Tag Archives: Matthew

Matthew 8- The Calm In The Storm

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And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him. And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. Matthew 8:23-25

When Moses led the Israelites from Egypt, God parted the Red Sea, I think we can all agree on that. However here we see Jesus is in control of the Sea, the winds and the sea obey him. Jesus is not just another prophet from God, Christ is God in the flesh, all the disciples fully understand this with Jesus actions here

From another practical perspective, Jesus is the calm of the storm in your life also. Question is do you obey him as Lord as the winds and sea do? While the disciples were out in the boat, a great storm came upon them, what was their response? “Lord Save Us, we are perishing” ! While it’s great they called upon The Lord, why are the disciples living life in such fear? We can ask ourselves this question also, during the pandemic we seen who truly had faith and who completely wavered

And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him! Matthew 8:26-27

Jesus’ response to his disciples “Why are you so fearful?” also “Where is your faith”? Many Christians live like they don’t have any faith at all. Do you truly believe Jesus is your Lord? Do you truly believe Christ has risen from the dead? Then why don’t you live like you believe? This is what Jesus was saying to his disciples, c’mon guys you seen me perform miracles, you seen me raise the dead, why don’t you guys have any faith?

Now I understand we all have our moments of weakness, I know some struggle with anxiety more than others, put your full faith in Jesus Christ! The disciples marveled at Jesus “Even the winds and sea obey Him”! Think about that, the same Lord who died for you on the cross, is the same Lord that created the Heavens and Earth

If your in the storm today, go to the one who can truly calm the storm. Go to the permanent solution not the temporary fix, go to the eternal Son of God Jesus Christ, Amen!

Matthew 8- So You Want To Be A Christian?

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Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side. And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. Matthew 8:18-20

The world today has a very cheap perspective of Christianity, even most of the Church today does as well. Many claim you just repeat a few lines and magically you get a golden ticket to Heaven. But as Jesus taught us Christianity has a cost, what is the cost? True Christianity will cost you everything, Jesus said “Anyone who wants to save their life, must lose it” (Matthew 16:25) Jesus also said “Deny yourself, carry your cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23)

Many want the salvation of Christ but they don’t want to be transformed by Christ. This is an important step, as Jesus said “Unless you are Born Again, you will not see the Kingdom of Heaven” (John 3:3)Again there is a price to pay to become a Christian, it’s not a cheap grace, it’s eternal life bought by the price of Jesus Christ himself.

The man said “Master I will follow you wherever you go” Really? Are we willing to follow Christ to the cross? Are you willing to let your old self die and let your new self be risen and transformed? Many want paradise but don’t want repentance or obedience to Christ. You are either a slave to sin or a slave to Jesus Christ (Romans 6:20) 

And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead. Matthew 8:21-22

Jesus is saying “You really think you want to follow me”? You really think its going to be a glamorous road following Christ? Think of the opposite, if they killed your Master, they will kill you also. They will hate you, they will spit on you, they will curse your name, why? Because the world hates the real Jesus, because the world is ruled by the evil one

So before you identify yourself as a Christian, ask yourself did I really become Born Again? Did I really die at the cross to my sins, and I was baptized by the Holy Spirit and transformed? If you truly want to be a disciple of Christ, deny yourself, carry your cross and follow your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen

Matthew 8- Faith of a Gentile

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And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. Matthew 8:5-9

Today we are going to see the fruition of the New Covenant of Christ. To understand this story in better detail, we first need to understand what a Centurion was. A Centurion was a Roman commander in the military responsible for 100 men, hence century where the name Centurion derived from. So this wasn’t just any ordinary Gentile (Non-Jew) this was a Roman soldier. 

And notice what the Centurion does, He goes and asks the Christ to heal his servant. Wow, talk about radical faith, this Roman soldier goes to the Jewish Messiah for healing, why? Because he has true faith and understanding who Jesus is, the Son of God. Next, notice the Centurion demonstrates and understands the authority Christ has. The Centurion says “Lord I am not worthy for you to come under my roof” Imagine this, a Roman Centurion, who has power and authority, is telling The Messiah he’s not worthy to be in his presence, this is true faith and repentance.

When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour. Matthew 8:10-13

Notice what Jesus says here “I haven’t found anyone in Israel with such great faith” think about that! This was a Roman soldier, and he had greater faith according to Christ, then all the religious leaders of Israel. Why? Because this Gentile recognized that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, while the religious leaders all rejected Jesus and had him crucified

Jesus said “ There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth for many sons of Abraham” why? Because salvation is found in Jesus Christ alone (John 14:6) no other way can you be saved. This Roman Centurion was going to see the Kingdom of Heaven and many religious leaders of Israel wont, why? Because of one simple denominator, the blood of Christ for forgiveness of sins.

This is the beginning of the New Covenant, the Gentiles are getting grafted into the Kingdom of God by faith in Jesus Christ, Amen

Matthew 8- The Lepers Prayer

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When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. Matthew 8:1-4

Leprosy was a major issue in the 1rst Century, not only physically was it horrible to have the disease, but from a social perspective also. When you had Leprosy, you were essentially cut off from all of society. You couldn’t work, you couldn’t be in the presence of other people. It was a lonely and miserable life for the Lepers. Now you might wonder, how does this relate to you? We might not have physical leprosy, but we all had spiritual leprosy , which is caused by sin. The Bible tells us “We have all sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God” (Romans 3:23) So this includes all of us, until we become Born Again through Jesus Christ

First thing to notice is the faith of the Leper, he went after Christ and worshiped Him. The Leper understood who was the ultimate cure for him, it was Jesus. It wasn’t a mistake or an accident that he encountered The Lord, He came running after Jesus. And he understood who Jesus is, the Son of God, the Christ, the one worthy to be worshiped. Jesus didn’t rebuke the man for worshiping him, because Christ is God in the flesh. If Christ wasn’t God then this would have been idolatry. However this man knew Jesus is God and Christ allowed it

Notice the next thing Jesus does, Christ put forth his hand for the Leper to touch him. This was completely forbidden by the Torah, you can have no interaction with a Leper. However again, Jesus is God, Christ is the Living Torah made flesh, and He allowed the Leper to touch his hand. Notice also Jesus said “Be Clean” , Christ didn’t need to pray to God to heal the man, because Jesus is God

The last thing we see is Jesus told the man, “Don’t tell anyone”, but go to the priest and offer a gift as a testimony” Christ didn’t heal the Leper for fame, in fact he wanted the healing to remain silent until the hour has come that the Son of Man was glorified. We don’t know if the man ever did what Jesus asked, however we know Christ brought a dead man back to life. 

You might have Spiritual Leprosy today, you might still be dead in your sins. You need to run to The Lord and worship Him, Let Christ create you a new Clean Heart and a Clean Mind, become Born Again by the Holy Spirit Amen!

Matthew 7- Build On The Rock

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Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. Matthew 7:24-27

What is the foundation of your life? Those who reject God and believe they are going to live a “happy go lucky” life are in for a rude awakening. People who don’t build their life on the rock, Jesus Christ, wonder why their lives or marriages fall apart during any storms of life. It’s inevitable, your life or marriage will crumble without God as your foundation.

Jesus tells us its like the wise man who built his house on the rock, when the storms came the house never fell. However the foolish man who built his house on the sand, once the storms come in life, their house crumbles. Why? Because their house was not built on a solid foundation. We need to understand building a life without Christ, is a disaster waiting to come, not just in the present world but in eternity also

Atheists try to define morality without God, they say people can just make up their own morality.  But when confronted about Hilter , their logic crumbles. God’s moral Law, the Ten Commandments, are the moral foundation for humanity. Without God there would be no standard for morality, because we know good and evil exists, we know God exists. What’s my point? Christ is the Rock of our lives, without building your life on God everything in your life will crumble including your marriage. With no standard of morality, why expect people to be moral? 

And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Matthew 7:28-29

The disciples understood and realized that Jesus is God in the flesh (John 1:14) they were astonished with his teachings and his authority. Salvation can be found in Christ alone (John 14:6) this is why you need to build your life upon Jesus. When the storms of life come crashing on your life or your marriage, will you be able to withstand it? Without the foundation of Christ, where does your moral standards come from? Without Jesus there is no hope for your life or future

Build your life on the rock, Jesus Christ, put your faith and trust in The Lord. Don’t risk your marriage or salvation without Christ! Build upon the rock and the gates of Hell with no be able to stand, Amen!

Matthew 7- Does Jesus Know You?

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Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Matthew 7:21-23

Today we are going to look at probably the scariest teaching in perhaps the entire Bible, as Jesus says “Not everyone who says Lord Lord shall enter the Kingdom of Heaven” now this ties in what we just went over with the Narrow Path and By Their Fruits, Christ is telling us there are many false Christians, and just by proclaiming yourself to be a Christian will not make you saved

There are many people today and in the past, that professed to be Christians, that used the name of Jesus in their works, however Christ has no idea who they even are. How is this possible? How can so many people be deceived into believing they are saved when they are not? Well most likely, they were taught a false gospel. Most preachers today are not preaching about sin, Hell, judgment, ect because these are unpopular. We want preachers who are motivational speakers, make us feel good, tell us what we want to hear! However these sugar coated messages keep you on the broad way to Hell. 

Jesus said “ Unless you are Born Again, you won’t see the Kingdom of Heaven” (John 3:3) There are no exceptions to this, you must become Born Again. Most Christians today have no idea what that even means. Most Christians today never heard a sermon on becoming Born Again. Or most false prophets have watered down the idea of transformation in Christ, to just saying a few words and magically you now have a golden ticket to Paradise.

Becoming Born Again is a supernatural process, a spiritually dead person can’t be transformed without the Holy Spirit. Not only do you need to be baptized by the water, but you also need to be baptized by the Holy Ghost. You need to fully understand the cross, you need to understand the resurrection, you need to understand the ascension. Most Christians wear a cross on their neck and that’s the extent of their theology, understand Jesus was nailed on the cross for your sins, but Christ died for us because God loves us!

The original Greek for “never knew You” is “Ginosko”, if you search this word in the New Testament you will find it used for verse Luke 1:34 Mary says “ I never knew a man” I never Ginosko a man” What’s my point? Jesus using this phrase I never knew you “Ginosko” is in a personal context. Jesus is saying “ I have no relationship with this person” We can confess to be Christians, but do you have a personal relationship with Christ?

Jesus didn’t come here to start a new religion, He came down because He loves you and paid the penalty for your sins. Christ wants a personal relationship with you not just religious practice or sacraments, Does Jesus know you?

Matthew 7- By Their Fruit

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Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.  Matthew 7:15-18

We often hear Christians keep saying “Read Your Bible”, and there is a good reason for that. Once you start seriously studying your Bible, you start to realize there is alot of false prophets out there. You start to realize , pretty much every preacher on your TV, is not preaching the true gospel of Christ or most are not being obedient to The Lord.

Now at a quick glance, there people can be very deceiving. They use the name of Jesus to give their organization some legitimacy, they might even quote some scripture, of course out of context, but as Jesus said “They are wolves in sheeps clothing”. They are fake Christians, false prophets. And the Bible tells us Satan planted these wolves throughout the Church , the wheat and the tares (Matthew 13)

So how can we identify these false teachers? Jesus said “By their fruit you will know them” What are these fake ministries producing? As the old saying goes “follow the money trail”. Typically cult groups are driven by three things, money, sex, and power. The majority of these false teachers have large bank accounts and preach a prosperity gospel. They don’t preach a gospel of the cross. Most of these “ministries” if you do some digging, there are lots of hidden scandals, typically relating to sexual immorality. And most of the time, this charismatic leader has full power and control over its people and their worldviews.

These qualities are not Christ-like, in fact Jesus was the opposite of all of this, yet many of these “false prophets” claim to be Christ followers. As Jesus said “ A Good Tree will produce good fruit” and “a corrupt tree will bring forth evil fruit”. False prophets can be easily identified by their fruit. What are they producing for the Kingdom of God? Well you might say these “Mega-Churches” are bringing millions to Christ! The reality is none of these people ever heard the true gospel, they don’t even know the real Jesus of the Bible. None of them are Born Again, therefore these false prophets are leading millions to Hell. 

Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Matthew 7:19-20

Many of these people would be shocked to hear these words by Christ “Everyone that produces bad fruit, will be thrown into Hell” now I’m paraphrasing here, but this is exactly what Jesus is saying here. Jesus said “Unless you are Born Again, you will not see the Kingdom of Heaven (John 3:3) 

Be careful who you are listening to, including myself! Read your Bible, be led by the Holy Spirit, cling to the Good Shepherd, run to your Heavenly Father, Amen!

Matthew 7- The Narrow Path

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Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Matthew 7:13-14

We live in a world and culture today where everyone thinks they are going to Heaven. When people die , usually everyone assumes they went to Heaven, even if they never mentioned Christ in their entire life. Well this is exactly the opposite of what Jesus taught. Jesus said “Very few will find the narrow path to Heaven” of course I’m paraphrasing there. But Jesus is explicit, very few are actually going to get saved in the grand scheme of the world

Now when you understand this, not only should this be shocking but it should scare you also. According to Christ the majority of the world is going to end up in Hell, why? Because broad is the way that leads to destruction. If you follow the ways of the world it’s going to lead you to the destruction of your soul. The problem is most people are too distracted or simply don’t care about their soul. Most people give no thought to the afterlife or their spiritual world at all, they are focused on “feeding the flesh” and that’s it. That’s why Jesus said “Man can’t live on bread alone” (Matthew 4:4) 

Jesus is clear , He is the only way to salvation (John 14:6), Christ is referencing himself as the “Narrow Path”, why? Because you only have one choice, Christ alone or death. Now you might say Well that’s unfair of God to give me no options, No the fair thing or justified thing would just send everyone to Hell. Sounds harsh , but the penalty fits the crime. We have all sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23) Anyone who says they are without sin deceives ourselves, and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8)

The reality is God loves us enough to pay the penalty for our sins in Jesus Christ, to give us salvation. So the only way to get salvation is the Narrow Path, Jesus Christ. The Lord never had to die for you, yet He did it anyway because He loves you. But the majority of the world , the Broad Path, will reject all these warnings and continue on their road to destruction. 

Jesus said “ I AM The Gate , whoever enters through me will be saved” (John 10:9) Will you walk the Narrow Path? Will you enter The Gate? Or will you continue your pursuit of worldly lust that leads to the Broad Road of Destruction? The choice is yours, if you care about your soul, if you care about eternal life, if you care about God, follow the Narrow Path, Jesus Christ, Amen!

Matthew 7- Seek Christ

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Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? Matthew 7:7-11

 Many have said we are currently living in the “information age”, however it seems fewer people today know or follow Jesus Christ. With all the information at our fingertips, with technology, is this an excuse for someone to be ignorant of the gospel? Many people today will also question whether God exists or if Jesus truly risen from the dead, the question is are you seeking God?

Jesus said “Ask and you will be given, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened”, how many people today are truly seeking Christ? How many people are truly in the pursuit for truth? Often those who claim there is no evidence for God’s existence are often people who never even pursued evidence for God’s existence. If you want to know the truth, Jesus said He will reveal it to us, the question is how serious are you in the pursuit for truth? How much do you care about your salvation?

Jesus goes on to say parents typically love to give their kids presents, how much more do you think our Heavenly Father wants to give those who love Christ? When your a parent it seems like there’s a kids birthday party every weekend, parents love to give their kids presents and make them happy. The same is with God, your Heavenly Father wants to give you the greatest gifts, however many don’t care enough about God to pursue him. 

Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets. Matthew 7:12

We are all image bearers of God, we were made in his image but yet separated from God due to our sin. God has given us the gift of reconciliation and eternal life through Jesus Christ. God has also given us the gift of the Holy Spirit , who provides us wisdom and understanding beyond human comprehension. Yet despite all God has to offer us, very few are interested in a relationship with their Heavenly Father and Creator

The question is are you seeking the truth? Are you seeking Christ? Jesus said “I am the way, the truth, and the life, nobody can come to the Father God, except through me (Christ) (John 14:6.)Seek Christ and he will answer you, knock on the door Christ and he will open, ask the Lord Jesus into your heart and Christ will make you Born Again, Amen!

Matthew 7- Judge Not?

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Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Matthew 7:1-4

One of the often debates in Christianity is whether we should judge people. Often people will quote the first verse “Judge Not” but they don’t read the rest of the entire Chapter in context. The first thing we need to realize is that judgment is a part of life. Whether you are a Christian or not, everyone is judging each other. You heard the term “first impressions” the moment you walk into a room, people are judging you based on your looks, your words, and your actions.

Secondly when you die your going to be judged whether you like it or not. The Bible tells us “It’s appointed to us to die once and then to judgment” (Hebrews 9:27) So telling people not to judge you based on your lifestyle is not going to prevent God from judging you on your appointed time. We all are going to be accountable for our actions, we shouldn’t have the mentality don’t judge me then I can do whatever I want. However on the flip side, we as Christians don’t need to go around condemning everyone of their sin. As the Bible tells us “We have all sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God” (Romans 3:23) 

Jesus is teaching us righteous judgment, Christ isn’t saying never judge anyone , he’s saying if you’re going to judge someone expect to be judged by the same measure. Jesus said “What do you look at the speck in someone else eye and ignore the beam in your own eye” What Jesus is saying is don’t be a hypocrite. If you are calling out sin in someone else’s life , your life better be free from sin. For example, if a Christian is calling out someone for being a homosexual, yet they themselves watch pornography and have premarital sex, they are being hypocritical because it’s all immoral in Gods eyes

Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you. Matthew 7:5-6

So what is our best response? The best response is to share the gospel of Jesus Christ to everyone. Jesus tells us “The Holy Spirit will convict the world of sin” (John 16:8) If we lead people to Christ, the Holy Spirit and the Word of God should and will convict them of their sin. While many Christians believe it’s their position to judge people on their sins, I believe they mostly end up being made hypocrites because they are typically in sin themselves. Sharing the gospel is our best approach to be leading people to Christ

Jesus said “Don’t give which is holy to the dogs, neither cast your pearls to the swine” Dogs and Pigs in the first century are considered unclean or impure. What I believe Jesus is saying , there are going to be many people who reject the gospel of Christ or have been depraved in sin. Meaning they are never going to turn from their sin, the best option is to dust off your feet and move on.

Ultimately Judgment belongs to God, and one day everyone is going to stand face to face with The Lord and give an account of their life and actions. Make sure you are Born Again in Christ unless you will not see the Kingdom of Heaven , (John 3:3) Amen