HAVE YOU BECOME LIKE LEAVEN? Jesus often spoke in parables when describing the kingdom of heaven. In this parable, He compared it to leaven. Leaven is an ingredient added to dough to make it rise. It only takes a small amount to permeate and change the whole loaf. As the apostle Paul noted, “A little
FOUR HEART CONDITIONS In Jesus’ parable of the sower, He described four heart conditions that determined their receptivity to the gospel. Jesus explained the meaning of the parable to His disciples. He explained that the “seed” is the gospel, the “sower” is the one who preaches the gospel, and the four types of “soil” are
JOSEPH IS A CHRISTOLOGICAL TYPE Jacob’s sons were jealous of their brother, Joseph. He was the favored son of Jacob’s favorite wife, Rachel, who had died giving birth to Benjamin, the youngest. Joseph had made things worse with his brothers by giving their father a bad report of their shepherding. He also had shared his
THE GENTLE KING WHO WON A BETTER VICTORY The Spirit inspired Matthew to quote the Messianic prophecy from Isaiah 42:3 as being fulfilled in Jesus. For the type of justice and victory that Christ would bring was not as worldly kings would. For Christ’s kingdom did not come with violence and destruction. King Jesus was
IS YOUR FAITH, YOUR FAITH? As he entered the Promised Land, Jacob built an altar to God near Shechem, just as his grandfather Abraham had once done (Gen. 12:7). However, Jacob no longer referred to the Lord as the God of Abraham and Isaac. Here for the first time, Jacob referred to the Lord as
DO YOU REMEMBER HOW YOU BEGAN WITH GOD? As Jacob returned to the land of Canaan with his wives, children, servants and flocks, he remembered how he had left there with only the clothes on his back and the staff in his hand. His prayer reflected that it wasn’t only the outward blessings that were
REMEMBER THE PILLAR MOMENTS YOU’VE HAD WITH GOD Jacob had arrived in Haran empty-handed, but now he had wives, many children and flocks of sheep, goats and camels. The Lord had made him wealthy. Yet, he was fearful for his life, for his father-in-law and his sons were jealous of Jacob and were beginning to
Will you answer the prayer to be a gospel laborer? Jesus told His disciples that multitudes of people were ready to be led into the Kingdom, but there weren’t enough workers to lead them. He instructed them to pray to the Lord that more workers would answer the call. I have prayed this prayer continuously
HONORING THE LORD WITH OUR MONEY AND POSSESSIONS The Hebrew verb “honor” (kabad) may also be translated “give glory to” or “to give weight to.” This first involves recognizing that the Lord is worthy of our honor because He is both Owner and Giver of all things. Second, it means we give the Lord the
ARE YOU FOCUSED ON THE STORM OR THE SAVIOR? At first the disciples were afraid of the storm outside the boat, then they feared the One inside the boat. “Who can this be?” They wondered. He demonstrates authority over both the seen and the unseen creation. For both storms and evil spirits obey Him. Who