Read Matthew 5:20. What does Jesus mean when He says that unless our righteousness “surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law” (NIV), we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven? Though salvation has always been by faith, and though Judaism, as it should have been practiced, was always a system of grace, … Continue reading –>
Some Christians view the Sermon on the Mount as a new “law of Christ,” one that replaced the “Law of God.” They say that a system of legalism was now replaced with a system of grace, or that Jesus’ law differs from the Law of God itself. These views are misconceptions about the Sermon on … Continue reading –>
Skim through the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. Summarize on the lines below what stands out the most in your mind about it, about what it says to you. “Perhaps no other religious discourse in the history of humanity has attracted the attention which has been devoted to the Sermon on the Mount. … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Matthew 5-7, Rom. 7:7, Gen. 15:6, Micah 6:6-8, Luke 6:36, Matt. 13:44-52, Rom. 8:5-10. Memory Text:“When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law” (Matthew 7:28-29, NIV). In the … Continue reading –>
An evangelist came to town and advertised his meeting like this: “Come see a preacher tear a page out of the Bible!” That, no doubt, brought a crowd. He then stood before them, opened his Bible, and—to their astonishment—tore out a page. “This page,” he said, “never belonged there. It’s the page separating the Old … Continue reading –>
“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 4:17, NKJV). Just like John, Jesus began His ministry with a call to repentance. He knew, as did John, the fallen state of humanity and the need for all people to repent and come to a knowledge of God. Thus, it’s not surprising that His … Continue reading –>
Matthew 4:12 tells about the imprisonment of John, thus ending his ministry. At this point, Jesus’ ministry “officially” begins. The text doesn’t say why, when Jesus heard about John, He went to Galilee, only that He did. (See also Mark 1:14-16 and Luke 4:14.)Perhaps, while John was still preaching, Jesus wanted to keep a lower … Continue reading –>
Read Matthew 4:1-12. What happened here with these temptations? Why did Jesus have to go through this? What does this story have to do with salvation? How did Jesus endure such powerful temptations under such hard conditions, and what should that tell us about enduring temptations? Matthew 4:1 starts out with what seems like a … Continue reading –>
“Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil” (Matt. 4:1, NKJV). Imagine this scene from the perspective of Satan himself. The divine, exalted Being whom he knew as the Son of God had now lowered Himself—had taken on human flesh—in order to save the human race. This was … Continue reading –>
Matthew 3 begins with John the Baptist, whose first recorded word in the text is an imperative—“Repent!” (Matt. 3:2). In one way, that’s a summary of what God has been saying to humanity since the Fall: Repent, accept My forgiveness, put away your sins, and you will find Redemption and rest for your souls. And … Continue reading –>
