Day 3

Matthew 7-9

Chapters 7-9 are amazing, if you haven’t read them please stop, go read, then come back.

There is so much to say about the content that I’m not even going to try to summarize it because I’m afraid that I’ll get carry away and start preaching haha. So what I’m gonna do is to try to highlight some of the passages and truths that I know are things I need to work on. What I challenge you to do it to respond to the blog and share what other passages from this same section stood out to you and why.

Of course, there is no way to read verse 1 of chapter 7 and not feel like God is slapping you in the face. At least that’s the way I feel. Stop for a second and think of the reasons why we judge. Remember that Jesus here is referring more to a judgmental attitude than to the mere act of judging (don’t use this as an excuse when your mom is yelling at you cause your room is dirty). If you’re honest with yourself the reason why we judge others is because we think we are better than others. We think we know better; we think we could do it better. The funny thing is…those things that really bother us in other people its usually because we do them too. “It takes one to know one” that’s what Jesus was talking about. What specks are you finding in your life? Are you known as a person who constantly complaints? Are you know as someone who is constantly edifying or destroying others with your words and your attitudes?

Skip down to 7:21. This part of the reading is honestly quite scary. Think about it, this means that it is possible that the people that sit next to you at church may not be saved. This means that a lot of “Christians” you’ve know for a while might actually end up in hell. I know its harsh, but that’s exactly what Jesus said. So then… how do we know and most importantly how do I know that I am not going to hell? To begin with please entirely forget that at some point you prayed a “sinners prayer.” Praying does not save anybody. Only faith can save you. Do you have your faith exclusively in Jesus? Jesus said that “by their fruit you will recognize them.” If you do have faith in Jesus, is there evidence of this faith in your life. Do others know that you LOVE Jesus. What kind of fruit are you producing? Please do not misunderstand me, salvation is not by works. Its only by faith. However, when somebody comes to salvation, the Bible says that you are indwelled by the Spirit and the you are born again (regeneration), its simple…are you living the life of a born again person? Or is your life the life of someone enslaved to sin?

Other things to think about…

1. What do you think was the first thing the leper did after Jesus healed him?

2. Who told the guy in 9:18 that Jesus had power to resurrect somebody from the dead? Do you have that kind of faith?

3. The calling of Matthew--I love how God uses the weirdest people as his Apostles. Do you think you are weird, join the club; Jesus wants to use you.

4. Finally…did you notice that Jesus’ compassion for the crowds (9:35-38) is expressed as “we need more workers”. I wonder if at times the reason why we don’t have enough missionaries and pastors and counselors and teachers is because unlike Jesus, we do not have compassion for the crowds. We are to comfortable figuring out what we’re gonna buy next, that we loose our passion for Jesus and his mission. Would you pray with me that God would use us as his workers in the field? (disclaimer: God might hear your prayer and send you out as a missionary. Pray at your own risk)