NT: The Book of Matthew, Chapter 11

Matthew 11:1-30

11:1 If you are ever in a leadership position, in the home, in the work-field or anywhere else, you will find wise instruction in this verse. Jesus taught His disciples and sent them around the world to continue to spread the message but Jesus Himself remained a responsible, hard-working teacher. He did not pass off His duties to others. Jesus maintains that there is work to be done and so He does it; He continues not to waste anytime. 

It is a rewarding example for a leader's followers to see their teacher or authority remaining productive and kind. Laziness is poor leadership, you must always remain a tireless advocate for your cause and it will inspire others around you to be energetic and motivated as well.

11:2-3 We learn in this verse that John the Baptist has been imprisoned. We have already learned of John's humble and strong faith in God so we can infer that John is surviving quite well despite his imprisonment. Remember verse 10:22 of this book of Matthew. Being a spokesperson and believer of God will enter you as a soldier in His war against evil. Jesus reminds us that He came to Earth for a purpose, in 10:34 we learned that Jesus' mission is to eliminate evil. His use of the word "sword" in that verse allows us to deduce that He means business... he will not loiter around picking daisies, not until peace has won. And peace will win.

John sends two of his disciples to Jesus. Their arrival announces to Jesus the condition of John's situation and they ask Jesus' "are you the Coming One?" By this they mean, "Are you the Son of God prophesied about in the Bible?" They want to make sure they have the right guy.

11:4-5 Jesus answers their question in a humble way. Jesus does not claim to be special. What He tells the two disciples of John is that the mission of God, prophesied to be accomplished, is currently being accomplished. This is most important to Jesus, that the people may know not that HE is doing it, but that it is BEING done.

11:6 Blessed is the person who's heart accepts the sweet and true message of God. If any of the kindness Jesus taught is offensive to a person, they definitely have a wicked heart.

11:7 Jesus does not want the multitude to mistake John for a weak character. The metaphor: He is not a reed, small and fickle, swayed or changed by the wind. For surely, if an easy breeze frightens a person, they would not be a very successful advocate of the word.

11:8 Another important distinction: John is not treated and living as royalty in this time. If what you are seeking by reading the Bible is luxury here on Earth, material wealth, you will not find it. John's focused and brave work is not regarded at all by the people of Earth. He has been hated and imprisoned for his work yet it remains important to him and he does not back down from it. He does not teach the way of God for his own reward, He does it for you. He is a selfless and devoted man.

11:9-10 Jesus makes it very clear how God views John: He establishes and accepts him as a great and unshakable prophet. John was prophesied about long before his actual birth so God knows him well to be a man unlike any other in his strength and dedication to the word.

11:11  Those born of women are all of humanity here on Earth. Even though John up until that point of Jesus' speaking was the greatest to be born, those in Heaven are of even greater and purer goodness. We are on Earth can be and often are lovable and kind but the world corrupts all of us, even if only a little bit. Those in Heaven have no impurities and we should see that as a reward in itself. God is perfect, no part of Him is evil, and He is our protector, our Father.

11:12 Jesus explains that since the word of God has been sent around the world, multitudes of people rush for a spot in Heaven. The word is effective in capturing our hearts.  

11:13-14 There have always been prophets teaching the day. During these moments in Matthew 11, John is the current prophet, the one to witness Jesus. Another will come to us, and soon: Elijah.

11:15 Those of you who are able to accept and establish the meaning of these beautiful words... accept them and establish them in your mind!

11:16-17 Jesus tells them straight: this generation of people is (and continues to be) filled with hypocrites and gossips who insist on negativity and only live on the surface of what is important. They seek immediate reward and entertainment even though they have not earned it.

11:18 John came and did everything selflessly and perfectly and still he was hated, wrongly accused of being a demon.

11:19 Jesus came in a friendly manner to all and was hated for all that He did. Therefore, a person cannot win when an evil generation judges them. No matter how you arrive to help them, they reject you.

Wisdom is justified by her children: Kind, intelligent and humble people are wise and do not seek or need reward from anyone to be their true, honest selves. They are wise and their wisdom saves them from being like the evil generations.

11:20 Those who rejected Jesus despite his loving and kind message will be judged by God.

22:21-24 Jesus says that past evil cities would have changed their ways after hearing the word of God and because of that, they will be saved. But the people who were lucky enough to learn directly from Jesus Himself and decided to disregard His message will be judged doubly for they are fully aware of their wrongdoing and yet still support evil and continue to be evil.

This is Jesus doing as He promised He would: He came with a sword to battle evil. His message is to them, be better or be gone.

22:26 Jesus thanks God. The word is taught in a special way, it is revealed to the humble and meek and hidden from those who wrongly believe they are the smart and mighty. An arrogant man can not properly interpret the Bible but a lowly man with a great heart will find ease with it because He dedicates Himself to God and receives help. God is not impressed by wealth or power.

22:27 Jesus gives all credit to God. A person cannot know God without knowing His message brought to them by Jesus and likewise a person cannot know (understand Jesus' instructions) Jesus unless they love the way of God. The dynamic between Jesus and God is a unique relationship of spirit.

22:28 Jesus is so loving and comforting. He wants your burdens. Let Him help you. Let Him absorb your worries. How do you do this? Establish a relationship between yourself and God over time. Treat others and love others as you want Him to love you and it will naturally unfold.

22:29-30 He is gentle and humble and you can rest in Him eternally alive and free.

NT: The Book of Matthew, Chapter 10

Matthew 10:1-47

(10:1) At the finish of Chapter 9, Jesus made the startling observation that the people of the world crave a teacher. They need teachers to help them survive this often cruel and difficult world, but Jesus observes that there are not enough teachers to teach and spread the word. He's going to fix that immediately. He does not waste time, because reaching YOU is too important to Him.

Jesus through God gives the disciples power over unclean spirits (over evil) and the power to heal. Wow, amazing right? What a powerful gift. Guess what? God gives you the same power in Luke 10:19. When you are WITH God, evil will never triumph over you. Evil might try to make your life a little difficult but if you trust God... evil will never prevail over you.

Jesus gives this gift to the disciples because they deserve it and because they love God and can be trusted with it. Giving 12 more men the ability to heal and teach will help Jesus to save more people, more quickly and efficiently. That is why He also gives you the power! You can be of service to this great mission... you can deserve it too!

(10:2-4) We receive the complete list of the twelve disciples: Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James, Lebbaeus, Simon and Judas. (The first person mentioned, Andrew called Peter, had his named changed by God the upcoming chapter of Matthew 16: He will be crucial in helping God teach an important lesson). Do not worry about Judas just yet, I bet when you hear his story you will find that it's quite different from what you know about him now. We will focus on him (Judas) when the Bible is good and ready to focus on him. For now, we continue with Chapter 10.

(10:5-8) Jesus instructs the disciples on where to begin their ministry. Gentile in the original means "nations" or "people" (I reference a Strong's Concordance Dictionary).  God wants the children of Israel to be taught first. Why? Maybe for order or convenience. We already know God is impartial. Remember the children of Israel are the descendants of the original family which brought forth Christ. (This can be a very in-depth study in the Book of Genesis, we will get there but lets remain here and learn from Matthew for now).

Jesus reminds the disciples that their love and trust of God earned them the free power of healing... he asks that they use their new ability in the same way it was given to them - fully, completely and without discrimination or price.

(10:9-10) These verses are instrumental, so very important, to understanding how to naturally find true, honest, compassionate people in the world. Jesus instructs the disciples to travel with almost nothing. Do not bring money, do not bring extra coats, shoes, a walking stick... leave with nothing but your faithful self and God in your heart. This is a lesson in itself: God and a kind soul are all you will ever need to survive and succeed.

But there is another reason Jesus wants the disciples to travel with very little. If a man arrives in a community modestly, without money or extra materials (clothes and bags) only the giving and very compassionate people will approach him. This is how you become a magnet for kindness, enter a place expecting nothing, behaving modestly and trusting God and generous people will find you.

Jesus tells them that a "worker is worthy of his food". This means that the disciples should trust that if they are working honestly and justly, they will earn sustenance (from the people who they meet and also from God). You don't even have to worry about your energy or your next meal when you are serving God.

(10:11-12) Look for worthy people when you arrive... goodhearted people, honest people, compassionate people and remain with them so that you may help them.

(10:13-14) Another great life lesson. God instructs the disciples to find a person and their household who they think it worthy and to stay there, if they are welcome, and to teach them the lovely ways of God... to teach them of Jesus and His message. He tells that that if the people are peaceful with them, they shall also be peaceful. However, if they encounter someone who will not accept the way of God and are against love and kindness, they must leave that place. They must leave that place and not worry about it anymore.

Shake the dust off of them of  their feet is a metaphor for not allowing evil to taunt you when you have left it. Do not worry or be anxious over it, God will take care of the situation.

This is a good life lesson because even though we are supposed to be kind and forgiving of people who hurt us, we are not supposed to let them use us or destroy us. If our help and goodwill is not accepting, that person has given us permission to leave them alone to their wicked and hurtful ways. Do not wish bad on any person and do remain your kind self with everyone, but do not waste your time with people who have rejected you - move onto another person or situation that will value your worth.

(10:15) The city or person or establishment that rejects you and hurts you will be dealt with by God. And because the city or person or establishment that treated you poorly was taught of God's way, they will be judged more intensely than a wicked person who did not receive your precious council (like the city of Sodom and Gomorrah which did not have a disciple of Jesus as a teacher).

That is a fair statement. God is always fair.

Just a small example: You would not reprimand a child for stepping into snow barefoot if they did not know better. But if you spent time lovingly teaching the child not to step in the snow and explained the consequences to him, yet he still ignored you and stepped in the snow, you could then justly reprimand them for not listening.

(10:16) Jesus gives amazing advice here: He is trying to raise kind and innocent people (symbol: sheep) but He understands that His people will be victims of the unjust and evil (symbol: wolves) Therefore Jesus instructs them and us on how to combat this, on how not to become a victim: You must be smarter, more intelligent, and quicker than the evil people are therefore they can never trick you. If you value knowledge and continue to learn throughout life, your kind and harmless spirit (symbol: doves) can never be deceived or hurt by evil. You soar above their evil ways because you always use your wisdom to foresee their trickery and overcome it with honesty and kindness.

(10:17-18) If you believe and trust in God you must be strong and courageous. Evil exists and will come after you... your work is to battle against them. Jesus Himself encountered evil on the very night he was born until the very last minute before He died. You have work to do just as He did. Your kindness is needed to extinguish evil and therefore you must also encounter it. If you fear evil and you run away from it, it will get stronger and stronger without an opponent. You are an instrument of God's... let Him use you in His good work. Be brave.

God's children have many tasks to tackle: the everyday man and woman need your living-example on how to live a fair and kind life. Your neighborhoods need it, your community, your region, state, nation, country... your voice and actions can reach the world stage. Men and woman in history and some living today have proven that a single person can make a major difference across the global stage (good OR bad!).

Always remember an important truth: God wins ultimately. There's no doubt or question. (2 Corinthians 2:14 - and all throughout the Bible is proof!) Your heart will know it to be true also if you accept His ways.

But evil wants to win and even though it knows it will not win, it and the people who work in evil ways want to destroy what they can while they can. Satan, though not a monster with horns and fire, will come to Earth pretending to be God. He will reign as the anti-christ and confuse and trick many people into believing he is God. Remember Matthew 10:16-17. Be wiser than to fall for that trick. Remember also God gives you power over evil so it cannot destroy you or hurt you. Be brave. We will revisit this very important and relevant discussion at another time or upon special inquiry - let us return to Matthew).

(10:19-20) You do not have to worry about how you will defend against evil. You are an important vessel and God will protect you and help you with the courage to speak the words He knows will be effective. God knows the plan and finishes the plan without error. He will give you the words to speak. You do not have to be anxious or nervous about encountering evil, in those moments with your trust in God and your courage, He will give you the words to say.

(10:21) The interpretation of this verse is that people will fall for the anti-christ and will wonder why others do not bow to him. If you are alert and observant you will identify the false god and you would never bow to him SO, your family will be concerned for you because they do not know better. They will try to get you to believe in him... they will deliver you to up to him, the false god, who represents death out of love for you. They will not actually want to kill you. It is a metaphor.

(10:22) Just like Jesus. Being kind and fair is not always popular. Often the quiet and meek are the nice people and they get walked on by hatred, used by people with wicked agendas. People are confused and cannot find the happy, just path of God's and they cause a lot of problems. You have work to do and you have to be brave because it will require you to sit with sinners. In the end of this world age, you win and are saved so you do not have to worry about yourself.

(10:23) Jesus instructs them to keep teaching, keep moving throughout the world because there is so much work to be done it is not possible for them to finish before God returns. There will always be work for us to do on Earth.

(10:24-25) This verse is a metaphor: Jesus tells them that they do not need to fear their journey ahead even if it seems like a daunting task that only Jesus or God is capable of undertaking. Even though we are not Jesus, even though we are not God, we follow in their footsteps and we learn from them and therefore we are capable of doing great things with their help.

(10:26) God is open about everything. He trusts you with the whole story, the entire plan. He lets you know what has happened and what will happen so that you are prepared. Do your work and you will be fine! Nothing is hidden from you, God is not a deceiver like Satan is.

(10:27) Jesus says, whatever I teach to you while we are here together during the nights, wake up and preach to others in the day.

(10:28) Jesus tells us not to fear people who can harm our bodies because our soul is eternal. Our body is only a vessel carrying our souls and they cannot harm our souls. God says to fear His judgement if you are a bad person because he can put your soul to sleep and there is no chance after that.

(10:29) Jesus says that even sparrows are loved and seen by God. He knows each and everyone of them so of course he knows each and every one of His children too.

(10:30) God loves you so much and knows you so well that He knows everything about you. Every hair on your head is important to Him. He knows you better than you know yourself, better than anybody knows you. His love is incomparable, unchanging... it is forever.

(10:31) God says, if I'm including the sparrows in the details of my plan, of course I am also including you.

(10:32) If you love and trust Jesus enough to proudly and confidently tell and show others your love for Him, He also will proudly and confidently tell and show God how much he loves and trusts you. Good word to God from Jesus... there is no higher recommendation!

(10:33) Likewise, if you are evil and reject God... God will allow you to leave Him and you will be all alone and gone forever.

(10:34-36) Do not misinterpret this verse. Jesus reminds us that He came for a purpose. He came to get work done. He represents love and peace but he came to battle against evil. He understands that His message will not be well-received by many. It will cause disagreements and arguments on the household and national levels. It is a war worth fighting and a war well won. Peace battles evil and wins.

(10:37) Do not misinterpret this verse, either. What Jesus means is that if your mother or child (any family member or loved one) rejects God and wants you to follow them and their evil ways you are supposed to choose God. You are always supposed to choose God's way and nobody else's no matter who they are.

(10:38) This means that if you are unwilling to live a just life, to work in the service of bringing kindness and peace then you do not deserve the gifts that God gives. Your work earns your place in Heaven.

(10:39) Do not be a coward to evil and to fear. Your earthly body is not what you need to worry about. You have an eternal soul protected by God. Trust that He will always protect your soul and forget about saving your earthly-body (it is weak and perishable) your soul is what is important. Trust that. Trust that you only need your soul! If you become a coward and start behaving wickedly because you fear your death on Earth... you will cause your soul to die and you will be gone forever. If you care about your spirit and allow your earthly body to do its job (even if it means trouble) your soul will live forever.

(10:40-41) If you love God, whoever loves you and shows compassion for you will be shown compassion from God. If you help Jesus' accomplish His work, you will be rewarded as Jesus' is rewarded.

(10:42) Even if the best you can do for someone is something small (maybe you do not have a lot or maybe you have a disability) if you do that small thing in the name of God, in the service of God, He sees it as a grand and awesome gesture and you will be rewarded by God for your righteous work.

If you have very little but give everything you have to someone in need, your work is much more precious than a rich person who gives a large gift but remains rich.

NT: The Book of Matthew, Chapter 9

Matthew: 9:1-38

(9:1) Jesus continues preaching, teaching, correcting and healing in His precise and ever-progressing manner. He continues to travel and fulfill His purpose. 

(9:2) Jesus meets a paralyzed man, but the main issue at hand are His sins. Our illnesses, physical and mental impairments do not change or diminish His love for us. Correcting our sins should be our main concern. Sin can be a scary word - frightened enough, even, to scare a person away from God. Each of us are capable of doing things which are unpleasant to others and ourselves and these things, regardless of their place in the range of severity, grouped together to be called sins. God loves you even if you do make bad choices, you are His main concern: He wants to save you from them.

Jesus immediately forgives this man of His sins. This means several things:

1. The man was genuinely repentant for the wrong he had done. You cannot be forgiven  by God if you are insincere. You have to be apologetic for the wrong you have done and that comes naturally when you find compassion in yourself and feel sorry for the victims of your bad actions. 
2. The man genuinely believed in God. He had faith and trust in God and traded his old ways for the way of God.
3. You can be forgiven for your sins! You do not have to plead or beg. Just pray for it, desire it from your heart and it will be given to you.
4. Jesus and God can see inside of your soul. They can see your true thoughts. Jesus and this man exchange no words prior to his forgiveness. Jesus read him, knew him, and loved him as you reads, knows and loves you.

(9:3) Wicked people will find any excuse to discredit Jesus. They think it is blasphemous that Jesus would associate with a sinner and therefore associate Jesus with sin. Forgiveness of sin is not an evil act, it is a merciful one. But these wicked men are supporters of Satan's ways and they try to confuse others with their twisted logic just as Satan tries to do. Be perceptive, do not be duped by negative people and their darkness.

They also don't think he has the power or authority to forgive a man of his sins. They these wicked men, Jesus' words appear to be empty. They go against Him thinking that Jesus cannot prove that His forgiveness is real and meaningful. They think, or at least want others to think, that Jesus goes around as a powerless pretender. They will be proven wrong.

(9:4) Note in this verse: the wicked men did not speak directly to Jesus but still Jesus knew what their thoughts were. He knows your true self too, your true thoughts, no matter what you pretend to be. Jesus asks them why they immediately look for a negative interpretation of a situation. Why insist on injecting evil into a good and merciful situation?

(9:5) Jesus basically says this to the wicked men: Do you think I say "your sins are forgiven" because it is an easy way to pretend I have authority? Do you think I forgive His sins because healing Him is not a power of mine and I was hoping nobody would catch on?

(9:6) Jesus humors them, he is humble and doesn't mind proving to them that he is of God and all-powerful - He heals the paralyzed man immediately and without struggle or hesitancy! 

(9:7) And just like that, the man walks. God has power over EVERYTHING.

(9:8) And the people with their hearts open to the truth are awed by Jesus.

(9:9-10) Jesus chooses another disciple. He is ready to teach one of the most important lessons of the Bible. Sinners join Him and the disciples at the table. Jesus is not too good to sit with sinners. He loves everyone, welcomes everyone, wants to teach and guide us all.

(9:11) These wicked men, the Pharisees, taunt the disciples. If you're teacher is so high and mighty, they ask, why does he sit around with evil people? They try to make Jesus seems like a hypocrite. 

(9:12) Jesus tells them truthfully and bluntly that He spends His time with those who NEED Him. People who are without sin have already found God and Jesus. The people who are still lost and wayward and the people who need Jesus' company. And Jesus is more than happy and willing to sit with them and try to help them. He is not ever a hypocrite. He is merciful and humble. He does not favor the good over the bad, He loves us all the same... He wants all of us to join Him and He works to make it happen.

(9:13) Jesus tells them that He didn't come to Earth to eat and be merry with the people who already love God (there will be time for that in Heaven) Jesus came to Earth to WORK. He came to correct and direct the people who needed it. The people who already love God do not need Jesus' presence as much as these sinners do. Their time with Him is precious, He wastes no time in instructing them.

This is a beautiful and difficult lesson for us to learn. It is not easy to converse and interact with our adversaries. It is not difficult to keep sinners out of our lives. But we corrupt ourselves when we become too haughty to welcome them into our hearts and our lives. We are lazy hypocrites if we cannot be kind when it requires effort. Our kindness with enemies or people we find disfavor with is when we can do our most powerful work! It is a great lesson for others (and for ourselves) to see us remain humble and compassionate to people who are not compassionate with us in return. (Matthew 5:43-47) The kind do not need our kindness, the people who do not know or understand kindness are the ones who need to be taught about it.

(9:14) The students following and learning from John have a question for Jesus. They ask Jesus why His disciples have not been fasting to show their love of God (a common practice in those times). The students of John are confused, they believe that Jesus' students are not behaving in a respectful manner.

(9:15-17) Jesus is clear with them and provides examples of His answer so that they will better understand. 

Here is an explanation of a metaphor that will help you understand much of the Bible: God uses the concept of marriage to explain His relationship with us on a individual level. He symbolizes the husband, you symbolize the wife. The metaphor is used to describe a faithful (platonic) relationship. 

So Jesus tells the disciples of John that His students (his spouses in the metaphor) are currently living with their husband (Jesus). There time with Him is short and precious, they have Him in this time to study and learn from His teachings. They must remain alert and focused and after He leaves them, then that is the time for them to fast. For now, the students have work to do! 

The second two examples about the cloth and the wine are examples of wasting time. Jesus does not want the disciples to miss out on any time of the teaching otherwise His teachings would go unlearned and would be useless!

(9:18-22) Jesus sets out on a journey to heal a man's (a prominent ruler) daughter. This man is faithful as he states that He knows Jesus' touch can save his daughter. He worships Jesus. While Jesus is on His way to the man's house, a woman (presumably not of any hierarchical status in the community) reaches out to touch Jesus' clothes. She does not speak aloud her faith but Jesus knows her thoughts without her needing to vocalize them. He heals her because he knows that she is faithful and good. Your status on Earth does not determine your worth in Heaven! You are loved as a ruler is loved, even if you feel small and without authority. 

(9:23) Jesus arrives at the home and walks into a funeral. People are mourning and playing music because to them, the girl has died and is gone forever.

(9:24) Jesus tells the mourners that the girl is not dead. They mock Him. They think that he is not intelligent enough to see that the girl is in the bed and not alive. 

(9:25-26) He waits until this mourning crowd has left, their unbelief causes them to miss the message. Jesus takes the hand of the girl and she awakens - immediately, totally. And word spreads.

The metaphors we can infer from these verses are these:

1. When a person has "died" they have really only left their life on Earth as we understand it. The person is still very much alive and with God. (2 Corinthians 5:8) When we leave our flesh body, we are then automatically, instantly present with the Lord in our spiritual body(1 Corinthians 15:53).
2. Dead is sometimes used in the Bible as a metaphor for spiritual deadness - for not understanding or living in the way the word of God teaches us we should to be good and just. So, even if we interpret that this girl was mean or evil or wicked, we can see that Jesus can still save her by "taking her hand" or by leading her to a better path.

(9:27-29) First we will examine these verse in their literal interpretation: 2 men without sight have true, established faith in Jesus and their faith heals their eyes. Jesus sees that their faith is true and rewards the promises He preaches: healing and protection.

But let's interpret it more deeply than that, as we a learning, there are many messages often in even just one verse of the Bible. This metaphor we are about to learn is repeated over and over again in the Bible and I will direct you to some of those verses.

The senses of "sight" and "hearing" are symbols in the Bible used for explaining a person with the capacity to see the bigger, deeper picture of God and humanity. People with "eyes to see" and "ears to hear" are people who naturally have an appetite for the word of God and for understanding it in it's truest, purest nature. These people do not confuse and confound themselves and others with corrupt or incorrect interpretations of the Bible because they study it and because the goodness of it is naturally apparent to them. "Eyes to see and ears to hear can be read of in these verses (among others): Proverbs 20:12, Matthew 13:16, Mark 8:18, Jeremiah 5:21, Isaiah 6:10.

And so, the men who believed faithfully in living in this just manner, believed in following Jesus, could already see even when they were blind. Our faith is our vision. Even blind, they could see truth therefore: they had eyes to see.

(9:30-31) Jesus heals the men and commands that they go out and make a spectacle of their miracle performed by Him. This is especially beautiful and not to be overlooked: Jesus is humble. He has a plan and method for how He wishes to spread His message and His plan does not include making Himself liken to a circus act. 

An arrogant man would be loud and proud of his ability to something amazing like this. An arrogant man would want everyone to know what he did. But Jesus does not need that validation. He wants to win people over with love... for if you love God, your healing and your blessings follow.

(9:32) In this verse, we encounter another man considered "demon-possessed" and also he is without the ability to speak. It is doubtful to me that he actually had a demon inside of him and is more likely that his illness was interpreted as demonic because it was scientifically misunderstood.

(9:33) Jesus takes care of it. He enables the man to speak. Notice the verse says, "When the demon was cast out, the mute spoke" therefore I do believe the interpretation can be that his illness was considered to be the demon and not an actual demon itself. 

Those with "eyes to see" can understand that Jesus is performing miracles through the ultimate, loving power of God. 

(9:34) This verse informs us that not everyone involved in this situation has "eyes to see". The pharisees are still against Jesus. They will say any ridiculous thing that pops into their mind to try to sway people to leave His side. (Such is life! Our goodness is always tested... our truth always requires strength against turbulence).

Although Jesus has done this amazing and kind thing (healing!) the wicked men decide to suggest that Jesus gets his powers against demons because he is of demons! Hmm, this is false logic. Why would a bad man do a good act and require no reward or attention for it? Jesus does not deceive, ever. He is always honest and open and giving. The Pharisees are the wicked - they search for and pretend there is darkness in a beautiful act when the actual darkness is inside of themselves.

(9:35) The insults of the Pharisees have no effect on Jesus. He moves swiftly along and does not waste even a second of His time on nonsense. Jesus has a message to preach to the world. He wants to save everybody... He moves on, continuing His journey.

It is important for us to remember to be the same way. Do not let negativity restrain you from your purpose. Do not let evil cloud your clear truths. Know what you believe in and stand by it. Be unwavering in your faith. Trust God, trust yourself and do not entangle yourself with senseless hatred. It is a waste of time! Be productive, be happy... spread the good word.

(9:36) Soak in the moment, the meaning of this verse. It is grand. Do not overlook its importance; let it still your mind in thought. Jesus looks out at the multitudes of people who crave Him and His message. People respond to happiness, to freedom, to love and truth. They need it. Jesus is overwhelmed with compassion for this multitude of people (the entire Earth) is starving for safety and for love. Life is difficult, prone to sadness and impossible to understand without the true and perfect guidance of God. These people, and people especially today, are weary and weak from the violence and injustice of the world. People are lost and confused. Jesus sees this and it troubles Him deeply that so many people need teachers but have so few or even none.

(9:37) Jesus speaks such an important message to His disciples. He tells them that there are so many people worth saving, so many people who want to be saved... but that there are so few teachers that none of them have the opportunity to be helped, guided or loved. The laborers, the workers, are few. Join God's mission - you do not have to preach to be a teacher, you can be a living example through your strength and goodness throughout life. Working for God is a humbling privilege. There is no better feeling than helping another person crawl out of a corner of suffering and darkness. 

Jesus does not want to waste the love people are capable of giving if only they are taught the way. He is always willing to recruit and help His laborers. 

(9:38) Jesus asks them to pray to God that laborers with come and teach and save through God. I really must emphasis that by "being saved" I mean that people need a purpose of truth and kindness. I truly believe that even a person who has never opened the Bible, but has lived an honest and kind life has a warm and secure spot in Heaven. Scripture can help heal your suffering and lead you to happiness... it is a gift, not a rigid, fear-mongering tool. A good heart, a clear mind, an honest man or woman can teach every lesson in the Bible without even the ability to read. Our actions, our works earn our place in Heaven. (James 2:14-26)

People call Jesus our savior because He died. No. Jesus is our savior because He LIVED. He is our savior because he taught us the way of life which saves us. Jesus is our savior because He lived despite knowing that He would die by the hand of the wicked for it. His message and YOU are that important to Him. How strong is love that you be willing to die for in order to tell a person that you loved them?

Be a laborer of bringing that love. Do not force-feed strangers the Bible. People who need the Bible will find it. People who crave the Bible will be given its message. But there are other, just as profound and effective ways of teaching:

Live your life in accordance with the truth and love that God teaches and you will have become a powerful, beloved teacher.

Before we finish, let's learn two other important, recurring metaphors used throughout the Bible:

1. Harvest: symbolizes people who would choose to become good people if only they were led to that path that gets them there. Many of us are not bad people but our daily actions can be selfish or unproductive... so, even though we aren't evil, we could use some help. We could use a teacher to help us find a clearer more enlightening path. But if we need that, and no teachers are around to teach us, we must become the teacher or pray for one to come our way so that we can be a student. 
2. Laborers: People who work in service of bringing forth the word of God.
3. Sheep: Represents people of God. Innocent but lost without a shepherd.
4. Shepherd: A teacher, someone who gathers the sheep (people) and protects them, gives them life and love.

NT: The Book of Matthew, Chapter 8

Matthew 8:1-34

Chapter 8 of Matthew begins Jesus' journey on Earth as a healer. When I first read this chapter as a child, it was difficult for me to grasp the concept of the miracle of immediate healing. It was difficult for me to understand because I live in a time of humanity when miracles are more subtlety given and displayed. Not even an ounce of me doubts that Jesus or God is capable of performing miracles but I have become accustomed to the method of miracle in my time: subtle miraculous signs which require faith to observe. 

I have come to understand Jesus' healing in that time in this way: He was there to preach a new way of life and held nothing, none, of his capabilities back. Everything was in the open. He backed up His word with action. To prove that God was the giver of life, He gave some hard, concrete proof of that: by actually giving life. It was a way to establish the faith with evidence. For me, it is easy to believe in God by looking at the impossibly smart ingenuity of the human body, the distant, brightness of stars in the universe, the self-sustaining ecosystems of the Earth... everywhere I look is proof of a God. For others, like Thomas who we will learn about, (in John 20:27) faith requires that the miracle be delivered or accomplished before a witness. God understands that we humans are skeptical and in laying the foundation for His word, he gave that foundation solidity. 

I will reiterate that having faith in God against all odds or evidence against Him (what people to believe is His absence or silence) is faith more appreciated by Him than those who love Him but require proof. It's a common notion: you really appreciate people who care about you without your having to provide them evidence as to why they should. People who care about you based on what you do for them just does not have the same value (even if the relationship is still meaningful).  You can find this in (John 20:29). On Earth, by remaining vigilant but unseen, God allows us the opportunity to love Him in this truer and sweeter way.

(8:1) Great multitudes followed Jesus before even witnessing His ability to heal. There is a great strength in these words. It appeals to people because it is clear, direct and simple. A deeper part of our soul and mind accepts this advice because it recognizes truth. Be open to finding it.

(8:2) A man with a skin disease comes to Jesus and uses very specific words (do not read over their structured importance) "Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean." By making this particular statement this man reveals two certain things: 

1. He respects God's will by saying "IF you are willing." He does not demand to be healed (Doesn't even technically ask to be healed), He respects the stipulation that God's will be the one to determine if He should be healed.
2. He declares his belief that Jesus can indeed heal him. It is a statement: "You can make me clean." Complete faith.

Also consider the metaphor hiding within that statement. The man wants to be healed of his skin affliction on the surface, but Jesus is a healer of the soul and mind... he drives out evil and confusion and replaces it with goodness and truth. He cleans and establishes.

(8:3) There are no fireworks. There is no show. Jesus is humble and efficient. God willed the man to be "cleansed" and it was done quickly, without overt production, or delay. It is easy for God to accomplish, there is no process, no error.

(8:4) Jesus asks that the man not make a spectacle, He has a better plan: to accomplish another thing with this healing. His humility and efficiency again shows. He instructs the man to go to his place of worship and to show his teacher (the priest). Jesus wants this healed man to be a testimony to the truth of God's word. Go and be living proof that the word preached by Moses about me is accurate. The man is given purpose and direction; he becomes an instrument to spreading God's will to others.

(8:5-6) A man of the army approaches Jesus with a plea. His plea is not for himself but for his servant (this reveals the man to be compassionate and selfless). He asks for Jesus' help for another and not for himself, that really pleases God!

(8:7) Jesus quickly and without hesitation (as is His way) states that He will heal the servant. He quickly agrees to do this because He sees that this man's heart is pure and compassionate, to seek help for his servant (a man considered inferior to him in the structure of his community).

(8:8) The man is humble. He recognizes and believes that Jesus is precious and godly and perfect and is shocked that such an entity would try to enter his earthly, little home! He also reveals his faith even further, he knows that Jesus could heal this servant without needing to touch or even see him. He only need will it to have it accomplished.

(8:9) He tells Jesus that even he, a man with servants, knows he is not the highest authority (even though his position in society is rather powerful). He is not full of himself or drunk with power.

(8:10) Jesus recognizes the absolute strength of this man's faith. The land of Israel is where the family through which Christ was born is from... God says even they do not believe in Him in such a pure way (and I have been very apparent, giving and open with them for generations!) This centurion believes in Jesus' ability without having had as much knowledge of Him as others who love Him less do.

(8:11) Jesus tells the man that many of the aforementioned family (who brought forth Jesus through many generations) will seek their place in Heaven and lose it because of their bad choices and actions, because of their cruelty toward others. Most importantly, people who do not belong, biologically, to that family will find a place in Heaven because of their  goodness and faith. God is impartial, all reward and punishment is doled as deserved, regardless of who you are or where you come from.

(8:12) People who lose their place in Heaven due to their wickedness will weep and regret their choices. 

(8:13) Jesus says that the man's faith has healed his servant. "In the same hour" means, when it was asked, it was done.

(8:14-15) Another action I believed is a great metaphor to learn from. If Jesus heals you, of whatever ailment, addiction, or temptation that has held you back, rise when you are healed and help Him accomplish His work of healing others and bringing them home to Him. Serve Him and His purpose. Do not waste his gift of healing.

(8:16) Jesus heals the sick and casts out demons. I can only interpret the use of this word "demons" as it feels comfortable for me. Though others might have a more literal interpretation of a demon, I consider the "demons" written here to be illnesses misunderstood by that generation to be evil spirits. Even today, some small technologically disadvantaged countries and villages confuse physical and mental ailments to be curses and demons. Either way, actual demons or illness have no chance against God. A demon could also be a name for an evil man. God can clean the evil out of you if you listen to His advice.

(8:17) Scripture is quoted from the Old Testament. Scripture here is fulfilled. God always planned to sent Jesus and his plans are always fulfilled. God absorbs then mute and kills what troubles us if we allow Him the pleasure of doing so. 

(8:18) Jesus is ready to move to another area to find more people to heal and bring into his ministry. 

(8:19) This particular disciple is ready and willing, no delay, no questions asked. This is how you should carry out God's word: with immediacy and faith.

(8:20) I interpret this to mean that Jesus, the Son of God, has no time to rest. Much must be accomplished during his life on Earth... there is no time for leisure. For the sake of humanity, Jesus takes no breaks, wastes no time and is in constant motion to fulfill his purpose.

(8:21) This disciple expresses hesitation and he has not fully grasped Jesus' meaning. If your spirit believes in God, you can never die! Your soul lives on eternally, it does not require its earthly body. If this disciple wishes to bury his father, he therefore wishes to waste his time. His father, if he believes in God, does not need to be buried because he is alive in the most important way. This is a metaphor. Jesus does not want us to waste our time concerned with earthly notions of death. Death is not an end for the spiritual man or woman. We should not dawdle. We should not revel in sadness, for the children of God are forever alive. Continue the mission.

(8:22) Here is a new metaphor. Dead actually symbolizes spiritual dead-ness. Jesus teaches us that we should let the wicked deal with the wicked. A child of God is never dead, does not require burial. It is a metaphor but an important one! Let the evil waste their time with the notion of death, they are the only ones who with ever suffer it.

(8:23-27) I love this story of teaching (another metaphor!). Jesus and the disciples are in the boat, in the middle of the sea, when a terrible storm surrounds them. But Jesus appears to be sleeping. The disciples become terrified and fear for their life, even though they are with the Son of God who is capable of all things. Jesus immediately and easily calms the storm. He has control over the forces of the Earth. He reveals all that He is capable of in a new, grander capacity than the disciples even knew.

This is a metaphor for your life. Even though God is not readily visible to you, do you automatically assume and determine that He is not present in your life? Even though Jesus was sleeping, he was with them - totally and completely. He is always your protector, have faith in that truth. Trust that even though God appears to be sleeping, he has total reign over men and Earth and universe. Do not fear anything when you have such an entity as your protector, such an entity as your Father Who loves you.

(8:28) Jesus and His disciples arrive in new territory. Jesus has not lost and power or strength and can handle these terrible-sounding men.

(8:29) These evil men recognize Jesus. Remember, Satan is very familiar with the Bible and with God. He may even know them better than you do. Do not mistake evil people for stupid. Even they can understand the power of God, they reject Him, but they understand His power and they even cower in His presence. They are worried at his arrival... why, they ask, are you here so early? They want their time on Earth to do their wicked things. (Special Study: Refer to "Why Does God Allow Suffering?)

(8:30-31) These evil men desire their life so badly that they ask Jesus to put their souls into the swine (a metaphor to learn from!) The evil men wish to live even as a lowly scavenging animal instead of perishing into nothingness (which is the treatment their actions earn them). Jesus permits this request because He is wiser than them and can see where it will lead.

(8:32) Jesus puts the evil men's spirits in the swine and... the swine reject it. The lesson here in this metaphor is that even animals (that we may view as unintelligent) are wise enough to reject the ways of Satan. The pigs would rather die themselves (and I personally think animals go to Heaven!) than live with the sick nature of evil inside of them. If the pigs make this decision... so should you! Command it out of yourself.

(8:33) The rest of the group (belonging to the evil men) flee from Jesus. They see what He is capable of and they chose not to taunt Him... the leave and quickly.

(8:34) The people of this wicked land want nothing to do with God or Jesus. They want Him gone because they fear Him. You do not have to fear God... you love Him, He loves you. You care for and help His children, He cares for and helps you. Only the wicked need fear God.

NT: The Book of Matthew, Chapter 7

Matthew 7:1-29

(7:1-2) These words can either bring you a lot of comfort or can cause a panic! What you do is done to you, what you give is given to you... how you judge others is how you are judged. Comforting or scary? Analyze your dealings with others... have you been fair and honest? Have you been kind? God is fair, everyone is paid what they are owed. 

(7:3) One thing is for certain... it is an inarguable truth that nobody is perfect. If you are cruel in judgement toward one person's error, you completely ignore your own errors in life. It is hypocritical. You do not have authority or perfection and are therefore unworthy and more importantly, unequipped to fairly judge others.

(7:4-5) Instead of scoffing at somebody for something you think about them is wrong, remove that negativity from your own perception and maybe you will see that their own errors are caused by something out of their control. We are each vulnerable to the circumstances of life... we are broken and mended and confused by occurrences in our lives. Do not behave as though you understand someone's story when you've never lived it.

(7:6) I interpret this as an important clarification. You always want to be kind to others and you definitely never want to behave unjustly toward them - but never give the best of yourself to someone who will use it without regard. Tough love is a great teacher. Do not ever harm another but don't devote yourself to someone who does not appreciate it...does not even try!

(7:7-8) A lot people reject God on principle. Their minds cannot conceive of such an entity. God accepts and forgives this in 2 Thessalonians 2:11, God lets you know that if you wish or prefer or tend not to believe in Him, he will allow it and also help you obscure His presence from your mind. He understands that it is not a notion you can accept. But if a person wants to find God for pure, honest and personal reasons, they will quickly discover that He need not be found. He is already there, has been there and will always remain with you. 

(7:9-11) God loves you. He loves all of His children and if you ask Him for something, He wants to give it to you. He will give you the best version of what you ask for (sometimes you do not realize that He might have a better plan than the one you hope for).  If you ask Him for something that will harm you, He will foresee that and deny you of it. Trust Him to give you what is best... find meaning in your struggles, learn lessons from them.

He compares His love for you as your own love you would have for your own children. If your child was kind and sincere wouldn't you desperately want to give them whatever they asked for? You would not trick them and give them something bad and you would not ignore their request.

God says, you all have evil in your hearts (we work to be good). But God is naturally, completely good... so when he does a good deed... it is unimaginably, amazingly better than anything we could give.

(7:12) What you put in is what you get back. You are allowed the opportunity (life) to decide how you are judged by God.

(7:13) God warns that it is very easy to make bad decisions... to put your faith in false, meaningless things, so be careful. A lot of people fall victim or become slaves to their desires. Working your life to gain material or maybe even cheating your way through life to reach fame and fortune. Stop competing for material possessions. 

(7:14) This particular verse is VERY involved. Initially, a lot of people are duped into not earning their spot in Heaven but a more in-depth study of the Bible will reveal that God provides a way back in.

(7:15-20) We revisit the metaphor of men/woman represented by trees and their works by fruit. There are a lot of people ready and willing to teach people about the Bible but some of them want to deceive people and others of them accidentally deceive people. Some teachers deceive their students by not accurately following the scripture they are supposed to have knowledge of. Really examine your teachers or those in spiritual or religious positions. Are they humble and wise? Do they back up everything they say with evidence from the Bible? You also have to do your own work - double check their accuracy by reaching and interpreting the Bible for yourself. Ensure that if they say something exists in the Bible it actually does! Men and women are flawed and therefore their teaching abilities can be flawed as well. Make sure you have a teacher with good intentions and one who strictly and orderly follows scripture.

(7:21) You can say all the fancy words you want to God, you can talk to Him all day long but if the words you are saying do not have meaning in your heart, they will get you nowhere. A lot of spiritual and religious people call themselves spiritual and religious but their actions suggest otherwise. God says, let your actions speak for you. Do the will of God and He will get the message.

(7:22-23) There are a lot of corrupt teachers out in the world. Some of them might have even convinced themselves that they are doing a good work but if there work is not good, God will not recognize them for the star they thought they were.

(7:24-27) Another recurring metaphor: God as a rock (a strong and stable foundation). Build your life with kindness, honesty, patience and forgiveness and it will be sturdy. Let those things be your default, your base. If you do that, no amount of turbulence in life will be able to corrupt you or diminish your spirits.

If you live life with corruption and dishonesty at your base, you will spend your life cheating and scheming to keep it from toppling. Turbulence finds you often and you continue to crash into ruin.

(7:28-29) We come out of the red-letter, the places where Jesus is speaking directly for a moment to remind us that these teachings are being given to the disciples. People were awed and amazed to have such promises made to them if they live an honest life. Jesus made it clear and simple. He taught have "one authority" one truth which he remained with the entire time. His teaching was not confusing or contradictory. They had never experienced such wise and direct council before. Do not take for granted the value of having scripture accessible to you. If you are free and able to study the Bible, a book written solely for your benefit, be as in awe and appreciative of it as the first students were.

NT: The Book of Matthew, Chapter 6

Matthew 6:1-34

(6:1) Maybe you know a person like this or maybe you are this type of person. Do you look for validation from others? Do you only feel good about yourself (or THINK you feel good) when others tell you that you are? If you are doing a good deed to feel better about yourself or to look better in another person's eyes, it is not a good deed but is instead a selfish act. God does not reward selfish acts. If you take it upon yourself to get reward from others... well, that is the only measly reward you are going to get.

You might not have realized that you look for validation from others. God always has your best interest in heart. If people could validate you, He would instruct you to go to them... but they cannot make you feel self-worth. God can help you build self-worth if you ask Him to. 

(6:2) Don't make a show of yourself. If you are doing a good deed for the right, selfless reason, you do not need to alert people that it is about to take place. For example, there is a new "pay it forward" trend in the United States where you pay for the order of the person behind you. Sweet enough, right? But immediately racing to your social media account to tell the world you did it erases any points you might have gained.

(6:3) This means not to pat yourself on the back. Do not let others praise you for your acts but also do not become conceited and proud of yourself for doing something good - because again, you did it for yourself. Selfish.

(6:4) Your reward will be inconceivably precious if you are a selfless person. If you can do a good act without the concrete, immediate promise of reward, you probably did that deed out of the goodness of your heart. If you aren't looking for a reward you get rewarded. You can't really fake this. You either do good things selfishly or you do good things selflessly and no matter how good of a sweet-talker you are, God knows for certain which is true in your heart. (Luke 16:15 and Psalm 139:2)

(6:4-6) Be discreet. Do not make a show of yourself. When you have something important on your mind, talk to God about it, let Him help you find clarity. You will find clarity in a private setting... God's advice is always beneficial to you. If you are putting on a show, you are not focused on the true task.

(6:7) Do not spend any amount of time on a meaningless or repetitive chant. It wastes your time and God's. If you don't have any meaningful, honest thoughts to share they don't fill that space with none sense. If you have been having a difficult time overcoming something, speak to God specifically about that.

Have a conversation. When you pray about something that has been troubling you, God often opens your mind to new solutions or ways of interpreting or overcoming the problem. A solution you overlook becomes apparent or you wake the next day with more courage or optimism than you had the day before. Your prayer starts to become introspection or extrospection, you become wiser in the situation because you asked for a tool to fix the problem.

(6:8-13) I always begin my prayers with this prayer. It covers a lot of ground in a concise manner. You identify who you are speaking to: your Father in heaven, God. Always be clear about who you are putting your faith in so that you remember who to thank when you are rewarded. The second and third verses exhibit your trust that He is there and will always come for you, that he keeps watch of and establishes Earth.

Do not overlook the metaphor of asking him for bread. Remember in Chapter 4, Jesus tells Satan that man does not live by bread alone but by the bread of God. God is your sustenance, by thanking Him for bread, you are thanking him for guidance and support, love and forgiveness. Without God, even an abundance of actual bread cannot sustain you.

In this prayer you ask Him to forgive the actions you have done which are less than favorable and you go even further to ask for forgiveness for the people who have been less than favorable with you. You ask for mercy for yourself but include a selfless request for God to show the same forgiveness with your enemies as he does with you. We all fall short... we are all worthy of forgiveness if we are truly apologetic.

You ask for strength against what challenges us or tempts us away from being good. You ask for courage against working for all that Satan exemplifies.

You end the prayer accepting that God is the ultimate, has been the ultimate and will always be. Trust and focused faith.

After this prayer (or before it) include anything else you want to discuss! And when you recite this prayer or any prayer in your head, emphasize your words... put weight and meaning behind them. If you are just rattling off a prayer to get credit... you aren't doing yourself or God a favor. Again, you would be wasting your time and His. Think of prayer as a really sacred time. Even though you can pray in the shower or while driving or doing a myriad of other tasks, let the prayer be your main focus, your priority in those spare moments. The floor is yours, use that opportunity to your advantage. You have God's complete attention, give Him yours in return.

(6:14-15) The kindness and forgiveness you give others will be given back to you in equal measure. If you want an abundance of forgiveness and kindness, you purchase that blessing but giving the same to others. If you do not forgive do not expect to be forgiven. Hypocrites are not rewarded.

(6:16-18) The subject of fasting again arises (Chapter 4 with Jesus). This is similar to praying and doing good deeds, if you are doing it for God, let only God be aware of it. If you are doing it for reward from mere men, go ahead and make a show of yourself - but it won't get you very far. Some religions around the world today make a public display of fasting. It is completely contradictory to the scripture they claim to follow - one has to wonder if this error was intentionally made by those who are like-minded to Satan: twisting scripture to trick people! Always read the actual words of the Bible and interpret them for yourself instead of taking anyone's word for anything. God wants you to fast in secret... even if you have to go to extra lengths to disguise your fast, do that before you let someone else catch on. Messing up sometimes does not make you a bad person, but being ignorant of something you say you believe in is a really quick way to confuse your entire life. Know what you stand for and why.

But why? Why does God want you to fast in secret? Again it is a private moment between you and God. Usually you are showing God you will sacrifice something you are really attached to for Him. It is a way to express love. But it's a BIG expression and takes intelligence and commitment. Do not get sick trying to fast and do not try to fast if you don't have your full heart behind it.

(6:19-20) You might have heard this a lot but maybe you never thought about it or maybe you are scared to trust that God will take care of you. Procuring wealth and material (cars, houses, clothes, bags, fame) will never bring you comfort. It will never last and it earns you nothing after you die. You literally inherit nothingness when your life on Earth was dedicated to nothingness. You show God that meaningless things are what matter to you and so He gives you what you want. God reminds you that material treasure is always vulnerable to thieves and a myriad of other things - you will never feel stable or safe. You will always feel like what you have can slip through your fingers... you become desperate to keep it at all costs (sometimes at the cost of your soul) because you think it is what makes you whole.

Putting your treasures in heaven are your good works toward others. Humanity is meaning. It is everything. When you show God that you are a lover and sustain-er of humanity, of everything of meaning, you inherit everything. It is yours, protected and eternal... just waiting for you to arrive!

(6:21) Whatever you dedicate your soul to becomes your meaning. If your treasure is wealth, you have given your soul to an inanimate, meaningless thing. If your treasure is all that God stands for... your heart remains with Him.

(6:22-23) Your eye is a metaphor for your perception. If you are caustic and pessimistic in your perception of people and things are are different from how you are, you will always see those things in a negative light. Let your perception be open and objective. If you look for good you will find it, or will at least find a way to foster or create good. Good intention goes forever and accomplishes many things. Let your eye (your perception) always interpret a circumstance in a forgiving and patient way. Much of what frustrates us or scares us is only frustrating or scary because we do not understand it well enough. Wisdom and knowledge are healing... always give them reign over your thoughts.

(6:24) Do not try to pretend with God that you love both Him and money. You cannot possibly put your faith in comfort in both. Which one do you believe with protect you? God or money? Make up your mind because if you trust God, you might have to give up the method you currently are using to make that money.

(6:25) This verse, to me, is especially relevant to 2015. We are a generation of worriers. We are material consumers. We dedicate our entire lives to consuming better clothing, cars, houses, jewelry... etc. We always desire more and more and more and never awake to the fact that it is an endless cycle, an abyss really, of unhappiness. God is imploring you to think this: Isn't life MORE important than these meaningless things? Why have we placed such a value on what does not matter at all.

(6:26) God says, consider the birds for example. They aren't constantly worrying about anything, not even food, and yet their species prevails through the years. God loves the birds but he especially loves humans for their ability to think and let those thoughts bring them to kindness - if he feeds the birds, why wouldn't he feed you?

I think of this verse metaphorically as well. If you have God you do not need to worry about your life because your life is just one small, short part of what your life with Him is. Always keep the bigger picture in mind. He does not want to watch you suffer, the only people who suffer are those who reject His help (he has made it very clear how to earn His help!) Worry about others' well-being and he will take care of yours.

(6:27) And furthermore, even if you are intent on continuing to worry despite all of that, worrying is not progressive or result-yielding. You spend time being stressed and then that time is gone and nothing is accomplished except the detriment of your mental/physical health.

(6:28-32) God takes care of the things that he gives life to. Birds. Flowers. Humans. All of it. If you are worrying, you are not trusting God. Develop your trust with Him so that you can stop worrying. He knows what you need better than you do - trust Him to take care of it.

(6:33) Readjust your focus. Direct your every intention in life toward all that God stands for and everything will naturally develop in your favor.

(6:34) Dedicate yourself to making the present moment better. Give the immediate situation your focus and intelligence and do not cloud it with worry. Be solution-oriented. Do not bog down the present moment with thoughts of what could happen the next day or week or year. If you are vigilant and smart in your day-to-day, the future will yield positive results.

NT: The Book of Matthew, Chapter 5

Matthew 5:1-48

(5:1-10) These verses exemplify why God is such a beautiful father. He loves to comfort and he especially loves people who love to comfort others. People with a lot of compassion have a difficult time handling the abundance of grief in the world. Often the very compassionate and humble are the doormat of others, neglected or used. Kind people have a natural tendency to give and give to others everything they have until there's nothing left (emotionally and otherwise). That selfless trait makes them vulnerable and sometimes a bit downtrodden. But if you can identify with those feelings, I assure that even if you feel like you're losing the race on Earth, you've already crossed the finish line in Heaven. 

God loves the meek because they have no pride or greed - kindness is their highest valued possession and they share it with everyone. So god inserts these lovely, blessed verses to remind you of that. What the world views as success and achievement is opposite of what God labels success and achieve. Having nothing is having everything if you've given it to others.

(5:11-12) All of the prophets in the Bible had a tumultuous journey. The prophets were obviously very strong and faithful people and yet some of them even struggled against the evil of the world. God rewards those who are mocked, threatened and hurt for His sake because you are not just defending God, you are defending the values he teaches. Standing against wicked, even if you're nervous or scared, is standing for kindness, patience and love. God blesses you not because you blindly follow Him but because you actively work in the service of protected good.

(5:13) I think of this salt metaphor in this way: Salt = Goodness. You are the goodness of the world, you are how goodness is born and spread and maintained. If you are not good (if you are salt without flavor) what is your purpose? It is useless to be a person without goodness.

(5:14-16) Another metaphor using light. Our purpose is to teach and exhibit peace and happiness. When we behave in such ways, we are a light... we drive out darkness. If we keep our goodness inside, to ourselves, or do not share it with the world (put it under a basket), again, we lose our purpose. 

God says to let your light shine before men because they best and most effective way to bring another person into the light is by your actions. You can speak and sing until your voice runs out without it having an effect on another but when you live by example, people are more likely to notice your triumphs and happiness despite the always present and inevitable challenges of life. You as a living example, is proof to them that a person can be optimistic and patient amid trouble.

(5:17) God makes sure that you know Jesus did not arrive to change the plan but to reinforce it. Everything He is teaching you in the New Testament had already been taught in the old.

(5:18) God's mission is important and will be fulfilled totally. You don't have to worry about the world ending because all of this will come true, every line, and we haven't completed the plan yet.

(5:19) If you teach or exemplify a bad way of life you will be stopped. If you teach and exemplify goodness... you will eternally prevail.

(5:20) You need to be better than the evil people. Choose their side and poof! you're gone.

(2:21-26) God takes it a step further in these two verses. He basically says, "Maybe before you thought you were a good person by not murdering others... but really that only makes you tolerable. Be even greater than that." Do not be constantly angry with people. If you are picking fights and tattling on people falsely for you gain... it will catch up to you, you will pay it all back.

(5:27-28) Have a pure heart. Don't do evil things but teach yourself not to think them as well (if you have that predilection) bad thoughts encourage you to make bad decisions.

(5:29-30) This is a metaphor - do not cut any physical part of yourself off. If a trait of yours is causing you to be cruel and unjust to others, stifle it. If the work of your hands is profiting you monetarily but is gained in a corrupt way, choose to be poor rather than successful in such a way. Readjust your perceptions, be more open and inquisitive about things that challenge or frustrate you... it's more difficult to go against your immediate, perhaps long-founded thoughts but changing the lens on your perception (eye) can enlighten you to be a better person. You might start to understand a frustrating situation better once you examine the complexity of it.

Again: I do not believe in hell. Fire is a metaphor for fully ridding of something.

(5:31-32) Back in the day, I mean way... way...back, a man provided for a woman. Divorcing her meant leaving her and your children to starve. Divorce was abandonment and a man would have to be quite evil to do such a thing. God is always all for mending relationships, he prefers that we all adjust ourselves to get along with others. Today (in many places), it is rare and unlikely that a couple decide not to divorce if they meet controversy in their relationship - but splitting up no longer, necessarily, leads to the detriment of the spouse. Each member of the relationship still has food and shelter... they aren't left to die. I do not consider divorce a sin but rather treating people inhumanely as a sin. Divorce can be rather civilized in this day and age.

(5:33-37) Be honest and stand by your word. If you say you are going to do something - do it, without fail or wavering. Be a man/woman of your word to establish trust in others. In 2015, a lot of people have or have had a lawyer at some point. Everything is contractual, written, binding. Nobody stands by their word and so trust no longer exists. You have to hold people to their word by threats and punishments and repercussions. Don't be the kind of person who has to say, "I swear on my life!" As God reminds you, everything is His, nothing is yours, not even your own body, to wager. If you mean what you say, just say it and let it be the truth.

(5:38-42) When someone wrongs you, do not wrong them back. Do you have to cherish and coddle evil-doers? No, but you should not stoop to their level. Continue be innocent and kind. If someone is every sincerely apologetic, give them more of yourself. Do you wish to be forgiven when you realize a mistake? Do not give your coat a way to a jerk who won't appreciate it but don't taunt him either for not having one. If he really is sorry and then asks you for something (probably more than a coat) be willing to give it. But make sure you are dealing with an honest person.

(5:43-47) These are some of my favorite, most instructive verses of the Bible.  If you are only kind and forgiving of your friends... what more do you do than the evil do with their friends? It is easy to be kind to kind people, you don't get too many points for that. What is awesome and beautiful to God is when you are strong enough, selfless enough, to be kind when it is difficult. Evil-doers do not have that ability. They care only about themselves and their cohorts.

At this time the tax-collections kind of ran the show. And they were corrupt. So God says, don't even the corrupt treat their friends well? Be bigger than just accepting of what is comfortable to you.

(5:48) Strive for perfection. It is impossible for a human to be perfect here on Earth but aiming for anything lower than perfection is laziness and does not fully promote good.

NT: The Book of Matthew, Chapter 4

Here we begin some of THE MOST instructive chapters of the Bible on how to live life fairly and under the protective wing of God. It is easy to read and understand, common sense guidance which we often neglect and overlook. It naturally reestablishes a purposeful and stable foundation for which to live and learn among others - both those who give us happiness and those who give us strife.

Matthew 4:1-25

4:1 As mentioned in Chapter 3, Jesus is not too proud to undergo the same challenges humanity must also face. His entire life is an example in the experience of life on how to respond in accordance with God. After His baptism by John the Baptist, Jesus is led by God to be tempted by Satan.

Before we continue, let us discuss Satan. Satan is not to be feared, in ANY way, if you follow God's instruction on how not to be deceived by him. In Luke 10:19 God lets us know that we have power over Satan if we are with God. He can't harm us. Why fear something you have power over? Satan is not to be feared and despite how the world seems to perceive him, he is not ugly or scary, red or in possession of an angry tail, horns or pitchfork. He's actually quite handsome and smart - and he certainly knows enough scripture to try to trick you with (in fact he knows scripture backward and forward). We will see this during Jesus' time with him in this study. Don't let Satan know MORE scripture than you do...he'll certainly use it against you as he tries to do in this study with Jesus.

4:2 Jesus fasted forty days and forty nights. You can take this as literally or figuratively as you like. Fasting generally means that you consume small portions during a short time-frame and then neglect food and water for the entire day. When or if you decide to fast, it is a more tangible way to express to God that you are committed to Him and willing to sacrifice convenience and abundance for Him. God will give instructions in Matthew on how to properly fast but essentially it's only something you want to do if you know how to do it healthily and if you truly believe in what or Who you're doing it for. Otherwise you really just waste your time and God's!

The number 40 is used often as a length of time for testing. Jesus is about to be testing and is prepared for it after fasting (devoting himself entirely to God without distraction).

4:3 Satan has a lot of names. Here he is called the tempter because he is trying to tempt Jesus away from God (not possible!) but again, it is an example of what he will and does try to do to you. Just as much as God is a way of life, Satan can be too. Satan probably isn't standing next to you all day pushing you to do bad things, but living in a way that is satisfying to him is falling into temptation itself. Choosing wrong over right is choosing to be tempted by the things Satan stands for: wickedness and deception.

So Satan is mocking Jesus here. He is basically saying, "If you're so high and mighty, after all of that fasting for 40 days and nights, you should be pretty hungry... why don't you magically change these stones to bread and eat?" But Jesus is smarter, far smarter than this wack-job and responds:

4:4 Jesus quotes scripture. You should be able to discern when someone is being a jerk or using what you believe to be truth against you like Jesus did... maybe you can't recall the exact verse like Jesus, but do not be so vulnerable to Satan as to fall into his deception the first time he opens his mouth.

Jesus quotes Deuteronomy and introduces us to a new metaphor: that God is our bread. This is symbolic of God being our sustenance - a far greater sustenance than measly bread is. Jesus implies to Satan that He is not hungry or desperate for food because He receives life from God. With food you can live a long life, maybe, but with God you live forever. Smart metaphor Jesus, but Satan is not yet done with You...

4:5-6 Satan continues to mock Jesus. Satan wants Jesus to fling himself off of a building. He wants Jesus to show Satan that God will save Him... perhaps Satan or maybe even you need such proof from God that He actually exists but Jesus does not. Jesus knows that God is real and therefore will not waste His time proving it (especially not to such a jerk!)

4:7 Jesus quotes scripture (He is firm in the word and uses it to get out of all snares, as we all should do!) Do not tempt God. It kind of disgraces God when you command Him to prove Himself. Think of it on a more personal level, if you are an honest person, does it feel nice to have someone constantly disbelieve in you? I want people to love and trust me but not at the expense of always being dared by them. It's not true trust and love if done in such a way.

4:8 This is Satan's last chance. He 1) tried to discredit God by seeing if Jesus could turn stones into bread (He could if He wanted to but found it unnecessary) then he 2) tried to get Jesus to hop off of a building to make God look like a fool upon His splat! on the ground (Jesus would not have died after jumping) and finally Satan decides to try to win Jesus over with the promise of wealth and power. Examine in your own soul: can you be bought by power and wealth? Really, honestly think about what value power and money have inside of your heart.

4:9 Satan says, if you worship me (instead of God) I will give you all of this power, all of this wealth, everything on earth will be in your control. Satan is power hungry, he craves control... he wants servants to destroy and deceive. Satan is deception and wicked, even if someone did bow to him they would never be able to claim the power and riches they were promised. He is dishonest. He will say and do anything for power.

Jesus has had enough with Satan at this point. Jesus quotes scripture and says that he will only ever worship the true God.

Jesus assuredly did not need testing. He was never tempted by Satan but he went through the experience for us to analyze ourselves in such a situation. If some person rejects you because you cannot perform a miracle as proof of your God, are you going to crumble in your faith? If another person tempts you prove that God loves and will save you by putting yourself in danger are you really going to disgrace God by questioning His word. He is honest and He loves you, will you require Him to prove it just to placate a bully? And are you willing to sell your soul for the wealth, fame and control? It is easy to say, "No, of course not!, but our lives are a long journey of decision-making and if we are not careful to respond to each intricate situation with humility and goodness, we can easily get swept into temptation. We can easily start believing that stability and happiness comes from material gain. It starts small and is not always apparent.

4:12-17 Jesus begins to preach His message all around. Note that John has been put in prison: those pesky haters, much like Herod in Chapter 1, cannot stand to see their authority threatened. God and Jesus preach a path to peace but there are always obstacles along the way wishing to thwart that goodness. John and Jesus are each on their own journeys but both are guided by God. Imprisoned or not, John is free with God and both he and Jesus know this - they continue on their journeys, together but separate, in bringing about God's word.

4:18 Jesus begins to procure disciples. We will get to know these men intimately and they will serve as close-up examples of how it is to learn the word for the first time. Being chosen by Jesus, while awesome requires of them much work and faith! In Luke 12:48 we learn that those of us who receive a lot from God are required to give a lot back to the rest of His children. It is an honor but also it is a responsibility. Learning the word through the teachings of Christ to the disciples makes understanding really simple and accessible: when they need further explanation on a matter (we probably do too!) so Jesus breaks it down even easier.

4:19 Another metaphor. Jesus chooses two fishermen. Peter and Andrew gather fish for a living and Christ uses a profession they are familiar with to bring the word to them. He promises to make them fishers of men if they follow Him. Meaning that if they live by what he Has to teach, they will teach many men and women to live by the same teachings and therefore deliver them to God.

4:20 They immediately follow Jesus. They recognize his goodness and give up their earthly life, everything that they know, are willing to give up the life that is familiar to them in service of this greater purpose. Wow. Is your faith that strong?

4:21-24 Jesus chooses more disciples to follow Him and continues on his path of peace, preaching and teaching by word and example on the best way to live. He dedicates His entire life to this mission of God. It is a selfless and saving act for His brothers and sisters.

When first encountering Jesus' healing abilities in the scripture, I believed His ability to heal was simply an act of His knowing how to heal various illnesses using the materials and plants of the Earth (as we do today) teaching cleanliness and hygiene can mute a lot of illnesses, for example. But whether or not Jesus actually touched and miraculously healed, or healed in a more scientific manner, I do not doubt that either method is lacking from His arsenal. Interpret it as you wish! (Side note: for me God and science have always been intertwined. Many people think each fight for domination but for me, they are each the same).

4:25 Great multitudes of people are following Jesus. It is so much easier to follow an entity that is right before you performing miraculous things but as God tells you, those who believe in Him without the aid and benefit of concrete proof... well, their belief in Him is all the sweeter and truer. (John 20:29)