Mark 3 – A new family

And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, "Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you." And he answered them, "Who are my mother and my brothers?" And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother." – Mark 3:32-35 (ESV)

It is interesting to think of how Jesus defined His own family – those who do the will of God. While, yes, we are to have healthy relationships with our spouses, parents, children, and relatives, our true family are those who do the will of God. [How blessed it is when our ‘earthly’ family is a part of our true family!] We often forget that when we come to Christ, we receive a whole new set of brothers and sisters. For those who have lost or never had much family, for those who are estranged from their blood relations, this is a message of hope here on this earth – there is a set of people who are committed to you because now you have the same Father. Jesus offers true family to all who come to Him.

Mark 2 – Jesus and the Pharisees

And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins--and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins. – Mark 2:22 (ESV)

The Pharisees’ disciples fast, but Jesus’ disciples didn’t. The Pharisees said “no” to people grazing on the Sabbath, but Jesus says, “It’s OK.” We often think, “Those silly Pharisees – won’t they ever get it right?” And, by the grace of God, we sometimes recognize how we are like the Pharisees. While, yes, we know that Pharisees did not get along with Jesus and that, yes, Jesus had some sharp words with them, we still think that there are things that are much worse for us to do. But the theology of the Pharisees and the theology of Jesus are incompatible. Their traditions will be destroyed by the very God they are attempting to honor. When we become the Pharisee, we are in a very precarious place indeed.

Mark 1 – Jesus and the crowds

When it comes to the spotlight, people often either love it too much or they hate / fear it worse than anything. There was a guy I knew that did not want his picture taken because he was afraid of being the center of attention. Conversely, I know someone else that absolutely loves having every eye on him. Jesus however, doesn’t seem to be affected by crowds. What I mean is that in a crowd, Jesus has compassion on people, heals their diseases, and casts out demons. But the pull of popularity doesn’t tug on Christ’s shoulder; He goes about His Father’s business regardless of the crowd He is leaving behind. His mind is in tune with the Father’s: He goes out early and prays in a lonely place and, when they find Him, it is off to another town. Popularity is a major force in people’s lives – we just want to be liked by others. But there is something more important than popularity, the will of God.

Matthew 28 - God with us

And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. – Matt 28:20 (ESV)

Matthew 27 – The amazing things we don’t say

But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed. – Matt 27:14 (ESV)

In youth group, we have been going over the names of God. A few weeks ago, we came across the name, “the God who sees (cf Gen 16:13).” If God didn’t see, I would probably sin more than I do now. On the same token, I would probably want people to know all the good I have ever done. If God was blind to the things done in secret, what would be the point of doing good things in secret? Forgetting that God sees makes us defensive and ready to counteract any small inconsistency that hurts our own reputation. You see this in the workplace all the time – you cover your own behind and make the other people you work with look like miserable buffoons. Now sure, there is place for speaking up and there is a place to defend your character. But, as Jesus demonstrates, God is our ultimate Judge; the One who sees is the One whose opinion counts. People, like this governor, generally don’t understand that – they want their name across the building they helped fund.

Matthew 26 – Speaking up for Himself

And the high priest said to him, "I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God." Jesus said to him, "You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven." – Matt 26:63b-64 (ESV)

Why does Jesus answer this question and not others? His integrity and his character were under attack the entire time, but Jesus makes no effort to address these inaccuracies. But when it came to this particular question, challenged by an oath, Jesus responds. As to the reason for Jesus’ response, D.A. Carson writes: Jesus speaks in this way, not because Caiaphas has spoken the truth of himself without any revelation, but because Caiaphas's understanding of "Messiah" and "Son of God" is fundamentally inadequate. Jesus is indeed the Messiah and so must answer affirmatively. But he is not quite the Messiah Caiaphas has in mind (Carson, Matthew, Expositor’s Bible Commentary). Jesus as Messiah has implications for us all. It is not a question that can be addressed without reflecting on how we are going to respond to His answer. Yes people misunderstand Jesus all the time; many times they are upset at a caricature rather than the original. But some people understand Jesus with a good degree of clarity and are affronted by the submission that this Messiah requires. Lord, help me to see You clearly and to respond as You deserve.

Matthew 24 - Surprise!

Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. - Matt 24:45-46 (ESV)

 

Many of us have our 5 year, 10 year, and 25 year plans.  We envision what will happen on down the road:  children, job, home.  Or maybe we take the other extreme; we simply look forward to the end of the day.  In either case, we often do not factor in the Lord's return.  Our lives tend to not be oriented towards a sudden end to employment, family, retirement, etc.  Putting the Lord back into our lives tends to put life in perspective.  Maybe I should make that visit or write that letter.  Living life in light of Christ's return adds a simplicity and purity to our daily living.  And that is refreshment we could all use.

Matthew 23 – The reverse of what we want

The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.   Matt 23:11-12 (ESV)

 

In all honesty, it is hard for me to really enjoy this passage.  Often I think that if I do my job (or at least what I like to do), I shouldn't do other jobs I don't want to do (but I would use the word gifted in there somewhere instead of want).   If I do serve, in some backhanded way I want God to reward me for my suffering (service) and to punish those who should have been doing what I think they should have been doing.   The struggle is that we think we are great.  We want to be esteemed and given tasks that carry prestige and honor.  But honor and prestige belong to God; He is making a people that reflect His character and proclaim His glory.   There is a promise for everyone in this verse:  humble will be lifted up, but the proud, well, they'll be cast down to the ground.   If I'm not encouraged by the first reason, the second reason is often scary enough to help my awful attitude. 

Matthew 16 – More misunderstanding

But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man." – Matt 16:23 (ESV)

Peter tells Jesus that his plan of suffering and dying will not happen. While Peter’s intentions seem noble, Jesus condemns his attitude severely. Often we focus on the plan of man. We can see this in our prayer life; our prayers often reflect lifestyle and comfort concerns, not the same concerns that the Lord has for us. Sometimes our gut isn’t the best indicator of what we should do.

Matthew 15 – The blind leading the blind

Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit. – Matt 15:14 (ESV)

This is a sobering reminder to be enlightened by the Lord and not our own intellectual devices, not matter how cool they may be. Here are the Pharisees: people who have died for what they thought was right, but they are dead wrong when it comes to the type of tradition they are trying to enforce. We get off on tangents; we hear some alarming or intriguing idea; we like the way a person says something because it is new and fresh. What we miss is that we may be blinded from the truth. Our worship becomes some man exalting farce that is anything but close to the heart of God. Oh Lord, help us to be true to you and you alone!

Matthew 14 – Alone time

And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. – Matt 14:23a (ESV)

A simple reminder from the life of Jesus - get alone with the Lord.

Matthew 12 – Careful what you say

You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. – Matt 12:34 (ESV)

A friend of mine and I were talking about someone during my college days. After listening, this friend asked if I loved this person like Christ does. I was floored – my mouth had revealed that I had a heart that was filled with hatred. Listen to what you say and ask the Lord to soften and change your heart.

Matthew 10 – Scary thoughts

And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. – Matt 10:28

What gives you the greatest amount of fear? Are you scared of public speaking, sharks, difficult conversations, or the dark? Maybe your fear is well grounded; maybe you have people that want to kill you. In fact, as Christians, we all have an adversary in the devil, and he wants to destroy us. But our primary fear should be the Lord. He is the one who is able to destroy both the body and the soul. But if we called God's elect, if we have been justified by Jesus Christ, then God is not our enemy anymore. Instead, the only one who can do eternal damage to us has become our Father and Savior. This love, therefore, casts out fear. As the Psalmist says,

The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? – Ps 118:6

Matthew 9 – Seeing others

And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest." – Matt 9:35-38 (ESV)

Some of us may not like to see people in need. It makes us uncomfortable or sorry that we ‘have it so good.’ Sometimes we despise those in need; we wonder why they don’t get themselves out of their situation. Jesus calls us to be gracious and compassionate to others. The reason: the Lord has compassion for us and He has given us grace that can never be repaid. Every laborer was someone for whom the Lord had compassion. Our thought isn’t, “Be more compassionate.” Instead our thought is, “The Lord has been so gracious to me.”

Matthew 8 – Would be followers

Now when Jesus saw a great crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. And a scribe came up and said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." Another of the disciples said to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." And Jesus said to him, "Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead." – Matt 8:18-22 (ESV)

Two points of discipleship are highlighted by Jesus. One is that following Jesus means that we won’t have the stability and comfort that others have. Jesus, the creator of the whole universe, God Almighty, doesn’t even have what the animals have – a secure place to sleep. We must be willing to give up our ‘comforts’ and our ‘security’ to follow Jesus. Secondly, we must prioritize following Jesus. Many noble things will sway us from our task, but we must be followers first.

Matthew 7 – Getting good stuff

Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! – Matt 7:9-11 (ESV)

We often wonder about this passage. The question about these verses usually goes something like, “Why isn’t God giving me the things I ask for?” First of all, the child is asking the father for basic needs (bread and fish) and many of the things we ask for are gifts that would not be good for us. The things we often want merely reflect values of a prosperous people, not values of the people of God. Second, we hate to wait. We loathe it. We can’t drive slowly, we can’t eat slowly, if we order something, we want it within the week! The good father doesn’t give his child food every single time the child asks; there are set times in a day when the child should eat. Our heavenly Father waits for the best time to answer our requests and often times gives us gifts that are far better than the things we ask for in the first place. So keep asking.

Matthew 6 – Good and others (part 2)

And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. – Matt 6:16-18 (ESV)

To give balance to the last post, we should not do good to exalt ourselves. The ‘good-doing’ we are to do is to the glory of the Father and any attempt to put the limelight on ourselves is idolatry. We should not to be ashamed of the good that we do and we should not broadcast the good that we do. As far as it depends on us, we shouldn’t be boasting about the good that you do; God will use it when we keep it secret. A good example is Daniel. His prayer life was private, but everyone knew about it and Daniel didn’t deny it. In fact, his piety was so well-known that it was used against him by his political rivals. Because of Daniel’s devotion to God, God received glory. This is the sort of pattern we are to emulate.

Matthew 5 – Good and others

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. – Matt 5:14-16 (ESV)

As Christians, we should be doing good. Sure, we should do good out of our love for the Lord and because doing good is the right thing to do, but another reason is so that others would glorify God. This is a reason that hardly ever pops in my mind when faced with a ‘good doing’ situation. We should not be shy about doing things because others might see them – this is one of the purposes for doing good. Don’t lie about the good things you have done in order to have some skewed sense of piety.

Matthew 4 – Quoting the OT

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” – Deut 6:4-9 (ESV)

When Jesus was led into the wilderness, the devil tried to cajole Him into sinning. This led to a Bible argument: the devil was quoting verses and Jesus was quoting verses back. Was what the devil was saying false? – No, but he was being deceptive. Jesus, however, centers His response on Deuteronomy 6-8. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 is known as the shema (which means ‘hear’) and this verse helped the people of God focus their devotion and practice on the Lord God. Jesus is quoting from this very important passage (and from a subsequent passage) to let the devil know that He will not be moved from His single-minded devotion to God. This is why the Word of God needs to be etched on our hearts – otherwise we will be led astray by teachings that have hints of truth to them but are grossly misapplied. It is also warning against being the one who is distorting the application of truth.

Matthew 3 – Paternity testing

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father,' for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. – Matt 3:7-9 (ESV)

John the Baptist is baptizing people who are confessing their sins when Pharisees and Sadducees come forward. John chastises them for their unrepentant hearts; for trusting in their heritage to establish their righteousness. Unfortunately, we can be guilty of the same crime, but it plays out in a different way. When we see that someone goes to a good church or has a mature Christian friend, relative, co-worker, etc., we often assume that they are a believer. This may be from our own fears of sharing the Gospel or from a heart that doesn’t want to see people going to hell, but it does reveal a misguided understanding of salvation by association. Salvation is by association, but the only association that achieves salvation is an association with Jesus Christ. This is the only means of salvation for us.

Matthew 2 – Herod’s rage

Herod, the king of Judea, was troubled to hear that a new king has just been born. He was also troubled to learn that he had been foiled in his initial attempt to find this child through the wise men that had come to visit him. Herod's solution – fly into a fit of rage and kill all the children in Bethlehem. It is horrible to kill any children, but to kill your own people is particularly barbaric. Commentators have no problem with this event not being discovered in extra-biblical sources – this is the M.O. of Herod the king. And this is what the Jews were used to – horrendous deeds to insure the throne. This vision of a king could be why Jesus wasn't recognized for who he really was.