“I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” — Matthew 8:11–12 (NASB95) […]
07/05/22 Daily Devotion – How can we know Jesus without Him knowing us?
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many […]
07/04/22 Seek Him first — We can’t forget this part!
“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” — Matthew 6:33 (NASB95) What a familiar verse this is to all of us. It is short, sweet, and makes a lot of sense. The problem? We don’t follow Jesus’ advice given in this verse. In our study of […]
07/03/22 Daily Devotion – Where does your righteousness come from?
“Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees […]
07/02/22 Daily Devotion – Thy kingdom come — our daily prayer!
“Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.” — Matthew 6:10 (NASB95) The disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. After stating two “do-nots” (don’t pray in public to be seen by people and don’t try to impress God with your many words), Jesus told them how to […]
07/01/22 Daily Devotion – ‘…for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. … Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” — Matthew 5:3,10 9 (NIV84) Jesus took His disciples up on a mountainside and preached to them and to the others who had been following Him, […]
06/30/22 Daily Devotion – The good news then, and now!
“Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed, […]
06/29/22 Daily Devotion – The message is simple and unchanging!
“From that time Jesus began to preach and say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” — Matthew 4:17 (NASB95) This is the second time the phrase “kingdom of heaven” is used in the Gospel of Matthew. The first time it was from the mouth of John the Baptist, who was out in the […]
06/28/22 Daily Devotion – To which kingdom do you belong?
“Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” — Matthew 3:1–2 (NASB95) Awhile back I taught a class on “The Kingdom of God/Heaven,” and I am now turning those studies into a devotional series. We certainly are familiar with the verses […]
05/16/22 Daily Devotion – People can’t get in the way of the hope God provides!
“In his name the nations will put their hope.” — Matthew 12:21 (NIV84) We continue our study on hope with that word’s first — and only — occurrence in the Gospel of Matthew. Believe it or not, Matthew’s only use of the word hope is a quotation of Isaiah 42. We are faced with a very […]
