Reflective Bible Study

In one of the more challenging portions of Matthew’s gospel, Jesus shares a parable that has amazing implications, both from God’s perspective and from our own. The passage we are about to cover, which is a little longer than many of our other passages, doesn’t need much explanation or expansion. This passage is very clear even if it is challenging on its own.

Let’s read what Jesus teaches and then the parable that follows. Our passage is found in Matthew’s gospel, chapter 18, and we will read it from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 15, Jesus told those present:

¹⁵ “If your fellow believer sins against you, go and tell him in private what he did wrong. If he listens to you, you have helped that person to be your brother or sister again. ¹⁶ But if he refuses to listen, go to him again and take one or two other people with you. ‘Every case may be proved by two or three witnesses.’ ¹⁷ If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. If he refuses to listen to the church, then treat him like a person who does not believe in God or like a tax collector.

Before continuing our passage, I want to draw attention to a couple things we just read because I don’t want them to be lost as we move forward. In the first portion of this passage, Jesus outlines the process for conflict resolution. However, while it is tempting to treat conflict in any way other than what Jesus describes, the way Jesus describes is fascinating. Also, it is worth noting that the final step in Jesus conflict resolution process does not allow us to stop loving or reaching out to the person who has refused to listen to the church.

Instead, we are to love those who have hurt us in the same way we love those outside of the church, and we are called to show God’s love to them. Jesus loved tax collectors enough to dine with them, call them out of trees while passing by, and even invite them to be among His group of disciples.

Jesus then shares a passage that sounds similar to a promise Jesus made to Peter a few chapters before this, but the context of this promise is to all of God’s people and Jesus’ disciples. Jesus continues in verse 18, saying:

¹⁸ “I tell you the truth, the things you don’t allow on earth will be the things God does not allow. And the things you allow on earth will be the things that God allows.

¹⁹ “Also, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about something and pray for it, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. ²⁰ This is true because if two or three people come together in my name, I am there with them.”

Let’s pause again here before looking at Jesus’ parable because what Jesus shared can be easily misunderstood. While one possible reading of Jesus’ promise here is that God will change His will and His law because of our prayers and our decisions, other parts of the Bible describe God as not changing. If God could brush aside the demands of the law under the frame of forgiveness, then Jesus would not have needed to die. Instead, Jesus died to pay the penalty of the law so that we could trade places. Jesus allows the punishment of the law to hold while also opening up the option of forgiveness.

The other way of seeing these verses is that when we are united with and focused on God, our will and our standards will be the same as God’s. This isn’t God changing to match us, but it is us being filled with the Holy Spirit and matching God. When the Holy Spirit is in our lives, the things we allow and don’t allow will match what God allows and doesn’t allow, and when we pray with others who are just as dedicated and focused on God, then our requests and our desires match God’s, and what we pray for will be done.

Continuing our reading in verse 21:

²¹ Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, when my fellow believer sins against me, how many times must I forgive him? Should I forgive him as many as seven times?”

²² Jesus answered, “I tell you, you must forgive him more than seven times. You must forgive him even if he wrongs you seventy times seven.

²³ “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who decided to collect the money his servants owed him. ²⁴ When the king began to collect his money, a servant who owed him several million dollars was brought to him. ²⁵ But the servant did not have enough money to pay his master, the king. So the master ordered that everything the servant owned should be sold, even the servant’s wife and children. Then the money would be used to pay the king what the servant owed.

²⁶ “But the servant fell on his knees and begged, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything I owe.’ ²⁷ The master felt sorry for his servant and told him he did not have to pay it back. Then he let the servant go free.

²⁸ “Later, that same servant found another servant who owed him a few dollars. The servant grabbed him around the neck and said, ‘Pay me the money you owe me!’

²⁹ “The other servant fell on his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything I owe.’

³⁰ “But the first servant refused to be patient. He threw the other servant into prison until he could pay everything he owed. ³¹ When the other servants saw what had happened, they were very sorry. So they went and told their master all that had happened.

³² “Then the master called his servant in and said, ‘You evil servant! Because you begged me to forget what you owed, I told you that you did not have to pay anything. ³³ You should have showed mercy to that other servant, just as I showed mercy to you.’ ³⁴ The master was very angry and put the servant in prison to be punished until he could pay everything he owed.

³⁵ “This king did what my heavenly Father will do to you if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

In this question, response, and parable, we discover just how important forgiveness is in God’s eyes. If having faith in Jesus is the most important thing for us to do, forgiving others is a close second. We could say that this passage forces us to admit that in order to stay forgiven, we must be forgiving.

It is also worth pointing out that we have already been forgiven. Jesus’ death on the cross allows God to extend forgiveness to all of humanity, and in many ways, our default state after Jesus’ death and resurrection is forgiven. However, if we choose to not extend forgiveness towards others, then we forfeit our forgiven status and we bring God’s judgment onto ourselves.

God has called us to place our faith in Jesus, to love others even if they have wronged us, to love those who are different from us, to focus on living the way God wants us to live while praying for His will to be done, and to forgive others because we have been forgiven of infinitely more. In this challenging passage, Jesus shares with us the things that matter most from God’s perspective!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first and choose to live God’s will in your life. Choose to be forgiving towards others because God has forgiven you of so much more, and when others hurt you, follow the steps for resolution that Jesus shared at the beginning of our passage.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to grow closer to God each and every day. With a strong connection with God, our thoughts, hopes, and desires will match His thoughts, hopes, and desires and we will be the representatives for Him that He has called us to be.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or deviate away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

After Jesus finishes His prayer in Gethsemane on the night He was arrested, we discover that Judas Iscariot arrives with the soldiers and mob to arrest Jesus. However, while one might think that an arrest like this would difficult, or unpredictable, we discover something profound when we look at the details of what happened.

While each gospel is a little different in the details that it shares, let’s use Luke’s gospel for our time together. Our passage is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 22, and we will be reading from the New Living Translation. Starting in verse 47, Luke writes:

⁴⁷ But even as Jesus said this, a crowd approached, led by Judas, one of the twelve disciples. Judas walked over to Jesus to greet him with a kiss. ⁴⁸ But Jesus said, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?”

⁴⁹ When the other disciples saw what was about to happen, they exclaimed, “Lord, should we fight? We brought the swords!” ⁵⁰ And one of them struck at the high priest’s slave, slashing off his right ear.

⁵¹ But Jesus said, “No more of this.” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.

⁵² Then Jesus spoke to the leading priests, the captains of the Temple guard, and the elders who had come for him. “Am I some dangerous revolutionary,” he asked, “that you come with swords and clubs to arrest me? ⁵³ Why didn’t you arrest me in the Temple? I was there every day. But this is your moment, the time when the power of darkness reigns.”

In an amazing act of compassion, Jesus heals the only individual who was hurt during this whole arrest. Instead of responding in a negative or emotional way, Jesus is likely the most calm, collected, and in control person in the whole group of people. While the entire situation could have easily burst out of control, Jesus steps in as the leader, diffuses the violence that could have easily broken loose, and then heals the only one who was injured.

Luke tells us that the crowd of people included leading priests, captains of the temple guard, and elders. In other words, this delegation was entirely a spiritual one. The soldiers who were present were the ones tasked with protecting the temple, and with them were priests and elders. Luke describes a spiritual mob arresting Jesus because He was a threat to their religious tradition.

In Jesus’ response to the mob after healing the high priest’s slave, He asks them two rhetorical questions before giving them the true answer. Luke tells us the questions and answer in verses 52-53: “Am I some dangerous revolutionary,” [Jesus] asked, “that you come with swords and clubs to arrest me? Why didn’t you arrest me in the Temple? I was there every day. But this is your moment, the time when the power of darkness reigns.”

Jesus openly challenges everyone present who came to arrest Him. Whether they were hoping to remain anonymous or if they didn’t really care if others recognized them, Jesus knew who each of them were, and Jesus knew that all, or almost all, of them had been in the temple when Jesus was teaching and healing every day during the week leading up to this night. No one in Jerusalem was blind to the hostility that the religious leaders had towards Jesus, and no one would have been surprised if Jesus had been arrested during His teaching and preaching in the temple.

However, Jesus gives the answer, even though the answer isn’t what those present might have first thought it to be. Jesus answers His questions by saying, “But this is your moment, the time when the power of darkness reigns.”

In Jesus’ response, we see an interesting contrast alluded to. Jesus describes the arrest as sin’s moment and as the moment when the power of darkness reigns. Both the time of these religious leaders and the time when the power of darkness reigns are described as a moment.

This response is incredibly powerful because it shows us that Jesus’ perspective models God’s perspective, and this perspective is one that looks through eternity’s lens. From the perspective of eternity, evil has only a moment of time in the spotlight. The only moment that sin has is the time it takes to show the universe how destructive it is, and then it is done away with.

We live in an interesting point in history where sin and evil have already been judged, but God is holding off on executing this judgment because He knows there are still more people who will enter this world who He can save for eternity. God doesn’t want to end earth’s history before every person who is willing to place Jesus first has done so.

While I don’t have any idea how much longer God will delay executing the judgment that was pronounced on the weekend Jesus was crucified, buried, and resurrected, I know that because God delayed executing this judgment, you and I have the opportunity to be saved. God has not forgotten this planet or its inhabitants.

Instead, God is watching closely and looking for anyone and everyone who is willing to place Jesus first. When everyone has made their decision for or against God, then God will wrap up history and return for His people. Jesus’ return is a day I’m eagerly waiting for, because I look forward to the new heaven and new earth that God has promised to recreate. I’m looking forward to the time when there will be no more pain, suffering, tragedy, or sin to spoil God’s perfection!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

While it isn’t always easy to do, remember that when evil looks like it is winning, remember that it has already been judged and that its time in the spotlight is but a brief moment from eternity’s perspective. When evil looks like it has the upper hand, remember that Jesus has already won the victory and look forward with me to the moment when Jesus returns!

Also, be sure to always pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow your personal relationship with God. God wants a personal relationship with you and this is best grown on the foundation of personally praying and studying the Bible. Don’t let anyone get in the middle of your connection with God. God wants to know you personally!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, or fall away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue moving through Jesus life as recorded in Matthew’s gospel, we come to passage in Matthew’s gospel where the disciples ask Jesus a question, and mixed in with Jesus’ response is a warning that we all should pay attention to.

Our passage is found in Matthew’s gospel, chapter 18, and we will read it from the New International Version. Starting in verse 1, Matthew tells us that:

¹ At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

² He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. ³ And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.

Let’s pause reading our passage here, because I want to draw our attention onto something amazing. As this passage opens, some of the disciples come to Jesus with what seems like a simple and innocent question. These disciples want to know who the greatest in the kingdom of heaven is.

Perhaps something was lost in translation, or perhaps Jesus simply reads more directly into this question, but when I think about who the greatest in the kingdom of heaven is, I am left answering God, and this would include God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. I would picture the Godhead as being the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

It’s possible Jesus would see things in a similar way, however, because He knew the follow-up question would be about who comes next, Jesus simply skips over God and answers this other question.

It is also possible that the disciples really want to know what characteristics God values from those living in heaven, and Jesus decides to answer this question as well.

While the disciples likely didn’t expect Jesus’ response, I’m sure it definitely challenged their way of thinking, because Jesus calls a child over to them and uses this child as an example of what we should be like. One of the other gospel writers who included this event implies that Jesus called over an infant or a toddler, which emphasizes His point even more. If we don’t recapture certain aspects of children, then we will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

What aspects might Jesus be referring to?

When I think about the answer to this question, I would have to conclude that faith, trust, love, and a desire to be obedient. When I think about my children at the age that this child may have been, I can see how these characteristics are clearly visible. While I am not a perfect dad by any stretch of the imagination, I know that when I looked into the eyes of each of my children at this age, their eyes showed love, trust, and faith. Also at this age, while it was sometimes annoying for my wife and I as parents, each child wanted to help and do things for themselves even if it would have been easier had mommy or daddy helped.

I believe God wants all of us to experience the same type of trust when we look at Him. While life is more complex as an adult than it is as a child, our spiritual lives are not meant to be complicated. Instead, a simple faith is a more significant faith, and a simple trust in God is a profound trust in God.

This passage then shifts over to warning about those who cause others to stumble. Jesus shares some pretty harsh words towards them. Let’s continue and read the warning Jesus shared. Continuing in verse 6, Matthew tells us that:

⁶ “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

⁷ Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come! ⁸ If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. ⁹ And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

¹⁰ “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. (And then some manuscripts add or exclude verse 11, which says: ^[11] For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.)

In this passage, Jesus challenges those who cause “little ones” to stumble. He says some pretty harsh things about them. In the context of this passage, Jesus could be referring to literal children, as well as those who are childlike in their faith and those who are new to the faith. We can understand this challenge from quite a number of different angles, and the more angles we have, the more challenging this challenge becomes.

However, I believe Jesus is calling all God’s people to a simple, trusting, faith – specifically a faith that believes that the best is coming and a faith that doesn’t need all the answers.

The only other section of this passage that I want to focus on briefly is Jesus’ challenge that it is better for us to enter life with only one eye or one hand or one foot. While this makes an interesting mental image of lots of disabled people in heaven, I believe Jesus is reemphasizing that we shouldn’t let anything cause our faith to stumble, even if it is a part of our bodies.

For the record, I don’t believe there will be injured or disabled people in heaven because Jesus has promised us new bodies that haven’t been tainted by sin. Our new bodies will be perfect, and while I have no idea what perfect means in this context, I am left having faith that I don’t need to know now, because when the time comes, I will be more than happy with the results.

When we have questions that challenge our faith, we shouldn’t let the questions shake what we believe. If the question can be answered, then great. However, if the question does not have an answer, or if the answer is something that can only be known after history has come to an end, then we should leave the question unanswered and hold tightly to our simple faith.

God has given us enough evidence for His existence and enough evidence to show us His character. It is up to us to open our eyes to the evidence He has given and to have faith that looks past the doubt and into the promises He has given to us about our future with Him!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and purposefully place your faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus and what He accomplished for each of us when He came to this earth to face the cross.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn, grow, and strengthen your relationship with God. Through prayer and Bible study, we can know what God is really like, and we can fall in love with Him like He has fallen in love with each of us!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

Most of the time, when thinking about where to start reading on the night Jesus was betrayed and arrested, we begin when Jesus and His followers arrive in Gethsemane, and Jesus starts the night out in prayer. While we have just finished looking at a powerful prayer Jesus prayed from John’s gospel, Jesus wasn’t finished with His prayers this night.

Several of the gospel writers include Jesus praying in Gethsemane and for our time together in this episode, let’s focus in on Mark’s gospel, and maybe pull in a detail or two from another gospel if we have time. Our passage is found in the gospel of Mark, chapter 14, and we will be reading from the Good News Translation. Starting in verse 32, Mark tells us that:

³² They came to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” ³³ He took Peter, James, and John with him. Distress and anguish came over him, ³⁴ and he said to them, “The sorrow in my heart is so great that it almost crushes me. Stay here and keep watch.”

³⁵ He went a little farther on, threw himself on the ground, and prayed that, if possible, he might not have to go through that time of suffering. ³⁶ “Father,” he prayed, “my Father! All things are possible for you. Take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet not what I want, but what you want.”

³⁷ Then he returned and found the three disciples asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Weren’t you able to stay awake for even one hour?” ³⁸ And he said to them, “Keep watch, and pray that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

³⁹ He went away once more and prayed, saying the same words. ⁴⁰ Then he came back to the disciples and found them asleep; they could not keep their eyes open. And they did not know what to say to him.

⁴¹ When he came back the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come! Look, the Son of Man is now being handed over to the power of sinners. ⁴² Get up, let us go. Look, here is the man who is betraying me!”

In this passage, we discover that Jesus prayed three similar, if not identical, prayers. In these prayers, we discover some amazing ideas, both about Jesus and about God the Father. While it would be nice to know more of Jesus’ prayer here than what is included, it is likely that only God and the angels know, since these three closest disciples could not keep their eyes and ears open. While it’s possible that the other, larger group of disciples did stay awake, they were outside of earshot of Jesus’ prayer, and possibly talking amongst themselves.

Our passage includes the simple, profound opening to Jesus’ prayer and in this prayer, we see Jesus’ humanity, His humility, and His heart. Jesus opening to His prayer is basically, “Father, All things are possible for you. Take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet not what I want, but what you want.”

In these four phrases, we see an amazing progression. First, Jesus starts out by acknowledging God as His Father. Jesus describes God the way He teaches us to describe God, simply as our Father.

Next, Jesus acknowledges that anything and everything is possible for God. If God wanted to, He could do anything. Jesus describes the all-powerful, or omnipotent, nature of God.

Then, after laying the foundation of God’s ability to do anything, Jesus makes the request. Jesus asks for the cup of suffering to be taken away from Him. While there were many layers of suffering that Jesus went through that night, we cannot even begin to know or understand what Jesus was going through. Some scholars say that here in Gethsemane, Jesus was receiving the weight of the sins of the human race on His shoulders, and it nearly crushed Him. In this request, we see Jesus’ humanity and a request for help.

If Jesus’ prayer had ended here, it’s possible that God would have come down and rescued Jesus, abandoning the human race to sin. God had placed the cross within Jesus’ power to face or not face, as we saw looking back at how John’s gospel introduces us to the Last Supper, and if there hadn’t been an additional line, we might not have a crucifixion to look back to.

Instead, Jesus follows His request with a bold statement of submission: “Yet not what I want, but what you want.” In this statement, Jesus basically lets God know His request, but He leaves it up to God whether this request is in the best interest for God’s plan. While the cross was Jesus’ decision to make, Jesus’ prayer tells us that He doesn’t make the decision alone.

In this prayer, and how Jesus ends it, we discover a powerful truth about God the Father. If God the Father did not love the human race, Jesus would not have faced the cross. Jesus asks the Father to take the cup of suffering away from Him, but He leaves it up to God.

Jesus’ prayer, and God’s response, or lack thereof, shows us the truth of the most famous passage in the entire Bible: John, chapter 3, verse 16. This passage John included early on in His gospel tells us that “God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life.” God the Father loved us enough to let Jesus face the cross to save each of us, and this is powerful to know.

God does answer Jesus’ prayer in a way that is helpful but not one that sacrificed the mission. Luke’s gospel described what happened. Luke, chapter 22, verses 43 and 44 tell us that after Jesus prayed this prayer: “An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. In great anguish he prayed even more fervently; his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” Luke tells us that an angel appears to encourage Jesus and He prays even more passionately after this. Luke describes Jesus’ sweat appearing like drops of blood, and whether this was because Jesus had actual blood mixed with His sweat, which is possible, or whether Jesus’ sweat was dripping off His body like blood would if He were cut and the wound hadn’t closed up yet, we see how emotionally intense this night and prayer was to Jesus.

While it would be nice to know more of Jesus’ prayer following this, what we have in Jesus’ prayer in Gethsemane is another powerful model we can use when praying to God. When praying using Jesus’ model, we begin by acknowledging God as our Father, and we acknowledge His ability to answer our request. Nothing is impossible for God to accomplish.

We then make our request like Jesus did, before finishing by asking God for His will to be done with our request, and not our own.

After praying in this way, we should move forward in life trusting that God has answered our prayer, and if our request isn’t granted the way we prayed, then we can know that our request isn’t beneficial for God’s kingdom like we might have thought it would have been. I doubt God will answer any prayer we pray that would result in us being excluded from heaven. God looks at life through the lens of eternity, and His ultimate goal is saving as many people as possible for eternity.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

If your prayers to God have been more self-serving lately, the challenge I have for you is to frame your requests the same way Jesus framed His request. I don’t believe God is annoyed when we ask for things, but when we ask God for help or things, we should acknowledge that His will should be done. In this way, we clearly remind ourselves that God is first in our lives and we submit to His direction and leading.

Also, as I always challenge you to do, be sure to pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow your personal relationship with God. While pastors, authors, speakers, or even a podcaster can give you ideas to think about, never put anyone between you and God. God wants a personal relationship with you, and He doesn’t want to filter His truth to you through other people.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, chicken out of, or drift away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!