Beware of the Leaven of the Pharisees
12:1 In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 3 Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.
Have No Fear
4 “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. 5 But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him! 6 Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. 7 Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.
Acknowledge Christ Before Men
8 “And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God, 9 but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. 10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. 11 And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, 12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”
The Parable of the Rich Fool
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
Do Not Be Anxious
22 And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. 24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! 25 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 26 If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? 27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29 And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. 30 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
You Must Be Ready
35 “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning, 36 and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks. 37 Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them. 38 If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants! 39 But know this, that if the master of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have left his house to be broken into. 40 You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
41 Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for all?” 42 And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? 43 Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 44 Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. 45 But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk, 46 the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful. 47 And that servant who knew his master’s will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating. 48 But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.
Not Peace, but Division
49 “I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! 50 I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished! 51 Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. 52 For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. 53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
Interpreting the Time
54 He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. 55 And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and it happens. 56 You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?
Settle with Your Accuser
57 “And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? 58 As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. 59 I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.” (ESV)
19And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ‘
20″But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
21″This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”
This passage is perfect for those high schoolers who want to live it up now and put off getting right with God until later. How do they know they will not die today? How do they know Jesus won’t return right now? How do they know their hard won’t get so hard they will never come back?
Yesterday at Fall Fest I was talking with someone who said they were too busy to go to church. I had been praying for an open door like this! I said,
“Well what would happen if you died?”
They replied that they just liked to live in the now, so I asked what if later came.
At this point the guy looked at me with wide eyes and asked, “Who are you?”
We need to let people know they cannot put repentance off, but need to turn to Jesus today!
verse seven really stuck out to me!
It really stresses how ‘in among our presence’ God really is.WoW!
anyways.Bobby, thats completely true.we have such a legit relationship with God and i wish everyone could feel the peace inside of me and the joy that comes to me when i just think of being in the presence of my savior one day.so many people are corrupted and if it is Gods will for them to enter the kingdom of heaven, then they will.but like i said yesterday in my post.we need to do our part as christians and go out into the world and make disciples.
actually, we really do.we continuously say we are going to do something, yet we hold back and put it off for later.it took me years to finally start digging deep into my bible.and now that i am, i really regret those years that i missed growing with God.we need to get into action and really do what God wants us to do!!our group for evangelism on sat nights should be multiplying each week, not dividing in half!i think this saturday…well today.and next sat etc, we should really go out together and evangelize.but not just saturday nights, every day!
MARANATHA
Ahhh, this chapter was just so encouraging!!!! From the ultimate provision and care of God to His returning and telling us to be watchful and ready, I was just excited as I read thru this chapter! Vs 31 really stood out to me:
31 But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
Christ is saying that we need to put Him first. We shouldnt be worrying about anything else except following Him. He will provide the things that we need. Its amazing to think that He takes care of every little creature of the world, how much more will He take care of His children if we just trust Him!?
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37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.
Are we ready for Christ’s imminent return!? We should be thinking about it, and telling people about it everyday of our lives. Lets be praying Maranatha! everyday and be focussed on Him and His return as King!!
2 There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.
The reason a lot of people turn their backs on Christianity is because it requires a confession that we are incapable of making it to heaven on our own. They feel that if they can somehow stay away from God’s truth, their sin will not be exposed and they will not have to realize how truly sinful they are (John 3:19-20). But according to this verse, everything they have ever done in secret is known by the Lord and will be brought out on Judgement Day. This can be a scary concept, but a lot of us let it stop there and don’t think about the application it has for Christians. We will not have to pay the price for our sin, thanks to Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, but that does not mean that we are justified in living in sin. Just as nonChristians should have a fear of God’s Judgement, we also need to have a fear of the Lord that will lead us to live a life that is above reproach, whatever situation we find ourselves in.
51Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division
The Lord is going to seperate the followers from the non-followers, the sheep from the goats. Jesus is not going to bring peace to the earth in Judgment Day and with the Flood with Noah’s ark, and what He did to Capernum, Korazin, and Bethsaida which Christ has done miracles but still did not repent.
40You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
He will come at the stranges of all moments and when we are least expecting it . we always have to be ready for the coming day. so lets go ot and evangelize to our schools and tell them that gods wrath is coming.
31But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
This verse shows that if we keep our focus on heaven and heaven alone, then we will get everlasting treasures instead of treasures on earth.
verse 37 is quite convicting
as jacob said, are we ready for Christ’s imminent return?
we should be glorifying Him with every chance we get.
how lame sauce would it be if Christ returned and we werent doing something to glorify Him.
5But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.
When i read this verse, i think of all my friends who are non believers…most of them think o we have plenty of time to change and repent, but i dont think they understand where they are going if they die…point is, if you think about it they do not fear God,and they need to! because like this verse says after our earthly body dies He also has the power to throw us into hell:[
25Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
this is a verse that directly relates to me…i used to be a constant worry wart and sadly i still can be. But this verse gives me so much comfort, this verse makes worrying sound so silly, Jesus is right im not adding time to my life by worrying about every microscopic detail! Memorizing this verse has helped me to relax and put all my stress and worries into God’s hands…its a much better way to go about my life!
40You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
Reading this verse makes me want to make sure i am doing everything for Christ, spreading his word, living and constantly speaking with abounding joy because we do not know when He is coming back for us. It could be any second any day and when HE comes back i want to be sure i am glorifying Him!
see you guys at church tonight!!
51Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.
52From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three.
This chapter has so many things to learn. these verses stuck out to me the most. There is so much division in families. Maybe we shouldn’t worry so much about family problems but instead we should make sure that we are right with God and make sure that we stand for our convictions
8 “I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God.
9 But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God.
It’s important to keep these verses in mind as we grow in our faith – never should we be ashamed to tell people about Jesus and the difference He has made in our lives. There shouldn’t be such thing as a “closet Christian” – we should all be out there freely telling people about Christ instead of acting like He is something to be embarrassed about.
47″That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows.
48But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
This is the WORST CASE SCENARIO that Pastor Bobby preached on a few weeks ago. We are all so blessed to be at True North and Compass Bible Church where we hear God’s word preached accuarately and clearly. However, we are accountable for what we know. Obedience is God’s EXPECTATION for us, it is not optional as we may sometimes be tempted to think We need to DO what we know is right.
45But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk.
46The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.
47″That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows
Jesus will return! and when he does we need to be ready for him! It is just like is these verses: the servant kicked back and said that his master wont be back for a long time. When his master came back he was not prepared for his return and he was punished for it. It is the same with Christ’s return. Are we just kicking it back and telling ourselves that Jesus isnt coming back for a long time? Do not think that! Jesus is coming when you least expect it and we need to be prepared for it.
22Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.
23Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.
24Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!
25Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
Verses about worrying always remind me of one of my favorite quotes from John MacArthur, “worrying about tomorrow equals doubting God’s power, sovereignty, and love.” It’s so true!
47″That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows.
48But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
My husband totally stole my comment! These verses reminded me of us aat True North because we know our Master’s will 100%. We hear the truth preached week after week at church and God will hold us accountable for what we know. If we have not repented the time to do so is NOW because if we do not we will have a worse punishment than someone who did not hear the truth spoken week after week.
ummmmmm wowzers……… there was so much great stuff in that chapter.
2There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.
3What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs.
This was the first part that really stuck out. What can anyone hide from God…nothing at all. This is comforting to some degree but also scary. I hate the sin that I have done that people may not know about but God does….I also know the times I have feared men not thinking about fearing the Lord and it is horible. This verse should convince us to always have our thoughts, words and actions always focused on the Lord.
22Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.
23Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.
24Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!
25Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
26Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?
27″Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.
28If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!
29And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it.
30For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them.
31But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
This to me is one of the richest passages of scripture. It is so easy to get caught up in the world and the “things” of the world. This has been a struggle of mine for a long time in desiring material possessions. This passage reminds me that I need not worry about the things of this world but to seek first his kingdom. If we put God first in our lives the promise is that all of “these” things shall be added unto you. What a wonderful rich promise we can put our hope and trust in.
Man what an impactful chapter!!!! We could spend days studying all the concepts in this chapter!!!!
11″When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say,
12for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.”
In Mark 13:11 it talkes about the same things, when we are brought before trials or in religious debaits we have no need to worry beforehand because we will have the Holy Spirit in us. Matthew 10:20 “…for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.” How reassuring and comforting to know that we have the spirit in us to help us speak the good news to others!!! I was always concerned about what I would say to people when I evangelized because I thought it was only me speaking…..but now we know through the Bible who is the one really speaking, what else can we be worried about? We have the words of the Holy Spirit being spoken through us…..the words and knowledge of the Spirit who knows the heart of the person we talk to. He can work through us to cut to the persons heart and convict them of their sins. We need to realize that when we evangelize and defend our faith, we do not need to speak for the account of God because he is always with us giving us the right words to speak when defending Him. Exodus 4:12 “Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.” wooohooo how awesome, he will teach us what to say!!!! This verse totally motivtates me to evanglize to others because God will hopefully bring someone to Him through me and in the process God will be teaching me as well!!!! Our God is such a gracious and helpful God…..praise Him!!!!!
2There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.
3What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs.
Mabey not now but soon, everyones sins will be accounted for. This is a huge encouragement to not sin. Why would we want to if we know what will happen later. Well , its because we are all sinners. I wish I could go back and redo things which goes to show you that sins pleasure lasts only a short time.
34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
I’m sure many of us have heard this verse before, and it has a good point!! I know that many people my age are very focused on earthly things that may count as idols or treasures.. like friends, family, electronics and such.. Once again, it reminds me of where people’s priorities are in life! This verse also reminded me of Isaiah 33:6 “…a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the LORD is the key to this treasure.” I pray that our treasures are focused around the Lord, and not earthly treasures! :D
7Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
8″I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God.
9But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God.
Behold the awsome power of God Almighty!! He who Knows Everything!! He is Omnipresent, Omnipowerful, All-Knowing….
Spread the Word!! Spread the Gospel!!! live your life for Jesus. that doesnt mean that we have to be zealous in the wrong way, which is like an apple “pretending” to be an orange; be zealous the right way, by repenting of your sins and turning your life in a “about face” of 180 degrees direction.Be real, not fake..
I agree with you, Adam Duarte, that we should be never ashamed to tell people about Jesus and the difference He has made in our lives!
Ahhh this is such an amazing chapter!
4″I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more.
5But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.
This is soooo true, talking about our eternity. Men can only do so much to physically hurt us but in the long run God is the one who will put the nonchristians into hell, which he we read is agonizing.
50But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is completed!
Im not quite sure, but im pretty sure this verse is talking about that one last person that God is waiting for to come to repentance so that he can finally come back in all his glory!
6Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.
7Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
8″I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God.
This verse shows the immense value God puts on us. He knows the least of beasts extremely intamantly and he cares for us much more! how great is the love of God for us!!!!!
I love this chapter :)
34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
I love this verse it makes me realize what my priorities are in life. I need to focus on getting my priorities straight and making sure I can be the best person I can be.
4″I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more.
5But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.
This is a very clear statement that requires virtually no explanation. This is very blunt encouragement. When you think about it, the Lord’s judgement is the ONLY thing we need to fear in life. All of the apostles lived this out as a stellar example for us to follow.
27″Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.
I LOVE thsi verse. It gives me such a peace of mind to know that God is in control. It has been dificult but i have learned not to worry or be upset about earthly things (a.k.a. schoool/non-christian friends). Instead of being mad i just sit theraonder what God is going to use me for from situation.
2There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.
3What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs.
This remind me of what is it going to be like in the judgement day. Every secret will be revealed and every hidden thought and sind will be exposed before the Lord. It is kind of a scary thought and it motivates us to guard our words, minds, and thoughts more. Verses 6, 7 and 24 are a good reminder that God will take care of us, if he is able to take care of the little birds, then he definatley capable to take care of us.
25Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
26Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?
These are such good verses because I along with many others struggle with worry but a very good point is made, how is worrying going to help us at all? This chapter had so many great and intresting verses and was completley amazinggggggg, I really enjoyed reading it!
This is such a great chapter! We can go over this one for weeks! :D
2There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.
3What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs.
All of our sins are going to be put before God, and what excuse will we have? God will ask us, “Why did you disobey your mom by not taking out the trash? Why did you disobey me?” And what excuse will you have for disobeying a merciful God that actually gave you a chance at life here on Earth? They’ll be no excuse! You’ll be fallen on your face, feeling the guilt that the Lord will bring on you but guess what? God will forgive you! God will go over every single sin that you have committed here on Earth and He will pardon it because He loves us and knows that we are His children. How encouraging is that! So why do we continue to sin? The more sin we commit, the more blood Jesus sheds. the more sins we commit, the longer we take being judged, feeling the conviction! None of us want that! And I loved what Zach said! It does show that sins pleasure only lasts a short period of time. So let us obey our Heavenly Father who has given us a chance to obey Him now here on Earth. Praise His name forever more!
33Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.
this is the matthew equivalent of store up for yourself treasures in heaven. we need to focus not on our earthly possesions that will perish, but rather those that we store up in the kingdom of God; which we get by doing His will. in the long run, heaven is so much better than anything that this world has to offer. even the nicest house and the coolest car cannot even try to compare with heaven, where there will be no tears of sorrow and nothing evil will enter it.
again…another amazing chapter!
The beginning i felt was really about faith. That we should be putting all of our faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, and we will be praised. i loved the thief in the night parable. Bobby talks about that a lot, and i really like it. Is a thief going to tell you when he is coming? no or course not..we have to be ready all the times! We need to be living beyond reproach, and for Christ every second of our day, because we never know who is watching.
7Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
also this verse was really encouraging to me, and helped me realize how much God really truely loves me, and knows me better than anyone ever could! i love this verse, and am so excited that i am worth so much to my Heavenly Father.
6Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.
7Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
I like this verse. Its amazing that God knows how many hairs are on all of our heads! It says not to worry or be afraid because God is always watching over us.
19And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ‘
20″But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
21″This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”
Wow! Verse 19 is a response from people of this world that is still relevant today! It’s so sad to hear that many are not willing to give up the things of this world, and instead turn and repent. Instead, they’d rather enjoy life now, “llive ife to it’s fullest” and not worry about the problems to come… But God is calling them fools! That’s intense! The next time that I talk to someone who says that they’d rather wait, enjoy life now, and get right with God later, I’m going to bring out this verse, and tell them that NOW is the time to get right before God because we never know when He’ll be coming back… Maranatha!
From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
Wow, living in orange county, going to a great church every week means God is blessing us with a lot. THerefore we are demanded from a great amount to be living for God. We should be living every day spreadin the word of GOd to everyuone sharing love.
This chapter was amazing!! Verse 39 really stood out to me though
39But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into.
40You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
These verses are like a slap in the face. Jesus is going to come when no one is expecting it, and when he comes back, we need to make sure that we are doing things glorifying to him, not sinnning. We also need to be living every day like Jesus might come back that day.
4″I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more.
5But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.
Jesus made a good point (as always) when he said this. We don’t need to fear those who can only harm us in this world, because it is so short in comparison with spiritual death, which lasts FOREVER. It is a scary thought that if you were to go to hell, you would be thinking: end of day 1 and infinitly more time to go. end of day 2 and the same amount of time to go. year 1,000 and the same amount of time to go as in day 1. There is nothing to look forward to and no escape.
33Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.
Just as we need to fear God and where he is able to send us, we need to focus on what we are building up in heaven instead of on earth.
34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
This goes with verse 33. in order to build up treasure in heaven, we need to have the right motivation by doing everything for God. If God is our motivation, then our heart lies in heaven.
40You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
We must always be ready for God to come back, and we should be aware that each time we sin, God could come back at the same time, and he will not be pleased.
18″Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.
19And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ‘
20″But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
21″This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”
This is so true!! and i think it really says something to all of us in highschool at the moment because i know at least for me i feel like i have a really long time before i get even close to dying. but the reality is, i could be gone tomorrow or in 5 minutes… you really never know. but i think being pretty young we all want to set ourselves up for good lives here on this earth by getting good grades and trying to become succesfull in life.. which is good, but we shouldnt let it get more important than our relationship with god because thats the thing that will last forever. or someone can get the mindset that everythings lined up for them anyways and they’ll be alive for a while so why worry about whats gonna happen when they die?… but again we never know
5But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.
great comment on this one ashlyn! i was pretty much thinkng the same thing when i read it…
This verse is really powerfull and scary because it makes me think of my friends and how god is in control of every breath they’re taking and can and will condemn them to hell if they don’t repent… definantly convicts me to witness to all of them even more!
that was a funny/sad story pastor bobby.
This chapter was great but my favorite vesre was 31 because god is saying that if we put him first in our lives then everything else will be taken care of.
I can’t wait till somebody is in the pool at small groups
47″That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows.
48But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
This parable is so important to us who are Christians. Christ requires that our motivation while waiting for His return is to be faithful in doing the work that our Lord has assigned to each of us. If we are not faithful doing His work we are not storing up for ourselves treasure in Heaven as promised but will literally loose Heavenly rewards. Ignorance will not keep you from being judged in the same way but if God has given you much (wisdom) than much will be demanded from you.
34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
when i was in 5th grade, at church camp, our theme was based on this particular verse! i love it because it makes us think about what our main goals and priorities in life are!! i love it!