Straight to the Heart
Read Matthew 23:29-36 In this final, “woe to you” statement Jesus makes to the teachers of the law and Pharisees, He emphasizes the obvious hypocrisy found in their pronouncements and...
Align My Heart
Read Matthew 23:23-28 How easy it is for me to skim this passage and make the assumption this couldn’t possibly apply to me! There are no passages I can think...
Blind Guides
Read Matthew 23:16-22 We’ve heard the spiritual heed many times before: “Be careful not to become like the Pharisees!” These were the early teachers of the Law whose decisions and...
Don’t Exalt Yourself!
Read Matthew 23:5-12 The God of the Universe wants a relationship with us and desires that we meditate on Him and His Word. In several passages of the Old Testament,...
The Woes of the Religiously Misguided
Read Matthew 23:1-4; 13-15 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do...
Week 4 Reflection
Use this page either by yourself, with one or two other people or with your small group to reflect on how this week’s readings have impacted you. Reflect on...
Keeping It Real
Read Matthew 22:41-46 Before reading and discussing this passage recently with a few dozen young men, I asked the question, “What is meant when we say ‘Keep it real’?” Their...
Love and Taxes
Read Romans 13:6-10 Submit to the authorities. Submission is not a sentiment most Americans favor, no matter their background or perspective. In many circumstances, I bristle at being told to...
Trick Question
Read Matthew 22:23-33 I loved riddles and mental tricks when I was a kid. I remember one Christmas party at my house, with 40 members of my dad’s college choir,...
Give to God What Belongs to God
Read Matthew 22:15-22 The Pharisees’ question to Jesus was entirely malicious. In their minds, there were only two possible answers: he would either have to condone supporting a corrupt, defiled...