January 12, 2023
‘Jesus knew what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you have such evil thoughts in your hearts?”‘ (Matthew 9:4 NLT). When Jesus forgave the sins of the paralyzed man, some religious teachers who witnessed it said to themselves that he had committed blasphemy. For only God can forgive sin. Yet, Jesus “knew
January 8, 2023
“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing?” (Matthew 6:25 NLT). In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus discussed the human activity of worry. Clearly, worry is sinful because
January 7, 2023
“May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10 NLT). That which is called the “Lord’s Prayer” might rightly be called the Lord’s teaching prayer or model prayer, for He gives it to us to teach us how to pray. Even the order of the
January 4, 2023
“The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light. And for those who lived in the land where death casts its shadow, a light has shined” (Matthew 4:16 NLT). After Jesus’ baptism and 40 days in the wilderness, He didn’t return to Nazareth. Instead, He began His public ministry in a town on
January 3, 2023
“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry” (Matthew 4:1-2 ESV). Have you noticed how many times the numbers three and forty appear in the Bible? Both numbers are significant in today’s One Year® Bible
December 18, 2022 | Matthew 2:1-12 |
What is worship? It’s whatever you value or love the most. It’s what you spend your time, talent and treasure for as your greatest source of significance and security. That’s worship. It’s whatever or whoever you ascribe the greatest worth to. Ironically Christmas might be the most difficult time of the year to truly worship God because we are tempted to put more of our affections on material things and spending money.
Don’t you feel the tension? Don’t you feel the pressure to spend more money than you have in order to give your kids everything on their list? You want everyone to be happy and you want to be happy, so you spend, spend, spend… And the more you spend, the less it feels like Christmas. Or what it’s supposed to mean. In the gospel of Matthew, the story of the birth of Jesus is told within the political backdrop of the times. From the beginning there was a battle between worshiping the true King and the false king Herod that had usurped His Throne. The challenge for us is to remove our worship from the false king and to put our worship on the true King, Jesus Christ.
April 17, 2022 | Matthew 28:1-10 |
Have you really looked at the implications of the empty tomb? Because the empty tomb means that the resurrected Jesus has overcome sin, death and the grave! Are overcome by shame and guilt because of some sin, or habit, or addiction? In Christ, you are forgiven and empowered to overcome it! Are you grieving the loss of a relationship or the death of a loved one? In Christ, we grieve, but not as those who have no hope. In Christ, the dead live again! Are you anxious and filled with fear? In Christ, we can overcome fear with faith in Him.
In the gospel according to Matthew, he recorded the instructions given to those who rightly beheld Christ’s empty tomb. When we rightly behold Christ’s empty tomb, we can obey these instructions.
February 12, 2022
WHAT SHOULD I DO WITH JESUS? The Roman Governor Pilate asked the crowd to answer this question for him. He sought to avoid making a decision about Jesus, but his plan backfired. The crowd’s surprising support of the criminal Barabbas left Pilate still responsible to answer the question of what to do with Jesus. Pilate
February 10, 2022
ARE YOU FOLLOWING JESUS AT A DISTANCE? On the night when Jesus was arrested, Peter tried to blend in as one of the crowd, following Jesus at a distance. This, after following so close must’ve been unbearable for Peter. Yet, it only took a little distance before denial overtook him. For just as Jesus predicted,
February 9, 2022
WHAT DID JESUS SING AT THE LAST SUPPER? The night when Jesus was later betrayed, He shared the Passover meal with His disciples. This was the last supper before His crucifixion the next day. At the end of the meal, He joined His disciples in singing a hymn before going up to the Mount of