“Whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” ~Jesus
Jesus guidance to me is so simple and straightforward. He frames the issue clearly. How should I behave? Be proactive. …
Tag Archives: Matthew
Should we both fast and pray?
By taking our eyes off the things of this world, we can more successfully turn our attention to the Messiah. …
What is the symbolism of water baptism?
Water baptism symbolizes the believer’s total trust in and total reliance on the Master Jesus the Messiah, as well as …
“No man ever enters heaven until he is first convinced that he deserves hell.” ~John Everrett
John, the Baptizer, came to pave the way for his cousin Jesus, the Messiah and our Master. John was very …
Are we living in a culture of criticism?
We pay people to be critics. They make a living doing it. They sometimes even get fancy titles like consultants …
Do the redeemed in heaven come from all peoples?
Why this is important: I will be surprised who is in heaven. There are going to be many there. More …
What are the spiritual resources needed to expel demons?
There are three spiritual resources needed to expel demons. Jesus himself is clear on this. The Spirit of God Faith …
“Whoever obeys and teaches others to obey will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” ~Jesus
Jesus demands that we take His way seriously. There is nothing frivolous about it at all. My job, my mission, …
“Here—behind me! And I’ll make you fishers of human beings.” ~Jesus
Why this is important: Jesus, the Messiah, and our Master, challenges us to think about our jobs differently. To fishermen, …
What are the rewards of righteousness?
From the Jesus Manifesto. Fortunate [Blessed] are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. ~Jesus …
WARNING – Don’t Let THIS Happen to You!
This is less than one minute. Not everyone who says to me, ‘Master, Master,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, …
Do not seek opportunity. SEEK GOD. And opportunity will seek you.
Do not seek opportunity. SEEK GOD. And opportunity will seek you. But seek first the reign [kingdom] of God and …
“Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” ~Jesus
I am constantly on the lookout for tornadoes. I live in tornado alley. I used to live in the northeast and …
“For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” ~Jesus
Family is important. We think it is the most important thing. Jesus challenges us to understand that the most important …
Is pretense like hypocrisy?
We need to be careful. It is one thing to be a hypocrite. It is another to be pretentious. Pretense …
“Do whatever You need to do in me, through me, for me, by me, and with me.” ~My prayer
When God brings about what is otherwise impossible, there can be no mistake that God did it. It is easy …
Did Jesus come to bring good news through what He did?
God knows exactly how much I can handle. God is God and God is Great. God will see me through to …
Why is purity important to our faith at work?
Here is a video that is a part of my “Faith at Work” series. How do we work out our …
“Enter through the narrow gate.” ~Jesus
Jesus challenges us to do the tough thing. There is a narrow way to life. Will I choose it …
What should we do when Satan tempts us to test God?
Satan comes to us and subtly makes suggestions. Or, maybe they are not so subtle. Satan may even quote scripture …
“Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” ~John the baptizer
John was focused on being in prison and took his eyes off Jesus and what he was doing. John knew …
Why does being materialistic not satisfy us?
Jesus is truly clear, and Jesus is profoundly serious. Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth …
“Everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven.” ~Jesus
Jesus did not come to make our lives easy. Most are enemies of God and his plan. Most days it …
Why does Jesus the Messiah question the religious elites?
Jesus had lots of questions for the religious elites of his day. He pressed them and would not let them …
Can we gain insight through meditation on God’s word?
This is instructive. As Philip was traveling to Gaza, the Holy Spirit led him to a man who was reading …
“Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.” ~Jesus
Jesus, the Messiah and God’s Son can do anything he wants. Jesus has been giving all power and authority from …
How do we know we need to pay attention to Jesus?
When we see the word WOE in the scripture, particularly when Jesus uses it, we know we better pay attention. …
“Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone?” ~Jesus
First of all, God conceived us in love. That is the starting point and is amazing in and of itself. …
“I have not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets but to fulfill them.” ~Jesus
Why this is important: Jesus has it all together. All the complexity we see. All we don’t understand. Jesus sees …
How do we create digital disciple experience?
But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown …
“For it is written …” ~Jesus
Jesus understands Satan’s approach. Three times Satan tempts him. Jesus quotes God’s word and then uses his authority to send …
“The kingdom of God has come upon you.” ~Jesus
Jesus is the King, anointed by the Holy Spirit and in charge of God’s country. Even the demons obey. I …
“Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” ~Jesus
What Jesus would say to me if he just walked into my room right now? I think he would look …
Will we let our light shine for Jesus?
We are to be a light. We should bring out God’s colors into the world. God is not a secret …
7,927,103,134
Oh, boy, there are SO MANY people on this Earth! Billions and Billions and Billions. This site said there were …
What does it mean to be led by the Holy Spirit?
This is very instructive. Jesus is immersed in the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit led him into …
“You cannot serve God and money.” ~Jesus
Who will I serve? It is a stunning question. Jesus now explains that behind the choice between two treasures (where I …
“These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” ~Jesus
Does Jesus get angry and upset? Jesus the Messiah shows controlled emotion arising from his unswerving opposition to evil and …
“You of little faith, why did you doubt?” ~Jesus
Why worry? God has a plan. God is working his plan. We can trust in Him. He is in an …
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of the Messiah.” ~Apostle Paul
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” 20 And He said …
“Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.” ~Jesus
The main thing: Paul tells the church that the spiritual blindness of Israel is a “mystery” that had not previously …
“Baptism points back to the work of God, and forward to the life of faith.” ~J. Alec Motyer
Jesus the Messiah was baptized by John: Jesus sets the example for us and was baptized by John. God is …
“I’m desperate for you. I’m lost without you.” ~Michael W. Smith
Am I desperate for God? Fortunate [Blessed] are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. …
“Cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” ~Jesus
One of the themes I hear about almost everywhere I turn is about how good God is and what a …
“You are the Messiah [Christ], the Son of the living God.” ~Apostle Peter
Why this is important: The Apostle Peter rightly declares the Jesus is the Messiah, the anointed one from God. Anointed …
“You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” ~John the baptizer
Jesus challenges us to radically change our way of thinking. Repentance (the original Greek means radically changing our thinking and acting differently) …
How hard is it to be a disciple of Jesus?
Why this is important: I started out strong. I imagine you did too. And then …Something happens. Or several things. …
“You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” ~Jesus
Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the …
“Watch and beware of the teaching of the religious elites.” ~Jesus
When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring any bread. 6 Jesus said to them, “Watch and …
What makes a real difference?
And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, “Master [Lord], …
Are we up to the challenges of Jesus?
Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when …
Should we “just suck it up”?
But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn …
Why worry? Why are we so anxious about the least little things?
The list of things I can worry about is long. Give me a whole day and it grows enormously. My …
Are we trying to keep God a secret?
How often do I act like God is a secret? Unfortunately, more than I want to admit. I take credit …
What are examples of meekness?
Jesus is clear that I am fortunate if I am meek and gentle. I will in fact inherit the earth …
Did Jesus come to abolish the Law?
Jesus continues His manifesto (found in Matthew 5-7). There is a lot to learn here. Jesus is being clear, as …
Joseph had a lot on his plate. What to name Jesus wasn’t one of them.
Joseph had a lot to deal with. What to name the Son of God was not one of them. God’s …
Questions that Jesus Asks in the Good News According to Matthew
It is stunning how skillfully our Master Jesus, the Messiah, uses questions (read more here) to teach vital spiritual truths. …
“Lying preachers will come forward and deceive a lot of people.” ~Jesus
I have to be very careful. There many religious leaders who are trying to decieve me. Jesus is warning me. …
“An account of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:” ~Matthew
It is important for me to know about the Messiah. Matthew wisely starts with the facts of the genealogy and …
I saw Jesus last night …
I saw Jesus last night. Of course, it was not the Jesus I was expecting. He was delivering the “Jesus …
"We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill." ~~Jesus
There are times Jesus will do things and suggest that it not be shared with others. It is a God …
"Count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or speak lies about you to discredit me." ~~Jesus
Are people putting me down because of my following Jesus? Do I make others uncomfortable with my passion of our …
"I want to heal you. Be clean." ~Jesus
This man came begging to Jesus. He wanted to be healed like nothing else. He knew Jesus could heal him. …
“Don’t look for shortcuts to God.” ~Jesus
We live in a world of shortcuts. We are always looking for the effortless way, the quick way, things that …
"Let me tell you why you are here." ~~Jesus
Jesus is very clear. There is no doubt about what I am to do. The choice is will I obey Him? …
“Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them.” ~Jesus
Jesus guidance to me is so simple and straightforward. He frames the issue clearly. How should I behave? Be proactive. …
Living in a culture of criticism. “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” ~Jesus
We pay people to be critics. They make a living doing it. They sometimes even get fancy titles like consultants …
"The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant." ~~Jesus
Jesus challenges me to change my mind about how to pray. We are steeped in the religious way to do it. That …
"You only make things worse when you lay down a smoke screen of pious talk, saying, ‘I’ll pray for you,’ and never doing it." ~Jesus
Jesus knows us. Jesus, the Messiah and our Master, challenges us to not “be religious”. If we say we will pray, …
"Come with me. I’ll make a new kind of fisherman out of you. I’ll show you how to catch men instead of perch and bass." ~Jesus
Jesus, the Messiah and our Master, challenges us to think about our jobs differently. To fishermen, he challenged them to …
"You’re more than happy when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less." ~~Jesus
We are always looking for more. We want to be better. We want to develop. The reality of who we …
"I am going to put it all together, pull it all together in a vast panorama." ~Jesus
Jesus has it all together. All the complexity we see. All we don’t understand. Jesus sees it simply. He understands it …
"Beat it, Satan!" ~Jesus
Jesus understands Satan’s approach. Three times Satan tempts him. Jesus quotes God’s word and then uses his authority to send …
"If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal?" ~~Jesus
Sometimes we get so proud of ourselves for doing what anyone can do. Jesus challenges us not to see things …
"My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into trouble." ~~Jesus
Jesus challenges us to be radically different from most Christians and religious types of people. It will get us in …
"I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine!" ~~Jesus
Now who hides a light? It seems like a silly question. No one does. Well, children do when they are …
"God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes." ~~Jesus
We often worry about what might happen. Conventional wisdom says “plan for the worst”. And so we do. Jesus is …
"In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do." ~~Jesus
God wants us to act on what He is talking with us about. Jesus gets that. Jesus knows what the …
"All this time and money wasted on fashion—do you think it makes that much difference?" ~~Jesus
Jesus knows how to ask questions. He forces us to get clear. What is important? Perhaps the question is rhetorical …
Jesus Quotes and God Thoughts 