Matthew___19

Scripture  Matthew 19:23-25 And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.  Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”  When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?” Observation-What does it say?  Jesus enters into a series of short lessons that hit some points that are hard, and very contrary to popular belief.  The beginning of this chapter opens with a discussion about the lawfulness of divorce. Jesus makes a hard statement, that it is better to stay single than to get married and succumb to divorce, knowing that this is too hard for most people.  The next conversation flips the idea of societal status on its head. Jesus lived in a society that did not give much regard to children. Jesus tells his disciples that they should learn to be like children in order to accept the Kingdom of Heaven in their lives.  He then moves onto money, or whatever it is that we put in front of Jesus. For the rich young ruler, though he lived a chaste life, he still held his money in higher regard than a relationship with Jesus. Jesus made a point of showing that we must let go of that which is our most precious possession.  (For some of us, that might be our children).      Understanding-What does it mean?  When we moved recently, I quickly found out how many things I really didn’t have as much attachment to as I thought.  As the moving process began to come to a close and we were running out of time, I found myself ruthlessly discarding items that I had held onto for years.  As we started unpacking, I found myself asking the same question over and over again, “Why did I keep this?” Hearing this enough times, I began to wonder what it was that I valued the most.   The saying goes, “He who has the most toys wins.”  And it has become clear that this mentality is getting harder and harder to shake.  If one were to look at research into what Americans think are necessities now, which were once considered luxuries, you get the sense that we are clinging tighter and tighter to our toys.  Research has shown that the average American now finds things, like high-speed internet, phones and personal computers, as “necessities” instead of luxuries.       God operates in a different economy than we do.  Throughout scripture, we hear that the first will be last, the poor in spirit will inherit the kingdom of heaven, that God gives strength to the weary.  He warned us that this is not our final home, and that we should not look to be storing treasure here (Matthew 6:19-21). We are also told, through Paul’s letter to the Philippians, that we are not to be selfish, but to look after the interest of others (verse 2:3-6).     Life Application:  As we get closer to the celebration of Jesus’ birth, I know I need to look past the usual rush for getting the perfect present.  God help me to look for situations that I can give an unusual blessing. Help me to seek out the ones who are in need of a kind word.  Give me the opportunity to use my time and resources to bless those in need today. But mostly, help me to remember to put you in front of my possessions.  -Tyler Galloway

Matthew_18

Scripture 

Matthew 18:21- 35

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.[g]

23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold[h] was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

26 “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins.[i] He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.

29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’

30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.

32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

 Observation 

How many times should we forgive someone, Jesus said seventy times seven. 

The king showed mercy on the man who owed him 10 thousand bags of gold and let him go.  

But the man who was forgiven went to a man that owed him 100 silver coins, significantly less, and demanded payment from him, even though he begged the man refused and had him thrown in jail. 

When the king heard what he had done, he had him tortured until he paid off the debt. 

Understanding

Forgiveness sounds excruciating doesn’t it. Well, maybe not all the time. Like when someone forgot to tell you they were not going to show up to dinner and you did all this hard work or I said something I shouldn’t have because I was stressed out, but you forgave me pretty quickly and we never spoke of it again. We were good. 

But how about when someone wrongs you so deeply! Like betrayal or theft. Why should you forgive the debt against them? They should know what they did and know it for a long time. 

Every time you see them you bring it up to them so they don't forget. “It’s gonna take a long time to pay back the debt you owe to me, to repay me for the sin you did against me.”

I never realized that unforgiveness is like putting someone in jail and then torturing them. We incarcerate the other person with our hurts and anger, our frustrations and disappointments. We torture them with our shrewd comments and bad behavior, our cold relationship and broken communication. 

We do this as sinners. 

We do this as Christians. 

We do this to ourselves.

Application 

James 22:12 - 13

 “12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 

because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. 

Mercy triumphs over judgment.”

I think it's time for a lot of US to walk out of the prison cell we have been holding ourselves captive. 

It’s time for a lot of US to set people free from our wounds. 

It’s time for a lot of US to be FREE from unforgiveness. 

He has extended mercy to us time and time again. We cannot possibly think that we can receive mercy from Him for our daily failures and not extend forgiveness and mercy to our brother and sister. 

Oh I know…! It sucks! They don't deserve it… just like we don't deserve it. 

It’s time to run to Him for healing. 

And while true repentance from the offender is a huge factor in reconciling any failed relationship and trust must be rebuilt, extending forgiveness is always the first step toward freedom and following in the example of our Father in heaven, our savior Jesus Christ, and our wonderful counselor Holy Spirit. 

 

Its time to set the captives free!

 

Father, you are a merciful God, slow to anger and abounding in love. You have been so good to me. Thank you! Father forgive me for my unforgiveness. Holy Spirit empower me to daily extend forgiveness and mercy to those who hurt me. I choose to forgive those who have hurt me and I choose to forgive myself for things that I have done so terribly wrong. I ask that you heal my heart, my soul, my mind, and my body. I choose to walk in freedom! In Jesus name, amen!

 

Deborah Lee

Matthew__17

Scripture

Matthew 17:20

He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will by impossible for you.”

 

Observation

After He transfigures Jesus just heals a demon-possessed boy. After this encounter the disciples ask Him why they couldn’t do it. This verse is Jesus’ response to them. He tells them that faith whether big or small is more powerful than no faith at all. While reminding them that nothing is too great to overcome with faith.

 

Understanding

What mountains have you moved?

Imagine this: you just tried your absolute hardest to help someone in dire need. You do everything you can you pray, you pray some more, you phone a friend, they pray, they pray some more, and then they phone a friend and the cycle continues. You see no result and instead matters seem to be getting worse. Then your main man, Jesus, walks in and instantly solves the problem. You are elated, you’re excited that the issue got solved, but you’re a little sad that you couldn’t be the problem-solver. Because you love learning and growing you ask your main man, Jesus, why you couldn’t do it. Then the worst thing that you could ever imagine happens. Jesus thrashes your faith, He basically tells you that you have none. If that isn’t enough He seems a little (okay a lot) disappointed in you. What’s your next move? How do you recover from a devastating defeat?

I don’t know about you, but I love to learn except I hate to fail. From my short time here on earth, though, I have learned that you learn the absolute best from failing miserably. It is the greatest defeats that really make you reevaluate. I think that’s exactly what Jesus was going for here. I think He purposely shamed His disciples so that they would have a desire to do grow their faith. So what’s my main point in all of this? Put yourself in the disciples shoes for a minute. Evaluate your life and your faith and ask yourself: “What mountains have I moved recently?”

Jesus says that faith the size of a tiny mustard seed moves mountains. So if you aren’t seeing a victory where you want you one, how great is you faith that you will actually overcome it? Another thing I have learned in my short time here on earth, I am and I can do nothing without God. However, believing that alone isn’t enough. It’s encouraging to know that God is always with you, but it is ultimately faith that moves mountains. Meaning, it is being utterly convinced in the cause of Christ, the belief that He moves through you, and the courage to transform that into action that makes mountains move.

 

Life Application

What is your mountain?

Sometimes it is the realization that you have a mountain that you must overcome that helps you grow your faith. So ask yourself: What is holding me back from experiencing the fullness of the potential of my life? What am I too afraid to give to God? Throw that mountain into the midst of the sea. All it takes is faith.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Help us to have faith that is unmatched to any other emotion in this world. Help us to see all we need is you and you alone. May we be bold enough to tell our mountains to move. I believe in You, but more importantly all my faith is in You. Thank You for the stories of victories to come, may we be people that chase after Your heart.

Amen.

-Allison Khan