MVCC New Testament Challenge

Skepticism is easy.   I confess that I am not one of those people who naturally sees the positive or potential in any given situation. As much as I enjoy fairy tales, real life experience has conditioned me to not expect the happy ending.  I doubt I’m the only one. I think the root of skepticism is fear… fear of losing control, fear of disappointment, or fear of the unknown.  The Gerasenes were so afraid of the unknown that they begged Jesus to leave them after he healed the demon-possessed man.  The citizens of Jesus’ hometown were skeptical of his claims and demonstrations of power.  They couldn’t see past the known, the comfortable, and familiar.  The same was true of the mourners at Jairus’ house.  They laughed at Jesus’ claim that the daughter would yet live.  They doubted his power.  The disciples, even after participating in the miraculous feeding of the 5,000, didn’t look for a miracle to save them from the stormy sea. ...

A Matter of the Heart  -  Mark 4: 1-20 Growing up on a farm, I can appreciate the importance of having the soil ready for sowing. No matter how well prepared and fertilized a field is, if left alone, it eventually goes back to nothing more than a field of weeds.  The same is true for our hearts being prepared for God’s Word.  Without a daily relationship with Christ, our hearts will be like the rocky, thorny and hard soil in the parable, preventing us from having the deep roots of God’s Word needed to sustain us in times of trouble. Ephesians 1:18  I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in His Holy people. ~Bernie Hostetter

As we begin reading the Gospel of Mark, there is some background information that may help us along the way.  The author is not specifically named.  However, unanimous testimony of the early church confirms that it was John Mark.  He was not one of the Apostles. Early tradition establishes a close relationship between Mark and Peter, who would have been Mark’s eyewitness source to many of the events he recorded.  He would have heard Peter preach about Jesus and then arrange it in such a way as to give a detailed account.  In 1 Peter 5:13 Peter makes reference to “my son Mark.” What do we know about Mark?  When Peter had been rescued from prison, Acts 12:12 informs us that he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark. Incidentally, Mark was the cousin of Barnabas.  Mark accompanied Paul and Barnabas on Paul’s 1 st missionary journey.  But he left them during the trip.  Whatever the reason for his departure, it...

I don’t know about you, but I’ve noticed details while reading chapter by chapter through Matthew that I’d previously overlooked. We’re in the last two chapters today and I find myself thinking it’s hard to imagine that a mere six chapters ago Jesus entered Jerusalem and was treated as royalty by the crowd.  I found it shocking to read in Matthew 27:1 that the chief priests and elders of the people made plans how to have Jesus executed. Think about that, they were the leaders of the people; leaders the people looked up to and trusted to do what was right. They didn’t have the authority to execute Jesus themselves, so they hatched a plan to get the Romans to do their dirty work for them.   We see that Jesus offered no defense in verse 12 when he was accused in front of Pilate. Pilate wasn’t fooled by the religious leaders’ motives and their accusations. His realization that Jesus was being railroaded was reinforced when in verse 19 even Pilate’s wife warned him of ...

In preparing for the reading of today and tomorrows scripture. Watch this video. It is well worth a few minutes.  https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=RwX_EpNR4CA ~Tony Murrin

Have you ever asked yourself the question…I wonder when Jesus will return? No matter where you fall in your view of End Times, there is going to be a day when Jesus comes back. When will it be? Today, tomorrow, next week or 50 years from now, we do not know. What we do know is that man is not able to predict the exact time that it will happen. The question that we should be asking is do we believe that Jesus is coming back? If the answer is yes, then the follow-up is “am I truly living like it could be today?” Because if we do, it changes the way we live our lives. Matthew 24:44  (ESV) Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Are you ready? Are you living like Jesus could come back today?  May God grant us the wisdom, strength, courage and love to live like Jesus could come back today. ~Tony Murrin

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty." Psalm 91:1 Do you ever find some parts of the Bible hard to believe?  When Psalm 91 claims that the Almighty will "deliver you...will cover you...no evil befall you...no plague come near..." these words can seem unbelievable especially when one is experiencing sickness, pain, or suffering.  Where is God's protection?  Where is God's covering?   If you ever feel this way, you are not the first Jesus follower to grapple with these questions.  In Matthew 21, when the crowds waved palm branches and shouted "Hosanna", which means "save", they were crying out for Jesus' salvation. A few hours later, Jesus amazed his followers when he spoke and a fig tree withered.  Responding to his confused followers, Jesus proclaimed "...whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith." Believing Jesus is not easy.  In a world o...

13 Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, 14 but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” 15 And he laid his hands on them and went away.                                                                                                                                                               We are to come to Jesus just as the children did. Even though the disciples had struggled with this concept and hastily turned them away from J...

Can you think of a time when you may have been discouraged?   Is that time now?   We’ve read recently in Matthew 16 that Jesus said something to His disciples that would have been very hard to receive.   He told them in vv. 24 - 25 that if they really wanted to follow Him, they would have to deny themselves, take up their crosses and follow Him. If they wanted to save their lives, they would lose them. That could have been very disturbing news. Then Jesus said some things that would encourage His followers.   He often gives words of comfort and hope when most needed.         He told them in 16:28 – “ Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”   I believe this was a reference to Peter, James, and John and an exciting event they would experience before a week had gone by. I am referring to the dazzling, glorious Transfiguration of Jesus recorded at th...

Enthusiastic. Brash. Outspoken. Impulsive.  If I gave you these words and asked you to match them with one of the disciples, I’m betting that Peter would be the first to come to your mind. At the conclusion of today’s reading, we read the account of when Simon Peter is first to declare Jesus as “Christ, the Son of the Living God.” (Matthew 16:16) Right after this Jesus replies, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church.” (v 16:18) It always boggles my mind that Jesus bestowed this blessing and daunting task to Peter. This is the man who had his share of weaknesses, yet pressed on and became an incredible leader in the early Church, leading multitudes of others to also follow Christ.  If we look back to the first encounter between Jesus and Simon Peter, Jesus tells him, “Come, follow me.” (Mark 1:17)  In Jesus’ last words to Peter, he also says, “You must follow me.” (John 21:22) Between these two exchanges, Peter often stumbled…yet he always foll...

We have now read through the first 14 chapters of Matthew. Today we come to one of the most common stories in the Bible, Jesus and Peter walking on water. Your week started this morning. This week is faced with new challenges and decisions that require you to decide who you are going to trust. Peter trusted Jesus, until he took his eyes off of him and looked at the wind and water. Circumstances can be overwhelming; they can be so distracting and they can be scary, but we are told to keep our eyes on Jesus. Hebrews 12:2 (NIV) fixing our eyes on Jesus,  the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. It is physically impossible for us to completely focus on two things. You will give a little more attention one way or another. Take both of your index fingers and place them side by side. Fix your eyes on them. Now separate them slowly and con...

L ife is crazy! Would you agree with that statement? At times, we all search for nothing more than calm and rest. Not only a physical rest, but a spiritual one. Life is hard and messy. It is filled with challenges. Some of those difficulties take a toll on you. At times, going through the journey of life, we long for that rest. A rest of the soul. Worry, anxiety, pain and other things seek to overcome us. Matthew 11:28-30 (ESV) 28  Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.   29  Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.   30  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Jesus’ call is to everyone. Turn to me. Come to me. He is waiting and always there. Maybe, you are thinking, “Jesus, you want ME to come to YOU?! I am so undeserving.” And you are correct. We all are undeserving, but our God is a God of ...

When we read God’s Word different things jump out at us.   It may be the different characters in the story, promises of God, warnings, commands or “who, what, when, where, why and how.”   When I read I like to look at verbs and time sequences, as Kay Arthur suggests in Precept Upon Precept .   How are the actions in a verse related to the next verse?   Words like When, Then, While, After, As and Until connect people’s steps through the story.   As you read Matthew 9 take note of the expressions of time that show us the sequences of events in Jesus’ life: 1 - Jesus STEPPED into a boat, CROSSED over and CAME to his own town. 2 – Some men BROUGHT to him… WHEN Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic… 3 - AT THIS, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves… 4 - KNOWING their thoughts, Jesus said… 6 - …THEN he said to the paralytic… 7 - And the man GOT UP… 8 - WHEN the crowd saw this… 9 - AS Jesus went on from there...

Matthew 7 Matthew chapter 7 is the conclusion to the “Sermon on the Mount.”  ALL of Matthew’s gospel points to Jesus – the coming king.  Matthew’s primary audience is the Jew – who is steeped in the Mosaic Law.  Christian readers refer to this as “Kingdom living.” Chapter 5 describes “holiness.”  Chapter 6 introduces the question of our motivation for holiness along with a view toward the heavenlies: ·          Matt 6:1 "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them” NIV ·          Matt 6:25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life…” NIV Chapter 7 is basically saying, “Don’t worry about the next guy; worry about yourself” in the context of your eternal destiny. Matthew 7:1-6  - Do not judge hypocritically in the spirit of condemnation.  Rather, the N.T. discusses our judging in the sense of helping.  ( Gal 6:1-2 ) ...

How would you like to have this epitaph on your tombstone?   “And they glorified God because of me.”   The Apostle Paul said this of himself in Galatians 1:24.   He wasn’t boasting.   He was summarizing the feelings of many who saw how much his life had changed when he met the Lord Jesus Christ as his Savior. The Apostle Peter said much the same thing in 1 Peter 2:12: “ Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. More importantly, Jesus also commanded us to glorify God in the way we live our lives.   We saw it in our reading today.   Matthew 5:16 – “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Good works are important, not to save us and not to bring praise to ourselves, but to bring glory to God.     ...

Were you surprised by John the Baptist calling the Pharisees and Sadducees a brood of vipers? In today’s vernacular you might say he called them a bunch of scumbags. These religious leaders had the power to make trouble for John, but he didn’t hold back. John was the forerunner of the Messiah and he didn’t compromise on the message that people needed to hear…that they needed to repent for the kingdom of heaven was near. John knew the Pharisees and Sadducees were strict about keeping the law of Moses and observing their traditions. He also knew they were hypocrites who hadn’t come with repentance in their hearts. John boldly threw in their faces that he wouldn’t baptize them. Additionally, he let them know it wouldn’t do them any good to claim their relationship with Abraham to save them from the coming judgement. Salvation is not given as a birthright to anyone, not even the Jews who are God’s chosen people. Salvation comes only through faith in God’s son, Jesus Christ, ...

Have you ever traced your family ancestry back into the past? What about 42 generations in the past? In the beginning of Matthew we see the genealogy of Jesus. But you know what else we see? We see that God has a plan . God ’s plan extends beyond generations, beyond lifetimes, beyond what we can see and understand.  “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,     neither are your ways my ways, declares the  Lord .   For as the heavens are higher than the earth,   so are my ways higher than your ways   and my thoughts than your thoughts. ” (English Standard Version, Isaiah 55:8-9). The people mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus were not perfect people. Remember the story of Jacob, who deceived his father Isaac into blessing him instead of his brother? Or what about Rahab who was a prostitute…David and Bathsheba? People are not perfect, we often make mistakes but our God can take those mistakes and somehow bring good out of them for HIS glor...