Author: Norm

This week (May 19-25, 2025) I am focusing on Matthew 23. Things are about to explode between Jesus and the religious leadership. Jesus does not hold back on His challenge to hypocritical, loveless shepherds who ought to be caring for the sheep. Although what Jesus says is specifically directed toward the religious leaders of His day,…

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Matthew 22:41-46 What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage? “No one could say a word… no one dared to ask him any more questions.” (Matthew 22:46)Have you ever talked with someone who strongly rejected God, Jesus, or faith?Their arsenal of arguments was ready to attack, to expose it…

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Matthew 22:34-40 What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage? “All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:40)There are so many laws associated with driving, the ‘rules of the road’.The purpose of these laws is not to restrict us or hold us back.Every law…

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Matthew 22:23-33 What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage? “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.” (Matthew 22:29)This question asked by the Sadducees is a legitimate one, based on the Law of Moses.Technically, this is how Levirate marriage worked…

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Matthew 22:15-22 What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage? “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” (Matthew 22:21)The religious leaders are setting Jesus up, baiting him to defy Rome.Jesus’s response avoids their trap, but what is Jesus actually saying?The religious leaders implicate…

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Matthew 22:1-14 What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage? “Gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good.” (Matthew 22:10)I was taught that we are all equally bad, that none of us are good.Yet does this theology fit with what Jesus says?Here Jesus…

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Matthew 22:1-14 What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage? “The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come.” (Matthew 22:8)Jesus speaks of the guests not deserving to come.They weren’t invited because they deserved it but because the king wanted them there.Their refusal of…

This week (May 12-18, 2025) I am focusing on Matthew 22. There are five sections in this reading:1) The parable of the wedding banquet.2) Paying the imperial tax to Caesar.3) Marriage at the Resurrection.4) The Greatest Commandment.5) Whose Son is the Messiah?The stage is being set in this section for the collision between Jesus and the…

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Matthew 21:33-45 What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage? “The kingdom of God will be… given to a people who will produce its fruit.” (Matthew 21:43)Jesus challenges the religious leaders for failing to produce good fruit.What is this kingdom fruit that the religious leaders are not producing? This…

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Matthew 21:28-32 What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage? “You did not repent and believe!” (Matthew 21:32)John called people to repent and be immersed in God’s gracious love.The tax collectors and prostitutes knew they needed help, and did so.But the religious leaders were confident in their own righteousness…