Category Archives: 365 Days with Jesus

Day Forty-seven – Matthew 17:14-23

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Draw near to God and He will draw near to you

And Jesus answered and said, “You unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.”
Matthew 17:17

There is nothing easy about this statement. A man approached Jesus, fell to his knees before him, and begged the Lord to have mercy on him and his son, who was demon-possessed. He had taken his son first to the disciples of Jesus and they could not help him, so now he goes to Jesus.

Jesus’ response immediately takes us by surprise. Is he exasperated? angry? To whom is he speaking? The disciples that were unable to help the man because of “the littleness” of their faith? The man? The whole crowd? I also wonder if Jesus meant that he had to put up with them or with their nonsense that got in the way of their progress. Continue reading →

Day Forty-six – Matthew 16:27-17:13

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Six days later Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. Matthew 17:1-2

This is a strange story and, at first, we might ask whether the gospels need it. What does it teach? What does it prove? But its strangeness is the very reason we should suspect its importance.

In the previous episodes, Jesus had been challenged by his opponents to provide them with a sign from heaven. In effect, they were demanding that he show them his credentials or produce something to identify himself as someone sent by God. A short time later, Jesus asked the disciples what people thought of him. In their minds, who was he? He followed that question by asking them, “But who do you say that I am?” Continue reading →

Day Forty-five – Matthew 16:13-26

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Draw near to God and He will draw near to you
But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” Matthew 16:23

What did Peter do after Jesus hit him with these harsh words? Did he hang his head in shame and slink away to some dark corner and hide himself? Was there a moment when he assumed he had failed at discipleship and Jesus did not want him tagging along with the rest of them? After all, Jesus called him Satan!

Can you imagine how you would react if Jesus called you Satan and said you were an offense to him? Continue reading →

Day Forty-four – Matthew 16:1-12

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How is it that you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that He did not say to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Matthew 16:11-12

In Matthew 16, we revisit themes from the beginning of Jesus ministry, perhaps because from this point on, Jesus is looking toward its end (e.g., v. 21). For example, in both chapters 4 and 16

  • Jesus’ identity is placed in the spotlight (4:3, “If You are the Son of God” & 16:13-17, “But who do you say that I am?”)
  • Jesus is challenged to prove who he is by performing a miracle (4:3 & 16:1)
  • Jesus experienced the challenge as a temptation (4:1 & 16:1 where “testing” translates the same Greek word for “tempting”)
  • Bread is an important issue (4:3 & 16:5-12).
  • Jesus responds to temptation with the command, “Go, Satan” (4:10 & 16:23, where he says, “Go behind Me”).
  • Jesus defines the role of his disciples (4:19, “Follow Me” & 16:24, “deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me”) Continue reading →

May 15, 2011

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And while He was praying, the appearance of His face became different, and His clothing became white and gleaming. And behold, two men were talking with Him; and they were Moses and Elijah, who, appearing in glory, were speaking of His departure which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Luke 9:29-31 (read verses 28-50)

INTRO: Do you find it irritating when non-Christians try to explain, define, or describe Christianity?

– inevitably they miss something important and usually it is the essence of knowing Jesus
– they make this mistake because they stand outside of Christianity and are trying to prove a point

It is equally irritating when some Christians try to define contemplative prayer
– because they stand outside of it, they have only a superficial understanding of it
– that is why their observations sound nonsensical to those who take waiting on God seriously
(For example, “The purpose of contemplative prayer is to enter an altered state of consciousness in order to find ones True Self, thus finding God”) Continue reading →

Day Fifty-three – Matthew 15:29-39

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And Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, “I feel compassion for the people, because they have remained with Me now three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way.” The disciples said to Him, “Where would we get so many loaves in this desolate place to satisfy such a large crowd?” And Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven, and a few small fish.” Matthew 15:32-34
 
One morning I quickly read this passage and without time to meditate on it, ran out the door to join several hundred people for worship. I had to walk across campus to reach the chapel where the band was already warming up. The whole way there I noticed that my mind was making critical evaluations of the people whose paths I crossed. Continue reading →

Day Fifty-two – Matthew 15:21-28

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And He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” But she said, “Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” Then Jesus said to her, “O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at once.  Matthew 15:26-28

What a cold response this woman received from the Lord when she first approached him, “This gift I have is not for you. You do not belong to the right race, because I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” His words are chilling because the way we have come to know Jesus through the Scriptures is that he is for everyone and anyone. The promise of God is open to “whoever believes in Him” (Jn. 3:16). But in this instance, Jesus ignored the woman because she was a Gentile.

Then what? Continue reading →

Day Fifty-one – Matthew 15:10-20

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Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated? But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man.  Matthew 15:17-18

In our previous meditation in Matthew, we heard Jesus expose the way Pharisees and scribes neutralized the moral commandments of the law while spiritualizing and meticulously following ceremonial traditions. Jesus broke away from the mind-set of his religious culture so he could help his followers recover the will of God for their lives. Continue reading →

Day Fifty – Matthew 15:1-9

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Draw near to God and He will draw near to you

Then some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread? Matthew 15:1-2

One of the most difficult obstacles to education is a student’s prejudice. The nature of prejudice is such that it is hidden from those who hold it. They do not realize their prejudice is merely a point of view, but take it to be reality. So to be  educated contrary to their prejudice, they must permit their reality to be broken down so it can be rebuilt in a form that is closer to the truth. Continue reading →

Day Forty-nine – Matthew 14:22-36

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Draw near to God and He will draw near to you

Peter said to Him, Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.
Matthew 14:28

What a crazy idea! “Lord, if that is really You out there, tell me to come to You.” What if the figure coming towards them had been a ghost, as the disciples first assumed? Could not a ghost as easily reply, “Sure, come to me”? Peter would have quickly realized the logical weakness of his test–under water. Continue reading →