The Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven:“At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? This question comes after Jesus has already told his disciples twice about the suffering and death that awaits him in Jerusalem (Matthew 16:21-23; 17:22-23), and after he has told them that following him entails denying themselves and taking up the cross (16:24-25).
Causing to Stumble:“If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea” (v.6).
The Parable of the Wandering Sheep:“See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off.In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish” (vv. 10-14).
Jesus’ Ministry in Judea and Pera (Matthew Chapter 19)
“When Jesus had finished saying these things,he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan.Large crowds followed him, and he healed themthere” (vv. 1:2).
The Little Children and Jesus:“Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there” (vv. 13-15).
The Rich and the Kingdom of God:“Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments” (vv. 16-17). The rich man was thinking in terms of righteousness by works. Jesus had to correct this misunderstanding first before answering the question more fully. There is only One who is good:The good is not something to be done as meritorious in itself. God alone is good, and all other goodness derives from him—even the keeping of the commandments, which Jesus proceeded to enumerate (vv. 18-20).
BIBLE STUDY OUTLINE MONDAY, MARCH 20 – MARCH 26, 2017
The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard (20:1–16)
The Transfiguration: “After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus” (vv. 1-3). The transfiguration was: (1) a revelation of the glory of the Son of God, a glory hidden now but to be fully revealed when he returns; (2) a confirmation of the difficult teaching given to the disciples at Caesarea Philippi (16:13-20); and (3) a beneficial experience for the disciples, who were discouraged after having been reminded so recently of Jesus’ impending suffering and death (16:21). “He was transfigured,” thus, the three disciples saw Jesus in his glorified state (see John 17:5; 2 Peter 1:17).
Jesus Healed a Demon-Possessed: “When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him.“Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water.I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him” (vv. 14-16). Jesus was upset that the disciples could not heal the demon-possessed boy. Jesus replied, “You unbelieving and perverse generation,”how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me. Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment” (vv. 17-18).
The disciples then came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”
Jesus replied,“Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faithas small as a mustard seed,you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move.Nothing will be impossible for you” (vv. 19-21). Faith as small as a mustard seed: The mustard seed is not the smallest seed known today, but it was the smallest seed used by Palestinian farmers and gardeners. In the time of Jesus. Therefore, a small amount of faith in God can and will bring forth great miracles.
Jesus Predicts His Death a Second Time (Matt. 17:22):“When they came together in Galilee, he said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men. They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised to life.” And the disciples were filled with grief” (vv. 22-23). The first-time Jesus predicted his death was in Matthew 16:21.
Of first importance is the way this announcement of Jesus’ coming passion and death are tied so closely to Peter’s confession and in turn to what it means to follow as a disciple of this Messiah.
Peter did not want Jesus to die, but Jesus would say to Peter,“Get behind me, Satan!You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns” (Matt. 16:23). Jesus would then say to his disciples:“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.For whoever wants to save their lifewill lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it” (Matt. 16: 25)
Peter Declares That Jesus Is the Messiah – “When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be[c] bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.”
Today’s lesson has fittingly been acknowledged as pivotal and climactic in Matthew’s narrative of Jesus’ Galilean ministry. The stories to this point have repeatedly pressed the issue of faith and discipleship as the many stories of Jesus’ teaching and healing have led these disciples and ourselves to expect some things about this one called the Son of Man.
And now these stories are focused in Jesus’ intensely direct and personal question and in Peter’s response. “But who do you say that I am?” There is no escape and this is no time for evasion. Peter speaks for the disciples, for Matthew’s gospel and the community to which it is first addressed, and certainly for us, announcing that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the Living God (16:15-16). Jesus confirms this “confession” by Peter as a mark of God’s blessing and as the “rock” upon which he will build his church (16:17-18).
Jesus Predicts His Death (Matthew 16:21-28)
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalemand suffer many thingsat the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law,and that he must be killedand on the third daybe raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”Jesus turned and said to Peter,“Get behind me, Satan!You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns” (verses 21-22).
This passage moves from a focus upon Jesus and his vocation to his demands for disciples. Jesus has just congratulated Peter for his recognition that Jesus is “the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Moreover, Jesus’ language has intimated authority: Peter the Rock provides the church’s foundation, he receives the keys to the realm of heaven and his earthly authority carries heavenly significance. But now Jesus begins a process of reinterpreting what being the Messiah really means — and what following that Messiah entails for the disciples. If Peter cannot bear the revelation of Jesus’ coming suffering (16:22), how will he respond when the focus shifts to disciples whose fate mimics that of Jesus?
BIBLE STUDY OUTLINE MONDAY, MARCH 12 – MARCH 19, 2017
Jesus’ Last Ministry in Galilee (chapters 17:22-18:35)
That Which Defiles: “Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”“Are you still so dull?”Jesus asked them.“Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body?But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart,and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.These are what defile a person;but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them” (verses 1-2; 16-20).
This passage focuses on the main idea that spiritual uncleanness is in the heart, the will, the mind, or whatever term is used for the spiritual nature of the person. It does not come from eating without washing the hands. The keeping of external regulations was to have directed the faithful to focus on inner spirituality, but it did not do this. And so external ritual replaced inner spiritual reality! Jesus took this opportunity to teach that truth—at the expense of the teachers’ reputation. As far as He was concerned, they had failed in their task because they misunderstood the Scripture, and so they were useless as guides. They would be rooted out and destroyed.
The of the Canaanite Woman (Matthew 15:21-28)
“Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David,have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.” Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” He answered,“I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”
The woman came and knelt before him.“Lord, help me!” she said. He replied,“It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus said to her,“Woman, you have great faith!Your request is granted.”And her daughter was healed at that moment.”
This story in Matthew 15 is very troubling. A Canaanite woman cries out to Jesus to heal her daughter. By the end of the story, her daughter has been healed — but between the crying and the healing, Jesus says some “un-Jesus like” things. But Matthew doesn’t clean up this story. Matthew dares to give us a very human Jesus and he paints a specific picture of this woman. She is a Canaanite woman. She is not one of Jesus’ people.
She won’t give up. “Lord, help me,” she begs. Jesus says: “It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” But the Canaanite woman is feisty and stubborn. The life of her daughter is at stake. She picks up his words and throws them right back: “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” When Jesus hears this, he says, “Woman, great is your faith!” Surely there’s enough for me and my daughter. That’s what Jesus finally heard and came to believe. “For saying that, you may go — the demon has left your daughter.”
