Reflective Bible Study

As we continue moving through Matthew’s gospel, we come to a set of events where Jesus challenges the religious leaders while defending those who followed Him and those who needed healing. In the context of Jesus’ ministry, the religious leaders disagreed with Jesus the most on one, single point: which was the Sabbath. As we will see while reading our passage, the religious leaders’ biggest issue over Jesus and His followers actions related to what they did and did not do on the day of worship.

Let’s read what happened and discover what we can learn about what Jesus believed from this set of events. Our passage is found in Matthew’s gospel, chapter 12, and we will read it from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 1, Matthew tells us that:

¹ At that time Jesus was walking through some fields of grain on a Sabbath day. His followers were hungry, so they began to pick the grain and eat it. ² When the Pharisees saw this, they said to Jesus, “Look! Your followers are doing what is unlawful to do on the Sabbath day.”

³ Jesus answered, “Have you not read what David did when he and the people with him were hungry? ⁴ He went into God’s house, and he and those with him ate the holy bread, which was lawful only for priests to eat. ⁵ And have you not read in the law of Moses that on every Sabbath day the priests in the Temple break this law about the Sabbath day? But the priests are not wrong for doing that. ⁶ I tell you that there is something here that is greater than the Temple. ⁷ The Scripture says, ‘I want kindness more than I want animal sacrifices.’ You don’t really know what those words mean. If you understood them, you would not judge those who have done nothing wrong.

⁸ “So the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath day.”

⁹ Jesus left there and went into their synagogue, ¹⁰ where there was a man with a crippled hand. They were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they asked him, “Is it right to heal on the Sabbath day?”

¹¹ Jesus answered, “If any of you has a sheep, and it falls into a ditch on the Sabbath day, you will help it out of the ditch. ¹² Surely a human being is more important than a sheep. So it is lawful to do good things on the Sabbath day.”

¹³ Then Jesus said to the man with the crippled hand, “Hold out your hand.” The man held out his hand, and it became well again, like the other hand. ¹⁴ But the Pharisees left and made plans to kill Jesus.

Let’s pause reading here to draw our attention onto two big things we can learn from these two events. In the first event, Jesus defends His disciples’ actions by contrasting what they did with even worse actions from the great king David in Israel’s history. And, Jesus contrasts His disciples’ actions against what the priests and religious leaders who serve in the temple did every Sabbath. In both scenarios, what the disciples did is easily excusable because God had excused much more significant things.

In a single phrase, Jesus challenges the legalism of the Pharisees by quoting the Old Testament to them that God is more interested in kindness than in receiving animal sacrifices. In the culture leading up to that time period, a greater and greater focus was being placed on obeying the details of the law that the big themes of the law that focused on being kind and loving towards others were being pushed aside.

Also, it is interesting to note that what the disciples did was step over a self-imposed barrier that the Pharisees had set up to protect the people from coming close to breaking the actual law. What the disciples did is easily understood to not fall under the category of work, but in the legalistic minds of the Pharisees, they had placed the definition of work so low that almost nothing would be allowed. While there were many reasons they chose to do this, the religious leaders lost the love of the law when they focused so heavily on the letter of the law.

It’s interesting that when we move into the second event, it is as though these Pharisees set the trap for Jesus regarding work. When they ask Jesus if it was right to heal on the Sabbath, they viewed Jesus as simply an above-average doctor and healing would be His “job”.

However, Jesus answers their challenge by raising the value of humanity and by telling them that helping a fellow human is just as permissible on the Sabbath as helping one’s own animal. Jesus challenges them on their understanding of the Sabbath by saying, “it is lawful to do good things on the Sabbath day”.

For the religious leaders, the Sabbath was a day of avoiding work and avoiding anything that could even remotely resemble work. The Sabbath had descended into a list of activities to avoid. The Sabbath was not a blessing away from work; it had become a curse and a burden regarding avoiding work or work-like activities.

It is interesting to note that Jesus does not answer any challenge regarding the significance of the Sabbath day. Jesus did not ignore the intent of the Sabbath, or the reason this day of rest and worship was given. Instead, Jesus honored the Sabbath day the way God wanted His people to honor it. Jesus wanted the Sabbath to be filled with worshiping God and helping others. The Sabbath was intended to be a reminder that God supplies our needs while also giving us the rest we need to be more productive during the rest of our week. Jesus did not come to replace the Sabbath; He came to restore it.

However, the Pharisees were stuck in their legalism and hostility towards anyone who challenged their picture of God’s demands for the Sabbath, and this leads them to begin plotting Jesus’ death.

After this event, it is interesting in my mind to read a quotation Matthew includes from the prophet Isaiah. Continuing in verse 15, we learn that:

¹⁵ Jesus knew what the Pharisees were doing, so he left that place. Many people followed him, and he healed all who were sick. ¹⁶ But Jesus warned the people not to tell who he was. ¹⁷ He did these things to bring about what Isaiah the prophet had said:

¹⁸ “Here is my servant whom I have chosen.
    I love him, and I am pleased with him.
I will put my Spirit upon him,
    and he will tell of my justice to all people.
¹⁹ He will not argue or cry out;
    no one will hear his voice in the streets.
²⁰ He will not break a crushed blade of grass
    or put out even a weak flame
until he makes justice win the victory.
²¹ In him will the non-Jewish people find hope.”

The very last phrase of Isaiah’s prophecy is amazing in my mind. In Jesus, all the non-Jewish people find hope! This means that Jesus is the Messiah for the world, not just for a certain race or nationality. Jesus came for everyone, and He longs to save anyone and everyone from the curse of sin.

Jesus’ death on the cross opens the way for you and me to experience forgiveness for our sins and the hope of an eternal life with God. Even in the Old Testament we discover Jesus’ mission was to everyone regardless of race, nationality, or any other dividing line. Jesus came for everyone!

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, be sure to intentionally seek God first each and every day of your life and to place your focus on Him. Choose to place your faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus and live your life as a thank You to Jesus.

Also, be sure to do good on the Sabbath like Jesus showed us. While we might not do miracles or heal people on God’s day of rest and worship, we can be helpful, kind, and loving to others. This is God’s ideal for His special day!

If you have any doubts about what Jesus felt about the Sabbath, take your concerns to God in prayer and Bible study. Pray and study the Bible for yourself to discover the truth about this truth for yourself. Listen to a variety of different opinions on the Sabbath and test these different views with what the Bible teaches. Like many other beliefs, there is a wide range of views on the Sabbath, and we can best learn through listening to many people and filtering everything they say through what the Bible teaches. Don’t hesitate to ask others about the Bible’s teaching on this subject, but be sure to take what they say and filter it through what you see written in the Bible.

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!

We started this year at the beginning of the week leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion, and we have now come to the night Jesus is betrayed and arrested. This weekend marked the Jewish Passover, and before His arrest, Jesus wants to eat a special Passover supper with His disciples.

However, where would they eat it? The city of Jerusalem was not only crowded with people coming in for this holy day, but the religious leaders were on the lookout to find Jesus, making it a not very safe place for Him to be.

All these challenges were no match for divine providence. Jesus knew the details of that night better than anyone else involved, and He knows that God had a special spot already preplanned for them to eat together. Let’s read how God solved this problem.

Our passage is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 22, and we will be reading from the New International Reader’s Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 7, Luke tells us that:

⁷ Then the day of Unleavened Bread came. That was the time the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. ⁸ Jesus sent Peter and John on ahead. “Go,” he told them. “Prepare for us to eat the Passover meal.”

⁹ “Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.

¹⁰ Jesus replied, “When you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house he enters. ¹¹ Then say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks, “Where is the guest room? Where can I eat the Passover meal with my disciples?” ’ ¹² He will show you a large upstairs room with furniture already in it. Prepare for us to eat there.”

¹³ Peter and John left. They found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover meal.

Several things stand out in my mind when I read this passage. Probably first on the list is how Jesus knew exactly how to direct Peter and John to find the place for them to prepare the meal. While the instructions are specific, they aren’t super detailed.

Would there only be one man carrying a water pot when they entered the city?

Were they to enter the city and look for a man with a water pot to acknowledge their presence?

Would it look weird to follow this man to where he was going?

Would the owner of the home know who the disciples meant when they asked the question from the “Teacher”?

Using the very generic term teacher makes me wonder if someone in this home was secretly against Jesus. Perhaps it wasn’t someone from the homeowner’s own family, but someone who happened to be visiting briefly, or someone who was walking by within earshot.

However, all of these questions are not answerable, except to say that however Jesus described the details to the disciples, they understood and found things exactly as He described.

But another detail stands out in my mind, and this detail relates to what we focused on last week. Judas Iscariot was secretly plotting against Jesus and looking for a way to hand Him over to the Jewish leaders. It is amazing in my mind that he would witness this foreknowledge, more than once, and believe that his plotting would remain secret.

Sending the disciples to prepare the Passover meal is not the first time Jesus sent some disciples ahead with specific tasks using foreknowledge. Jesus did something similar when sending the disciples ahead to get a donkey for Him to ride into Jerusalem on. We looked at this event earlier this year. Jesus had also given Peter a set of instructions that required amazing foreknowledge for Peter to pay the temple tax.

Judas Iscariot would have been blind to believe Jesus did not know his plot especially when Jesus could direct the disciples in incredible, extraordinary ways. Why he believed he could plot against Jesus is amazing in itself.

It is possible that Judas believed that Jesus knew the plot, He would let the betrayal happen, and then He would reveal His glory. Judas may have believed that being the betrayer was a good thing if it would ultimately get Jesus to reveal to the world that He was the Messiah.

However, this belief runs counter to what Jesus had been telling the disciples all along. Jesus kept telling them He was to be betrayed, then killed, and then after death, He would be raised back to life. It appears as though none of the disciples really understood or believed Jesus’ words here until after it happened. If Judas had heard and understood Jesus’ message, then the results of His betrayal would not have been a surprise.

Jesus knew what would happen better than the disciples were willing to understand all that Jesus wanted to teach them. Jesus tried to share his foreknowledge with them about that weekend, but all His warnings and predictions fell on deaf ears – which is an odd idea to think about since these disciples had witnessed Jesus healing every sort of ailment, and deafness was probably included at some point.

In our passage, Jesus displays and incredible foreknowledge of what would happen. We could say that Jesus knows the future. If Jesus knew the future when He was walking here on this earth, He knows the future today.

Nothing that is happening in the world today is surprising Him. While the world is a mix of bad and good, none of it is catching Jesus off guard.

When something in the world surprises us, catches us off guard, or challenges us, we know that Jesus knew it would happen, and He has prepared a response for us to walk. While we might not always know why something happened the way it did, we can know and trust that with whatever happens in this life, God is keeping us safe for eternity. God loves you and I and He wants to see us with Him in Heaven!

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

Always seek God first and trust that He knows the future. Trust that He wants You to be in heaven with Him, and trust that when we draw close to Him, He will lead each of us into a saving relationship with Him.

Also, pray and study the Bible for yourself to discover what the Bible really teaches, and learn to trust the Bible over tradition. While tradition can be helpful, over time, it can begin to contradict the Bible. This happened in the Old Testament times with the religious leaders, and there are plenty of cases where it has happened in the New Testament church as well. Only through personally praying and studying the Bible can you discover what the Bible teaches for yourself.

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 fall away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue moving through Matthew’s gospel, we come to another place where Jesus has some challenging words to say to several groups of people. While we might be tempted to think that Jesus’ message is not relevant for us, under the surface of Jesus words is a powerful theme that is relevant for every point in history.

Let’s read what Jesus challenged those in the first century by saying and discover what we can learn that is applicable for our own lives. Our passage is found in the gospel of Matthew, chapter 11, and we will read it using the New International Reader’s Version. Starting in verse 20, Matthew tells us that:

²⁰ Jesus began to speak against the towns where he had done most of his miracles. The people there had not turned away from their sins. So he said, ²¹ “How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible for you, Bethsaida! Suppose the miracles done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon. They would have turned away from their sins long ago. They would have put on clothes for mourning. They would have sat down in ashes. ²² But I tell you this. On judgment day it will be easier for Tyre and Sidon than for you. ²³ And what about you, Capernaum? Will you be lifted to the heavens? No! You will go down to the place of the dead. Suppose the miracles done in you had been done in Sodom. It would still be here today. ²⁴ But I tell you this. On judgment day it will be easier for Sodom than for you.”

Let’s pause reading here because I want to draw our attention onto something that might be easy to ignore or miss. In this section of our passage, Matthew tells us that Jesus speaks these messages against the towns where He had done the most miracles. This means that these towns, even with Jesus healing the sick, preaching, and working powerfully for God, simply ignored what God was doing in their midst. Jesus compares their ignoring attitude as being worse than some of the worst towns in history.

The towns of Tyre, Sidon, and Sodom were all judged and condemned by God but Jesus tells these people that if He had been sent to those towns and done what He had done for them in the first century, those towns would have changed. Jesus tells the people living in the first century that it would be easier on judgment day for those who were evil while Jesus wasn’t present in the world than for those who ignored Him while He was here.

However, it is tempting for us to look down on those in the first century and believe we are exempt from Jesus’ warning. If we choose to do this, then we run into the trap of ignoring what God is doing in our world today. The underlying theme in Jesus’ warning is to be aware and to pay attention to what God is doing in your life, in your world, during the time you are alive living in the world, and to acknowledge and accept God into your heart and life.

We run the risk of being judged by God while we judge those in the first century and ignore everything God is doing today. While those in the first century ignored Jesus, we don’t have to make the same mistake they did.

However, Jesus isn’t finished sharing, and like our passage in our last episode, Jesus ends by giving us some encouragement. Continuing in verse 25:

²⁵ At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father. You are Lord of heaven and earth. You have hidden these things from wise and educated people. But you have shown them to little children. ²⁶ Yes, Father. This is what you wanted to do.

²⁷ “My Father has given all things to me. The Father is the only one who knows the Son. And the only ones who know the Father are the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to make him known.

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are tired and are carrying heavy loads. I will give you rest. ²⁹ Become my servants and learn from me. I am gentle and free of pride. You will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ Serving me is easy, and my load is light.”

In this concluding message, Jesus shares an amazing promise that is perhaps more relevant for us living today than it was during the first century when He said it. Jesus’ message for everyone living in today’s world is to come to Him if we are tired and carrying a heavy burden and He will give you rest.

If your life is so busy that you feel you are drowning under the weight of your obligations, then Jesus offers you rest. The rest Jesus offers you isn’t just physical rest, but also rest for your soul. While at times it is challenging, Jesus tells us that serving Him is easy, and His load is light.

This promise at the end of Jesus’ message is very welcoming and very inviting, but it also doesn’t take into account all the crazy challenging messages Jesus has shared before about how being a disciple requires dedication and how it costs everything.

How can following Jesus be easy and His load be light when following Jesus costs us everything?

As I have followed Jesus in my own life, I have learned that following Jesus gives us rest and the rest Jesus gives is rest that helps us balance the craziness of our lives. Much of the stress in our lives is fake stress that is self-imposed. This stress comes from worrying about things we cannot change, or even from things that don’t matter. Worrying about what will happen in the next episode of a TV drama or the next installment of a movie franchise only hurts your life. This is fake stress that has real consequences.

If we strip away all the stress and worry in our lives that relates to things we cannot change or affect, instantly our loads are lighter. We can do this without even coming to Jesus.

However, the real blessing that Jesus offers us is the truth that we don’t have to worry about appeasing an angry God who wants to punish us. Instead, Jesus came to satisfy the requirements of the law so that God can love us even more. Jesus does not stand in the way of an angry God. Instead, the Godhead decided together that Jesus would come take the punishment for our sins because every member of the Godhead loves us more than we could imagine. Jesus came representing God the Father and the Holy Spirit, and His love for us shows us how much God loves us.

The light load Jesus offers us is a load where He already took the heavy requirements on Himself, and He leaves us with a gift if we are willing to accept it. The gift Jesus offers us is His life in exchange for ours, and His life gives us eternal life while our lives bring Him death. While it is crazy to think that God would give us this choice, this is the amazing news of the gospel message, and the load Jesus promises us when we come to 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 and purposefully seek God first in your life. Choose to accept Jesus into your life if you haven’t already and stop trying to live up to the expectations of a God who loves you. Jesus fulfilled the requirements of the law because there was no way we could ever do this, and Jesus offers us His perfect life in exchange for our sin-stained lives. We accept Jesus’ gift by living our lives for God, obeying Him as a way of saying thank you for what He has done. Our lives lived as a thank you won’t be perfect, but perfection isn’t our goal. Our goal is saying thank you to God!

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Through prayer and Bible study, discover how much God loves you through what Jesus did for you, and discover how God wants you to live your life as a thank you to Him for everything He has done for us and for everything He has blessed us with.

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 walk away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we have moved through the final week leading up to the cross, we have just one more stop to make before zooming in on the night Jesus was arrested. By this point in the week, the disciples likely knew and realized that Jesus was leaving them, but they didn’t fully grasp how or really why. However, they did ask some good questions that help us understand what the world would be like leading up to His return.

However, before the gospel writers shift onto the details of the last supper, both Matthew and Mark chose to include the supper we began our year and week with. This supper was when Mary anointed Jesus’ feet. While neither Matthew nor Mark tagged Judas as the disciple who was offended by Jesus’ actions, both of these gospels describe what Judas did right after this supper, and Luke summarizes both the introduction and response, and Luke rightly attributes Judas’ actions to their true source.

Let’s read about what happened from Luke’s gospel. Our passage can be found in Luke, chapter 22, and we’ll be reading from the New Century Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 1, Luke tells us that:

¹ It was almost time for the Feast of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover Feast. ² The leading priests and teachers of the law were trying to find a way to kill Jesus, because they were afraid of the people.

³ Satan entered Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus’ twelve apostles. ⁴ Judas went to the leading priests and some of the soldiers who guarded the Temple and talked to them about a way to hand Jesus over to them. ⁵ They were pleased and agreed to give Judas money. ⁶ He agreed and watched for the best time to hand Jesus over to them when he was away from the crowd.

About the only think Luke doesn’t tell us in this passage is why Judas Iscariot let Satan enter him. The other gospel writers fill in this detail and it was because Jesus pushed back at Judas’ condemnation of Mary for her expensive gift the night that we started this year by focusing on. John even tells us in his gospel that Judas’ remark wasn’t because Judas cared about the poor, but because he helped himself to the money and this gift could have helped his not-so-secret thievery.

Judas Iscariot appeared to resent not being included in the inner circle of disciples, and He wanted to make a name for himself. However, Judas runs into the challenge that most everyone faces when they want to be known: Will you be known for your good deeds or for your bad deeds?

When we look at the disciples and which ones we can recognize or name easily, we have the three closest disciples, who were Peter, James, and John. Most everyone who knows disciples knows these three first. But after these three, only four other disciples are easily recallable, at least to me.

First is Andrew, and his claim to fame is bringing people to Jesus. Andrew brought Peter to meet Jesus, and he also brought the boy with a lunch to Jesus when there was no other food. Andrew is known for bringing people to Jesus – and this makes him a fisher of men while also being a fisherman.

Next is Thomas, and his claim to fame is his doubt. While his story doesn’t end with doubt, his big statement about doubting the word of the other disciples after Jesus’ resurrection brings him his fame and this title. Even if Thomas was satisfied and believed after seeing Jesus personally, He represent all those who have a tendency to doubt if they haven’t seen something personally.

Aside from Judas Iscariot, the only other disciple that stands out is Phillip, and he is known for occasionally speaking up and asking the questions that others are probably thinking but to afraid to ask.

Lastly, we have Judas Iscariot, who is infamously known for his betrayal. While searching for a way to be known and to make a name for himself, Judas could have chosen any of these other three roles. Just because Andrew was known for bringing people to Jesus, Judas could have chosen this role as well. In the same way, Judas could have joined Phillip as being one who asked challenging questions.

However, Judas let his desire to be known lead him to be known as the betrayer. While being known as the betrayer fulfills his desire, it is probably the least desirable way to be known.

The temptation Judas faced is a temptation we all face in varying degrees. This temptation is the desire for fame and glory. This is the root of Lucifer’s transition into Satan in heaven, and while Lucifer had the status and the glory, he became bored with it and wanted more. In our star-crazed culture, we face a similar temptation.

Unfortunately, it’s easier to be known for bad than it is for good. But while this is the case, most of those who are known for bad are only known for a limited time. The bad they did will eventually fade into history.

However, those who choose to be known for good will be remembered forever. Even if our memory fades or if we didn’t know the good at the point it happened, those who have focused on loving others and helping where they can are remembered by God, and they actually model a part of His character.

When we look at God and how He acts in the world today, we don’t find Him stopping every evil thing. While this might cause some to doubt, it is only because they don’t understand why God might choose to do this. However, tucked within the bad that God allows are amazing opportunities for good. Whenever a disaster strikes, good people mobilize and jump in to help. One terrorist or natural disaster reveals dozens, if not hundreds, of people stepping up to help where they can.

Part of God’s character is the amazing ability of bringing good out of bad situations. While I don’t fully understand how He always is able to do this, I’m sure Satan hates this fact.

The details in our passage lay the foundation for this very truth. While it seems tragic from an earthly perspective that Jesus would let a betrayer into His group of disciples, or that someone who had been with Jesus for 3+ years would let Satan enter him so easily, the facts that this happened don’t speak negatively about God or about Jesus.

God and Jesus gave Judas Iscariot every opportunity to change his heart and his life, but he refused. When we look at our passage and the religious leaders, we discover that God’s timing supersedes our timing. The religious leaders didn’t think they would be able to arrest Jesus during the festival, and they planned to wait until afterwards. Without Judas’ betrayal, Jesus’ crucifixion wouldn’t have happened in the same way it did.

However, through the negative of Judas Iscariot’s betrayal, we have Jesus’ sacrifice for us, and we have the amazing news that His death gives us the opportunity for a new life with Him. God is able to turn negatives, even the betrayal of His own Son, into amazing good for His Story of redemption!

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

Always seek God first and trust that He knows what He is doing from an eternity perspective. While things might not always seem to make sense from our perspective here on earth, trust that when we reach heaven, He will be able to answer every question to our satisfaction.

Also, always pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow your personal relationship with God. While a pastor or podcaster can share ideas with you, always take what you hear or read and go back to the Bible to confirm or deny its validity.

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 fall away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!