Jesus demonstrates that people often can not see the truth because of pride (he is one of us! he is no one!). He does not do deeds of power when there is this kind of unbelief.
Matthew 13:54-58 54 He came to his hometown and began to teach the people in their synagogue, so that they were astounded and said, "Where did this man get this wisdom and these deeds of power? 55 Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? 56 And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all this?" 57 And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, "Prophets are not without honor except in their own country and in their own house." 58 And he did not do many deeds of power there, because of their unbelief.
Do we ignore the corollary to Jesus' teaching that if we are not seeing his power in our lives, one reason might be because we are harboring the unbelief that comes from pride?
Note: A hometown boy has outstripped them - so they reject him. Their "lack of faith" was doubtless a source of profound grief and frustration for Jesus. Apparently there was no need to do miracles in order to convince them of the power given to him by God. They knew he had power from God, but it was offensive to them - because of their pride.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Disciples demonstrate to others the value of the Kingdom
Jesus teaches that in his Kingdom, scribes reveal the ancient (point toward the Messiah) and the new (the revelation of the Messiah) treasures. they bring it out of the storehouse for all to see.
Matthew 13:52 52 And he said to them, "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old."
Do we ignore Jesus' teaching that we are to demonstrate - bring out of our treasure chest - into the world - the truths of Jesus?
Note: Jesus has revealed himself in scripture. He was always there (old treasure), but now he is revealed (new treasure). This brings truth to light that the ancient prophets could never have understood in the way that we can. The teachers in the Kingdom bring this out... not just through words, but by bringing it out of the treasure and demonstrating it.
Matthew 13:52 52 And he said to them, "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old."
Do we ignore Jesus' teaching that we are to demonstrate - bring out of our treasure chest - into the world - the truths of Jesus?
Note: Jesus has revealed himself in scripture. He was always there (old treasure), but now he is revealed (new treasure). This brings truth to light that the ancient prophets could never have understood in the way that we can. The teachers in the Kingdom bring this out... not just through words, but by bringing it out of the treasure and demonstrating it.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
In the end, evil will be removed from the Kingdom
Jesus teaches that the Kingdom of Heaven will contain evil and righteous for a time, but that they will be seperated in the end.
Matthew 13:47-51 47 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; 48 when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. 49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous 50 and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 51 "Have you understood all this?" They answered, "Yes."
Do we ignore Jesus' teaching that not everyone who appears to be part of the Kingdom of God really is? And yet, his Kingdom will still be accomplished
Note: Wow this is harsh! The Kingdom of Heaven has standards of membership... righteous fish stay and evil fish go. Jesus doesn't say here what makes a fish good or bad. But it seems to be a warning to expect that some who claim to be part of the Kingdom are not really part of the longterm Kingdom.
Matthew 13:47-51 47 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; 48 when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. 49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous 50 and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 51 "Have you understood all this?" They answered, "Yes."
Do we ignore Jesus' teaching that not everyone who appears to be part of the Kingdom of God really is? And yet, his Kingdom will still be accomplished
Note: Wow this is harsh! The Kingdom of Heaven has standards of membership... righteous fish stay and evil fish go. Jesus doesn't say here what makes a fish good or bad. But it seems to be a warning to expect that some who claim to be part of the Kingdom are not really part of the longterm Kingdom.
Monday, April 5, 2010
The Kingdom is of more value than anything else we have
Jesus teaches that when we understand the Kingdom's value, we will give up everything we have in exchange.
Matthew 13:45-46 45 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; 46 on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it. "
Do we ignore Jesus' teaching that when we understand the value of the Kingdom, we realize that all we have is of little value comparred to living out the Kingdom?
Note: The other side of this is... if we aren't willing to give up all we have for the Kingdom, then what is it that we are not understanding? We should probably see this as a challenge to return to Jesus' teachings and figure out what we are missing - why we aren't willing to give up everything.
Matthew 13:45-46 45 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; 46 on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it. "
Do we ignore Jesus' teaching that when we understand the value of the Kingdom, we realize that all we have is of little value comparred to living out the Kingdom?
Note: The other side of this is... if we aren't willing to give up all we have for the Kingdom, then what is it that we are not understanding? We should probably see this as a challenge to return to Jesus' teachings and figure out what we are missing - why we aren't willing to give up everything.
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