Traditions and Commandments
15:1 Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, 2 “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat.” 3 He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ 5 But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,” 6 he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God. 7 You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:
8 “‘This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
9 in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”
What Defiles a Person
10 And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: 11 it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” 12 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” 13 He answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. 14 Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” 15 But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” 16 And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? 18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. 20 These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”
The Faith of a Canaanite Woman
21 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
Jesus Heals Many
29 Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee. And he went up on the mountain and sat down there. 30 And great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, 31 so that the crowd wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel.
Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand
32 Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” 33 And the disciples said to him, “Where are we to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd?” 34 And Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.” 35 And directing the crowd to sit down on the ground, 36 he took the seven loaves and the fish, and having given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 37 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 38 Those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And after sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan. (ESV)
1Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked,
2″Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
3Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?
Oh slap in the face. HAHA, no. But really the Pharisees always try to make Jesus look bad, but never achieve it. Jesus is awesome and perfect and NO one can make Him look bad.
When Jesus calls them hypocrites, I just wanna look at my life and see how hyprocritical it is too, and how I need to change it to get right with God.
Man, what faith that lady had to have her daughter heal, and how amazing it is that Jesus even points it out, He was totally waiting for that response. So many had faith in Jesus because of His miracles and the healing of many people. And lastly He feeds many people again. He is just sooo AWESOME. No one can be greater than our God, Jesus the whole trinity. No one better to have faith in and have them Love us unconditionally. He is so awesome.
“you are holy, great and mighty, the moon and the stars declare who you are. I’m so UNWORTHY, but still you love me forever my heart will sing of how great you are.” ( i think thats how it goes.) I am so unworthy, but I am so glad that He loves me and that He saved me from eternal death so that I can be with Him and live for eternity.
hahahaha I completely agree with Ella. XD It’s another “stump Jesus” segment! The pharisees try to get Him once again BUT they are again, at fault.
14Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”
God calls them hypocrites because they dishonor their parents with their tongues…Now I think of that now with me. This has been my daily llesson, as Max knows, because I have such trouble with this, especially when it comes to my little bro. XP I hate sin. SO if I hate sin so much, why do I continue to? Lord it is only You who can keep me from sinning and I turn to YOU. God help me have faith like the woman and her demon possessed daughter in this chapter so that I may stop cause You pain. Help me understand true fear that You describe in Proverbs so that I may not stumble but follow the straight path that leads to everlasting life with You. May I one day see Your perfect face and may that day come soon. MARANATHA! :)
Matthew 15:8 ” ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
This is a very sad verse because of how true it is. So many people say that Jesus is Lord, their savior, and we should follow His commands when really they are just putting on a show. We cant talk the walk, we need to actually walk the walk!!!
I know I was the epitome of this verse 2 years ago. I said I was a Christian my whole life, went to church all the time and it looked like I was going to heaven. At the 07 Mexico Missions Trip (LEGIT), one of the sermons there opened my eyes to see how small I was compared to God and how far off was my heart from His path.
Looking back on this, it is really scary to think that you are going to heaven your whole life, but in the end find out that you are actually far away from God. Eternity is a long time to spend in one place, and eternity in hell is totally not worth anything on this world that will hinder our faith in the Lord so we can spend eternity with Him and worship who He is!!!
As we go back to school from this break, lets remind others through our conversations, actions as well as the campus lunches to check their hearts and make sure they are on the kayak, not the doomed cruise ship of the world!!!
28 Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
This is awesome. God healed her because of faith and that is what He wants: true faith. Faith is believing with no doubt so much that you put your full trust in it which means your life. That’s why someone with true faith will have works as well. Lord, please let me always show my Faith by works.
4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
Nowadays, it is not the “cool” thing to obey your parents. I know of many teenagers who don’t care what their parents have to say. I have disobeyed my parents before and argue with them and its not good. This verse explains what God thinks if you do not honor your parents. To be put to death is not a small thing, it is actually a huge deal in God’s eyes if you do not obey your parents. They are authorities over us, and I know that I am still living with them, so therefore it only makes sense to do what they ask. Plus, the Lord will reward those who obey their parents. I praise God for the work he did in the relationship between my Dad and I because we would always argue. This past year up until now has been really good and I thank God for my loving father! After reading this passage and this verse specifically, I am going to obey my parents in everything and make sure to do things without being asked so I can show that I truly care!
ELLO… I read
I like verse 7-8,”You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:” ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”
I like this verse because it talks about what I don’t want to be. If we are children of GOD then we are to obey HIM and mirror HIS image. We are supposed to be the ones teaching HIS name and sharing the GOSPEL at our campuses and everywhere we go. If we are children of GOD we won’t continue to sin I’m not saying we are perfect but we won’t struggle with the same sin and we will be recognized for our fruit. I need to do what GOD has called me to do and not just act like a CHRISTian at church.
CYA
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. this is saying that we need to not worry about what we say or what we do we need to work on what is in our hearts then the out word deeds will fallow. i need to work on making sure my heart is right with God
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
Doing good doesn’t some solely from doing the right action. Whatever actions that are done are heavily influenced by the motives of the person who did the action, the reasons why they did what they did. It is clear that the Pharisees tried to do a lot of the right things, but for the wrong reasons. They asked Jesus questions, not to learn, but because they were trying to make Him out to be a fool. When they prayed, it wasn’t quiet time alone with God, but it was in front of a huge crowd of people where they could be heard by many. Their lips may have been saying the right words, but their hearts were nowhere near to God. Though they seem to be all about worshiping God, their worship is in vain because they are only seeking others to acknowledge them and praise them because they are worshiping God. I need to be careful that I am obeying what God commands me to do, and what He commands me not to do. But apart from just watching my actions to make sure that they are pleasing to God, I need to additionally watch the desires of my heart. I can’t have the wrong motives for doing right. I need to not seek the approval of men by the things that I do. Instead, I need to be solely focused on bringing God glory with everything that I do!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
Anyone can learn rules and be a “good” person it is more than a good person that makes someone be a disciple of Christ! I need to test myself and my friends so we can sharpen each other and build up each others faith!
25The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said.
26He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.”
27″Yes, Lord,” she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
I love how we have an example in Scripture where Jesus Christ challenges someone’s declaration of needing Him to heal her. He does the same thing with Peter when He asks Peter if he really loves Him…THREE TIMES IN A ROW! Here Christ challenges the woman twice. It is good to check our hearts and motives. It is good to know why we grope for a Savior–is it for the moment, the here and now? Or is it for forever, the there and then? Here Jesus challenges her twice: once by being silent, and then He actually challenges her verbally. He TESTS her. Oh, that I will not waiver from my declared need for Jesus as my Savior in my OWN seasons of waiting for an answer or when I am challenged on what I throw down with my words. This woman’s steadfast faith in Jesus is rewarded and blessed by Him, and she is a solid example for all of us…
Praising God and am excited for the opportunity to declare God’s love and goodness by sharing Jesus with someone this week, as Pastor Bobby threw down the gauntlet to us in this weekend’s message from I Peter 2…
“Hide it under a bushel? Oh, NO! I’m gonna let it shine!”
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
So many people say they are christians, but their lives dont show it and its not really a heart thing. Like the Pharisees, they just say they are and look for earthly rewards and benefits for the work they do. I need to make sure this is not what my life looks like to other people
Ok, can anyone help explain to me verses 26-28? I really don’t understand what they mean when Jesus and the woman speak about “feeding the dogs” and stuff. I’d appreciate it if someone cold explain it a little better.
On a different note, i think it’s pretty awesome how Jesus made it possible to feed all those people! As i was reading it, i was imagining what was going through the disciples mind as they were giving the food to the people. It must have been so weird to give one person a loaf of bread, and hen look into your basket and see another one right there! I don’t know how they would have reacted, but i would have been amazed! Just thinking about how Jesus has that power amazes me.
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
We should all honor God with our hearts.
Like katie said ^ people say they are christians
because they do good works, but if it isnt through
God then your just honoring god through lips
but it isnt really coming through the heart.
so we should all honor God with all of our hearts(:
11What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
This is a good verse to keep in mind. Because what comes out of our mouths reveals our thoughts and the true nature of our heart, which says more about us than what we hear from the outside. It is still important to surround yourself with goodness though so that it does not influence you in a bad way and eventually turn your heart into wicked ways. I should remember that every time I speak my heart is being reflected upon and therefore I need to make what comes out of my heart clean.
Mat 15:8 These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
Lord, please help us to honor you with our thoughts and actions today! Please come soon!
7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
I think i really need to work on not only knowing what is right, but putting it into action. As these people here knew the law that they had, but they put that above the ultimate law of God.
Hey Max, good question… The sheep of Israel, those that are God’s chosen people, were those ‘at the table’ and the gentiles were everyone else including the woman who was asking for help in this passage. She knew God through her faith in Him even though she was a gentile ‘dog’ compared to the Jews. Jesus honored her faith because He is Lord and Savior of all people!
PASTOR BOBBY,
HEARING YOUR SERMON TWICE MADE IT ALL THE MORE SPECIAL! YOU DID A MARVELOUS JOB ON THE SERMON. Share the Gospel before it’s TOO LATE! – I totally love that, and am striving to do that also. I plan to take up your challenge by bringing Jesus into a conversation today at school. =) Why? HE’S WORTH IT! Thanks again. =)
Goodmorning . . .
I read . . .
Matthew 15 . . .
“18. But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’ ”
“19. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.”
“20. These are what make a man ‘unclean’; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him ‘unclean.’ ”
The hearts motive and things in the heart is where one speaks from. It is not when words ENTER a mouth that make someone “unclean.” I like how these verses put into reality, ‘unclean’ doesn’t mean physically, but in fact spiritually. It’s not refering to the dirt on ones hands. It’s refering to the ‘uncleanliness’ in ones heart. Depending on the motive of ones heart, that’s how the mouth will speak. Wicked and evil people of the world will have a heart that is full of ” . . . evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.” As a result, they’ll tear down people, sin in their minds, and not be glorifying to God. But, if ones heart has the right motive, praising God, pure, and holy, that’s how one will speak. Their hearts will be uplifting to people, praise God, and of course, GLORIFY HIM!!!! I know that I need to give God more solitude time with Him. I need to just sit outside alone, and just have Him scan my heart, heart check, and pluck any weeds that may be growing in my heart. I pray that I would have very few of course. I pray that with God’s help, I would strive my very BEST to have a “clean” mouth ALWAYS!
“My heart and my soul,
they give You control,
consume me from the inside out, Lord.
Let jusice and praise,
become my embrace,
to love You from the INSIDE OUT
everlasting, Your light will shine
when all else fades,
neverending Your glory goes beyong all fame,
and the cry of my heart is to bring You praise,
from the inside out,
Lord my sould cries out!”
(Inside Out, Hillsong)
~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~JESUS COME NOW!~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~
=) ~ Ariana Mishreki ~ =)
Jesus I thank you for this holiday season that is coming around the corner quite fast. Lord I pray that I wouldn’t take my eyes off glorifying and praising you for one second. I pray that I would be glued to you, know the true reason we celebrate Christmas, and not be consumed in gift-giving. Jesus I also ask God that you help me to not procrastinate. God help me to be productive and actually GET THINGS DONE for Your glory. (to the best of my ability) Wether it be chores or homework. Jesus I THANK Your for Your marvelous provisions and blessings that you have given me. I don’t deserve any of them, but it is by Your grace and mercy that I have them. ~ Amen
WOW, so much in Matthew 15!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
10Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand.
True words! I love to worship God in song because I don’t have to worry about anybody else and I can just sing our my praises to Him! He is great and deserves my heart, ears, mind, and soul in worship. I should never ave my mind wonder off to school or other things. It should be only be about God ALL the time!
I need to listen and obey and understand what my God is telling me. I need to be in His word, ready and equiped to spread the gospel and evangelize.
12Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
Jesus was probably thinking “SOOOO WHAT???” I mean, He is the Son of God and is perfect and holy. He was set apart. He obeyed His Father not man. He doesn’t worry about what the Pharisees thought or what anybody else thought, he only cared about what his Father told Him.
Thank goodness, because if jesus cared about other things He wouldn’t have died on the cross and all of us would be going to hell, which is our true punishment. Glory be to God for He sent His perfect Son. Praise His name! ;]
37They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
38The number of those who ate was four thousand, besides women and children.
Jesus did it again. I wish I was there to see all of this happen. Jesus is amazing and I can’t wait to get to heaven and praise His and His Fathers name(even though they are one)! :]
Great comments so far! Keep Standing for Jesus Christ! :]
***Praise the LORD for we all would be ashes if it weren’t for HIM!!!***
***Glory be to GOD in the HIGHEST!!!***
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
TrueNorth has heard the term “cesspools of wickedness” coming from Jeremiah 17:9 which calls our hearts wicked and deceitful above all else; this verse makes that very clear, our hearts do not naturally and innately desire to please God, in fact they desire the exact opposite. And all sin stems from the heart it is conceived within the heart. Look at James 1:14-15 which shows the birth of sin stemming from within, “but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”
My heart’s desire is to mediate more and more on the Truth of His Word so that what goes in comes out…the more I am in the Word, the more I will pour that forth into daily living.
As I read Matthew this morning the biggest thing that stuck out to me was how powerful Jesus is. All the miracles he did. He didn’t even have to be in the place of the person to heal them as is shown with the the woman and her daughter. We serve an all powerful God. This is such a great reminder to me as I began to allow the cares and worries overcome me and not focus and trust in God’s sovereign plan. No matter what the situation or circumstance if God wanted to change it he could.
28Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
Oh Lord Jesus, may I have the faith the woman had as she cried out to you to heal her daughter. I want to say with confidence my God can do anything! Help me trust you in every way. With finances, relationships, and all circumstances.
7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
Verses 7-9 stood out to me. The issue of the religious leaders and synagogue attenders being outwardly holy, but inwardly full of sin is still prevalent in the church today. Jesus could not make it any clearer. Doing things outwardly that look good and seem holy are not worth anything if your heart is not redeemed. For so many years I thought I was a Christian because I went to church, owned a Bible and believed in God. All of that was a mere conforming to the outward acts of religion and there was not heart change on the inside. When I truly repented of my sins and put my faith in Christ my heart changed inwardly which led to an outward change in my speech and actions. Being a Christian is not about checking the box to some list of rules and regulations that an has made up. It is about dying to yourself and putting all your trust in Christ, living a life that is pleasing to Him. Today I am thankful that God opened my eyes and helped me see that I was a hypocrite like the Pharisees. I am grateful that the Holy Spirit convicted me of the truth that I am a sinner and that not one good work or outward conformation to the law would save me. It is nothing but the blood of Jesus that makes us right before God!
7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
Clearly just going through religous motions on our own effort does not cut it with Jesus. We are in a relationship with Jesus and he cares primarily about our heart. That makes sense because relationships don’t work well unless both people are into it. I need to make sure each day I do the things I do (Bible study, reading, prayer) to connect with Jesus not just to check off that I did them. I always need to be aware of where my heart is at as I do my spiritual disciplines.
1Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked,
2″Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
3Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?
4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
5But you say that if a man says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is a gift devoted to God,’
God does not care about traditions: just showering up for church on Sundays, or going to an occasional Bible study, or praying before bed. God cares about our hearts, not our habits. We need to make sure we are being obedient to God, not just thinking that we are ok because we go to church.
3His disciples answered, “Where could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?”
I am always struck by the fact that right after Jesus fed the 5,000, and walked on water, and stilled a storm the disciples still wonder, “Where could we get enough bread?…” They still don’t understand that Jesus has the power to feed as many people as he wants. They recognized his power in the boat, but forget as soon as the next trial arises. People truly are sheep in need of a shepherd. We have such short memories and tendencies to doubt God’s power and sovereignty. I know I have these tendencies too. God, please help me to remember your power and what you’ve done in your Word and in my life.
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
When I think if my heart is far away from God then I must have sinned an hardened my heart against God. This reminds me of worship. Sure you can honor God with my lips praising him, but is your heart really reflecting what the song means or do I feel that song in my own heart where I can relate to the song on how God is good!
3Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?
The Pharisees were notorious for abusing the commands of God and turning them into useless traditions. Jesus is clearly opposed to this, yet we still see a lot of that in the “Christian” churches of today! Things like baptism, communion, and other church traditions can be easily abused and turned into mere traditions with no meaning to those participating in them; though they are important commands from God. There are also some commands we may break for the sake of our tradition. Things like Bible reading, prayer, and coming to church are important things that Christians should do, but we need to be careful that we don’t do it to ‘check the box’ or to recieve any kind of praise from others. I need to make sure that I am not simply following a tradition and am actually following the commands of God for His glory and not mine.
Well the Pharises were once again trying to trick Jesus, and once again they cam up empty handed. What amazes me is how powerful God really is. I can not even image what it most have been like to see him in person do the miricles that he preformed and with just word from his mouth they were done.
17″Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body?
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
This is a great verse for modern times as well as ancient. We need to make sure that when we speak is pure, because whatever we speak is truly and overflow of the heart. We need to purify our speech because then our hearts will be effected also.
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
This verse reminds me so much of people today in society. We follow men and are worldly after all god has done for us. Its sad to think we listen to men over the creator of the universe! its so sad :( we need to honor god not only with our lips but with everything that we do.
4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
I know that I should not be doing this and it is wrong. As a Christian I definatly should not be doing that. But I have been guilty of it! Back then if I disobeyed in any way shape or form, I would have been put to death! Ouchh! I’m sure that would have been mighty painful too! I bet the children back then really obeyed their parents! Unfortunatly today, that measure isnt that intense, but I bet it worked! Today I will obviously not be put to death, but that is a sin, and God really does not like that. I am not always honoring my parents, and that is something I need to do!
True North is TAKING OVER the daily bible reading! [DBR]~!
GET ON THERE, PEOPLE!!!
http://www.compasschurch.org/blogs/dailybiblereading/
- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - -
[DBR]~! Take the challenge! d:- D
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If only I had enough faith to make food appear from nothing…
yum.
anyways…
“‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
This oddly reminds me Russian Orthodoxy!
You go around kissing idols of Jesus and Mary, Kissing priests hands, making cross signs, and here and there telling the priest about something bad you’ve done. (i don’t think they know it’s called sin) Basically, saying you love God, but doing no more than going through the motions.
They’re so misinformed! (not informed at all, actually! I can’t recall learning a single thing out of all the times I’ve went! Just lots of incense…and wine…)
..Just goes to show how many lost people are out there, and that there are THAT MANY MORE opportunities to evangelize! (these Russians are quite open to the gospel I’ve found, if someone would only TELL them about it!)
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Daily Bible Reading!
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7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
God doesn’t want our beautiful singing voices, or for us to read the whole Bible if it will be in vain. Our hearts need to be in the right place for Jesus to accept it our worship.
19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
This is so true! It’s sad to see how the world twists these this around and says things like follow your heart. It’s in the movies and books and everywhere. They say that you’ll know if something or that someone is right if you follow your heart. That is so deceiving because here it says that out of our heart comes all of these evil thoughts. Instead I should follow God and become a godly girl after His heart not my own. This also reminds me of Jeremiah 17:9.
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
A lot of people think that by good works and acting like a good person will save you. They think that it is by works that we our saved. The teachers of the law all thought that if someone broke a Jewish custom that they were “unclean”. Jesus answers them saying that it is not what they eat, in this case, that determines their cleanliness, but what they say and do and what they feel in their heart. Anyone can proclaim to be a christian, but only a God-fearing person who trusts the LORD and worships Him can say they are a Christian and know it is true.
7 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8 ” ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
There are people in the world that, like the Pharisees, who say they are christians but really aren’t. People will say that they follow Christ but what they do doesn’t show that they are bearing good fruit. In Matthew 7:21 Jesus says “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” We need to be checking our hearts to make sure that we are living 100% for God not just acting. I pray that there would be nothing in my heart that would be keeping me from living completely for God.
I read…
I liked verse 8… ” ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” This verse was so powerful because it calls for an examination of the heart. I hope that we are not just praising God and “talking the talk”, but that we are actively pursuing God in our hearts and have integrity. I pray to God for more integrity in my life as sometimes I sin when others cannot see.
4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
Wow this is obviously very important to the Lord. It is so easy for me to take honoring my parents lightly but when I read this I realize how important this is. God takes how we treat our parents seriously and so should I. I want to really think about what my parents have done for me and treat them with respect.
4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
WOW that is a scary thought. I imagine all the times I am disobediant to my mom
and dad. This verse will definatly be in my head during the rest of the day.I am
thankful for God’s word and for all the leaders at True North. I am so glad to
know the Truth and be a follower of Christ. God is good!!!!!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
Derek said it. So many people think that they are on track, but the truth is that they are deceiving themselves. For example: Kanye West. I mean, in God’s eyes we are all sinners, but Mr. West here thinks that he is on track to heaven. I don’t want to point a finger, but i ‘m using him as an example. This needs to urge us (myself included) to share the REAL Gospel. The one most churches don’t preach anymore. You know what i’m talking about, so the next step is prayer!!!
4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
Wow, this verse just really spoke to me. There is those times that if my parents ask me to do something Ill “forget” or just won’t do it. And it says that if I do not honor my mother and father that I should be put to death, I mean thats a scary thought!!! It really shows how me and others should eb treating their parents :)
8 “‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.’”
So many people say that they are christians but really they are falling away and giving up. This chapter shows that Jesus can see tehse people adn that he will test them as well as try to bring them back.
4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
This is a command of God’s that i struggle with at times. I don’t think i ever took it so seriously until i realized the relationships it ruins if i dont obey this command. Pretty much all parents have their childs best interest in mind. And if they are Christians, they really do want the best for us. I need to make sure that everytime i am tempted to disobey my parents, i stop and think and pray about it…i pray that i will do the right thing and obey them. One disobedient action will lead to a chain of more- its just not worth the temporary satisfaction. And what really gets me in this verse is the last part when it says “must be put to death.”
God takes this very seriously. God is our Father. How we treat our parents is a reflection on how we treat God. I know that if i am obeying my parents, i am also obeying my heavenly father as well.
Maranatha!
9 They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
10 Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand.
11 What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
Christianity is not about “rules,” it’s about faith in what Jesus Christ did for me on the cross. It’s about having a genuine relationship with God! (Which is an amazing privilege.) I need to keep in mind that nothing I’ve done (or do now) has earned my salvation; it’s through grace alone that I’ve been saved. To think otherwise is prideful; it’s an act of vanity. And, of course, it’s just flat out wrong. I’m so grateful for the amazing gift of salvation! I want to thank God and honor Him through my words and actions and make sure that my heart is clean and pleasing to Him.
I think about how I wouldn’t want my daughter to obey me just because she thinks it will get her something, I want her to do out of love and a sense of honoring me, her father. In the same way, God doesn’t want empty rule-following from me; He wants my love and adoration. He wants a real relationship with me–and thanks to Jesus, I can have that relationship with God. Amazing love, how can it be!
11What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
these two verses stood out to me because it makes me think deeper about whatever i let in my heart. what is abundant in the heart, so it speaks. stuff that i dwell on will soon become my words and actions. i dont want to let unclean things ini my heart, because i wouldnt want them becoming actions then fall away from God.
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”
this verse is really powerful… if you really think about it. there are so many people out there that are just taking the talk and not truly walking the walk. People like to say powerful things about Gods word, but on the inside where no one can see (except God of course) they are sinning. i need to make sure that i’m not doing this. i want there to be inward reality of my outward appearence, and i pray that that is how i and many others will live.
31 The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.
This verse stood out to me the most because i think this verse really shows how mighty God truly is! Jesus uses the great powers of God to heal all of these people in need of healing. I think that we should all recognize what miracles God has put in our lives, such as our family, friends, ect. because if you think about it, God gives them to us as a gift. Because we could be homeless, without one friend, without any family, but because we our Gods children he blesses us with what he has given us. So never forget to thank God for what he has given you even though you dont deserve it. :)
I love the story of the feeding of the 40000. its insane how amazing god is and this is just more proof of it:)
I also learned that its not what u here thats a sin its what u say to that person back to that person is a sin,
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
Isaiah was talking about the people of Israel when he said this, and Jesus uses this verse from Isaiah to tell the Pharisees what they are. they are hypocrites, who claim to follow God on the outside but on the inside are unregenerate and still dead in sin. i pray that i would not follow the Pharisees’ bad example but rather follow the example of the great apostles of the early church and Jesus’ example. i need to practice what i preach and honor God with not only what i say, but with my motives and actions. i pray that i would back up my talk as a Christian and live a holy life so that God’s glory would be always shining through me! MARANATHA!!!
11What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
we really need to think about things we say and make sure that it is honoring to God!
4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
This reminds me of a verse Bobby read from a TN podcast i downloaded yesterday. Although this verse didn’t really encompass what the whole chapter was about, honoring your mother/father is so prominent in the Bible, and is something I am trying to keep getting better and better at with each passing day =]
28 Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
I like this verse because it reminds me that with God all things are possible. (Matthew 19:26) All we need to do is believe and trust in HIm. It is so simple, yet so hard for me to do, I find myself always trying to control things. Verses like this help remind me that I need to trust in the Lord and just have faith.
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
This verse reminds me of the passage in James 3:6. It says “The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.” It’s sooo important how we present ourselves to the world, especially the way we talk. It reveals a lot about a person’s heart. This makes me want to dive into God’s word even more so i have HIS truth in my mind at all times, leaving no room for sinful thoughts to come in!
Matthew 15:13 He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots.
This goes with the concept of predestination. God has to plant you in order for you to be saved. Sounds pretty intense, but God is beyond our knowledge and does everything according to His purpose and will. It’s pretty sick to think that He choose me! Wow, it’s pretty incredible. I am going to praise God now and forever for doing this!!!
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
This verse is so good. It makes me think about what is coming out of my mouth. It bad things are coming out of my mouth that tells me that the root of the problem is in my heart. I am going to watch what is coming out of my mouth so that If I find sin I can kill it at the root the heart if. I do not want to be unclean.
36 Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people.
37 They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
38 The number of those who ate was four thousand, besides women and children.
Think the first feeding of 5,000 was awesome?! WHABAAAMMMM!!!! HERES ROUND TWO!!! Jesus must have been so incredibly shocking by now. It’s crazy to perform miracles on sick and cripple people, and its crazy EVEN NOW to make a bind man see. But to feed 5,000 people with only 5 loaves of bread and only 2 fish?! And then do it AGAIN WITH JUST AS MANY PEOPLE?! Talk about ridiculous. I can’t even fathom such an event. Jesus truly is the LORD of LORDS. There is none like him.
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THHS Campus Lunch? Yes, please.
9 They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
This verse makes me think of all the people I know who say they believe in God, who may even attend church, have a Bible, or wear a cross, but their actions or motives aren’t congruent with the Word. It’s sad to me that people try to find a way to make the Bible fit their lifestyle, instead of giving their life to God. God doesn’t change, people need to change.
8.) ” ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
Oh man, this is definitely not something I want to be known as doing. I want to be honoring and glorifying God with my whole life, in word and deed. So that is definitely my prayer today!
3 Jesus replied,”And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?
The Pharisees were all about legalism and upholding their traditions for the sake of appearance, but this caused them to forsake obedience and sincerity in return for others’ admiration. The prophet Samuel makes it very clear in 1 Samuel 15:22 that what God desires is an obedient heart, not one that “goes through the motions.” This can be applied to our worship as well. Do we sing because it’s what we’re supposed to do, without thinking about God’s character and marvelous acts? Or do we come before Him in worship in awe of His greatness, preparing our hearts beforehand and having a heart that wants to give Him all the praise? My desire is that my worship will truly bring praise to God, and will also encourage me to live a life that brings Him the glory He deserves!
27″Yes, Lord,” she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
28Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
This is probably my favorite Jesus dialogue in the Gospels. I love how Jesus gives the woman an analogy to which she gives a spiritually insightful response: she recognizes that Christ came 1st for God’s chosen people–the Jews. She is NOT Jewish, but she also recognizes that many of God’s chosen people are rejecting him. She, however, knows who he is & she demonstrates TRUE FAITH in her response. My favorite aspect of the story is that Jesus praises her for her recognition of who he is & for her faith.
Stacy Perkins, J Watkins, and Boyd your comments encouraged me!
27″Yes, Lord,” she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
28Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
This verse (27) used to confuse me but now I understand it! This woman was able to understand by the gace of the Holy Spirit that even the gentiles (dogs) were able to recieve the healings and miracles that were given first and primarily to the children of Isreal. She was tested by Jesus and passed the test of faith He put before her! I pray that I will be able to pass the various tests of my faith that God puts before me and allows to happen to me. Regardless of the difficulty of the trials this truth remains the same…”God is good all the time and all the time God is good” Pastor Ben Blakey
11What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
this verse is a really amaing verse because it shows us that it is not the things that we eat or put in our mouths, but the the things that come out of our mouthes that count because they truely show what is in your heart. from out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks. we really need to think about what we say before we say them because it tells us what is truely in our hearts
c u all at small groups
17″Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body?
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
Whatever I surround myself its going to show in my daily actions and thinks i say. These verses are important because little things i do in my life can really affect me such as what movies i watch, the people i hang out with etc. The evil stuff we do comes from our hearts and we can prevent this. I can prevent this by really limiting the stuff i put in my mind. I need to surround myself in the word always be in the word! i pray that God will help me do this because sometimes it can be soooo hard. Thank you Lord for my salvation!!!
4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
I know it’s important to honors our parents and i know i can give them more respect because they definitely deserve it! I love them so much and i’m so grateful for them and thank God everyday:)
11What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
Great Scripture!
Let us not be swayed by things once we start them. I know that I need to finish the race and keep on running after Jesus Christ. That when I’m put through trials I should come out on top. Even if the world thinks they’ve won. For anything won in this world is temporary, and though a battle may be lost, the war is still to come. My friends, we’re in that war. Get your soul sold out. So duke it out with Satan, because you know that you’ve got God. Nothing is going to compare to that in the long run. The light that’s on you and me is not one of spot, but a lantern of guidance. Let’s use it.
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
I need to make sure my life is consistent with the words of praise from my mouth. I may sing worship songs to the Lord about his incredible power and goodness, but if my heart is filled with anxiety, my words are meaningless. Without a life and heart backing up the words I say, my honor and praise is meaningless and fake.
legit chapter :)
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”—I was thinking about this same thing today! So many people can say they are a Christian and fool people by saying what others want to hear but are not doing the right thing on the inside. I do not want to be like this! I want my inside to reflect on my outside. I want people to know that I follow Christ and have a strong relationship with Him! Like Pastor Bobby was talking about this weekend, my excitement for Jesus Christ should be showing all the time! I am going to be showing my excitement for what He has done for me by talking about his goodness and shining His light through my life! Jesus is soo WORTH IT and I need to be showing that through my life everyday.
MARANATHA!!!!
4 days till CHRISTMAS IN THE CITY people!!! :D
4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
Parents can be embarassing we all can agree but think about it if it wasnt for our parents we wouldnt be here on earth for they gave us life and same with God. Even though its not cool to hang with your parents etc. it doesn’t matter because they have given us so much we need to pay them back by respect and love. Thank your parent when he or she makes dinner thanks them for everything they have given you and provided for u. I am thankful for my parents putting a roof over my head and loving me.
4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
Its pretty easy to see how Jesus feels about honoring our mother and father. (It is also one of the Ten Commandments.) I dont think most parents get the respect they deserve from thier parents (im to blame for this also). There was one point in our lives that we would cry if we did not have “mama” or “dada”. In today’s popular, secular, ungodly, preverted world, being a “rebel” is a cool thing to be. JESUS SAYS RESPECT OUR PARENTS! This means no ignoring, disrespecting, cursing, saying bad things behind thier backs, etc….all these things fall is one category DISRESPECT. People were put to death for disrespecting their parents! If I saw this happen to another kid my age for this reason…I think I would be acting a little differently. But this needs to be kept in mind, because God veiws this problem HARSHLY! Respect for our guardians does not come once a year on mother’s and father’s day…its the way we must live. We are not of this world, being a “rebel” will only lead to our destruction. The rules our parents made, for the most part, are for our own good. We are alot like them. They know us better than almost anyone else on this earth…..Also, another thing that I used gainst my parents was thier “flaws” or imperfections. I would hold the longest grudges on my parents for something wrong they may have done. I would use that as an excuse to get out of my own trouble. “Dad! Why are you angry with what I did when YOU did the same thing that one time?!?” I would use this all the time, and I admit sometimes that I still am tempted to bring up thier flaws time and time again…..Now, I realize that they are as big as a fallen being as I am. NO ONE IS PERFECT. How many things do your parents hold against you? Do they still bring up ‘that one time’ when you did something wrong a year ago??? For the most part, our parents dont hold grudges, but we sure as heck do!!! Our parents our concerned for our saftey, growth, and maturity. WE SHOULD THANK THEM FOR SPANKING US AS A KID!!!! Thats right, thank them! If my parents did not discipline me, I would be the wicked rebel saying that defiance is the way to go!…..We may not like discipline at the time, but when looking back, its good for us! Our parents dont want us making the same mistakes over and over again…so lets thank God that He put them there! If we hold God in “high respects” and defy our parents…we have made hypocrites of ourselves. We should honor our earthly father just as much as our heavenly father.
Our parents may seem like the “enemy” at times in our life, but they’re on our side. I will admit that I have felt contempt towards my parents not to long ago. Its a temptation that I have fought many times before. (Thank goodness for the guidance of God’s Word to help me with this) We need to stop being the unacceptable, punk-rotten, dissobedient brats to our parents!….. Together, let us throw out the corrupt “rebel” within us and show that as children of God and our parents, we honor them in all we do.
IF YOU HAVE READ MY COMMENT: PROVE YOUR HONOR FOR YOUR PARENTS AND DO SOMETHING NICE FOR YOU PARENTS! (Thanksgiving isnt over when it comes to parents.)
32Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way.”
One thing that stood out to me about this verse was Jesus’ compassion. Jesus was always so compassionate to the people even when they didn’t deserve it. He took care of their physical and spiritual needs. I need to be more compassionate towards people. If someone annoys me or rubs me the wrong way I feel like they don’t deserve my compassion. But that is wrong. I don’t deserve God’s compassion yet he was merciful enough to save me. I need to work on being more compassionate to others.
11What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
I love how Jesus makes clear to the people that it’s not all about ritual and works but about the heart! And what comes out of the mouth is so important! I pray today that the Lord will help me in keeping a tight reign on my tongue and only using it for His glory!
38The number of those who ate was four thousand, besides women and children.
I am so amazed at God’s power. He can do anything. the fact that he could feed all of these people without having near enough food shows me more of his power. he can create whatever he wants, whenever he wants.
8 “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”
This, unfortunately, is easy to do. Nothing is easier than saying something, but to do it and live it out is completely different. I can’t just put on a show of Christianity at church then go somewhere else and be like the world, I can’t be a hipocrite. What example do I set when I say I’m a Christian, but am living exactly how the world lives, what kind of witness is that? I need to live Christianity out every second of the day and work on not being a hypocrite.
!!!MARANATHA!!!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
It is easy to say that I will do something. I can say I am going to commit my life to the LORD, words show nothing! I need to show the LORD where my heart is, through what I do! He is SO worth it, but telling him that doesn’t show him I think that. I need to demonstrate how grateful I am for what he has done for me through how i serve him! I need to continue living with Christ as the center of everything, not just off an on. Often I’ll be really strong in my faith, but then I’ll start doing other things and putting bible reading or prayer off. I need to make sure that I am standing firm constantly, so that he is glorified in everything.
STOKED FOR CHRISTMAS IN THE CITY!
PRAISE THE LORD!! MARANATHA!!!
7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
This describes the false Christians in our high schools that we see everyday
3 Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?
There is simply no excuse for breaking God’s Law. That is made abundantly clear in the Bible and Christ Himself is saying it here. Whatever excuse I may have, it doesn’t matter. There’s no excuse. We all Fall short of the Glory of God which is why His Sacrifice is so important.
4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
Great comment Luke!! It’s so very true that students disobey their parents in our modern, twisted society. Jesus makes it very clear that if we are disrespectful in any way, we should be put to death! That seems pretty serious to me! If Jesus would kill someone who disrespects their parents, then the highschoolers of America are going DOWN! We need to get the word out! Let’s save lives by telling our highschool friends about Jesus, and the results of disobiedience.
7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: t booby said
This reminds me of true north take over on sunday. We were talking about how you say that you are a christain but really you are hidding behind a bush from everyone. Or how you say oh we have already been there so we dont have to worry anymore about going to hell. I like how pastor Bobby was talking about how we need to get out of oour shell and go and talk to the people who need to know about the Lord and how God set down his only son to die for our sins and cuz of that you have been saved. I like In-in-Out how they have the verses on the cup and wrappers. I also like Oreos.
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
Man how often do you see this? But I know I am quick to think that only those bad non-Christians have this issue, but I have found that I struggle with this too!! Every week in teen ministers we pray that the worship will be whole-hearted and true. But somedays I find myself just repeating the words…and not really thinking what I’m saying! That does not honor God at all, and I need to make sure that when I am worshipping I am completely meaning what I’m saying!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
That is pretty intense! But, I do find myself struggling with this too!! Sometimes I may be saying the words or going through the motions, but my heart and mind is somewhere else and that is definitely not ok!!! I need to check my heart constantly to make sure that I am doing everthing with a whole-heart and full out for God!
What an amazing God we serve! He knows the need of everyone, and fills it. How amazing would it have been to have fallowed jesus through his time on this earth, and heard his sermons, and seen his miricles (i think i said this yesterday ha :))
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
I want to be one who honors the Lord from the inside out! my heart and my soul, I give YOU control, consume me from the inside out Lord. The Lord wants all of my and i need all of him. To live is christ and to die is gain! MARANATHA!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
I don’t want to be like this at all, but I know that it is something that is very easy to fall into. I want to be loving God only and serving Him with my whole heart and not just go through the motions of the Christian life. Some things that are easy to do when my heart is distracted from God and set on other things are just reading my Bible quickly because I have to or skipping out on days, singing worship songs while my mind is thinking about something else, or just living my life as a supposed Christian without spending any of my time trying to glorify Him. LORD, please forgive me for all the times I have spent just honoring you with my lips and going through the motions when my heart was far from you. Any supposed worship like that is just in vain, and I want nothing to do with it. Please help me to fall deeper and deeper in love with you and seek you not because of some regulation I feel obliged to follow but because my heart is set on you alone and I want to glorify you with my life. LORD, please keep my heart near you because it is so easy to get distracted.
4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
Wow!!! this is powerful!!!! I totally agree with Luke on his post! This is something I struggle with- respect towards my parents. Sometimes its hard to not be disrespectful to my parents because i am so close with them, and i have a more comfortable situation with them than i do with other authority figures. although this can be an excuse, its a pretty lame one! Jesus commands me to respect my mom and dad!! I need to stop thinking about it to not only please my parents, but i am doing this to please GOD!
11What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’”18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
These verses stood out to me, because now that im in a bigger environment than what im used to, im tempted more and more to say ungodly things. And knowing that what comes from the mouth comes from the heart, it will be more convicting and a great reminder to keep my words glorifying to God.
4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
I love this verse because I need to work on honoring my parents. Whenever I get angry towards them I am going to think of this verse and know that He is watching me and always wants me to respect them!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
It is so important that the words of our mouth be mirror the state of our hearts. Anyone can say they love God but it is the state of the heart that God cares about. My prayer is the same of Psalmist in Psalm 19:14 “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer”
10Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand.
11What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
12Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
13He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots.
Wow, well I have a friend who is 7th day adventist and I cant wait to show this to him :) hehehe
13He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots.
Great Chapter! This verse is simply another reminder that there is only one true God that offers salvation. Only those who call upon the name of the LORD Jesus Christ will be saved (Acts 2:21) and everyone else will be pulled up by the roots. Nothing in this world is sustaining besides the living God.
36Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people.
37They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
God is so amazing! Just by this simple thing He did, im in awe of how awesome He is. That is so cool how He was able to perform this wonderful little miracle. They only had seven loaves and fish, and He was able to feed more than four thousand people!!! Thats something to be stoked about. Praise God of how Awesome He is! <3
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
20These are what make a man ‘unclean’; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him ‘unclean.’ ”
A changed Heart will bear fruit. Unlike willpower and fortitude, only a heart born anew, will yield fruit worthy of God’s Work.
This chapter is full of awsome things that Jesus did and said!! How awsome is it that we get to see the words that our Lord and Savior said!! That just makes me so amazed!! And i love the ending of this chapter! There are so many people there to see Jesus and He does not want to turn them away with no food but all they have is some bread and fish! But what does Jesus do ? He turns that food into so much more!! That is so crazy that would have been so awsome to be there and see that happen!! MARANATHA!!!!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
Cool chapter! i loved these verses and they really stood out to me. Our mouth or our tongue is the most powerful thing we have! But the things that come from that tongue, comes from the heart. These things spoken from the heart is what makes a man “unclean”. I need to learn that i cant just say something and not follow through with it or lie about things. God looks straight at my heart and he knows everything that is in there. So why should i lie? And why should i use my mouth inaccurately? The lord knows everything and he knows my heart better than I do! I must match what i say to my heart! I want to honor God not only with my actions and lips, but with my heart!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
Great comment, Katie, I was thinking the same thing! I definitely want to praise the Lord with my lips but I always want my heart to be near him, obedient to him. I was convicted by this, just thinking how I have no excuse but my own sinfulness and selfishness for not being continually fixated on the glory of our awesome God and letting that motivate my heart to love and obey him in all I do. That is my prayer tonight.
“19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. 20These are what make a man ‘unclean’…”
These verses reminded me of the passage in James where it talks about our mouths and how at one point we use them to honor God and worship him through song, but at another we slander others and corrupt things come from them. I know that sin is inevitable for all, but I need to fight any sin that enters my heart and makes me unclean. The “evil thoughts” listed above are some thoughts that I can continue, with more persistence, to make war against.
Maranatha!!!!!!!!!!!!
18 But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
I need to monitor what comes out of my mouth, even if it is just in fun. I was born with a sinful heart, and it causes me to have sinful thoughts and actions. However, I need to read my Bible and get connected with Jesus in order to purify myself and make sure that I don’t do anything that will (1) bring me further from God or (2) portray myself as a worldly person.
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Hey guys, you should check out Daily Bible Reading (DBR)! True North is taking it over!!
Just click on my name!
3Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?
ok, so so often we can foresake what is truly important about our faith for little things that don’t really matter. We can but so much focus on little things that may not even be classified as biblical sins and overlook the huge sins in our life. This reminds me of what I read in “The Holiness of God” when it talked about in our pursute to be holy we often focus on little sins in our life but fail to repent from the big sins…I want to focus on following God and worry about obeying God’s law, before I wory about tradition….
The way that Jesus parallels the word unclean from actually meaning “dirty” and “immoral” is amazing. When the Lord states that eating from dirty hands is not unclean, but sexual immorality, evil thoughts, murder and adultry is unclean, he is clearly stating how a man who is not “clean” as in “nice and shiny”, can still be clean in God’s eyes. I Love the WORD!
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
I do NOT want to be like the Pharisees. People are still doing this today and that’s what leads to non-Christians thinking that all Christians are complete hypocrites. I do not want to contribute to that in any way! God give me actions that speak as loud as my words!
Btw VERY encouraging to see almost 100 comments at only 10:40! We haven’t been making it to 100 lately so today is VERY VERY encouraging– keep it up True North!!
11What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
We can hear alot of bad language and filth at school bit that does not make us non-Christians. How we choose to respond to it and what we say after it is what determines that!
MARANATHA!!!!!!!!!!!!
I love reading the examples of people who come up to Jesus and he heals them because they have great faith. Even if they’re names aren’t mentioned, they’re trust is something we can imitate.
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
I really liked what DB (Derek Brower) had to say about this verse. Any Christian could just be putting on a show and proclaiming that they are a follower of Jesus Christ. We should always keep a heads up of that and encouraging our brothers and sisters in Christ and making sure that we are all legit and not hypocrites!! Now I am not saying we need to be judging all the Christians because that is Christ’s job. Even for me as a Christian I will come across a sin that I am struggling with, but nobody else will see it and I just think that I get away with it, but God knows and it is just gonna come up on judgment day. We need to be legit hardcore Christians. There are no such things as better Christians. I am definitely going to tell somebody this week about what God has done in my life and pray that it impacts them!!! MARANATHA!!!!!!!!!!!!
26He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.”
27″Yes, Lord,” she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
This is an awesome picture of our everyday lives. See, we are the dog, we slowly get more crumbs from our master (Jesus) such as a great worship moment or prayer… moments where you praise the Lord cause you realize how awesome he is. But what is even crazier, is that he is only giving us “crumbs” or “previews” to what heaven will be like when we fall face down as his glory shines around. Knowing this, lets not get discouraged by giving up and thinking that Christianity is too “hard”, but lets make war against sin and realize that the awesome moments we have had with the Lord are only CRUMBS!!!!!!!!! We haven’t even seen the whole loaf of bread!!!!! I pray that we all would be syked out of our minds for the day that the Lord returns and until that day comes, that we would be following his commandments and fear him. I also pray that we would not get discouraged but realize that we have only been given crumbs of the Lord, and in heaven, we will get the whole loaf, and fall face down as we stand before the Lord!!!!!
MARANATHA!!!!!!!
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
we need to watch what we say and think. both bad and good things come from our heart. the only way Jesus can reach us is through our heart so we must try to be pure to make let Jesus into our hearts
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
these verses teach me two specific things. when i worship i need to make sure im not just singing and that when i follow God im not just blindly following rules. everything i do needs to be from the heart out of love for God. otherwise everything i do on this earth is in vain.
MARANATHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
This verse shows how seriously God takes honoring our parents. It says that if we don’t honor them we should be put to death. That’s pretty serious stuff. We should be honoring our parents by doing things like obeying them right away and not talking back to them when they tell us to do stuff. That is something I’m going to try to work on.
This is what I am talking about TRUE NORTH!!! We are back over 100 comments! I am eating a celebratory Oreo right now!
7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
One thing is clear from Jesus interaction with the Pharisees here: He hates hypocrisy!
I want my heart to be near him and I want my actions and words to come from a heart that is true and united on him! When I worship God I want him to be pleased with it!
Big week for us: Small Groups, Christmas Campus Lunches and an event next weekend I’m just a little bit excited about called Christmas in the City!!!!
19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
I feel like I’ve heard Christians use this verse as an excuse. (Don’t judge me for this thing on the outside; it’s only the heart that counts.) The reality is that so many of our actions (like the ones listed in the verse above) EXPOSE WHAT IS GOING ON IN OUR HEARTS! This verse reminded me how seriously I need to be guarding my heart and keeping out anything that would distract me from Christ.
Proverbs 4:23 – “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.”
37 They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
Throughout this chapter, and throughout the whole book of Matthew in fact, I see the pattern of faith: there are people who trust Jesus and are rewarded, and those who do not, and are not rewarded. The disciples probably thought that they were all in quite a predicament when Jesus wanted to stay out in the country with all those people and only 7 loaves of bread. But Jesus did not let them down; He provided. And He’s the same today. The Bible says that those who genuinely trust in God are saved. I want to have that kind of faith in Him and I want everyone else to have it too! Lord, please give me strong, genuine trust in You.
31The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.
This would be so amazing to see! i wish i could have been right there in front of Jesus to see Him heal all of these people. i can imagine how these people were praising Him. i want to be praising him everyday like i have just seen Him heal tons of people. with awe and gratefulness for His mercy and grace
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
- We NEED to Honor GOD with our hearts and putting HIS words into action instead of talk and say stuff with our mouths without having FAITH in what we say!!!!
11″ What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’ ”
- Us CHRISTIANS can be faced with unholy things that we “hear” or “see”, that can make us sin or be unholy, but we need to learn to erase all uncleanliness from our mouths!!!
FIRST HAWKS SOCCER GAME FOR LAGUNA HILLS ON WEDNESDAY ( PRESEASON) come out to support!!!:)
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
A lot of people look like Christians on the outside but really are speaking falsely and just trying to impress people or something….but the truth will come out eventually. My heart needs to be close to God, not just my words. He knows what is in my heart. I pray that where my heart truly is will always be what my words express.
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
You know what this means? It means we need to be REAL CHRISTIANS. Not pretending to be for someone else’s benefit, but actually feel the Lord working within us and through us to show His glory to the world. You can fool men, but God CANNOT be deceived.
7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8″ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’”
Jesus did not like hypocrites! They praised God, but did it as if they were earning salvation and not receiving it as a gift! Lord purge from me all hints of hypocricy. May serve you out of love and faithfulness, taking the gift of life that You have bought and given to me through the cross.
Matthew 15
5 But you say that if a man says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is a gift devoted to God,’
6 he is not to ‘honor his father’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.
Jesus is rebuking the Pharisees and teachers of the Law for going against the fifth commandment of God. It was tradition laid down by the Pharisees and teachers of the Law that a man was forbidden to give his assets to his parents but that it should be given to the priests and go towards the temple and it’s service. If your parents were in need you could not give money to them. Wow that definitely sound contrary to God’s 5th Commandment to honor your father and mother.
Matt 5:19-20 19 Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Money had corrupted the Pharisees and teachers so they manipulated God’s law for their own gain. We also need to be aware that there are false teachers that will manipulate God’s word and His Gospel for their own personal gain.
Luke 16:15 15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the
eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight.