Category: Gospels
“Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
Scripture reading for January 26th: Matthew 18
“At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” (Matthew 18:1) Jesus responded to that inquiry by calling a child to stand in their midst. “And He said, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:3-4) Jesus went on to warn the disciples about causing one of these little ones to go astray. “But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” (Matthew 19:6)
Jesus taught his disciples that the answer to becoming great involved humility like a child in the followers of Jesus. This humility would be expressed in their care and treatment of “little ones” in the faith, new believers in Jesus! They must welcome them, forgive them, search them out when they go astray, and work on keeping right relationships! Being forgiven has responsibility that comes with it!
Jesus concluded His answer with a story about a king that settled an account with a servant that owed him an amount of money far beyond his capacity to repay. The king forgave the man the debt. This man found a man that owed him a small amount of money and when he couldn’t pay, had him thrown into prison. When the king heard about it, he put that man in jail and threw away the key! “This is how My heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.” Matthew 18:35
The Father Speaks!
Scripture reading for January 23rd: Matthew 17
Jesus wanted to be sure that His key leadership among the disciples had ample revelation of who He really was. He took Peter, James and John to a high mountain. “There He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.” (Matthew 17:2-3) This experience had to make a deep impression on these ordinary men! Jesus was changed so that He radiated a bright light from His face and clothes. His true nature was on display!
Then, two figures from Israel’s past emerged and were recognized by Peter. Moses was the great “law-giver” and leader raised up by God to lead them out of slavery and bondage in Egypt. Elijah was the great prophet who confronted idolatry and sin and called God’s people back to the worship of the one true God. They met with Jesus to talk about the mission that God had for His Son. Peter began to make a suggestion to Jesus. “While he (Peter) was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is My Son, whom I love: with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him!” (Matthew 17:5)
When the Father spoke from the cloud, the disciples fell face-down on the ground and were filled with fear! Jesus touched them, encouraging them not to be afraid! They looked up and no one was there but Jesus! Peter, years later, recorded his memory of this incident. “but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to Him from the Majestic Glory. . .” (2nd Peter 1:16-17) The Father testified: “This is My Son!”
“Who do you say that I am?”
Scripture reading for January 22nd: Matthew 16
“The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested Him by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven.” (Matthew 16:1) The religious people of Jesus’ time struggled with the miracles and teaching of Jesus. They were not satisfied with His teaching from Scripture or His miraculous power. They had attributed the power to Beelzebub and now wanted more proof that He was from God. Jesus spoke plainly to them about their ability to discern the weather from looking at the clouds but their failure to believe His miracles! “A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah. Jesus then left them and went away.” (Matthew 16:4)
These leaders had Jesus right in front of them and had seen miracles and heard Him teach with authority. The only sign that would be given them was the sign of Jonah. Jesus spoke of this same sign earlier when He explained that, “as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” (Matthew 12:40) He spoke of His death, burial and resurrection as a primary sign of who He was: The Son of Man!
Later, Jesus asked His disciples: “Who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15) Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:16) Knowing who Jesus really is comes from revelation! Revelation comes from a humble and teachable heart that seeks truth. Settle the question in your own heart today! Quit seeking signs and believe the Word of God! Jesus rose from the grave and is alive today!
Children’s bread for a Gentile!
Scripture reading for January 21st: Matthew 15
What would you and I do if we came to Jesus for help for our kids, and Jesus refused to answer us? Worse yet, what if He referred to us with a racial slur of the day, calling us “dogs?” Would we press on with getting down in front of Jesus with a more desperate plea? Matthew records just such an incident in Jesus’ ministry!
“Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to Him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon possession.” “Jesus did not answer her a word.” (Matthew 15:21-23a) This Canaanite woman was a Gentile and yet recognized Jesus as the “Son of David” and “Lord”. She appealed to Jesus for mercy. “The woman came and knelt before Him. “Lord, help me!” she said. He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.” “Yes, Lord,” she said, ” but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” (Matthew 15:25-27) Jesus then commended this woman for her great faith! Her faith brought healing to her daughter immediately!
Jesus told this woman from outside the family of Abraham, that healing was the ‘children’s bread’! In other words, God gladly provides what His children need! He sent Jesus to those children who would have faith in His ability to provide and asked and kept on asking! This woman was persistent. She refused to be offended and sought the crumbs under the Master’s table! Jesus marveled at her “great faith”! He always honors faith! Why not press in today and ask Jesus for healing or help! If you are a child of His by faith, it belongs to you!
John the Baptist risen from the dead?
Scripture reading for January 20th: Matthew 14
“At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the reports about Jesus, and he said to his attendants, “This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead! That is why miraculous powers are at work in him.” (Matthew 14:1-2) Even the government officials who were not Jews developed opinions about Jesus and His miraculous powers! Herod had a guilty conscience about killing John the Baptist at the request of his bother’s wife and daughter. He knew the Jews considered him a prophet. Now he deduced that John had come back from the dead in the person of Jesus. Who is this Man? That question decides life and death, heaven and hell!
Jesus withdrew upon hearing of John’s death and performed many miracles and fed five thousand men and a larger number of women and children with five loaves of bread and two fishes. After picking up the left-over’s, Jesus sent the disciples on ahead in a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee. He went to pray by Himself. “During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw Him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” (Matthew 14:25-27) Peter even left the boat and walked to Jesus as His bidding before sinking in the waves. Jesus demonstrated to His disciples another aspect of who He was! He was not a ghost, but one who had control of the wind and waves!
Jesus wants to reveal the Truth to all who will receive! He is more that a resurrected prophet! He is more than a “holy ghost”! He is the Son of God and Lord who saves us!
Isn’t this the carpenter’s son?
Scripture reading for January 19th: Matthew 13
The Jews of Jesus’ day had a hard time figuring Him out! He spoke to them with great wisdom and taught with authority. He confounded the religious scholars of His day and they ended up seeking to kill Him! He told parables that spoke plainly to those with ears to hear and seeking hearts but were meaningless to those who were proud and judgmental. (Matthew 13:11-15)
Parables are stories that relay information at different levels of understanding, depending on the desire of the person to understand truth. The disciples asked Him to explain why he used them. “He replied, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.” ” (Matthew 13:11) Parables reveal truth to seekers, but hide truth from the hard of heart. The parable of the sower was all about the sowing of the Word of God and the types of hearts that would not receive or would receive and produce fruit. Those who received the Word would be like the good soil and produce a harvest!
He told a number of other parables and then went to His hometown to teach in the synagogue. The people were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother’s name Mary, and aren’t His brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t His sisters with us? Were did this man get all these things?” And they took offense at Him.” (Matthew 13:54-56) Knowing Jesus as He really is requires more than a genealogy and answers to questions! We must be open to truth about the kingdom of heaven. Jesus could do no great miracles there because of their unbelief! Is your heart “good ground?”
Which power flows through Jesus?
Scripture reading for January 16th: Matthew 12
Jesus had a hard time with the religious leaders of His day. “Going from that place, He went into their synagogue, 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?” 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? How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” (Matthew 12:9-12) Jesus went on to heal the man’s hand that very Sabbath. The religious leaders then began to plot to kill Him! They loved to play their religious games by the rules that they had made up!
Aware of their plotting, Jesus withdrew to another place. “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. All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?” But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”” (Matthew 12:22-24) These same religious people drew another wrong conclusion about the power that Jesus was operating in. They chose to believe Jesus was under Satan’s influence! Jesus politely instructed them that “Every kingdom divided against itself would be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.” (Matthew 12:25-26) Satan’s kingdom and power can only be defeated by God’s power! Let’s be careful to discern the real Jesus and His divine power!
Miracles and judgment!
Scripture reading for January 15th: Matthew 11
Jesus talked about the generation of Jews that were living in the time He ministered on earth. “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: “We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.” For John (the Baptist) came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 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.” (Matthew 11:16-19) The Jews of Jesus day had excuses for everything they saw. They made accusations that enabled them to stay smug and live as usual.
Jesus likened them to children playing games. Some played the flute and danced, inviting others to join in. This was the ministry of Jesus! He performed miracles and turned water into wine at a wedding feast. He was accused of being a glutton and friend of sinners by the religious people of that day. The miracles served only to make them more skeptical and hardened. John the Baptist came calling people to repentance and to mourn over their sins. He lived in the desert and dressed like a prophet. These same religious people accused him of having a demon!
We must be careful how we react to Jesus and to the people God sends to call people to Himself! He pronounced ‘woe’ on Korazin and Capernaum, the places He ministered the most but was rejected and judged! It would be more bearable for Sodom than for them on Judgment Day! (Matthew 11:23-24)
Delegated authority!
Scripture reading for January 14th: Matthew 10
Man was created in the image of God. Part of that image was the ability to exercise dominion and rule over the earth. (Genesis 1:27-28) In the Garden of Eden, man chose to disobey God and took the bait of Satan to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of good and evil. The result was death, separation from God, sickness, sweat, and the curse. Jesus came to restore the image of God in man and gave those who followed Him authority over the powers of darkness. “He called His twelve disciples to Him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.” (Matthew 10:1)
Jesus sent these disciples to the lost sheep of Israel. He told them not to take along any provisions but to live by faith and look for those God provided to care for them. They were to minister without charge and bless those that received them with a blessing of peace. However Jesus warned them: “If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. I tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.” (Matthew 10:14-15) These instructions tell us the seriousness of preaching the Word of God and allowing God to use us for the ministry of healing and deliverance.
Knowing Jesus brings us into the realm of delegated authority to declare the Kingdom of God. Jesus desires that His disciples walk in power and declare the victory of the cross over sin, sickness and demonic bondage! When people won’t listen, they bring judgment on themselves!
Jesus does the “impossible”!
Scripture reading for January 13th: Matthew 9
A miracle is something that happens that is beyond the ordinary. Miracles have been one of the languages that God has used to cause men and women to marvel and open their heart to believe. Jesus the Son of God was a miracle-worker who did extraordinary miracles that got the attention of lost and hurting people and brought relief to those suffering from the power of Satan.
“While He was saying this, a ruler came and knelt before Him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put Your hand on her and she will live.” Jesus got up and went with him, and so did His disciples.” Matthew 9:18-19 A ruler of the Jews came to Jesus for help in an impossible situation. His daughter was dead! For some reason, Jesus had become known for the extraordinary miracles that He performed. Word had reached this ruler and he was desperate for help. Jesus responded to the man’s faith, taking along His disciples for a lesson in the miraculous!
“When Jesus entered the ruler’s house and saw the flute players and the noisy crowd, He said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at Him. After the crowd had been put outside, He went in and took the girl by the hand and she got up. News of this spread through all that region.” Matthew 9:23-26 Jesus was mocked when He told the mourners that the girl was not dead but asleep! They were escorted out before Jesus could act to defeat death. After a touch from Jesus, death left her body! Jesus is still the Miracle Worker today! His followers are now His hands and feet!