Draw near to God and He will draw near to you
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? read more…
And Jesus said, “Who is the one who touched Me?” And while they were all denying it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing in on You.” But Jesus said, “Someone did touch Me, for I was aware that power had gone out of Me. Luke 8:45-46 (read Lk. 8:40-56)
INTRO: Some stories in the Bible require long explanations
The differences between their time and culture and ours are as so great, without explanation we miss the point of the story
– other stories, the elements are so familiar, we step into them and instantly feel at home
– today we encounter two stories that immediately open to us
A man emerges from the crowd and falls down before Jesus
– he is not the first, nor will he be the last parent to feel helpless regarding a child
– but before his crisis is resolved, a desperate woman sneaks up behind Jesus and steals a touch read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you
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. read more…
Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and threw himself into the sea. John 21:7 (read Jn. 21:1-9)
INTRO: For many years, archeologists in the mid-east have been digging up mugs and cups with inscriptions on them
One frequent inscription in particular from the first century has captured the attention of biblical scholars
– four Greek words are inscribed on it that read, “Rejoice, that’s why you’re here”
(at least on scholar translated it as a question, “Why are you here? Rejoice!”)
– perhaps it was intended as a blessing or a first-century toast
What’s so special about these four Greek words? read more…
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. read more…
And He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?” Luke 8:25 (Read Lk. 8:22-39)
INTRO: How should we read the Bible?
The way we read a school text-book? A novel? A love-letter? A newspaper–reading the headlines and then jumping to our favorite section and skipping the rest?
There are lots of different ways to read scripture
– books like Job and Psalms were meant to be read as poetry
– other parts of the Bible were meant to be read as history, stories, letters, and so on
The best way to get at its message and meaning is to read scripture as it was meant to be read read more…
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. read more…
The sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell beside the road, and it was trapmled under foot and the birds of the air ate it up. Luke 8:5 (read 8:1-21)
INTRO: From the time we were big enough to carry a lunch sack, we were sent off to school every day to learn
– first, to read and write, and then everything else (history, gramar, science, etc.)
Do you remember ever being taught how to learn?
We were constantly told to pay attention, but were you taught how to pay attention?
– it was assumed from our first day of class that we knew how to learn, focus our attention, and use good study habits
Jesus taught his autdience how to listen to his teaching read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you
Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself; and when the people heard of this, they followed Him on foot from the cities. When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick. Matthew 14:13-14
John the Baptist was not a political figure, he was a spiritual leader. He did not rally people for a polical cause or spout an ideology. But whenever a person takes a strong and vocal position regarding the impact of God’s righteous will on society, there are inevitable political consequences.
After hearing about John’s execution, Jesus wanted to be alone. He needed, first of all, to deal with the grief he now carried of having lost John to Herod’s axe. Secondly, he had to work through the realization that he was next. John was first on the scene, announcing the coming of Jesus. Now he was also first to be taken out by violence. As Jesus followed John in ministry, so he would follow him to his execution. There was no retirement or death by natural causes for either John or Jesus. read more…
A moneylender had two debtors: one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they were unable to repay, he graciously forgave them both. So which of them will love him more? Luke 7:41-42 (read verses 36-50)
INTRO: Do you remember being told as a child, “Never play with matches”?
The danger of a fire getting out of control is even greater in the age of the Internet
– a pyromaniac can strike a match in Florida that sets fires all over Afghanistan
(See recent news of the preacher who burned the Quran. With all the tragedy going on in world right now, why did he think he needed to add this to it?)
It is one of the great mysteries of human nature that in the name of God, people can become calloused regarding the death of others
But the truth is, this is a spiritual virus that creeps into every religion and all religious people
– either we get too devoted to the wrong things or our devotion gets twisted–e.g., fanaticism read more…
Daily Meditations From the Scriptures