Scripture

“To those who use well what they are given even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.”

Observation

The kingdom of heaven is like a man going on a long trip. He gives five bags of silver to one servant, three to another, and just one bag of silver to another. The first two servants work hard and invest the master’s money to double it. The third servant buries the master’s money in the ground.

The master returns, and the first two servants present him with his money which they have doubled. The third servant returns the original amount of money to the master.

The master commends the two servants and gives them more responsibility. The money is taken from the hapless third servant and given to the first one. The third servant is cast out of the household.

Application

We are used to seeing this parable in terms of our gifts and talents. But really it applies to every part of our lives- our time, money, abilities, opportunities, and so on.

Our whole life is to be dedicated to the Lord. Everything we have comes from Him, and belongs to Him.

Like the servant in the story, we do not own what has been given to us. We are managers on God’s behalf.

The issue is not whether I have a lot to offer to God. It is all about my desire to honour Him with what I do have.

Prayer

Lord, with you in the first place, there is no second place. Everything is subject to you. May my choices and my desires glorify your name. Amen.

Scripture

“Later when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling ‘Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!’ But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’”

Observation

The Kingdom of heaven, Jesus tells us, is like ten bridesmaids waiting for the groom. Five were wise and took extra oil for their lamps, but five were foolish and did not take enough oil.

The bridegroom is delayed. When he arrives, late at night, the five foolish girls find they have run out of oil.

While the foolish bridesmaid are away buying oil, the bridegroom comes and takes the wise girls to the wedding feast. The foolish girls finally arrive, but they find the door is locked and they are not allowed in.

Application

This parable seems harsh, but the message is clear; if we are not ready, we will not be allowed to enter into the kingdom.

The sin of the foolish bridesmaids is that they were not ready for the bridegroom. They thought they had enough oil, but had not factored in a delay. Their own preparations were inadequate.

Many people think that their good deeds or occasional religious observances will get them there. They think that they are good enough for God.

We can never be good enough for God if that is the standard we want to be judged by.

The foolish bridesmaids should have known the bridegroom better. The wise ones made provision for the fact that the groom would be delayed. They knew him, and they knew he would stop to chat with his family and old school friends along the way. They were ready for the inevitable.

To enter God’s kingdom we have to know Jesus, the bridegroom. Your destiny does not depend on how good you are or how knowledgeable. You must know Jesus.

Prayer

Thank you Jesus for the gift of eternal life that comes from you. Amen.

Scripture

“For as lightning flashes in the east and shines in the west, so it will be when the Son of Man comes.”

Observation

The day is coming, says Jesus, when the abomination of desolation foretold by the prophet Daniel will stand in the Holy Place of the Temple. Then people must flee without delay from Jerusalem and Judea. There will be great anguish and suffering.

We must not be misled by people claiming that the Messiah is here. When the Son of Man returns it will be as sudden and obvious as lightning in the sky.

Application

There is so much confusion in the Body of Christ about the End Times and the return of the Lord.

In this section, Jesus is warning His followers about some events that would soon happen. Not long after His crucifixion, nationalistic movements emerged in Israel. A revolution around the year 66 removed the Roman occupying forces from Jerusalem and parts of Judea. The impetus for this was the installation of military banners in the Temple, interpreted by many Jewish leaders as the “abomination of desolation” spoken of in Daniel.

The Romans returned in 70 AD and besieged Jerusalem. They were able to recapture the city and destroyed much of it, including the Temple. It was said that they crucified so many people that the forests were totally cleared of trees.

In Jesus’ time, a generation before these events, many people claimed to be the Messiah. Some stayed in the desert. Movements sprang up claiming that the Messiah had come , but was hidden- a spiritual coming that only the enlightened ones could see.

Jesus says that when He returns, you will not miss it. There will be no secret coming, but a return that the whole world will see.

Every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, I know that you will come back one day. In the meantime, please help me to be faithful and obedient to you. Amen.

Scripture

“And the Good News about the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it, and then the end will come.”

Observation

As Jesus and His followers leave the Temple precinct, Jesus points back at the Temple and says that all of the buildings will be completely destroyed.

Later, at the Mount of Olives, the disciples come and ask Him when these things will happen, and what will be the signs of the end of the age.

Jesus warns them that there will be many who come and claim to be the Messiah. There will be wars and rumours of wars, and many disasters. The disciples will be hated and persecuted all over the world. There will be rampant sin, but those who endure to the end will be saved.

The Good News about the kingdom will be preached throughout the world, and then the end will come.

Application

The end times are always popular, but there is very much confusion about these issues.

The phrase “the end of the world” should be translated as “the end of the age.” The destruction of the Temple was a real event that happened in the year 70, and it really marked the end of the age as far as Israel was concerned.

People have been confusing the end of the age with the end of the world for years, while overlooking the most obvious sign of all.

The end will come after the gospel is preached to all nations. Even when the gospel has gone to all nations, and the nations have heard it, there is no promise here that the end will come immediately.

We don’t have the time and date for the return of Christ, because that is for God alone to know.

We do know that God intends for every nation to hear the Good News. Instead of speculating and worrying about events that we cannot control, we should pray for the nations to receive the gospel.

Prayer

Lord, I pray for my nation of Australia. Send revival, Lord, and let this nation be transformed by your gospel. Amen.

Scripture

“I tell you the truth, this judgement will fall on this very generation.”

Observation

Jesus continues to condemn the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and religious leaders.

He condemns them for scrupulously washing the outside of their cups and plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.

The teachers and Pharisees are like white-washed tombs- clean on the outside, but full of corruption on the inside.

They build monuments to the prophets whom their ancestors murdered. They claim that if they had been alive at the time they would have never got involved in killing them. Jesus will send prophets and teachers, and the Pharisees will persecute them. They will be held accountable for all of the deaths of godly people.

Jesus finishes with a lament for the people of Jerusalem. He wishes to gather them together and protect them but they would not let Him.

Application

This sounds like a very harsh judgement on the Pharisees and teachers of the Law. Yet, it is true that those who trust in their own deeds of righteousness and not in the blood of Christ to save them will be judged. There is one way, and one way only, to be saved from hell, and that is through faith in Christ.

Jesus warns them that the generation at that time in the world would face the judgement of God. This is not about the end times.

In the year 66, a group of revolutionaries managed to force the Romans out of Jerusalem and several other cities and established a free state of Israel. Rome responded in force, and in 70 AD besieged Jerusalem. Eventually they were able to retake it, and the city, including the Temple, was destroyed. Thousands of people were killed.

When God’s judgement falls on a people, it falls quickly and terribly.

Prayer

Lord, search my heart today. Convict me of any hypocrisy and false religion. Help me to trust you entirely for my salvation. Amen.

Scripture

“You are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the  more important aspects of the law –  justice, mercy, and faith.”

Observation

Jesus launches into a condemnation of the religious teachers and the Pharisees. He warns them of God’s judgement for their sins.

Jesus accuses the Pharisees and teachers of shutting the door of God’s Kingdom in the faces of people. They themselves won’t go in, but they make it hard for others to go in as well. 

The teachers and Pharisees cross the land and sea to make a convert, and then they make that person twice the child of hell that they are. They corrupt the intention of the Law by teaching that a vow made “ by the altar” is not binding,, but a vow  made “ by the gifts on the altar”  is. 

Pharisees are diligent to tithe from the herbs in the garden, but they neglect the more important aspects of the law –  justice, mercy, and faith.

Application

God is not impressed by our virtuous tithing, if our hearts are not surrendered to him .

The problem with the Pharisees of Jesus’ day, and many Christians today, is that they see pleasing God as a matter of keeping rules scrupulously. They dot their i’s and cross their t’s only to discover that God is not reading their book.

Tithing is important. More important, though, is to love God with all of our heart, strength, soul, and mind.

Living righteously is important. More important, however, is that we love our neighbour as we love ourselves.

Prayer

Father, I confess that I sometimes feel morally superior to others because I don’t sin the way they do. Please help me to surrender myself completely to you and to seek your face in everything I do. Amen

 Scripture

“Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Observation

The teachers and Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses, Jesus says, so follow their teaching. But do not follow their example, because they don’t practise what they teach. They are proud and do things for show and to be honoured by the other people. We should not call people” Rabbi”  or “ Father” or “teacher”.

The greatest among us must be a servant. Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, but those who humble themselves will be exalted.

Application

The kingdom of God Is upside down by most human standards. We should avoid revelling in titles, and to lead we have to be a servant.

When we try to push ourselves forward, or to call attention to our selves, it is almost certain we will be pulled down. The self-promoters fool very few people.

What inspires people is when they find a leader who is humble. It Is often called being genuine. In other words we  want leaders who show us that they are human and not just a projection of what they think we want to see.

Last weekend, world tennis number 1, Ash Barty, won Wimbledon for the first time. I’m not a tennis fan, but I have always been struck by the simple humility of this very talented athlete. She always takes time to thank her team for their support, something that you don’t hear often in individual sports people.

Jesus was always down to earth in his teaching and in his interactions with people. He did not make big statements such as “ I am the Messiah, worship me.”  He taught, He healed, He performed miracles, and He let people come to their own conclusion.

 If it’s good enough for the Son of God to  act that way, it’s good enough for me.

Prayer

Lord, please help me to remember that any success that I have comes as a gift from you. When I am tempted to be proud, let me humble myself. Amen.

Scripture

Jesus replied, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.”

Observation

The Pharisees again come to test Jesus with a question, “What is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”

Jesus replies with not one but two commandments: Love God with all your heart and love your neighbour. The entire law and the demands of the prophets rest on these two commandments.

Jesus then asks the Pharisees, “Who is the Messiah? Whose son is he?” They reply that he is the Son of David. Jesus asks how this can be when David himself calls him “my Lord”?

Application

The fundamental instruction at the heart of discipleship is that we love God with all that we are. Whole- hearted worship of the Lord is the only acceptable response to His love for us.

Jesus reminds us that worship of God must also lead us to love for God’s people, and so we must love our neighbours as we love ourselves.

Everything that christians do, then, must be motivated by love for God and for His people.

I must ensure that my heart is clean at this point, because it is so easy to deceive myself.

Do I really worship God with a pure motive?

Do I really serve my neighbour from love of for the approval of other people?

We shouldn’t lose ourselves in introspection, so that we end up loving neither God nor people. Rather we just need to keep our motivations clean.

A life of worship of God and serving the people around us us the life that God has planned for every person.

Prayer

Lord please help me to keep my eyes on you, to love you with all my heart and to love the people you have placed around me. Amen.

Scripture

Jesus replies, “Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures and you don’t know the power of God.”

Observation

The Pharisees meet together to plot how to trap Jesus into saying something that they can have Him arrested for. They come to Jesus and pose the question, “Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar?” Jesus asks them whose face is inscribed on the coin. He says they should give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.

The Sadducees also try to trap Jesus. They ask Him a long question involving a man with several brothers. The first man dies without leaving a child, so the wife is passed down along the line, but none of them is able to produce a child. The question is this: “Whose wife will she be in the resurrection?”

Jesus replies that there is no marrying or child bearing in eternity. He then addresses the root problem which is the resurrection of the dead. Jesus says that God is the God of the living not the dead, so therefore we will be raised from the dead.

Application

Many christians are like the Sadducees. They do not know the Scriptures or the power of God,

There is beauty and power to be found in the Word of God. In the Scriptures we meet the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We are confronted with both the love and holiness of God. In the word we see the power of the gospel to save, and its power to transform lives.

When we come to the Lord we receive the Holy Spirit and the power of God. We can know that our prayers are answered. We can expect to see people healed, the dead raised and the blind to see. We can also expect to see people turn to Jesus as the Holy Spirit works in their lives in response to our prayers.

We need both the Word and the power. If you have the Word but no Spirit you will dry up. If you have the Spirit without the Word you will blow up. If you have both the Spirit and the Word you will grow up.

Prayer

Lord God, I thank you for the Scriptures and the gift of the Holy Spirit, Lead me in my walk with you so that I come to maturity in faith. Amen.