“See to it that no one misleads you.” (Matthew 24:4)
Jesus’ disciples had just asked Him in :3, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” It should be instructive to us that the VERY FIRST thing Jesus said to His disciples after they had asked Him about the timing of the events of the end was “See to it that no one misleads you.” Continue reading
“Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. And He said to them, ‘Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.'” (Matthew 24:1-2)
Matthew 24 is about the future, the last days, and the return of Christ. But in a very real sense, there is more than eschatology in the words of Jesus to His disciples in verse 2. Continue reading
“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.” (Matthew 23:37)
These words of Jesus may be some of the saddest in all of the Bible: Continue reading
Alexander Whyte (1836-1921) was considered by many of his contemporaries to be the greatest preacher in Scotland of his day. His book, Lord Teach Us To Pray, consists of a number of sermons on prayer from a variety of scripture texts. One of the messages in the book is based on Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer of John 17, where He prays in verse 19: “For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.” Following are some highlights from Whyte’s message, which he applies to those who are interceding for their children and for other loved ones: Continue reading
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.” (Matthew 23:23)
That last little phrase “without neglecting the others” is an important one. Without it, one might look at this verse and say, “Tithing isn’t important; just show mercy, and do justice instead.” But when Jesus added “without neglecting the others” He made sure we knew that it IS important to still obey the word of God in this area; it is just that we need to make sure we are not legalistic about the smallest trivia in the word of God (such as tithing every little herb!) while neglecting commands that are much more central, like being merciful and faithful. Continue reading
“You shut off the Kingdom of Heaven from people.” (Matthew 23:12)
The harshest words Jesus spoke here on earth were not directed to the immoral or to heretics, but were for the religious hypocrites He condemned in Matthew 23. He pronounced a series of “woes” or curses against them in this chapter, and in verse 12 we find the first: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the Kingdom of Heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.” These men were doubly cursed, Jesus indicated: not only were THEY going to hell; but they were causing others to go there as well. Continue reading
“Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.” (Matthew 23:12)
Have you ever seen someone boast (or maybe “humble brag” — if there is really such a thing! — on Facebook or Twitter) in order to promote themselves? If you have ever been tempted to do the same thing, you might consider these words of Jesus in Matthew 23 instead: “Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.” Continue reading
In London, England there is a 70-foot high red granite obelisk called “Cleopatra’s 
Needle” that stands beside the Thames River. In the 1870’s it was given to Britain by Egypt. When they moved it to England and set it up, they put a “time vault” at the base they constructed for it, with all kinds of representative clothes, toys, etc. from their culture for future generations to uncover. They also appointed a committee to select what they considered to be the single greatest verse of scripture to put into that vault as well. The committee chose John 3:16, and put that verse into the vault, translated into the 215 known languages of that day.
Last week we saw by way of introduction why John 3:16 is such an important verse that people would put it in time capsules, and on signs at football games, and in every kind of imaginable place. It is perhaps not only the single greatest verse of scripture, but quite arguably also the greatest sentence ever spoken in human vocabulary! We saw last week just WHY it is so important: it is a succinct summary of the fundamentals of faith in one sentence, which can lead a person to salvation. So today we want to begin to study this great verse word by word, and phrase by phrase for the next several Sunday mornings. This verse begins with these important words: “For God …”. Continue reading
“They love … being called Rabbi by men. But do not be called Rabbi …” (Matthew 23:6-8)
Jesus’ harshest words in scripture were reserved for the scribes and Pharisees, whom He condemned in this chapter. Here He tells us one of the reasons why. They loved being called “Rabbi”, the common Jewish title for a teacher. They were supposed to love GOD, and other PEOPLE — the two great commandments — but they loved recognition for being a “Rabbi” instead.
Not too many people literally seek to be called “Rabbi” in Christian circles today (some actually do …). But the same principle applies to other titles as well: Continue reading
I'm a retired Southern Baptist pastor of almost 40 years. My wife Cheryl & I moved to Norman, OK in March of 2025. I share a weekly overview for Sunday School teachers of the weekly Lifeway "Explore the Bible" lesson, as well as texts of my sermons and other articles.
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