Matthew 9:27-34 (AD 28) If the Pharisees were on Twitter and tweeted, “It is by the prince of demons that [Jesus] drives out demons” (as per verse thirty-four), I think their tweet would have gone viral…and not in a good way. They would have received a stream of mockery, facepalming and eye-rolling gifs. Their statement … More Day 46: Pharisees getting desperate
Matthew 13:1-52 (AD 28) This is probably the second-most famous parable, after ‘The Good Samaritan’, with an unusually long explanation in the Bible about what it means. Today we’ll think specifically about the fact that all three of the seeds that found soil began to grow, although the seed falling on healthy soil did not … More Day 43: Healthy soil or bust
(Apologies: this should have been Day 41 to stick to chronological order, and yesterday’s reading should have been given today.) Luke 7:36-8:3 (AD 48) Jesus did not forgive the woman because of what she did for him, and the woman was not forgiven after Jesus declared her forgiven. What Jesus told the Pharisee host is … More Day 42: How much do you owe Jesus?
Matthew 12:22-50 (AD 28) In v.27 Jesus says, “…if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out?”. There may to have been some successful instances of exorcism by Jewish people – i.e. it wasn’t just Jesus and his disciples. The difference with a mere human doing the exorcising is … More Day 41: When Jesus was accused of being Satan
Luke 7:1-10 (AD 28) Doctrinal correctness can mean the difference between heaven and hell, life and death, being with God or being without God. And yet it is often, also, not the biggest problem. The same priorities that must often drive us to emphasise correct doctrine, will sometimes mean we must ignore (at least in … More Day 39: Doctrine isn’t always the thing
Matthew 6:19-34 (AD 28) “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life…” (v.25) File that one next to, “Do not be anxious about anything…” (Philippians 4:13) Note first the “Therefore” in Jesus words. The reality of our treasures in heaven and the priority we should place on those over anything here, drive the … More Day 36: Do not worry
Matthew 6:1-18 (AD 28) Here are five things Jesus was NOT saying in these verses: Jesus was NOT saying, when he recommended praying in private, that praying together as a local church is unnecessary. Jesus was addressing his disciples – a selection of believers, not a local church. In fact pretty much the first thing … More Day 35: What Jesus did and didn’t say about prayer
Matthew 5:13-16 (AD 28) Salt is not limited to a single function, so there is no singular meaning. Rather, there are about ten uses, so if we are to be like salt, there should be many ways we make a positive impact Given the context, the are probably three uses of salt that are most … More Day 32: Be more like sodium chloride
Matthew 5:1-12 (AD 28) The Beatitudes are not a list of what you need to do to be saved. Jesus was teachings his disciples, not non-believers. They are commands, but they exist first as pronouncements of blessings upon Christians already exhibiting these traits, with an encouragement and challenge to exhibit those traits even more. They … More Day 31: Supremely blessed
Mark 3:7-35 (AD 28) Strange as it is to say, Jesus gets a bad rep with some people for what is perceived as a harsh treatment of his mother and brothers when they called for him in verse thirty-one. They just wanted to see him, people say, why does he have to dismiss them like … More Day 30: Jesus – mad, bad and dangerous to know?
Paul T Reynolds 