88th Week, Matthew Chapters 15-17 (Click on the Title for a Video Introduction)

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 Click on Title for a Video Introduction

Monday, Matthew Chapter 15 (Verses 1-20)
Matthew 15A
Verse 18
Tanya Ruden

Verse 18:  “But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man unclean.”

THOUGHT
I haven’t really heard of it this way before that everything that comes from our mouth is from the heart.  So when we say something mean, we really mean it.  How often have you said something and then said, “I didn’t really mean that.”?  Our heart never lies.  We need to pray for the feelings in our heart especially when they are not positive.  When they come out in words, they are unclean and sinful and hurtful and unlike Jesus. 

It again goes back to what we have heard so often about our outward appearance.  It is what’s in the inside that really counts, not what we put on the outside.  We need to take good care of our hearts so that it is clean and pure and never hurtful or unclean. 

PRAYER
Dear Jesus, as the song says, “clean my heart, oh God, make it ever true; clean my heart, oh God, may it be like you.”  Words so often can be hurtful, to those who hear them and those who say them.  The Bible says that what we say is felt in our hearts.  May our hearts always be clean and not full of garbage. Take the garbage away and make us full of love and kindness for all.  AMEN


Tuesday, Matthew 15 (Verses 21-39)
Matthew 15B
Verses 32-39
Tanya Ruden

Verses 32-39

THOUGHT
At first when I sat down to do this chapter, I thought that I was doing the wrong chapter because it was just like what we read yesterday about Jesus feeding the five thousand.  As you will recall He fed the 5000 in chapter 14, and here He is feeding 4000 with 7 baskets left over. I think as a child I learned these as one story with bits and pieces of both, but didn’t realize until now that these were 2 separate events.  I wanted to highlight the fact that Jesus fed the people more than once, performing this type of miracle time and time again.  God provided for these people.  This is a reminder that God will always provide for our needs, not just once, but time and time again.

PRAYER
Dear Jesus, when we feel stressed about our daily needs and the money needed to provide for them, may we always remember that You will provide for us. You have stated it so many times in the Bible.  The miracles of the feeding of the 5,000 and 4,000 are just two examples of providing for Your people’s daily needs.  May we always remember this, and know that with faith in You, You will provide.  AMEN


Wednesday, Matthew Chapter 16
Matthew 16
Verses 19 & 24
Tanya Ruden

Verses 19 & 24:  “whatever you bind on earth will be bound in Heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in Heaven... If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”

THOUGHT
I realize most of us have heard most of the stories and verses we read in Matthew.  This chapter and section of verses above have been heard by all of us before.  My Bible states it pretty bluntly, “Following Jesus, therefore meant a true commitment, the risk of death, and no turning back.” 

I know in today’s day and age we have so much to be thankful for that we don’t usually have to fear death when we talk about Jesus.  However, we do fear persecution of other kinds, but when compared to death, I begin to feel pretty silly fearing what people will think or talk about me.  Also, we should realize that there is no keeping parts of the world’s ways.  We must accept all of Jesus and His teaching, not just the parts that are convenient for us now. 

So just a reminder of something that we all know; “Make a true commitment to Jesus with no turning back”.

PRAYER
Dear Jesus, may we always remember our commitment to You.  We must take this commitment seriously and never turn back.  Help us stand strong in our commitment and not allow the world to pull us away from it.  We love You, Jesus, and desire to follow You always.  AMEN


Thursday, Matthew Chapter 17
Matthew 17
Jeanie Boldt
November 19, 2006

THOUGHT
Tanya, thanks for all the personal thoughts this week. You always get me thinking about how I would be if I would have been walking with Jesus at that exact moment. I know one thing. I don’t think I would have gotten some of the parables. I would have rather had Jesus just say it out loud - this is how it is. Maybe you are a little quicker than me. However, I am glad that I have had years to study the Word and reread these incredible stories. I don’t know if I would have understood if I would have been in the crowd.  However, I guess we would have left that up to God our Father.

Anyway, I guess that is why I loved Chapter 17 so much. It speaks the truth. This Chapter is so full especially when Peter, James and John saw the transfiguration of Our Christ.  How awesome that was for them. They saw, and here they had truth spoken to them.  Verse 5 says, “This is my Son, whom I love, with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

Again the Lord finally said it right out loud in verse 22 and 23. “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised to life.”  This was not told as a story portraying something else.  Jesus spoke the truth.

He spoke the truth regarding our faith and also about obeying the law so as not to offend people.

We need to LISTEN to the King.
We must TRUST in the King.
We must OBEY the King.

PRAYER
Father God, as we live this week of Thanksgiving, may we wear our knees out with words of adoration for all that You have given us.  Our health, our homes, our cars, our food, our family and friends and special events for fellowship are just extra for us.  The gift of Your Son and Our Salvation is praise worthy as we live each day.  Thank You for the parables You shared, but most of all thank You for the words of truth that were spoken so that we can live them in our hearts and reread them day after day in Your Word. The memory of visions will fade, but the Word of God lives forever. May we HEAR HIM daily so we can TRUST with growing faith and OBEY so that our actions will reflect JESUS OUR SAVIOR.  AMEN

Friday, Prayer
Father, help us understand all that Jesus taught.  May we be good listeners by being in the Word of  God.  We ask You to increase our faith so that we may be a part of the solid rock like Peter.  Bless each of us indeed and enlarge our territory for You.  Protect us and encourage us!!  In the Name of Jesus.  AMEN





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