Matthew 19:1-15

The Chronological Study Bible makes the point that we are now shifting our geographical location, that Jesus is back in Judea and we will not see Him in Galilee again. Luke had made that point specifically in Luke 9:51, that Jesus had “set His face to go to Jerusalem”. Much of the reading that we have done the past couple of weeks has been during Jesus’ travels on this trip. With today’s reading, now it’s only a matter of time before He goes to the cross. (But it will take us two months to get there!)

I was watching a baseball game yesterday. An ex-player, a star when he was playing who is now an announcer talked about bringing his son to meet a current baseball player, one of his son’s “idols”. I thought of my own childhood when I “idolized” baseball stars and of me and my friends trying to get autographs of these players. I also thought about Hollywood stars and people idolizing them and seeking autographs. In today’s reading, Jesus is a star! See the following two verses: And large crowds followed Him… (v. 2a) and Then little children were brought to Him that he might lay His hands on them and pray. (v. 13) More “autograph seekers”…??!!

Jesus speaking: And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery. (v. 9) Both of my Study Bibles noted that all three synoptic writers cover this discussion between Jesus and the Pharisees about divorce, but that Matthew was the only one of the three where Jesus allowed for the exception, “except for sexual immorality”. In Mark and Luke Jesus does not make this allowance. In looking further at this exception, I saw that this is the second time where Matthew has Jesus making this divorce exception. During the Sermon on the Mount Jesus makes the same statement as in verse 9 above (see Matthew 5:32). Interesting. I had not seen that before.

See also: August 5 (2019) / Matt. 19:1-15

Luke 18:1-14

The (parable) Pharisee speaking: God, I thank you that I am not like other men … I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get. (vv. 11b-12) All too often I see myself as a Pharisee. Again in this parable, more of the same. No, I do not fast twice a week, but I do see myself doing “good works” that support our church efforts. And yes, I do wonder at others in our church who are regular attendees who do not seem to be active at a higher level – I have no right to even begin to question their behavior; I have no idea what their personal life is like! Tithing (giving in general) is a third issue mentioned in Jesus’ parable, but I don’t think Carol and I are self-congratulatory on that item like this Pharisee; rather, we are thankful for all that God has given us and we strive to be good stewards of those resources. Still, with it all, the overarching message of the parable hits me. I am too easily self-justified and not nearly humble enough! We’re back to the topic of repentance again…

See also: August 4 (2019) / Luke 18:1-14

Luke 17:20-37

RTNT 2021. …He answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” (vv. 20b-21) In the book Heaven the author, Randy Alcorn argues extensively that we are living in Heaven, that our Earth – in a glorified state – is the future Heaven. So when Jesus says that the kingdom of God is in the midst of you, He could be speaking specifically of “Heaven on Earth”. That is, His words could be taken both literally (a physical Earth) and figuratively (spiritually, within each of us).

In verses 26 to 29 Jesus talks of the people who are living normal lives in the days of Noah and in the days of Lot. I fear that we are living in those days all over again – …eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage … buying and selling, planting and building… And those days resulted in a flood in Noah’s time and fire and brimstone on Sodom. More specifically I think of our current days more like Sodom. Jesus mentions marrying and being given in marriage in Noah’s time, but not in Lot’s time. Likewise, our own traditional institution of marriage (in many lives) has fallen out of our culture. I can picture fire and brimstone falling down on Sodom. I wonder what fire and brimstone awaits us.

See also: August 3 (2019) / Luke 17:20-37

Luke 17:1-19

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” (v. 5) This verse has always struck me as somewhat funny. It’s what the apostles said after Jesus had told them to forgive their brother seven times if he repented seven times! Yeah, I can relate to the apostles. If someone keeps offending me and keeps telling me that s/he is sorry, do I really buy it? I’m one who wants to see a change in behavior!! When I was teaching I could “forgive” a student one or two times for missing an exam or being late on a homework, but beyond that I had little mercy. But I guess that’s a different situation.

So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, “We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.” (v. 10) Yesterday I posted that God asks so little of us – only repentance and prayer/praise – that our works mean little to the Lord compared to repentance and prayer. Today’s verse 10 says the same thing. We should do what is expected of us with no expectation that we are anything special because of what we’ve done. But unfortunately my pride often gets in the way when I am doing the Lord’s work. All too often I want to be recognized for what I’ve done or (at a minimum) appreciated for what I do. It would be nice if I could be truly humble. Again, I’m airing my dirty laundry to the rest of you. But I feel that we are brothers and sisters in the Lord and that I can feel safe in so doing. And we hear time and again that confession is good for the soul.

See also:

• August 1 (2019) / Luke 17:1-10
• August 2 (2019) / Luke 17:11-19

Matthew 18:15-35

Repentance and forgiveness… Which is easier, to repent or to forgive? Maybe a better question is – which is harder? And where am I, where are you, on repentance and forgiveness?

Repentance and forgiveness… I’m trying to think of any bigger item between us and God than repentance – our need for sincere, daily repentance. Only one other item comes to mind – prayer, and its subset, praise. It’s all that our Father wants – our repentance before Him and our prayer with Him, our praise to Him. Our “works” are nice, but He has billions of people and an infinite number of angels who can get His work done. Sincere repentance, humble prayer, genuine praise. It’s not too much to ask. So why is it so hard…??!!

See also:

• July 30 (2019) / Matt. 18:15-20
• July 31 (2019) / Matt. 18:21-35

Luke 16:1-31

I know that I’ve been talking a lot about my brother, Ron, the past two days, but the readings fully related to him and his situation. So again today we read in verse 28 that the rich man had five brothers and that he was concerned for their future welfare. I also have five brothers and yes, I am concerned for (what I perceive to be) their lack of faith. So these readings are really applicable to my life!

I’ve often said that Luke is my favorite gospel. Part of that is his historical bent and his desire to “get it right” (Luke 1:1-4). But I’m sure it’s also because of his focus on money and my own life as an economist. Today’s readings are at the top of the list in Luke’s covering of money and our relationship to God.

I commented in the second link below on “unrighteous mammon” and worldly wealth. But another verse stuck out to me today: For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God. (v. 15b) I was thinking about what is “exalted among men” in today’s world. Right away money and power jump out, but also the fame associated with particular skills, like movie stars and sports figures. And all these are “abominations” in God’s sight? To my thinking, Jesus is speaking in hyperbole here – that in reality He is simply making a comparison between our worldly focus and what should be our devotion to His message and our Father. But it causes me to consider my relationship with God compared to how I feel about those whom I hold in high esteem. Even more to the point, how do I feel about my own worldly achievements, how much pride do I still hold onto from whatever I’ve done in my life, compared to “work” that I’ve done for the Kingdom? Is God truly #1 in my life? Sometimes I wonder…

See also:

• July 27 (2019) / Luke 16:1-8
• July 28 (2019) / Luke 16:9-18
• July 29 (2019) / Luke 16:19-31

Luke 15:11-32

Yesterday, in reading the parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin I spoke about Carol and me “finding” my brother, Ron, after his three-year absence from the family. I did not know that we would be reading the parable of the Prodigal Son the next day, another parable that had serious “Ron” overtones. When we read the parable of the Prodigal Son two years ago I also spoke about, Ron. (See my comments in the second link below.) And yesterday I said that Ron had not been heard from for three years; it’s also true that Ron had gone missing many years earlier when he was in his 20s and 30s. Now he’s in his 70s and still has these long lapses of non-communication.

So, as in the parable I am the older brother, but that’s about as far as the parallel goes between me and the parable’s older brother. I do not feel the anger and resentment that the older brother felt in the parable. Ron did not make any demands of us when he went missing – we just lost contact with him. It was mostly Ron’s loss not to be with the rest of us or to watch his nephews and nieces growing up. The one common thread for both younger brothers is the guilt that they felt for their behaviors. That’s the Holy Spirit working in each of their lives! The younger brother in the parable came to repentance and a re-building of his relationship with his father. I pray that the same can happen with Ron – but that will take time. For now, though, we do have a happy ending. I re-established e-mail contact with Ron after we left and he replied. And in his reply he said that our visit was the highlight of his year, thus far. So that’s good! Please pray for Ron to come to the Lord.

See also:

• July 25 (2019) / Luke 15:11-19
• July 26 (2019) / Luke 15:20-32

Matthew 18:10-14 and Luke 15:1-10

Today as I read these parables of “the lost” I thought of my own brothers and sisters. I have seven still living; all but two of them profess Christ – and exhibit their love for Him in various ways. And of the other two, Dick and Ron, Carol and I have spent many hours talking with Dick. But Ron has always appeared to be a lost soul. Literally, LOST to us – no one had even heard from him since 2018. I have tried regularly to reach him by phone, e-mail, and on Facebook, but no luck. But we had an address for him, so four days ago when we arrived in Florida we knocked on his door – and surprisingly he answered. He had a “John the Baptist” appearance – I won’t go more into that, but ask me for a picture when you see me. He has lived alone since his wife died twenty years ago and his disheveled life reflects the deep loss he feels over her passing. Ron has spent years (most of his adult life) deep into drugs, although his appearance and demeanor is not that of someone who is addicted to drugs or alcohol. In fact, Ron is terribly bright – a Mensa-level IQ – and the conversation we had with him was at a high level. The conversation was also about Jesus and our universal need for Him and His love. My wife – the evangelist! – broached that topic and led the discussion. Ron shared openly of two recent incidences in his life, one on Good Friday with a Good Friday connection and the other the same day or very near to that day. I told Ron that the Holy Spirit was working in his life, seeking him, and he did not disagree. We parted on the best of terms and we have since shared an e-mail connection with each other.

I cannot report a salvation conversion, but I can tell you that there was joy in our “house” over finding one who was lost and joy with my two sisters when we shared that news with them. Carol and I saw today’s parables being played out before our eyes…!!

See also:

• July 23 (2019) / Matthew 18:10-14
• July 24 (2019) / Luke 15:1-10

Luke 14:15-35

It’s interesting to weave today’s two separate sections into one. That is, the first ten verses talk about the great banquet, where those who were initially invited made excuses for not attending and were then excluded from the banquet altogether, while …the poor and crippled and blind and lame… enjoyed the feast. The second eleven verses speak of discipleship and counting the cost of being Jesus’ disciple. So let’s put these two sections together and imagine that the disciples of whom (to whom?) Jesus is speaking are those who are already at the banquet.

That is, the banquet consists of four groups: those who were invited and did not attend (those who reject Jesus); those who were already present at the banquet (committed disciples); the poor…and lame who were brought into the banquet (new converts); and those on the outside whom the master of the house is still seeking to fill his feast (the unchurched). Jesus has something to say to each of these groups. I will ponder this the rest of the day and encourage you to do the same – especially what Jesus is saying to those of us already present at the banquet. Interesting…

See also:

• July 21 (2019) / Luke 14:15-24
• July 22 (2019) / Luke 14:25-35

Luke 14:1-14

I am intrigued by the “parable of the great banquet” at the end of today’s reading. Most of us have friends who are in the same “social standing”. Incomes may differ dramatically, but we find common ground with our race, religion, nationality, etc. Frankly, for many of us, our church is our social group and our church reflects that common ground – race, religion, nationality, etc. We can invite Hispanics and Africans to join us and in doing so we expand that “social space”. The next step then is embracing those in that widening circle.

I think Jesus is telling us to get out of our comfort zones, whatever that means for any of us. When we finally get back to church together and get back to our wonderful “Gathering” times, we need to make it a point to sit with different people each week until we are on a first-name basis with everyone in the church. But now I’m preaching instead of sharing! Have a blessed day, folks!

See also:

• July 19 (2019) / Luke 14:1-6
• July 20 (2019) / Luke 14:7-14