything, having complete trust in him and in doing so we will live free of all the burdens of life and we can live with rest. 

The final idea is that living the Christian life is not burdensome, nor should it be. We can make it so heavy, as the Pharisees did. We can add so much to the truth, so many rules and regulations, so many don'ts as well as a whole lot of do's. We can turn rest into turmoil. Jesus said his burden is light, it brings us rest. 

Denounced

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

DENOUNCED

Matt 11:20-24

20 Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. 21 "Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. 24 But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you."

NIV

There is a truth here which seems a little harsh, yet at the same time contains an incredible amount of mercy. This idea of Jesus denouncing cities because they did not repent in response to all the miracles he did in them shows us something both about God and about men. The more God does to draw people to himself, the less of an excuse people have to refuse to repent. Jesus did so much in these cities yet the impertinence of the people is why he denounced them. Just consider for a moment the treatment Sodom and Gomorrah received because of their sin. Yet they did not have the gospel preached to them nor witnessed miracles performed, people healed, the blind given vision, the lame walking, mute speaking and demons being cast from tormented souls. Sodom received it’s judgement almost two thousand years before these cities received theirs. But because they did witness all these things and heard the gospel and still continued in their lifestyle of rebellion against God, their punishment will be worse than that of the city of Sodom. Does that infer there are levels of hell or punishment? That might be something to ponder on another time, but the truth we should consider is how do we respond to the gospel. Although he denounced these cities there were at least three of his disciples that came from one of them. Phillip, Andrew and Peter came from Bethsaida, thus even though the city as a whole remained unashamed or impenitent about its sin, there were some within who heard and responded. This might translate into our family settings. It would be a wonderful thing if when one of us within a family structure heard the gospel and responded then all of our family would join us. But that is just not the case. Perhaps within our immediate family there is a greater opportunity to see the others respond as we have, but within our extended family we might see a greater amount of impenitence. The harshness of this truth is that when someone has the opportunity to hear the gospel message and continues to deny the truth, denounce the gospel, reject it’s offer, and remain unashamed, they destiny is worse than those who lived in Sodom. It seems all we can do is present the truth to them. The Spirit is the one who convicts people of their sin and need of repentance. Some have even been witness to miracles, yet deny the truth. It would be great if somehow we could convince them, but even Jesus with all the divine power he was able to display was not able to convince those people within those cities. We need to come to grips with that fact. All we can do is witness to what God has done in our lives, leave the rest up to the Spirit. If they reject him, they are doomed, unfortunately. This is why God has said that what may be known about him is plan and can be seen in all he has created so that no man is without excuse. Even though we may not have been able to preach the gospel to every person, they still have all that is needed to know God. That is why Jesus will denounce them. He already made that proclamation.

Matt 10:32-33

32 "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.

NIV

This is one of those fulfillments of his statement. We know this is going to happen over and over again. Yet we should also be on guard of not getting lazy in our faith. We who have heard and responded to the gospel need to remain faithful to the message. We have learned how we cannot merge the truth with untruth. We cannot merge God and the world. We cannot serve both God and money or the ways of the world, the system the world offers for our provisions. We cannot merge righteousness with sin. Although we cannot ever escape all sin and thus attain perfection, we can resist those temptations to the best of our abilities with the aid of the Spirit. The point is we should not simply incorporate the truth in our old life. We should not continue to abide by the rules of the world, while confessing we put our faith in Jesus. If we do that, would we be somewhat like those cities, hearing the message but not actually responding fully? Another concept to ponder on. The idea seems to be, just as those three disciples left everything behind them and followed Jesus, we need to leave everything behind us and follow him. Leaving behind the city we once lived in, the city that is denounced by Jesus. This would bring us to that which we have said before. Once we lived in the city of sin and darkness but Jesus has called us out of the darkness and created a bridge to the city of love and light. Let us truly live in this new city, and not look back, as Lot’s wife did. Living here, living in Christ we never need to fear being denounced. 

Proved right

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

PROVED RIGHT

Matt 11:16-19

16 "To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 17 "'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.' 18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners." ' But wisdom is proved right by her actions." 

NIV

Is the generation Jesus was speaking to any different than any generation? This comparison to being like children sitting in the public places, which Jesus said, marketplaces and calling out to others this saying. From our studies we find it was a custom of that time that children would imitate their parents who would dance and rejoice at weddings and mourn and lament at funerals. However, these children were doing it in a jesting manner, making fun of the behavior of their parents. Because Jesus makes a statement about both John the Baptist and himself it could mean he was referring to John and himself as the parents of this generation. The children were the Pharisees and scribes who made fun of the both of them. This is not much different in the generation in which we live. Many people make fun of our faith. They do not take it seriously. Because they think themselves so much superior then us believers, they consider us to be foolish. They believe in science, in intellect, in the monetary system and their own abilities. Our faith is seen as in opposition to their beliefs and thus the only way to defend their position is to mock or make fun of our belief in Jesus.

1 Cor 1:20

20 Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

NIV

 Just as the Pharisees accused John of being a demon because of his strange eating habits and abstaining from wine, this world accuses those Christians who ascribe to certain restrictions regarding food and drink, as being weird. On the other hand the Pharisees accused Jesus of eating and drinking in excess. Here again this world calls us hypocrites if we eat anything and especially if we drink wine. The Pharisees saw themselves as having the right ideas about how to behave, but Jesus called them children just joking around. Our generation thinks itself to be right, the only way to behave, the correct way to think about everything, but they are but children at play. Of course some of our scholars of old as well as some denominations of today make the case the wine Jesus drank was simply grape juice, but then why would the Pharisees call him a drunkard or winebibber? This comes down to child’s play again, imitating the behavior of the parents which indicates no independent thought. Jesus speaks directly to this issue of independent thinking, knowing the truth, knowing wisdom. Wisdom is proved right by her actions is the idea that knowing Jesus and accepting him as Lord and Savior is pure wisdom, the purest of wisdom and thus we who believe will be proved right by our action of accepting Jesus. It does not come down to how well we make our lists of do’s and mostly don’ts and check off each one we accomplish somewhat semi-successfully, on a momentary basis. It comes down to having wisdom, the wisdom that comes from God.

James 1:2-8

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

NIV

Here is the truth of it. We can have the wisdom of God, we only need to ask for it, but we cannot be double-minded. That is we cannot combine the wisdom of God with the wisdom of the world. We cannot have both. We cannot think in terms as to how the world approaches wisdom, for it is but foolishness to God. That might well speak to approaching the wisdom of God through the methods of higher education, or intellectually, which is the method the world uses. They believe this is how wisdom is gained. But we can simply ask God for his wisdom and if we are pure in our asking, rejecting the world’s methods then he will grant us his wisdom. No child’s play here. We may not ever be proved right in this generation, but we will be proved right in the generation to come, the era of eternity. 

Least in the kingdom

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

LEAST IN THE KINGDOM

Matt 11:11-15

11 I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. 14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. 15 He who has ears, let him hear.

NIV

How can someone who is least in the kingdom be greater than John the Baptist? What did Jesus mean by this? Surely the prophets spoke about John the Baptist. They spoke of the one who would be the messenger proclaiming the Messiah.

Isa 40:3

3 A voice of one calling: "In the desert prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.  

NIV

Mal 3:1

3:1 "See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the LORD Almighty.

NIV

Yet the prophets did not see the kingdom of God as we do. John the Baptist did not see the kingdom of God as we do. Although he introduced Jesus to the world, proclaiming him to be the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, he did not get to see Jesus do that on the cross. John did not get to see Jesus die nor get raised from the dead. John did not get to see Jesus ascend, however he did get to see Jesus when he arrived in heaven, if we believe to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.  However, if we believe we are asleep in Christ until the final resurrection of the dead and those that still alive, are catch up in the air to meet our Lord, then John has not seen Jesus in all his glory. However, the point is that John did not see the kingdom of God in its fullness as the least in the kingdom can. What Jesus said about forcefully been taken by forceful men has to be taken in conjunction with what Luke recorded. The idea was that the tax collectors, such as Matthew and his friends, and even the pagans seized upon the truth of the gospel, took hold of it, but the Pharisees and scribes who were supposed to be the teachers and spiritual leaders of the people rejected Jesus as the Christ. The common people and even the tax collectors had been baptized by John and were ready for Jesus, but not the Pharisees nor the teachers of the Law. Jesus makes another astonishing statement about John being the Elijah who has come. According to the gospel of John the Pharisees sent priests and Levites to ask who John was, they asked if he was Elijah and he confessed he was not, Yet Jesus said he was. How could this be? Again what did Jesus mean? He said that if we can accept it, John was the Elijah. Certainly John the Baptist came in the power and spirit of Elijah and perhaps that was what Jesus was referring to.

Mal 4:5

5 "See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes.

NIV

It is not sure this is what he meant, however we can be sure of one thing. John the Baptist came, introduced Jesus and now Jesus has brought the kingdom of God to earth for all of us who have an ear and have heard his call. We may be the least in the kingdom. We may not have much fame and fortune. We may not be some great prophet or famous preacher. We may not be a formidable witness for Christ. We may not be recognized by others as a great servant in the church, serving in some special way. We may not be seen as a big giver, or hold a prominent place in the body of Christ. But what we are is the least in the kingdom of God and are greater than John the Baptist, for we have seen Jesus die, raised from the dead and ascended to the right hand of God. We have his record of all this, we know it within our heart to be true. The other truth is that it does not matter our position in life or in the body of Christ, what type of service we do in the church, we are all sinners saved by grace. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile. God shows no favoritism. No one is better than the other, for because we came after John the Baptist and after Christ died on the cross for our sin, and was raised from the dead, to give us victory over death, and ascended into heaven, to prepare a place for us, so that where he is we will be also, we all are the least in the kingdom. 

Speaking about

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

SPEAK ABOUT

Matt 11:7-10

7 As John's disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: "What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? 8 If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings' palaces. 9 Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it is written: "'I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.'  

NIV

Jesus talks more about John, but this is enough for now and plenty for us to chew upon as a life lesson. In talking to the crowd, we would think there were some scribes, or teachers of the Law and Pharisees among them as they were looking for a way to attack him and his teaching. But also the crowd included many people who heard many voices teaching many doctrines. Certainly the teachers of the Law all did not teach the exact same points of the Law or may even have had differing views of the Law. We know the Pharisees believed in the resurrection, but the Sadducees did not. The Pharisees believed in both the written and the oral Law, thinking God also gave Moses the way to interpret the Law orally. The Sadducees did not believe in the oral law, but held strictly to the written law and insisted on a literal interpretation of it. They also incorporated a bit of Hellenism into their lives, which the Pharisees opposed. Then there was also the Essences who thought both the Pharisees and the Sadducees had corrupted the Law and they separated themselves in a monastery type lifestyle. All these voices with so many different ideologies and theologies.  When Jesus asked the people if when they went out to see John did they see a reed swayed by the wind. He was speaking directly to those who are tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine.

Eph 4:14

14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.

NIV

This speaks directly to us today. We have so many voices who purpose they have the truth of the Gospel and are preaching in order to attain as many followers as possible. They preach various forms of the truth, just enough to sound good, but we can see their schemes because we have been given discernment by God. We cannot be that reed that sways in the wind. We have been given the same text, the same scriptures as all men have, although a few groups have rewritten scripture to fit their own beliefs. Nevertheless John was no reed blowing in the wind, like the Pharisees and teachers of the Law, or as some people might have been as they listened to the various teachings. He was a steady word who spoke of the truth of the gospel, a forerunner to Christ, to announce the coming of Christ. This is our cause, to be a steady voice rather than a reed. We need to hold fast to our faith in Jesus, not being swayed by those with silver tongues or dress in fine clothes. This was the other example Jesus used. He asked if they went out to see a man in fine clothes. But no those fine clothed men live in palaces. Again this may have been a sting at the fine garments of the Pharisees. But we too have men who address crowds using every media method to reach more, and they wear extremely expensive clothing and live in lavish homes and drape themselves with fine jewelry, all at the expense of their followers with promises that by giving to God,  “them”, they too can have all this wealth. It is not that Jesus is opposed to wealth, but we cannot look to the wealth for the truth. It too is a fleeting moment in time, much like the reed in the wind. But rather a prophet is who they came to see. A man declaring the coming of the kingdom of God. A messenger declaring the way for Jesus. This is who we are supposed to be, a messenger of God, a person who declares the truth of God to the people, making a way for Jesus to come to them. We stay the course, the truth, not be swayed by the fancy voices, or the promises of great wealth. We declare the coming of the kingdom of God. John declared the coming of Christ. Is not that our same message? We declare his coming to each person for their salvation, but also his coming in the clouds to gather his own, and his coming to earth to finish the battle. We also tell the truth of the coming of the kingdom of God, the new heaven and new earth with the new city of Jerusalem where his people, those who have been born again will live eternally with Jesus. This is the way Jesus spoke of John, a steady voice. Will Jesus speak of us that way? Does he speak of us that way? 

No Question

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

 NO QUESTION

Matt 11:1-6

11:1 After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee.   2 When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples 3 to ask him, "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?" 4 Jesus replied, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5 The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. 6 Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me." 

NIV

There seems to be some question as to why John the Baptist would ask such a question. John was the one by his own declaration declared Jesus to be the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Certainly this truth was revealed to him by the Holy Spirit, yet here in prison he sends his disciples to ask if Jesus is the one. Perhaps John was concerned about his disciples knowing his end was near and they would be left to wander aimlessly and hopeless through life without him. So he sent them to question Jesus that they might find the truth about Jesus more fully and attach themselves to him as his disciples. John had to know he could not offer the same as Jesus and wanted his disciples to have that which Jesus could offer. The other idea is that John once convinced Jesus was the long waited for Messiah and he, like many others, thought Jesus was going to set up his kingdom on earth, overthrowing the Roman occupiers, having been in prison for some time now, wanted to know if this was going to happen soon, so he could be released.  Yet there might be another reason for John’s question. John was a blessed man from the time he was in his mother’s womb. When Mary, the mother of Jesus arrived at Elizabeth’s home, John leaped with her womb at the presence of Jesus within the womb of Mary. We do not know much about John’s childhood as with Jesus’s. But as an adult he began a wild ride. Surely being inspired by the Spirit he began preaching the Kingdom of God was at hand and people needed to repent and be baptized. Whether it was his message or his wild appearance that drew people, crowds came to hear him and to repent and be baptized. He was on top of the world, so to speak. Everything was going his way, people were responding to his message. Then to top it is all off, Jesus shows up and John witnesses the presence of the Holy Trinity. He declares Jesus to be the one and baptizes him. Then standing in the presence of Jesus, John sees the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descend and rest on Jesus and then hears the very voice of God from the heavens declare Jesus is his Son in whom he is well pleased. How much better can life be for John? But because he does not shrink away from the truth and speaks up against the adulterous situation of King Herod, he is thrown in prison. Life is not so good now. Here is where we could find a lesson for our lives. There are moments in life when we are on top of the world. Everything is going our way. We accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior and all is well. We are being blessed day after day, things are just wonderful. The Lord is doing so many things in our life. Then a situation arises that is not so good. Either we have not seen any answer to our prayers for a long time or we are experiencing some difficult situation. Maybe we lose our job, or experience some other form of financial loss. Maybe we get very ill, or someone close to us has cancer, or some other dreaded disease. Maybe we are having a difficult time overcoming some sin or temptation. Maybe we go through a relationship crisis. We pray and nothing is happening, we do not hear from God nor do we see any results of our prayer. We know Jesus is the Son of God. We experienced his divine touch in our lives. We might have even been healed once of some infirmity by his miraculous hand. Yet now things are not as perfect as they once were and maybe we are experiencing just a smidgen of doubt, wondering is all we once experienced just a coincidence, is Jesus actually real, is all this actually true. Is the Bible truly the word of God?  If he is real, why does he not do something? So we ask, as John was asking, are you the one? Jesus responds to his question and assures him all is well and not to worry about life, Jesus has everything under control. He lets John know not to lose hope, not to fall away from what he knows in his heart, Jesus is the Son of God and eternal life is in his hands. John might lose his physical life, but his true life will be with Christ forever. What can man do to us? They can harm the physical life, but never can they destroy our eternal life. We need to remain always hopeful no matter our physical situations in life. Our faith cannot be shaken even if we have not seen a prayer answered in a long time. We do not live by sight but by faith. This life has some ebbs and flows, some ups and downs, some good times and some not so good times. Jesus promised us he would take care of us. He told us that he would never leave us nor forsake us. So we take him as his word, just as John was going to need to do. We have the Spirit who lives within us and testifies to all that is true. In fact he leads us into all truth. So no matter the course this life takes us, we will never fail to believe. So then should be question? No, there is no question. Whether we are on top of the world or in some valley, Jesus is always there with us. 

reward

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

REWARD

Matt 10:40-42

40 "He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives the one who sent me. 41 Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man's reward. 42 And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward." 

NIV

This seems to be a slightly difficult saying of Jesus to see a personal implication. Certainly we would believe as we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior we accepted God as well. Accepting God also means we accept everything in the bible as he has said all scripture is God-breathed.

2 Tim 3:15-17

 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

NIV

Therefor that means something in this saying of Jesus is in fact useful to us, either to teach us, rebuke us, correct us or train us in righteousness. Yet it also means that in accepting Jesus and thus God we accept the precepts of God, all of them. This means we cannot pick and choose which we are going to live by and which we are not. This requires thought as to whether we have taken some of the truth of God and left some of it behind to adopt or continue to practice some of the rules of this world. Jesus goes on to talk about prophets yet the Greek word used here implies an inspired speaker. This could apply to those who minister in the name of our Lord, such as pastors and evangelists. We remember Jesus was sending his disciples into all the towns to preach the gospel and this may have been spoken to the crowds so as to know how to host his disciples. But it also applies to us today in given due respect to those who have spent their lives, dedicated their lives to ministering in the name of Jesus. This also implies that their reward for ministering full time in the name of Jesus is no greater than those of us who receive or respect them. We will all receive the same reward. This agrees with the character of God in that he shows no favoritism. The righteous man Jesus talks about is the innocent or holy man. This could again speak of ministers, but also can imply all Christians as we are all called to be holy because he is holy, or set apart, or different, in the sense of being rendered innocent by God because we accepted Jesus.

Rom 3:22-25

There is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

NIV

That word justified in the Greek means to regard as just or innocent. So then in that sense we are the righteous the holy men and woman and thus we should accept each other with honor and respect. This would imply that we do no harm to each other, we do not speak ill of another brother or sister in Christ, spread rumors, gossip or any other manner of disrespect, keeping any confidential matters shared with us confidential. As to the cup of cold water we might not see much of a meaning for us today as it was customary in those days for righteous men to take water on hot days and stand on the road side to offer a cold drink to those weary travelers passing by. Our scholars believe by using the term, “Little ones”, Jesus was referring to his disciples and thus they were going to be the travelers without coin, bag, or extra coat and would need a cup of cold water as they traveled from town to town. But it could also imply that we offer a cup of cold water as well. This could mean being hospitable, not merely to each other, but to the weary traveler. This might mean the poor among us. Those poor individuals who stand along the road at an intersection holding a sign, “Homeless, need food” or something of that effect. Sometimes we can think poorly of them, thinking them as scam artists who actually have a home. But how do we know? Perhaps we are to just offer a cup of cold water, whatever that means to each of us.

Heb 13:2

2 Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.

NIV

Living the life of a believer has more to it than the safety of our own souls. There are interactions with others which demand certain attitudes and behaviors. Let us live not just for ourselves but for the benefit of those we encounter and certainly we will receive our just reward. 

Life

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

LIFE

Matt 10:34-39

34 "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to turn

"'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law— 36 a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.'  

37 "Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; 38 and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

NIV

Jesus is quoting from the prophet Micah about family turning against each other. We also see  this is about the fruit of the Spirit in regard to peace, yet that may well be peace with God rather than with man. We have peace in our heart because we are no longer at war against God and we are no longer objects of his wrath. But because of the gospel we will not have peace with other people, especially this might apply within our own family. It is not that we get into a slug fest or a knock down drag out fight to the death, but there is also no real peace. There is always a strange sense of opposition regarding God. It appears Jesus left out husband and wife in this discord within a family. But what we can be sure of is that when a person finds Jesus, it does not mean the rest of their family does as well. Jesus also did not mention nieces and nephews or cousins or other extended family members. What we can be sure of is that there will be some discord within a family because of Jesus. One will love Jesus, the other the world. What harmony can there be between the two. Although we are told to live in harmony with each other, it may not be possible.

Rom 12:14-19

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

NIV

For we are also told there can be no peace, no harmony between believers and non-believers.

2 Cor 6:14-16

14 Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? 15 What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? 16 What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people."  

NIV

We mostly think about this in regards to the world, the ways of the world, those awful sinners who hate God. But that also means those very nice good people who live without Jesus as their Lord and Savior. That also applies to family members who we love. There is going to be some members of our family who decide not to follow Jesus. We still love them, but we do not have Jesus in common with them and thus there is going to be some sense of separation between us. It is not like we can sit down and talk about the things of God with them, for they do not believe and do not want to hear about him. They, however want to talk about the things of the world, their beliefs in evolution, climate change, or whatever else someone has made up that confronts the whole idea of God. Although we get along, living in a sense of mutual love, there is really no true peace with them. There will always be a sort of distance, a feeling of constant tension. But no matter what happens within the family, we have to stay our course. Although we love our family, we must love Jesus more. We cannot afford to be drawn away by anyone. Some of them might present some very persuasive or compelling arguments to support their beliefs, siting science, or what they believe are reputable sources to prove themselves right. They will say we cannot use the bible to prove the bible, yet they use science to prove science. The point is we must always stay the course, no matter what anyone says. We know Jesus, we have experienced his power in our lives, and we have experienced his divine healing, his peace, his love, his joy. We know we sit in the heavenly realms already. People who do not know Jesus might think they are living the good life, chasing after the things of the world, success, fame and fortune, intellectual prowess, all the humanistic qualities of this world. But they have in actuality lost their lives, they will ultimately perish. We give up chasing after the things of this world, we chase after Jesus. We know that verse so well about seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. In doing so we put Jesus first, but also in doing so he will see to it that we have what we need to live in this world. This is taking up our cross and following him. There is a cost to discipleship. That might be slightly different for each one of us, but it is going to cost us. Yet in losing our life in this world, we have gained eternal life. By taking up our cross and following Jesus we will be truly living, not as the world lives, but as Jesus lives; eternally. We have to face the reality we might be the only one in our family who is a believer. Maybe two or three of us, but just as Noah had to stand in the door of the ark and knew that some of his family, his brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, cousins were going to perish, we must face that same truth as we stand in the cross.

Acknowledgement

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Matt 10:32-33

32 "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.

NIV

What do we supposed Peter thought when he heard these words? We know, and we also know how rash of a fellow he was. He insisted he would follow Jesus forever.

Luke 22:33

33 But he replied, "Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death."

NIV

And we know what happened, even Jesus knew what would happen and told him so.

Luke 22:34

34 Jesus answered, "I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me." 

NIV

Is this the kind of one who disowns Jesus before men? Then Peter would not be acknowledged before the Father in Heaven, but we know that is not the case. Peter must have repented of these three times he denied knowing Jesus. After he did deny him those three times, on the third denial the rooster crowed and he remembered what Jesus had said.

Luke 22:61-62

61 The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: "Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times."  62 And he went outside and wept bitterly.

NIV

So he did repent, he wept bitterly, knowing his mistake, his error, his sin and we know Peter went on to be one of the founding fathers of the early church. It would seem that whenever we fall to temptation, we in some sense deny Jesus. But that is not disowning him before men. What this disowning might look like could be in various ways. Could we be disowning Jesus with our silence? When someone says something that is not appropriate, such as extreme vulgarity or uses our Lords name in vain, do we stand up for Jesus, or do we just leave the person be? Would they think we were being rude by telling them, or asking them not to say those things? When someone says something about a topic which the scriptures speak to, do we speak up with our opinion based on what Jesus said, or do we just remain silent and not offer some truth on the subject? Do our co-workers know not to speak or swear in our presence because they know it would offend us because we are religious, that we are Christians, God fearing people? Now that does not mean we have to be solemn and gloomy all the time either. In fact one of the fruit of the Spirit is joy. We can be joyful, light hearted, merry people, bringing smiles and even laughter into the hearts of people. But at the same time we need to let them know we love Jesus, we love God, we love that which is upright and honest, and we work as onto the Lord. This means we are the best we can be at whatever we do in our labor for our employers. Is it possible if we were slothful in regards to our labor for our employers that it would be a form of denying Jesus? Maybe not, but did we confess our faith out loud before our employer? They might think we are not living according to the fact we told them we love Jesus. The fact is we do need to love Jesus and we need to tell people we do. We cannot just go about loving Jesus only on the inside while living in a similar manner as those who do not love him. We cannot isolate ourselves from them either, we need to mingle with those who may not love him as we do, so we can acknowledge him before them, showing them his love, his grace, his compassion, his mercy, his character. This is living our faith out loud in the world of those who need to meet him. Sure it is good to fellowship with like believers, but we all know and love Jesus. It is easy to acknowledge him before each other, even if we do so in a façade sort of way, not being as transparent as we should be. But when we are out in the world among those who need Jesus, do we acknowledge him then or do we remind silent? Is our silence a denial? We need to make sure we do not have to go somewhere and weep bitterly because we were afraid to stand up and say we love Jesus. Doing our acts of righteousness before men might bring us some praise, but we are supposed to bring glory and praise to our Father in heaven. In fact we were already warned by Jesus not to do acts of righteousness before men, for if we do, we have already received our reward. They praise us because of them. Good deeds as it were, are only good if people know we acknowledge Jesus as the author of those deeds. All that we are, all that we say, all that we do should be in acknowledgement of Jesus.