After instructing His disciples on persistent prayer, Jesus shares another parable directed at the Pharisees and those who considered themselves righteous. Afterward, He permits little children to come to Him that He might bless them. This episode examines the passages in Luke 18 and Mark 10 and develops the often-confused themes of "legalism"and "self-righteousness".
All resources referencing Matthew 15
As the window of opportunity for their repentance slowly closes, Jesus offers harsh rebukes to the Pharisees and to the people of Israel. This episode examines Jesus' strong words to the crowds and the "woes" to the Pharisee as He dines with him after the Feast of Tabernacles.
After spending time in Tyre and Sidon, Jesus continues His ministry among Gentiles by heading southward to the Decapolis. There, He heals a deaf man and feeds four thousand. Jesus had rejected Galilee because despite all of His miracles and signs performed there, they did not bear the fruits of repentance. This episode continues walking through the events of Jesus' Late Galilean ministry.
After winnowing down His following in Galilee, Jesus heads north to Tyre and Sidon and begins ministering to Gentiles instead of heading south for the Passover in Jerusalem. This must have been extremely confusing for the Twelve. This episode looks at the journey and His ministry north of Galilee.
Just a day after feeding the 5,000 and walking on the water, Jesus encounters Pharisees from Jerusalem in Capernaum. There, He rebukes them for exalting their "traditions" and completely missing the heart of God in the Law of Moses. This episode develops one of the main controversies Jesus often has with the Jewish authorities.
On a real night over 2000 years ago, Joseph lay his head down to sleep, undoubtedly troubled in his soul as everything in his life had been turned upside down. The one he loved was pregnant, and not by him! But on that night, he received a dream from the Lord in which an angel gave him confidence to take Mary as his wife. The child within her was indeed of the Holy Spirit, and she had not been unfaithful to him as he presumed. This episode discusses Matthew 1, verses 20-25.
Have your words or actions ever been misconstrued? Have you ever felt the pain of rejection from close friends or family? Though sin and the curse have made these things a common human experience, God Himself has felt the pain of misunderstanding.
Throughout Jesus' life and ministry, there were several groups of people who interacted frequently with Him:
- His own family (His mother Mary, His four brothers and His sisters) - Matthew 13:55-56
- The women who attended to Him and cared for His needs (Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna) - Luke 8:2-3
- ...
Judgment and mercy are meant to fit together like a hand in a glove. If a full picture of God’s heart in judgment and mercy could be painted, judgment would be the canvas on which the colors of mercy would be brushed. It’s not possible to biblically talk about one while ignoring the other. As I discussed in my last post on the judgment of God in the Incarnation, division and judgment centered around the person of Christ was the bold message of John the Baptist. The Incarnation marked...