Matthew 6:12-13 reads: And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. It's no surprise that Jesus included a plea for forgiveness in his model prayer. If you are a Christian, your repentance of your sins and God's willingness to forgive you are the bedrock of the entire gospel. Why so important? …
Continue reading "Matthew 6 – How to pray – The Lord’s Prayer part 4"
This week we'll look at verse 11, the third line of the Lord's prayer as described by Matthew. Matthew 6:11 reads: Give us today our daily bread. At first glance this might seem to be a very simple request - namely for God to provide you with enough food to get you through the day …
Continue reading "Matthew 6 – How to pray – The Lord’s Prayer part 3"
This week we'll look at the second verse of the Lord's prayer. Matthew 6:10 reads: Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. As we can see, the first request within Jesus' model prayer is for God's kingdom to come. What does this mean and why was it the …
Continue reading "Matthew 6 – How to pray – The Lord’s Prayer part 2"
My apologies that there was no blog post last week - I was away at a church conference with very limited access to the Internet. We'll continue our study of Jesus' teachings in Matthew 6. Last time we looked at his instructions on how not to pray. To be a Christian, however, you need to …
Continue reading "Matthew 6 – How to pray – The Lord’s Prayer"
We move now to look at Jesus' teaching on prayer. I've decided to break this up into more than one post, since I think there is a lot of useful teaching for us here. This week's post will look at the first section of Jesus' teaching: how NOT to pray. Let's read Matthew 6:5-8And when …
Continue reading "Matthew 6 – Don’t be a hypocrite – How not to pray"
Behold, for we have reached the end of Matthew 5 and it's only taken just over half a year! I'd like to continue with the rest of Jesus' teaching in what's traditionally called the Sermon on the Mount, with the same underlying theme always in mind: how do these teachings of Jesus enable us to …
Continue reading "Matthew 6 – Don’t be a hypocrite – Giving to the poor"
Let's read Matthew 5:43-48You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends …
Continue reading "Being counter-cultural in Matthew 5 – Love your enemies"
Let's read Matthew 5:38-42You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over …
Continue reading "Being counter-cultural in Matthew 5 – An eye for an eye."
Let's read Matthew 5:33-37'Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’ But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for …
Continue reading "Being counter-cultural in Matthew 5 – Oaths"
Last week I mentioned that a sin as serious as adultery rarely happens in a vacuum. It can lead to all sorts of other deceptions and, if discovered, can destroy a marriage entirely. What should you do in that kind of situation if you're a Christian? It just so happens that the next concrete example …
Continue reading "Being counter-cultural in Matthew 5 – Divorce"
Nihilist to Christian