Friday, September 4, 2009

Daily Reading: Matthew 10-11

Reading Through the Bible in a Year!
Posted by at

4 comments:

  1. "Virtuous Wannabe"September 4, 2009 at 2:42 AM

    In Matthew 10, the disciples were given authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out and to heal every disease and affliction. Mike used to have a saying when he taught SS, "the disciples weren't given jet fuel and us unleaded"....they are no different than us when faced with too much authority. I think it was later in scripture when they began arguing over who would be greatest among them.
    In verse 14 - Jesus tells the disciples that if anyone will not receive or listen to shake the dust off their feet and move on. Just another reminder that we are just seed planters....Jesus knew that people would reject the hope found in Christ.
    In verses 16-23, Jesus warns the disciples of the coming persecution they would endure but reminds them of His power to speak thru them and the eternal rewards that would come from enduring the persecution. I often ask myself, "What would make me willing to endure persecution"...I think it would involve consistently thinking "kingdom minded" instead of being bound to this temporal world we live in.
    Verse 34 reminds me that when I'm tempted to view Jesus as a "peace loving grandpa/Santa" in the sky that I need to remember that He did not come to bring peace but a sword.
    Verse 37 reminds me that He has got to come before EVERYTHING :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. johnaraulersonSeptember 4, 2009 at 6:03 AM

    Matthew 10:14 And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town. ESV

    Jesus did not send forth His disciples/laborers of the harvest without first giving them careful instruction. He gave specific instruction concerning those who would not receive their words (the Gospel): “Shake the dust off your feet.” This idiom appears to have a two-fold meaning: 1) move on, and 2) don’t take any of their rebellious ideas with you. Jesus had said earlier, “The fields are white unto harvest,” meaning there are many ready to receive the Gospel. In practical terms Jesus is telling his disciples and us today, “Why should you labor in fields which are not ready and reject the Gospel when there are fields which are ready to be harvested and wait for the Gospel?” Many times we waste much time, energy and resources on those who clearly have no interest in hearing or receiving the good news of Jesus Christ. We must move on; and when we go we must not allow the negative or unholy spirit of those who reject to go with us. We must “shake it off” and move on to the fields white unto harvest.

    ReplyDelete
  3. debseverydaySeptember 4, 2009 at 1:17 PM

    Reading the last verses of Matthew 11 gave me such comfort today. And as I read verse 29, when Jesus says 'Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me...' the Holy Spirit showed me that not only is Jesus offering me His rest and comfort, He is also teaching me how to provide rest and comfort for others.

    ReplyDelete
  4. TondaSeptember 4, 2009 at 10:34 PM

    11:12 has always intrigued me. "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force"... Sounds like territory is trying to be taken by two opposing forces. Sounds like we are in a war. I believe it would behoove us all to remember that we have a violent enemy who is constantly scheming to rob us of the kingdom of God within...Romans 14:17 says the kingdom of God is not meat or drink but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. Aggression is imperative to maintain our ground because we have an aggressive enemy that must be overcome. We can't afford to be passive - There's too much at stake.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)