Category Archives: New Testament

A tired Jesus wants committed disciples (Matthew 8: 18-22)

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Bible Summary:

As the crowd surrounds Jesus, he tells his disciples to go to the other side of the lake. A teacher of the Law tells Jesus he is ready to go wherever he goes. Jesus says, “Foxes have holes, birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lie down and rest.” Another disciple tells Jesus he needs to bury his father first, but Jesus tells him to come and let the dead bury their dead.

My Thoughts:

Price of Fame: Jesus shares a little about the pressures of fame. The demands of the crowds weigh on him enough that he complains about not get rest and barks at his disciples who want to leave to care for their families. Many people dream of being famous like movie stars or top athletes, but they have no idea the price of fame: loss of freedom from overwhelming crowds and persistent paparazzi, demands of their agents, strained relationships, etc. Be careful what you wish for because you might be better off where you are. No matter how much fame or money you gain, you cannot buy love and happiness. Luckily Jesus knew the price he had to pay and was willing to accept the consequences for us.

Jesus Heals Many (Matthew 8: 14-17)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus touches the hand of Peter’s feverish mother-in-law and heals her instantly. People bring him many others to heal of their demons as foretold by prophet Isaiah.

My Thoughts:

Convenience: Many of Jesus’ miracles fit too nicely into the prophecies of old like someone fit him into the mold to prove to the Jews he was the Messiah. The story is almost too perfect. And, why has he not returned in 2000 years?

Many critics bring up these points to discredit Jesus. We have no way to prove or disprove the miracles but we all know in our hearts what he taught about loving each other is right.

Roman officer’s great faith in Jesus (Matthew 8: 5-13)

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Bible Summary:

A Roman officer meets Jesus on the way into Capernaum and begs him to help his terribly sick servant in bad at home. Jesus agrees to go see him, but the officer asks him to give the order from there and his servant will get well. Jesus tells his followers he has never found anyone in Israel with such faith and that many will come to the feast in heaven but others will be thrown into darkness crying and gnashing their teeth. He tells the officer what he believes will be done and the servant is healed that very moment.

My Thoughts:

Faith: Very few today have the same faith as the Roman officer. Many are just going through the motions at church and in life. We talk about God, pray to God, but do we truly believe in Him? Maybe we should and perhaps the outcome will be the same.

Jesus heals on request (Matthew 8: 1-4)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus comes down the hill and a man with dreaded skin disease kneels before him and asks him to heal him. Jesus touches and heals him. He tells the man not to tell anyone, but to visit the priest to prove the cure and offer the sacrifice Moses ordered.

My Thoughts:

Follow the rules: Jesus had just told the crowd during the Sermon on the Mount not to draw attention to themselves, so he repeats this to the man by asking him not to tell anyone he had healed him. Instead, he tells the man to follow the rules of Moses and visit the priest to prove he is clean so he can become a member of the community again.

Even though Jesus could do great miracles, he still followed the laws. You can make dramatic change by “showing” others instead of “telling” them what to do.

Build your life solid like rock (Matthew 7: 24-29)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus tells the crowd at the Sermon on the Mount that anyone who hears and obeys his words is like a wise man who builds his house on a rock instead of sand. The rain pours, rivers flood, and wind blows hard against the house on the rock, but it does not fall. Jesus finishes the sermon and everyone is amazed at how he taught with authority, not like the teachers of Law.

My Thoughts:

Solid Foundation: Like a house, every life needs a solid foundation. Jesus provides that foundation in the Sermon on the Mount:

  • The Beatitudes
  • Be a good role model for all to see
  • Obey the Ten Commandments
  • Anger is a bad as murder
  • Marriage is sacred and adultery starts with a look at another woman
  • Keep your promises
  • Love your enemy instead of seeking revenge
  • Do charity anonymously
  • The Lord’s Prayer
  • Do not show off
  • Focus on riches in heaven instead of on earth
  • Live for today; life is too short to worry
  • Do not judge others before yourself
  • Ask and receive, seek and find, knock and the door will open
  • Make good choices even though they are very difficult
  • Be cautious about false prophets who may swindle your money

Be on guard for false prophets (Matthew 7: 15-23)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus tells the crowd during the Sermon on the Mount to be on guard for false prophets who look like sheep, but are wolves on the inside. You will know them by what they do. Healthy trees grow good fruit, but poor trees make bad fruit, so they are cut down and thrown into the fire. Only those who do what God wants will enter the Kingdom of heaven. When Judgment Day comes, many will say they spoke God’s message and performed miracles, but Jesus will say “I never knew you wicked people.”

My Thoughts:

False Prophets: Jesus warns us about false prophets, charlatans interested in swindling money and other valuables from you. They are very slick individuals that could sell you land on the moon. No, you cannot buy land on the moon – at least not yet. Today, some evangelists live in multi-million dollar homes paid for from heavily “encouraged” tithing by their church members. Jesus said we would know false prophets by what they do and he repeatedly spoke against accumulating wealth, so you decide.

Jesus points us towards the narrow gate (Matthew 7: 13-14)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus says the gate to hell is wide, the road is easy, and many follow it there. The gate to life is narrow, the way hard, and few find it.

My Thoughts:

Choices: Every day greets us with choices. I was going to say many are easy to make, like what to eat or what to wear, and then talk about the hard ones, but even these “easy” choices are difficult. You can choose to eat high-caloric items that will add pounds or wear that revealing outfit – or not. Every choice you make, from the mundane every-day ones made out of habit to the earth-shattering ones that can dramatically change your life, is a point where you should stop and rethink what God would want you to do if He were standing beside you. It is a narrow and hard way, but the results will amaze you.

Ask and you will receive (Matthew 7: 7-12)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus says, “Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened.” Just like you give good things to your children, God gives good things to those who ask. He also says the Law of Moses means to do for others what you would want them to do for you.

My Thoughts:

Action: Everything you want in life requires action – ask, seek, open, etc. If you want to make things better, step up and take action. Take a chance, you will be pleasantly surprised what happens.

Good for good: I believe Jesus put a different spin on Moses’ “eye-for-an-eye” law in this passage changing it to “good for good”. If you do good for others, you will receive good.

Jesus says to judge not (Matthew 7: 1-6)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus says not to judge others or God will judge you the same way. He asks why you point out the speck in your brother’s eye and miss the log in your own. “You hypocrite!” He further says not give what is holy to dogs, they will only turn on you, and not to throw pearls to pigs, they will only trample them.

My Thoughts:

Parables: Not judging others is a pretty clear message from Jesus, but many others are less direct and in parable form, like the part about the dogs and pigs. This could mean many things, like if you try to speak the word of God to people who do not believe, they will only attack you and speak against your pearls of wisdom.

Jesus says to live for today (Matthew 6: 24-34)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus tells the crowd during the Sermon on the Mount, “No one can be a slave of two masters; he will hate one and love the other; he will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” He says not to worry about food, drink or clothes. Life is more than that. God feeds the birds and clothes wild grass – “that is here today and gone tomorrow” – and wild flowers with beautiful colors. You of little faith should not worry about tomorrow, but be concerned with what God requires of you, and then He will provide all you need.

My Thoughts:

Serving two masters: You cannot serve God and money. Hmm? I have heard people use this phrase to admonish the rich for accumulating wealth and not sharing through charity, but Jesus did not target the rich in this part of the story. His message was very basic – down to food and clothing – that refers to every man, woman and child.

Worry and Stress: The real message is about worry and stress, which doctors today are confirming can shorten your life. Jesus tells everyone not to worry about tomorrow that God will provide enough of your basic needs as long as you serve Him.

Life is short: Jesus essentially said to live for today since life is short – “here today and gone tomorrow.” You really only have today, this moment. All the guilt or concern over what you did or failed to do, or wrongs that happened to you in the past are just that, in the past. There is nothing you can do to change what happened then. And, the future is but a dream. Planning is good so you have a road map where you would like to go – your hopes and dreams – but they are only accomplished by living and acting upon them today. So, start those dreams today, even by taking just small steps in that direction. God is looking for you to answer his call – start now.