The Words of Jesus and how they HAVE to change us

The journey to read through the bible in one year. One thought and one verse from every book and chapter of the bible…

Matthew 13
Matthew 13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

This is one of...if not my most favorite verse in all of scripture. No other verse speaks to and challenges me on a consistent basis as this one. EVERYTHING that he had...joyfully...without a second thought...never wondering what his life would be like if he gave everything up...never a second thought...but an all out giving of EVERYTHING that he had. It is time that we begin to live this. So many times we waffle...we question...we do things, but not with joy...we gossip, lie, cheat, complain about anything and everything, do things half-heartedly and only go through the motions. How can we call ourselves followers of Him if we dont do what this verse says. Give it all. With Joy. No second thoughts. No middle ground. Only Him and Him alone. Read this chapter...and let God speak to you.    

Matthew 14
Matthew 14:10-13 The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he ordered that her request be granted ¹⁰ and had John beheaded in the prison. ¹¹ His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who carried it to her mother. ¹² John’s disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus.¹³ When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place...

I love seeing the humanity of Jesus. He hears word about his friend...cousin...and person that had prepared the way for Him being killed, and withdraws away from everyone. Often times when we get news like this as well, we withdraw from society and grieve. I can imagine the tears that Jesus would have had...the sorrow...the anguish. And I take comfort in the fact that Jesus went through/has gone through everything that I do. I love the humanity that He showed us. For me, it makes Him relateable. 

Matthew 15
Matthew 15:7-9 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:

⁸ “‘These people honor me with their lips,
    but their hearts are far from me.
⁹ They worship me in vain;
    their teachings are merely human rules.

In this passage, we find Jesus speaking to the pharisees and teachers of the law (basically the religious leaders of the time). These words are powerful. I wonder how many times I have honored God with my lips...spent time worshiping Him, even taught to others and have kept my heart as far away from Him as I can. This passage challenged me. And I hope you as well. It is honestly a matter of the heart. Do we just look good on the outside, or are we fully dedicated...following with everything that we have? As much we dont like to or come up with excuses or reason things away, I think our lives often mirror that of the pharisees. And that puts us in dangerous territory. 

Matthew 16
Matthew 16:20 Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

In this passage, Jesus has just gotten done telling His disciples that He truly is the Messiah. So I found this curious. Why would He tell them not to tell? Why wouldnt He want everyone to know? I think that He did it because He wanted people to discover who He was for themselves. He wasnt the Messiah in the way that most thought that He would be. He wanted people to believe because they saw...and knew that He was who He claimed to be, not because someone else had told them. When we put Jesus to the test, He is going to prove who He is every time without fail. 

Matthew 17
Matthew 17:5 “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

God tells us as plainly as He can. LISTEN TO HIM! LISTEN! That means for me today, that I need to quiet myself, and instead of always coming with a list of things that I need or questions and problems, that I need to be silent. We distract ourselves so easily today. We have a billion voices screaming at us every waking moment that we have. It is time to unplug and be quiet. LISTEN. Not sure I do this well, and that CANT stay that way...

So far to date...
Books read: 1
Chapters Read: 73
Verses Read: 2274