Savior and Teacher: A Study of Matthew PART 28
Dr. Timothy Keller
19 August 2012
Matthew 18: 1-14
1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
2He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4"Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in hevaen.
5And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. 6But if anyone causes one of these little ones who beleive in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.
7"Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come! 8If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life mained or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.
10"See that you do not look down onone of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.
12"What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for that one that wandered off? 13And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than abouth the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.
WHAT IS TRUE HUMAN GREATNESS?
--Not reached through any worldly achievement as that always comes with strife.
HUMILITY
--Willingness to engage the marginalized.
--Determines how you deal with others as well as your own flaws.
REPENTENCE
--Part of greatness and greatness can come from repentence.
--Biggest failure can become the biggest leader--Peter's denial.
Jesus was the greatest shepherd and became a lost sheep for us on the cross.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Monday, August 13, 2012
Parables of the Treasures and the Net
Savior and Teacher: A Study of Matthew PART 27
Rev. John Lin
12 August 2012
Matthew 13: 44-52
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 an bought the field.
45"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
47"Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48When it was full, the fisherman pulled it up to the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51"Have you understand all those these things?" Jesus asked.
"Yes," they replied.
52He told them, "Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out his storeroom new treasures as well as old."
UNEXPECTED FIND
--Parables of treasures in the field and pearl of great price descibes Value.
--Something more valuable than anyone's expectations was found.
--Things that are easy to overlook may contain great value.
UNDERGROUND VIEW
--Seeing true value beneath the superficial.
--Isaiah 53 - It was also easy to overlook Jesus when you know his origins.
--Judging others--their true value is never on the surface.
--God's work is buried deep within and is often hard for us to see.
INESTIMABLE PRICE
--Giving up things for paradise should be a joyful process.
--It is the for the Cost that the King paid for you.
--We become the treasure of the field, the pearl of great price to Jesus.
--We need to realize that he gave it all up for us.
Rev. John Lin
12 August 2012
Matthew 13: 44-52
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 an bought the field.
45"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
47"Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48When it was full, the fisherman pulled it up to the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51"Have you understand all those these things?" Jesus asked.
"Yes," they replied.
52He told them, "Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out his storeroom new treasures as well as old."
UNEXPECTED FIND
--Parables of treasures in the field and pearl of great price descibes Value.
--Something more valuable than anyone's expectations was found.
--Things that are easy to overlook may contain great value.
UNDERGROUND VIEW
--Seeing true value beneath the superficial.
--Isaiah 53 - It was also easy to overlook Jesus when you know his origins.
--Judging others--their true value is never on the surface.
--God's work is buried deep within and is often hard for us to see.
INESTIMABLE PRICE
--Giving up things for paradise should be a joyful process.
--It is the for the Cost that the King paid for you.
--We become the treasure of the field, the pearl of great price to Jesus.
--We need to realize that he gave it all up for us.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
The Parables of the Kingdom
Savior and Teacher: A Study of Matthew PART 26
Rev. John Lin
05 August 2012
Matthew 13: 24-33
24Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.
27"The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?'
28"'An enemy did this,' he replied.
"The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?'
29"'No,' he answered 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. 30Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.'"
31He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches."
33He told them still another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough."
MIXED CROPS
--Weeds are intertwined with the good stuff crops.
--Good is intertwined with evil.
PATIENT FARMER
--Everything is intertwined and difficult to disentangle.
--Everything is broken.
Weeds are like the evil in the outside world as well as in our hearts.
Jesus Christ is the first fruits of the harvest.
Rev. John Lin
05 August 2012
Matthew 13: 24-33
24Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.
27"The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?'
28"'An enemy did this,' he replied.
"The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?'
29"'No,' he answered 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. 30Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.'"
31He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches."
33He told them still another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough."
MIXED CROPS
--Weeds are intertwined with the good stuff crops.
--Good is intertwined with evil.
PATIENT FARMER
--Everything is intertwined and difficult to disentangle.
--Everything is broken.
Weeds are like the evil in the outside world as well as in our hearts.
Jesus Christ is the first fruits of the harvest.
The Parable of the Soils
Savior and Teacher: A Study of Matthew PART 25
Rev. John Lin
29 July 2012
Matthew 13: 1-9
1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3Then he told them many things in parables, saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop--a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9He who has ears, let him hear."
NATURE OF THE KINGDOM
--Christianity begins as a seed.
--Small and unrealized potential.
--Seed eventually transforms everything.
RECEIVING THE KINGDOM
--Christianity can't just be an intellectual construct.
--Christianity must be deeply personal and move us greatly.
--We can't turn away from it when things go badly.
--Worries of life can choke the seed too.
--Thorns are things in life that we can't control.
PATTERN OF THE KINGDOM
--A kingdom of service and humility.
--Leads to a beautiful and cultivated world.
--To have eternal life, we must be willing to give up our selfish lifestyle.
PARABLE OF THE KINGDOM
--Immerse yourself in the gospel and receive it.
--Change and transform yourself as a seed does.
--It could be a life of toil where we won't see the fruits of our labor to the end.
Rev. John Lin
29 July 2012
Matthew 13: 1-9
1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3Then he told them many things in parables, saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop--a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9He who has ears, let him hear."
NATURE OF THE KINGDOM
--Christianity begins as a seed.
--Small and unrealized potential.
--Seed eventually transforms everything.
RECEIVING THE KINGDOM
--Christianity can't just be an intellectual construct.
--Christianity must be deeply personal and move us greatly.
--We can't turn away from it when things go badly.
--Worries of life can choke the seed too.
--Thorns are things in life that we can't control.
PATTERN OF THE KINGDOM
--A kingdom of service and humility.
--Leads to a beautiful and cultivated world.
--To have eternal life, we must be willing to give up our selfish lifestyle.
PARABLE OF THE KINGDOM
--Immerse yourself in the gospel and receive it.
--Change and transform yourself as a seed does.
--It could be a life of toil where we won't see the fruits of our labor to the end.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)